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Miami 5th in Latest USCHO Poll
After this weekend’s split with Bemidji State, Miami finds itself 5th in this week’s USCHO.com poll. Considering the number of freshmen on this team, and what we lost from last year, this feels like a much better spot for the RedHawks than the lofty preseason #1 or #2 that was bestowed in most polls.
This weekend, Miami travels to Hamilton, N.Y. to take on #21 Colgate, the freshly minted champions of the Mutual of Omaha Stampede who defeated Robert Morris and host Nebraska-Omaha over the weekend at the CenturyLink Center in Omaha.
Redskin Warriors will have a preview of the series available later in the week.
From the Archives
In order to understand where you’re at, you need to understand where you came from. In this instance, Roger Voisinet, a three-year Miami captain from 1968-1970 (well before the program reached varsity status, mind you) has provided some great photos and documents from “The Brotherhood’s” infancy. Check out a sample of these rare photos; really neat stuff for those who have followed the program for any length of time.
We hope to have an interview with Roger in the near future to hear his thoughts on his playing days and how he feels about the program’s success over the last decade. Enjoy, and thanks, Roger!
RedHawks Receive Rings and a Declaration
If you hadn’t seen, here are a few pictures of the freshly minted bling for the RedHawks for you. Last year’s CCHA Tournament Championship victory keeps paying dividends for the boys in red. The first two are of Brian Paulazzo’s ring, and the third is Pat Cannone’s, and each posted the pictures on their twitter feeds.
In addition, State Representative Tim Derickson is currently serving his second term with the Ohio House of Representatives. He represents the 53rd House District, which includes Oxford where he resides, and Representative Derickson earned a bachelor’s degree in administration and management from Miami. Representative Derickson’s office and the Ohio House of Representatives had some noble words about the CCHA Champions:
Honoring the Miami University hockey team as the 2011 CCHA Tournament Champion.
WHEREAS, The members of the House of Representatives of the 129th General Assembly of Ohio are pleased to extend special recognition to the Miami University hockey team on winning the 2011 Central Collegiate Hockey Association Tournament Championship
Click this link for the full Declaration. Thanks to ADYonka for the link!
CCHA 2011-12 Preseason Poll
The CCHA media and coaches have spoken, and we agree with them. Notre Dame is our unanimous pick to win the CCHA regular season title with Miami extending its run of never finishing outside the top 4 in the current playoff format (hear: earning a first round bye) in the runner up position. In fact, Miami is the only school to have never played a first round match-up under the current tournament format.
Here are the results of our 2011-12 CCHA Poll (last season’s finish in parenthesis).
1. Notre Dame (2)
2. Miami (3) – Defending Mason Cup (tournament) Champions
3. Michigan (1)
4. Western Michigan (4)
5. Alaska (7)
6. Michigan State (10)
7. Ferris State (5)
8. Lake Superior (8)
9. Ohio State (9)
10. Northern Michigan (6)
11. Bowling Green (11)
Miami tops Windsor 4-1
In their only exhibition tune-up before the puck drops for real next weekend, the Miami RedHawks got two goals from “Awesome” Alden Hirschfeld and defeated the Windsor Lancers 4-1 at Steve Cady Arena.
Hirschfeld got his final season in a Miami uniform off to a fast start, and along with classmate Matt Tomassoni and junior Curtis McKenzie, provided all the offense senior goaltenders Cody Reichard and Connor Knapp would need as the RedHawks outshot Windsor 51-13.
Miami went 2 for 5 on the powerplay and surrendered one goal in six shorthanded situations as the game featured 21 penalties for 48 minutes. One night earlier, the Lancers skated to a 6-5 loss in Columbus as their game with the Buckeyes was also a chippy affair for the visitors from Canada who play their hockey in the Ontario University Athletics Conference.
The RedHawks skated without top returning goal scorer, Reilly Smith, but were able to overcome his absence in dominating lesser competition. If Smith is out for an extended period, Hirschfeld and the other upperclassmen will have to shoulder the load until his return.
