Thursday, January 19, 2012

Weekend Breakout: Jan. 20-22

Weekend Breakout: Jan. 20-22

The non-conference games are almost entirely out of the way, meaning that close to all of the matchups on this weekend’s slate have an impact on the conference championship races.

In the Spotlight – They are both looking up at Ohio State and Western Michigan in the CCHA standings, but there’s little doubt that Michigan and Notre Dame will make their presence felt in the conference race before the season ends. They draw two national broadcasts to South Bend this weekend (NBC Sports Network on Friday, CBS Sports Network on Saturday). The Wolverines are 7-0-2 in their last nine, bolstered by the offensive exploits of Chris Brown and Alex Guptill plus the return of defenseman Jon Merrill to the lineup. The Irish are coming off a sweep at the hands of Western Michigan and will look to get their offense on track; they have won their last 11 games when they score more than two goals.

Also On TV – Friday: Providence at Boston University (7:30 p.m. ET, NESN), Air Force at Army (7:30 p.m. ET, CBS Sports Network), Lake Superior State at Michigan State (7:30 p.m. ET, Fox Sports College / Leafs TV), Colorado College at Minnesota (8 p.m. ET, Fox Sports North). Saturday: Boston College at Maine (4 p.m. ET, NESN), Colorado College at Minnesota (6 p.m. ET, Fox Sports North).

Hockey Weekend – Saturday is “Hockey Day in Minnesota,” and four of the state’s Division I programs are hosting home series in conjunction with the event. Minnesota’s series with Colorado College will air on Fox Sports North, while Minnesota State and St. Cloud State also welcome WCHA rivals. Minnesota Duluth hosts Alabama-Huntsville for two games.

Eastern Showdown – Boston College shares first place in Hockey East with rival Boston University but is just 1-1-1 since the holiday break. Within five points of the league lead are the Maine Black Bears, who are 8-2-1 in their last 11 heading into this weekend’s BC-Maine series in Orono. Saturday’s 4 p.m. start will be shown on NESN. Some of the nation’s top offensive talents will be on display, led by the talented first line for Maine, which ranks 1 (Brian Flynn), 2 (Spencer Abbott) and 3 (Joey Diamond) in Hockey East scoring.

Future watch – The Vancouver Canucks, despite their heavy reliance on former college players at the NHL level, have only five draft picks playing at in the NCAA. The two defensemen among those choices – Jeremy Price and Patrick McNally – will face off Friday night as Price’s Colgate team hosts Harvard and McNally. Price leads the Raiders defensemen in scoring (2-12—14) while McNally has one more point, trailing only Carolina pick Danny Biega among Crimson blueliners.

In the show – The two top teams in the Eastern Conference face off when the New York Rangers visit Boston at 1 p.m. ET on Saturday (NHL Network, MSG, NESN). It’s a homecoming for Boston College alum Brian Boyle, the fifth-year pro who is among a host of young former college players who have helped the Rangers, a group that also includes former Wisconsin standouts Derek Stepan and Ryan McDonagh and rookie Carl Hagelin out of Michigan.