Men's Jersey Countdown: #23 Jonathan Milley

Sophomore - Forward - 6'4" - 220 pounds - Gatineau, QC

Jonathan Milley is a compelling blend of size and skill who, thanks to injury, was limited to nine games in 2012-13. Still, in those nine games, he showed plenty - enough to consider his successful return to potentially be one of the team's more significant "additions" for the coming season. He scored four times, including in Penn State's first NCAA win against AIC on October 13, 2012, as well as in both ends of a road sweep of Army and Sacred Heart two weeks later. His third-period goal against Holy Cross on December 7, 2012 followed two assists in the game and gave the Nittany Lions a 4-2 lead. In short, it probably isn't a coincidence that PSU's record was 5-2-0 before Milley's injuries began to hit, and 8-12-0 against NCAA competition after he started to miss time. Prior to heading south from Quebec, Milley played for Pembroke in the CCHL and helped the Lumber Kings to the 2011 RBC Cup (Canada's Junior A national championship) by, among other things, scoring both goals in the title game.

Career Statistics:
Season	GP	G	A	Pts.	PIM	PP	SH	GW	GT
2012-13	9	4	3	7	26	2	0	0	0
NCAA Career	9	4	3	7	26	2	0	0	0

Three Stars: January 7-13

Luke Juha's freshman season is over.

3. Locals help establish strong hockey foundation at PSU
(TribLive)

Much to my amazement, Pittsburgh media was still in on Penn State hockey two weeks after the Three Rivers Classic ended. Matt Skoff, Michael Longo and George Saad - PSU's Pittsburgh connection - get a nice feature this time around.

2. Hannah Hoenshell CHA Rookie of the Week highlights
(YouTube)

I love how the CHA puts together highlight videos for their weekly and monthly award winners. This one, featuring Hannah Hoenshell of course, is kind of old news (it came out just after the last Three Stars), but I'm a huge Hoenshell fan, so... do yourself a favor and watch her second goal about eight times.

1. @TDC_MHockey
(Twitter)

On Monday, Guy Gadowsky updated the media (unfortunately not including yours truly, as mid-week stuff is pretty well off the table for me) on what has become quite the rash of injuries, especially on the blue line. Getting Mark Yanis, who had been out with a fractured ankle since November, back over the weekend was nice, but...

• D Luke Juha (abdominal injury), who last played January 5th against Connecticut will miss the remainder of the season.
• There is no timetable on F Jonathan Milley, who missed time in November and has now been out since December 8th with what is being described as a lower body injury. It should be noted that both Milley and Juha missed the vast majority of their junior seasons last year with injury issues.
• D Nate Jensen (upper body injury) is expected back before the end of the season. He, like Juha, last played on January 5th.
• F Justin Kirchhevel (concussion) will be in the lineup Tuesday night after missing six weeks.
• D Brian Dolan's injury was relatively minor - he's expected in Tuesday's lineup as well after missing just this past weekend.

Best of the Rest

Buckeye Ryan Dzingel is the official Hobey Baker voting recommendation of TYT.

Vote For Hobey 2013 Phase I
(hobeybakeraward.com)

There are about 28 billion players on the Hobey Baker Award fan voting ballot, which is used to help pare the preliminary candidates down to 10 finalists. None are Penn Staters (that would have been a separate post, obviously), but there are plenty of Big Tenners and Nittany Lions opponents.

The former category includes A.J. Treis and Jacob Trouba from Michigan, Matt Berry and Jake Hildebrand from Michigan State, Brady Hjelle and Ryan Dzingel from Ohio State, Mark Zengerle and Michael Mersch from Wisconsin, and Erik Haula, Nate Schmidt and Nick Bjudstad from Minnesota. In addition to the MSU, OSU and Wisconsin contingents, Andy Starczewski (Army), Alex Gerke and Garrett Bartus (Connecticut), Evan Zych (Holy Cross), Adam Brace, Eric Levine and Zach Hervato (Robert Morris), Kyle Bodie, Wayne Simpson and Greg Coburn (Union), and Brody Hoffman and Chris McCarthy (Vermont) have played or will play PSU this year.

Recommendation? With all due respect to Levine, Dzingel has been the best opposing player I've seen so far this year, and he's also a Big Tenner. Take that, ignore it, whatever, your choice.

Fate of UAH hockey program could be decided at next week's NCAA convention
(al.com)

The NCAA convention, which begins Wednesday in Grapevine, TX, may seal the fate of Alabama-Huntsville's program. WCHA representatives are expected to vote on UAH's admission to the conference while there, and a rejection might finally mean that the struggling independents have used up their ninth life. Obviously, here's hoping for the opposite outcome.

Club hockey lives Division-I dream
(Inside Vandy)

Vanderbilt's ACHA Division 3 team was crushed by those Chargers on January 5th, but that's not really the point, is it? Definite soft spot for stuff like this.

TWICH: College Hockey Westward Expansion?
(College Spun)

Just to keep the ACHA thing going, here's a pretty standard-issue "more schools should have NCAA hockey" article, but with the best factual error ever.

The way college hockey is set up is different from any other NCAA sport. There are four different levels of college hockey. There is Division-1 NCAA and than there are three separate levels of something called ACHA. The ACHA is a governing body of college hockey that oversees all other levels, mainly including club. Most schools who do not want or cannot afford a D-1 NCAA team choose this route.

Ouch, sorry DIII hockey. Also, I'd like to hear more about these non-club ACHA teams the Icers apparently played all those years.

Wisconsin Unveils Hockey City Classic Throwback Jerseys
(Bucky's 5th Quarter)

The Badgers unveiled their jerseys for the Hockey City Classic, a February 17th doubleheader at Chicago's Soldier Field that will see Wisconsin play Minnesota and Miami take on Notre Dame. I approve.

In hindsight, I'm kind of mad that Penn State didn't use the excuse of last season's outdoor game to come up with some kind of fauxback one-off jersey. Unreasonable? Not really - the Icers played a "third jersey game" from 2007-2008 through 2010-2011 before discontinuing it last season.

Why do we send millions to USA Hockey?
(Let's Play Hockey)

Whether you agree or not, this column does raise interesting arguments about USA Hockey's (over)regulation of the game... and the writer wins like 30,000 rhetoric points for using the words of probably the organization's biggest icon in his introduction.

Bruce Marshall Resigns As Men’s Hockey Coach
(UConn Today)

Finally, best wishes to Bruce Marshall, who resigned as UConn's coach two months after taking a medical leave of absence (and two days after his team finished sweeping Penn State) for an undisclosed condition. From Marshall's statement:

"During my time away from the program, I determined that this decision was in the best interest for myself, my family and the UConn men’s ice hockey team. I am extremely proud of the accomplishments of the program during my time as a Husky and I wish nothing but success for the team as it continues to make the exciting transition to Hockey East for the 2014-15 season."

I've never met Marshall, but from the accounts of those who have, he sounds like a class human being and a great coach who was the driving force behind the Huskies' just-underway attempt to step up in status.

Assistant David Berard, who took over once Marshall went on leave - including against PSU - will finish out the season as head coach, and a national search for a permanent replacement will follow.

M: Penn State 4 at Holy Cross 5 (OT)

Box score // GoPSUSports.com recap // GoHolyCross.com recap

Holy Cross F Shayne Stockton postgame

At the beginning of the NCAA era, I set a simple rule for myself: don't get mad for the first two years.

The reasons for such a rule should be fairly obvious, but just to make them explicit:

1. Having any sort of expectation is pretty unfair at this stage - and anger in sports tends to be related to expectations not met.
2. We should just relax and be happy about all of the positive developments found everywhere in Penn State hockey right now. There will be the rest of our lives to worry about wins and losses and the smaller things that lead to them.

