College Hockey Update:  Last night only four games were played, and three of them ended in upsets, starting with #9 Cornell squeaking one past previously unbeaten, defending national champion, and #1 Providence College, at the Florida College Classic Tournament in Estero, Florida.  Providence got on the board lightning fast, only 27 seconds into the first, to take the very early 1-0 lead. Cornell tied it up at 1-1 with six minutes left in the second period, and that’s where it ended in regulation.  In the five minute OT period, Cornell scored with two minutes left to take the 2-1 win, and hand #1 Providence its first loss of the season, and its first loss since March 15th, over nine months ago.  Last week we wrote that there was  a possibility of a #1 vs. #4 second round game at this tournament, providing both Providence and Boston College won in the first round; well, tonight there is in fact a #1 vs. #4 second round game . . . . in the consolation game!  #4 Boston College also took it on the chin last night against, of all teams, Ohio State! BC also took an early lead in their game a minute into the first, and extended it to 2-0 only a minute later, but Ohio State scored twice in the first six minutes of the second to tie it at 2-2, and then scored with twelve minutes left in the third, to make it three unanswered goals, and a 3-2 win to put them in the championship game tonight against #9 Cornell.

Meanwhile, at the Three Rivers Classic Tournament in Pittsburgh, PA., #8 UMass-Lowell made quick work of Clarkson, scoring one goal in each period to make it a 3-0 shutout of the Golden Knights, and shortly thereafter #14 Penn State was upended by #24 Robert Morris.  In that one, Robert Morris got on the board early, four minutes into the first.  Penn State tied it up at 1-1 early in the second, but Robert Morris scored three unanswered goals in the second to take a 4-1 lead.  Penn State did answer with two in the third to make it cozy at 4-3, but Robert Morris added two third period goals to extend their lead to 6-3, and with 22 seconds remaining Penn Stated added one more to make the final 6-4, Robert Morris.  UMass-Lowell and Robert Morris meet tonight in the championship game, and Penn State will face Clarkson in the consolation game.

Tonight the Great Lakes Invitational Tournament gets underway in Detroit.  In the first round, #10 Michigan will face Northern Michigan, and Michigan Tech will face Michigan State, with the championship and consolation games played tomorrow night.  #10 Michigan has had huge help this year from its freshman forward Kyle Connor, of Selby Township, MI.  In Michigan’s last outing, a two game weekend series against Minnesota on Friday, December 11th, and Saturday, December 12th, the 6″ 1″ 175lb Connor really lit up the scoreboard.  Friday night, the 11th, he had a hat trick and added an assist, to lead his team to an 8-3 route of the Gophers, and on Saturday night the 12th, he nearly repeated the feat, scoring two goals in his team’s 3-2 loss to Minnesota.

Connor leads his team in goals scored this season, with 11, and he is second on the team in assists, with 11.  His 11 goals come on only 48 shots, giving him a team-leading scoring percentage of .229 on shots taken.  Prior to Michigan he played for three seasons on the Youngstown Phantoms of the USHL, and in 2014-15, he led his team with 34 goals and 56 assists in 56 games for a total of 80 points, breaking the league record of 74, and he was named the USHL Forward of the Year, and Player of the Year.  In his 2013-14 season with the Phantoms, he scored 31 goals and had 43 assists for a total of 74 points, setting a new league record.  Yes, in 2014-15 he broke his own record of 74 points, and he broke/set new league records in two consecutive years.  He was drafted in the first round of the 2015 NHL entry draft by the Winnipeg Jets with the 17th pick overall.

Connor’s hometown of Selby Township is fifteen miles north of Detroit, sits at an elevation of 679 feet, and is home to 74,000 residents who are spread out among its 35 square miles.  It was established in 1827, and absorbed the village of Disco, which had been founded in 1849, and had its own high school, The Disco Academy, which I believe is reputed to be the alma mater of Johnny Manero.

Tonight and tomorrow night two more tournaments get underway, including the Great Lakes Invitational mentioned immediately above, and a few non-tournament games will be played each night.  This weekend two more tournaments will be played, as well as about 24 non-tourmanment games.  The only top twenty matchup this weekend will be #16 Notre Dame traveling to play two games at #17 Denver.

This provides the top twenty teams as of December 14, and the rankings, records, and results of the December 11-13 weekend (in other words, this table is not updated from two weeks ago, or last week):

[table id=119 /]

I hope you will all have a happy and great New Year in 2016, and a very safe New Year’s Eve this Thursday.

That’s all for now.  Stay tuned, and go Terriers!

— Tom