This is March. For most students on college campuses, that means insanity – basketball insanity. But while some people have a soft spot for ice than parquet, the sporting chaos will take on a different flavor this weekend. Yes, the NCAA Men's Hockey Tournament is back.
Indeed, the tournament has recently come under organizational criticism. I don't hide from it.Legitimate criticism of local host sites ticket price It has come to the surface in recent weeks. I would like to add my personal opinion to these criticisms, but this tournament is not very suitable for binge-watching on TV due to the length of the matches (there are matches at 5:00 and 5:30). (Really?).
Despite all this debate, one thing is for sure: the tournament production is great and always provides some of the best hockey (and highlights) of the season.
This year's 16-team battle begins Thursday and features all the characters fans can expect.
Unfortunately for this typist, Notre Dame Cathedral is not among them. After being eliminated in the Big Ten quarterfinals, the Irish missed back-to-back NCAA Tournament appearances for the first time since 2005-2006.
But the rest of the field is a sight to behold. Defending national champion Quinnipiac is back, as are three dormant blue blood schools: Michigan State, Wisconsin, Maine and Frozen 4 host Minnesota.
An all-Beantown national championship could become a reality, as Boston University and Boston University will enter as the top two overall seeds. Now, let's get into the first round!
PROVIDENCE, R.I. — No. 1 Boston College vs. No. 4 Michigan Tech (Friday, 2 p.m.)
Game breaker: Cutter Gauthier is a promising player for the Anaheim Ducks. It's hard to pick just one player to make the difference on an Eagles team that has 14 NHL draft picks, but Gauthier has consistently been the straw that stirred the wine for Boston College. If you're looking for a game-breaker for Michigan Tech, it would have to be veteran goaltender Blake Pietila. He was a finalist for the Richter Trophy last season.
Heart pick: Now, who wouldn't want to see a Husky get upset here? But even for an upset-loving heart like mine, it's hard to compete against the Eagles. Boston University.
Brain selection: Boston University. The Eagles haven't lost a game in over a month, and their last two opponents in the Hockey East Tournament were 8-1 (vs. University of Massachusetts) and 6-2 (vs. Boston University). I beat it with a score of . It's hard to see them lose in the first round.
PROVIDENCE, R.I. — No. 2 Wisconsin vs. No. 3 Quinnipiac (Friday, 5:30 p.m.)
Game breaker: This game is the only first-round game featuring two of the 10 Hobey Baker Award finalists, including Quinnipiac forward Colin Graff. and Wisconsin goaltender Kyle McClellan.. Keep an eye on them as they look to further strengthen their award history with a big run.
Heart pick: A renaissance in Badgers hockey is here, and the question is how far it will go. Wisconsin made great strides in Mike Hastings' first season, perhaps even exceeding his own expectations, but stumbled in the postseason, losing in the first round of the Big Ten Tournament. Despite this, the Badgers fan base is active year-round and creates a great scene in Madison. With the Frozen Four right next door to St. Paul, it's hard not to root for Wisconsin just to see that potential spectacle.
Brain selection: It doesn't seem right for the defending national champion to be eliminated in the first round. Last year, Quinnipiac used a disappointing loss in the ECAC semifinals to build momentum for a run to the national championship. This year's 14-19-6 loss to St. Lawrence in Lake Placid, New York, should reinvigorate the Bobcats. Quinnipiac.
SPRINGFIELD, Mass. — No. 1 Denver vs. No. 4 Massachusetts (Thursday, 2 p.m.)
Game breaker: Denver defenseman Zeev Bouium leads the nation in points this year with 48. The draft-eligible blueliner is only a freshman and is widely expected to be a top-10 pick in June after a solid showing at the World Junior Championships.
Heart pick: They narrowly made it to the NCAA Tournament, but Massachusetts hosts the Springfield Regional Tournament, so the seeding guidelines called for them to stay home. That's a big boon for the Minutemen. The game will be played Thursday at 2 p.m., so the crowd may be smaller, but he'll still have fun watching UMass pull off the upset in front of his home crowd.Massachusetts.
Brain selection: Denver was in a similar situation last season as the No. 1 seed in the West, but due to NCAA guidelines had to travel to the East for the regional tournament. The Pioneers faced Cornell University in the first round and lost. They will never make the same mistake again. Denver.
SPRINGFIELD, Mass. — No. 2 Maine vs. No. 3 Cornell (Thursday, 5:30 p.m.)
