In the Pipeline: 3/26/2018

The Frozen Four is set with Notre Dame, Minnesota-Duluth, Michigan and Ohio State punching their tickets to Saint Paul. It will be three Big Ten teams and an NCHC team with Minnesota Duluth. Both Notre Dame and Ohio State are looking to win the programs first ever national championship. Michigan is looking to win its first title in 20 years while Minnesota-Duluth looks to win its first title since 2011 when the Frozen Four was also in Saint Paul. ECAC teams went 0-3 in the NCAA tournament but the conference is expected to be strong next year with a lot of talent returning to many of the top teams. Let's take a look at some how some of the Quinnipiac commits did over the past week with some of them expected to be in the Bobcats lineup this coming fall.

Ethan De Jong, right playing the puck (photo by James Doyle/Prince George Citizen)

BCHL commits

It was a very strong week for Ethan De Jong who had 7 points (4 goals, 3 assists) in four games played in helping to lead the Prince George Spruce Kings to a 4-3 series win over the Surrey Eagles. His performance in Game's 6 and 7 with Prince George trailing 3-2 in the best-of-seven series are what makes him a rising star. He had two goals an assist in each of the games rallying the team to a series win. In 14 playoff games he has 15 points (9 goals, 6 assists) tying him for third in the BCHL for playoff scoring.

The junior career of Desi Burgart has come to an end. His Surrey Eagles team fell 4-3 in the best-of-seven second round series to Prince George. This past week Burgart had one goal in two games played. He finished his playoffs with 11 points (10 goals, 1 assist) in 12 games played which followed a regular season in which he had 50 points (22 goals, 28 assists) in 53 games played. His next stop is Hamden where will he will be part of the 2018-2019 incoming freshman class.

The 2017-2018 junior season has ended for T.J. Friedmann. His tell fell in the second round 4-1 to Powell River. He finished the playoffs with 5 points (3 goals, 2 assists) in 9 games played but missed some time with a lower body injury. He has one more junior season before making the move to Hamden so its expected he will be returning to the Victoria Grizzlies next season. He finished a strong regular season with 57 points (22 goals, 35 assists) in 58 games played.

Outside of Ethan De Jong, the only other BCHL commitment still in the playoffs is defenseman Nick Kent for the Wenatchee Wild. His team has already advanced to the third round of the playoffs.

William Fallstrom, right (photo by David Samson/The Forum)

USHL commits

William Fallstrom had a four point week for the Fargo Force in helping clinch a playoff spot. In three games played he had two goals and two assists. On the season in 52 games played, he has 41 points (13 goals, 28 assists) with a plus 14 rating.

Wyatt Bongiovanni continues to be sidelined by an undisclosed injury for the Muskegon Lumberjacks.

Dom Fensore had two assists in three USHL games over the weekend. In 30 USHL games played, Fensore has 15 points (1 goal, 14 assists).

Justin Robbins went 1-1 with 6.94 goals against average and an .818 save percentage for the Chicago Steel. On the season, Robbins is 6-8-0-1 with a 4.08 goals against average and an .873 save percentage in 20 games played.

NAHL commits

Marcus Chorney picked up one assist in two games played for the Amarillo Bulls. On the season he had 24 points (5 goals, 19 assists) in 56 games played with a minus 6 rating.

NCDC commits

Daniel Winslow had two goals over the weekend in his teams playoffs series win over the Jr. Bruins. He had the game winning goal in the 3-2 win in Game 3 as the Jersey Hitmen will move on to the championship series against the Islanders Hockey Club.

Connor Tait has had a strong last four playoff games for the Jersey Hitmen. So far he has 3 goals and 1 assist including a game winning goal in Game 2 against the Jr. Bruins. He had a goal in Sunday's Game 3 clinching win as the Hitmen have moved to the NCDC finals against the Islanders Hockey Club.

Cameron Boudreau's season has come to an end with a 2-1 series loss to the Jersey Hitmen. He had two assists in three playoffs games over the weekend and finished with two assists in six playoff games. He will be playing another season of junior hockey with it being most likely for the Jr. Bruins.