With that out of the way, if there were ever a game where I were to break that rule, it would be this one, just for the way things seemed so perfect for Penn State (7-7-0, 5-5-0 NCAA DI), then turned so quickly and decisively in favor of Holy Cross (8-4-2, 6-3-2 ECAC). The Nittany Lions, as a result, have now dropped five of seven.

After a slow start - a David Glen turnover led to Adam Schmidt's 1-0 goal 3:58 into the game, and PSU was outshot 16-5 in the first period - the second period was a great example of where we should eventually set our expectations. The Nittany Lions scored three times in the middle 20, but more significantly than that, it was a creative, free-flowing, yet gritty and defensively responsible effort. Pretty much textbook Guy Gadowsky stuff.

During a four-on-four situation that resulted from Caston Sommer's takedown of Matt Skoff and Connor Varley's reaction to it and just 21 seconds into the second period, Casey Bailey capitalized on the extra ice. He skated seemingly unnoticed into the slot, where he deflected Nate Jensen's point shot to force a rebound from Crusaders goalie Matt Ginn, then put back that rebound to tie the game. Glen - who bounced back tremendously from his early mistake, by the way - put back a Pete Sweetland rebound to give the Nittany Lions the lead 7:30 later, and Varley finished the burst at the 12:39 mark off of sort of a role-reversing give-and-go with Jonathan Milley that involved the big forward feeding the defenseman from up high as he streaked towards the net - remember what I just said about creativity?

Milley would finish with a goal, two assists and a plus-three rating, adding up to a highly-successful return to the lineup after missing the past month with a hip injury.

Penn State's power play has been the subject of some criticism this year. It's ranked 54th in the country with an 8.0 percent conversion rate, and its four total goals lead only Harvard in NCAA Division I. That unit actually didn't take the ice all game, as Sommer's matched penalty was the only Holy Cross infraction of the contest. This time around it was Penn State's penalty kill, ranked a better-but-still-not-very-good 32nd, standing in as the disappointing special team by surrendering two crucial goals, the first of which came late in the second period.

On that goal, Holy Cross cut the PSU lead to 3-2 just nine seconds into a Milley boarding penalty by winning the draw to start their power play, moving the puck to Sommer at left point, and getting traffic in front of Skoff, including Mike McNamara, who tipped Sommer's shot in. After intermission, Milley overpowered Ginn in the crease on a second-chance goal to restore Penn State's two-goal lead at 4-2. That score lasted into the last six minutes of regulation when...ehhh...I don't want to break my rule, so I'll just not think about it and pass off to the Holy Cross side.

Freshman Matt Vidal (Manorville, N.Y.) scored his first collegiate goal, making the score 4-3 at 14:44 when he split through two Penn State defenders and took a low backhand shot into the Penn State net after receiving a tipped pass from sophomore Nilan Nagy (Canonsburg, Pa.). Zych also recorded an assist on the play for his second of the night and team-best 10th of the season. Just over two minutes later at 16:51 Holy Cross tied the game on a power play goal, forcing overtime action. The goal occurred when junior Shayne Stockton (Rochester, N.Y.) picked up a pass from sophomore Jake Youso (International Falls, Minn) and sent a puck through the five-hole of the Nittany Lions' goalie. Freshman Joe McNamara (Chestnut Hill, Mass.) also recorded an assist for the play.

Holy Cross defeated Penn State 1:54 in overtime play when [senior captain Erik] Vos netted the game-winner. After a fight for possession in front of the net, Vos stuffed the loose puck beneath the glove of the Nittany Lions' goalie and into the back of the net, giving the Crusaders the victory. Youso and freshman Karl Beckman (Okemos, Mich.) each posted assists on the goal. The last time Holy Cross won an overtime game was on Nov. 6, 2010 against Robert Morris, with a score of 3-2.

A learning experience in a season - or two - full of them? Absolutely. More than that? Forget it, there's another one tomorrow.

M: Penn State 4 vs. Buffalo State (NCAA DIII) 2

Box score // GoPSUSports.com recap // BuffaloStateAthletics.com recap

StateCollege.com recap // USCHO recap // Centre Daily Times recap

(links added as available)

It wasn't really the catharsis most wanted after the embarrassment in Buffalo, but this one still got the job done.

Penn State (5-2-0, 4-1-0 NCAA DI), despite the somewhat tight result, did get a measure of revenge for that shutout at the hands of the NCAA Division III Buffalo State Bengals (2-2-1, 1-1-1 SUNYAC) on October 19th via a chippy 4-2 win at the Ice Pavilion Saturday night. And - oh yeah - won a fourth straight game since then, in addition to notching a first NCAA home victory.

This contest, at the start, actually mirrored the events of two weeks ago. Despite the Nittany Lions carrying the play early on, the Bengals capitalized on the power play with an ugly goal to go up 1-0. Then, it Nick Melligan trickling one through Matt Skoff. Saturday, it was Matt Bessing hammering a rebound past Skoff 10:52 into the game.

Unlike that previous game, the Nittany Lions had an answer. And, of no surprise to anyone who has been paying attention this year, that answer was David Glen. His line (which usually includes Kenny Brooks and Curtis Loik) tends to be on the ice in big situations, and it's largely because they do things like erase early 1-0 deficits. This time around, and just after a late first period power play expired, Glen took a pass from Loik and circled to the front for a stuff attempt. BSC goalie Kevin Carr was up to that challenge, but not to the Alberta freshman's batting in of his own rebound. He would add a second goal to seal the win with 3:24 remaining when a turnover at the Bengal line led to a shorthanded 2-on-1 with Brooks. Glen attempted to slide across to Brooks for the finish, but the pass was blocked. No worries - it bounced back to Glen, who decided he wanted the goal after all.

In between those two goals, Michael Longo connected on the power play and Tommy Olczyk made the score 3-1 through two periods with his first of the season, which was set up by a nifty between-the-legs pass from linemate Max Gardiner. Before the Nittany Lions could think about a cruise to the finish line, Mike Zanella sniped from the circle 3:15 into the third period to cut the lead to one. The Bengals would get no closer however, thanks in part to a vital kill of a late Mike McDonagh penalty that ended just as Glen was considering passing to Brooks in transition leading to the final goal.

The result was marred by injuries to both Jonathan Milley, felled by a Melligan slash in the second period, and Mark Yanis. Their statuses are not yet known for what will probably be PSU's biggest NCAA test so far: two home games against 2012 Atlantic Hockey champ and NCAA tournament participant Air Force next weekend.

M: Penn State 6 at Sacred Heart 3

First off, I want to thank each of you for your support, or at least understanding, of my absence for Saturday evening's men's win over Sacred Heart. Suffice it to say, I'm a little bit of a hothead and needed to take a step back from things for a few hours. Simple as that.

The issue, for those who don't follow me on Twitter, is that there was a media tour given of the Pegula Ice Arena site yesterday (I'm sure you've seen some of the photos and videos that resulted from that already, they're pretty amazing - one photo is above, of course, and one video is linked below). Despite carrying a full-season credential for Penn State hockey, I was not invited. Last night, I was given the explanation that the tour was designed to take advantage of the "national and regional" media in town for the Penn State-Ohio State football game and who don't cover PSU hockey on a regular basis. I'd be a hypocrite if I took any great issue with that idea, as I've expressed concern over the interest of the wider Penn State community before, and the growth of the programs should always come ahead of this blog and my ego.

