CC Falls Back to No. 10 (No. 9 in USCHO)

USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine
Division I hockey poll
(first-place votes in parenthesis)
Last Week's Ranking--2007-08 Record--Weeks In Top 15
1. Miami (Ohio) University (30) 2 6-0-0 5
2. University of Michigan, 3 5-1-0 5
3. University of North Dakota, 1 (2) 3-1-1 5
4. University of New Hampshire, 6 (2) 3-0-0 5
5. Boston College, 5 3-1-2 5
6. Michigan State University, 9 4-1-0 5
7. University of Denver, 7 4-2-0 5
8. University of Minnesota, 10 4-2-0 5
9. University of Wisconsin, 11 3-1-0 5
10. Colorado College, 4 2-2-0 5
11. Clarkson University, 8 4-2-0 5
12. University of Maine, 13 4-2-0 4
13. University of Notre Dame, 12 4-3-0 5
14. Michigan Tech University, 15 4-2-0 2
15. University of Minnesota-Duluth, NR 4-1-1 1
Others receiving votes: St. Lawrence University, 14; Niagara University, 10; The Ohio State University, 9; U.S. Air Force Academy, 7; University of Alaska Anchorage, 4; College of the Holy Cross, 1; Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, 1.

USCHO.com/CSTV Division I hockey poll
October 29, 2007
Team (First Place Votes)--Record--Last Poll
1. Miami (39) 6-0-0 2
2. North Dakota (4) 3-1-1 1
3. Michigan 5-1-0 3

4. New Hampshire (3) 3-0-0 7
5. Boston College 3-1-2 5
6. Michigan State 4-1-0 8
7. Denver 4-2-0 6
8. Minnesota 4-2-0 10
9. Colorado College 2-2-0 4
10. Wisconsin 3-1-0 11
11. Clarkson 4-2-0 9
12. Maine 4-2-0 13
13. Michigan Tech 4-2-0 14
14. Notre Dame 4-3-0 12
15. Minnesota-Duluth 4-1-1 17
16. St. Lawrence 3-3-0 15
17. Rensselaer 5-2-0 NR
18. Niagara 4-1-0 NR
19. St. Cloud State 3-2-1 NR
20. Massachusetts 2-2-2 16
Others Receiving Votes: Dartmouth 51, Ohio State 45, Alaska-Anchorage 39, Air Force 36, Cornell 25, Mass.-Lowell 25, RIT 15, Holy Cross 10, Colgate 7, Quinnipiac 7, Vermont 7, Boston University 6, Merrimack 6, Nebraska-Omaha 3, Princeton 3, Northeastern 2, Robert Morris 2, Providence 1

Game day: New Hampshire 4, CC 2 (final)

Third-period goals:
Colorado College 1, New Hampshire 2: Brad Flaishans (Craig Switzer, Matt Fornataro), 4:33, pp.
Just 35 seconds into a 101-second five-on-three scenario, Switzer's pass from the point was one-timed by Flaishans from the top of the left circle. The slap shot beat Bachman inside the left post.
"There was a power-play blast and there was a lot of traffic," coach Scott Owens said of the goal.

Colorado College 2, New Hampshire 2: Scott McCulloch (Jack Hillen, Andreas Vlassopoulos), 9:52, pp.
Hillen ripped a shot from the point and McCulloch and Bill Sweatt crashed the net, punching the rebound past goaltender Brian Foster.

Colorado College 2, New Hampshire 3: Paul Thompson (Danny Dries, Joe Charlebois), 10:08.
Sixteen seconds after CC's game-tying score, Charlebois' slap shot from the outside edge of the right circle was tipped by Dries on the near post and batted in by Thompson backdoor.

Colorado College 2, New Hampshire 4: Peter LeBlanc (Jerry Pollastrone), 19:53, en.
After a neutral zone turnover created a 2-on-1 rush, defenseman Brian Connelly overcommitted to LeBlanc, who drove past him and finished in the empty net.

Post-game quotes:
Coach Scott Owens
--On the two-referee, two-linesman system
"The two-man system is something that's being experimented with this year, I thought it went reasonably well. I would give it a thumbs-up based on this weekend."
--On goaltender Richard Bachman
"You know what? Three goals against in a road game, his first road game, five goals in three games against teams rated top-six in the country, you know, that’s a good start for the young man."
--Concerned about CC's penalty kill, which gave up three goals on 10 power plays?
"I’m not concerned. I just hate putting so much pressure on our special teams by not generating a goal or a goal and a half a game on five-on-five and that’s an area we’ve really got to get better at here."

Defenseman Jack Hillen
--On what the Tigers learned this weekend
"What it takes to win on the road. Obviously we’re not good enough right now. You can’t just come into a barn, especially a team that’s as good as UNH, and not put a full road game together. We made too many mistakes. We did a lot of good things right, you can certainly take those away. But as a senior and a veteran on this team, I’m looking at goals after we just get one. ...It’s a whole different atmosphere coming into a place like this than playing at home and w e’ve got to learn and we’ve got to learn pretty quick or it’s going to get away."
--On playing from behind on the road
"It’s hard. It’s harder to come back on the road because you don’t get that momentum from the crowd. You feel like you’re on your own and you don’t get the breaks from the refs. I’m not saying that’s what caused the game, I’m just saying you’re not going to get anything going your way, you’ve got to make your own momentum and it’s that much harder on the road. If you’re playing catch up, it’s not a good recipe for road wins."

