STEVEN SUMMERHAYS
Notre Dame
Jr. | G | Anchorage, Alaska

Steven Summerhays

His Statistics: A combined 50 saves in the Fighting Irish’s wins over Maine and Nebraska-Omaha at the Ice Breaker Tournament in Kansas City, including 22 stops in Friday’s 1-0 shutout of the Black Bears.

His Impact: As was mentioned in our CCHA season preview, as Notre Dame’s goaltenders go, so go the Irish. Based on Summerhays’ performance in a pair of one-goal wins at the season-opening Ice Breaker, the Fighting Irish appear to be in pretty good shape. He made T.J. Tynan’s third-period goal stand up in the victory over Maine, then made 28 saves in the finale against UNO. In his last seven starts dating back to last March, Summerhays has a 5-2-0 record, a 1.22 goals against average, a .959 save percentage, and three shutouts.

His Runners-Up: Nick Bjugstad, Minnesota; Mat Bodie, Union; Ben Meisner, American International; Kevin Roy, Northeastern

Penn State freshman forward David Glen cemented his name in Nittany Lions athletics lore with his goal 38 seconds into overtime to give his team a 4-3 win—the first varsity hockey victory in PSU history—over American International in front of nearly 5,400 fans at Mohegan Sun Arena in Wilkes-Barre, Pa., Saturday. “It was pure excitement,” the Fort Saskatchewan, Alberta, native said following the game. “I’m really happy for the opportunity to be part of such a big moment in school history.”

WCHA referee Peter Friesema is in a world of trouble after making an off-handed remark about a bomb to an Alaska Airlines ticket agent at Anchorage’s Ted Stevens International Airport late Saturday night. Friesema, who was in town officiating the Alaska Anchorage Kendall Hockey Classic, was detained by authorities; the airport was evacuated and shut down for three hours. According to the Anchorage Daily News, Friesema pleaded not guilty to misdemeanor disorderly conduct, but state and federal officials still could bring felony charges against him.

What Happened: We like round numbers as much as the next person, so congratulations to New Hampshire coach Dick Umile and Colorado College Scott Owens for collecting milestone victories this past weekend. Umile picked up career win no. 500 Friday against St. Cloud State—he’s the sixth active coach to reach that plateau—while Owens earned his 300th career win that same night against Clarkson.

What We’re Watching: Not long after Nebraska-Omaha launched its varsity hockey program in the mid-1990s, the old Civic Auditorium became one of the rowdiest venues in the sport. Then the Mavs moved to the sparkling, new CenturyLink Center in downtown Omaha and the home-ice advantage wore off.

According to Sunday’s Omaha World-Herald, if UNO chancellor John Christensen and athletic director Trev Alberts have their way, the Mavs will soon be on the move again—to a 7,500-seat, on-campus venue that will house the school’s hockey, basketball, and volleyball teams. The two will make their pitch to the University of Nebraska Board of Regents later this month. Alberts says the project, estimated to cost $65-80 million, will be privately funded.

What the …?: This line from the Sunday blog entry of Minneapolis Star Tribune writer Roman Augustovitz, who handles the Gopher hockey beat.

It was not a great Saturday night for WCHA teams. They were 3-4-2 … That won’t help conference teams in the all important PairWise ratings at the end of the season.

Yes, someone referenced the computer rankings before Halloween, before 11 teams have even played a regular-season game. Please hit me in the back of the head with a burlap sack filled with doorknobs.

@DeMike3316: Jared DeMichiel

Crazy I used to sleep in U of Michigan bed sheets when I was little, luckily I went to RIT

@SMadolora: Shane Madolora

tigers eat wolverines for breakfast, lunch, and dinner!

Ex-RIT goaltenders DeMichiel and Madolora—two guys familiar with knocking off heralded foes—were quick to sing their praise to their alma mater following the Tigers’ 5-4 overtime win at Michigan Thursday.

THE SKINNY

It doesn’t matter what sport, but the beginning of a new season holds a special place in the hearts of players and fans alike. No matter how much disappointment the ending of the previous year brought, it’s all wiped away with the thought of a clean slate.

Coaches are the same way, though with a different focus. Regardless of what happened with last year’s team, the focus immediately changes to finding new line combinations and developing chemistry in the locker room. Knowing that every season is different, every team is different, only serves to increase the anticipation of the beginning of a new year.

