Big Ten, Hockey East Issue Challenge

After January's sellout, the Philadelphia College Hockey Faceoff has a say in a trophy this season.

At the Hockey East media day on Tuesday, the conference announced that it will conduct a 13-game "challenge" with the Big Ten from October 18th through 27th similar to the well-established, and probably more familiar to Penn Staters, Big Ten-ACC Challenge in basketball.

The Nittany Lions only play one game as part of the challenge - the Philadelphia College Hockey Faceoff against Vermont in Philadelphia on October 26th - but it's actually quite an important one in terms of the league showdown. Should the Big Ten and Hockey East end in a tie after all games are completed (two points will be given for a win, one for a tie and a bonus point for a road win), the PSU-UVM result will serve as the tiebreaker. Outside of that catfight, six games will be played in Hockey East venues on the first weekend, October 18th and 19th, with six games in the Big Ten's arenas following on the October 25th through 27th weekend.

Five of the 13 games have already been picked up by various television outlets, including the Philly Faceoff which, according to Hockey East, will air on Comcast outlets in both Philadelphia (The Comcast Network) and New England (Comcast SportsNet New England).

It's not immediately clear whether this will be an annual event, but given that the involved parties are tossing around the word "inaugural" and the fact that there will be a trophy called the "Big Ten/Hockey East Challenge Cup," the sane money is on yes.

Shortly after the challenge ends, Penn State will welcome Hockey East's UMass-Lowell to Pegula Ice Arena for a bit of a follow-up on November 14th and 15th. The River Hawks, the 2013 Hockey East regular season and tournament champs and also a Frozen Four participant, were tabbed as the number one team in the league at media day, one day after receiving the top spot nationally in the USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine preseason rankings.

Here's the full press release from Hockey East, including the entire slate of games at the bottom.

---

Eleven of the country's most storied college hockey programs will compete this fall in the inaugural Big Ten/Hockey East Challenge, it was announced today by the Big Ten Conference and the Hockey East Association. Eleven different institutions will participate in 13 designated games to be played between October 18-27, with six games in Hockey East arenas on the first weekend, followed by six games in Big Ten arenas and a single game on neutral ice on the second weekend.

"The Big Ten/Hockey East Challenge will offer a tremendous opportunity to build a relationship between our two conferences and to promote the strong traditions of college hockey on a national level," said Big Ten Associate Commissioner Jennifer Heppel. "The student-athletes will also benefit from the chance to take part in meaningful non-conference competition against other top programs."

"The college hockey landscape is going through a major change this season and each conference needs to look beyond its familiar boundaries," said Hockey East Commissioner Joe Bertagna. "We have great respect for the hockeyplaying institutions in the Big Ten and we hope to develop this concept to allow all of our programs to participate in this competition in future years."

A Big Ten/Hockey East Challenge Cup will be presented to the conference that records the most points from the 13 games. Points will be awarded as follows: two points for a win, one point for a tie and a bonus point for a road win. Should a Big Ten school utilize a shootout in any of its home games, it will not factor into the result. Should each conference record the same number of points, the results of the Penn State - Vermont game, played on neutral ice, will serve as the tie-breaker.

The seventeen schools that play in these two conferences have compiled an unparalleld record of success in the history of college hockey, combining to claim 33 national championships during the 66 seasons that the NCAA has sponsored the sport. Of the 11 schools participating in the inaugural Big Ten/Hockey East Challenge, five took part in last season's NCAA Championship.

Below is the full schedule for the inaugural Big Ten/Hockey East Challenge:

Big Ten/Hockey East Challenge Schedule
(All times EST and 7:00 p.m. unless noted)

Friday, October 18
Wisconsin at Boston College
Michigan State at Massachusetts
Michigan at New Hampshire (7:30 p.m.)

Saturday, October 19
Wisconsin at Boston University
Michigan State at Massachusetts
Michigan at New Hampshire

Friday, October 25
Boston College at Minnesota (8:00 p.m.)*
Boston University at Michigan#
UMass Lowell at Michigan State@

Saturday, October 26
Boston University at Michigan State
UMass Lowell at Michigan#
Penn State vs. Vermont %
(Philadelphia, PA - 5:00 p.m.)

Sunday, October 27
Boston College at Minnesota (2:00 p.m.)^

* Big Ten Network
# XFINITY Channel 900
@ Fox Sports Detroit
% Comcast Philadelphia and New England
^ Fox Sports North and Sports Time Ohio

Three Stars: August 5-11

3. 2013-14 USHL Protected List
(Western College Hockey Blog)

WCHB's Chris Dilks has put together the 30-player rosters and 18-player affiliate lists for each USHL franchise, which is kind of a big deal since the teams don't really go out of their way to keep everyone informed, particularly with respect to the affiliate list.

The primary takeaway from a Penn State perspective: it's verification that A.J. Greer is on the affiliate list of the Des Moines Buccaneers and not the roster. That's not shocking - anything else would have been, in fact - but since the Bucs never actually put out a formal announcement following their tryout camp and ahead of the required July 10th cutdown...

Elsewhere, Chase Berger (Tri-City), Kevin Kerr (Tri-City) and Alec Marsh (Cedar Rapids) are where they're supposed to be. Put that together with Greer's return to Kimball Union Academy, toss in BCHLers Bo Pellah (Alberni Valley) and James Robinson (Langley), and we're as certain as can be reasonably possible at this point of where all of the Nittany Lions' recruits will be playing this season.

2. Jim Delany praises Penn State
(ESPN, via the Associated Press)

Big Ten commissioner Jim Delany stopped by Penn State football's preseason practice Thursday afternoon, where the involved parties went through the usual song and dance of such appearances. PSU gave Delany a football jersey, Delany gave the media the league's highly-manufactured party line concerning the scandal and the sanctions, the media gave the public some filler copy masquerading as actual news...

...except for the part where someone asked Delany about Big Ten hockey.

Delany said he expected to announce a "robust" league media package soon for hockey.

"I think our championship will grow, and I think you'll see that growth pretty immediately," Delany said. "I'm very bullish on hockey."

Well, okay, that's filler copy masquerading as actual news too, it just happens to be about hockey instead of football. Still... "robust?" I can get with that. Hopefully that word and "soon" both turn out to be accurate.

