PSU Seeking Fill-In For PIA Opener (Updated)

With the continued government shutdown leaving it unclear whether Army will be able to travel to Penn State on Friday to play in the first NCAA game at Pegula Ice Arena, College Hockey News' Mike McMahon is reporting that the PSU brass is sick of sitting and waiting (1, 2).

Yeeeeeah...probably a good idea at this point. The major sticking point, however, is that every Atlantic Hockey team has filled its NCAA-allowed maximum of 34 games this season. That leaves two fronts for attack:

1. Reschedule one of PSU's already-booked AHA games so as not to require another slot. Beyond Army, the Nittany Lions have home contests with Sacred Heart and RIT on tap for this year. Sacred Heart, however, is already set to play at UMass Lowell on Friday. RIT is available on Friday, but has home games on Thursday (Colgate) and Saturday (Michigan). Theoretically, if Penn State were willing to play the game on Sunday, the Pioneers would become available, as they're at home in Fairfield, CT against RPI on Saturday. One of those teams would have to play a rather painful three-game weekend, but it's certainly in the realm of possibility.
2. Pay some other team to drop one of their non-conference games to open up a scheduling slot for the opener. PSU hockey insider Mark Horgas claims that Connecticut, which swept the Nittany Lions last year in Storrs, CT, is a likely play in this category due to "key contacts" in the Huskies athletic department and UConn's present movement to grow their program. Connecticut doesn't open up until the 18th, and has road games with Minnesota State (October 18th and 19th), Boston University (November 17th) and Providence (February 11th) that could be likely candidates for "adjustment." It should be noted, of course, that UConn is just one of many options - AIC (last year's opening opponent), Canisius (Terry Pegula's other pet team), Holy Cross and Niagara are also available on Friday.

As always, stay tuned. Hopefully that's a light at the end of the tunnel we're seeing - either way, this news certainly beats monitoring Congress and Department of Defense bureaucrats.

UPDATE 10/8 7:45 A.M.: According to Buffalo Business First, Canisius has lined up as a possible replacement, thanks largely to their shared ties with Terry Pegula. Pegula, of course, is financing the presently under-construction HARBORcenter ice rink project in Buffalo, and the Golden Griffins will relocate there upon its completion next year.

“There has been some preliminary discussions,” confirmed Jason Venisky, Canisius associate director of athletics communications. “We will have to make a final decision by Wednesday.”

One interesting aspect to the story is that Canisius has applied to the NCAA for a special waiver that would allow them to add a game to their schedule without dropping one - a move that would put them over the NCAA game limit of 34. Could the NCAA wind up doing Penn State a bit of a favor to help the school pull off its varsity ice arena opener? That in and of itself would be quite a story.

The Golden Griffins, who went 19-19-5 a year ago and qualified for the 2013 NCAA Tournament by winning the Atlantic Hockey tournament title, are available on Friday but have to head back to the Buffalo area on Saturday for a game at Niagara.

Three Stars: September 23-29

3. Women's Hockey Media Day Wrap-Up
(GoPSUSports.com)

The NCAA women's team held their media day last Thursday. Unfortunately, it was pretty lightly covered, so I didn't have the material for a roundup/link dump post.

Not that it really needs one when GoPSUSports recorded the entire thing on video and even threw in a transcript of Josh Brandwene's press conference. As someone who tries to peel back the layers of interpretation that are inevitable in journalism and give you as much raw material as possible, I approve.

2. A Salute to 32 years at the Greenberg Ice Pavilion
(StateCollege.com)

As mentioned in last week's Three Stars, Joe and Heidi Battista took the final skate at the Greenberg Ice Pavilion a little over a week ago (the facility's fate is still a bit unsettled, although it won't be an ice rink any longer).

Naturally, that meant a "Joe Battista tells stories" column for his subsequent entry on StateCollege.com. Gather 'round, children.

1. Katie Vaughan looking to backstop the Penn State women's ice hockey club to a national championship
(PennLive)

I'm sure some of you are crying bias because I gave first star to the Women's Ice Hockey Club (assuming anyone actually cares where I place the links in these posts). Of course I'm biased. We all are, it's part of the human condition. At least I'm up front with you guys about mine.

Regardless, WIHC goalie Katie Vaughan is one of the finest student-athletes Penn State has to offer and she laid down a fantastic interview here. Hopefully, we're all biased in favor of that.

Best of the Rest

@PegulaIceArena
(Twitter)

Penn State held an open house at Pegula Ice Arena on Saturday which, as it turned out, doubled as a reunion of NHL alumni. Above, obviously, is Mario Lemieux, pictured with Heidi Battista.

Former Red Wing/Whaler/Hurricane/Flyer Keith Primeau was also there, and while he might not be in the "greatest ever" discussion, he did once do this.

Szyszko Retains Captaincy, Rothman and Schaffer Named 2013-14 Alternates
(psuwihc.com)

UPark's ACHA teams named their 2013-2014 letter-wearers last week. As should be fairly obvious from the header, Carly Szyszko will once again wear the C for the women, while Allie Rothman and Ashton Schaffer take the As.

The Ice Lions also have some highly-worthy leadership: Max O'Malley is the captain, with Creek Lewis and Ryan Urban serving as alternates.

Ice Chips Blog - Season previews for 2013-14
(achahockey.org)

Both of those teams were picked to return to nationals this season on the ACHA website.

Ohio State hockey: B1G dreams beckon
(Land-Grant Holy Grant)

Here's a well-done preview of the Ohio State men's team from OSU's SB Nation blog...

...I'm a little worried though. To this point, the people who support and write about Buckeye hockey appear to be very nice, reasonable and articulate. In other words, the polar opposite of their neanderthal football brethren. So basically, what are they up to?

Tougher schedule would help MU women's hockey
(GoErie.com)

Over in Erie, people are fretting because they don't view Mercyhurst's schedule as tough enough to prepare the Lakers for their annual NCAA Tournament trip.

But after [the Minnesota State, Ohio State, Cornell, Clarkson, Robert Morris and St. Lawrence] games, which teams on the 33-game schedule will give the Lakers the battles they need to prepare for the postseason?

