Minnesota State can be seeded anywhere from fourth to seventh in the WCHA tournament following this weekend's final games of the regular season. Currently, MSU is tied for fourth with Wisconsin and Denver and is one point ahead of Nebraska Omaha.
The Mavericks play North Dakota on Saturday night but might have to wait until Sunday afternoon after Denver and Alaska Anchorage play to find out their fate.
According to the WCHA, here are the tiebreakers that affect Minnesota State (suffice to say that MSU needs a win or a tie Saturday night or an Omaha loss or tie at Duluth it it's to clinch home ice for next week's playoffs):
Two-way Tiebreakers for 4th-7th places
• Minnesota State over Wisconsin: More league wins.
• Denver over Minnesota State: 2-0-0 head-to-head.
• Minnesota State leads Nebraska Omaha at 32 points (Minnesota State tie, Nebraska Omaha win): WCHA Goal Differential - Minnesota State currently leads (+21 to +7).
• Minnesota State over Nebraska Omaha at 31 points (Minnesota State loss, Nebraska Omaha tie): More league wins.
• Wisconsin over Denver: 1-0-1 head-to-head.
• Wisconsin over Nebraska Omaha: 2-0-0 head-to-head.
• Denver over Nebraska Omaha: 1-0-1 head-to-head.
Three-way Tiebreakers for 4th-7th places
• Wisconsin over Denver over Minnesota State.
• Denver over Minnesota State and Nebraska Omaha (then 2-way tie above for Minnesota State and Nebraska Omaha).
• Wisconsin over Minnesota State and Nebraska Omaha (then 2-way tie above for Minnesota State and Nebraska Omaha).
Four-way Tiebreaker for 4th-7th places
• Wisconsin over Denver over Minnesota State and Nebraska Omaha (then 2-way tie above for Minnesota State and Nebraska Omaha).
Saturday, March 9, 2013
Friday, March 8, 2013
UND 4, Mavericks 3
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| Pat Christman/The Free Press |
1. Tough to swallow: Minnesota State outshot North Dakota 40-20, dominated the first period (12-2 shot advantage; held UND to just nine attempted shots), got a couple of big goals. But two bad turnovers led directly to UND goals — one too many to overcome. First, there was Mark MacMillan's aggressive play on a penalty kill, taking the puck away from goalie Stephon Williams behind the MSU net and, with defenseman Josh Nelson also back there, easily tucked the puck into an open net for a 2-1 lead. The Mavericks tied the game just 17 seconds later, but in the third, Stephane Pattyn intercepted the puck from defenseman Zach Palmquist between the circles and fired a quick shot for a 3-2 lead.
2. Top guns: The Mavericks got goals from Teddy Blueger and Eriah Hayes. Good plays by Dylan Margonari and Matt Leitner, respectively, set those up. (MSU also got a late goal from freshman Taylor Herndon, his first career goal, with 20 seconds to go, just after UND's empty netter). MSU also kept North Dakota's top two scorers — two of the best forwards in the nation — Corban Knight and Danny Kristo off the scoreboard. Kristo had three shots on goal.
3. What it means: With Wisconsin losing to St. Cloud State and Denver beating Anchorage, MSU is in a three-way tie for fourth place with those teams but loses the three-way tiebreaker, giving them the sixth and final home ice spot for now. The Mavericks lead Nebraska Omaha by one point. A win or a UNO loss ensures MSU of home ice. It appears that MSU holds most of the tiebreaker wins over Omaha. The Mavericks also dropped to 11th in the Pairwise Rankings.
Read The Free Press game story here.
WCHA standings
1. St. Cloud State (37 points, clinched No. 1 seed)
2. Minnesota (35)
North Dakota (35)
4. Wisconsin (31)
Denver (31)
Minnesota State (31)
7. Nebraska Omaha (30)
8. Colorado College (24)
9. Minnesota Duluth (23)
10. Michigan Tech (20)
11. Bemidji State (17)
12. Alaska Anchorage (10)
MSU vs. North Dakota
Lines are posted below the live chat ...