AJHL commits

Matt Cassidy had one assist this past week for the Brooks Bandits who closed out their best-of-seven series with the Drumheller Dragons 4 games to 2. They now move on to play the south division top seed Okotoks Oilers. 

Steele Subaru celebrating its championship

Midget Commits

Jacob Quillan of the Steele Subaru Major Midgets had three assists in two games played helping his team win the Nova Scotia Major Midget Hockey League championship over Halifax McDonalds. In 15 playoff games this year, Quillan has 16 points (5 goals, 11 assists). Steele Subaru will now compete in the 2018 Major Midget Atlantics.

The following players are headed to USA Hockey Nationals that run from April 5-10 in various locations in the United States. Corey Clifton (NJ Avalanche U18), Ethan Phillips & PJ Fletcher (CCYHA U16), Victor Czerneckianair (CCYHA U15) & Jack Silich (Chicago Mission U14).

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Breaking down the NCAA Tournament

Even with the Quinnipiac season over for the past  the college hockey season continues and thus we have reached the point of the 2018 NCAA Tournament. We have gone from 60 teams to 16 and after this weekend we will be down to the Frozen Four which will commence April 5-7 in Saint Paul, Minnesota. I am going to breakdown each regional and give my Frozen Four picks. In two weeks I will break down the Frozen Four but for now here is my picks and they will probably be wrong.

Northeast Region (Worcester, MA)

#1 Cornell, ECAC (25-5-2, At-large bid)
#2 Michigan, Big Ten (20-14-3, At-large bid)
#3 Northeastern, Hockey East (23-9-5, At-large bid)
#4 Boston University, Hockey East (21-13-4, Tournament Champion)

This is a bracket that is really wide open in my opinion with possibly any of these teams reaching Saint Paul. #1 seed Cornell and Boston University already met once this season at the end of November with the Big Red holding off a Boston University comeback to win 4-3. Both teams have been smoking hot since the turn of the calendar with BU going 13-3-3 in the second half of the season en route to a Hockey East tournament championship. Cornell won the Cleary Cup as the ECAC regular season champions but were stunned by eventual tournament champion Princeton in the semifinals in Lake Placid. Both teams can play a heavy game but BU has the higher end talent but is really a top heavy team while Cornell has much more depth. If some of the lesser known players show up for BU then watch out. Brady Tkachuk and Jordan Greenway have the ability to dominate down low. Cornell's defense and goal-tending have been elite this year and are the key to their success. BU is a different team than the one that played Cornell back in November and that is going to make a difference. I have Boston University returning the favor and knocking out #1 Cornell.

Northeastern is a top heavy team with Gaudette, Sikura and Stevens making up 58% of the teams goals scored. You let them score and they are more than likely going to beat you. Northeastern has the better goal-tending with Cayden Primeau leading the way with a 1.88 goals against average and a .932 save percentage. Michigan has a lot of offensive balance with seven players with 20 or more points including two with 40 or more points. Where they struggle is on defense and in goal and against Northeastern that could be a recipe for disaster. Overall I think Northeastern is the better all around team and playing close to home will help and there is just something special about this team this year. Northeastern moves on to the regional final.

While Northeastern has won three games against Boston University this season and its always tough to win that consistently against any opponent the games have not been close. The Huskies have three elite scorers and a goal-tender that has been excellent this season. They have been one of the best teams in the second half and that is going to carry them to Saint Paul.