1. 2013 Philadelphia College Hockey Faceoff Promo
(YouTube)

Know why this year's Philly Faceoff promo is better than last year's version? Because it involves footage from an NCAA hockey game that Penn State won. This year's PSU-UVM repeat, of course, will be played on October 26th at the Wells Fargo Center and tickets are on sale now.

Best of the Rest

Neil Laessig will try to beat his father, Lehigh coach Tom Laessig, on November 15th and 16th

Lehigh Announces Schedule for 2013-2014 season
(lehighsports.com)

Two more Ice Lions games are out of the bag: November 15th and 16th at ACHA Division 1 Lehigh. The obvious storyline there is that Mountain Hawks coach Tom Laessig is the father of PSU forward Neil, as well as alumnus T.J., who graduated in 2012.

The series brings the total number of known Ice Lions contests to ten, plus postseason. For a full list (other than these, obviously) check out the third star from a couple weeks ago.

Penn State Berks is also on Lehigh's schedule as an ECHA rival, with games in Bethlehem on October 5th and in Wyomissing on November 8th.

Walkom named Senior VP and Director of Officiating
(NHL)

Noted Penn State hockey dad Stephen Walkom is the NHL's new Senior Vice President and Director of Officiating, replacing the retiring Terry Gregson. He was also the NHL's old Senior Vice President and Director of Officiating, as he held the job from 2005-2009 before returning to the ice as a referee. Walkom has been with the NHL in one capacity or the other since 1990 and has worn the orange stripe for 965 regular season games, along with 139 in the playoffs, the latter number including the Stanley Cup finals in 2002, 2004, 2010 and 2011.

"We are fortunate to have someone with Stephen's on- and off-ice experience ready to step in to this position," NHL Senior Executive Vice President and Director of Hockey Operations Colin Campbell said. "From 2005 to 2009, Stephen provided tremendous direction and guidance to our team of officials as the League implemented several rule changes that brought more flow and speed to our game. That management experience, combined with the fact that he has been back on the ice as a referee for the last four years, will be of tremendous benefit to the League and the game."

“The New G-Man” to Open Thursday
(Onward State)

The new era of the G-Man is underway sans the Icers-related ownership group, leaving the Shandygaff uncontested as State College's hockey player bar.

Princeton's Jack Berger: Solid guy

PU's Berger setting example
(The Princeton Packet)

Here's a nice in-depth feature on Princeton senior captain Jack Berger, a pre-med economics major who more or less is the epitome of "student-athlete." Berger was recruited to PU by Guy Gadowsky and played for him as a freshman in 2010-2011, before Gadowsky left for PSU. Additionally, younger brother Chase (who receives a quick mention in the article and another one above in the third star) is a Nittany Lions commit for 2015.

Bazin earns contract extension at Massachusetts-Lowell through ’17-18 campaign
(USCHO)

After Norm Bazin led perennially-average UMass-Lowell (a 2013-2014 PSU opponent) to both Hockey East championships and the Frozen Four in his second season last year, why wouldn't you extend him?

New Madison USHL franchise presents positives and negatives for Badgers
(Bucky's 5th Quarter)

Madison, WI - home to UDubs, of course - has been awarded a not-yet-named USHL franchise for the 2014-2015 season. Generally speaking, people struggle to put a finger on what, exactly, a nearby junior team means for the local college program, but B5Q's Andy Johnson got into the implications of the news as well as anyone. There's good (easier recruiting and scouting, exposure of players to the area) and bad (the cheaper USHL product freely serving alcohol might chip away at the Badgers' attendance) to it, but both are probably overstated in some corners.

UNO, which is located in the same market as the storied Omaha Lancers and is more in line with the USHL's footprint than any other DI program, was fourth in the nation in attendance last season and doesn't run college hockey. Michigan tends to do well with the Ann Arbor, MI-based National Team Development Program, but they'd be doing well with high-end prospects regardless of the NTDP's physical location. So who knows? The USHL certainly won't hurt Wisconsin's recruiting efforts and certainly won't help their attendance, but it's doubtful that any effect will be noticeable to the naked eye.

Penn State isn't barren in the junior program department, with the NAHL's Johnstown Chiefs nearby and the USHL's Youngstown Phantoms about a three-hour drive away (for as long as they can keep from being kicked out of Covelli Centre, anyway).

Comparisons to Gretzky? Valid in at least one respect.

The Crosby Effect
(The Hockey Writers)

Love him or hate him, it seems clear that Sidney Crosby's popularity has been fantastic for the growth of hockey - not just in western Pennsylvania, but nationally as well.

Decision made, Sheridan promoted
(ohiobobcatshockey.com)

Replacing Dan Morris who replaced Craig McCarthy as coach of the Ohio Bobcats: Jonathon Sheridan, a 2011 graduate of Lawrence University who spent last season as Morris' assistant. Good luck bud, that's quite a bit to live up to.

U.S. National Under-18 Team Roster and Schedule for 2013-14 Revealed

2013-14 U.S. National Under-17 Team Roster and Schedule Announced
(USA Hockey)

USA Hockey unveiled the rosters and schedules for its two National Team Development Program squads last week. Penn State is uninvolved, although every other Big Ten team has at least one commit on the U18 team among the league's six total (Minnesota is the school with two). Additionally the U18s, as part of their usual array of exhibitions against college teams, will battle both Michigan and Michigan State this season.

The younger team includes recruits from both Michigan (2) and Wisconsin (1).

NCAA to 'exit' business of selling school-related items
(CBS Sports)

Former Duke basketball player and present lawyer/ESPN analyst Jay Bilas - who is all kinds of awesome, by the way - discovered that on ShopNCAASports.com (a site branded as the NCAA's official online store), typing active student-athletes' names into the site's search box pulled up jerseys of the appropriate school, sport and number. The NCAA, of course, is presently busy in court defending their membership's revenue streams the noble concept of amateurism by arguing that (for example) Texas A&M football jerseys with number 2 but no name on them aren't actually Johnny Manziel jerseys, even though Manziel wears number 2 for the Aggies' football team. Ouch.

Further egg was lobbed the association's way when others discovered that merchandise involving sanctioned individuals like Joe Paterno and Reggie Bush was also available on the site. The Paterno-related items included a DVD of PSU's 2006 Orange Bowl win and a t-shirt commemorating JoePa's 400th career victory, both of which were wiped out by the NCAA penalties last summer.

