USCHO Spotlight

Hosts Jim Connelly (@jimmyconnelly) and Ed Trefzger (@EdTrefzger) are joined by Steve Metcalf, chair of the NCAA men's D-I ice hockey committee, deputy director of athletics at New Hampshire, and incoming commissioner of Hockey East.

Metcalf discusses the whirlwind of decisions that were made as news changed very quickly last week. Also discussed are the future of Detroit hosting a Frozen Four, the possibility of providing additional eligibility to hockey players, the impact of contagion on future protocols, and Metcalf's retrospective on serving on the committee.

Just hours after deciding that league playoffs would be played with no spectators in attendance, five of the six men's D-I hockey conferences announced that they were canceling their postseason tournaments altogether.

With this news, hosts Jim Connelly (@jimmyconnelly) and Ed Trefzger (@EdTrefzger) sat down to discuss the news and its implications, as well as what might come next.

Hosts Jim Connelly (@jimmyconnelly) and Ed Trefzger (@EdTrefzger) look at the PairWise Rankings, who's in and who could be in, and answer listener questions.

And they weigh in on the effects COVID-19 might have – although with breaking news, these comments may not be completely up to date as the show was recorded at about 2 p.m. EDT on March 11, 2020. Harvard's cancellation of the remainder of its season broke after this was recorded.

USCHO PairWise Rankings: https://www.uscho.com/rankings/pairwise-rankings/d-i-men/

USCHO PairWise Explanation: https://www.uscho.com/faq/pairwise-rankings-explanation/

USCHO RPI and Explanation: https://www.uscho.com/rankings/rpi/d-i-men/

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

Cornell completed its regular season with just two losses and won ECAC Hockey's Cleary Cup for the regular season championship. Big Red head coach Mike Schafer joins hosts Jim Connelly (@jimmyconnelly) and Ed Trefzger (@EdTrefzger) to look at this year's season, the preparation for upcoming playoffs, ECAC Hockey, the Ivy League, and his service on the NCAA men's D-I Ice Hockey committee.

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

The Hockey East playoff race is the tightest in a decade, and one of the hottest teams in the conference over the last several weeks is Connecticut.

UConn head coach Mike Cavanaugh joins hosts Jim Connelly (@jimmyconnelly) and Ed Trefzger (@EdTrefzger) to talk about this season's Huskies, recruiting and team building, and the last two weekends of Hockey East regular season play – including his team's home-and-home series with UMass.

Cavanaugh also has some fresh thoughts on overtime rules as well as the Hockey East schedule and playoff format.

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

On Monday, Hockey East announced New Hampshire deputy athletic director Steve Metcalf as its fifth commissioner. Metcalf, who begins his job in the conference in April, brings experience to the position as an administrator familiar with the teams in the league, and as a member of the NCAA D-I men's ice hockey committee for several years, the past two as its chair.

Metcalf joins hosts Jim Connelly (@jimmyconnelly) and Ed Trefzger (@EdTrefzger) in a wide-ranging discussion about what led him to apply for the position, what sorts of initiatives he plans to take, working with other conferences, his views on the national scene in college hockey, and what's in store for the Frozen Four.

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

One of the hottest teams in college hockey – and just two games out of first place in the Big Ten – is Michigan. Wolverines head coach Mel Pearson joins hosts Jim Connelly (@jimmyconnelly) and Ed Trefzger (@EdTrefzger) to talk about this year's team, its senior leadership, overtime rules (and the Big Ten coaches' preference for NHL-style OT), the difficulty of getting back to the Frozen Four, what makes Yost Ice Arena special, and this weekend's upcoming games with rival Michigan State.

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

Hosts Jim Connelly (@jimmyconnelly) and Ed Trefzger (@EdTrefzger) are joined in this episode by Dave Beachnau, senior vice president of sales, marketing and sports for the Detroit Sports Commission to talk about Detroit's preparation for the 2020 NCAA Men's Division I Frozen Four and what college hockey fans can expect from the Motor City this April.

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

A weekend overtime road sweep of Boston College has put Maine not only in a good position for a Hockey East playoff spot, but in striking distance of first-round home ice. Black Bears head coach Red Gendron joins hosts Jim Connelly (@jimmyconnelly) and Ed Trefzger (@EdTrefzger) for a lively discussion about this season's team, a remaining schedule that has eight of nine games at Maine's Alfond Arena, a possible new member for Hockey East, what Gendron enjoys most about coaching, and more.

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

American International accomplished in 2019 what few would have expected just a couple seasons earlier. Yellow Jackets head coach Eric Lang joins hosts Jim Connelly (@jimmyconnelly) and Ed Trefzger (@EdTrefzger) to highlight this year's team, the impact AIC's trip to the NCAA regional finals has had on the program, international recruiting, Atlantic Hockey's progress and future growth, and some thoughts on 3-on-3 overtime and the shootout.

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