Left wing Scott McCulloch
--On what CC's 5-on-5 offense needs
"I think that’s just not playing in the tough areas. We’ve got a lot of skilled forwards but it’s getting the puck to the paint and being there and getting traffic in front of the goalie. I think that’s an area we need to improve on, especially being an older team, it’s something that we should already be doing. I think we need to improve big-time on that. Usually we do a good job down low, but it’s taking the puck to the net with authority and having bodies there and that’s where it’s tough to play, it’s in front of the net. That triangle in front, that’s where the goals are scored and I think we need to do a better job of getting there."
--On why the Tigers' forecheck struggled to contain New Hampshire
I think we had a few turnovers, just not taking care of the puck and maybe missing a few lanes. But they’re a great team, they move the puck really well through the neutral zone, that’s their strength. You’re not always going to be able to stop that team, but I think in all areas, bearing down would help out.

Inside the stats:
--New Hampshire had the faceoff edge, 39-32. For CC, Chad Rau won 12/20 faceoffs and Vlassopoulos earned 11/22 wins.
--CC scored on two of seven power plays, as did the Wildcats, but had 16 shots to New Hampshire's seven on the man-advantage.
--In the first and second period, Bachman faced just seven shots from the slot. By contrast, in the third period, eight of UNH's 12 shots came from the slot.

***
Tiger Tracks:
Tonight's American Hockey League showdown between the Lake Erie Monsters and the Iowa Stars was a CC-studded affair. Defenseman Brandon Straub helped the Monsters to a 3-2 win, in which Stars captain Toby Petersen had a goal and Stars alternate captain Marty Sertich was held to a single shot.

Game day: CC 1, New Hampshire 1 (end of 2nd period)

Goals: Colorado College 0, New Hampshire 1:Matt Fornataro (James vanRiemsdyk, Brad Flaishans), 2:50, pp.
On New Hampshire's second power play of the game, Flaishans unleashed a slap shot from the top of the left circle just wide of the left side of the goal. The puck bounced into the no-man's land on top of the crease, out of reach of goaltender Richard Bachman. An attempt by vanRiemsdyk was finished by Fornataro under Bachman's blocker.
"I thought the first one was just an unlucky bounce off the backboards that came right back into the crease," Bachman said. "I was trying to reach but just couldn’t quite get it."

Colorado College 1, New Hampshire 1: Bill Sweatt (Jack Hillen, Chad Rau), 13:10, pp.
Two New Hampshire penalties put CC in a 5-on-3 situation for 55 seconds. With one second left in the two-man advantage, Jack Hillen ripped a shot from the top of the slot that was tipped by Bill Sweatt and bounced off of goaltender Brian Foster's left pad and up into the net.

--CC is outshooting UNH 24-13.
--The Tigers failed to cash in on two power plays to close the second period.
--A slight fog has developed about two feet off the ice.

Game day: CC 0, New Hampshire 0 (end of the 1st period)

Goals:
No scoring.

Shots/power plays:
CC has a 12-6 advantage in shots on goal and has two power plays to New Hampshire's one.

First period analysis:
A muggy night in Durham has perhaps contributed to the soft ice at Whittemore Arena tonight. Players are sliding everywhere and are having trouble making quick changes of direction and stopping on a dime. Both goalies have made some clutch saves to keep the game scoreless.

CC's goaltender Richard Bachman made a point-blank save with less than five minute left in the period on a shot from center Peter LeBlanc. New Hampshire backup Peter Foster shut down a three-on-two rush by the McCulloch-Johnson-Walsky line after Walsky created a neutral-zone turnover.

The Tigers are doing a much better job of possessing the puck out of their defensive zone tonight and aside from LeBlanc's shot, have limited the Wildcats to outside shots.

Game day: CC at New Hampshire

Notes:
1. Colorado College RW Jimmy Kilpatrick is in the lineup again tonight.
2. G Richard Bachman will start as the Tigers try to salvage the sweep.
--Entering Saturday's game, Bachman is third in the nation for his 0.98 goals against average and .968 save percentage.
3. D Ryan Lowery, RW Mike Testwuide and F Matt Overman are healthy scratches.
4. I forgot to mention in today's game story or in yesterday's blog notes that New Hampshire's power-play goal (PPG) with less than three minutes to go was the first PPG CC has given up this season. The Tigers have killed 13 of 14 power plays this season.

Lines:

Colorado College
10 Thauwald--14 Rau--23 Kilpatrick
21 Sweatt--19 Vlassopoulos--16 Patrosso
26 McCulloch--17 Johnson--22 Walsky
5 DeBoer--9 McMillin--2 Lampl

8 Hillen--15 Prosser
7 Fredheim--4 Gannon
27 Wysopal--11 Connelly

30 Bachman
31 O'Connell
1 O'Brien

New Hampshire
21 vanRiemsdyk--22 Radja--39 Fornataro
11 Pollastrone--9 LeBlanc--12 Butler
8 Collins--17 Fortney--14 Sislo
15 Dries--23 DeSimone--20 Thompson

4 Switzer--19 Flaishans
2 Fritsch--7 Charlebois
18 Krates--5 Kapstad

29 Foster
32 Regan

***
Tiger Tracks:
Goaltender Matt Zaba was promoted to the American Hockey League's Hartford Wolf Pack.

Gameday: CC 3, New Hampshire 5

Goals:
First period
Colorado College 1, New Hampshire 0: Eric Walsky (Tyler Johnson), 2:12. Johnson put the puck on net from the left circle, making goaltender Kevin Regan stop it with his body first. Walsky slid the puck under Regan as he tried to smother it with his body.

Colorado College 2, New Hampshire 0: Jimmy Kilpatrick (Chad Rau), 9:40. Less than 30 seconds into a four-on-four situation, Rau wins the puck in the neutral zone and Kilpatrick joins for a two-on-one rush. Kilpatrick catches Rau's pass in the slot and slings the puck over Regan's blocker, just inside the left post, to score on his first shot of the season.