Regional Champion: Northeastern


East Region (Bridgeport, CT)

#1 Notre Dame, Big Ten (25-9-2, Tournament Champion)
#2 Providence, Hockey East (23-11-4, At-large bid)
#3 Clarkson, ECAC (23-10-6, At-large bid)
#4 Michigan Tech, WCHA (22-16-5, Tournament Champion)

After slumping towards the end of February with four losses in their final five regular season games, Notre Dame rebounded to win the Big Ten tournament championship in overtime over Ohio State. The Irish have good scoring balance with six players with 20 plus points and a sophomore goaltender in Cale Morris that has been dominant this season. After playing .500 in the second half in the WCHA, Michigan Tech went 5-1 in March en route to the tournament title over Northern Michigan. The Huskies feature eight players with 20 points or more. Goal-tending is likely the biggest issue for Michigan Tech as they have played three players throughout the season. Junior Patrick Munson was strong in the final three tournament games against Minnesota State and Northern Michigan to help win the title. Despite the February swoon Notre Dame has been one of the best teams in the country and I see them moving on against Michigan Tech.

Clarkson and Providence is a rematch from earlier this season when the teams met in October in Potsdam and in November in Belfast. Both were wins by Clarkson, who at that time was rolling. The Golden Knights went 1-4-3 in the month of February before rebounding to advance all the way to the ECAC Championship game where they lost in overtime to Princeton. Still the struggles of February give me some pause on Clarkson. They have some talented scorers but seemed to cool off a bit until the conference tournament. They are also a team that is in the NCAA tournament for the first time in 10 years while Providence has made it the last five years. Experience sometimes does matter. Nate Leaman has won a national championship and this team has solid offensive balance, a good defense and solid goal-tending in Hayden Hawkey. I can't see Providence losing three times to Clarkson so I am going with the Friars in this one.

Notre Dame and Providence in a regional final is a heavyweight match up. Both coaches have won past national championships though Jeff Jackson won his two championships back in the early 1990's with Lake Superior State. The Irish were a wire to wire champion in the Big Ten and have the much better goal-tender in this game. There is no doubt they want to get back to the Frozen Four to erase the memory of the 6-1 beating they took in the national semifinals a year ago to Denver. Notre Dame uses strong goal-tending to edge Providence for a trip to Saint Paul.

Regional Champion: Notre Dame 


Midwest Region (Allentown, PA)

#1 Ohio State, Big Ten (24-9-5, At-large bid)
#2 Denver, NCHC (20-9-8, Tournament Champion)
#3 Penn State, Big Ten (18-14-5, At-large bid)
#4 Princeton, ECAC (19-12-4, Tournament Champion)

Ohio State has had one of the best seasons in their program history and has reached the NCAA tournament in back to back seasons for only the third time in program history. The Buckeyes have a trio of 35 point plus players in Tanner Laczynski, Mason Jobst and Matthew Weis along with a solid goal-tender in Sean Romeo. The one concern about Ohio State is they really didn't beat any one in their non conference schedule that was any good and built their resume strictly on the Big Ten schedule this year. No team had a four year turnaround as the Princeton has. The Tiger are a team that ran off a 6-0 run in the ECAC tournament en route to its first conference championship and NCAA berth in ten years. They are loaded offensively with two 50 point scorers in juniors Max Veronneau (55) and Ryan Kuffner (52) who has 29 goals alone. They have four more players with 30 or more points and have started to play well on defense and in goal with freshman Ryan Ferland. Ron Fogarty's team is a confident bunch and one of the hottest teams going into the NCAA tournament and a nightmare to face on the ice. I'm sensing an upset here of Ohio State as this a Princeton team that tied St. Cloud State twice in December before they started to get rolling and the freight train is not stopping yet especially when this game is 90 minutes from the Princeton campus.

Denver and Penn State is a rematch of the regional final a year ago which Denver won 6-3 en route to a national championship. I am not liking Penn State's chances in the rematch either. Despite the game in their home state and Penn State being the host school I think Denver is the much better team overall. While Penn State has a solid offense with six players in double figures in goals the goal-tending is too suspect for me to say this team can win a game in the tournament against a championship team like Denver. The Pioneers boast three players with 40 points or more along with a quality defense and strong goal-tending in senior Tanner Jaillet. They also have the experience of being in the past two Frozen Fours and having won it a season ago in Chicago. This team looks locked and loaded again after winning the NCHC tournament title and they won't be losing to Penn State here.