Entering the final season before the great college hockey conference shakeup, Hockey East looks poised to have a banner year, perhaps one that even eclipses the outstanding year the league had last season. The league boasts the reigning national champions and fielded one-quarter of last season’s national tournament field, but somehow appears if not stronger, at the very least deeper from top to bottom than last year’s edition.

Every team has reason for optimism. Boston College returns yet another strong group as the Eagles look to add even more hardware to their trophy collection from last year. Last year’s incredible turnaround has fans everywhere wondering what UMass Lowell will do for an encore. Boston University looks forward to getting last season’s off-ice turmoil firmly in the rearview mirror and putting the focus back on the ice. Down the line it goes, extending to each team, including a new coach at Massachusetts and a new start for last year’s playoff outsiders Northeastern and Vermont, both of which have one of last year’s freshmen as their top returning scorer.

The excitement at this time of year is palpable. Let’s drop the puck.

BREAKTHROUGH TEAM

In the second year under coach Nate Leaman, Tim Schaller and Providence appear poised for a leap in the Hockey East standings.

Those who were familiar with the progression of Nate Leaman’s teams at Union certainly won’t be surprised with the progress the second-year mentor has already made at Providence. Since the start of last season, Leaman has been able to coax career years out of many of the players on the roster, guide his team through injury to the team’s top player (Tim Schaller), and add in a heralded recruiting class, headlined by forward Mark Jankowski and goaltender Jon Gillies, who were picked by Calgary in the first and third rounds, respectively, of June’s National Hockey League Entry Draft. Things are definitely looking up in Rhode Island.

PRIMED FOR A FALL

It’s been a tremendous couple of years for Merrimack, including back-to-back winning seasons in 2010-11 and 2011-12 for the first time as a member of Hockey East. With the departure of a senior class that featured four of the team’s top six scorers and netminder Joe Cannata, who owns many of the program’s goaltending records, Mark Dennehy’s club has plenty of gaps to plug. That’s a tough standard to live up to, and the Warriors may take a step back, but the days of Merrimack residing perpetually in the Hockey East basement are over.

PRESSURE TO PERFORM

UMass Lowell caught everyone by surprise by last season, with many throughout the year expecting the River Hawks to come crashing back to reality. While that never happened, losing in the last year’s Hockey East quarterfinal round to Providence illustrates the new challenge for Norm Bazin’s club: playing as the favorite. With many of the key figures from last year’s squad back this season, it will be interesting to see how Lowell responds with the target placed squarely on their back.

TOUGHEST ACT TO FOLLOW

Boston University has a gaping hole to fill in net following the graduation of Kieran Millan, who established school records for wins (81), saves (3,768) and games played by a goaltender (138) during his four-year career. It’ll be up to the three-headed goalie monster of junior Anthony Moccia and freshmen Sean Maguire and Matt O’Connor to try to fill Millan’s skates. The Terriers’ season will hinge on which one can not only overcome his competitors, but also the lofty shadow cast by Millan’s legacy.

BEST PLAYER

In his last 19 starts in 2011-12, Boston College goaltender Parker Milner was a perfect 19-0-0 with a 1.09 goals against average and a .960 save percentage.

It’s unfortunate that he sometimes got overlooked for individual accolades last season because of the strength of his overall squad, but Boston College’s Parker Milner is a special talent in goal. It’s easy enough to just look at the numbers—after all, it’s hard to argue with a season-ending 19-game winning streak that culminated with a national championship, or the 1.09 goals-against average and .960 save percentage over that span. But Milner is about more than just numbers. The senior from Pittsburgh came up huge time and time again for the Eagles during the Frozen Four, earning the weekend’s Most Outstanding Player honors, and gives Jerry York’s squad a key element as they reload and try to repeat in April in Milner’s hometown of the Steel City.

IMPACT NEWCOMER

The beginning of last season saw a paucity of incoming freshman who were selected by NHL clubs, but this year’s class swings to the opposite side of the pendulum, with an embarrassment of riches to choose from. We could go one of about 10 different ways with this pick, but with Maine losing a staggering 52 percent of its offense from last year, there’s an opportunity for Devin Shore to step in and be a key player from day one. Also gone are 41 percent of the Black Bear power play goals from last year, which just happens to be a strong suit for Shore; playing last year with Whitby of the Ontario Junior Hockey League, Shore had a hand in half of his team’s power-play tallies.