Syracuse? The Orange are winless in 23 career meetings with the Lakers. The rest of the CHA? Lindenwood, Penn State and Rochester Institute of Technology finished last season with a combined 30-68-10 record. Lindenwood begins only its third year in NCAA Division I. Penn State and RIT joined D-I last year.

I guess I should probably be mildly offended, but I'm not. We're a second-year NCAA program. We'll get there.

RMU women’s hockey team seeks to climb conference
(City of Champions)

A nice preview of the perenially-tough RMU Colonials who, with all due respect to a growing Syracuse program, have emerged as Mercyhurst's primary College Hockey America threat most of the time.

Women's hockey drops 2013-14 regular season opener to No. 3 Clarkson
(RITathletics.com)

Five regular season games have already been played by CHA teams. Lindenwood lost to and tied with Bemidji State over the weekend, while Mercyhurst split that aforementioned Minnesota State series. Then there's this one, a 12-1 win by third-ranked Clarkson over RIT. Yikes.

New Community/UNO Athletic Facility
(YouTube)

The first time one of my favorite teams won a championship, I really enjoyed the offseason. Got the t-shirt, got the hat, went to the parade, basked in the glow. It was glorious. Then, just before the next season started, I realized something obvious but generally forgotten in brief moments of euphoria: they don't cancel the league so that my team can be the champs forever. You still have to go out and defend the title, and you probably won't do it successfully.

That's sort of how I feel about Pegula Ice Arena right now. Other schools aren't going to stop building new arenas just because we have one. And much like PSU people feel PIA is better than new facilities at Notre Dame, Miami and Minnesota-Duluth, others will feel that their place beats ours.

One of the early challengers will likely come from UNO, and while it looks fantastic, it's going to double as a basketball arena. So I think we'll be okay up against that one.

Penn State All-Sports Museum
(Facebook)

Hockey exhibit at the all-sports museum? Hockey exhibit at the all-sports museum.

You know, it's interesting... the more I learn - the outstanding collection of memorabilia shown above being the latest bit of knowledge - the more I'm convinced that my issues with the handling of Icers and Lady Icers history are not due to an institutional flaw, but instead are a result of stubborn and/or lazy individual(s).

Basically, I'm not sure what exactly USA Hockey teaches in the course of its prestigious Brian Fishman Internship, but I'm not impressed.

Three Stars: August 26-September 1

3. Women’s Hockey: Freshmen excited to begin
(The Daily Collegian)

A sure sign that the season is almost upon us: the Collegian is back at it on a regular basis. This article, which takes an overview of women's team freshmen Laura Bowman, Kelly Seward, Amy Petersen and Sarah Nielsen, is a great way to get the fall semester going.

2. Steinour reflects on his career in "Hockey Valley"
(Stack The Pads)

On the other end of the career curve, of course, is recently-graduated men's forward Eric Steinour. What's Big Stein up to now? Something that sounds a little more difficult than writing a hockey blog:

I am working for Affiliated Engineers in Chapel Hill, NC as a Mechanical Systems Designer. Affiliated Engineers is a multi-discipline technical consulting firm. The team I am a part of is specifically involved in designing steam and chilled water plants and distribution systems. We design new systems as well as redesign existing systems to be more efficient. Many of our clients are universities and medical facilities.

1. A Look Inside The Pegula Ice Arena
(Onward State)

Not a particularly tough call this week, as the fruit of Onward State's all-access look inside the arena is the most extensive peek we've received since the ice was installed.

Best of the Rest

@kingston1990
(Twitter)

Amazing? Horrifying? I suspect that there's very little middle ground on this one, as tends to be the case with tattoos.

Also, apropos of nothing, Runnin' With The Dogs is both the worst college hockey blog out there and written by the biggest tool out there.

University Park Alumni Athlete Letter
(ps4rs.org)

Alumni activist group Penn Staters For Responsible Stewardship - an organization drawing even fewer middle-ground opinions than most tattoos - has assembled a list of former PSU student-athletes who support the lawsuit brought by the Paterno family (as well as several faculty and Board of Trustees members) against the NCAA over... well, you know. Hockey's sole representative is former Icers captain Ryan Wick, a 2000 graduate.

Pittsburgh's Consol Energy Center to Host 40 2014 NHL Draft-Eligible Players
(USA Hockey)

Last Monday, USA Hockey unveiled the players who will participate in the second annual CCM/USA Hockey All-American Prospects Game, which will take place on the 26th in Pittsburgh's Consol Energy Center. Freshman goalie Eamon McAdam participated in last year's inaugural edition of the draft showcase in Buffalo as part of his push to the 70th overall pick. However, there will be no repeat participation by a Penn State commit, as well-regarded defenseman Kevin Kerr was surprisingly snubbed.

On a related note, if anyone needs a hotel room in Pittsburgh on September 26th, let me know in the comments.

Penn State hockey gets new voice
(The Daily Collegian)

In other "yay, the Collegian's back" news, new men's beat writer Darian Somers - you'll like him, trust me - takes a run at Brian Tripp, the team's new radio voice. Tripp replaces Steve Penstone who, contrary to the verbiage used in the article, was let go this offseason.

The Old NHL, Penn State Hockey, and Your FGSB Mailbag
(The 700 Level)

In response to someone asking how badly Penn State is going to get spanked this year:

Penn State’s move to The Big Ten is quite a big deal, especially for their hockey team, which I’m sure everyone knows went D1 last year. Their first year in D1 they were independent and actually didn’t do too badly for a really young team. On the official roster there were 14 freshman, 6 sophomores, and 7 juniors. Hey, you when go from club team to the big leagues that transition is going to take some time. With this young team they took down some big clubs in Wisconsin, Vermont, and Michigan State. The realignment has everyone saying they’re going to get whooped up on. On paper it looks like it, but I’m not so sure.

