Author Archives: Michael Napier

Hoof Beats: Talbot recalled, Broberg translated, McKenna’s homecoming

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UAH alum Cameron Talbot (’10) was called up to the New York Rangers on Tuesday. The goaltender who helped the Chargers win the final CHA championship in 2010 will back up Henrik Lundqvist after the Rangers waived Martin Biron.

“It’s an unbelievable feeling,” said Talbot in this interview with Blueshirts United:

This is Talbot’s third call-up to New York, but he has yet to see any official NHL action. He is one of three former Chargers to don NHL uniforms: The others are Jared Ross (22 total regular-season and playoff games for the Philadelphia Flyers, including a goal in the 2009 playoffs) and Scott Munroe (goalie dressed in two call-ups with the Flyers but did not play).

Tradition Continues, Volume 1: Coach Corbett discusses the Northeastern series, and Brandon Carlson attempts to translate Joakim Broberg‘s Swedish.

Back in Boston: It didn’t take long in Stephen McKenna‘s collegiate career to have a homecoming. The South Boston native was back home for the Chargers’ series at Northeastern. “I’m happy where I am,” McKenna told Joe Meloni of College Hockey News. “We’re going to surprise some people. Believe me.”

Farewell, A.J.: A.J. Baker, the assistant coach under Doug Ross who helped the Chargers win two Division II championships, died of an apparent heart attack on Oct. 2 at the age of 54. Our thoughts are with his friends, family, and the players he touched.

What to do on the off weekend: The Charger basketball teams have started practice and will host the annual Midnight Madness on Friday night at Spragins Hall. The event will wrap up Homecoming Week at UAH. Beforehand, the UAH soccer teams host West Alabama on Friday.

You can also scout the Beavers as they host No. 3 Minnesota on WCHA TV. Several games involving WCHA teams will be available, including Colgate at Bowling Green, St. Lawrence at Ferris State, Nebraska-Omaha at Northern Michigan, Connecticut at Minnesota State, and all games of the Alaska Goal Rush in Fairbanks.

Around the WCHA: Nonconference nonsense

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The new-look WCHA hasn’t exactly had the best showing in the first two weeks of action.

There were some bright spots: Alaska-Anchorage is already halfway to matching its win total from all of last season after winning its home tournament (and beating national finalist Quinnipiac to boot).

Unheralded Bemidji State had a one-goal loss and a tie at No. 9 St. Cloud, although they could’ve had more if it weren’t for Nic Dowd (Huntsville native, wink, wink). Michigan Tech had a similar weekend at Minnesota-Duluth. But what was up with the shootouts? The NCHC uses shootouts on ties in league games. For non-conference games, the opposing team can accept before the series to have shootouts. The shootout results do not count in Pairwise rankings, so why bother?

But overall, the WCHA is a combined 6-11-3 so far in nonconference action, and Anchorage and Lake Superior accounted for four of those wins. Perhaps it’s not coincidence that they were the only ones to play at home.

More nonconference action this weekend, but this time six WCHA clubs will be hosts. The Chargers are idle ahead of their WCHA opener at home against Bemidji.

Here’s what happened around the WCHA this week. UAH was swept by Northeastern, 9-1 and 3-2.

Kendall Hockey Classic hosted by Alaska-Anchorage

Alaska 6, Air Force 1: It wasn’t until Wednesday that Air Force got the go-ahead to fly up to Anchorage because of the government shutdown. The Falcons might wish they hadn’t gone after all. Cody Kunyk paced the Nanooks with two goals. Anchorage Daily News recap

Alaska-Anchorage 3, No. 10 Quinnipiac 1: The stunner of the weekend involving a WCHA team belonged to the home-standing Seawolves. UAA, with only four wins last season, took the national championship finalist from last spring. Hudson Friesen and Brett Cameron each had a goal and an assist, and Rob Gunderson kept the Bobcats at bay with 24 saves. Anchorage Daily News recap

No. 10 Quinnipiac 4, Alaska 1: Quinnipiac got back on track Saturday with three power-play goals. Anchorage Daily News recap