Anyway, Bilas tweeted his findings last Tuesday. The story blew up from there and two days later, the NCAA announced that it was pulling out of the school- and athlete-specific merchandise business. It remains to be seen how the whole mess impacts the Ed O'Bannon lawsuit (the NCAA, for what it's worth, claims it received no revenue from ShopNCAASports.com), but given that an entity contracted by the NCAA to run its store was using player names to move product, it certainly doesn't look good.

Armchair prediction: college sports will look a lot different in the future than it does right now.

The Colonials honored Chris Kushneriuk after winning the Three Rivers Classic last year

ECHL player returning to hockey after battle with cancer
(The Score)

Saving the best news for last: Former Robert Morris captain Chris Kushneriuk, who was diagnosed with cancer last summer, is officially a survivor. Kushneriuk, who played for RMU from 2008-2011 after transferring from the dying Wayne State program, was most recently with the ECHL's Bakersfield Condors. He issued this statement through the team:

After a tough 13 month battle which has included 4 cycles of chemotherapy, 2 bone marrow transplants, 3 operations and 3 months of oral chemotherapy, I have finished all of my treatments and received the amazing news in Indianapolis today from Dr. Einhorn that everything continues to look good and I am cleared to play hockey this season! Stage 4 cancer survivor!

Three Stars: May 6-12

3. Sewickley coach named director at Pegula Ice Arena
(Pittsburgh Tribune-Review)

Some nice coverage of Ryan Patrick, the former Icer who was named the Pegula Ice Arena's hockey director a couple weeks ago, focusing largely on his brief tenure under some adverse circumstances as Sewickley Academy. But it still fit in this quote:

“There is a lot of excitement in the area,” Patrick said. “It should be like in Pittsburgh with the ‘Sidney Tsunami.' There was a spike in playing when Sidney Crosby came to Pittsburgh. That is what we are hoping for here with the new arena.”

Population limitations (especially relative to Pittsburgh, the other half of the comparison) will always have something to say about Central PA's production of players, but there's absolutely no reason that Jill Holdcroft has to stand alone as a great locally-produced player.

2. First B1G Season for PSU Hockey
(WTAJ)

It's nothing of any great substance, but here's some coverage of Guy Gadowsky's Coaches Caravan stop in DuBois Thursday morning. That was one of his two appearances, and I'd like to think I did an adequate job on the second, in Pittsburgh that evening. So there you go.

I'm just glad that I'm not one of the PSU football writers who had to cover Bill O'Brien saying the exact same thing 12 times over. That had to be brutal.

1. Jenna Welch Highlights - Penn State Hockey
Nicole Paniccia Highlights - Penn State Hockey
(YouTube)

There's no rule that says a first star has to be something of immediate concern. Random highlight videos of Jenna Welch and Nicole Paniccia that popped on the radar last week are certainly worthy, as they involve two of my favorite players. I just wish the Welch one had that elbow she laid on Erin Zach at RIT back in February. Frustration penalty or not, it was bad ass.

Best of the Rest

Penn State-Vermont to battle for second straight year
(flyers.com)

Why is the Philadelphia College Hockey Faceoff being promoted by everyone except the two schools involved? Who knows. But Comcast and the Philadelphia Flyers would like you to know that tickets are on sale now.

Notably, puck drop for the October 26th game has been moved up two hours to 5:00 p.m., meaning that it will no longer overlap with the Penn State at Ohio State football game at 8:00 that night.

Your State’s Highest Paid Employee Likely an NCAA Coach
(Onward State)

Congratulations to New Hampshire's Dick Umile on being the only college hockey coach to double as his state's highest-paid employee. Get that paper. Since you're not getting the hardware, might as well.

Success With Hyperlinking: Brass Monkey Style
(Black Shoe Diaries)

Breaking my "newsworthy" requirement here, since this pissed me off...

PSU Hockey's conference schedule has been released. A brief internet search shows that three teams PSU plays (Minnesota, Wisconsin and Michigan) were all ranked at the end of last season. Oh, and their last home game is against Ohio State. I don't even like hockey and I'm getting excited.

Know why people from the outside crack on Penn State's potential as a hockey school? It's because PSU blogs with 20 times (at least) more readership than TYT act like this towards the sport. Bill DiFilippo: still a joke, if you need him.

Big Ten Schools Announce Prime Time Football Games to Appear on BTN
(bigten.org)

BTN will air just one primetime football game this coming year - Wisconsin at Illinois on October 19th - after the beginning of hockey season. One has to think that bodes well for the possibility of at least some non-conference Big Ten hockey on the network (the league schedule doesn't begin until the last regular season weekend for football, another move likely made with BTN in mind).

Ice Man Cometh... to Pittsburgh and Boston

Guest Speaker - Joe Battista
(pittsburghsmeal.org)

@psuboston
(Twitter)

Joe Battista is making the off-season rounds, doing that thing he does where he talks and people are inspired. One stop will be in Pittsburgh on May 30th at the Allegheny HYP club (free for Pittsburgh Smeal Business Club members, $15 for non-members). On June 29th, he'll speak for the Boston chapter of the alumni association, although further details haven't been announced yet.

Gophers schedule for first year of Big Ten hockey
(Minneapolis Star-Tribune)

As you may have guessed, the Big Ten schedule release last week unloaded on my inbox. Most were just the usual fluff (in other words, people painfully trying to write out a schedule in sentences) but this one quoted Minnesota coach Don Lucia, who suggested some possible 6:30 start times for PSU:

"The reality is on Friday, there could be some 8 p.m. starts. There is talk of some doubleheaders on Friday, with 6:30 Eastern [5:30 Central] and 8 p.m. Central. You have four Big Ten teams in the East and two in the West, so it would be us or Wisconsin doing an 8 p.m. start on a Friday night. That’s fine. That’s not as big a deal for our fans because it’s Friday night. I don’t think we’ll run into that on Saturdays. Who’s to say ever, but the indications I hear is that … it’s not as big of a priority for a television date."

Startup League NAIH Closing Doors, CIHA to Form
(achatalk.com)

The NAIH, which launched with some promise (and was hailed as a possible competitor to the ACHA by a certain blog) back in 2011, is kaput after two seasons. Western Washington University will go down in history as the association's only Founders Cup champion after defeating Le Moyne College 2-1 in overtime back in March (the NAIH didn't hold a championship tournament in 2011-2012). Perhaps the most memorable thing about the NAIH was its ridiculous lack of professionalism, manifested in its numerous trolling posts on ACHA forum Hockey 101 as well as by the time they were hilariously smacked down by Kelly Pegula on Twitter:

Mourn not though, for the NAIH has apparently merged with something called the USCHA (the United States College Hockey Alliance, I assume, not the Upper St. Clair Hockey Association) to form the Collegiate Ice Hockey Association. The CIHA is already off to a very NAIH-like start, as two players have apparently been crushed to death by a falling logo.