Penn State’s new conference is made up of them, obviously, and Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan, Michigan State, and Ohio State. Those are some perennial power houses in the college hockey world, but Penn State is looking to be better than last year. They have their first ever NHL draft picks joining the program this season, and as you can see above have already done surprisingly decent with the guys that are ALL coming back this year (they went 13-14 last season).

Well done, guy.

UC Men's Hockey Dawes Exits Program For Position With Penn State's Women's Team
(uticaod.com)

It seems as if new women's team director of operations Alex Dawes will be missed in the neighborhood of Utica College, his previous employer. Seriously, I probably won't even get a write up this flattering when I die.

Onward State Cribs: Campus Towers
(Onward State)

Ever wonder what the apartment of women's forwards Katie Murphy and Shannon Yoxheimer (and their roommates) looks like? Onward State's new Cribs series has you covered. Since it's way nicer than my place, I would've been okay not finding out about it.

Condon, Rau Named Gopher Hockey Captains
(gophersports.com)

Leading off the opponent news section of Three Stars this week are the new captains of the Minnesota Golden Gophers, senior forward Nate Condon and junior forward Kyle Rau. Both are NHL draft picks, in 2008 by Colorado and in 2011 by Florida, respectively. Of course, you can't swing a dead cat at Minnesota's roster without hitting three or four draftees, so I'm not sure of that fact's newsworthiness.

Gophers hockey player Guertler suspended
(Minneapolis Star Tribune)

Incoming Gophers freshman Gabe Guertler, on the other hand, is not off to a good start if he wants to be a captain someday. Guertler received a DWI while operating a moped Friday night/Saturday morning and has been suspended by the team until at least November.

Judge throws out Milo’s case against Vermont, Sneddon
(USCHO)

Score one for common sense as former Vermont Catamount Justin Milo's "waaaah they cut me... no fair!" lawsuit against UVM and coach Kevin Sneddon has been thrown out.

RITMHKY
(Ow.ly)

RIT's men unveiled a new jersey last week. It's a throwback to the school's inaugural 1968 design, but with modern logos. Solid concept and well executed.

Former Laker Jones Picked 3rd Overall in CWHL Draft
(hurstathletics.com)

Brian Selected in Second Round of CWHL Draft
(rmuathletics.com)

Two Former Orange Selected by Toronto Furies
(suathletics.syr.edu)

Last week's Canadian Women's Hockey League draft was pretty good for College Hockey America, led by former Mercyhurst star Jess Jones, who was chosen third overall by the Brampton Thunder. Robert Morris goalie Delayne Brian (formerly of Wayne State as well, leaving there when WSU's program folded) was the first pick of the second round by the Alberta Honeybadgers, and a pair of Toronto Furies-drafted Syracuse alumnae, Holly Carrie-Mattimoe (second round) and Lisa Mullan (eighth round) closed things out for the conference.

Jones and Mullan both graduated from their schools in 2012 and never faced Penn State. Carrie-Mattimoe, however, had two goals and two assists in four games against PSU as a senior last year. Brian backstopped the Colonials' 4-1 win at the Ice Pavilion on November 11, 2012 with 19 saves and backed up Kristen DiCiocco in the other three PSU-RMU meetings.

Eight Hockey East teams to compete in Frozen Fenway
(New England Hockey Journal)

If you're the type of person who still gets excited by outdoor hockey not involving your favorite team, good news: the annual Frozen Fenway series is returning in January. Penn State opponents Boston College and UMass-Lowell are both among the eight Hockey East teams involved in the event hosted by the famous home of Major League Baseball's Boston Red Sox.

KSU Levies Lifetime Ban Against Coaching Staff
(hockeyyall.com)

While details of the alcohol-related tomfoolery of Kennesaw State at the ACHA Division 3 national championships back in March have not come to light, it must have been a pretty good time. Last we checked in, KSU had suspended the team for the entire 2012-2013 season. Now, it's banned the coaching staff for life. Even Jerry Sandusky can, theoretically anyway, outlive his sentence. Not so much if you're affiliated with Kennesaw State and get bombed at a hockey tournament, I guess.

Former Cal U. hockey players headed to trial
(Washington Observer-Reporter)

In other #ACHAProblems, former California (PA) hockey playing brothers/marijuana aficionados Steven and Jesse Powell waived their preliminary hearings and will stand trial. As you may recall, the Powells' arrests back in April led to Cal's suspension of the entire Vulcans hockey program, a sanction that was eventually lifted under the condition of required drug testing.

While the incident is obviously tailor made for jokes, I'll pass this time around. Instead, I think it needs to be said that Cal has handled the whole thing flawlessly from day one (in my view, anyway), and the university deserves to be commended for that.

@BattistaJoseph
(Twitter)

Guy Gadowsky ran in the inaugural Mt. Nittany Marathon on Sunday. Which is notable in and of itself, but as an added bonus, it led to another look at Penn State's new white jerseys, via Nate Jensen's Twitter.

Three Stars: August 19-25

3. Beantown Classic – Scouting the Forwards
(Over The Boards)

Forward A.J. Greer, a Nittany Lions commit scheduled for 2015 entry, participated in the highly-regarded Beantown Classic showcase from August 10th through 14th. And did quite well for himself - OTB rated him the number two forward there and had this to say:

Greer started strong here and never let up. Consistently created chances and used his outrageously long reach to score a number of creative goals including a wrap-around and a full-reach fake that got one of the better goalies here to bite just enough for Greer to bury in the ensuing opening. Surprisingly deceptive and will only get better. Would like to see more snarl from the forward but he did show a mean streak here at times. Youngest player in the pro division but finished second in overall scoring.

Just one guy's opinion? Au contraire, mes amis. USHR tabbed Greer the number two forward in the pro division (1996 birth years and older, in case you're wondering).

AJ Greer, late ’96 F, KUA (#11 Bombers) – 6’4”. The youngest player in the pro division, the Penn State recruit is not even draft-eligible until 2015. A power forward in the making.

We got ourselves a pretty good one here, guys.

2. Preseason Previews: PSU Still Too Many Unknowns
(B1G Ice Hockey)

The Big Ten Hockey Blog predicts that PSU will finish last in the conference, largely due to the unknown quantity of conference play for the young program.