Colorado College 2, New Hampshire 1: Bobby Butler (Brad Flaishans, Mike Radja), 9:48. On the subsequent face-off, won by Mike Radja, Flaishans collected the puck and passed to Butler, who caught O'Connell moving and finished with a low wrist shot. The announcer had not finished saying the previous scoring line, marking the second time this season the Tigers have given up a goal within a minute of scoring.

Colorado College 3, New Hampshire 1: Jack Hillen (Bill Sweatt), 15:10, pp. CC earned its second power play of the game when New Hampshire defenseman Craig Switzer flipped Kilpatrick, who was posted up in front of the Wildcats' net. Just 32 seconds into the man-advantage, Sweatt passed to Hillen on the point. Hillen leaned as if he would make a pass to Nate Prosser at the left circle, but got the New Hampshire penalty kill to shift and ripped a wrist shot past Regan.

Second period
Colorado College 3, New Hampshire 2: Matt Fornataro (James vanRiemsdyk, Flaishans), 0:15. Flaishans created a turnover at the blue line, passed to vanRiemsdyk who found Fornatero in the right circle. On the first shot of the second period, Fornatero had plenty of time to pick his spot. His wrist shot sailed in over O'Connell's glove hand to draw the Wildcats within a goal.

Third period
Colorado College 3, New Hampshire 3: Jerry Pollastrone (Butler, Peter LeBlanc), 9:45. Walsky's pass out of the defensive zone went straight to Pollastrone, who ripped a shot through traffic from the top of the slot to tie the score.

Colorado College 3, New Hampshire 4: Pollastrone (LeBlanc, Butler), 17:29, pp. With 21 seconds left in the Wildcats' third power play of the night, LeBlanc banged the puck hard off of the back wall and Pollastrone backhanded it through O'Connell's legs. The puck hit the left post and bounced out, prompting a video review, but it was ruled it crossed the goal line, upholding the original call.

Colorado College 3, New Hampshire 5: Fornataro (unassisted), 19:50, en. CC was only able to pull O'Connell for the last 20 seconds because the Wildcats had pinned them in so well with their forecheck. Fornataro created a turnover and finished in the empty net.

Inside the stats:
--The Wildcats did not allow a shot over the final 10 minutes.
--CC had the edge in face-off wins, 34-32. Chad Rau led the Tigers, winning 15 of 25 attempts.
--UNH goaltender Kevin Regan, who will be replaced tomorrow with sophomore Brian Foster, coach Dick Umile said, allowed three goals on eight shots in the first period.

Gameday: CC at New Hampshire

Notes:
1. G Drew O'Connell gets his first start of the season.
2. RW Jimmy Kilpatrick returns to action after an August hip surgery, a full week before scheduled.
3. D Ryan Lowery makes his CC debut.
4. W Addison DeBoer and W Matt Overman are healthy scratches.
5. Sell-out home-opener crowd at the Whittemore Center in Durham, N.H.

Lines:

Colorado College

10 Thauwald--14 Rau--23 Kilpatrick
21 Sweatt--19 Vlassopoulos--16 Patrosso
26 McCulloch--17 Johnson--22 Walsky
2 Lampl--9 McMillin--25 Testwuide

8 Hillen--15 Prosser
7 Fredheim--4 Gannon
11 Connelly--24 Lowery

31 O'Connell
30 Bachman
1 O'Brien

New Hampshire
21 vanRiemsdyk--22 Radja--39 Fornatero
11 Pollastrone--9 LeBlanc--12 Butler
8 Collins--17 Forney--14 Sislo
15 Dries--23 DeSimone--20 Thompson

4 Switzer--19 Flaishans
2 Fritsch--7 Charlebois
18 Krates--5 Kapstad

32 Regan
29 Foster

Scouting No. 6 New Hampshire

Three things to keep in mind this week as CC heads into a two-game set at New Hampshire:

1. Kevin Regan The senior goaltender, who saved 30 of 31 shots in the Wildcats' 4-1 win over Boston University, has an impressive career save percentage of .928 and 2.28 goals-against average in 61 games. Regan, named Hockey East defensive player of the week, is a big reason UNH was picked to finish first in its conference.

2. Big corners UNH's Whittemore Center, which features an ice sheet with the same dimensions as the World Arena (200' x 100'), is rumored to have nearly square corners (I'll be pulling out my measuring tape). That means more space for the CC forwards to work with, but conversely, a tougher defensive task for the Tigers' young defensemen.

3. Formidable top line The combination of LW James VanRiemsdyk, C Mike Radja, and RW Matt Fornatero will need some special attention. In the Wildcats' first outing against Boston University, each had a goal and an assist. VanRiemsdyk might be "just a freshman," but he's already drawing comparisons to Minnesota's Blake Wheeler. CC coach Scott Owens said the matchup between CC and New Hampshire should resemble last weekend's games against Minnesota.

***
Notes:
Right wing Jimmy Kilpatrick (hip) will travel and is "very close," coach Scott Owens said Tuesday, after he put Kilpatrick with center Chad Rau and left wing Scott Thauwald to test his progress...Stephen Schultz (undisclosed leg injury) and Dan Quilico (right ankle) did not make the travel roster but both are back to full-contact practicing...Read Owens' Tuesday at the Rink chat transcript here...Elliot Olshansky puts his foot in his mouth after CC's season-opening sweep of Minnesota.

***
Recruiting Round-up:
One of CC's recent commitments, Tim Hall, who is slated to join the Tigers next season, was named to the U.S. Junior Select team, which will compete Nov. 5-11 in Trail and Nelson, British Columbia, at the World Junior A Challenge. Nick Dineen, another forward recruit for 2008, is also on the 21-player roster.