Tom Anastos' vision, ingenuity clear
(Lansing State Journal)

You know who I like? Tom Anastos. Here's an intriguing look at part of his plan to turn Michigan State around by targeting younger, more elite players. Penn State hasn't really gone down that road too much (MSU has three committed 1998 birth years along with one from 1997, and PSU's youngest commit is late 1996er A.J. Greer) but it will be interesting to see if and how things evolve for the Nittany Lions over the next couple years.

Committee hears coaches’ ideas on regionals, NCAA selection, but consensus lacking
(USCHO)

Speaking of Anastos, he's quoted in this article about the American Hockey Coaches Association meetings at the beginning of the month. Long story short, nobody agrees on how the NCAA Tournament should look in light of the brutal attendance at the regional sites this year (and most years), but many seem to agree on the idea of rewarding teams in the NCAA selection process for non-conference road wins, something that was previously done from 2003 to 2007.

The AHCA discussions are always interesting and can inform policy changes, but the rubber doesn't really meet the road on these types of things until the NCAA committee meetings in June.

NAHL announces 2012-13 season awards
(nahl.com)

The first-year Johnstown Tomahawks, with an ownership group including Penn State football legends Shane Conlan and Jack Ham, were named the NAHL's organization of the year.

Johnstown is a hockey town, and the fans proved it once again by welcoming the NAHL’s Johnstown Tomahawks with enthusiasm as the team revitalized a community with a rich hockey tradition. The Tomahawks finished fifth in the NAHL in total and average attendance, which included 11 home games with 3,000 fans or more. That’s an impressive stat for a first-year team in a market that had never witnessed NAHL action. The team also made the playoffs in their first season in Johnstown and had three players make NCAA Division I commitments.

USHL's Chicago Steel draft paralyzed hockey player Jack Jablonski
(SB Nation)

Your feel-good story of the week: in the late stages of the USHL Draft on Tuesday (one that had already seen PSU commit Greer and Tommy Olczyk's brother Nick selected), the Chicago Steel selected Jack Jablonski out of Benilde-St. Margaret's School in Minnesota.

Jablonski, of course, was paralyzed during a BSM game back in December 2011, and his subsequent rehabilitation has captivated much of the hockey world. He's unlikely to ever walk, let alone skate, again, but he's still going to be a hockey player for a very classy USHL team.

Lokomotiv Yaroslavl training in .... Lancaster County?
(Broad Street Hockey)

Three months before Jablonski's injury, the plane crash that killed all of KHL team Lokomotiv Yaroslavl was the dominant tragedy in the hockey headlines. Lokomotiv withdrew from the KHL for the rest of that 2011-2012 season and instead played in the VHL, a lower league, after pulling together an entirely new roster. They returned to the KHL this past season, going 34-18-0 and qualifying for the playoffs. Now, they're training in Manheim, PA of all places. Pretty cool.

Philly Phollow-Up

A sellout crowd awaits the opening draw between Penn State and Vermont on January 19th

Penn State will once again play Vermont at Philadelphia's Wells Fargo Center on October 26th at 7:05 p.m., news that leaked during the Philadelphia Flyers' home game against the New York Islanders Thursday night.

The leak took the form of advertising tickets for the event, as they go on sale Monday (that's this coming Monday, April 29th) at 10:00 a.m., and will be available through ComcastTIX.

A stick tap is in order for Philly native and Schenectady Daily Gazette writer Ken Schott, the first media personality to report the news on any sort of formal level.

The game, as mentioned by Schott, is a carbon copy of one played January 19th where, in front of sellout crowd of 19,529, the Nittany Lions topped the Catamounts 4-2. Goals from Taylor Holstrom, newly-minted alternate captain David Glen and Justin Kirchhevel pushed PSU to a 3-0 lead midway through regulation. Those tallies, along with another by Casey Bailey in the third period and Matt Skoff's 34 saves, were enough for the victory in what was dubbed the Philadelphia College Hockey Faceoff. If you feel like reliving that night - and why wouldn't you? - here's TYT's coverage of what ultimately became just one of several high-profile wins during Penn State's inaugural NCAA season:

M: Penn State 4 vs. Vermont 2
1/19 Postgame: Guy Gadowsky, Justin Kirchhevel, Matthew Skoff
Penn State-Vermont Photo Gallery

PSU's triumph contributed to a five-game losing streak for UVM, which went on to finish 11-19-6 after losing to Boston College in the Hockey East quarterfinals.

The involvement of the Catamounts, a program with little obvious connection to Philadelphia, in the Wells Fargo Center game is largely the result of people of power and influence understanding how to pull strings. UVM defenseman Nick Luukko, who will be a junior during the coming season, is the son of Peter Luukko, the president of Comcast Spectacor. Comcast, among other things, owns both the Flyers and the Wells Fargo Center. Additionally, Nick was a fifth-round draft pick of the Flyers in 2010 (I wonder how that one came to pass), so hopefully he goes pro after 2013-2014, opening the door for a program people actually want to see to play PSU in south Philly.

That said, last season's tilt was a fun event that moved a lot of tickets in spite of the opponent, and the replay in October will likely live up to the original.

Penn State's full schedule will likely be officially revealed within the next six weeks, although including Vermont, 30 games have become known through alternative sources. Army will open the Pegula Ice Arena on October 11th, and the Nittany Lions will once again participate in the Three Rivers Classic in Pittsburgh on December 27th and 28th, facing some combination of Robert Morris, Boston College and Bowling Green. The Big Ten Tournament, involving all six conference teams, will be played in St. Paul from March 20th through 22nd, and league opponents Michigan, Michigan State, Ohio State, Minnesota and Wisconsin will play the Nittany Lions four times each during the regular season, twice at home and twice on the road. Two-game series against Union (home) and Air Force (away) will highlight the out-of-conference slate, along with single games against RIT (home) and Robert Morris (away).

UPDATE 4/26 2:45 P.M.: An email received from the Flyers Friday morning offers further confirmation of the game, and of the fact that the Philadelphia College Hockey Faceoff name and logo will once again be used.