However, that explanation doesn't account for the fact that among others Rob Greissinger, one of the Daily Collegian's hockey writers, was on the tour. So was Ben Jones, who regularly covers hockey for StateCollege.com. So was Greg Pickel, whose hockey stuff can be read on several different outlets. All three of them do a fantastic job, and this isn't meant to imply otherwise, but their presence would seem to contradict the reasons given for my exclusion. Student papers and websites named for Penn State's home borough are not "regional" or "national," and as stated, there has been no shortage of great hockey coverage from those outlets. All three of them are fully credentialed for hockey as well and at every men's home game and even some away games. In short, their inclusion was not growing Penn State hockey's coverage footprint in any way.

More than anything, I think this and a lot of things simply boil down to "we just don't like (or respect or both) you, and aren't going to include you if we don't absolutely have to." There's a larger conversation in there about whether I should be media (which involves dancing a certain dance in exchange for less access than they give themselves) or a blog (which doesn't have to follow rules, but gets no access), but I'll save that for some other time. In general, my feeling that I'm sort of awkwardly caught between those two things.

Before moving on, I do want to reiterate one thing: my love of Penn State hockey. It's why I've paid thousands of dollars for the privilege to do this. And honestly, it's what makes my continued struggles in certain areas so perplexing to me, because I believe that I've demonstrated - both through this blog and otherwise - my support for the programs.

Anyway, on to the business of the day...

Box score // GoPSUSports.com recap // SacredHeartPioneers.com recap

StateCollege.com recap and PIA tour video

GoPSUsports.com Guy Gadowsky postgame comments

I probably need to give some thought to how I handle away games with no available video (sort of a new reality this season) and when I'm not in attendance. The cruel truth is that I don't have any great insight regarding those games - how can anyone without the ability to see it? - and simply post about those by cobbling together the available recap stories, the box score and maybe a couple tweets. I'll try to interpret what can be interpreted and offer some context.

Is the result a worthwhile product? Does it add anything to the conversation? Does it assume facts not in evidence? I'm not sure. Maybe I'm offering something unique and making the best of a bad situation. Or maybe I'm offering an inferior product just in the name of not taking the easy way out.

This time around, and in consideration of the fact that I was even less plugged in than normal for a "blind" game (see above), I'm simply going to re-publish Penn State's game release here. Actual media outlets do this all the time and get to be called actual media outlets, so maybe they're on to something. As with anything I do here, I'm accepting feedback on which approach you'd prefer. Naturally, if I'm in attendance or if streaming video is available (which will be most of the time), I'll continue with the usual live blog/recap approach.

---

Junior defenseman Nate Jensen scored his first goal of the season to help PSU pull away in the third.

Six Different Lions Score in 6-3 Win Vs. SHU

MILFORD, Conn. - Six different Nittany Lions scored as the Penn State men's hockey team skated to a 6-3 victory against Sacred Heart at Milford Ice Pavilion Saturday evening. The Nittany Lions improved to 4-2-0 with their third straight win.

Senior forward Michael Longo (Allison Park, Pa.) and junior defenseman Nate Jensen (Shorewood, Minn.) notched their first goals of the season, and junior forward Michael McDonagh (Wilmington, Mass.) tallied a game-high three assists. Sophomore Max Gardiner (Deephaven, Minn.) and freshmen Curtis Loik (North Vancouver, B.C.), Jonathan Milley (Gatineau, Que.) and Mark Yanis (Grosse Pointe Woods, Mich.) also scored.

The Nittany Lions fell behind, 1-0, early in the first period before scoring three goals in a 5:06 span to take a 3-1 lead. The Pioneers tallied later in the frame before the teams traded goals in the second period as Penn State skated to a 4-3 second-period advantage. The Nittany Lions added a pair of goals in the final stanza as they defeated their fourth Atlantic Hockey opponent of the season.

Penn State outshot the Pioneers by a 31-19 margin. The Nittany Lions were 0-for-5 on the power play, while Sacred Heart finished 0-for-4 with the man advantage. Sophomore goaltender PJ Musico (Orange, Calif.) improved to 4-0-0 with 16 saves, while Sacred Heart netminder Andrew Bodnarchuk turned aside 25 shots.

Penn State found itself down 1-0 just 5:03 into the game before the Nittany Lions responded with their three-goal run. Following Josh Phillips' marker, Longo knotted the game at 1-1 with his first career tally just 32 seconds later. McDonagh passed to freshman defenseman Joseph Lordo (St. Louis. Mo.), who fired a shot from the blue line that Longo tipped in for the goal.

Gardiner gave Penn State a 2-1 advantage 1:07 later. Freshman defenseman Luke Juha (Mississauga, Ont.) sent a pass across the blue line to classmate Yanis, who found Gardiner near the edge of the crease. The Deephaven, Minn., native's first attempt was stopped before he took the puck around the cage and slipped it to the back of the net.

With 9:19 left in the period, Milley extended the Penn State lead to 3-1. Freshman defenseman Connor Varley (Lansdale, Pa.) passed to classmate Casey Bailey (Anchorage, Alaska), who recorded a point in his third straight game, along the half boards. The Anchorage, Alaska, native found Milley near the bottom of the left circle, where he put a shot toward the goal that went past Bodnarchuk.

Sacred Heart closed the gap to 3-2 with 2:24 left in the opening frame. The Pioneers skated through the neutral zone on an odd-man rush before Brian Sheehan wristed a shot that was caught in Musico's pads before trickling in for the goal.

Both teams scored once in the second period as Penn State secured a 4-3 lead. With 11:51 left in the frame, Jensen gave the Nittany Lions a 4-2 advantage. Lordo passed up the boards to McDonagh, who raced down the right-wing boards before sending a backdoor pass to Jensen for the goal.

Drew George tallied for the Pioneers with 7:27 left in the period to make it a 4-3 game. George received a pass from Eric Delong and finished the tic-tac-toe play for the marker.

In the third period, Yanis extended the Penn State lead to 5-3 with his second goal of the season. McDonagh passed to Yanis at the blue line, where the defenseman rifled a slap shot high to the blocker side. Senior forward Eric Steinour (Carlisle, Pa.) also recorded his first assist of the season.

Loik added his goal 1:15 later. Freshman David Glen (Fort Saskatchewan, Alta.) passed to Jensen, who took the puck into the slot. Loik then batted the puck out of mid-air and into the back of the net. Glen extended his point-scoring streak to three games with the helper.

Penn State will return to action Tuesday, Oct. 30 when it visits Fredonia State. Opening faceoff is set at 7 p.m.

M: Penn State 4 vs. American International 3 (OT)

Box score // GoPSUSports.com recap // AICYellowJackets.com recap
GoPSUSports.com photos // College Hockey News recap
StateCollege.com recap // Citizens Voice recap
Guy Gadowsky postgame // David Glen and P.J. Musico postgame

Penn State is on the board in the NCAA era.

David Glen's heroics just 38 seconds into overtime gave the Nittany Lions a historic first NCAA win, 4-3 over American International Saturday night before 5,389 fans at Mohegan Sun Arena in Wilkes-Barre, PA. The result, of course, provided some measure of revenge for a PSU team that dropped Friday's series opener to AIC in overtime.

I was covering the women's game against Syracuse Saturday night (hey, I'm just one guy), so let's borrow from the accounts of those who actually saw the game for some of the finer points (all of the quotes that follow are from the links above).

According to GoPSUSports.com, the winner developed like this:

Freshman Curtis Loik (North Vancouver, B.C.) chipped the puck past an AIC defenseman before sending a pass to classmate Kenny Brooks (Las Vegas, Nev.) along the right-wing boards. Brooks then slid the puck to Glen in the slot, where he rifled a shot past AIC netminder Ben Meisner for the winning tally.

I wouldn't expect anything less from Loik, a guy who will rapidly become a fan favorite for things that don't always result in second assists.