I'm not going to say too much about it here, because I'm still contemplating writing a full post in response (I did fire off a few points in the comments over there if you're interested). However, I think relegating the Nittany Lions to the basement out of hand because the other league teams "have been doing it for decades" is a mistake. Banners don't skate, as the saying goes, and I sincerely cannot identify a single reason to say that Penn State is any worse than Ohio State or Michigan State right now. Given the whole 2-1-0 situation against that pair in 2012-2013 with eight pure ACHA players on the roster, there is reason to see it the other way around.

1. Penn State breaks in new Pegula Ice Arena ice sheet
(Western College Hockey Blog)

For the record and on Thursday, Joe Battista, Guy Gadowsky, Josh Brandwene and their families were the first to go for a skate at Pegula Ice Arena. Evidence of the happenings comes from Battista's Twitter, the men's team's Instagram (twice), and the women's team's Instagram (again, twice).

Most coverage of the ice's initiation focused exclusively on Gadowsky, which is understandable to a degree, as the men's team is the one that draws the eyeballs. But also a mistake, because it meant whiffing on a story like this:

(Belated) happy anniversary guys! The next 21 go pretty fast, from what I hear.

Best of the Rest

@Fung_er
(Twitter)

It certainly took a while, but the Women's Ice Hockey Club's Mary Kate Tonetti finally has her ACHA Women's Division 2 Off-Ice MVP award after being named its winner back in March.

York City Ice Arena to Host CHE Playoffs
(psuwihc.com)

Sticking with the ACHA women, some pretty great hockey will be coming to York on February 22nd and 23rd in the form of the College Hockey East playoffs. The four teams that make up this season's inaugural edition of CHE (PSU, West Chester, California (PA) and Delaware) were half of the field at the 2013 ACHA WD2 National Tournament, including both championship game participants.

Charles Vance McCullough
(Centre Daily Times)

Here's the obituary for Vance McCullough, the long-time head of Penn State's club sports who passed away unexpectedly last Monday at age 69.

Vance was a driving force in creating a club sports department supporting many programs that were organizationally on par with NCAA teams. His legacy includes the Men's and Ladies Icers Hockey teams, as well as the nationally recognized men's and women's rugby teams.

Hey wait, that sounds awfully familiar...

McCullough was a driving force in creating a club sports department supporting many programs that were organizationally on par with NCAA teams, but for the recognition and the existence of scholarships. His legacy included not only the Icers and later the Lady Icers, but continues today through the success of the Ice Lions and Women's Ice Hockey Club, as well as Penn State's nationally-recognized men's and women's rugby teams.

Flattered, Koch Funeral Home guy who wrote the obit.

Top 5 Big Ten Off-Season Stories
(Western College Hockey Blog)

PSU doesn't even register in this rundown of the Big Ten's offseason beyond a mention of the school's first NHL draft picks, with stories like the Illinois rumors and Ohio State's post-Osiecki meltdown collecting the attention. The crazy thing? PSU doesn't really deserve to register in a rundown of the Big Ten's offseason beyond the draft picks and maybe Pegula Ice Arena's completion.

Basically, Penn State's program has finally reached sort of an awkward milestone: it's more or less completely normal.

Other than new program-type stuff, making offseason news is bad roughly 92 percent of the time. So here's to never, ever appearing in one of those types of posts again.

@OhioState_MHKY
(Twitter)

Ohio State has new alternate jerseys (above), and suddenly, I want to go get Taco Bell.

Although they include a few striping modifications, they're essentially a white adaptation of the jerseys the Buckeyes wore for the Frozen Diamond Faceoff, a January 15, 2012 outdoor game against Michigan in Cleveland.

Just made you smarter than your friends on a completely useless topic. You're welcome.

In other OSU news, the team named its leadership group last week, headlined by captain Curtis Gedig.

Pittsburgh-born Saad savors his day with Stanley Cup
(Pittsburgh Tribune-Review)

Brandon Saad, the brother of former Nittany Icer George who became the first Pittsburgh born and trained player to win the Stanley Cup in June, got his customary time with sport's most iconic trophy on Thursday.

Penn State Athletics Announces National Anthem Performer Auditions for 2013-14 Year
(gopsusports.com)

Karen Newman, Lauren Hart, Jim Cornelison, Jeff Jimerson, Rene Rancourt... anthem singers can become legends to their team's fans in hockey. If you think you're up to it, September 5th is a date you should circle.

Bennett takes his hockey show to the Lone Star State
(Foster's Daily Democrat)

Luke Bennett, a Rochester, NH-native forward who recently signed with Corpus Christi in the NAHL, is interested in Penn State. But not that interested.

Bennett has grown to like the western brand of hockey.

“I like the style,” Bennett said. “It’s a little different. It’s faster with less fights (than East Coast hockey). I’m a skill guy, not a fighter. I’m 165 (pounds). I’m not throwing around too much.”

Bennett plans to use his time in Texas to expand his game and draw D-I college attention. He mentioned schools like Western Michigan, Penn State and UMass-Lowell, but adds that in his heart he wants to stay in the west.

Construction Webcam
(rit.edu)

Last week, structural steel went up on RIT's Gene Polisseni Center. The 4,500-seat arena, which will replace PIA as NCAA Division I's newest hockey venue, is scheduled to open in time for next season. The Nittany Lion women, of course, will play there each year as part of the CHA schedule.

Despite the lost distinction for Penn State, it actually is quite fun watching someone else's dream building materialize. And if you still have the urge to hate, just remember that Polisseni Center broke ground during RIT's homecoming last October - a weekend that was spoiled (for Tigers faithful) by the PSU men and their big win in Rochester.

@GopherHockey
(Twitter)

A quick bit of setup: Minnesota fans have been very vocally opposed to the Big Ten's "intrusion" into the hockey bubble because they'll miss their big games against Bemidji State and Mankato State Minnesota State-Mankato Minnesota State in the WCHA, or something like that. Furthermore, despite his pair of national titles, four Frozen Fours and seven conference regular season or playoff championships, they aren't exactly thrilled with their coach, Don Lucia, either. Because they're the State of Hockey, as they're more than happy to remind you, and if they don't win everything ever, THINGS WILL EXPLODE.