Penn State-Vermont Photo Gallery

Photos from Saturday's trip to Philadelphia for Penn State's 4-2 win over Vermont at the Wells Fargo Center in the inaugural Philadelphia College Hockey Faceoff. Click any photo to enlarge.

Since I stayed in University City, on Saturday afternoon I walked over to the Class of 1923 Arena, the former home of the University of Pennsylvania's defunct NCAA Division I program. My intent was just to take a couple photos, but I stumbled on an ACHA Division 1 game between host Drexel and John Carroll and watched it until I had to head down to South Philly.

Here's the Drexel bench, the losing side by a 5-4 score.

When all else fails, take a picture of the outside of a giant arena.

Much like in Pittsburgh, the path traveled by media went past the Zamboni entrance, and much like in Pittsburgh, I snuck a photo at ice level.

This Flyers equipment guy looks like he knows he's in for a long night.

Here's Philadelphia defenseman Nicklas Grossman being interviewed following the Penguins' 3-1 win over the Flyers in the NHL season opener that preceded PSU-Vermont.

Largely because Pittsburgh's Consol Energy Center is 14 years newer than its Philadelphia counterpart, the media accommodations weren't quite as luxurious. Still, Wells Fargo Center has a legit snack nook.

If I didn't see it for myself, it wouldn't have believed it...

The opening faceoff, before a sellout crowd of 19,529. Pretty incredible, especially if you're familiar with the "girlfriends and parents" gatherings of some of PSU's former ACHA opponents (see the attendance for former Icers ESCHL rival Drexel, above, as one example).

Finally, Guy Gadowsky after the game - we didn't get the press room this time around, but I can report that Ke$ha's Die Young was blasting out of the Nittany Lions' locker room, just behind Daily Collegian writer Rob Greissinger's head.

1/19 Postgame: Guy Gadowsky, Justin Kirchhevel, Matthew Skoff

Comments from head coach Guy Gadowsky, junior forward Justin Kirchhevel (on the left in the second video) and freshman goaltender Matt Skoff (on the right in the second video) following Penn State's 4-2 win over Vermont in front of 19,529 fans at the inaugural Philadelphia College Hockey Faceoff Saturday night.

M: Penn State 4 vs. Vermont 2

Box score // GoPSUSports.com recap // UVMathletics.com recap

PhillyBurbs.com recap // Burlington Free Press recap
UVMathletics.com highlights

In front of an electric sellout crowd of 19,529 at Philadelphia's Wells Fargo Center and a sizable television audience on The Comcast Network, Penn State notched yet another landmark win in its early NCAA history, 4-2 over Vermont (6-12-4, 3-8-4 Hockey East) Saturday night.

The Nittany Lions now have an official NCAA record of 9-12-0, while improving to 11-14-0 in all games and 7-10-0 against NCAA Division I teams. Notably, PSU is 2-2-0 against major-conference teams, losing twice at Union on November 24th and 25th before topping Ohio State and now UVM in NHL arenas.

That Matt Skoff was central to this victory should be of little surprise. Since a jittery first two collegiate starts, the McKees Rocks, PA native has been exactly as advertised: a steady, consistently excellent goaltender that gives a first-year NCAA program a chance in every game he plays. Against the Catamounts, Skoff saved 34 of 36, many in truly spectacular, game-altering fashion. UVM freshman forward Robert Polesello, in particular, was robbed several times on his six shots.

Still, offense is needed to win games, and Penn State received plenty of it, from most of the usual sources.

After a quick start to the game with a healthy share of chances each way, Taylor Holstrom dented the scoreboard first 3:11 in, when he took a feed from Connor Varley and streaked down the ice before finishing the play by wristing through Brody Hoffman's five hole.

Scoring first is always important, of course, but especially so in PSU's case. The Nittany Lions are now 6-1-0 when scoring the first goal of the game, versus 3-11-0 when allowing the first goal. A more unusual trend was continued as well: (probably) the team's three biggest wins this season - at RIT on October 20th, versus Ohio State in Pittsburgh on December 29th and against Vermont on Saturday night - have all come in front of five-figure crowds in professional arenas and immediately following extremely ugly losses. The UVM triumph followed Tuesday's overtime defeat to NCAA Division III Neumann at the Ice Pavilion, just as RIT followed a shutout at the hands of DIII Buffalo State and Ohio State followed a 6-0 clunker against Robert Morris.

Following Holstrom's goal, Penn State also scored second, and third, just to be safe. Late in the first period, David Glen put his team up 2-0 after Justin Kirchhevel made a spectacular back-to-the-play pass from behind the goalline to the slot for a hard-charging Glen. Kirchhevel, in his second game back from a concussion, did the honors himself on the 3-0 goal, a wraparound effort from Tommy Olczyk that needed a review to ensure that the South Dakotan was able to stuff the puck all the way past the red.



Polesello did win one battle against Skoff during the contest, when he finished a pretty lateral passing play with a one-timer from between the circles while George Saad occupied the penalty box for a high sticking infraction. Brett Bruneteau swung the puck cross ice to defenseman Nick Luukko, who found Polesello from Skoff's right. Despite that blemish, the Nittany Lions' penalty kill had a good night, going 5-for-6, notably including the survival of consecutive penalties to Brian Dolan and Glen bridging the first intermission and overlapping by 17 seconds.

The Catamounts would get no closer than 3-1. Penn State successfully attacked and protected its lead for much of the third period, then added to it with 4:42 left. Dolan - a native of nearby Havertown, PA who came to Happy Valley before the NCAA announcement - got a shot from right point on net. It was saved, as was Holstrom's follow-up attempt, but Casey Bailey buried the play's second rebound. That goal rendered Kyle Mountain's reply snipe with 11 seconds remaining meaningless.

Guy Gadowsky, who now has more wins in his first NCAA season at Penn State than he did in his first seasons at Alaska and Princeton, will next lead his team into East Lansing, MI for a pair of games against future Big Ten rival Michigan State January 25th and 26th.

Here's the live blog from the historic win - unfortunately, my participation over much of the first half of the game was rather spotty due to internet issues, but my sincerest thanks are due to the commenters who picked up the torch while I was out of commission.

Catfight Takes Center Stage

What: NCAA Men vs. Vermont in the inaugural Philadelphia College Hockey Faceoff

Where: Wells Fargo Center, Philadelphia, PA

When: Saturday, January 19 at 8:00 p.m.