Game breaker: Maine's top line is Bradley Nadeau, Josh Nadeau and Linden Breen. When you go to the top line, so do the Black Bears. Breen is a senior captain who has been at Orono long enough to go through some tough times and see some good times. The Nadeau brothers were coach Ben Barr's first-impact recruits and drew attention as the team's two leading scorers during their freshman campaigns. Don't be surprised if you see Nadeau vs. Nadeau goals this weekend.
Heart pick: This hockey scribe comes from a family of black bears. This will be Maine's return to the tournament for the first time in 12 years, and the games will be played in New England. Definitely go to Maine.
Brain selection: Besides my heart, I also think that the logical choice here is the main one. Cornell will struggle with Maine's out-and-out style of play, which is not something the Big Red has seen consistently in the ECAC. In the final game, the University of Maine outplayed Boston University territorially, but was unable to finish. Despite the fact that Cornell goaltender Ian Schoen ranks as the nation's highest scoring average, I don't think Maine's scoring prowess will slow down again in this game.
Maryland Heights, Mo. — No. 1 Michigan State vs. No. 4 Western Michigan (Friday, 5 p.m.)
Game breaker: Spartan Net Minder Trey Augustine. The former U.S. National Team Development Program backstop was sensational as the Spartans' first-year netminder. With a save percentage of .918 this season, he has the ability to steal games on his own.
Heart pick: Pat Ferschweiler led the Broncos to three consecutive NCAA Tournament titles in his first three seasons off the bench. They haven't won yet. The Broncos are a veteran team led by more than 15 of his seniors and graduate students. Of all the fourth seeds in this tournament, they seem the most poised for an upset. Western Michigan.
Brain selection: This is a game that really makes me want to follow my heart and choose Western Michigan. This is Michigan State's first NCAA Tournament appearance in 12 years (along with Maine), and an upset could be possible. But the smart choice is Big Ten champion Michigan State.
Maryland Heights, Mo. — No. 2 North Dakota vs. No. 3 Michigan (Friday, 8:30 p.m.)
Game breaker: Michigan State's power play: At 35.3% this year, it leads the nation by a wide margin. In four games in the Big Ten Tournament, Michigan scored five points on the power play, including three against Notre Dame.
Heart pick: I'm a hockey reporter, but I'm also a student at the University of Notre Dame. Of course, my heart is going to be against Michigan. North Dakota.
Brain selection: This game, along with Quinnipiac vs. Wisconsin, might be the hardest game of the tournament to pick. I'm going to give North Dakota State the edge here, but only because I like the play of NCHC Player of the Year Jackson Blake.
Sioux Falls, South Dakota — No. 1 Boston College vs. No. 4 RIT (Thursday, 5 p.m.)
Game breaker: Boston College defenseman Lane Hutson. Hutson, a draft pick of the Montreal Canadiens and in his second year with the Terriers, is about as volatile as they come. He quarterbacks the Terriers' power plays and has the vision to see plays unfold before they happen. He is a difference maker on Boston College's blue line.
Heart pick: This is another case where it doesn't make sense to think that an upset could occur. Boston University.
Brain selection: The Terriers weren't very good in the Hockey East semifinals against Maine, but they came out victorious anyway. They were exposed the next day with a 6-2 beatdown by rival Boston University. Either way, Boston College may be too good to be upset. Terrier freshman phenom Maclin Ceribrini is likely to be the No. 1 overall pick in this year's NHL Draft and will be playing in a setting where he might be given the power to be a game-breaker, as he always is. Boston University.
Sioux Falls, South Dakota — No. 2 Minnesota vs. No. 3 Omaha (Thursday, 8:30 p.m.)
Game breaker: Jimmy Snageld, sophomore forward from Minnesota; The St. Louis Blues draftee leads the Golden Gophers with 21 goals and has two in his last three games. Like any good scorer, he's a streaky player. If he gets hot then he should be careful.
Heart pick: In a tournament full of feel-good stories, Omaha might be the best of them all. The Mavericks lost in the first round of the NCHC Tournament for the 10th consecutive season, but broke through with a win over fellow NCAA Tournament bubble team, the University of Colorado. Playing in their first-ever conference semifinal, they upset North Dakota and effectively qualified for the national tournament. Now they're here, and it's hard not to root for them. Omaha.
Brain selection: It's been a strange year for the Golden Gophers, who are used to being at the top of the Big Ten rankings every year. They finished third this season and did not return to the conference title game. But the appeal of Frozen 4 on St. Paul's home ice is strong, and Minnesota's young defensive corps may have solidified its game in time to get there.This is the second time in three years that Minnesota has defeated Omaha..