MINNESOTA STATE
21-Grant ... 18-Leitner ... 22-McInnis
26-Margonari ... 23-Blueger ... 25-Hayes
24-Knowles ... 12-LaFontaine ... 8-Gaede
14-Herndon ... 19-Lehrke ... 9-Gervais
16-Elbrecht ... 17-Mosey
27-Stern ... 7-Palmquist
2-Nelson ... 28-Jutzi
35-Williams
30-Cook
31-Karambelas
Scratches: Buchanan, Burkemper, Knoll, Thauwald, Zuck
NORTH DAKOTA
9-Caggiula ... 10-Knight ... 7-Kristo
19-Grimaldi ... 27-Rowney ... 15-Parks
25-Mi. MacMillan ... 16-Ma. MacMillan ... 13-Gaarder
11-Rodwell ... 28-Pattyn ... 17-St. Clair
2-MacWilliam ... 18-Simpson
4-Forbort ... 24-Schmaltz
5-Mattson ... 20-Gleason
31-Gothberg
33-Saunders
Referees: C.J. Beaurline, Craig Welker. Linesemen: Tony Czech, Sterling Eagan
MINNESOTA STATE
21-Grant ... 18-Leitner ... 22-McInnis
26-Margonari ... 23-Blueger ... 25-Hayes
24-Knowles ... 12-LaFontaine ... 8-Gaede
14-Herndon ... 19-Lehrke ... 9-Gervais
16-Elbrecht ... 17-Mosey
27-Stern ... 7-Palmquist
2-Nelson ... 28-Jutzi
35-Williams
30-Cook
31-Karambelas
Scratches: Buchanan, Burkemper, Knoll, Thauwald, Zuck
NORTH DAKOTA
9-Caggiula ... 10-Knight ... 7-Kristo
19-Grimaldi ... 27-Rowney ... 15-Parks
25-Mi. MacMillan ... 16-Ma. MacMillan ... 13-Gaarder
11-Rodwell ... 28-Pattyn ... 17-St. Clair
2-MacWilliam ... 18-Simpson
4-Forbort ... 24-Schmaltz
5-Mattson ... 20-Gleason
31-Gothberg
33-Saunders
Referees: C.J. Beaurline, Craig Welker. Linesemen: Tony Czech, Sterling Eagan
Friday morning skate
This is it.
The final regular season weekend of the WCHA as we know it. And there's still so much at stake. The MacNaughton Cup. Home ice. NCAA implications.
The matchup between Minnesota State and North Dakota should be a good one. Two good teams playing in front of what are expected to be two big crowds at the Verizon Wireless Center. Sitting in a tie for fourth place, the Mavericks control their own destiny for home ice. Less than three points could mean some serious scoreboard watching.
The Mavericks haven't beaten UND in the series' last nine games. But this is a different MSU team, led by a couple of seniors — Tyler Elbrecht and Eriah Hayes — who have come a long way since their freshman year when they were crammed into a Gage Center dorm together.
(The Gage towers, by the way, are now closed and going through preparation for eventual demolition.)
Both players are enjoying their best seasons of college hockey, with Hayes getting MSU's nomination for WCHA Player of the Year (career-best 18 goals) and Elbrecht becoming a invaluable shut-down D (career-best +11)
Besides those two, there are three other seniors on the MSU roster: Evan Mosey, Eli Zuck and Phil Cook. Zuck is injured, and Cook is now backing up Stephon Williams in goal. Looking back to before their freshman year, the two biggest names from that class — Tyler Pitlick and Kevin Murdock — left MSU after one season.
As for North Dakota, it has two of the top-scoring forwards in the country, including the team's Mr. Nice Guy, Corban Knight. The Grand Forks Herald also takes a look at the the jam-packed WCHA race.
More coverage on Brad Schlossman's hockey blog here.
Going around the rest of the WCHA ...
Minnesota at Bemidji State: The Gophers hope to close out their final season in the WCHA with the MacNaughton Cup. The Beavers, meanwhile, have won just one game since Christmas but hope to turn things around going into the postseason. The Star Tribune's Rachel Blount opines about the impending breakup of the WCHA.
St. Cloud State at Wisconsin: The Huskies have been in the driver's seat to win the MacNaughton Cup and the No. 1 seed for the conference playoffs but will have to go on the road to do it after falling at home to Michigan Tech last Saturday. As for the Badgers, they are shooting for home ice and hope their big goal scorer, Michael Mersch can lead them there. It will have to be done, however, at their old home, the Dane County Coliseum, due to the state boys basketball tournament taking place at the Kohl Center. Probably an appropriate place for Wisconsin to play its last WCHA games.
Nebraska Omaha at Minnesota Duluth: This is the weekend's only matchup between teams that will be in the same conference next year. The red Mavericks may have one of the favorites for WCHA player of the year (Ryan Walters) but are another one of those teams hoping to avoid that seventh spot in the standings. For the Bulldogs, senior defenseman Wade Bergman is closing out a stellar, if somewhat unsung, career.
Colorado College at Michigan Tech: This is the most nostalgic matchup of the weekend, as two charter members of the WCHA will play each other for the last time as league foes (sigh). Both teams will be on the road for the first round of the playoffs.
Alaska Anchorage at Denver: This Friday-Sunday series could cause a sleepless Saturday night around the rest of the league as teams wait to find out their fate for the first round of the playoffs. The Pioneers are one of the teams in the mix for home ice, but currently seventh, they're in danger of having their 10-year upper-half-finish streak come to an end. The Seawolves are the only team that knows where it will finish. They're locked into 12 (but where will they go?).
Should be a fun weekend, folks. Check back on the blog for updates from this weekend's games.
The final regular season weekend of the WCHA as we know it. And there's still so much at stake. The MacNaughton Cup. Home ice. NCAA implications.
The matchup between Minnesota State and North Dakota should be a good one. Two good teams playing in front of what are expected to be two big crowds at the Verizon Wireless Center. Sitting in a tie for fourth place, the Mavericks control their own destiny for home ice. Less than three points could mean some serious scoreboard watching.
