6. Why are we excited about the 2010 Hobey Baker candidates?
Because we know who they are and have been able to appreciate them as dominant players on their respective teams. The 2009 Hobey race was seemingly dominated by dark horse candidates and feel-good stories. Even though eventual winner Matt Gilroy was a returning All-American, he didn’t have a lot of Hobey buzz when the season began. Of the other Hat Trick finalists, Colin Wilson was just a sophomore and Brad Thiessen was a key player for a surprising Northeastern team.
The upcoming season could feature four of last year’s 10 finalists and 10 other players that had at least 20 goals or 45 points last year. That doesn’t even include exceptional forwards like Ryan Lasch and Riley Nash and goalies Kieran Millan and Andrew Volkening.
7. What cities have good reason to be awarded Frozen Fours after Tampa in 2012?
By the time the next batch of Frozen Four sites are awarded, it will have been at least 10 years since Boston last hosted at the Fleet Center (2004), so we’ll pencil Beantown in as it’s been a regular part of an unofficial Frozen Four rotation. Another tried and true (and successful) Frozen host has been Milwaukee, but the event might have outgrown the Bradley Center. As a nod to the Midwest and to the scope of the Frozen Four, Chicago’s United Center is a logical choice to host college hockey’s championship weekend. New venues are also cropping up and will make reasonable offers to host the Frozen Four. Kansas City already has a new arena and has been mentioned as a possible destination for an NHL franchise. With no primary hockey tenant in the arena right now and the city’s long history of hosting other NCAA championships, we expect to see Kansas City in the mix for a Frozen. Another new building isn’t finished yet, but Pittsburgh’s new NHL arena will be a great place for a Frozen Four. Location, amenities, a local host institution and expanding the college game into a relatively untapped market all bode well for the Steel City.
8. Which WCHA team will make it back to the Frozen after such a long (and enjoyable) absence?
OK, so it’s been a one-year hiatus. Consider the teasing payback for the 2005 Frozen Four in Columbus when we had to listen to how fabulous the Dub was ad nauseum.
It wasn’t a banner year for the WCHA in 2008-09. Stalwarts Minnesota and Wisconsin missed the NCAA Tournament. So did preseason favorite Colorado College and perennial postseason player St. Cloud State. Denver and North Dakota were first-round NCAA washouts. Were it not for Minnesota Duluth’s remarkable postseason run, the season would’ve been utterly forgettable.
Don’t expect a repeat in 2009-10. Of the teams in the league that can stake a claim to having Frozen Four aspirations, Denver appears to have the strongest case. The Pioneers can put together two legitimate scoring lines by mixing and matching forwards Joe Colborne, Anthony Maiani, Jesse Martin, Kyle Ostrow, Rhett Rakhshani, Tyler Ruegsegger, and Luke Salazar. That list doesn’t include incoming freshman Drew Shore, a U.S. NTDP product who’s projected by some to be a first-round selection in next month’s NHL Entry Draft. There’s not much point production from the blue line outside of Patrick Wiercioch, but with the talent up front, that isn’t a huge concern. Marc Cheverie, who put up solid numbers in his first season as the no. 1 guy in goal for DU, is back, too.
This could be the most talented team in George Gwozdecky’s tenure. Seriously.
9. Who are the most attractive candidates for the coaching vacancy at Nebraska-Omaha?
The cache of potential candidates with ties to the school or the city is so impressive that, should all of them throw their hats in the ring, it’d be hard for UNO to go wrong. The day after Kemp announced his resignation in order to take an assistant athletic director post, Rob White of the Omaha World-Herald focused on the two logical frontrunners – former Mav assistant and current Boston University associate head coach David Quinn and Minnesota assistant Mike Hastings, who coached the United States Hockey League’s Omaha Lancers for many seasons.
Hastings and Quinn would be fine choices. But wouldn’t it behoove UNO to kick the tires on Dean Blais? The ex-North Dakota coach wrapped up a successful stint behind the bench of the USHL’s Fargo Force earlier this month, leading the expansion team to a second-place finish in the league playoffs. His track record speaks for itself, and his hiring would energize a passionate fan base that’s languished in recent years.
10. Which former college players might we see representing the United States at the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver?
We’ll handle this answer by presenting how INCH would pick the team right now, if it only consisted of former collegians. We understand that Patrick Kane, Dustin Brown and Jamie Langenbrunner will likely get the call, but they don’t fit our criteria for this hypothetical. So here are our top 13 forwards, seven defensemen and three goalies with the last player cut in each category also listed.
Forwards (13) – David Backes (Minnesota State), David Booth (Michigan State), Chris Drury (Boston University), Brian Gionta (Boston College), Chris Higgins (Yale), Ryan Kesler (Ohio State), Phil Kessel (Minnesota), T.J. Oshie (North Dakota), Zach Parise (North Dakota), Drew Stafford (North Dakota), Paul Stastny (Denver), Lee Stempniak (Dartmouth), Colin Wilson (Boston University). Last Cut: Blake Wheeler (Minnesota)
Defensemen (7) – Keith Ballard (Minnesota), Mike Komisarek (Michigan), Paul Martin (Minnesota), Brooks Orpik (Boston College), Brian Rafalski (Wisconsin), Ryan Suter (Wisconsin), Ryan Whitney (Boston University). Last Cut: Ron Hainsey (UMass Lowell)
Goalies (3) – Rick DiPietro (Boston University), Ryan Miller (Michigan State), Tim Thomas (Vermont). Last Cut: Jonathan Quick (Massachusetts)