I love everything about what Princeton has done this season as the young and hungry upstart but I can't see them beating a team like Denver that is trying to become the first team to repeat as champions since the Pioneers did it in 2004 and 2005. There is too much talent and experience on Denver and its going carry them to Saint Paul.

Regional Champion: Denver


West Region (Sioux Falls, SD)

#1 St. Cloud State, NCHC (25-8-6, At-large bid)
#2 Minnesota State, WCHA (29-9-1, At-large bid)
#3 Minnesota-Duluth, NCDC (21-16-3, At-large bid)
#4 Air Force, Atlantic Hockey (22-14-5, Tournament Champion)

This is effectively the Minnesota regional that is being played in Sioux Falls, SD. #1 St Cloud is looking to get back to the Frozen Four for the first time since 2013 in Pittsburgh. This is a very talented team with the top eight scorers on the roster all having 20 or more points and none of them are seniors which means that if they all return next season this team could be the likely preseason #1 team. This is a team that scores 3.66 goals per game. They have five players with 10 or more goals this season. Only two of the eight losses this season have been of the bad variety (Miami & Western Michigan) and the one of those losses was in overtime in the second games of the NCHC playoffs to Miami. Air Force finished third in the Atlantic Hockey regular season but won the conference tournament when Robert Morris upset Mercyhurst in overtime in the semifinals. This is the 7th NCAA appearance for the Falcons since 2007 as Frank Serratore has done a great job in Colorado Springs. Air Force lacks elite scoring and only scores 2.68 goals per game so they are going to need some breaks. They have a solid goal-tender in Billy Christopoulous who they need to be big against St. Cloud in order to have a chance at an upset. They will play hard but it won't be enough as I see the Huskies winning this game fairly easily against Air Force.

Minnesota State and Minnesota-Duluth is a rubber match, as these two teams split a pair of non conference games each of them winning at home. Minnesota State is a very good offensive team scoring 3.87 goals per game and has six players with 35 points or more along with six players with 10 or more goals this season. They are also very good defensively at 2.07 goals per game with senior Connor LaCouvee having a 1.76 goals against average. Mankato is a two and half hour drive to Sioux Falls so there should be a lot of support for the Mavericks. Duluth has been average offensively at a shade over three goals per game. The leading scorer for the Bulldogs is freshman defenseman Scott Perunovich with 35 points. Riley Tufte and Joey Anderson are Duluth's high draft picks who will need to step up if Duluth wants to advance to the regional final. Sophomore Hunter Shepard has been very good in goal with a 1.98 goals against average and a .924 save percentage. Minnesota State has been the more consistent team this season and probably would have been seeded much higher if they didn't lose in the WCHA semfinal series to Michigan Tech. They are also chasing their first ever NCAA win at the Division 1 level and I see that happening this time around. Mankato gets the job done against Duluth and moves to the regional final.

St. Cloud and Mankato split a pair of meetings with each winning easily on the other teams home ice. This should be an excellent well played game and probably one of the better regional finals we could see and I think that St. Cloud edges Minnesota State in overtime to reach Saint Paul.

Regional Champion: St. Cloud State 


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Bo Pieper signs with ECHL Adirondack Thunder

Bo Pieper (photo by Zack Wittman, Tampa Bay Times)

Quinnipiac men's ice hockey senior forward Bo Pieper has signed with the Adirondack Thunder of the ECHL, an affiliate of the New Jersey Devils. He becomes the third Quinnipiac player to sign a professional contract following Tanner MacMaster and Kevin McKernan. Pieper played in 38 games for the Bobcats this season recording 11 goals and 7 assists with a minus 6 rating. This was the second consecutive season in which Pieper had double digit goals scored for Quinnipiac after scoring 13 a season ago. Over his four year career for Quinnipiac, the Roseville, Minnesota native played in 158 games recording 32 goals and 33 assists with a minus 1 rating. The past two seasons he combined for nine power play goals for the Bobcats.