Hall was also named a 'B' list of NHL Central Scouting's Player To Watch list, released today. A 'B' rating indicates a potential third- to fifth-round draftee. Rylan Schwartz, who committed to join CC in 2009 but could enroll next fall, was given a 'C' rating, meaning he is a potential late-round selection. Central Scouting will release a midterm and final ranking before the NHL draft in June 2008.

Andrew Hamburg has endured quite a journey this fall. After being released from the Waterloo Black Hawks (United States Hockey League), Hamburg was picked up by the Texas Tornado (North American Hockey League), where he had one goal and one assist in two games. As pointed out by Ryan of the USHL blog, the Tornado traded Hamburg to the St. Louis Bandits of the NAHL, where he now appears on the roster but not in the stats.

***
Tiger Tracks:
In net for the Charlotte Checkers (ECHL), Matt Zaba stopped 29 of 30 shots in his first professional victory, a 5-1 win over the Augusta Lynx.. The lone goal for the Lynx was scored by Aaron Slattengren. Trevor Frischmon, who joined the Checkers Tuesday, had two assists.

Toby Petersen was named captain of the Iowa Stars (AHL).

Shortly after he allowed one goal on two shots in his NHL debut, Curtis McElhinney was sent packing to the Calgary Flames' AHL affiliate.

Bachman Racks Up Honors

Goaltender Richard Bachman was named WCHA Defensive Player of the Week (see release below) and Inside College Hockey Player of the Week (here).

Also, a week after Denver was named "Team of the Week," College Hockey News passed the honor to CC.

WCHA Defensive Player of the Week
Richard Bachman
Fr., G, Colorado College

MADISON, Wis. – Richard Bachman, a freshman goaltender at Colorado College, has been named Red Baron® WCHA Defensive Player of the Week for Oct. 23-29 as a result of his outstanding play in a weekend sweep of two-time defending conference champion Minnesota.

A 5-10, 172-pound freshman from Highlands Ranch, Bachman stopped 61 of 63 shots on goal (.968 saves percentage) and posted five shutout periods, including one overtime, while backstopping the host Tigers to a 3-1 victory over the Golden Gophers last Friday (Oct. 19) and a 2-1 overtime win last Saturday (Oct. 20). They were his first two collegiate starts.

Bachman had 23 stops in the series opener and then came back with 38 saves in the series finale as CC swept UM at home for the first time since Feb. 5-6, 1999 and handed UM its first road sweep since Feb. 27-28, 2004 at Denver.

In addition, Bachman, an NHL draft choice of Dallas, also played a key role in the Tigers’ success on the penalty-kill against Minnesota, as CC held its opponents scoreless on all 11 power-play opportunities over the weekend.

Also nominated this week were: Michael-Lee Teslak, G, MTU; Alex Stalock, G, UMD; and Jean-Philippe Lamoureux, G, UND.

***
Recruiting Round-up
There's a possibility Rylan Schwartz, a recruit originally slated for 2009, could join Colorado College next season.

***
Tiger Tracks:
Brandon Straub was recalled to the Lake Erie Monsters (AHL) yesterday to replace Kyle Cumiskey, who was recalled by the Avalanche (it didn't hurt that Dale Purinton was suspended for 25 games for this).
Straub signed a two-way AHL contract, which means he gets paid an AHL salary for any games played on that level. Straub was minus-3 with no points in three games for the Johnstown Chiefs (ECHL). Straub's first AHL game could be against former Tigers Marty Sertich and Toby Petersen of the Iowa Stars on Oct. 27.

Matt Zaba will have a buddy in Charlotte; Trevor Frischmon signed with the Charlotte Checkers (ECHL).

Apparently, Brian Salcido took a bit of a beating on an East Coast swing with the Portland Pirates (AHL).

Curtis McElhinney made his NHL debut, but it wasn't his strongest showing.

CC Jumps Six Spots to No. 4

USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine
Men's College Hockey Poll - #4
(first-place votes in parenthesis and WCHA teams and Air Force in bold)

		Last Week's Ranking		2007-08 Record		Weeks In Top 15
1.	North Dakota, 499 (24)	1		2-0-1		4
2	Miami (Ohio), 482 (9)	2		4-0-0		4
3	Michigan, 378	6		3-1-0		4
4	Colorado College, 376	10		2-0-0		4
5	Boston College, 353	4		1-1-2		4
6	New Hampshire, 350 (1)	8		1-0-0		4
7	University of Denver, 303	5		3-1-0		4
8	Clarkson University, 295	7		3-1-0		4
9	Michigan State University, 254	9		2-1-0		4
10	Minnesota, 189	3		2-2-0		4
11	Wisconsin, 182	T-13		3-1-0		4
12	Notre Dame, 151	11		2-2-0		4
13	Maine, 53	NR		2-2-0		3
14	The Ohio State University, 47	12		2-2-0		2
15	Michigan Tech, 37	NR		3-1-0		1

Others receiving votes: University of Minnesota Duluth, 33; St. Lawrence University, 27; University of Massachusetts, 20; University of Alaska Anchorage, 16; Cornell University, 16; U.S. Air Force Academy, 9; Boston University, 3; Merrimack College, 2; Niagara University, 2; University of Nebraska Omaha, 2; Union College, 1.