Next weekend, Miami skates for real against Bemidji State of the WCHA in the first two regular season games of the year. We’ll have a season preview for the RedHawks as well as a weekend preview posted later in the week.
MURedHawks.com has a game recap HERE.
Notre Dame Announcement Expected Wednesday
As we first reported last week, Notre Dame will make an official announcement Wednesday, October 5 on its future conference affiliation, widely expected to be Hockey East. The South Bend Tribune is reporting along with the NCHC’s announcement today the 2013-14 season will be played with eight schools (Miami, North Dakota, Minnesota-Duluth, Colorado College, Western Michigan, St. Cloud State, Denver and Nebraska-Omaha), Notre Dame’s destination appears set.
The only other loose end is whether RPI is invited as the 12th member of Hockey East as our source close to the situation indicated last week.
We’ll continue to update the story as we learn more.
Michigan’s Merrill Suspended
USCHO is reporting Michigan sophomore defenseman Jon Merrill has been suspended 12 games including exhibition contests for violating team rules.
Merrill was expected to contribute at a high level and carry the Wolverines on the blueline as they work to replace the potent scoring they lost with the departures of seniors Carl “That Miele Guy” Hagelin and Louis Caporusso.
The suspension must have been for something grave because 12 games is roughly a third of the regular season and Merrill is expected to have a big sophomore campaign. He’s already been named to the CCHA preseason team and a leader on head coach Red Berenson’s 2011-12 squad.
Merrill will be eligible to return from his suspension on Friday, November 11 against, wait for it, Miami in Oxford. Figures.
SOURCE: Notre Dame and RPI to Hockey East
Redskin Warriors has received an unconfirmed report that Notre Dame and RPI are moving to Hockey East in 2013.
Our source with credible access to the ongoing talks tells us the Irish will take their talents east, and along with the Engineers of RPI will become the 11th and 12th members respectively, of Hockey East. If true, it could also signal Notre Dame’s intent to join the ACC for all other sports as the rest of the collegiate athletic world undergoes the same sort of seismic shift as hockey. And, for certain it’s a coup for Hockey East to land the last remaining free agent gem in the Fighting Irish.
For Notre Dame, this move makes sense. They would become conference mates with longtime rival, and Catholic college brethren, Boston College as well as Providence and Merrimack who also don the cloth.
For RPI, well, what an opportunity. They will be reunited with former ECAC rivals and this ties nicely to their reemergence on the college hockey scene as young head coach Seth Appert has the Engineers headed in the right direction. Their travel costs won’t rise and their sense of prestige and strength of schedule will certainly improve.
In the meantime, we’ll try to gain confirmation and will update this story as we can.
2011-12 Season Preview: Bowling Green
With former Miami captain and assistant coach Chris Bergeron taking the reins, last season the Bowling Green State University Falcons finished in the basement of the CCHA winning just three league games and ten overall. However, the ten wins were a dramatic improvement from 2009-10 when they won just five games in an absolutely forgettable season.
With the continued uncertainly surrounding the Falcons once proud hockey program, this off season hasn’t been anything to write home about. And, without a conference affiliation for 2013 and beyond (they have been extended an invitation to join the WCHA but have not yet accepted), the Falcons saw their best player, junior Jordan Samuels-Thomas, transfer to Quinnipiac. Samuels-Thomas led Bowling Green in scoring each of his two seasons in the orange and brown. Sadly, the program once again looks unsteady even with recent improvements made to their home rink and having professed a desire to be included in the new NCHC with MAC brethren Western Michigan and Miami.
The latest rumor surrounding the Falcons was first published by Bruce Ciskie, the voice of the defending champion UMD Bulldogs on his Twitter feed, and then again on his blog. Ciskie is reporting the Falcons have asked the WCHA for more time as they consider the league’s invitation, but that they have met with four Atlantic Hockey schools, Canisius, Mercyhurst, Niagara and Robert Morris, about potentially starting yet another new college hockey league. In addition, the Buffalo Bulls, who currently field a club hockey team, could be convinced to move to Division I, and perhaps even UAH could be included in discussions. If this pans out, this league would actually make a ton of sense for all involved. First, the Falcons would have a far greater chance of competing, the geography and travel would be much better than making trips to Minnesota and Alaska, and it would not only save a program (Alabama-Huntsville), but even add one in the University at Buffalo. More on this as the story develops.