So with all of that out there and from a Penn State perspective, you can understand why the photo above, of Lucia (left) presenting Big Ten commissioner Jim Delany with a Gophers jersey, could be considered quite entertaining.

@TYTBlog
(Twitter)

A quick, shameless self-link to share some news for the Twitter-free among you:

Confirmed: Rodney Martin will return as PA announcer for the inaugural Pegula Ice Arena season. Fantastic news.

Really could not imagine things any other way.

Three Stars: August 12-18

3. 150 Miles for a Cure...
(Bike MS)

Women's assistant Casey McCullion is once again participating in the 150-mile-long Bike MS City to Shore ride to fight multiple sclerosis, which takes place this year on September 28th and 29th. I'll let her do the talking from here:

I've registered for Bike MS because I want to do something for the people who have been diagnosed, including my friend from Holy Cross (and riding buddy) who lives with MS every day. I want to do everything to prevent more people from learning what it means to live with this disease. Just as I did last year, I am dedicating my ride to him and hope that he will be able to join me (even if it's just for a few training rides)! Today, there is no cure for multiple sclerosis, and with diagnosis occurring most frequently between the ages of 20 and 50, many individuals face a lifetime filled with unpredictability.

She's only $205 away from her fundraising goal... just saying. If you listened to me last time and donated, thank you. If not, please consider it if you're able.

2. @B1GHockey
(Twitter)

Confirming earlier reports, the Big Ten has officially announced its hockey media day:

The site of media day will be Xcel Energy Center which, of course, will also host the inaugural Big Ten tournament from March 20th through 22nd. According to Let's Play Hockey, the event will be held from 9:00 a.m. until noon local time, so 10:00 a.m. until 1:00 p.m. in the eastern time zone. Interestingly, the NCHC has scheduled its media day elsewhere in the Twin Cities (Minneapolis' Target Center, to be specific) on the same date, in an overlapping window, 10:00 a.m. until 2:00 p.m. local. Have fun with that one, actual journalists.

Media day should, in theory, be an interesting glimpse into the type of coverage Penn State can expect from its conference rivals and even its own outlets. However, considering the geographic isolation of the site, the low return on investment for those making the trip from any distance and the nature of PSU hockey coverage to this point, it could wind up being a bunch of Minnesota and Wisconsin writers asking Gadowsky about Pegula Ice Arena. Ain't no such thing as bad publicity, but I'm not expecting to learn anything.

Nittany Lions players involved? Your guess is as good as mine, but one has to think that the letter-bearers (Tommy Olczyk, Nate Jensen and David Glen) are leading candidates, with former Minnesota Golden Gopher and Minnetonka High School product Max Gardiner also receiving strong consideration. Supposedly - I feel like I saw this somewhere, but can't remember where - just one player per team will attend.

1. @D1WomensHockey
(Twitter)

Hey, why not?

Best of the Rest

Flames' hockey to don new jerseys for 2013-14 season
(liberty.edu)

Liberty, the Women's Ice Hockey Club's season-opening opponent on September 27th and 28th, is debuting new uniforms this year. They're nothing spectacular, although they are consistent across all five Flames hockey teams (there's your trivia for the week - LU is the only school to have a team in all five ACHA divisions). The only exception to the previous sentence: the D2 women, D2 men and D3 men will wear the wordmark across the chest (as shown above) while the D1 men and D1 women will have the school's new logo front and center:

Tri-City Storm
(Facebook)

What's Kenny Brooks been up to lately? Glad you asked, because the Tri-City Storm, his junior team, caught up with him recently for a quick interview.

Waterloo Black Hawks’ Coach On Islanders’ 2013 Picks
(CBS New York)

I haven't been at this New York Islanders thing long, but WFAN's Daniel Friedman is easily my favorite guy covering the team to this point. He was one of the only people offering anything of substance from the team's development camp last month and now, he's scored an interview with P.K. O'Handley, who coached two 2013 Isles draft picks - Eamon McAdam and Taylor Cammarata - with the USHL's Waterloo Black Hawks last year.

O'Handley, unfortunately, fell a little flat on his end, giving mostly useless replies. Compare McAdam to an NHL goalie? "He’s a big mobile goalie. I think you could make a comparison to quite a few." How did he stack up in the rotation with Cal Petersen last season? "McAdam was the veteran. It was a unique situation with two draft-eligible goalies. I thought McAdam was good and was rewarded by being drafted." Keep up the good work Mr. Friedman, all you can do is ask the questions.

NTDP Defenseman McAvoy Commits to Boston University
(Western College Hockey Blog)

Long Island native Charlie McAvoy, recently picked for the National Team Development Program U17s, visited Penn State at one point but has opted for Boston University. The 1997-born offensive defenseman will likely join the Terriers in 2015.

UNO hockey trio accused of starting fight with racial slurs
(Omaha World-Herald)

Fun fact: Nebraska-Omaha used to be my favorite NCAA Division I program. So, uh, thanks again Terry.

The essentials of this story (file it all under "allegedly" so I don't have to insert the word in every sentence): On August 3rd, Maverick players Matt White, Alex Simonson and Preston Hodge were involved in a racially-charged altercation outside of an Omaha bar with "a small group of African-Americans" that began with "racial slurs and epithets." Hodge then began pushing a man named Lamar Triplett (who is black, but apparently was not part of the original group and was just walking through the wrong place at the wrong time), and Triplett responded by Derek Boogaarding him. White also threw a punch at Triplett and missed, while Simonson stepped in with the bar parking lot fight equivalent of face washing - shoving other members of Triplett's party.

UNO reacted swiftly, dismissing White and Hodge from the team and revoking their scholarships. Hodge, a freshman defenseman, had yet to suit up for the Mavs, but White is a particularly tough blow to the team as a co-captain and close to a point-per-game player for his career. Senior defenseman Simonson, apparently the least involved of the three, has been suspended pending further investigation. Court appearances for all three and Triplett on their disorderly conduct citations are scheduled for September.