UNSUNG PLAYER

With Northeastern finishing ninth in Hockey East last season, Ludwig Karlsson didn’t gain the headlines that other, more heralded freshmen like BC’s Johnny Gaudreau or UMass Lowell’s Scott Wilson did. In spite of that, more than a few of the league’s coaches singled out Karlsson as one of the toughest players to play against. Karlsson led the Huskies in scoring last season with 26 points, and drew the attention of plenty of NHL scouts. With a better year for Northeastern, it won’t just be scouts and coaches who know about Karlsson.

MARK IT DOWN
Three things you can take to the bank in Hockey East this season:

• A number of coaching milestones will fall this season. Boston College’s Jerry York needs just 12 more victories to surpass Ron Mason as college hockey’s winningest coach. Across town, Boston University’s Jack Parker is just 24 wins shy of joining York and Mason as the only coaches to win 900 games, a win total that is certainly possible for the Terriers this season. And farther north, New Hampshire’s first win of the season will place Dick Umile in the elite group of coaches who have won 500 career games behind the bench.

• Goaltending will be strong across the board. Last season, six of the league’s netminders posted save percentages over .915; four of them are back this season with a firm grip on the starting job at their respective schools. Leading the way are BC’s Milner and UMass Lowell’s Doug Carr, as good of a 1-2 punch as any conference in the country can boast.

• Hockey East coaches will be wishing it was 2014. With Notre Dame joins the league next year and Connecticut comes on board the following season, the league will first include spots for all 11 teams next year, then all 12 teams the year after in the playoffs. With the balance in the league this season, like most years, the margin between postseason play and early preparations for 2013-14 will be razor thin.

CASEY THRUSH
New Hampshire
So. | F | Easton, Md. 

Casey Thrush

Key Statistics: Thrush finished his freshman season tied for 10th on the team in scoring, tallying four goals and eight assists for 12 points in 31 games for the Wildcats. Thrush also picked up 21 minutes in penalties on the year.

What He Does: Thrush describes his own role as that of a power forward, using his speed to make things happen offensively for the Wildcats. He spent his freshman season on the third and fourth lines, while also seeing time on the penalty kill. In his season with Muskegon in the United States Hockey League and last year with the Wildcats, scoring has been the one facet of his game that has lagged behind the rest; he had 30 points in 65 total games for the Lumberjacks in 2010-11 before last year’s total. “I’ve been working on my shot, working on my release and shooting through sticks and finding the net,” Thrush said of his offseason training focus. “I’ve been working on that a lot … and hopefully take the next step between last year and this year.”

Thrush on his assessment of his play as a freshman: “It’s tough to judge, I just wanted to come in and be able to play and contribute as a freshman,” he said. “About halfway through the year, I had a decent role on the team, and my goals grew—I wanted to make an impact and produce. It was a good start, I got a lot of minutes and experience and had decent production. I’m never satisfied, though, and hopefully the work I’ve put in over the summer will make a difference in my game.”

DESTRY STRAIGHT
Boston College
So. | F | West Vancouver, B.C.

Destry Straight

Key Statistics: Straight appeared in 43 of the Eagles’ 44 games during his freshman season, finishing the year with three goals and seven assists for 10 points. Two of his assists came during NCAA Tournament play, including tallying one helper in the 6-1 victory over Minnesota in the national semifinal.

What He Does: By the middle of his first season, Straight had found himself playing alongside linemates Kevin Hayes and Chris Kreider and made the adjustment to a top scoring line without a problem. “He’s a real smart, cerebral player and he’s got a real high hockey IQ. Going through practice, we noticed that his ability to handle passes and play at top speed and it didn’t negatively affect his game,” said associate head coach Mike Cavanaugh. “Some players have a hard time adjusting to that, but he never once looked out of place.”

The Bigger Picture: The challenge to repeat as national champions is a daunting task, as evidenced by the fact that no program has been able to repeat since Denver in 2005. While Boston College lost some outstanding talent after claiming the title in Tampa, the Eagles still have enough firepower to make a run at a repeat this season. For that to happen, players like Straight will need to continue to develop. “He’s going to have to step up his play,” Cavanaugh said. “We’re counting on him to be one of our top players on the ice. He’s had a great summer working out, and he’s going to see plenty of time on the power play and get top minutes up front. I think he’s going to metamorph into a pretty solid college hockey player.”

