USCHO Edge

This season finds ECAC Hockey trimmed down to just four teams. Two of those teams – No. 10 Clarkson and No. 13 Quinnipiac – have a three-game series this weekend. Quinnipiac head coach Rand Pecknold, whose Bobcats host the Golden Knights, joins hosts Jim Connelly (@jimmyconnelly) and Ed Trefzger (@EdTrefzger) for a preview.

We also look at No. 6 St. Cloud at No. 5 Minnesota Duluth, No. 1 Minnesota at No. 12 Wisconsin, and Arizona State at No. 18 Notre Dame.

Also of note: all 11 teams in Hockey East will finally have gotten their seasons underway in a slate of games capped off by No. 8 UMass at No. 15 UMass Lowell on Tuesday.

And the two ranked teams in Atlantic Hockey – No. 19 American International and No. 20 Robert Morris – have series this weekend, with AIC home-and-home with Army and RMU at Niagara and back home against the Purple Eagles for two.

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Hosts Jim Connelly (@jimmyconnelly) and Ed Trefzger (@EdTrefzger) are joined by Minnesota Duluth beat writer Matt Wellens of the Duluth News Tribune to preview the No. 4 Bulldogs at No. 6 St. Cloud State in NCHC play.

Jim and Ed also look ahead to another NCHC series, No. 16 Denver vs. Colorado College, a Hockey East home-and-home series between No. 13 Northeastern and No. 9 UMass, the start of ECAC Hockey play, and Arizona State's games at No. 1 Minnesota.

The hosts and guest also opine on the proposal by NCHC commissioner Josh Fenton to use historical data to allocate at-large bids in this season's NCAA tournament.

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Hosts Jim Connelly (@jimmyconnelly) and Ed Trefzger (@EdTrefzger) are joined by Northeastern head coach Jim Madigan to preview his team's Saturday-Sunday home-and-home series with Providence.

We also look at No. 13 Bowling Green at Quinnipiac for a pair, NCHC pod tilts between No. 3 Minnesota Duluth and No. 4 North Dakota and No. 8 Denver vs. No. 9 St. Cloud. In the Big Ten, we preview Michigan State at No. 18 Ohio State. Also of note, non-conference games between WCHA rivals Bemidji State and host No. 5 Minnesota State, Arizona State at No. 16 Notre Dame, and Canisius back in action after a pause against a restocked RIT.

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The NCHC Pod in Omaha is producing top 10 matchups almost every day. Our game of the week comes from that bubble as No. 1 North Dakota, fresh off a loss to No. 9 Denver, takes on unbeaten No. 3 Minnesota Duluth on Thursday. Hosts Jim Connelly (@jimmyconnelly) and Ed Trefzger (@EdTrefzger) are joined by Brad Schlossman of the Grand Forks Herald, beat writer covering the Fighting Hawks.

We also look at other NCHC games, including Denver vs. Minnesota Duluth. In the Big Ten, only one weekend conference series is scheduled, with No. 14 Ohio State visiting No. 15 Notre Dame.

In Hockey East, it's a home-and-home between No. 2 Boston College and UConn, while No. 8 UMass Lowell finally gets its season underway against No. 19 Providence.

Among non-conference games, we look at a couple added to the schedule as other games were canceled: No. 7 Clarkson at Mercyhurst and No. 6 Minnesota State playing host to D-III Milwaukee School of Engineering. No. 20 Arizona State has a pair at Penn State and LIU visits RIT for two.

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In a season in which games are happening any night, it's hard to settle on a single game of the week. In this episode, hosts Jim Connelly (@jimmyconnelly) and Ed Trefzger (@EdTrefzger) are joined by hockey analyst Dave Starman, who is broadcasting more than half of the NCHC Pod games in Omaha for Midco Sports Network and NCHC.tv alongside play-by-play man Ben Holden. Dave takes us through what's happening in the bubble and what teams are impressing him so far.

Jim and Ed also look at games coming up in the Big 10 and Atlantic Hockey, and some non-conference matchups within Hockey East.

They also add some more context to their thoughts about getting as many games in during this semester break and give a shout out to the streaming services allowing fans to see the games when they can't be there in person.

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Hosts Jim Connelly (@jimmyconnelly) and Ed Trefzger (@EdTrefzger) are joined by Minnesota play-by-play voice Wally Shaver to look ahead at Thursday and Friday's two-game series seeing No. 10 Penn State visit the No. 11 Gophers.

Jim and Ed also preview No. 6 Michigan at No. 14 Wisconsin as well as Monday-Tuesday series featuring No. 9 Ohio State at Minnesota and Penn State at Wisconsin.

Hockey East gets underway with home-and-home series featuring No. 2 Boston College and New Hampshire and No. 7 UMass at Maine.

In non-conference play, No. 5 Minnesota State has a pair at WCHA rival No. 16 Bemidji State and No. 8 Clarkson has a single tilt at ECAC Hockey foe Colgate.

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Our first Game of the Week this season between two Atlantic Hockey teams features a first-round match up sending Canisius to Bentley for a best-of-three series. Falcons head coach Ryan Soderquist joins hosts Jim Connelly (@jimmyconnelly) and Ed Trefzger (@EdTrefzger) for a preview.

We also look at every other playoff matchup in D-I men's hockey, especially taking note of Wisconsin at No. 11 Ohio State in the Big Ten and which series may lead to an upset in ECAC Hockey. Plus No. 3 Minnesota State and No. 10 Bemidji State and their home series in the WCHA, as well as Michigan Tech and Northern Michigan and Bowling Green at Alaska.