Coverage: Television: The Comcast Network (check local listings); Audio: UVM (free), PSU ($), ComRadio (free); Live stats: PSU (free); TYT live blog (free)

This is going to be fun.

With ticket sales reportedly exceeding 17,000 a sellout crowd in Pennsylvania's largest city, an unprecedented live television audience, and a puck drop just five hours after a nationally-televised Penguins-Flyers game on the same ice to open the lockout-shortened NHL season, Saturday night's Philadelphia College Hockey Faceoff will undoubtedly be a landmark game in the early history of Penn State's NCAA program.

Oh yeah, and PSU has a decent chance of winning too.

Since the 2012-2013 schedule was announced, I've claimed that Vermont was Penn State's best shot at a major-conference win (let's forget, for now, that we already have a major-conference win). The reasons are simple and well documented, but just to review:

• The Catamounts, a Frozen Four team in 2009, have regressed each season since then, bottoming out at 6-27-1 (3-23-1 Hockey East) last year.
• From that team, UVM lost four-year starting goaltender Rob Madore.
• They also lost leading scorer Sebastian Stalberg, who had a year of eligibility remaining but elected to go pro. He signed with the San Jose Sharks as a free agent and now plays for their AHL affiliate in Worcester, MA.
• Zemgus Girgensons, easily Vermont's top recruit for this season, was drafted 14th overall by the Sabres last June and elected to sign with Buffalo rather than attend college. He's also in the AHL, with the Rochester Americans.
• Head coach Kevin Sneddon saw his staff gutted over the summer. Assistant John Micheletto was hired to coach Hockey East rival Massachusetts, and Micheletto took fellow UVM assistant Joey Gasparini as well as director of hockey operations John Gobeil with him.

Worst offseason in college hockey? Has to be up there. And it's not like they were starting from a fantastic position.

Nevertheless, it could be said that UVM has already exceeded expectations this season. At 6-11-4 (3-8-4 Hockey East), the team has already matched its overall and conference win totals from last season. The two most recent of those six wins came at the Catamount Cup, the holiday tournament they host at Gutterson Field House, when Vermont took the title by defeating current No. 17 Union - an opponent in common with PSU, of course - and Princeton. Despite a current three-game losing streak, including a home sweep by UMass-Lowell last weekend, Vermont seems to be trending up, as they're 3-4-2 since November 30th.

No, it's not exactly national championship-level stuff, but it's marked improvement from last season, and decidedly against the odds.

The return of Connor Brickley from a skate laceration should add punch to UVM's offense.

Chris McCarthy, a senior, and Jacob Fallon, a sophomore who transferred from Michigan, pace the Cats with six goals apiece, although Florida Panthers draft pick Connor Brickley is arguably the the team's best forward. Brickley missed 12 games after being cut with a skate blade against Boston University on November 16th, but returned last Friday, picking up two assists over the weekend. Colin Markison was also expected to be a key contributor this season, but like Brickley has missed most of the season, finally returning to the lineup last weekend for the first time since the season opener.

Vermont carries three NHL selections in all, and the other two are defensemen, Michael Paliotta (Chicago, third round, 2011) and Nick Luukko (Philadelphia, sixth round, 2010). Luukko, who leads the team's blueliners in points with seven, is the son of Peter Luukko, the president of Comcast Spectacor and also of the Flyers. Just in case you were wondering why Penn State ended up playing Vermont in this game, instead of nearby Princeton or anyone else. Behind those guys will likely be goaltender Brody Hoffman, who has capably picked up Madore's torch to the tune of a 2.95 goals against average.

Eric Steinour has skated against UVM before.

One interesting footnote: Should Penn State senior forward Eric Steinour play on Saturday, it will actually be his second time opposing the Catamounts. As a member of the U.S. World University Games team in 2011, he and the rest of the American side (which also included former Icer Tim O'Brien, as well as then-PSU head coach Scott Balboni as an assistant coach) played UVM in a pre-tournament exhibition on December 29, 2010. Vermont won the game 7-1, with Brickley scoring twice and adding an assist - he had just been one of the final cuts from the U.S. World Junior Championships team that year, explaining some possible issues with the Team USA crest. Current captain H.T. Lenz had a goal and an assist, and Tobias Nilsson-Roos was the other still-active player to score in the game.

Three Stars: December 31-January 6

3. How Stuff Works - College Hockey Edition, Part 4: More About That Junior Hockey Thing
(Black Shoe Diaries)

IcerGuy's latest foray into the "explain college hockey to the uninitiated Penn State masses" series. Also, see:

Part 1: Varsity (NCAA) vs. Club (ACHA) Hockey
Part 2: NCAA D1 Conference Breakdown
Part 3: NCAA and Junior Hockey

2. When will the season start?
(philly.com)

Ready for some melt-your-face-off awesomeness? Check out what Flyers beat writer Frank Seravalli, the brother of former Icers forward Nick Seravalli, posted Sunday:

The NHL will play either a 48-game or 50-game season... with a 48-game schedule, the Flyers would likely begin - as previously reported - at home on Jan. 19 with a nationally televised rivalry game against Pittsburgh at 1 o’clock. (Penn State plays Vermont at 7:30 in men’s hockey at the Wells Fargo Center).

Ummm... wow. So you have what (for my money) is the NHL's best rivalry, featuring the two Pennsylvania teams, in the loooong-awaited NHL season opener, leading into Penn State hockey that evening in the same building, in what was already a fairly high-profile game for the Nittany Lions. And while the on-the-fly efforts to boot up the NHL season represent an evolving story at this point, as of Sunday night, indications were that the 48-game season will be the option taken.

Yeah, I can probably forget about getting a credential for PSU-UVM.

1. @PennStateMHKY
(Twitter)

This is just damn cool - the first NCAA men's team with Penn State hockey pioneer John Dufford.

Best of the Rest

Guy Gadowsky updated the media on his team's status at the halfway point of the season.

Nittany Lions on target halfway through first season
(Centre Daily Times)

This is precisely the sort of filler article that doesn't make Three Stars in a busier week, but since this wasn't a particularly prolific period... and I suppose it's nice to take a step back at the midpoint of the season for some reflection at the calendar flip. Here's Guy Gadowsky, in that vein:

“Overall we’re very happy with the general direction of where we’re going. We’re happy with the leadership of the team. That’s probably the most important thing this year — that they’re taking very seriously and setting standards, the foundation, they’re taking seriously.”