Boston College associate head coach Mike Cavanaugh on the challenge of repeating as national champions: “Fortunately, we’ve had some experience at it, and some years weren’t that good after winning a championship. The first time that happened to us in 2001, we were decimated as a team; we lost 11 guys from that team. We were talented but young and didn’t have the experience or the horses to compete. In 2009, the senior class had gone to three straight national title games before winning and maybe we exhaled a little bit as a program. This year, we have upperclassmen who have won two national titles and were a part of the 2011 team that got knocked out. We have the experience to handle the challenge that comes, but you never know; every year is different.”

With the onset of the 2012-13 college hockey season upon us, the prognostication is in full swing as conferences release their preseason coaches and media polls. Here are the results.

Atlantic Hockey Preseason Coaches Poll
Place, team (first-place votes), total points
1. Air Force (8), 112
2. Niagara (3), 101
3. Mercyhurst, 89
4 (tie). Bentley, 87
4 (tie). RIT, 87
6. Holy Cross, 74
7. Connecticut, 65
8. Robert Morris (1), 61
9. Canisius, 38
10. Army, 30
11. American International, 20
12. Sacred Heart, 19

CCHA Preseason Coaches Poll
Place, team (first-place votes), total points

1. Notre Dame (7), 105
2. Michigan (2), 100
3. Western Michigan (2), 97
4. Miami, 78
5. Ferris State, 67
6. Ohio State, 66
7. Michigan State, 56
8 (tie). Bowling Green, 43
8 (tie). Northern Michigan, 43
10. Alaska, 31
11. Lake Superior State, 29

CCHA Preseason Media Poll
Place, team (first-place votes), total points

1. Michigan (50), 903
2. Western Michigan (25), 825
3. Notre Dame (9), 765
4. Ferris State (3), 626
5. Miami, 622
6. Michigan State, 528
7. Ohio State, 438
8. Northern Michigan, 389
9. Bowling Green, 264
10. Lake Superior State, 232
11. Alaska, 150

ECAC Hockey Preseason Coaches Poll
Place, team (first-place votes), total points

1. Union (8), 118
2. Cornell (3), 110
3. Harvard (1), 98
4. Quinnipiac, 93
5. Yale, 77
6. St. Lawrence, 61
7. Dartmouth, 58
8. Rensselaer, 46
9. Colgate, 45
10. Clarkson, 41
11. Princeton, 25
12. Brown, 20

ECAC Hockey Preseason Media Poll
Place, team (first-place votes), total points

1. Union (18), 343
2. Cornell (11), 330
3. Harvard, 293
4. Quinnipiac, 246
5. Yale (1), 236
6. St. Lawrence, 159
7. Clarkson, 155
8. Colgate, 148
9. Rensselaer, 144
10. Dartmouth, 140
11. Princeton, 108
12. Brown, 41

Hockey East Preseason Coaches Poll
Place, team (first-place votes), total points
1. Boston College (9), 90
2. UMass Lowell, 74
3. Boston University, 73
4. New Hampshire (1), 63
5. Maine, 56
6 (tie). Northeastern, 44
6 (tie). Providence, 44
8. Merrimack, 38
9. Massachusetts, 35
10. Vermont, 23

Grand Forks Herald WCHA Preseason Coaches Poll
Place, team (first-place votes)
1. Minnesota (11), 121
2. North Dakota (1), 110
3. Denver, 91
4. St. Cloud State, 90
5. Wisconsin, 70
6. Minnesota Duluth, 69
7. Colorado College, 56
8 (tie). Nebraska Omaha, 51
8 (tie). Michigan Tech, 51
10. Minnesota State, 37
11. Bemidji State, 31
12. Alaska Anchorage, 15

94X WCHA Preseason Media Poll
Place, team (first-place votes)
1. Minnesota (24)
2. North Dakota (1)
3. Denver
4. Wisconsin
5. Minnesota Duluth
6. St. Cloud State
7. Colorado College
8. Nebraska Omaha
9. Michigan Tech
10. Minnesota State
11. Bemidji State
12. Alaska Anchorage

EVAN RODRIGUES
Boston University
So. | F | Etobicoke, Ontario

Evan Rodrigues

Key Statistics: A 20-goal scorer in back-to-back seasons for the Ontario Junior Hockey League’s Georgetown Raiders, Rodrigues only managed two goals and 12 points in 36 games as a freshman, but he recorded half of his points in the Terriers’ last eight games.