@MiHockeyNow
(Twitter)

Michigan coach Red Berenson, for the record, is 73 years old. The photo above was taken at UM's alumni game a couple weeks ago.

NCHC to Use Shootout in Regular Season Contests
(NCHC)

I'd love to make fun of the fact that the NCHC will be using shootouts, but the Big Ten is using them too, so that's off.

Honestly though, it's not the worst thing ever in my opinion. Shootout games will count as ties for national purposes, most notably, the PairWise Rankings and NCAA Tournament selection, with the extra points awarded to shootout winners only applying towards the conference standings. I suppose that opens the door for someone to win a regular season title over someone else due to being better at shootouts, but how often will that actually happen? The price might be worth having a winner and a loser for every game, as artificial as it may be.

In other, more anticlimactic NCHC news, the new conference has officially been recognized and awarded a tournament autobid by the NCAA.

At World Junior camp, Big Ten had a big representation
(USCHO)

Nine of the 31 players surviving to the end of the recent World Junior Evaluation Camp in Lake Placid, NY go to Michigan, Minnesota or Wisconsin. That bodes well for the size of the Big Ten's delegation to Team USA for this season's World Junior Championships.

Details announced about Frozen Frontier hockey event
(WHEC)

CHA rival RIT is the latest college program to get in on outdoor hockey, as the Tiger women will play Clarkson at Rochester's Frontier Field (normally home to the Rochester Red Wings of minor league baseball) on December 14th. RIT's men, who also play Penn State in 2013-2014, will cap the doubleheader against Niagara that evening.

An AHL game between the Terry Pegula-owned Rochester Americans and the Lake Erie Monsters on December 13th is both the launch point and the centerpiece of the ten-day Frozen Frontier festival.

Penn State Ranks 19th in Merchandise Royalties
(Onward State)

PSU's Collegiate Licensing Company merch ranking is 19th this year. That's down from 12th last year, but all things considered, not too bad. Now if only the idiots out there could stop celebrating the drop because they think it scores points in their crusade against Rodney Erickson and the Board of Trustees.

I'll be honest: I'm not ready for this anyway

Maryland's move to Big Ten at a cost of tens of millions
(CBS Sports)

Can we all agree to stop dropping Maryland as a potential NCAA hockey candidate for a while? They're bleeding, rather profusely. Even accounting for the Big Ten's rather large checks soon to be headed their way, it's going to take them a bit to get to the point where hockey will even be on the table.

Anything's possible with a billionaire in your corner? I suppose, but at the same time, Penn State's athletic department was completely healthy and turning a profit in 2010. If 2013 Maryland fell into $102 million, they would probably want to do something other than build a hockey rink with it. Just saying.

Code of Conduct Violation Grounds KSU for 2013-14
(HockeyYall.com)

Back in 2005, Georgia school Kennesaw State almost had NCAA Division I hockey. Seriously. However, there's quite a bit of distance between then and now, as the still-ACHA Division 3 Owls have been suspended for the 2013-2014 season due to "misbehavior involving alcohol" at the D3 national tournament last season.

Wisconsin Recruit Dvorak to Sign with London of OHL
(Western College Hockey Blog)

As far as I can tell, it's sort of against the college hockey code to laugh when major junior poaches a recruit from a rival - it's a problem we all face together, and your school could easily be next. Nevertheless... hahahahahaha.

The recruit in question here is ex-future Wisconsin Badger Christian Dvorak. He's a 1996-born, 2014 NHL Draft eligible who played midget major for the Chicago Mission AAA last year. Instead of going to UDubs in 2014 as originally planned, Dvorak will sign with the OHL's London Knights (incidentally, the team that holds Eamon McAdam's CHL rights) and leave the Badgers extremely shorthanded at forward. Which is fine by me, since PSU might have needed Thomas Welsh to defend against him.

Pegula Ice Arena - Interior
(oxblue.com)

Let's close this out with a quick check on the first-ever ice building process at the arena, which began on Friday.

Workers have been on the floor each day since then as well, resulting in the above photo from 11:28 Sunday night. With a couple layers down, the familiar white color will follow early this week, with more layers and markings after that. And then, in a couple days, a playing surface for hockey games. Cool.

The Show on the Road

Here are three things I know to be true:

1. Tickets for the inaugural season at Pegula Ice Arena are in high demand, with men's season tickets and student sales not leaving too much behind for single-game availability.
2. Penn Staters are everywhere, and sometimes "everywhere" isn't particularly convenient to State College. I, for example, live closer to eleven 2013-2014 Nittany Lions away games than I do to Hockey Valley.
3. Many people like to travel and learn about unfamiliar people, places and things.

With those in mind, I've collected as much information as I could find about tickets to PSU's away games this year. Sure, the secondary market (StubHub and eBay, most notably) is always an option - one you may have to pursue if you want to see that shimmering arena and didn't get season tickets - but why pay the markup for an away game if you can get in on the primary market?

In some ways, this post isn't ripe yet, as several schools have not announced sale dates or prices for single-game tickets. But at the same time, several others are already or about to be on sale (Robert Morris men and women, RIT women, Philadelphia College Hockey Faceoff and Big Ten Tournament), so delay would be harmful in those cases. Therefore, the plan is to update this post and re-circulate it as appropriate.