USCHO.com/CSTV Division I hockey poll
(WCHA teams in Bold)

	Record	Pts	Pvs
1. North Dakota (42)	2-0-1	991	1
2. Miami (7)	4-0-0	950	2
3. Michigan	3-1-0	794	6
4. Colorado College	2-0-0	777	10
5. Boston College	1-1-2	747	4
6. Denver	3-1-0	723	5
7. New Hampshire (1)	1-0-0	700	8
8. Michigan State	2-1-0	653	9
9. Clarkson	3-1-0	645	7
10. Minnesota	2-2-0	577	3
11. Wisconsin	3-1-0	515	13
12. Notre Dame	2-2-0	470	11
13. Maine	2-2-0	293	17
14. Michigan Tech	3-1-0	242	-
15. St. Lawrence	2-2-0	197	15
16. Massachusetts	2-1-1	194	20
17. Minnesota-Duluth	3-0-1	190	-
18. Cornell	0-0-0	165	19
19. Ohio State	2-2-0	156	12
20. Alaska-Anchorage	3-0-1	106	-

Others receiving votes: Air Force 86, Nebraska-Omaha 59, Boston University 47, St. Cloud State 44, Quinnipiac 33, Vermont 33, Union 24, Western Michigan 24, Dartmouth 21, Rensselaer 13, Merrimack 9, Harvard 7, Niagara 6, Colgate 4, Northeastern 3, Holy Cross 2.

Also: CC is ranked sixth in the Inside College Hockey Power Rankings

CC Lands Recruit for 2010

Chris at Western College Hockey blog and the Scouting News are reporting that Colten St. Clair, who was born in 1992 and comes from Arizona, committed to Colorado College over the weekend. Just a sophomore, St. Clair would join the Tigers in 2010. See his P.F. Chang's AAA profile here, which lists him as a participant in the USA National Development Select 15 camp. More on this later.

Also, take a look at Mike Chambers' story on the friendship between Richard Bachman and DU's Tyler Ruegsegger.

***
Tiger Tracks:
--The St. Petersburg Times talks to Mark Stuart and his father, Michael, about the visor issue.
--Tyler Liebel has probably looked better, but the fans love him in Wichita.
--The Atlanta Thrashers can't win on the road, but Brett Sterling scored his first career NHL goal.
--Peter Sejna signed with the ZSC Lions in Switzerland.

Game day: CC 2, Minnesota 1, OT

Forget my three keys to the game, which were basically rip-offs from yesterday. Let's look at how the Tigers earned the sweep over Minnesota tonight.

1. Richard Bachman. In case you missed it, the freshman from Highlands Ranch turned in a phenomenal debut performance Friday (saved 23 of 24 shots) and earned the start again tonight only to one-up himself with a 38-save performance, including 18 saves on the penalty kill.
In his first career back-to-back starts against the No. 3 Gophers, Bachman saved 61 of 63 shots--that's a .968 save percentage and 1.00 goals against average. Wow.
"I'm excited right now," Bachman said of earning the sweep. "I'm having fun. It's been an awesome last couple of days and I'm proud of team in front of me. It has been great."

2. Penalty kill. CC's penalty kill ended last season ranked seventh in the nation.
Looks like the Tigers picked up right where they left off and then some.
CC killed 13 of 13 penalties this weekend against the Gophers, whose power play is "their bread and butter," coach Scott Owens said.
Not only did the Tigers hold Minnesota scoreless on the man-advantage, they generated offense as well. Even though CC has yet to score a short-handed goal, it looks like the moment is not too far off.
"We return a lot of our penalty killers, to start with," said center Chad Rau, who scored both goals in the win. "There's only one new guy on our special teams for penalty killing, and that's Walsky and he's familiar with our systems. I think we're all familiar with each other and when we get the puck, if we have time, we're always trying to look for each other. I know me and McCulloch, that's our plan every game is to catch the opponent sleeping on the power play if they're thinking too offensive."

3. Weathering the storm. Even though Minnesota may have dominated long stretches of the second and third periods, CC found ways to create dangerous scoring chances and get the puck out of the defensive zone. The defensemen managed several late-game odd-man rushes well with timely poke checks and physical play. They also kept the Gophers off of Bachman's doorstep for the most part, limiting their second chances.
"It shows a lot of character, a lot of grit, a lot of moxie with our team," Owens said. "It wasn't necessarily a thing of offensive beauty for us tonight, but we found a way to win. We'll take it."
CC also showed poise after Minnesota's early goal and prevented another during that tenuous two-minute span following a score.
"We had gotten stung last night, they scored before the announcement was even done," Owens said. "We wanted to make sure we address that to a certain extent. That's one of the areas you've got to get better at as these games get lower scoring."

What will probably be addressed in practice this week:
--Fitness: "We fatigued tonight," Owens said. "It was a combination of their big bodies getting after it and us fatiguing a little bit."
--Cashing in on scoring opportunities: "We should have had two in the first period," Owens said. "It would have been a different game if we had done that....I thought we were going to get more chances but we didn't."
--Limiting shots in the defensive zone: Owens can't be too pleased with his defensemen allowing 34 shots over the final 42:42.

Gameday, CC vs. Minnesota

Three keys to the game:
1. Put Minnesota's less experienced defensemen to the test.
2. Don't commit excessive penalties and allow Minnesota's power play to get cranked up.
3. Protect the puck in the neutral zone.

Lines
Colorado College
10 Thauwald--14 Rau--22 Walsky
21 Sweatt--19 Vlassopoulos--16 Patrosso
26 McCulloch--17 Johnson--2 Lampl
5 DeBoer--9 McMillin--25 Testwuide

8 Hillen--15 Prosser
7 Fredheim--4 Gannon
11 Connelly--27 Wysopal

30 Bachman
31 O'Connell
1 O'Brien

Minnesota
11 Hoeffel--9 Okposo--26 Barriball
13 Gordon--17 Wheeler--22 Flynn
12 Lucia--7 White--14 Bostrom
21 Pohl--19 Kaufmann--24 Howe

5 Peltier--4 Bickel
28 Fairchild--20 Fischer
6 Anderson--27 Schack

1 Frazee
33 Kangas

Gameday Final: CC 3, Minnesota 1

Looking back at the Three Keys:
1. Limit neutral-zone turnovers: The Tigers spent all week in practice preparing for the odd-man rushes that Minnesota generates out of the neutral zone. Even though the Gophers had more odd-man rushes than assistant coach Joe Bonnett would have liked, and scored on one, the Tigers' defensemen and backchecking forwards did a good job of funneling the puck to one side so that goaltender Richard Bachman could have a clear shot.