What He Does: Rodrigues, who notched 41 goals in 93 games over two seasons with Georgetown, was brought to Commonwealth Avenue to score goals—”He has got to get some goals,” BU coach Jack Parker told the Boston Hockey Blog following the Terriers’ January exhibition tie against the U.S. National Development Team—but he’s also a winner. As a member of the Toronto Marlboros youth hockey program, Rodrigues helped his team to Greater Toronto Hockey League championships in seven straight seasons and provincial titles as an atom, pee wee, and bantam.

The Bigger Picture: Forced to juggle personnel groupings throughout the season, Parker may have hit upon a potent scoring combination when he put Rodrigues on a line with Sahir Gill and Matt Nieto. The trio clicked during a seven-game run midway through the season and again when reunited during the Terriers’ series against New Hampshire in the first round of the Hockey East playoffs. Based on the brief audition last season, it’s not a stretch to project the Gill-Nieto-Rodrigues trio as BU’s top line to start the year.

BU assistant coach Buddy Powers on Rodrigues: “A good part of his identity as a player is producing points and scoring goals. He showed flashes, sometimes in individual shifts, when you say, ‘Whew, not everybody can do that.’”

JOHN PARKER
Maine
Soph. | F | Green Brook, N.J.

John Parker

Key Statistics: Parker appeared in 33 games as a freshman, scoring three goals and adding four assists for seven points. One of his goals came on the power play; because of Maine’s high-scoring offense, he saw limited time with that group last season.

What He Does: In a word: everything. Parker’s biggest attribute is his speed and he played a number of roles for the Black Bears as a freshman, including seeing time on the penalty kill. “He really emerged in the second half of the year as a regular shift guy, able to play a variety of situations,” said Maine head coach Tim Whitehead. “I love his effort and focus, he’s very coachable, and he’s going to keep getting better. Only time will tell, but he’s got all the ingredients to become a high-end player. He’s got a lot of upside and the part is that we’ve only seen the tip of the iceberg with him.” Perhaps the biggest statement regarding the amount of faith Maine coach Tim Whitehead has in Parker came during last season’s Hockey East championship game; with star forward Spencer Abbott out due to injury, it was Parker who was tapped to fill the hole on Maine’s second line when Matt Mangene moved into Abbott’s spot.

The Bigger Picture: Maine ended its NCAA Tournament drought last season by riding its high-powered offense, but four of the top five scorers from that team are gone, making the road back to the NCAAs more difficult. The improvement of younger players like Parker will be critical for the Black Bears, though Whitehead and Maine’s coaching staff may need to tweak the team’s style of play to better fit its strengths. “We’ve talked about it, and this team is cut from a different cloth,” Whitehead said. “We may need to be more defensive-minded, maybe win more low-scoring games, win 2-1 instead of 5-4. We’ll adapt based on what we have on the roster, but our strength will definitely be on the defensive side and in goal.”

Head coach Tim Whitehead on the opportunity for younger players to step up: “We’ve seen the past, like when Gustav Nyquist signed early before last season and we lost five of our 10 power-play guys, we’ve been able to bounce back and put up some numbers. This year, it’ll be more challenging, being the second year in a row that we’ve lost some elite players. This is an opportunity for the younger guys to elevate their game and play an important role. The ice time is there; we need guys to step up offensively.”

MICHAEL PALIOTTA
Vermont
So. | D | Westport, Conn.

Key Statistics: Paliotta appeared in 30 games as a freshman for the Catamounts, recording 10 points on four goals and six assists. He had two goals and four assists on the power play while recording 44 minutes in penalties.

What He Does: Paliotta brings good size and mobility to the Vermont blue line, providing a physical presence in the Catamounts’ own zone. He takes pride in being a shutdown defenseman, while also contributing offensively and on the power play.

The Bigger Picture: It’s been a busy summer for Paliotta, who was invited to the Chicago Blackhawks prospect camp and also participated in the United States World Junior Championships camp in Lake Placid in August. Those camps helped to boost his confidence level, showing that he could compete with players at that level. The development over the summer capped what’s been an impressive all-around year for the sophomore. “The season wore on him mentally last year, but we saw him become a player who understood the team dynamic,” said Vermont head coach Kevin Sneddon. “He learned what it meant to be a really good teammate and showed good leadership potential moving forward. He went from being frustrated personally to being a player who wanted to do whatever he could to help the team grow and felt confident enough in the postseason to speak out about areas for the team’s improvement.” With two new assistant coaches joining the Vermont staff late in the summer (Kevin Patrick and Kyle Wallack), having that type of leadership from younger members on the roster will be invaluable.

