NHL draft likely won't sway Gophers standouts (CBS Interactive U-WIRE)
June 27, 2009
(CSTV U-WIRE) MINNEAPOLIS—Minnesota men’s hockey will see sophomore Jordan Schroeder as well as four incoming freshmen be early picks in the National Hockey League Draft on June 26 and 27, in the Bell Centre in Montreal, Quebec.
Schroeder is expected to be a sure first-round pick. Incoming freshmen Nick Leddy , Zach Budish , Josh Birkholz and Seth Hegelson are all expected to go in the second and third rounds.
Despite the high draft expectations this year, the athletes all plan to fulfill their original dreams of playing for the Gophers.
“Playing in Minnesota, wearing the ‘M,’ there is a lot of pride, and you kind of grow up dreaming to play there,” Schroeder said. “It’s a little bit of a dream of mine coming true, so I’m definitely honored to wear it.”
The incoming freshmen, all having grown up in Minnesota, shared this same mentality about playing for the Gophers. While they all mentioned wanting to play in the NHL one day, they are more focused on what it will be like to play for Minnesota next season.
“It’s going to be great to step on the ice and see all the fans and all the people that come and watch,” Hegelson said. “It’s all about the school, to play for my teammates, play for the Gophers.”
Head coach Don Lucia sees playing in the NHL as a longer-term goal for his younger athletes.
“These kids have potential, and they come to college to develop that potential,” Lucia said. “The hardest part is just keeping focused on where they’re at today and not where they’re going to be tomorrow.”
Hegelson said he plans to play hard for Minnesota, with thoughts of a professional career in background.
“Obviously I’m going to be working hard to get there, but my first priority will be Minnesota.”
Birkholz described playing in the NHL as an entirely different chapter of his life. He said he is trying to focus on playing his best hockey and enjoying his time at Minnesota.
Lucia said the athletes look forward to college hockey because of the pride involved in the program and the success they’ve had over the years.
“They want to be a part of that tradition. They want to add to the tradition and hopefully hang some banners,” Lucia said.
Having just finished his freshman year, Schroeder has already experienced much of the tradition that the incoming freshmen are looking forward to experiencing.
“Being at home in Minnesota and getting to know everyone was definitely a big part of my freshman year,” Schroeder said. “This year I want to come back and help the team have a better season.”
Lucia said every indication about Schroeder has him coming back to Minnesota to play his sophomore year.
“Jordan had an outstanding year, he’s very mature and he was ready to step in with his background,” Lucia said. “He was obviously ready to be a first-line player, and he’s certainly going to be one of our key guys this upcoming season.”
Assistant coach John Hill also said he expects Schroeder back, but expressed that it wasn’t a guarantee.
“We’ll know more next week when we know who has drafted him and if there was any conversation about signing a contract with them,” Hill said.
Hill described Schroeder as an elite hockey player in terms of his work ethic and said Schroeder gave them a true number one line, playing alongside Ryan Stoa and Jay Barriball .
“My plan is to come back next year, but you never know,” Schroeder said. “I have to wait and see who I get drafted by and what the team wants and I have to make a decision as well.”
Lucia and Hill agreed that it is uncertain how long players will stay with the program, so the coaches must take the draft into consideration when looking forward to the upcoming season.
“All we do is try to make sure that we’re aware down the road of how this might impact us,” Hill said. “It’s like juggling balls as to when kids are going to leave and sign.”
While some athletes have left the hockey program earlier than expected, Hill said it is still exciting to coach players off to their professional careers.
“We’re excited for the players because we know that it’s a big moment in their life and obviously for their sake you hope that they go,” Hill said.
More Sports News from The Minnesota Daily.
WCHA adds Nebraska-Omaha, Bemidji St
June 26, 2009
MINNEAPOLIS (AP)—Bemidji State’s 10-year wait proved to be worth it.
The Beavers finally gained admission to the powerful Western CollegiateHockey Association on Friday, ensuring that the first No. 16 seed to reach theNCAA Frozen Four will have a long-term home for a program moved up to Division Iin 1999.
The WCHA also admitted the University of Nebraska at Omaha to expand to 12teams.
“Awful excited, awful happy and awful proud,” WCHA commissioner BruceMcLeod said in a teleconference. “These two teams really solidify the WCHA.”
UNO had been part of the Central Collegiate Hockey Association and BemidjiState was with the College Hockey America league. The four-team CHA was set todisband after next season, and the Beavers were starting to get desperate.
“It’s just kind of like a 200-pound monkey off our back,” coach TomSerratore said. “It’s a very speical day and I’m very honored.”
UNO entered the Michigan-based CCHA for the 1999-2000 season after theschool’s efforts to join the WCHA stalled.
The WCHA, which announced the expansion Friday, also includesAlaska-Anchorage, Colorado College, Denver, Michigan Tech, Minnesota,Minnesota-Duluth, Minnesota State-Mankato, North Dakota, St. Cloud State andWisconsin.
It’s been a long climb up the hockey ranks for the school of 5,000 innorthern Minnesota. The Beavers won 13 national championships in Division II,III and NAIA before making the jump to Division I.
Last year they burst onto the national scene when they defeated Notre Dameand Cornell in the NCAA tournament to advance to the Frozen Four, where theylost to Miami of Ohio.