2. Defensive effort/physical play: See above. Also, as he did often last year, right wing Cody Lampl made several back-cracking checks to set the tone for the Tigers. Left wing Billy Sweatt, defenseman Jake Gannon and defenseman Nate Prosser also showed some tenacity.

3. Limit excessive penalties: CC took one fewer penalty than the Gophers (six total, including two roughing penalties). Bachman and the penalty killers were exemplary, holding Minnesota to just five shots on four power plays. Scott McCulloch's near-shorthanded goal in the second period, which hit the left post, was a pure hustle play.

Goals:
First Period
Colorado College 1, Minnesota 0: Bill Sweatt (Andreas Vlassopoulos, Jack Hillen), 12:28, pp. Vlassopoulos collected the puck off the back wall and sent a pass to Sweatt, who one-timed it past Frazee and inside the right post for the Tigers' first goal of the year.
"For me, it was an amazing feeling, especially coming in a big game like this and against a team like the Gophers," Sweatt said.
Colorado College 1, Minnesota 1: Cade Fairchild (Blake Wheeler, Ben Gordon), 13:07. Just 39 seconds after CC scored, Minnesota's classic odd-man rush came out of the neutral zone and did a nice tic (Gordon) -tac (Wheeler) -toe (Fairchild) around defenseman Jake Gannon and inside the right post.

Second Period
Colorado College 2, Minnesota 1: Eric Walsky (Scott Thauwald), 0:25. Defenseman Nate Prosser created a turnover in the Tigers' defensive corner. Thauwald scooped up the loose puck and fed Walsky who sliced through the Minnesota defense and beat Frazee.
Here's how he described it: "I was really looking for the pass the whole time and then I saw that the goalie was cheating. I kind of shot mid-stride and wasn't planning on it, so...I got a lot of crap from the guys."

Third Period
Colorado College 3, Minnesota 1: Derek Patrosso (Vlassopoulos, Sweatt), 11:04. Sweatt sent a pass along the back wall to Vlassopoulos, who fed Patrosso on the right side of the crease. Frazee covered low so Patrosso went high.
"When you're young, you're taught that when you're in close like that to try to go upstairs," Patrosso said. "It was a natural instinct to wait it out and wait for him to go down and then go upstairs."

Extra Stats:
--CC's penalty kill: 4 for 4
--CC's power play: 1 for 5
--Faceoffs: Minnesota 27, CC 25
CC's top faceoff man: Chad Rau 13/25
Minnesota's top faceoff man: Blake Wheeler 10/15

Gameday: CC vs. Minnesota

Three keys to the game:
1. CC must limit turnovers in the neutral zone. Minnesota's transition game becomes lethal when it can create odd-man rushes.
2. The Tigers need to finish their checks and be diligent in their man-to-man to give goaltender Richard Bachman his best chance at a win in his first career start.
3. CC can't take needless penalties. The Gophers' power play is known for its creative movement and deceptive passing--and scoring ability.

Lines:
Colorado College
10 Thauwald--14 Rau--22 Walsky
21 Sweatt--19 Vlassopoulos--16 Patrosso
26 McCulloch--17 Johnson--2 Lampl
5 DeBoer--9 McMillin--25 Testwuide

8 Hillen--15 Prosser
7 Fredheim--4 Gannon
11 Connelly--27 Wysopal

30 Bachman
31 O'Connell
1 O'Brien

Minnesota
11 Hoeffel--9 Okposo--26 Barriball
13 Gordon--17 Wheeler--22 Flynn
12 Lucia--7 White--14 Bostrom
24 Howe--25 Fisher--19 Kaufmann

5 Peltier--20 Fischer
28 Fairchild--6 Anderson
2 Wehrs--4 Bickel

1 Frazee
33 Kangas
35 Solei

CC Cracks the Top 10

USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine
Men's College Hockey Poll - #3
(first place votes in parenthesis)

		Last Week's Ranking		2007-08 Record		Weeks In Top 15
1	University of North Dakota, 507 (31)	1		1-0-0		3
2	Miami (Ohio) University, 468 (3)	4		2-0-0		3
3	University of Minnesota, 445	6		2-0-0		3
4	Boston College, 354	2		1-1-0		3
5	University of Denver, 341	10		2-0-0		3
6	University of Michigan, 304	9		1-1-0		3
7	Clarkson University, 279	13		2-1-0		3
8	University of New Hampshire, 275	5		0-0-0		3
9	Michigan State University, 240	3		0-1-0		3
10	Colorado College, 188	11		0-0-0		3
11	University of Notre Dame, 165	7		1-1-0		3
12	The Ohio State University, 152	NR		2-0-0		1
T-13	St. Lawrence University, 104	12		2-1-0		2
T-13	University of Wisconsin, 104	14		1-1-0		3
T-15	University of Massachusetts, 36	NR		1-1-0		1
T-15	Quinnipiac University, 36	NR		0-0-0		2

Others receiving votes: University of Maine, 21; St. Cloud State University, 16; Boston University, 14; Colgate University, 14; Cornell University, 7; Robert Morris University, 7; U.S. Air Force Academy, 2; University of Minnesota Duluth, 1.