On and off the ice, the story continues to be somewhat bleak as BG lost their best player, then had two incoming freshmen declared non-qualifiers by the NCAA and the recruiting pipeline does not appear to be loaded with top-end talent. But, they do return junior goaltender Andrew Hammond who posted respectable numbers (2.67 GAA, .915) and three of their top five scorers. However, those three combined for just 48 points (Hobey Baker winner Andy Miele had 71 for Miami last season), but it’s something.
Generally speaking, BG’s recent recruiting classes feature kids from second tier junior leagues and do not possess the depth as top tier teams that are pulling the best from the USNTDP, USHL, BCHL and the east coast. Of course Bergeron has been working with the specter of their program folding, marginally renovated facilities and now the problem of not having a conference. Looking at their incoming recruits, at first blush, there doesn’t appear to be a ton in the tank, but hopefully for the Falcons, some of these guys are late bloomers. On the positive side, Bergeron’s first recruiting class seems to have landed more size for the Falcons, which would follow the trend of when he recruited larger players at Miami to fit a tough, physical style that both he and Enrico Blasi utilized successfully behind the RedHawks’ bench.
Overall, I think 2011-12 is going to be another tough season in northwest Ohio.
Season Prediction
Ceiling — 9th
Floor — 11th
Report: WMU, SCSU Expected to Join NCHC
Curious…
That would be my immediate reaction to reports by both College Hockey News and USCHO that Western Michigan University and St. Cloud State University are expected to join the new National Collegiate Hockey Conference that will start play in 2013-14. According to reports, both schools will be invited by week’s end. Both websites cited separate sources with CHN naming the Grand Forks Herald and USCHO citing the Kalamazoo Gazette.
So, what does this mean for Notre Dame?
I think it means they are going to play as an independent while their administration very likely considers a new conference for their other sports as the dramatic changes in college athletics continue. It wouldn’t surprise me to see Notre Dame join either the Big 10 or the ACC for all sports. Of course, only the Big 10 helps the Irish (why Notre Dame gets away with using “Fighting Irish” and others like North Dakota are crucified for using “Fighting Sioux” is beyond me, but a story for another day) on the ice so things are going to be more difficult for them until the situation is resolved.
Notre Dame has committed to announcing a “decision” within 10 days.
As for the NCHC, the addition of Western Michigan makes all the sense in the world. Heavy commitment to hockey, Division I in all-sports, travel partner and MAC rival with Miami, Andy Murray at the helm, etc.
However, I’m perplexed by the addition of St. Cloud.
When the NCHC announced the formation of the conference, “like-mindedness” and a commitment to hockey were noted as key tenets that brought these schools together. I must confess I do not know a ton about St. Cloud as a university, but I know they aren’t a Division I school (though defending national champion UMD isn’t either), they aren’t highly regarded academically and I can only hope assume their ability to support hockey at this highest level is not a challenge for them financially. Plus, St. Cloud’s president went on the record saying the Huskies would not accept an invite to the NCHC as our pal Goon reported a few months back over at Goon’s World making him either a slick politician or an absolute hypocrite.
So, I’m wondering what SCSU brings that Bowling Green doesn’t?
It’s another Minnesota school which is a boon for recruiting, but Bowling Green is a Division I school and inviting them would have kept the three hockey-playing MAC schools together. If Notre Dame wasn’t (ever) going to accept the invitation, I wonder why the NCHC is going with a small non-Division I school over a program that has won a national title, has reaffirmed their commitment to hockey and is a three-hour drive from Oxford, Ohio?
More on this to come over the next few weeks I’m sure.
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