He was part of two Quinnipiac teams that won the Cleary Cup for the ECAC regular season champion in 2015 and 2016 along with winning the schools first ever Whitelaw Cup in 2016 as the champions of the ECAC tournament. He also played in the NCAA Tournament twice in 2015 and 2016 with the latter year making it all the way to the National Championship game in Tampa, FL before falling to North Dakota. He recorded his lone NCAA tournament point in the 2015 first round loss to North Dakota when he assisted on Quinnipiac's only goal by Andrew Taverner. He also scored a power play goal in the 2016 ECAC Championship win over Harvard. His senior class will leave Hamden with 94 wins during his time as a Bobcat.

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In the Pipeline: 3/19/2018

While the Bobcats season has been complete for over a week, the NCAA tournament is set to kick off next weekend with three ECAC teams participating after Princeton won the league tournament as the number 7 seed. Junior, midget and bantam seasons are starting to wind down with a handful of them already in the playoffs or on the the verge of the playoffs starting. Many Quinnipiac commits were in action over the past week especially in the playoffs so let's see how they did.

Ethan de Jong (photo by James Doyle, Prince George Citizen)

BCHL commits

Ethan De Jong had a to point week with 1 goal and 1 assist in two playoff games for the Prince George Spruce Kings. In 9 playoff games he has 8 points (5 goals, 3 assists). His team is currently tied at one game apiece against the Surrey Eagles in the best-of-7 second round series.

Desi Burgart had a lone goal in two playoff games this week for the Surrey Eagles as they split the first two games of their best-of-7 series against Prince George. In 8 playoff games, Burgart has 10 points (9 goals, 1 assist).

T.J. Friedmann picked up one assist in two games played this week in the postseason for the Victoria Grizzlies. So far in 6 playoff games, Friedmann has 4 points (2 goals, 2 assists). His team is in an 0-2 hole in the second round of the playoffs against Powell River.


USHL commits

William Fallstrom had a goal and two assists in two games played for the Fargo Force both wins over the Dubuque Fighting Saints. In 4 games played, he has 37 points (11 goals, 26 assists) with a plus 14 rating.

Wyatt Bongiovanni had one assist in two games played for the Muskegon Lumberjacks. He was scratched on Saturday due to an undisclosed injury. On the season in 35 games played he has 33 points (15 goals, 18 assists) with a plus 6 rating.

Zach Metsa had one assist in one game played for the Central Illinois Flying Aces. In 52 games played between Central Illinois and Youngstown, Metsa has 21 points (2 goals, 19 assists). He is riding a three game point streak along with points in four of his last five games and six of his last eight.

Dom Fensore had one assist in three USHL games over the weekend. In 27 USHL games played, Fensore has 13 points (1 goal, 12 assists).

Justin Robbins went 0-2 with 4.21 goals against average and an .887 save percentage for the Chicago Steel. On the season, Robbins is 5-7-0-1 with a 3.73 goals against average and an .881 save percentage in 17 games played.

NCDC commits

Daniel Winslow had four assists in two playoff games for the Jersey Hitmen as they split the first two games of their best-of-3 first round series against the Northern Cyclones. The decisive Game 3 is today at noon.

AJHL commits

Matt Cassidy had a lone assist in two playoff wins for the Brooks Bandits who have taken a 2-0 series lead over the Drumheller Dragons. In five playoff games so far he has a goal and an assist. in 3 playoff games so far for the Brooks Bandits as they swept their best-of-five first round series with the Canmore Eagles. They now await their second round opponent. 

Oscar Plandowski #7, bottom left with OHA Edmonton (photo by CSSHL.ca)

Midget Commits

Oscar Plandowski bantam team OHA Edmonton won the CSSBHL championship over the weekend. In 5 games played in the playoffs, Plandowski had 2 points (1 goal, 1 assist). The 2003 Nova Scotian born defenseman will now head to the South Kent School in the fall to play for the U-15 team there.