Alaska-Anchorage 4, Air Force 2: In the finale, Matt Bailey scored the game-winning goal with four seconds left to give Alaska-Anchorage its second win a row. Jordan Kwas had a hat trick, netting his second goal to tie the game with 1:52 remaining, and then scoring an empty-netter just before the final buzzer. Anchorage Daily News recap

No. 11 Minnesota State at No. 14 Providence

Providence 5, Minnesota State 1: Bryce Gervais gave the Mavericks the early lead, but the Friars won with five unanswered. USCHO recap

Providence 3, Minnesota State 0: It didn’t get better for the WCHA favorites, as the Mavs were stymied by Jon Gilles’ 38 saves. USCHO recap

Northern Michigan at No. 3 Wisconsin

Wisconsin 5, Northern Michigan 2: NMU could not recover from three first-period goals by the Badgers. CJ Ludwig and Stephan Vigier scored for the Wildcats. The Mining Journal recap

Wisconsin 2, Northern Michigan 1: Luke Eibler had the goal for NMU to tie the game in the third, but he had something to do with the Wisconsin game-winner. The Mining Journal recap

Bemidji State at No. 9 St. Cloud State

St. Cloud State 3, Bemidji State 2: Huntsville-native Nic Dowd scored the game-winner shorthanded for the Huskies with 4:01 to go. St. Cloud Times recap

Bemidji State 2, St. Cloud State 2: The Beavers held a 2-0 lead on goals by Phil Brewer and Nate Arentz, but St. Cloud rallied in the third. Dowd tied the game on the power play. BSU won the pointless shootout 3-2. St. Cloud Times recap

Bowling Green at No. 16 Union

Bowling Green 3, Union 3: Three second-period goals for the Falcons erased a 2-0 Dutchmen lead. Dan DeSalvo, Pierre-Luc Mercier, and Bryce Williamson scored for BG. Albany Times Union recap

Union 5, Bowling Green 2: Bowling Green allowed four power play goals. Albany Times Union recap

Michigan Tech at Minnesota-Duluth

Minnesota-Duluth 2, Michigan Tech 1: Pheonix Copley kept Tech in the hunt with 39 saves, but Justin Crandall scored the game-winner with 2:46 left for the Bulldogs. Duluth News Tribune recap

Michigan Tech 1, Minnesota-Duluth 1: Mike Neville tied the game for MTU with 6:07 to go. In another meaningless shootout, the Huskies won 2-0. Duluth News Tribune recap

Robert Morris at Lake Superior State

Lake Superior State 3, Robert Morris 1: Alex Globke, Matt Bruneteau, and Chris Ciotti each had a goal to take down the Colonials. Kevin Murdock stopped 26 shots for the Lakers. LSSULakers.com recap

Lake Superior State 3, Robert Morris 1: Matt Johnson, Andrew Dommett, and Kevin Czuczman scored in a near replay in Sault Ste. Marie. LSSULakers.com recap

WCHA Standings Conference Overall
W L T Pts W L T
Alaska-Anchorage 0 0 0 0 2 0 0
Lake Superior State 0 0 0 0 2 0 0
Alaska 0 0 0 0 1 1 0
Ferris State 0 0 0 0 1 1 0
Bemidji State 0 0 0 0 0 1 1
Bowling Green 0 0 0 0 0 1 1
Michigan Tech 0 0 0 0 0 1 1
Alabama-Huntsville 0 0 0 0 0 2 0
Minnesota State 0 0 0 0 0 2 0
Northern Michigan 0 0 0 0 0 2 0

 

THIS WEEK IN THE WCHA
All times Central.

Tuesday, October 15
Ohio State at Bowling Green, 6 p.m.
Ferris State at Mercyhurst, 6 p.m.

Friday, October 18
Colgate at Bowling Green, 6 p.m.
St. Lawrence at Ferris State, 6 p.m.
Nebraska-Omaha at Northern Michigan, 6 p.m.
Lake Superior at Union, 6 p.m.
Michigan Tech at Notre Dame, 6:30 p.m.
Minnesota at Bemidji State, 7:30 p.m.
Connecticut at Minnesota State, 7:30 p.m.
Western Michigan vs. Alaska-Anchorage at Alaska Goal Rush, 8 p.m.
Denver at Alaska (Alaska Goal Rush), 11 p.m.