The Man Who Saved Penn State Football
(Onward State)

It isn't really a hockey story, and rumors that hit late Sunday night - if true - may throw the entire thing into jeopardy... but as I'm sure you know by now, none other than Terry Pegula reportedly kicked in $1.3 million towards PSU football coach's Bill O'Brien's 2013 salary. The move, of course, was part of an effort to retain O'Brien, who flirted with the NFL's Cleveland Browns and Philadelphia Eagles last week. Quoting Onward State:

The “Thank You Terry” blog was so named because of Pegula’s $102 million gift to bring Division-1 hockey to Happy Valley. The $1.3 million Terry Pegula promised yesterday is only about one percent of that total, but in the end, it might turn out to be an even bigger reason to say thanks.

I categorically disagree, but hey, shoutout from someone huge, followed by loads of new readers. Shots on me.

UPDATE 9:28 A.M.: In a Monday morning press conference, O'Brien denied the entire thing, directly stating that he did not receive a $1.3 million raise from Pegula. That doesn't definitively mean that it didn't happen, but with O'Brien standing as the only supposedly involved party to speak on the matter, the burden of proof has certainly shifted back to the rumor mongers.

Podcasts
(psuhockeyandbaseballtalk.blogspot.com)

FoTYT Ross Insana tried his hand at a podcast heavy on PSU hockey content, and it's a quality listen. Meanwhile, I'm jealous of anyone who likes the sound of their own voice enough to do something like that.

R.J. Umberger would totally play at Penn State if that was an option in his day.

Umberger raves about hockey’s growth in Pennsylvania
(ProHockeyTalk)

Pittsburgh native and Ohio State alumnus R.J. Umberger (who also helped the Buckeyes as a volunteer assistant during the NHL lockout) is impressed with hockey's growth in Pennsylvania.

“It has been special to see how things have changed, and I loved seeing the enthusiasm for the college games this week [at the Three Rivers Classic],” Umberger said.

He singled out how the sport is growing in Pittsburgh, in particular.

“This was a great week for Pittsburgh hockey,” Umberger said. “Having Penn State around is going to make it even better. Things are looking up for hockey in this city.”

UAH 11, Vanderbilt 0
(uahhockey.com)

For the third time this season, NCAA Division I Huntsville - starved as always for home dates - took on an ACHA Division 3 opponent. And for the third time this season, it went about how most would expect.

Actually, a much more interesting measuring stick situation will come this weekend, when ACHA D1 Oklahoma plays two in the Von Braun Center. Between those games, the Sooners' two at the Ice Pavilion on February 15th and 16th, and their 4-3 overtime loss to the CIS' University of British Columbia on December 29th, OU should prove to be quite helpful in assessing the ACHA's place in the college hockey pecking order this season.

Three Stars: December 24-30

3. Penn State Hockey Tailgate
(psu.edu)

College of Communications alumnus/alumna? Planning on going to the Penn State-Vermont game in Philadelphia on January 19th? Good news: you have a place to pregame.

2. How Stuff Works - College Hockey Edition, Part 3: NCAA and Junior Hockey
(Black Shoe Diaries)

IcersGuy continued his outstanding series explaining college hockey to the masses last week with a tutorial on the junior hockey system.

If you missed it, Part 1 outlined the differences between club and varsity hockey, while Part 2 discussed college hockey's ever-changing conference alignment.

1. PSU Moves Up in Season's Second Poll
(psuwihc.com)

The PSU Women's Ice Hockey Club finally has a website. It might look a little familiar, but hopefully the webmaster's grind can make up for it. Also, the team has a new Facebook page, and their not-new Twitter account is still there, so get after that.

Captain Carly Szyszko (pictured) and the fourth-ranked team are back in action on January 13th at Navy for a Sunday afternoon tilt.

Best of the Rest

@Cmen12
(Twitter)

Because the men's team didn't use their allotted morning skate time on the second day of the Three Rivers Classic, women's players Cara Mendelson and Katie Murphy did. Well played.

Penn State Smaller Sports Weekly Roundup
(Black Shoe Diaries)

It's a good thing that IcersGuy dropped the second-star post this week, because BSD needed to win some karma points back after this steaming pile. Not only is men's hockey a "smaller sport" in BSD's estimation (I mean, it's no wrestling, after all), but it gets treatment like:

Because the NHL is still locked out (LULZ @ U HOCKEY FANZ)...

...and proceeds from there with some lazy, predictable trolling of both Penguins and Flyers fans. Didja know, for example, that PSU has more wins than the Flyers this year?!?! Because they're locked out!!!! Get it?!??!?!?

Jenna Hendrikx Takes Time from NCAA Season to Attend Do It for Daron Event
(Bleacher Report)

As much (deserved, mostly) criticism as Bleacher Report takes, it actually does deliver pretty good women's hockey stuff, including this quick feature on Mercyhurst's Jenna Hendrikx. Hendrikx attended a Provincial Women's Hockey League game over the holiday break to benefit Do it for Daron, a foundation created to honor the life of Daron Richardson, the daughter of then-Ottawa Senators assistant coach Luke Richardson (and a PWHL player herself) who tragically took her own life in 2010. Do it for Daron supports teen suicide and depression awareness and causes.

NCAA 2012-13 Women's Hockey Midseason Report Card
(Bleacher Report)

Mercyhurst's Christine Bestland gets tabbed as college hockey's midseason MVP in this slideshow, while Rebecca Vint of Robert Morris scoring five goals against Penn State on November 10th is given best single-game performance so far. Someday we'll be on the other end of things like that, I promise.

Colonials Ink Seven for 2013-14 Season
(rmucolonials.com)

As long as we're on the CHA, Robert Morris released the names of a pretty strong group of signees for next season. Over one month after the early signing period closed, but hey, better late than never.

Kale Dolinski and his ASU teammates went 1-1 in British Columbia over the weekend, losing to UBC but beating Simon Fraser. Photo: Allyson Cummings/House of Sparky.

Sun Devils Get Big 5-3 Win, Split Canadian Series
(House of Sparky)

While Arizona State's SB Nation blog tends to be a little... uhhh... homertastic concerning the school's ACHA team, it does provide very good coverage, including of the Great Northwest Showcase over the weekend. The Burnaby, BC event involved games between ACHAers (and Penn State opponents) ASU and Oklahoma, and Canadian non-varsity power Simon Fraser as well as the CIS program from the University of British Columbia.