USCHO.com/CSTV Division I Men's Poll

October 15, 2007

	Team	(First Place Votes)	Record	Points	Last Poll
1	North Dakota	(46)	1-0-0	977	1
2	Miami	( 3)	2-0-0	893	4
3	Minnesota		2-0-0	879	5
4	Boston College		1-1-0	757	2
5	Denver		2-0-0	676	13
6	Michigan		1-1-0	653	10
7	Clarkson		2-1-0	647	7
8	New Hampshire		0-0-0	643	6
9	Michigan State		0-1-0	628	3
10	Colorado College		0-0-0	504	11
11	Notre Dame		1-1-0	480	8
12	Ohio State		2-0-0	411	19
13	Wisconsin		1-1-0	361	15
14	Quinnipiac		0-0-0	290	14
15	St. Lawrence		2-1-0	283	16
16	St. Cloud State		1-0-1	229	17
17	Maine		0-2-0	223	12
18	Boston University		0-1-1	216	9
19	Cornell		0-0-0	136	18
20	Massachusetts		1-1-0	109	NR
Others Receiving Votes: Robert Morris 64, Colgate 53, Michigan Tech 26, Bemidji State 24, Nebraska-Omaha 24, Vermont 17, Dartmouth 16, Union 16, Minnesota-Duluth 11, RIT 11, Alaska-Anchorage 9, Western Michigan 8, Air Force 6, Rensselaer 6, Harvard 3, Northern Michigan 1

Gameday, CC vs. U.S. under-18 team (exhibition)

Pregame Notes:
1. Tyler Johnson and Stephen Schultz, who both missed multiple days of practice this week with injuries, are scratches. Johnson strained his right hip flexor in last week's pre-game warm-up for the University of Calgary. Schultz's injury remains undisclosed--I'm working on it.

2. Jimmy Kilpatrick (hip), Dan Quilico (ankle) are still recovering from injuries.

3. U.S. defenseman Sean Lorenz, a Notre Dame commitment, is a Littleton native.

**
Lines

Colorado College
26 McCulloch -- 14 Rau -- 16 Patrosso
21 Sweatt -- 19 Vlassopoulos -- 22 Walsky
2 Lampl -- 10 Thauwald -- 25 Testwuide
5 DeBoer -- 9 McMillin -- 18 Overman

8 Hillen -- 15 Prosser
11 Connelly -- 4 Gannon
27 Wysopal -- 7 Fredheim
Extra defenseman: 24 Lowery

31 O'Connell
30 Bachman
1 O'Brien

U.S. National under-18 Team Commitments listed in parentheses
19 Florek (Northern Michigan) -- 9 Schroeder (Minnesota) -- 8 Kristo (North Dakota)
27 Saponari (Boston University) -- 7 Czarnik (Michigan) -- 12 J. Hayes (Boston College)
26 McCarey (New Hampshire) -- 6 Gaul (Notre Dame) -- 21 Moore (Harvard)
10 Reddin (uncommitted) -- 16 Corkum (Maine) -- 20 Scott (Minnesota)

2 Warsofsky (Boston University) -- 5 Grimshaw (Harvard)
15 Ness (uncommitted) -- 28 Lofquist (Minnesota)
22 Pryor (Wisconsin) -- 17 West (Ohio State)
3 Lorenz (Notre Dame) -- 4 Marciano (uncommitted)

1 Maricic (Yale)
30 Clemente (uncommitted)

Recruiting Round-up

Nick Dineen, who will join Colorado College next season, leads the United States Hockey League defending champion Sioux Falls Stampede as a third-year player and co-captain.

The Tigers' latest pickup, Tim Hall, played a key role in his Ohio Jr. Blue Jackets' sweep of the Green Bay Gamblers (USHL). Game 1: Hall's shootout goal clinched the win. Game 2: Hall picks up an assist.

Dakota Eveland, who will join CC in 2009 or 2010, had an assist in the Omaha Lancers' win over the Tri-City Storm this weekend.

On a low-scoring Okotoks Oilers (Alberta Junior Hockey League) squad, David Civitarese is one of the youngest but also the third-leading scorer among forwards.

Andrew Hamburg still has not resurfaced after being released from Waterloo (USHL). EDIT: Looks like the Texas Tornado (NAHL), where Hamburg was traded to, will start up this weekend.

***
Tiger Tracks:

Though the same stature as former Chicago Wolves teammate and AHL record-setter Darren Haydar, Brett Sterling got the nod. An interesting piece on how timing can make all the difference when trying to stick on a NHL roster.

Aaron Slattengren's strong second half last season has his Augusta (Ga.) Lynx (ECHL) coach predicting big things. (subscription required)

Bad Karma? A knee injury to Brett Krahn cleared the way for Curtis McElhinney to make the Calgary Flames' roster. Now, because of a knee injury of his own, McElhinney will be out of commission for at least a week, this article says.

Final Thoughts, Calgary exhibition

Here are some quotes from Eric Walsky, a junior who is in his first season playing for Colorado College after transferring from Alaska-Anchorage following the 2005-06 season. Walsky had a goal and an assist and finished plus-1, as did linemates Addison DeBoer and Stephen Schultz, in the 4-3 win over the University of Calgary.

On his first shift with Colorado College
It was really nice to get back out there. The first shift I didn’t try to do too much. I just wanted to feel it out a little bit and play it safe. No, I felt good. I didn’t feel like I missed a whole season or anything. I felt comfortable. My vision’s still a little bit off and so is my speed.

Was your first outing as a Tiger as you envisioned it?
It was kind of what I anticipated but I didn’t feel like I saw everything. I felt a step behind compared to what I would have really liked to have felt. It’s still really early on and it was a good start. It gives me a little confidence going into the regular season.

How did the team approach the depleted lineup?
Everyone was really anxious to play and nobody really conserved their energy too much in hopes that they’d have a reserve in the end but, uh, it was a little conservative merely because of the fact that it was the first game of the season and nobody felt too comfortable out there. Everyone was gripping their sticks a little bit.

How did it go with linemates Addison DeBoer and Stephen Schultz?
It was good, I really like playing with them. Schultz and I, I feel like we have good chemistry, even though we didn’t too much possession of the puck together but I think we stuck together out there.

