By Ryan Stieg
The college hockey season began last weekend and unlike some of the teams in the CCHA, I’m feeling pretty good right now.
That’s because I got off to a great start with my predictions and only stumbled twice. I picked Michigan State to sweep Lake Superior State in the Soo and they did. I also predicted that Minnesota State would split with Michigan in Ann Arbor and that Ferris State would split with Miami. Technically, the Bulldogs got two ties with the Redhawks, but if you’ve been a fan of my website, you know that ties always count in my favor.
I can’t dwell on my successes though as each week brings new challenges and that’s definitely the case with this week’s matchups. Four ranked teams are involved, and a couple of home and home series. So, it’s going to be an interesting slate of contests. Here we go with my Week 2 CCHA picks.
Merrimack at No. 19 Minnesota State
The Warriors have one of the craziest stories in college hockey right now. Merrimack had to start their student manager in net Sunday thanks to some injuries and a suspension with their goalies. The manager, Spencer Marquis, hadn’t played since high school back in 2020 and almost pulled off the win, but Stonehill won in overtime. It appears as if Marquis will be back in net Friday as the Warriors are still dealing with waiver issues, and he’s going to have a much more difficult task in stopping the Mavericks. Mankato split with Michigan last week and I don’t see them slowing down against Merrimack. The Mavericks get the easy sweep, winning 5-1 Friday and 4-1 Saturday.
Bemidji State vs. No. 15 St. Cloud State (Friday at Bemidji, Saturday at St. Cloud)
It’s another battle with a former WCHA rival for the Beavers this week and it’ll be a good challenge for them. The Huskies looked solid against St. Thomas this past week and they’re eager to make it back to the NCAA Tournament after missing out last year. Meanwhile, Bemidji went up to Duluth and topped the Bulldogs in overtime, so it’s more than capable to nabbing a sweep. However, I think it’ll be a split with both teams winning at home. The Beavers win Friday 3-2, but the Huskies win Saturday 4-3.
Ferris State vs. No. 17 Western Michigan (Friday at Kalamazoo, Saturday at Big Rapids)
The Bulldogs looked good last week as they notched two ties against Miami, but this is a different caliber of opponent. The Broncos are one of the best teams in the NCHC and they get the job done against bad teams. I think Ferris will put up a good fight, but they’re overmatched this week. Western sweeps the series, winning 4-2 Friday and 5-2 Saturday.
Northern Michigan at No. 12 Colorado College
The Wildcats aren’t predicted to do much this year after head coach Grant Potulny went to the AHL and a mass exodus of players to the transfer portal. To make things worse, NMU has to open up its season on the road against one of the teams on the rise in the NCHC. The Tigers are primed to make the NCAA Tournament this year and I think they feast on the shaky Wildcats. CC sweeps, winning 5-1 Friday and 4-2 Saturday.
Alaska Fairbanks at Michigan Tech
It’s always fun whenever the Alaska schools play the CCHA teams and the Nanooks are hoping to get into the win column after getting swept by Penn State. I think the Huskies will be solid again this year and this should be a good test for them to start the season. It should be a hard-fought affair and I think it’ll be a split. The Nanooks win Friday 4-3 and Tech wins Saturday 3-2.
Long Island at Augustana
Well, the Vikings sure looked good last week in their dominant exhibition win over North Dakota. In fact, Augie was so good, there was a collective meltdown among Fighting Hawks fans on social media. Things should go even better for the Vikings this week when the Sharks come to town. LIU has struggled since its move to Division I and I think Augie takes advantage of that to get a sweep. The Vikings win Friday 4-1 and Saturday 5-3.