Technical Education

The WCHA Media Poll Ballots are due on Wednesday, and since there’s no new information to be gained by waiting–other than that, shockingly, every team has had great chemistry in captain’s practices and it could be their best year ever–I may as well post this now.

Here’s what the ballot I turned in looked like:

1. North Dakota

2. St. Cloud

3. Minnesota-Duluth

4. Denver

5. Wisconsin

6. Minnesota

7. Colorado College

8. Bemidji State

9. Nebraska-Omaha

10. Minnesota State

11. Michigan Tech

12. Alaska-Anchorage

Player of the Year: Justin Fontaine, Minnesota-Duluth

Rookie of the Year: Jaden Schwartz, Colorado College

Though not going on the official poll, I’ll also pick a pre-season first and second all-conference team, and an all-rookie team after the jump.

(Apologies for the lateness on this big news. But PSU didn’t pick the best day for this, since it coincides with the NAHL Showcase. Also, as a reminder, for more on the Showcase, PSU, etc, you can follow me on Twitter at @ChrisDilks.)

So all the stories we’ve heard over the past couple of weeks are true. Penn State received an $88 million donation and will use that money to build an arena and start men’s and women’s hockey programs, beginning with the 2012-2013 season.

There’s a whole list of issues to run down with this announcement.

-The 2012-2013 start sounds about right. Last night, there was a report that PSU would try to get things up and running for next fall, which seemed insane. This gives PSU a chance to recruit a couple classes of players and really come in as a legitimate contender. They likely would have been a mess if they tried to start next year. You can’t recruit an entire roster in less than 12 months.

Read the full post…

Inside College Hockey was the first to report yesterday that Penn State will formally announce their intention to start a hockey program, possibly as early as this Friday.

I already covered this issue over the summer, so it’s probably not worth rehashing until we get some new information of what the future holds.

Other people are writing about it though. USCHO columnist Dave Starman thinks Penn State would be good, if they wanted to join the CCHA, but bad if it meant the creation of a Big Ten conference. Also, his proposed WCHA-CCHA alliance seems pretty wacky. The solution to whatever financial troubles those smaller schools will face won’t be solved by increasing travel expenses exponentially. College Hockey News thinks a Big Ten Conference is inevitable, though not necessarily a disaster.

The reaction from the Penn State side of things has been general excitement, and why wouldn’t it be?

Read the full post…

“In The Locker Room With Tom & Stan,” which begins its fourth season on COMCAST local TV access in the greater Middletown area, hosts its Kick Off 2010 Thursday night at the  Knights of Columbus Hall, 573  Main Street Cromwell.

Area high school coaches and Wesleyan coach Mike Whelan are scheduled to speak. The Hartford Colonials of the UFL are scheduled to have a speaker also. Doors open at 6:30 p.m. The public is welcome. For questions call 860-982-9177.

Freshman Hillary Zevenbergen has appeared in two games already as a Husky. The forward from Woodway, Wash., sat down with www.gohuskies.com for a Q&A.

Gohuskes.com: What is a pet peeve of yours?

Hillary Zevenbergen: “Aggressive bikers.”

GH: What is your pre-game superstition?

HZ: “Right cleat goes on first.”

GH: What is the best present you have ever received?

HZ: “Easy-Bake oven.”

GH: If you were trapped on a desert island with one teammate, who would you want to be stranded with and why?