Feel like you're really part of the team now?
I don’t feel like I’m in the limbo anymore, kind of on the team but not on the team at the same time.

***
Coach Scott Owens on practice this week:
We’re going to work very hard in practice this week because we have to. We have to improve our conditioning and our defensive play.

Gameday: CC vs. Calgary (Exhibition)

Pregame notes:
1. Freshman defenseman Ryan Lowery was still sore at this morning's pre-game skate and was not cleared to play after taking a puck to his right ankle in Thursday's captain's practice.
2. Sophomore forward Dan Quilico has not been cleared for contact, bringing tonight's available forwards to 11.

**
Lines

Colorado College
26 McCulloch -- 14 Rau -- 25 Testwuide
21 Sweatt -- 17 Johnson -- 16 Patrosso
5 DeBoer -- 22 Walsky -- 28 Schultz
-- 9 McMillin -- 18 Overman

8 Hillen -- 2 Lampl
7 Fredheim -- 4 Gannon
15 Prosser

31 O'Connell
30 Bachman
1 O'Brien

Calgary
21 R. Annesley -- 11 K. Annesley -- 39 Horman
16 Richards -- 43 Jorgensen -- 15 Wheat
23 Desautels -- 25 Moore -- 10 Galan
24 Senkow -- 5 Redmond -- 18 Sylvester

44 Ehrman -- 34 Seder
17 O'Malley -- 4 Campbell
27 Hatlelid -- 8 Blanchette

33 McLaughlin
30 Talbot

Scuffles Solidify CC Squad?

As defenseman Jack Hillen took a swing at classmate Derek Patrosso at Thursday's captain's practice, I couldn't help but wonder if what Hillen had just told me about "great team chemistry" was null and void.

Part of it is that I grew up in basketball country. If one Tar Heel were to lash out at another like that, Roy Williams would probably have to resign.

Also, as a veteran of female teams, I can say unequivocally that if the same physical manifestation of frustration were to happen, the grudges would never dissolve and the group would quickly become fractured into cliques.

But I guess it's different for men, as I have been learning in my second season of spending every day watching and talking to the Colorado College hockey team.

Thursday's practice had more scuffles than in all of last season's practices combined.

"Way to stay intense," said senior Scott McCulloch, who had to pull apart Hillen and Patrosso, before reminding the Tigers of some basic ground rules. "Make sure, if you're going to fight, that you take off your helmets so we're not breaking hands."

When I asked players about fighting with their teammates, they smiled forgivingly at me and explained what is an obvious concept to them.

"We're just ready to play," said defenseman Nate Prosser, who got chippy with freshman Stephen Schultz during the Tigers' short-sided 3-on-3 game. "That's just us being competitive.... It happens every day in juniors."

Eric Walsky, who is more apt to stand to the side and watch after nursing his right wrist back from a potentially career-ending injury, said fighting is a "good thing."

"It's all subconscious," he explained. "Nothing personal." Walsky added that when a little fighting doesn't happen, those frustrations can boil over in the locker room and destroy team chemistry. So, it's like a safety valve? "Yep," he said.

I'll admit it: my brief tutorial on the subject of intrasquad fighting still left me somewhat flummoxed, especially as the players left the locker room laughing and talking as if they'd spent their practice sharing their feelings or doing team-bonding activities.

But I guess, as they explained to me, that's exactly what they were doing. I think I just had a breakthrough.

Leave me a comment and let me know what you think about fighting within a team.

***
Mark your calendars:
CC's 2007-08 TV Schedule
(All Times MT)

Day & Date Opponent Network/Channel Time
Fri., Oct. 19 Univ. of Minnesota FSN Rocky Mountain 7:30 pm
Sat., Oct. 20 Univ. of Minnesota FSN Rocky Mountain 7 pm
Sat., Nov. 3 @ Univ. of North Dakota The CW (KXTU) 6 pm
Fri., Nov. 23 Univ. of Denver CET Network (Comcast) 7:30 pm
Sat., Dec. 1 @ Univ. of Alaska Anchorage The CW (KXTU) 9 pm
Fri., Jan. 4 @ Univ. of Wisconsin Big Ten Network 6 pm
Sat., Jan. 5 @ Univ. of Wisconsin CSTV 6 pm
Sat., Mar. 8 Univ. of Denver CET Network (Comcast) 7 pm

***
Articles off of the WCHA conference call, held Wednesday morning:
--Shane Frederick of the The Free Press (Mankato) writes about the WCHA's youthfulness.
--Elliott Olshansky of CSTV quotes Scott Owens and George Gwozdecky's takes on the Rockies' late-season surge. Previously, Olshansky says the Tigers are overrated. What do you think?

***
Tiger Tracks:
Four former Tigers made opening-day NHL rosters: Brett Sterling (Atlanta Thrashers), Mark Stuart (Boston Bruins), Curtis McElhinney (Calgary Flames) and Tom Preissing (Los Angeles Kings).
--Will Stuart stick on the Bruins' roster?
--Sterling gets love from readers of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution's Thrashers blog. Also: makes Burnside's watch list and earns a new nickname around Hotlanta.

It looks as though Brandon Straub will start his professional career with the Johnstown (Pa.) Chiefs (ECHL).

And what a lucky guy Matt Zaba is: he will begin with the Charlotte Checkers, an ECHL team in gorgeous North Carolina!

Brad Elliott Schlossman of the Grand Forks Herald asked Marty Sertich to give advice to Sioux senior Ryan Duncan about how to avoid a Hobey hangover.

Trevor Frischmon gets a shot to play another season in Syracuse (AHL).

Mike Stuart lands offer in Austria, while Peter Sejna's status remains unknown.