Meisner, the hero of Friday night who was also outstanding on Saturday with 40 saves on 44 shots, was beaten twice by Glen. The Alberta native opened the game's scoring, in addition to closing it. According to AICYellowJackets.com:

Penn State got on the board first, as freshman center David Glen (Fort Saskatchewan, AB) won a draw and flipped the puck over the head of senior goalkeeper Ben Meisner (Halifax, NS) to give the Nittany Lions a 1-0 lead. The goal was unassisted, at the 16:11 mark of the period.

PSU did not enjoy the same shooting and territorial advantage as on Friday night, and so found the Yellow Jackets difficult to shake. Following Glen's first goal, Chris Porter evened the game with Max Gardiner in the box for tripping. The Nittany Lions, perhaps realizing that a one-goal lead was insufficient, built a two goal lead instead. From GoPSUSports.com:

Yanis recorded his first goal at 16:26 of the [second] frame to give Penn State a 2-1 advantage. The blueliner skated into the offensive zone and unleashed a shot from the high slot that found the back of the net.

With 15:53 left in the third period, Milley tallied the first power-play goal in Penn State history. AIC attempted to clear the puck out of its zone, but the puck bounced off Max Gardiner's (Deephaven, Minn.) shin guards. The sophomore collected the puck and sent it over to Milley, who fired it past Meisner.

AIC bounced back according, once again, to their official site:

AIC would cut the lead in half with a power play tally of their own, as Sliwinski stole the puck along the left half-wall and cut into the slot, firing a low wrist shot that hit off the post and into the net at 7:54 of the third. The goal was unassisted.

Pleskach then tied the game at 3-3 late in the frame, stealing the puck in his own end and breaking up the ice, cutting across the crease before sliding the puck under sophomore goalkeeper PJ Musico (Orange, CA) to draw even at 15:22.

Speaking of Musico, the keeper who defines Caliswag was solid in collecting his first NCAA win, as he stopped 32 of 35 Jacket shots as Guy Gadowsky looks to be using a rotation of Musico and freshman Matt Skoff to start the season.

Next Saturday, Penn State will face perhaps its toughest early-season test in the form of RIT at Rochester, NY's Blue Cross Arena. The game will be the Tigers' annual Brick City Homecoming tilt and is expected to draw in excess of 10,000 fans. The evening before that, the Lions will stop in Buffalo for a matchup with NCAA Division III Buffalo State. The Bengals are an old archrival of the Icers from back when both schools were members of the International Collegiate Hockey League between 1985 and 1992.

Perspectives on Recruiting

According to some, if Guy Gadowsky found a way to win at Princeton, he can find a way to win at PSU.

What are the implications of Penn State's NCAA sanctions on hockey recruiting? Really, at this point, it depends on who you ask. Let's take a quick spin around a representative set of opinions, starting on the pessimistic end of the spectrum.

(By the way, message board "experts" need not apply here. I actually did look at USCHO in an attempt to pull a reasonably intelligent opinion to share. No such luck.)

Negative Impact

CBS Sports ran this piece on Monday, and while the subject was Patrick Chambers and Penn State basketball, the applicability of everything said to hockey should be pretty obvious. Both sports are in the same boat as not directly involved, but guilty by association. The writer talks about sitting next to PSU associate coach Eugene Burroughs at a showcase, seeing the logo on his shirt, and thinking "Sandusky, child rape, coverup." He concludes that if that was his first reaction, surely most potential recruits would see it the same way. The most compelling part of the article, though, was this opinion:

"It will affect [basketball] recruiting in the short-term," said Baylor coach Scott Drew, who already knows what Chambers soon will learn, that it's difficult to recruit to a ruined brand even if the damage done wasn't your fault. Drew, in 2003, took the challenge of rebuilding the Bears program rocked by a murder and coverup under former coach Dave Bliss.

"The people who only know of Penn State what they're reading nationally probably aren't going to be interested in going to Penn State right now," Drew said. "So Penn State might have to rely more on prospects and families who know more about Penn State than what's in the news -- maybe people who had relatives or family members go there, or just people who have spent some time on the campus before all this -- because those people will probably be more inclined to see more than just this situation."

Possible Negative Impact, But Ultimately Okay

College Hockey News managing editor Adam Wodon called into The Pipeline Show Tuesday night to discuss The Scandal's impact on hockey (here's the show's archive page, with downloadable MP3s of each segment - segment one, before Wodon was on, is also worth a listen).

Between the three people involved in the conversation - co-hosts Dean Millard and Guy Flaming were the other two - the consensus seemed to be that recruiting may (or may not, there was some hedging) be hurt on some level in the short run, but in the long run, the program will come out fine. Wodon, at one point, said that "it may take them a little longer, perhaps, to become a power than they might have anticipated," which sort of captures both sides of the coin - power status is still on the table, but delayed. He followed it up with this gem:

"[Gadowsky] recruited to Princeton and they won the ECAC championship and made the NCAA tournament. If he can do that, I'm pretty sure he can still recruit to Penn State."

Ouch, sorry Princeton.

Freshman forward Jonathan Milley and Sheldon Keefe won big at Pembroke.

A Speed Bump

On Wednesday, Pembroke Lumber Kings (CCHL) President/GM/Head Coach Sheldon Keefe tweeted this:

Guy Gadowsky, Matt Lindsay and the staff of Penn State's new D1 hockey program are the perfect people to help rebuild the pride at PSU.

No, he wasn't directly talking about recruiting, but as a guy in charge of a Junior A team (not to mention his specific mention of ace recruiter Lindsay), what do you suppose his context is? Even if the comment wasn't a "recruiting" comment per se, recruiting, whether consciously or not, probably played a big part in developing that opinion. At minimum, it's nice to see some confidence from someone representing a group with a great amount of influence on the process.

Keefe and the Lumber Kings, by the way, were the 2011 RBC Cup winners as the Canadian Junior A national champions. Nittany Lions freshman Jonathan Milley scored both goals in the title game win over the Vernon Vipers.

No Effect

I won't claim to be supremely plugged into the world of uncommitted players to the point where I can deliver any kind of large sample. But the father of one, Edina (MN) High School senior Anthony Walsh, told me recently that "the football mess leaves Anthony no less interested in PSU." I think that statement's important not just for the "no less interested" part, but for the "football" part as well. Clearly, some out there are able to see this as implicating something less than the entire university.

Here's a nice highlight reel of Walsh at his Green Bay Gamblers (USHL) tryout. For more, check out the YouTube channel of 55rudyrudy.



It...Helps? What?

The article that ties everything together and inspired me to do something beyond just dumping this all in Three Stars is this USCHO piece, posted late Wednesday and quoting Guy Gadowsky extensively on the NCAA fallout. Here's his take:

“When [recruits] see how the student body and our athletics program is dealing with this going forward, I think it will mean even more to come here,” he said. “In a strange sense, it’s certainly not going to be immediate, but by the way Penn Staters deal with this, Penn State hockey will become even more attractive.”

Good with me.

Just so I'm not seen as misrepresenting what he said, Gadowsky did also mention some level of concern from both players and parents, but that those issues are usually smoothed over with a campus visit or even a quick reassurance.

I think ultimately the final word, at least for now, is "we'll see." But it is encouraging that, even in close proximity to the worst of days, most still seem to believe in Penn State hockey's potential.

