2023-24 NCAA Hockey

[njmav1]

Augustana has been granted full CCHA membership a year early. They will now be eligible for the MacNaughton Cup, Mason Cup and yearly CCHA awards (they are still ineligible for the NCAA tournament). Since all schedules for the 2024-25 season are finalized, CCHA standings will be based on point percentage instead of straight points (Augustana plays 16 CCHA games, everyone else plays 26 CCHA games). The ninth place CCHA team will be left out of the CCHA playoffs.

https://ccha.com/news/2024/7/15/mens...r-2024-25.aspx

It's to Auggie's advantage using conference winning percentage when they play 10 games less than everyone else.

[Millsy]

It is about the best the conference could do at this point of time. I don't really have a problem with it, it has happened before, and as long as you take care of your own business, it won't be a problem.

I think the sudden bolting of St. Thomas to the NCHC lead to this decision. The CCHA wanted to make sure they were doing everything possible to keep the league as stable as possible.

[laker]

Mav men open the season with a 5-2 win at Michigan.
Mav women open with a home 4-0 win over Long Island.

[Millsy]

Mav men open the season with a 5-2 win at Michigan.
Mav women open with a home 4-0 win over Long Island.

HUGE WIN at Michigan. Already give the Mavs, and the CCHA, some Pairwise cred.

[crixus]

Season starts tonight Alaska Anchorage host National Champs Denver (7:05 pm Alaska Time). Seawolves games are free to view on their YouTube channel.

[SW_Mustang]

Mavs drop game #2 to Michigan - 4-1. I turned it off after Michigan scored the first goal, but I was told they got two empty netters late in the third.

Picked up my tickets for the NoDak series yesterday too. Someday I need to go to the Ralph, but seeing them in Kato will be fun too.

[crixus]

The University of Alaska Anchorage Seawolves lost both games to the National Champion Denver Pioneers as expected, but they were good games. Denver won the first game 6-2 and the second 4-1, so they weren't what I'd call blow outs. And Alaska Anchorage is an Independent way out on the Western fringe of America and not a household name like Denver is (they've won the most championships in college hockey history). So I'm proud of the Seawolves. I've been following them for 13 years and they're a lot of fun to watch on YouTube. If I lived in Anchorage I'd definitely be a season ticket holder.

[Millsy]

BSU beats Minnesota Duluth 4-3 in OT.

Augustana beats North Dakota 4-1 in Grand Forks. Too bad it was an exhibition and doesn't count.....

[vikingfaithful]

BSU beats Minnesota Duluth 4-3 in OT.

Augustana beats North Dakota 4-1 in Grand Forks. Too bad it was an exhibition and doesn't count.....

Is beating UND by Augustana in an exhibition a big deal or no big deal?

[Millsy]

Is beating UND by Augustana in an exhibition a big deal or no big deal?

I always have kind of taken exhibition games with a grain of salt. Who played for each team? Who got the most playing time? With playing UND, even in an exhibition game, was Augustana a little more amped up for it that UND?

A lot of exhibition games, especially early in the year, teams are playing the younger guys, trying to get a gauge on their play and where they may fit in. The vets, the coaching staff have an idea of and may hold them back.

Now, with that said, one would think the newcomers for UND are probably at a higher level than the newcomers for Augustana, just based on the history of the two programs. And I don't mean that as a slight, it is just the nature of the recruiting battles.

It is a nice springboard for heading into the season, but without taking a more in depth look into the game, it is really hard to say. For a newer program like Augustana, I would say it is a nice feather in the cap, even if it doesn't count.

[SW_Mustang]

Is beating UND by Augustana in an exhibition a big deal or no big deal?

If it gets the fanbase riled up to come out and support the team, and if it motivates the guys to play better - then that's all that really matters. And I mean, a win over UND is a win over UND.

I'll probably make my way down to Midco Arena on Saturday to watch them play LIU. It's so nice having an NCAA team semi-local now - and in the same conference as the Mavs no less. The growth of hockey in SD has been so fun to watch these past several years.

UND signed a kid who played for Oahe, so the investments are paying off. I don't think he hits college until 2026 though.

[SW_Mustang]

Should also be mentioned that Augie's assistant coach Chad Demers passed away several days ago:

Augustana Mourns the Loss of Coach Chad Demers - Augustana University Athletics (goaugie.com)

[crixus]

Should also be mentioned that Augie's assistant coach Chad Demers passed away several days ago:

Augustana Mourns the Loss of Coach Chad Demers - Augustana University Athletics (goaugie.com)

Sorry to hear that bad news. May he rest in peace.

[crixus]

Is beating UND by Augustana in an exhibition a big deal or no big deal?

As an outsider butting into your conversation, I'd say it's not a "big deal". It's good and can be used for motivation, but a big deal would be beating them in a regular season game, IMHO.

[laker]

If it gets the fanbase riled up to come out and support the team, and if it motivates the guys to play better - then that's all that really matters. And I mean, a win over UND is a win over UND.

I'll probably make my way down to Midco Arena on Saturday to watch them play LIU. It's so nice having an NCAA team semi-local now - and in the same conference as the Mavs no less. The growth of hockey in SD has been so fun to watch these past several years.

UND signed a kid who played for Oahe, so the investments are paying off. I don't think he hits college until 2026 though.

I thought that the men are playing Merrimack this weekend and that the women played Long Island last week.