The WCHA lifted its long-standing moratorium on expansion in April and saidat the time that it needed to find a 12th team to accompany Bemidji State topreserve a balanced schedule.
That’s where UNO comes in.
“Our effort is to help build this program to an elite level,” athleticdirector Trev Alberts said. “We think an association with a conference like theWCHA will help do that.”
Nebraska-Omaha will have plenty of help making the transition. The programis coached by Dean Blais, who won two national titles at North Dakota from1994-2004.
“Happy to be back after five years of running all over the country,” saidBlais, who served as an assistant with the Columbus Blue Jackets and the coachand GM of the Fargo Force in the USHL after leaving North Dakota. “My deep downlove is the for the WCHA and I’m happy to be back.”
McLeod said the additions will change the way the playoff system isstructured. League officials are still discussing several options, but McLeodsaid the current Final Five setup will not continue.
McLeod said it is likely that all 12 teams will qualify for the postseason,with the final six advancing to St. Paul, Minn., to play for the league’stournament title.
Former Cornell hockey player accused of 2006 rape (CBS Interactive U-WIRE)
June 25, 2009
(CSTV U-WIRE) ITHACA, N.Y.—Four years after his record-breaking 2004-05 season for the men's hockey team, former Cornell goalie David McKee has been charged with raping an unconscious, intoxicated woman in California in 2006. On June 5, McKee pleaded not guilty to a one-count charge of rape of an unconscious person and one felony count of rape by intoxication.
McKee, now free on $100,000 bail, is due back in court in Santa Ana, Calif., on July 10 for a pretrial hearing. If convicted, McKee faces a maximum of eight years in prison.
On July 12, 2006, McKee and a group of hockey players met for drinks at Woody's Wharf in Newport Beach, Calif., according to a press release posted on the Orange County District Attorney's website. It is alleged that the group, including McKee, met a 25-year old woman at Woody's Wharf and went to her Newport Beach apartment after the bar closed.
McKee is accused of entering the woman's bedroom around 4:15 a.m. on July 13, 2006, and "raping her while she was unconscious and unable to resist due to her intoxication," according to the press release. The woman woke up during the assault. After a lengthy investigation, McKee was indicted on May 11, 2009.
McKee, who left Cornell in 2006 after his junior season to sign a contract with the Anaheim Ducks, played almost every minute during his three years with the Red. In 2004-05, his sophomore season, McKee posted a .947 save percentage and a 1.24 goals-against average – the third- and fourth-best marks in college hockey history.
He was one of three finalists for the Hobey Baker Award, which recognizes college hockey's best player. He was also named ECAC Player of the Year and Ivy League Player of the Year. That season, the team went 27-5-3 overall (18-2-2 ECAC) and defeated Harvard, 3-1, for the ECAC championship. It went on to beat Ohio State, 3-2, in the NCAA Regional Semifinals, but fell one win short of the Frozen Four, falling to Minnesota, 2-1.
McKee was on Anaheim's roster in November 2006, but has never appeared in an NHL game.
More Sports News from The Cornell Daily Sun.
M. Hockey: Boston U. defenseman signs early with Pittsburgh Penguins (CBS Interactive U-WIRE)
June 14, 2009
(CSTV U-WIRE) BOSTON—Boston University men’s hockey defenseman Brian Strait has signed a pro contract with the Pittsburgh Penguins, electing to forgo his senior season, according to USCHO.com.
Strait had been chosen as a co-captain for the 2009-10 season after serving as an assistant captain on the 2008-09 National Championship squad. Known for his lockdown defense and physical play, Strait recorded five goals and 18 assists for 23 points in his three seasons at BU.
The most notable of Strait’s five goals came against Boston College in this year’s Hockey East Semifinals. His wrister from the blue line into the top right corner gave BU a 2-1 lead. It was the second of three Terrier goals in a 44-second span midway through the third period.
The Waltham native was selected in the third round (65th overall) by Pittsburgh in the 2006 NHL Entry Draft and is expected to begin next season with the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins of the American Hockey League.
The USCHO article reports that junior defenseman Kevin Shattenkirk will serve as the lone captain for the 2009-10 season and that senior defenseman Eric Gryba and junior forward Nick Bonino have been named assistant captains.
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Two players who will be called upon to help fill the void vacated by Strait will be recently added defensemen Sean Escobedo and Ben Rosen.
Escobedo had been verbally committed to join the Terriers in the fall of 2010, but will now come to BU a year early, according to the same USCHO article.
The 18-year-old Bayside, N.Y., native recorded 17 assists and 76 penalty minutes in 59 games split between the Tri-City Storm and Sioux Falls Stampede of the USHL last season. He is regarded as more of a defensive defenseman than a puck-rusher.
Rosen had been verbally committed to Brown University, where his brother Dan is entering his senior season, but has decided to join the Terriers instead, according to a BU official.
The 20-year-old Syosset, N.Y., native played for the South Shore Kings of the Eastern Junior Hockey League in 2008-09. He was named the team’s MVP after leading the Kings and all EJHL defensemen in scoring with 10 goals and 42 assists for 52 points.
Escobedo and Rosen become the fifth and sixth members of this year’s freshman class, joining fellow defenseman Max Nicastro and forwards Alex Chiasson, Justin Courtnall and Wade Megan.
More Sports News from The Daily Free Press.