Three Stars: June 25-July 1

3. PSU Men's Hockey: Charter a bus from University Park, PA to Wilkes-Barre, PA on 10/13/2012
(change.org)

Generally, I'm happy with the inaugural men's schedule, or at least understanding of the realities that led to things like six ACHA games. One place where I'm displeased, though, is that October 13th game with AIC in Wilkes-Barre. That weekend should have been the culmination of a week-long celebration of Penn State NCAA hockey at University Park (not-so-subtle hint to get the Blue-White weekend carnival in for it, or at least sell funnel cakes outside the rink...yum), with the men playing their first-ever games Friday and Saturday, and the women playing their first home games Saturday and Sunday against Syracuse. Instead, they decided to break that up to go market chasing - which is fine in most cases - on a weekend I felt should have been left alone. Not only that, but they moved the first women's home game from Saturday afternoon to Saturday night, making it impossible to watch both even with teleportation powers.

Chartering a bus to get PSU students and local fans two and a half hours up the road would be a step back in the right direction. While not ideal, it's something the university ought to do to give the community back one of a very limited number of DI home games.

2. Alec Marsh Player Bio
(usahockey.com)

2015 forward commit Alec Marsh did quite well for himself at the prestigious USA Hockey Select 17 Player Development Camp in Rochester, NY last week. In six games, he put up a goal and five assists to help his Gold Team to the title via a 3-2-0-1 (W-OTW-OTL-L) overall record, including a 4-2 championship game win over the Columbia Team. Marsh's six points tied for the team lead and for sixth among everyone at the camp.

1. Olczyk brothers working hard to impress at Hurricanes camp
(examiner.com)

In yet another little milestone for the program, Tommy Olczyk became Penn State's first-ever NHL Development Camp invitee. He (along with brother Eddie, of UMass) participated in the Carolina Hurricanes' version - a conditioning camp - last week. I had planned on just linking the invitee list with some kind of "see, it really happened" comment, but Examiner.com stepped in with a nice article, so thanks for that.

The AP also stepped in with a write-up (carried on NHL.com as well), which is nice if you want to see Olczyk in a white jersey. The Examiner had firstsies though, so they get the official honor.

I suppose this makes up for the origins of this particular NHL franchise. No wait, it doesn't. I hate Canes owner Peter Karmanos even more than I hate North Dakota. Thankfully, the world of horribly-animated GIFs offers an outlet:

Best of the Rest



Anthony Walsh 2011-12 highlights
(YouTube)

According to his father, Edina (MN) High School forward Anthony Walsh is visiting Penn State this week. Check out the video and tell me you wouldn't love watching a guy who lives in beast mode in blue and white. Walsh has gotten hot as of late, both on the ice and in terms of his stock. He put up nine points in three Section 2AA playoff games to lead the section in scoring, then followed up the Hornets' season-ending state tournament loss with an impressive run of showcases, drawing the interest of both the Nittany Lions and Bowling Green in the process. Walsh, who just finished his junior year at Edina, will be attending camp at PSU in July and is presently trying to catch on with a USHL team for next season.

Maturi hoped Penn State would join CCHA
(PucKato)

The money quote from outgoing Minnesota AD Joel Maturi:

"I'm disappointed (the WCHA) broke up," he said, speaking to members of the Minnesota Associated Press Sports Association during its annual meeting in Minneapolis. "I would have liked to see it stay. My initial hope was Penn State would go to the CCHA. ... I think things would have been fine."

Me too, bud. Admittedly, my opinion is mostly borne of selfish concerns (as is his, I suppose, just different ones): I think the Big Ten, and the programs it contains, is a brutal situation for a new program. The CCHA offered more shades of grey and a more even distribution of the rungs on the latter. In the Big Ten, PSU will have to be above average just to avoid the cellar and probably one of the top 10 teams in the country just to finish in the top half of the conference. That's pretty daunting. The CCHA certainly offered top programs as well, including a couple of the same ones, but decidedly more opportunity to make progress in the standings without beating one of those programs.

It's all moot now, though. Time to move ahead with the hand we have.

New Jerseys
(The Munn Minute)

I really wasn't a fan of Michigan State's standardization of their athletic uniforms a couple years ago, because I think it's okay for individual teams to have their unique traditions, within university branding guidelines. When I did a concept Penn State hockey jersey, someone asked me how I could dare to put surnames on a PSU jersey. Simply put, I view the absence of names as a "Penn State football" thing, not a "Penn State" thing. In fact, Penn State basketball had names on jerseys for quite a while (with removal only in recent years), and non-revenue sports rarely include names, regardless of the school. The Icers, of course, had names - oversized ones, to boot - most of the time from roughly 1990 to the present, although they were removed from the blue jerseys for whatever reason over the last several years.

Anyway, one of those quirks lost in MSU's school-wide redesign was hockey's script writing, which is now back in the form of alternate jerseys. I elected to use the standard jerseys for the picture here, since that's what they'll likely wear against the Lions (still feels weird typing that) on January 25th and 26th. The major change in that department: the words "Michigan State" and the player's number have been eliminated from the front of the green jerseys in favor of the spartan helmet to match the whites.

Pittsburgh Becoming a College Hockey Hotbed
(penguins.nhl.com)

Dickie Dunn wrote this, it's gotta be true! Well, okay, Dickie Dunn didn't write it. But everyone else is, so I'm inclined to believe it anyway.

@Jonathan_Milley
(Twitter)

A few months ago, when Rob Lowe started a rumor about American-style footballer Peyton Manning's impending retirement, I was appalled. Not at Lowe, but at the large number of hockey players on Twitter saying, essentially, "who the hell is Rob Lowe?" I get that you guys weren't yet born during the Brat Pack's heyday, but Dean MFing Youngblood. Figure it out. Jon Milley gets it, you should too.

Ohio to continue rivalry with Penn State in 2012-13
(The Post)

Here's some early OU perspective on what might be the final, final chapter of the greatest rivalry in ACHA history.

[OU coach Dan] Morris said there is a possibility the Nittany Lions will stay on their schedule, but continuation of the rivalry is not favorable

"Now that there's Big Ten hockey and it’s on their agenda, (nonconference scheduling) might become a talking point," he said. "It's something we'd like to continue, but it’s something where we'll see."

NCAA teams generally play exhibition games against CIS (basically, the Canadian university version of the NCAA) schools every year, so in that vein, I'd love to keep an annual game with the Bobcats. The problem, though, is that ACHA opponents always count against the NCAA's 34-game limit, and a once-per-season exemption can be used for exhibition games against CIS teams. Since it makes little sense to treat CIS and ACHA teams differently, I'd like to see a similar exemption for ACHA teams. Not just for the sake of PSU-Ohio, but in order to help grow the ACHA.

I don't have Dan Morris on the phone right now to clarify, but reading between the lines of his quote, he seems to think that the large number of out-of-conference games in the world of six-team leagues might keep the door open a crack. However, because the ACHA doesn't exactly hold a position of power with regard to scheduling (or game exemption rules), and because surely PSU would rather not play an ACHA team against the 34 if at all possible, my advice is to enjoy the games against the Bobcats like they're the last ones you'll ever see.

Follow Friday

Liberty University disgusts me, for reasons that go well beyond hockey. So rather than talk about them more than I have to, I thought I'd try something different than a preview ahead of this weekend's semester-closing games.

Twitter is a gigantic part of what I do in that it allows me to stay on top of news relevant to Penn State hockey in a way that simply didn't exist before its creation, and it also helps me connect with all of you. If you're not on, I highly recommend getting there - even if you don't ever tweet and use it essentially as a personal news ticker for stuff you care about. Hopefully TYT (@TYTBlog) is on your ticker.

If you're unfamiliar, one Twitter tradition is called Follow Friday, and the idea behind what's called #FF in Twitterspeak is to recommend accounts that you find to be worthwhile follows. I almost never participate, but to make up for that, I'm taking things to the next level with the First (Annual? And Only? Who knows?) TYT Twitter Awards.