Saturday, October 19
Colgate at Bowling Green, 6 p.m.
St. Lawrence at Ferris State, 6 p.m.
Nebraska-Omaha at Northern Michigan, 6 p.m.
Lake Superior at Union, 6 p.m.
Michigan Tech at Notre Dame, 6:30 p.m.
Minnesota at Bemidji State, 7 p.m.
Connecticut at Minnesota State, 7 p.m.
Denver vs. Alaska-Anchorage at Alaska Goal Rush, 7 p.m.
Western Michigan at Alaska (Alaska Goal Rush), 10 p.m.

Catching the Game: at Northeastern, 10/11-12

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Now, we play hockey.

UAH hockey begins its 29th varsity season and 35th overall on Friday and Saturday night, 6:00 p.m. Central both nights. The Chargers are in Boston to take on the Northeastern Huskies. Here’s how you can follow the action:

TEAM COMPARISON
UAH_logo_100 2012-13 Stats Northeastern_logo_75
3-21-1 Overall record 9-21-4
1.44 (59th) Goals per game (rank) 2.38 (45th)
4.12 (58th) Goals allowed per game (rank) 3.47 (55th)
12.5 (32nd) Penalty minutes per game (rank) 12.4 (34th)
13.3% (53rd) Power play (rank) 16.5% (32nd)
76.3% (56th) Penalty kill (rank) 81.1% (32nd)

 

Northeastern leads the all-time series 2-0, beating UAH 3-0 and 3-1 in November of last season. Friday night is the season opener for both teams. Northeastern beat Dalhousie 5-0 in a preseason exhibition.

The Huskies struggled last season, particularly at the end, losing nine of their last 11 and finishing last in Hockey East. With significant roster turnover, Northeastern is not expected to fare better this season as they are picked to finish last in the Hockey East preseason coachces poll. Like UAH, the Huskies have a large freshman contingent (12) on their roster, one more than the Chargers. Sophomore Kevin Roy, who notched three assists against the Chargers last season, was their leading scorer last season with 17 goals.

Hoof Beats: Dressing up for the party

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Photo by Gemini Athletic Wear

Photo by Gemini Athletic Wear

Two days until the boys face Northeastern in Boston. When you watch the games this weekend, this is what they’ll be wearing. Gemini Athletic, which designs many uniforms in Division I, unveiled the away blues on Tuesday.

There are some differences from the away jerseys worn during the second half of last season. The shoulders are no longer black, and the interlocking UAH has been replaced with a horseshoe. The font on the front has changed and the player number is on the front for the first time. And, of course, we have the WCHA logo.

Coaches show: TONIGHT at Drake’s (4800 Whitesburg Drive, Suite 14), UAH hockey will be hosting a live call-in show on 97.7 The Zone from 7-8 p.m. Coaches Mike Corbett and Gavin Morgan will be there to take your questions and talk about the upcoming season. Free handouts will be available, as well as chances to win FlexTix packages. If you can’t make it, tune to 97.7 FM or listen online.

Conversations: Corbett and Jeff Vanderlugt discuss preparations for the new season:

Corbett and Ben Reinhardt also went on WAAY Channel 31 to talk Charger hockey (about one minute in after the Huntsville Stars story):

Commitment: Max McHugh, a forward for Dubuque of the United States Hockey League, announced his verbal commitment to UAH on Tuesday. McHugh will join the Chargers in 2014. “It’s an up-and-coming team that has a potential to make history and become something big,” McHugh told Mike McMahon in an interview for College Hockey News.

Community: C.J. Groh, Craig Pierce, Matt Salhany, and Stephen McKenna visited Huntsville Hospital on Tuesday for their Chargers Crew program. The kids were recognized as part of the team off the ice.

Around the WCHA: Getting to know the league

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Mondays throughout the season, we’ll have a recap of what happened throughout the WCHA, and a preview of the week ahead.

Since the only regular-season action involving WCHA teams over the weekend was Ferris State’s split with Colgate (along with a ton of preseason exhibitions), we’re starting with a look at the rest of the WCHA as we start the season.