Long story short, the ACHA representatives were blasted by the Canadians to the tune of a combined 12-2 count on the showcase's first day. However, the Sun Devils bounced back with a win over Simon Fraser on Saturday after losing to UBC, while Oklahoma extended the Thunderbirds to overtime to follow up their loss to SFU.

MSU salvages 1-1 tie against WMU But Falls in Shootout
Spartans drop 3rd place game to Michigan 5-2
(The Munn Minute)

In another holiday tournament involving a future PSU opponent, Michigan State settled for a fourth-place finish at the Great Lakes Invitational after a third-period barrage boosted archrival Michigan to a 5-2 win in the GLI consolation game. On the first day of the tournament, Western Michigan and Michigan Tech (the eventual champion, for the first time since 1980) ousted the two Big Tenners from title consideration.

I guess I should point out that the GLI was originally scheduled for the Detroit Tigers' Comerica Park this year before being moved back to its customary Joe Louis Arena home. Thanks so much, NHL players and owners.

Three Stars: November 26-December 2

3. Penn State at Mercyhurst // Exhibition Game
(collegehockeystats.net)

Something I learned this past weekend: the first game in the history of Mercyhurst women's hockey was played against the Lady Icers on October 9, 1999. Unfortunately, I think the Collegian passed on covering it to run one of 38,000 PSU-Iowa football articles that week (fall break didn't help either), so this box score might be the only online trace of it. That's just as well - it wasn't really a pretty result for us.

By the way, that's two consecutive women's opponents mentioning their history with the Lady Icers in their game notes, if you're scoring at home. Just saying.

2. Ice Hockey Recap: The First Ranked Opponent
(Black Shoe Diaries)

Penn State Hockey: Weekend Roundup #4
(Victory Bell Rings)

Because of the out-of-sync timing between my posts and theirs, I never get enough of a chance to toss some love to the other great PSU hockey bloggers out there, including IcersGuy and Mary Clarke of BSD and VBR, respectively. Because of the aforementioned timing issue (their recaps go up later in the week), these posts are actually their thoughts on the Nittany Lions' weekend at then-No. 8 Union November 24th and 25th. Know what though? That one was better anyway.

Get to know their stuff, and follow them on Twitter too (@hey_pono for IcersGuy, @marycclarke for Mary Clarke). Because you're not a fully-informed fan if you're only listening to one voice.

1. Philadelphia College Hockey Faceoff Promo
(YouTube)

Yep, it's a commercial for Penn State's game with Vermont in Philly on January 19th. Cheeseball? Sure. But in a fun way. And the Nittany Lion does the ear thing he does right at the end, so it's all good.

Best of the Rest

Welsh Signs with the Mississauga Steelheads of the OHL
(The Hockey Writers)

Even though he didn't move directly from Penn State's commit list to major junior, I suppose Thomas Welsh can be considered our first CHL defection. I've largely gotten over his decommitment after he wasn't able to "come to terms" (his awkward choice of words that may or may not indicate that he wasn't looking at PSU for the 'right' reasons) with the school. I fully expect this to be the last time I ever mention him now that he's officially gone for good. However, because Welsh's relatives continue to email me articles, as if I have any interest whatsoever in promoting him at this point...

...here's a photo of Welsh getting scored on by Team USA at the World Junior A Challenge last month. I'm not sure which of the nine goals scored by Eamon McAdam's teammates in the game is represented here, sorry.

Sooners face big second half of the season
(Hockey in the Heartland)

Now that the ACHA has our attention, here's how future opponent Oklahoma (February 15th and 16th) is looking for the spring semester. The Sooners' trip to the Ice Pavilion will actually be their second NCAA DI series of the season, as they play Alabama-Huntsville on January 11th and 12th. So basically, the Icers could never get any DI games, and as soon as they depart the ACHA, teams start getting four per season.

David Glen records a hat trick in Penn State's big win Friday night but Joe D'Elia and ASU get revenge on Saturday
(Stack the Pads)

Remember when PSU was unbeaten against the ACHA as an NCAA program? Those were good times. StP has some evidence in support of that, including video of four of the Nittany Lions' eight goals Friday night.

Women's Ice Hockey Signs Seven to Letters of Intent
(quinnipiacbobcats.com)

Former PSU women's target Mika Nervick, a Minnesota high schooler - man, do we hit Minnesota hard on the women's side - signed with Quinnipiac.

Allentown Arena - yeah, that name will stick here in the 21st century - will host the AHL in 2014.

Ground breaks on new Allentown arena, expected to be Phantoms home in 2014
(Broad Street Hockey)

Yay, Pennsylvania hockey!

I do have to say that it's a great testament to the hockey fans of Glens Falls, NY that the team draws more than six people per game (3,514 so far this year, well below the AHL average of 5,313), given that they've basically been used as a place to stash the team for five years while this project gets done.

HockeyTown: Princeton, New Jersey
(New York Hockey Journal)

Guy Gadowsky is quoted heavily in this article, mostly dealing with the development of minor hockey in his former location. Undoubtedly, he's trying to build the same sort of depth of organization in Central PA.

Picture Gary Bettman on the couch of a fighter/shrink...
(Toronto Globe and Mail)

Speaking of Princeton-era Gadowsky, here's a great feature on Kings enforcer Kevin Westgarth, one of the players he coached at PU. It's so bizarre to me that between Westgarth and George Parros (who was a Tiger pre-Gadowsky), Princeton generates not only a couple of the NHL's most intelligent players, but guys who also happen to be able to throw hands.

Bockmann's overtime-winner hands league-leader first loss
(uwsp.edu)

Former Icer Josh Daley and his teammates at UW-Stevens Point took down UW-Eau Claire, the third-ranked team in NCAA Division III, in overtime Saturday night. The Pointers are 5-5-1 so far, with Daley playing in five of those games and posting an assist.

Lebanon Valley College Moving to ESCHL IN 2013-2014
(achahockey.org)

Next season, the Icers' old conference will feature Delaware, Rhode Island, Rutgers, Stony Brook, West Chester, and now LVC. It's great to see the league develop a little bit of depth after PSU's final ESCHL season (2010-2011) saw only UD and URI join the Icers as solid programs, with complete wastes of ACHA D1 status Robert Morris and WCU holding down the other two spots (but not doing much else of value).