I'm going to assume you already know about official accounts @PSUMensHockey, @PSUWomensHockey, @HockeyValley, @psuicelions and the Daily Collegian's @TDC_Icers. Beyond that, here are the best of some categories I made up. This is by no means a comprehensive list. I follow 334 people, all of whom are great (I don't follow sucktitude), so if you follow TYT and are offended by your exclusion, let me hear about it. If I hear from enough of you, maybe I'll make this a two-parter.

Best Current Player (Men): Steve Edgeworth (@stedgeworth). Guy just cracks me up 100 percent of the time.

Sample tweet: What's the job application at Hooters? They hand you a bra and say "fill this out"?

Best Current Player (Women): Cara Mendelson (@cmen12). Mendelson gets the nod over close runners-up Abby Miller (@AbbyMiller17) and Sara Chroman (@sjchro) mostly on frequency. But she gets at it without sacrificing quality.

Sample tweet: After a semester long of my English prof asking me about hockey, he proceeded to tell me after my report that he thought I ran track #idiot

Best Current Player (Ice Lions): Creek Lewis (@creekaleak7). Lewis clinched the win here with his tweet about UMBC players cracking Jerry Sandusky jokes in the hotel after losing to PSU. However his body of work as a whole, while infrequent, is great.

Sample tweet: forgot to shave before november 1st #gonnabealongmonth

Best Future Player: 2012 men's recruit Jonathan Milley (@jonathan_milley). I think my favorite thing about Milley is that his genuine excitement over coming to Penn State next season comes through quite frequently.

Sample tweet: Living in Canada I don't get to watch much college hockey, but the game I just watched between CC and DU was #unreal #cantwait #PSU

Best General News Site: College Hockey News (@chnews). What separates CHN from chief rival USCHO in my book is that they use Twitter as more than a dumping ground for links to stories and get heavily into the retweet, interaction and opinion business as well.

Sample tweet: Not sure sports org. should have authority to implement dress code on the media, but the sentiment is admirable. Media should show respect.

Best Legitimate Reporter (Penn State Affiliated): Andrew Dzurita (@adzurita247). On Thursday, Dzurita broke the story of the outdoor game announcement a few hours ahead, which allowed me to have a post ready to go. This is me thanking him for that. But seriously, he's great for that kind of stuff. And for PSU basketball, if you're into that sort of thing.

Sample tweet: You know what I want to do in my free time? Illegally stream the Penn State - Lafayette hoops game on my computer. I've got a problem.

* Not meant as a slight to Collegian reporters James Nicol (@JamesSNicol) or Katie Montgomery (@k8emont), just an acknowledgement that they keep their personal accounts, well, personal. They're great follows too.

Best Legitimate Reporter (Non-Penn State Affiliated): Ryan S. Clark (@ryan_s_clark). The Fargo Force reporter for The Forum of Fargo-Moorhead knows more about what's going on in the USHL than anyone on the planet.

Sample tweet: I can confirm the Tri-City Storm has fired coach Drew Schoneck making him the second #USHL coach to be fired this season.

Best Legitimate Reporter (Freelance): Rachel Lenzi (@rlenzi). There's probably not a single person out there who understands the medium better, including its limitations (yes, it has some). Plus, I'm a huge fan of her blog, which I've already plugged on here.

Sample tweet: Even worse: Once had an editor who wouldn't handle a plagiarism situation. "Imitation is a great form of flattery," said editor told me.

Best Official Account of a Future Big Ten Team: Michigan State (@MSU_Hockey). Much like CHN, a big part of my recommendation comes from their willingness to interact and retweet, in addition to the standard fare for any official account. What clinches it though: their in-game tweets, without fail, begin with score, time, period. It sounds like a simple, obvious thing, but it can make all the difference in the world.

Sample tweet: Today's biggest surprise came in that none of @TomAnastos' children RT'd the link to the All-Access show.   #slacking?

Best Blogger Account of a Future Big Ten Team Coming From the CCHA: MichiganHockey.net (@MichiganHockey). Whenever my ego gets a little large, I look at these guys and crawl back to my place. Simply put, their ability to stay on top of everything to recruiting to UM's numerous NHL alumni is unparalleled. And they even have the Swedish Chef in their pop culture reference library.

Sample tweet: BORK! BORK! BORK! RT @mavanco Carl Hagelin scores on a backhand for his first NHL goal to make it 2-0 #NYR #GoBlue

Best Blogger Account of a Future Big Ten Team Coming From the WCHA: Nate Wells (@gopherstate). But only if you don't mind the Minnesota Wild. They're not my team of choice, but I don't hate them. Really, who does? Winnipeg maybe? I don't know. They might be the single least hated team in the league.

Sample tweet: Key word is "tournament." RT @fetch9 college hockey, flawed as it is, has a million times better method of picking its tournament field.

Best Official Account of a College Hockey America Team: Niagara (@NiagaraWHockey). Admittedly, there's not much to choose from, as there are only two teams with dedicated accounts and the other (Robert Morris) hasn't tweeted since last season. Still, NU does a great job getting beyond the usual dry official-ness.

Sample tweet: @ Ohio State, game 7pm tomorrow. The Blackwell Hotel's complimentary Lindt truffles on each bed were a thumbs up from the team. #greathotel

Best Penn State Hockey Blogger Who Isn't Me: IcersGuy (@hey_pono). Other than his recaps on Black Shoe Diaries, which I love, he's a solid guy in general, including his opinions on other PSU sports and the Flyers. You should want to know what he's saying.

Sample tweet: If Rinaldo had any balance on his skates, he might actually, you know, be able to play hockey or do his job occasionally.

Three Stars: August 15-21

3. Brewpub plans put on ice - for now
(Centre Daily Times)

The four [College Township Planning Commission] members present approved and sent to Township Council the development plan for Penn State’s Pegula Ice Arena.

The arena is planned near the intersection of University Drive and Curtin Road, across from the Bryce Jordan Center. The site also is partially in State College.

McCormick Taylor, the State College engineering firm that conducted the traffic study, addressed concerns, saying that added traffic “will be small compared to the existing traffic.” The firm indicated other campus lots will accommodate parking.

As boring as that all sounds, it's one of those things you won't notice unless it's brutally executed and you're stuck in a line back to Burger King on University Ave. trying to get to a game. So here's to that never, ever happening.

Oh and that brewpub in a barn in Lemont? Tabled until the Happy Valley Brewing Company figures out a way to fit 84 parking spaces on the site. Booooooo....

2. New season for Steel
(St. Albert Gazette)

If you couldn't tell by now, this is the time of year when people write "team x is excited for the season" articles. We hit the teams of Eamon McAdam and former commit Jessi Hilton last week, and just below, we have one on David Glen's Spruce Grove Saints. Now, here's the obligatory piece on Reed Linaker and his mates. Linaker, as you might expect of a guy who averaged 1.53 points per game last season when healthy, is mentioned as a key player. Brother Cole is expected to come in and make an impact as well.

1. Saints begin looking for third title in a row as 2011-12 training camp kicks off
(Spruce Grove Examiner)

Up front, the Big Three this year are going to play a vital role in providing leadership and mentorship to the first-year guys. The trio, David Glen, Nicholas Bourgeois and Tim Nolte know they're going to be the go-to guys, at least early on.

"They'll play a huge role," [head coach Jason McKee said]. "Tim and David have been around a while - we got Nicholas part way through last year - and they'll be relied on for a leadership role. We're excited to have them back and they'll be a huge part of continuing the culture here and passing it on to the new guys."

Speaking of leadership, Glen was announced as captain of the Saints this past week. The team is clearly aware that Penn State is a member of the Leaders Division, so naturally, it would be wise to name a PSU commit captain. That's what that means, right?