 

uaf_logo_150Alaska Nanooks

Location: Fairbanks, Alaska

Last season: 17-16-4 overall, 12-13-3 CCHA (6th place). Lost to Michigan State in the  first round of the CCHA Tournament.

Program accomplishments: NCAA Tournament participant in 2010.

Famous alums: Shawn Chambers.

Series with UAH: Alaska leads 12-6-1, with the last meeting coming in the 1992-93 season.

Predicted WCHA finish: 3rd (media), 5th (coaches).

Players to watch: Cody Kunyk, Sr., F (11 G, 17 A, 28 Pts in 2012-13); Colton Parayko, So., D (4 G, 13, A, 17 Pts).

 

uaa_logo_150Alaska Anchorage Seawolves

Location: Anchorage, Alaska

Last season: 4-25-7 overall, 2-20-6 WCHA (12th place). Lost to St. Cloud State in the first round of the WCHA Tournament.

Program accomplishments: NCAA Tournament participant 1990-92.

Famous alums: Mike Peluso.

Series with UAH: Alaska-Anchorage leads 15-2, with the last meeting coming in the 1992-93 season.

Predicted WCHA finish: 9th (media), 9th (coaches)

Players to watch: Blake Thatchell, So., F (9 G, 16 A, 25 Pts in 2012-13); Matt Bailey, Sr., F (7 G, 12 A, 19 Pts).

Side note about the Alaska teams: UAH played both Anchorage and Fairbanks, both home and away, with regularity from 1987-93. Four times the Chargers played both schools twice in a five-day span (a single trip), and in two seasons they traveled to Alaska twice in the same season.

 

bsu_logo_150Bemidji State Beavers

Location: Bemidji, Minnesota

Last season: 6-22-8 overall, 5-16-7 WCHA (11th place). Lost to Minnesota in the first round of the WCHA Tournament.

Program accomplishments: 13 National Championships: 7 NAIA, 5 NCAA Division II, 1 NCAA Division III.

Famous alums: Joel Otto, Matt Read.

Series with UAH: Bemidji State leads 38-28-4. Split four Division II national championship series.

Predicted WCHA finish: 8th (media), 7th (coaches)

Players to watch: Brendan Harms, Fr., F (70 Pts with USHL’s Fargo Force in 2012-13); Matt Prapavessis, Jr., D (2 G, 9 A, 11 Pts).

Side note about Bemidji State: UAH has faced the Beavers 70 times, more than any other opponent thanks to the battles in Division II and the CHA.

 

bgsu_logo_150Bowling Green Falcons

Location: Bowling Green, Ohio

Last season: 15-21-5 overall, 10-15-3 CCHA (9th place). Lost to Notre Dame in the quarterfinals of the CCHA Tournament (defeated Lake Superior State in the first round).

Series with UAH: Bowling Green leads 7-2-1.

Program accomplishments: 1984 National Champions, 9-time NCAA Tournament participant.

Famous alums: Rob Blake, Brian Hollinger (Hobey Baker winner), George McGhee (Hobey Baker winner), Nelson Emerson.

Predicted WCHA finish: 4th (media), 4th (coaches)

Players to watch: Ryan Carpenter, Jr., F (18 G, 15 A, 33 Pts in 2012-13); Mike Sullivan, Jr., D (1 G, 15 A, 16 Pts).

Side note about Bowling Green: Longtime UAH coach Doug Ross was an all-CCHA forward at BGSU, and the late Jim Harris, UAH athletics director, graduated from BGSU. Bowling Green is the closest conference opponent UAH has as a varsity program.

 

fsu_logo_150Ferris State Bulldogs

Location: Big Rapids, Michigan.

Last season: 16-16-5 overall, 13-12-3 CCHA (5th place). Lost to Ohio State in the quarterfinals of the CCHA Tournament.

Series with UAH: Ferris State leads 7-2.

Program accomplishments: 2-time NCAA Tournament participant (2003, 2012). Reached the Frozen Four in 2012, losing to Boston College in the national championship game.

Famous alums: Jason Blake, Dave Karpa, Chris Kunitz.