Meanwhile, it's still the regular season in two conferences. St. Cloud State, No. 6 Denver, and No. 17 Western Michigan all look to sew up home ice in the NCHC, though it's a tall order for the Huskies at No. 5 Minnesota Duluth. And in Hockey East, Boston University, Providence, Northeastern, and New Hampshire are four teams trying to find one of three chairs when the music stops playing.

This episode is sponsored by the 2020 NCAA Frozen Four, April 9 and 11 in Detroit. Visit ncaa.com/frozenfour/

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The ECAC Hockey schedule couldn't have worked out better, with No. 7 Clarkson at No. 1 Cornell Saturday on the last night of the regular season with the regular-season Cleary Cup potentially on the line. Clarkson coach Casey Jones joins hosts Jim Connelly (@jimmyconnelly) and Ed Trefzger (@EdTrefzger) to preview USCHO's Game of the Week.

Also previewed:

Two Big Ten teams have a chance to clinch at least a share of the regular season title. No. 10 Ohio State hosts Wisconsin and No. 18 Minnesota hosts Michigan, while No. 9 Penn State – four points ahead of the Gophers and Buckeyes – has completed its schedule and watches for the results.

Nothing has been decided in Hockey East. Key series include No. 8 UMass home-and-home with red hot UConn and New Hampshire home-and-home with No. 12 UMass Lowell. Plus, No. 15 Maine travels to No. 19 Providence in a single game that is huge for both. Nine teams are still jockeying for eight playoff berths.

In the NCHC, No. 16 Western Michigan is at No. 3 North Dakota for two, while St. Cloud State, fresh off a five-point weekend against the Fighting Hawks, hosts No. 6 Denver in a weekend series.

The top matchup in the WCHA has No. 2 Minnesota State traveling for the weekend to No. 11 Bemidji State, while Alaska and Bowling Green each have key series as they look for home ice in the WCHA quarterfinals.

Atlantic Hockey settles everything this weekend. While No. 20 American International and Sacred Heart have clinched the top two spots, Army West Point and Rochester Institute of Technology will have games that determine who finishes third. AIC is at Army for one game Saturday, while RIT hosts Air Force in a series. The Falcons, along with Robert Morris and Niagara – who play a series this weekend – are vying for fifth place and a first-round bye.

This episode is sponsored by the 2020 NCAA Frozen Four, April 9 and 11 in Detroit. Visit ncaa.com/frozenfour/

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With both Massachusetts state schools having successful seasons at the same time, the battles between No. 8 UMass and No. 14 UMass Lowell are becoming quite a rivalry. Minutemen head coach Greg Carvel joins hosts Jim Connelly (@jimmyconnelly) and Ed Trefzger (@EdTrefzger) for a preview of that weekend home-and-home series.

Also in this episode:

Hockey East also features a Thursday-Friday home-and-home between No. 6 Boston College and No. 10 Northeastern with conference and PairWise positioning on the line.

In the Big Ten, all three weekend series are critical for league standings, including No. 18 Minnesota at No. 11 Penn State. The two teams are tied for first with this weekend the last of the regular season for the Nittany Lions.

In ECAC Hockey, No. 20 Harvard is at No. 5 Clarkson on Friday in the only matchup between ranked teams in that conference.

The NCHC's premier series has No. 4 Minnesota Duluth at No. 19 Western Michigan, while No. 1 North Dakota can't look past their weekend hosts, St. Cloud State.

Bowling Green is battling for home ice in the WCHA at home this weekend against Ferris State, while No. 3 Minnesota State hosts Alabama Huntsville and No. 13 Bemidji State visits Alaska Anchorage.

Three teams in Atlantic Hockey have clinched first round byes – American International, Sacred Heart, and Army – but AIC can claim a regular season title in a Thursday-Saturday home-and-home series with Holy Cross. Meanwhile Rochester Institute of Technology and Robert Morris look to nail down a first-round bye – and the Tigers home ice – this weekend.

And in the lone non-conference series, No. 9 Arizona State visits Wisconsin to end the regular season for the Sun Devils. A weekend sweep would virtually guarantee an NCAA berth for ASU.

This episode is sponsored by the 2020 NCAA Frozen Four, April 9 and 11 in Detroit. Visit ncaa.com/frozenfour/

Find all of our podcasts at USCHO.com/podcasts

No. 6 Denver visits No. 1 North Dakota in a weekend NCHC series. Hosts Jim Connelly (@jimmyconnelly) and Ed Trefzger (@EdTrefzger) are joined by Midco Sports TV play-by-play broadcaster Alex Heinert for a preview.

A number of other key matchups are on the schedule this weekend. In the Big Ten, Michigan and Michigan State have a Friday game in East Lansing and a Monday tilt at Little Caesar's Arena in Detroit. Minnesota is at Notre Dame for a weekend series in which each needs to maintain momentum, while No. 9 Penn State could extend its lead in the standings at Wisconsin.

In the WCHA, No. 16 Bemidji State is at No. 19 Northern Michigan in a battle for position in the top half of the standings, while Alaska looks to defend fourth place against visiting Bowling Green.

Hockey East features a home-and-home matchup between No. 11 UMass Lowell and No. 12 Northeastern, while No. 17 Maine looks to stay unbeaten at home with a weekend series against UConn.

ECAC Hockey's prime contest is on Friday as No. 5 Clarkson visits No. 15 Quinnipiac, while in Atlantic Hockey, the battle for home ice includes Bentley at Rochester Institute of Technology for a pair.

And in non-conference play, Alaska Anchorage visits No. 10 Arizona State for two.

This episode is sponsored by the 2020 NCAA Frozen Four, April 9 and 11 in Detroit. Visit ncaa.com/frozenfour/

Find all of our podcasts at USCHO.com/podcasts