Jack Silich had a goal and three assists in in three regional games for the Chicago Mission as they now head to Nationals on April 5th. Silich has played 73 games this season scoring 95 points (35 goals, 60 assists).

Jacob Quillan of the Steele Subaru Major Midgets had a five point week (2 goals, 3 assists) in three wins. His team has taken a 2-0 lead over Halifax McDonalds. In 12 playoff games this year, Quillan has 13 points (5 goals, 8 assists).

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Kevin McKernan signs with Fort Wayne Komets of ECHL

Senior assistant captain Kevin McKernan (photo copyright BobcatsHockeyBlog)

Quinnipiac men's ice hockey senior assistant captain Kevin McKernan has signed with the Fort Wayne Komets of the ECHL, an affiliate of the Arizona Coyotes. McKernan played in 33 games for the Bobcats this season recording 3 goals and 9 assists with a minus 4 rating. Over his four year career for Quinnipiac, the Milbury, Massachusetts native played in 138 games recording 12 goals and 24 assists with a plus 5 rating. He showed some versatility this season when he was moved to forward in the ECAC playoffs scoring a goal in game one of the first round series against Yale.

He was part of two Quinnipiac teams that won the Cleary Cup for the ECAC regular season champion in 2015 and 2016 along with winning the schools first ever Whitelaw Cup in 2016 as the champions of the ECAC tournament. He also played in the NCAA Tournament twice in 2015 and 2016 with the latter year making it all the way to the National Championship game in Tampa, FL before falling to North Dakota. He scored presumably the biggest goal of his career in the National Semifinals against Boston College just 2:31 into the opening period which helped the set tone for Quinnipiac the rest of the game. His senior class will leave Hamden with 94 wins during his time as a Bobcat.

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Tanner MacMaster signs with AHL Utica Comets

Tanner MacMaster, left in game against Maine earlier this season

Quinnipiac University Men's Ice Hockey senior forward Tanner MacMaster has signed an amateur tryout contract with the Utica Comets of the AHL, as announced by the club in a press release. The Comets are the minor league affiliate of the NHL Vancouver Canucks. MacMaster completed the best season of his four-year collegiate career with 33 points (13 goals, 20 assists) and his 13 goals tied him for second on the team behind Alex Whelan's 16. He finished his career in Hamden with 84 points (30 goals, 54 assists) in 150 games played.

He was part of two Quinnipiac teams that won the Cleary Cup for the ECAC regular season champion in 2015 and 2016 along with winning the schools first ever Whitelaw Cup in 2016 as the champions of the ECAC tournament. He also played in the NCAA Tournament twice in 2015 and 2016 with the latter year making it all the way to the National Championship game in Tampa, FL before falling to North Dakota.

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Chase Priskie & Odeen Tufto make All-ECAC teams

Chase Priskie, 2nd team All ECAC selection (photo copyright BobcatsHockeyBlog)

Junior defenseman Chase Priskie and freshman forward Odeen Tufto both made All-ECAC teams today as was announced by the league office. Priskie, Quinnipiac's captain made the Second Team All-ECAC after posting 25 points (11 goals, 14 assists) in 37 games played with a team leading 8 power play goals. His 25 points were good for third on the team in scoring behind freshman Odeen Tufto (41) and senior Tanner MacMaster (33). This is the third consecutive season that Priskie has amassed 25 or more points in a season. Priskie was a third team All-ECAC selection a season ago and as a freshman made the ECAC All-Rookie team.

Odeen Tufto's 41 points (9 goals, 32 assists) in 38 games played were the most points for a freshman in the country. His 32 assists tied him for third overall in that category but most for a freshman in the country and it broke the Quinnipiac Division I freshman record for assists which was 31 set by Brian Hebert back in the 1999-2000 season . He is the first Quinnipiac freshman to amass 40 plus points or more in a season since Sam Anas did it with 43 (20 goals, 23 assists) back in the 2013-2014. He also had 15 multi point games for the Bobcats this season.

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