By Jayson Hajdu
College hockey fans will be treated to three of college hockey’s signature events – hosted at three distinctly unique locales – during the Thanksgiving holiday weekend.
The Friendship Four Tournament, college hockey’s first and only tournament to take place outside of the United States, returns to Belfast, Northern Ireland, for the first time since 2019. This year’s event features No. 4 Quinnipiac, No. 13/14 UMass Lowell, No. 17 Massachusetts, and Dartmouth. All four games can be seen live on NESN. The winner captures the Belpot Trophy, first awarded to UMass Lowell in 2015.
Additionally, No. 15 Western Michigan will meet No. 18 Northeastern on Friday in the Music City Holiday Classic at Bridgestone Arena, home of the Nashville Predators.
Finally, Cornell meets No. 6 UConn on Friday at Madison Square Garden in the annual Frozen Apple matchup.
Other notable matchups this week include:
- No. 5 Michigan vs. No. 9 Harvard
- No. 10 Minnesota State at No. 20 Michigan Tech
- No. 11 Boston University vs. No. 19 Notre Dame
Daily Scoreboard | Weekly Schedule | TV Schedule | Stat Leaders
Must Read:
College Hockey Inc.: Bemidji State, North Dakota to co-host 2023 Ice Breaker Tournament
College Hockey News: Samoskevich has more focused approach
Duluth News Tribune: Former Minnesota Duluth, Michigan Tech coach Mike Sertich is battling cancer
EP Rinkside: Devon Toews has always been ahead of his time
ESPN: 'This kid's a player': Matty Beniers is making a big impact in Seattle
FloHockey: Vanderbeck’s gunslinging heroics
MSUMavericks.com: Allan announces retirement from Minnesota State Athletics
New England Hockey Journal: 6 transfers making an impact across New England college hockey
USCHO: Is change a good thing or bad thing in the world of college hockey?
Must Hear:
Bulldogs Insider Podcast: The life of an NHL scout with former UMD captain Parker Mackay
Inside Atlantic Hockey: Featuring Canisius head coach Trevor Large
The Rink Live: Gophers & Huskies sweep, UMD picks up win at Western Michigan
THN American Pipeline: New York Rangers NCAA rundown
USCHO Weekend Review: What did we learn from Minnesota-Michigan series?
Roaring Twenties:
Four players have reached the 20-point mark on the season and all four happen to play in the state of Michigan.
Western Michigan freshman F Ryan McAllister (London, Ontario) leads the nation in scoring with 26 points in 15 games, giving him a three-point cushion over Michigan freshman F Adam Fantilli (Nobleton, Ontario). McAllister’s WMU teammate, senior F Jason Pollin (Holt, Mich.), and Fantilli’s UM teammate, sophomore F Mackie Samoskevich (Sandy Hook, Ct.), are tied for third nationally with 20 points each.
A fifth Michigan-based player, Northern Michigan junior F A.J. Vanderbeck (Monument, Colo.), is next in line with 19 points.
DU Salutes Peter McNab:
The University of Denver will honor the late Peter McNab (Denver, 1970-73) prior to Friday’s NCHC game against Omaha. The Pioneers will also wear McNab’s No. 15 on the players’ helmets for the remainder of the season.
McNab, who passed away Nov. 6, racked up 170 career points in three collegiate seasons at DU before embarking upon a 13-year NHL career that included stops in Buffalo, Boston, Vancouver and New Jersey. He totaled 813 career NHL points and enjoyed 10 seasons of 20-plus goals. McNab, who most recently served as the TV color analyst for the Colorado Avalanche, was inducted into the U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame in 2021.
Longtime Minnesota State SID Allan to Retire:
Minnesota State Senior Deputy Athletic Director Paul Allan, also the school’s primary communications contact for men’s hockey, announced Tuesday that he will retire on Dec. 16. Allan has guided MSU’s communications department for the past 37 years and was inducted into the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) Hall of Fame in 2009.
MSU will recognize Allan for his years of service during a public reception Dec. 12.
College Hockey Inc. would like to extend its heartfelt gratitude to “P.A.” for his immeasurable contributions to college hockey.
You Can Quote Me On That:
“The growth in players is not just to produce, it's to produce in big games. That's where guys have taken that step. Last weekend and this weekend, our best players have been our best players, and that's a great sign.”
-- Clarkson head coach Casey Jones following his team’s sweep of Arizona State (via College Hockey News).
NHL Note of the Week:
Colorado Avalanche D Cale Makar (UMass, 2017-19) collected his 200th NHL point Monday in only his 195th career game, making him the fastest defenseman in NHL history to reach that milestone. The previous record of 207 games had been held by Hockey Hall of Fame inductee Sergei Zubov.
Makar is both the NHL’s reigning Norris Trophy (best defenseman) and Conn Smythe Trophy (playoff MVP) winner.
Fries at the Bottom of the Bag:
North Dakota is the only team to have scored a power-play goal in every game this season, having tallied with the man advantage in all 13 of its contests to date. UND’s power play leads the NCHC and ranks fifth nationally at 30.2 percent … Northern Michigan junior F Andre Ghantous (Glendale, Calif.) collected 100th career point in Friday’s win over No. 8/10 Minnesota State … Mercyhurst graduate goaltender Tyler Harmon (Ramsey, N.J.) stopped 47 shots in Saturday’s 4-1 win at Holy Cross, the most by an Atlantic Hockey goaltender this season. Harmon has now made 40-plus stops in four of his six appearances for the Lakers.
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