Tickets to see Matt Skoff and the men's team play at Wisconsin will be available September 24th

Men

Air Force When: Oct. 18 and 19 Where: Cadet Ice Arena; Colorado Springs, CO On-sale date: Early Oct. Athletics website: goairforcefalcons.com Ticket office phone: (719) 472-1895 Ticket office email: afa.tickets@airforceathletics.org 2012-13 attendance: 2,220 (2,470)	Vermont When: Oct. 26 Where: Wells Fargo Center, Philadelphia On-sale date: Available now Prices: $40, $25, $20, $15, $12, $10 Link to purchase Ticket office phone: (800) 298-4200 Ticket office email: customerservice@neweratickets.com 2012-13 attendance: 19,529 (19,529)
Robert Morris When: Nov. 1 Where: 84 Lumber Arena, Neville Twp. On-sale date: Available now Prices: $12, $10, $5 Link to purchase Athletics website: rmucolonials.com Ticket office phone: (412) 397-4949 Ticket office email: athleticticketing@rmu.edu 2012-13 attendance: 858 (1,100)	Wisconsin When: Dec. 6 and 7 Where: Kohl Center; Madison, WI On-sale date: Sept. 24 Prices: $24, $20 Athletics website: uwbadgers.com Ticket office phone: (800) GO BADGERS Ticket office email: tickets@uwbadgers.com 2012-13 attendance: 9,521 (15,237)
Three Rivers Classic When: Dec. 27 and 28 Where: Consol Energy Center, Pittsburgh On-sale date: Not yet announced Prices: $55-$25 (last year) Ticket office phone: (800) 745-3000 2012-13 attendance: 11,230 (18,387)	Michigan State When: Jan. 17 and 18, 2014 Where: Munn Arena; East Lansing, MI On-sale date: Oct. 1 Prices: $22, $20, $10 Athletics website: msuspartans.com Ticket office phone: (800) GO STATE Ticket office email: tickets@msu.edu 2012-13 Attendance: 5,869 (6,470)
Ohio State When: Jan. 31 and Feb. 1, 2014 Where: Value City Arena; Columbus, OH On-sale date: Not yet announced Prices: $13, $10 (last year) Athletics website: ohiostatebuckeyes.com Ticket office phone: (800) GOBUCKS Ticket office email: AthleticSales@osu.edu 2012-13 attendance: 4,004 (17,500)	Michigan When: Feb. 21 and 22, 2014 Where: Yost Ice Arena; Ann Arbor, MI On-sale date: Not yet announced Athletics website: mgoblue.com Ticket office phone: (866) 296-MTIX Ticket office email: mtickets@umich.edu 2012-13 attendance: 5,357 (6,637)
Minnesota When: Feb. 28 and Mar. 1, 2014 Where: Mariucci Arena; Minneapolis, MN On-sale date: Not yet announced Athletics website: gophersports.com Ticket office phone: (800) 846-7437 Ticket office email: fans@gopherfanrelations.com 2012-13 attendance: 9,950 (10,000)	Big Ten Tournament When: Mar. 20 through 22, 2014 Where: Xcel Energy Center; St. Paul, MN On-sale date: Available now* Prices: $160, $130, $80 (five games) Link to purchase Ticket office phone: (800) 745-3000 * all-session passes are available now, single-game availability is still TBA

On September 23rd, tickets to see Shannon Yoxheimer and the women open at Vermont go on sale

Women

Vermont When: Oct. 4 and 5 Where: Gutterson Fieldhouse; Burlington, VT On-sale date: Sept. 23 Prices: $5, $3, free (2 and under) Athletics website: uvmathletics.com Ticket office phone: (802) 656-4410 Ticket office email: athletic.tickets@uvm.edu 2012-13 attendance: 348 (4,035)	Quinnipiac When: Oct. 11 and 12 Where: TD Bank Center; Hamden, CT On-sale date: Oct. 1 Athletics website: quinnipiacbobcats.com Ticket office phone: (203) 582-3905 Ticket office email: tickets@quinnipiac.edu 2012-13 attendance: 310 (3,084)
RIT When: Nov. 15 and 16 Where: Ritter Arena; Henrietta, NY On-sale date: Aug. 20 Prices: $5, $3, free (5 and under) Link to purchase Athletics website: ritathletics.com Ticket office phone: (585) 475-4121 Ticket office email: jazgfh@rit.edu 2012-13 attendance: 650 (2,100)	Lindenwood When: Nov. 22 and 23 Where: LU Ice Arena; Wentzville, MO Prices: $5, $3 Tickets only available at the door on game day Athletics website: lindenwoodlions.com 2012-13 attendance: 113 (1,000)
Mercyhurst When: Dec. 6 and 7 Where: Mercyhurst Ice Arena, Erie Prices: $5, $3 Tickets only available at the door on game day Athletics website: hurstathletics.com 2012-13 attendance: 574 (1,300)	Ohio State When: Jan. 3 and 4, 2014 Where: OSU Ice Rink; Columbus, OH Free admission Athletics website: ohiostatebuckeyes.com 2012-13 attendance: 326 (1,200)
Syracuse When: Jan. 24 and 25, 2014 Where: Tennity Ice Skating Pavilion; Syracuse, NY Free admission Athletics website: suathletics.com 2012-13 attendance: 164 (350)	Princeton When: Jan. 28th, 2014 Where: Hobey Baker Rink; Princeton, NJ Free admission Athletics website: goprincetontigers.com 2012-13 attendance: 167 (2,100)
Robert Morris When: Feb. 21 and 22, 2014 Where: 84 Lumber Arena, Neville Twp. On-sale date: Available now Prices: $10, $5 Link to purchase Athletics website: rmucolonials.com Ticket office phone: (412) 397-4949 Ticket office email: athleticticketing@rmu.edu 2012-13 attendance: 170 (1,100)

Three Stars: July 29-August 4

3. The Pipeline Show - Season #9 Clips
(The Pipeline Show)

Much as once-and-again teammate David Glen did a couple weeks ago, freshman defenseman and Vancouver Canucks draft pick Mike Williamson was in studio with TPS for a hour on Saturday (show 1, August 3rd at the link).

2. Using HARBORcenter to attract college hockey’s best
(Two in the Box)

Buffalo sports blog Two in the Box has an interesting idea for an in-season tournament hosted by the First Niagara Center/HARBORcenter complex - and Penn State is included through its Pegula connection, along with Canisius, Niagara and a rotating fourth team (preferably from PSU's league to make the thing an Atlantic Hockey-Big Ten showdown of sorts).