Predicted WCHA finish: 2nd (media), 2nd (coaches)

Players to watch: Jason Binkley, Jr., D (2 G, 8 A, 20 Pts. in 2012-13); Garrett Thompson, Sr., F (11 G, 15 A, 26 Pts); Scott Czarnowczan, Sr., D (5 A); CJ Motte, Jr., G (2.19 GAA, .927 SV%).

Side note about Ferris State: FSU was UAH’s first opponent as a varsity program. The Chargers lost 7-2 on Oct. 25, 1985, in Big Rapids.

 

lssu_logo_150Lake Superior State Lakers

Location: Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan.

Last season: 17-21-1 overall, 11-16-1 CCHA (8th place). Lost to Bowling Green in the first round of the CCHA Tournament.

Series with UAH: Lake Superior State leads 3-2-1.

Program accomplishments: 3-time NCAA National Champions (1988, 1992, 1994), and 2-time NAIA National Champions (1972, 1974).

Famous alums: Jim Dowd, Doug Weight, Brian Rolston.

Predicted WCHA finish: 7th (media), 8th (coaches).

Players to watch: Kevin Czuczman, Jr., D (2 G, 9 A, 11 Pts in 2012-13).

Side note about Lake Superior State: UAH’s lone Division I win last season was at LSSU.

 

mtu_logo_150Michigan Tech Huskies

Location: Houghton, Michigan.

Last season: 13-20-4 overall, 8-16-4 WCHA (10th place). Lost to North Dakota in the first round of the WCHA Tournament.

Series with UAH: None. This season will be the first meeting.

Program accomplishments: 3-time National Champions (1962, 1965, 1975).

Famous alums: Tony Esposito (Hockey Hall of Fame), Paul Coppo

Predicted WCHA finish: 5th (media), 3rd (coaches).

Players to watch: Alex Petan, So., F (15 G, 19 A, 34 Pts in 2012-13); Brent Baltus, Fr., F (24 G, 28 A, 52 Pts with Trail Smoke Eaters of the BCHL).

Side note about Michigan Tech: MTU is one of four current Division I teams that UAH has not played (Boston University, Union, and Dartmouth are the others).

 

msum_logo_150Minnesota State Mavericks

Location: Mankato, Minnesota.

Last season: 24-13-3 overall, 16-11-1 WCHA (6th place). Lost to Wisconsin in the quarterfinals of the WCHA Tournament (beat Nebraska-Omaha in the first round).

Series with UAH: Tied 19-19-5.

Program accomplishments: 1980 NCAA Division II National Champions, 2 NCAA Division I tournament appearances (2003, 2013).

Famous alums: David Backes, Ryan Carter, Tim Jackman

Predicted WCHA finish: 1st (media), 1st (coaches).

Players to watch: Matt Leitner, Jr., F (17 G, 30 A, 47 Pts in 2012-13); Zach Stepan, Fr., F (4th round pick by Nashville in 2012); Zach Palmquist, Jr., D (7 G, 18 A, 25 Pts); Stephon Williams, So., G (2.00 GAA, .924 SV%).

Side note about Minnesota State: Despite never being in the same conference until now, UAH has faced the Mavericks 43 times – the fourth-most in UAH history.

 

nmu_logo_150Northern Michigan Wildcats

Location: Marquette, Michigan.

Last season: 15-19-4 overall, 9-15-4 CCHA (10th place). Lost to Michigan in the first round of the CCHA Tournament.

Series with UAH: Northern Michigan leads 3-0-1.

Program accomplishments: 1991 National Champions, nine NCAA Tournament appearances.

Famous alums: Steve Bozek, Dallas Drake, Tom Laidlaw.

Predicted WCHA finish: 6th (media), 6th (coaches).

Players to watch: C.J. Ludwig, Sr., D (4 G, 11 A, 15 Pts in 2012-13); Reed Seckel, Jr., F (13 G, 12 A, 25 Pts), ; Stephan Vigier, Sr., F (7 G, 14 A, 21 Pts).

Side note about Northern Michigan: UAH and NMU haven’t faced each other since 2004.