Best of the Rest

Icers 2011-12 Schedule/Results
(pennstatehockey.com)

The Icers have added a Blue-White Game, on September 30th at 6:00 p.m.



Joe Paterno Feuding With Penn State Hockey (1979)
(YouTube)

You may not realize it from all the time I spend on TYT, but I'm also a huge Penn State football fan. In fact, starting in late July every year through the start of the season, I make a point of plowing through every one of the football DVDs and, yes, VHSs I've accumulated over the years. Some highlight videos, some full-length games, all sweet blue and white goodness. Anyway, as part of this ritual, I stumbled on this exchange between JoePa, legendary broadcaster Fran Fisher and wide receiver Kip Vernaglia during the 1979 episode of Joe Paterno's TV Quarterbacks discussing the Syracuse game that season.

As background for those who don't read Breakout Past, the football team took over the original Ice Pavilion in 1978 and converted it into an indoor practice facility, forcing hockey into home games in Mechanicsburg and outdoor practices. It turned out that Vernaglia wasn't too happy with the new fieldhouse, particularly the amount of padding under the turf. It's also pretty obvious from Paterno's exasperated "don't get me involved" that he was sick of hearing it from the hockey team and didn't want to add fuel to the fire by joining in on the complaints or by agreeing with Fisher's (joking...I think) suggestion to do some fundraising for extra padding. That would be akin to whining to a homeless guy that your garage door doesn't work, then asking him to buy you a new opener.

@SheldonKeefe
(Twitter)

Here's an encouraging tweet from Pembroke Lumber Kings president/GM/coach Sheldon Keefe.

Great 2 see 5yr vet Jon Milley pushing the pace in skating test. 2nd best set completing 3 laps in 38seconds. J. Pelock led the way at 37s.

I'm already developing my favorites among PSU commits' junior teams this year, and the defending national champs are definitely very high on the list.

BTN still not available to all Penn State fans
(standardspeaker.com)

Please allow me to be self-indulgent for a moment and remind you all that many unfortunate people out there still don't get Big Ten Network. I'm one of them. If you're a fellow Armstrong subscriber, or even if you're not, jump on the Armstrong Cable Must Carry BTN Facebook group (after calling them to express your displeasure). It's linked on the right side of TYT because I run it and can do things like that. I can also give out free BTN stuff for not that much work on your part, since I have a box full of it in my guest bedroom. Just saying.

Oh, and hockey mention.

Curley pointed out that not only has the BTN benefited Penn State's football and basketball programs, but the so-called "minor" or "Olympic" sports and particularly women's sports have received far more media exposure than they would have without the network. Penn State's fledgling ice hockey program also will get a boost from the BTN, Curley added.

One thing I've never understood: basketball's an Olympic sport, is it not? In fact, I believe every sport anyone's ever heard of besides (American) football is, so what exactly is the point of that designation?

PU-Cornell Men’s Hockey Rivalry Getting New Twist As Veteran Big Red Assistant Garrow Joins Princeton
(Town Topics)

After Helping Niagara Build Solid Foundation, Gardner Excited to Join PU Men’s Hockey Staff
(Town Topics)

Princeton has filled out its coaching staff to replace the one now at PSU. And no, talking about it hasn't gotten old yet.

UNO Hockey Taps Renfrew as New Assistant
(omavs.com)

Most people assume that Ohio State will be the first program in Penn State's way during the inevitable climb to the top of the Big Ten. I'm not so sure that's the case. Observe Michigan State, a historically great program, but one that's been on a steady downward trajectory since winning the 2007 national championship. That hastened the retirement of Rick Comley, and the still-a-head-scratcher Tom Anastos hire followed. Now, well-regarded associate head coach Brian Renfrew has departed for what's at best (from MSU's standpoint) a lateral move pretty late in the offseason. At worst, it's a move up from a sinking program to a rising one.

Sure, it's possible that Anastos wants his own staff, and that Renfrew was told as much. Then again, Anastos was hired nearly five months ago.

Incidentally, Renfrew is connected to Guy Gadowsky through a stint assisting at Alaska in 2000-2001.

Since transferring from hell, Tyler Pilmore has clicked with center/fellow minion of the Prince of Darkness Michael Schultz.

Bobcats gear up for championship run
(The Post)

It's kind of cute that OU thinks they have a "championship run" in them. Go back to the kiddie table guys, grown-ups are trying to settle something.

Seven-Bedroom Home on Norwood Sells for $1.1 Million
(patch.com)

In case you need to borrow $365,000, I have one idea where you can go. Oh, it doesn't work like that? Regardless, congratulations to the Brandwenes on unloading their house in Connecticut.

$365,000. 68 Lemay Street. Joshua A. Brandwene and Leona M. Brandwene to Peter A. Junggren Jr., deed filed on Aug. 8, 2011.

If it's me though, I hold on to it at all costs. You have any idea what the return of the Whalers will do for property values in the state?

Committee Approves Tournament Criteria Change
(College Hockey News)

On its face, I think this change - related to the record against common opponents component of the Pairwise (which is the objective tool used for NCAA tournament selection in hockey) - is a positive one. But I'll save final judgment until an RPI grad explains it to me. Or until PSU loses a comparison it would have won under the old system. Then it's on. RABBLE RABBLE!

1989 And Still Waiting
(ecachockeyblog.blogspot.com)

Speaking of RPI, heads up on a new blog covering their conference. I'm an ECAC guy at heart and would call it my favorite conference if I wasn't bound by some unwritten rule of fanhood to plug the Big Ten, despite feeling ambiguous at best about five of its six teams. Meanwhile, if you asked me to list my ten favorite non-PSU NCAA programs, at least half of them would be in the ECAC (Cornell, RPI, Union, Brown, Princeton in case you care...I suppose UNO, Providence, Alaska, RIT and UAH would be the other half, although I could be forgetting someone).

Three Stars: July 18-24

3. College Township looks at traffic impact of planned Penn State ice arena
(Centre Daily Times)

You know that fun part of arena planning that involves sketches and imagination? This is the opposite of that. A traffic impact study for the Pegula Ice Arena is underway, and the College Township Planning Commission will discuss it on August 16th, after it's completed. But just as a heads up, there might be new turning lanes in the area of the arena.

2. Lions Add 2013 Defenseman
(Lions 247)

The Whalers fan in me desperately wants to find a way to drop "Varley Valapski" in a post somehow. Guess I just did.

1. @tommyolczyk
(Twitter)

BRIERE!

TSA agent just mistook me for Danny Briere. #shouldhavegonewithit #compliment #thanks #iwish.

Other than changing things up from the usual "recruiting, recruiting, other" pattern, I wanted to use this occasion to point out how much the new players have elevated Penn State hockey's tweet game. Olczyk, Steve Edgeworth, P.J. Musico and Josh Daley in particular are clutch follows. Thanks, gentlemen. #beauties

Best of the Rest

Lions Add Some Fire Power
(Fight On State)

Did I give FOS a demotion for their apparent unawareness of Jonathan Milley until last week's Lions 247 piece? Nah, I just didn't want to put a picture of him at the top two weeks in a row. Beyond that, newer recruits get tiebreaker advantages.

An early glimpse at incoming freshman commit Zach Hyman
(The Michigan Daily)

This isn't included as a what-might-have-been as much as for its insight into Guy Gadowsky's recruiting methods.

Former Princeton hockey coach Guy Gadowsky told Zach Hyman to go be "The Man."

At the young age of 15, Hyman committed to play for Gadowsky and the Tigers. With already two years of experience in the Ontario Junior Hockey League, that still wasn’t enough for the college stage — Gadowsky wanted Hyman to play one more year in the OJHL.