My initial instinct was to say that there's no way that the Nittany Lions would do both the Three Rivers Classic and the Pegula Challenge, but as long as we have roughly 64 non-con slots to play with, why not? And if it has to be one or the other, I have a hard time believing that PSU could say no to the $102 Million Man.

1. christivetter8 (1,2)
(Instagram)

@Cmen12
(Twitter)

It was a popular week for Pegula Ice Arena visits by current players and recruits, including junior women's forward Cara Mendelson and her brother Matt, an uncommitted forward with the USHL's Muskegon Lumberjacks (top photo). Christi Vetter, who is scheduled to hit campus next fall, also joined the party - both solo and with her sisters.

Best of the Rest

84 Lumber Arena will host the PSU men and women three times in 2013-2014

Men's and Women's Hockey Tickets Now on Sale
(rmucolonials.com)

Heads up for Pittsburgh-area Nittany Lions, or anyone who likes a good roadie: single-game tickets for the men's trip to Robert Morris on November 1st, as well as for the women's series there on February 21st and 22nd, are now on sale. I have no reason to think that the men's game won't be packed pretty tightly at the Ice Pavilion-sized 84 Lumber Arena, so you might want to jump on that now.

RIT coach Wayne Wilson receives contract extension
(Rochester Democrat and Chronicle)

Speaking of Atlantic Hockey opponents, RIT coach Wayne Wilson has received a well-earned contract extension, through 2017. Wilson, in 15 years, has led the Tigers from Division III power to one of Division I's most respected mid-majors - including a Frozen Four appearance in 2010 that helped net him the Spencer Penrose Award as DI coach of the year.

Penn State athletic department loses two officials in Greg Myford and Brian Siegrist
(The Daily Collegian)

PSU lost two long-time athletic department employees on Friday in Greg Myford, the associate athletic director for marketing and communications and Brian Siegrist, who primarily was in charge of communications for men's basketball. Myford is leaving for a vice president position with marketing company IMG College, while Siegrist is headed to the University of South Florida to be their associate athletic director for communications.

From a hockey standpoint, Myford is the more notable of the two departures due to the department-wide scope of his job. It's likely that, as one of his last acts affecting hockey, he played a role in the decision to not retain broadcaster Steve Penstone for the 2013-2014 season.

How NHL owners can help grow the NCAA game
(The Hockey News)

It seems a bit wasteful to write an entire column when "give out money" is the essence of Ryan Kennedy's suggestion to NHL owners to help grow the NCAA game, but here you go. Of obvious interest: potential Big Ten connections between the Blackhawks and Illinois and the Capitals and Maryland are explored.

Pegula Ice Arena, July 2013
(Penn State News)

Random good-quality PIA bowl photo? Sure, why not (the version at the link is better than the one presented here, by the way)?

Penn State racks up first draft picks, and McAdam, Williamson await Big Ten baptism
(USCHO)

While this is not the best thing ever written about Eamon McAdam and Mike Williamson - their quotes are taken from a transcript of PSU's media event two days after they were drafted - it's what you're getting from what, generally, is the slowest period of the offseason if you don't have any pro signings, major junior defections or World Junior camp invites. No, I'm not in sales, why do you ask?

AU Hockey to join NCHA in 2014-2015
(aurora.edu)

It's not exactly the Fighting Illini, but Aurora University (based in the Illinois city of the same name) will be joining NCAA Division III and the NCHA for the 2014-2015 season. AU started its hockey program last year at the ACHA Division 3 level with the stated goal of NCAA status.

And yep, in case you're wondering, @USCollegeHockey had it all the way.

Jooris leaving Union for Calgary Flames
(Schenectady Daily Gazette)

Penn State's games against Union on November 30th and December 1st are now slightly less daunting thanks to the departure of Josh Jooris, who has forfeited his senior year with the Dutchmen to sign a two-way entry-level deal with the Calgary Flames. He registered 88 points in 117 collegiate games and had recently attended the Flames' development camp, apparently doing pretty well there. Jooris follows star goalie Troy Grosenick, who similarly departed Union with a year on the table to sign with the San Jose Sharks on April 8th.

Union got back on the horse a day later by announcing their solid 2013 recruiting class.

Group photo of Wisconsin's 2013 entering class

College Hockey Recruiting: Wisconsin
(Over The Boards)

OTB's look at the recruiting efforts of the various NCAA Division I programs continued last week, with the spotlight on the Badgers. UW's incoming group is headlined by Grant Besse, a forward from Benilde-St. Margaret's (MN) who was drafted by the Anaheim Ducks in the fifth round back in June.

Here's a link to catch up on the whole series, which has also included Penn State, Boston College and Minnesota.

Big Ten hockey teams draw well
(Minneapolis Star Tribune)

Minnesota (2nd, 9,950 fans per game), Wisconsin (3rd, 9,521), Michigan State (8th, 5,869) and Michigan (10th, 5,357) were all among the nation's top ten in attendance last season. Given where the bar is set and what we know about ticket sales at Pegula Ice Arena, don't be surprised to see Penn State crack the list for the coming season.

Megastar Sidney Crosby's sister helps women's hockey
(BBC)

Canadian goalie Taylor Crosby - sister of Sid, as the headline says - recently went over to the UK as part of a camp bringing players and coaches from 18 different countries together as part of an effort to grow women's hockey outside of traditional powers Canada, the U.S., Finland and Sweden. The women's game has frequently faced criticism for its lack of depth worldwide and is at risk of being kicked out of the Olympic lineup if things don't improve.

Crosby, because of her last name, got a good deal of press over the camp... but she is a remarkably mature 17-year-old who has a good shot of Cheryl Miller-ing big brother by establishing herself as a superstar in her own right. After looking it up, I see that Cheryl Miller is older than Reggie Miller. Whatever, you get my point.

End begins for North Dakota's old Ralph Engelstad Arena
(Duluth News Tribune)

Demolition of the original Ralph Engelstad Arena, home to the North Dakota Fighting Sioux from 1972-2001, is finally underway. And no, it's not at all dusty to leave a vacant ice arena sitting in the middle of your campus for 12 years, just ask UND I guess.