LAST WEEK IN THE WCHA:

Friday, October 4:
Alaska-Anchorage 2, British Columbia 1 (exhibition)

Saturday, October 5:
Ferris State 7, Colgate 4
Michigan Tech 3, Laurentian 2 (exhibition)
Northern Michigan 3, USA Uder-18 1 (exhibition)
Bowling Green 7, Wilfrid Laurier 1 (exhibition)
Alaska 8, British Columbia 1 (exhibition)

Sunday, October 6
Colgate 1, Ferris State 0
Northern Michigan 3, Laurentian 2 (exhibition)
USA Under-18 3, Lake Superior State 2 (exhibition)
Minnesota State 7, Lethbridge 1 (exhibition)

THIS WEEK IN THE WCHA:
All times Central.

Friday, October 11:
UAH at Northeastern, 6 p.m.
Minnesota State at Providence, 6 p.m.
Bowling Green at Union, 6:30 p.m.
Robert Morris at Lake Superior State, 6:30 p.m.
Michigan Tech at Minnesota Duluth, 7 p.m.
Northern Michigan at Wisconsin, 7 p.m.
Bemidji State at St. Cloud State, 7:30 p.m.
Air Force vs. Alaska at Kendall Classic (Anchorage), 8 p.m.
Quinnipiac at Alaska-Anchorage (Kendall Classic), 11 p.m.

Saturday, October 12:
UAH at Northeastern, 6 p.m.
Robert Morris at Lake Superior State, 4 p.m.
Minnesota State at Providence, 6 p.m.
Bowling Green at Union, 6:30 p.m.
Michigan Tech at Minnesota Duluth, 7 p.m.
Northern Michigan at Wisconsin, 7 p.m.
Quinnipiac vs. Alaska at Kendall Classic (Anchorage), 7 p.m.
Bemidji State at St. Cloud State, 7:30 p.m.
Air Force at Alaska-Anchorage (Kendall Classic), 10 p.m.

Hoof Beats: The buzz is rising…

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It’s October! It’s finally here!

Now that we’re in October, the buzz for the new season is cranking up. “Buzz” is an interesting word as we close in on the home opener against Bemidji in only three weeks: On the WCHA coaches conference call last week, the Von Braun Center was referred to as a “hornet’s nest.”

That means expected high decibel levels, people. Get your tickets now. And if top-level college hockey isn’t enough…

Promotions: UAH released the 2013-14 promotional schedule on Tuesday, and it’s the biggest in Charger history. T-shirts, pucks, bobbleheads, thundersticks — even mini toy rockets (we are Huntsville after all) will be given away at the 16 home games. Plus, there will be many in-game activities and opportunities for free admission for kids. We’ve added the promotions to our own schedule page.

Snag one of these posters at the Madison Street Festival on Saturday.

Snag one of these posters at the Madison Street Festival on Saturday.

Posterized: The boys will be at the Madison Street Festival on Saturday. Meet the team and get this lovely schedule poster.

Preseason: The Chargers still have a week before their season opener at Northeastern, but the rest of the WCHA will be action this weekend. Ferris State travels to Colgate to get the college hockey season officially under way, while the rest of the league is in preseason exhibitions.

The preseason poll was released by USCHO.com on Monday. The only ranked WCHA team is conference favorite Minnesota State, which starts at No. 11. Other league teams receiving votes are Ferris State, Michigan Tech, Alaska, and Bowling Green.

Professional: The latest pro signing of a former Charger is Sebastian Geoffrion. After his tryout agreement with Nashville, Geoffrion signed with the Cincinnati Cyclones. Former UAH players Davide Nicoletti and Jeff Winchester played for Cincinnati last season.

To check out how our alumni are faring in professional hockey all around the world (and we mean all around the world), visit our In the Pros page.

Podium: Head coach Mike Corbett spoke to the Huntsville Rotary Club on Tuesday, and the program got a Twitter plug from Mayor Tommy Battle.

Predictions: You’ve seen the WCHA preseason poll by the media. The coaches poll isn’t much different (although by my math, one coach doesn’t have us last). It is what it is. We’ve got a lot of lost time to make up. But it’s going to be fun to watch this program grow and rise again thanks to the renewed support of the university and its fans.

Hoof Beats: Alumni edition

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Practice officially began on Sunday! With three weeks to go before the season opener at Northeastern, here’s some news and notes with an alumni flair. UAHHockey.com will have a special page soon detailing where all currently active former Chargers will be playing this season.