Vermont head coach Kevin Sneddon on his team’s late-summer makeover: “The last hire we had, when Damian DiGiulian left for family reasons, school had already started, so we had an appropriate amount of time to attract and hire two exceptional coaches in Patrick and Wallack. I’m very excited about the staff, and they’ve re-energized me with some new ideas and concepts, and that energy is going to spin off and be contagious to the team.”

BEN OSKROBA
Northeastern
So. | D | Tempe, Ariz.

Ben Oskroba

Key Statistics: Oskroba was scoreless in nine appearances as a freshman, with eight of those games coming in Hockey East play. He recorded nine penalties for 29 minutes in limited action.

What He Does: Oskroba brings great size to the game, standing 6-foot-5 and weighing in at 225 pounds as a freshman, and isn’t afraid to use that size on the ice. Called “thorough” and “reliable” by head coach Jim Madigan, Oskroba is at his best when he keeps things simple, moves the puck and plays strong in front of the net and in the corners. With his big size and reach he provides a great presence in the defensive zone, using his size and aggressiveness to his advantage.

The Bigger Picture: Oskroba made five of his nine appearances over the final month of the season, as he adjusted to the the college game.

“From the midpoint of the season on, he made much better strides in adjusting to the speed and pace of the game and did a good job in the second half of the year for us,” Madigan said. “Now that he’s got a year under his belt and summer training, we’re looking for him to play that reliable type of game, where he keeps it simple and keeps the game in front of him.”

Oskroba also caught the eye of professional scouts, as he was invited to Toronto’s development camp over the summer. That experience should help as he tries to break into the rotation on the blue line for the Huskies in his sophomore season.

Northeastern head coach Jim Madigan on the experience gained by Oskroba by going to Toronto’s prospect development camp: “Players get to development camp, they learn what it takes to play at the professional level. They realize what they need to do in college, and not just on the ice, but everything off the ice as well, and any player will learn a lot from that. I know these camps can have a significant role for player development.”

JOHN MICHELETTO
Massachusetts
Head Coach | Dartmouth ’90 | Chicago, Ill.

John Micheletto

Background: Micheletto may be in his first stint as a college head coach, but he’s certainly no stranger to the college game. After a year at Dartmouth and a brief professional career that included stops in Europe and the now-defunct Atlantic Coast Hockey League, he turned to coaching. After five years in the prep ranks, he moved to the college level, coaching from 1996 to 1999 at Union and from 1999 to 2003 at Notre Dame before moving to Vermont. He was elevated to the position of associate head coach in 2006 and helped the Catamounts the 2009 Frozen Four.

State of the Program: Micheletto inherits a team that finished 13-18-5 overall and tied for eighth in Hockey East, posting a 9-14-4 league mark. Despite the record, the Minutemen showed flashes of promise last season; five of the wins came over NCAA Tournament teams, including two over eventual national champion Boston College. And while the Minutemen lost leading scorer T.J. Syner to graduation, seven of the 10 skaters to record double-digit point totals do return, led by junior Conor Sheary, who finished last season with 12-23—35 in 36 games. In goal, three candidates for the number-one job return after combining for all but 1:35 of the possible minutes in goal last season.

Micheletto’s players have helped out with the late summer coaching transition after the resignation of Don Cahoon. “Even before the announcement, the guys all made the decision to return early and be in working with our strength and conditioning coach before school started,” Micheletto said. “I’ve had the opportunity to speak to each of them on the phone, but they’ve also been able to stop by and say hello.”

Another thing that will help with the transition will be a strong level of familiarity across the board. Coming to Massachusetts after spending the past nine years at Vermont, Micheletto is already familiar with the styles of play, the arenas, hotels, and travel plans needed within Hockey East. Even more, Micheletto has gone for the familiar in his assistant coaches, bringing Joey Gasparini with him from Vermont to join Len Quesnelle, a holdover from the previous coaching staff.

Coaching Philosophy: Micheletto plans on using the entire available ice surface at the Mullins Center to play an up-tempo, possession style of offense. “I don’t think it’s anything earth-shatteringly new,” he said. “We want to play fast, and not just skating fast; we want to play with tempo, turning transition into offense. I think being difficult to play against and being fun to watch are going to be the two greatest descriptors of our style of play.”