According to Gadowsky, once Hyman became "The Man" in the OJHL, he’d learn what it felt like to be the best and translate that feeling into being an impact player as a Princeton Tiger during his freshman campaign.

Hyman, of course, did as Gadowsky asked and was heavily criticized for playing beneath his abilities. Then he decommitted from Princeton when Gadowsky left, ending up at Michigan.

As we've figured out by now, Gadowsky likes players who have proven to be "the man," even if it means staying in junior a year past the comfort zone of most. Winning players bring a winning culture with them - and it worked at former doormat Princeton, so why not at new program Penn State?

...then it got a lot less tough. Then it got a little tougher, but not as tough as it was originally.

Northern Michigan to Rejoin WCHA Family
(WCHA.com)

Your conference alignment segment of this week's post begins with another conference that's official and effective for 2013-2014. As of that season, the dub is now up to a membership of Alaska-Anchorage, Bemidji State, Michigan Tech, Minnesota State, NMU and St. Cloud State.

Huskies are left with only questions
(St. Cloud Times)

Kurtz led PSU from 1974-76.

I feel like St. Cloud State is one of the big losers of the conference shifting - a competitive program in a top conference that's now in the hockey equivalent of the MAC. They might end up needing an autobid to make the NCAA tournament after taking an at-large slot six times in the last thirteen years. In the aftermath, a former PSU coach and faculty member (who, by the way, has made recent trips to State College) was not spared from criticism.

SCSU also is paying athletic director Morris Kurtz nearly $130,000 to stay around for a lame-duck year before his June 2012 retirement. What exactly is his role with the hockey program now? Does he even have one?

WCHA commish has no guarantees for MSU Moorhead
(The Dickinson Press)

“It is really tough to make a commitment … and if I could tell Moorhead in three years you’ll be in the WCHA I would, but in these circumstances, I cannot even come close to that,” [WCHA commissioner Bruce] McLeod said. “I cannot make promises, but at the same time I’d love to encourage that the Fargo-Moorhead area is really fine.”

Nothing to see here, I suppose. But it's pretty clear that school and conference need each other right now.

Another view: Thinking of history and the conference realignment
(USCHO)

Of course, I realize this is not about storied teams and traditions, but about money. If you don’t think this is the case, then consider this — a three time NCAA Champion [Lake Superior State] is being (kind of) replaced by a school (Penn State) that up to this point has had nothing more than a club team. I cannot be the only one that finds this astounding.

Flexible definitions of "storied" aside, I think people need to wake up to the fact that winning a national championship doesn't grant your program some sort of immunity, or even respect, until the end of days. Northern Michigan realizes that, and is trying to position themselves as well as they're able in the present reality. RPI does too. Evolve or die - it's true in life, and after a period of complacency-inspiring status quo, it's true in college hockey too. LSSU has done very little evolving since losing Jeff Jackson to the newly-formed U.S. National Team Development Program in 1996.

CCHA, Atlantic Schools To Meet, Weigh Options
(College Hockey News)

Speaking of, four Atlantic Hockey programs are using the upheaval to grow.

CCHA officials will meet within the next two weeks with representatives of four Atlantic Hockey schools about a potential change in conferences in 2013-14.

Robert Morris, Niagara, Mercyhurst and Canisius are all actively exploring the possibility of switching from Atlantic Hockey to the CCHA. It is believed that the four would leave as a group, or not at all, though that is not set in stone.

Depending on when Notre Dame decides to move, this could be the one that brings this all to an uneasy detente. AHA would still be viable with eight teams, and the WCHA and CCHA both would have added enough to survive.

Canisius coach Dave Smith may be looking to grow his program through a move to the CCHA - and none other than The Namesake may be helping him by financing another college hockey rink.

Like how I snuck a bonus link in the caption?

Serious discussions have been ongoing about [Terry] Pegula backing (see: major donation) a movement toward a new on-campus events center. It would serve as a home for Canisius and the Buffalo Junior Sabres, a practice rink for the Sabres and be available to youth teams. There's talk it could also become a basketball venue and a place for graduation ceremonies that are now held at UB.

Just as this whole thing might be hurting St. Cloud State, it might be helping the former Icers rival.

Alberts says 'The National' will raise Mav profile
(Omaha World Herald)

I already have an anti-NCHC bias, in part because I really think Big Ten-NCHC in hockey will be a lot like Big Ten-SEC in football in due time. Hopefully minus the part where the Big Ten is pretty vastly inferior to the other side. So to get their side of things in here and make it somewhat palatable, I took an article from my favorite NCHC school, Nebraska-Omaha (and yes, Trev Alberts is the AD there if you didn't know that).

To be honest though, I hate conference chest beating, and I hate it even more when schools and fans identify themselves as a member of a conference seemingly ahead of all else (PSU administration is guilty of this on occasion). In the grand scheme of things, I couldn't care less about the Big Ten. I didn't go to school at "Big Ten," I went to Penn State.

Minnesota Gophers Hockey: Creating A New Tournament Tradition
(SB Nation)

...so let's segue into to talking about another Big Ten team just because they're in the Big Ten! The Gophers and their in-state soon-to-be-former conference rivals are looking to possibly start an in-season tournament at the Xcel Energy Center - like a State of Hockey Beanpot by all accounts. Sounds great to me, it could be huge if given time to grow into the deep hockey culture there.

Timeline: College hockey conferences through the years
(USCHO)

In case you're lost.

Versus may be interested in college hockey TV package
(Schenectady Daily Gazette)

While most have heard by now that Versus is looking to get into the college hockey business (in all likelihood via a deal with whichever conference Notre Dame ultimately joins), it's somewhat of a surprise that they may look to take the plunge as soon as this season.

Numerous sources have indicated that Versus is discussing the possibility of televising regular-season college hockey games, beginning in January. What conferences would be involved, or what night the games would be shown (either Friday or Saturday) is unclear right now. Versus, part of the NBC Sports Group, is the cable home of the NHL. A few months ago, the NBC Sports Group signed a 10-year deal to keep the NHL on NBC and Versus.

Skating through the past
(The Temple News)

A look at the history of Temple hockey, which dates back to 1940. Penn State, as we now know, dealt the Owls a pair of losses in their inaugural season. Today, Temple is a fierce rival of PSU's ACHA Division 2 Ice Lions.

Brian Slugocki has been a key figure throughout the reorganization of Arizona hockey. Now, he and his mates finally have a new coach.

Sean Hogan Returns to the ACHA as Head Coach of the University of Arizona
(ACHAHockey.org)

A while back, I wrote about the state of affairs in a former PSU nemesis' program. And despite the accusations from some (possibly people affiliated with former coach Leo Golembiewski) that the coup out west was a case of hockey parents run amok, it's a story with a happy ending. Sean Hogan takes over the newly-rechristened Wildcat program after a year as Jeff Blashill's video coach at Western Michigan. Icers fans may remember him as the guy who led Oakland to the ACHA D2 national title in 2006, then moved the team up to D1 and won another in 2007 - a championship made possible by an upset of Penn State in the final.

Best wishes to Arizona Wildcat hockey as they move forward with a fresh start.

Arvanitis Named Head Coach
(OUHockey.com)

Speaking of coaching changes, one of our opponents this season made one as well, promoting Peter Arvanitis from his assistant position. The former Oklahoma City Blazer has been with the Sooners for two non-consecutive seasons, 2005-2006 and last year. For what it's worth, OU has also acknowledged cancellation of the January 5th game with the Icers in Norman, one minor step towards finalizing the game at Citizens Bank Park on the 4th.

I'll close by saying that I like how Oklahoma registered "OUHockey.com" before Ohio. Sucks to suck, fake OU.