Alumni discount on season tickets: The UAH Alumni Association on Monday announced that UAH alumni can get a 10 percent discount on season tickets. Just say you are an alum when you call 256-UAH-PUCK.

Kyle Lysaght update: Look who was on the ice on Wednesday!

http://twitter.com/morgee11/status/380447442581221376

Kyle was critically injured in a car accident in Atlanta in March.

Talbot in Rangers’ preseason action: Former Charger Cameron Talbot has seen action in both New York Ranger preseason games so far, stopping 21 of 24 shots in just over 56 minutes.  Talbot got the win in relief of Martin Biron in the Rangers’ 3-2 victory over the Philadelphia Flyers on Tuesday.

Munroe in Sweden: Another former UAH netminder, Scott Munroe, has started his 2013-14 season with the Växjö Lakers of the Swedish Hockey League. Munroe, who was in the Flyers organization, has a 2.4 goals against average and .895 save percentage in two starts. Watch an interview with Munroe on the Lakers web site.

Ross back with Ingolstadt: Jared Ross is back in Germany for this third season with ERC Ingolstadt of the Deutsche Eishockey Liga. He’s starting the season on the injured list with a slipped disk and will be out for a month.

Changes to the Pairwise: The Division I Men’s Hockey Committee introduced changes to its NCAA Tournament selection process on Friday, giving added weight to road wins and less for home wins. This might lead the larger schools from the power conferences (Big 10, NCHC, Hockey East) to schedule more non-conference games on the road. It will be interesting to see if “big name” schools will now want to visit Huntsville.

Hoof Beats: T-minus 30 days

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As of this writing, there are 30 days until the boys open the season in Boston against the Northeastern Huskies. It is time to get ready for hockey goodness!

You can probably tell that we’ve spruced up the site a bit. Hopefully you’ll enjoy our changes as we enter this new era of Charger hockey. We’ll be adding more as we get closer to the opening faceoff.

For now, here’s some news and notes about your Chargers, in case you missed it:

Have you ordered your season tickets yet? Prior season ticket holders should re-new your seats by September 24 in order to get our tickets mailed in time for our home opener (vs. Bemidji State on October 25). Also note that season tickets come with memberships to the Blue Line Club. All the information and order forms are on our tickets and Blue Line Club pages.

Huntsville native commits: Ted Rotenberger, a defenseman who grew up in the Rocket City, has a verbal commitment to UAH and is expected to play for the Chargers in 2015. Rotenberger plays for the TPH Thunder AAA U-18 midget program run by former Charger Nathan Bowen.

Gnash is coming: UAH hockey’s ties with the Nashville Predators continue. Gnash, the Preds’ mascot, will appear for the Chargers’ home opener against Bemidji.

In the community: Craig Pierce, Frank Misuraca, and Anderson White spent some quality time reading to kids at Blossomwood Elementary in Huntsville. Check out photos here, here, here, and here.

Brice to wear 57: If you’ve seen the new season’s roster, you’ll notice senior Brice Geoffrion has a new, non-traditional number, a rarity at UAH. But Geoffrion wearing 57 this season is special: The numbers honor his Hall of Fame, Montreal Canadien ancestors.  The 5 is for his grandfather, Bernie “Boom Boom” Geoffrion, and the 7 is for his great-grandfather, Howie Morenz. Before his retirement, Brice’s brother Blake wore 57 after he was traded to Montreal in 2012.

Sebastian in Predators camp: Sebastian Geoffrion, who was at the Predators’ rookie camp last week, was to start training camp with the team today on a tryout agreement.

Hoof Beats: Corbett and identity

  • Coach Mike Corbett continues to make the media rounds in his first weeks as head coach. He was featured on USCHO.com, with the main theme of establishing UAH’s identity as a hockey program. Corbett also touched on this in his recent interview on Penalty Box Radio in Nashville.
  • The Bemidji Pioneer takes a look at UAH as it begins its series on the teams in the reconstructed WCHA. We plan to post a retrospective of the 20-year UAH-Bemidji rivalry in time for the home opener on October 25.
  • The WCHA on Wednesday released its full 2013-14 composite schedule.