The Mavericks haven't beaten UND in the series' last nine games. But this is a different MSU team, led by a couple of seniors — Tyler Elbrecht and Eriah Hayes — who have come a long way since their freshman year when they were crammed into a Gage Center dorm together.
(The Gage towers, by the way, are now closed and going through preparation for eventual demolition.)
Both players are enjoying their best seasons of college hockey, with Hayes getting MSU's nomination for WCHA Player of the Year (career-best 18 goals) and Elbrecht becoming a invaluable shut-down D (career-best +11)
Besides those two, there are three other seniors on the MSU roster: Evan Mosey, Eli Zuck and Phil Cook. Zuck is injured, and Cook is now backing up Stephon Williams in goal. Looking back to before their freshman year, the two biggest names from that class — Tyler Pitlick and Kevin Murdock — left MSU after one season.
As for North Dakota, it has two of the top-scoring forwards in the country, including the team's Mr. Nice Guy, Corban Knight. The Grand Forks Herald also takes a look at the the jam-packed WCHA race.
More coverage on Brad Schlossman's hockey blog here.
Going around the rest of the WCHA ...
Minnesota at Bemidji State: The Gophers hope to close out their final season in the WCHA with the MacNaughton Cup. The Beavers, meanwhile, have won just one game since Christmas but hope to turn things around going into the postseason. The Star Tribune's Rachel Blount opines about the impending breakup of the WCHA.
St. Cloud State at Wisconsin: The Huskies have been in the driver's seat to win the MacNaughton Cup and the No. 1 seed for the conference playoffs but will have to go on the road to do it after falling at home to Michigan Tech last Saturday. As for the Badgers, they are shooting for home ice and hope their big goal scorer, Michael Mersch can lead them there. It will have to be done, however, at their old home, the Dane County Coliseum, due to the state boys basketball tournament taking place at the Kohl Center. Probably an appropriate place for Wisconsin to play its last WCHA games.
Nebraska Omaha at Minnesota Duluth: This is the weekend's only matchup between teams that will be in the same conference next year. The red Mavericks may have one of the favorites for WCHA player of the year (Ryan Walters) but are another one of those teams hoping to avoid that seventh spot in the standings. For the Bulldogs, senior defenseman Wade Bergman is closing out a stellar, if somewhat unsung, career.
Colorado College at Michigan Tech: This is the most nostalgic matchup of the weekend, as two charter members of the WCHA will play each other for the last time as league foes (sigh). Both teams will be on the road for the first round of the playoffs.
Alaska Anchorage at Denver: This Friday-Sunday series could cause a sleepless Saturday night around the rest of the league as teams wait to find out their fate for the first round of the playoffs. The Pioneers are one of the teams in the mix for home ice, but currently seventh, they're in danger of having their 10-year upper-half-finish streak come to an end. The Seawolves are the only team that knows where it will finish. They're locked into 12 (but where will they go?).
Should be a fun weekend, folks. Check back on the blog for updates from this weekend's games.
Thursday, March 7, 2013
Looking to next year?
It doesn't get much more exciting than this weekend's games in the WCHA with the wide-open race for the MacNaughton Cup and home-ice in next week's league playoffs.
So what better time than to look at 2013-14, right?
On Thursday, the National Collegiate Hockey Conference unveiled its logo and other league information during a press conference in St. Paul.
Closer to home, the WCHA unveiled its conference schedule for next season, one that includes Alabama-Huntsville as a full member with 28 league games.
For Minnesota State, which won't release it's entire schedule with nonconference games until after the season (opponents, I believe will be at Minnesota, vs. UConn, at Providence and at the Minnesota Cup (working title) tournament; dates TBA), here is its slate of games in the "new" WCHA (home games in bold):
Nov. 1-2 at Bemidji State
Nov. 8-9 vs. Bowling Green
Nov. 22-23 at Bowling Green
Nov. 29-30 vs. Alaska Anchorage
Dec. 6-7 vs. Northern Michigan
Dec. 13-14 at Alabama Huntsville
Jan. 3-4 at Alaska
Jan. 10-11 at Alaska Anchorage
Jan. 17-18 vs. Ferris State
Jan. 31-Feb. 1 at Northern Michigan
Feb. 7-8 vs. Bemidji State
Feb. 14-15 vs. Alabama Huntsville
Feb. 28-March 1 at Lake Superior
March 7-8 vs. Michigan Tech
The interesting trip will be after the new year when the Mavericks play back-to-back road series in Alaska. That will be a 12-day road trip, I'm told, with the team leaving on a Wednesday and returning two Sundays later.
Now back to your regularly scheduled excitement about the current hockey season.
You want answers?!?! — Live!
Join me for some college hockey chat over the lunch hour today, starting about noon. This week's special guest will be Brad Schlossman, who covers North Dakota for the Grand Forks Herald.
Wednesday, March 6, 2013
Talkin' MSU-UND
I'll be conducting a live chat on the blog previewing this weekend's series between Minnesota State and North Dakota starting at noon Thursday. I've invited UND beat writer Brad Schlossman join in for part or all of the conversation. Be sure to join in!
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