Uncategorized

By Ryan Stieg  It’s that time everyone. I’ve flipped the sign in the window, and the bakery is open again.   Each year, I debate whether this will be the last time I write this column as this is a college hockey website, and this topic goes all the way back to my days at the Mining Journal in Michigan. However, it’s by far my most popular

By Ryan Stieg  Merry Christmas everyone! I hope everyone is having a great holiday and that all of you on winter break will continue to enjoy yourselves.   I’m doing quite well. I’m enjoying a cup of hot cocoa, which was my reward for being successful with my picks in Week 11. St. Thomas came through for me by sweeping NMU and Augustana split its series

By Ryan Stieg  Sports injuries are an interesting thing. Sometimes, they can devastate an athlete, but they can also lead to unexpected opportunities.   That’s been the case for St. Thomas forward Alex Gaffney, who joined the team this year out of the transfer portal, and is now having the best season of his college career. He’s currently tied for seventh nationally in goals with 12 and

By Ryan Stieg  Well, how was your weekend? Mine could have been better.   For the first time ever, I was in real danger of having a winless week. Northern Michigan and Ferris State surprised me by getting wins and St. Thomas ended up splitting its series. Everything came down to the Bemidji State-Augustana series on Saturday night, and that’s when

St. Thomas’ Ryan O’Neill tries to set up a play behind the Lake Superior State net during the first period of a game on Dec. 6 in St. Paul. (Photo by Ryan Stieg) By Ryan Stieg  ST. PAUL – All good things eventually come to an end, and for the St. Thomas men’s hockey team, that was a

By Ryan Stieg  Well, we’ve reached December, and things are heating up in the CCHA. The most recent NPI rankings (the replacement for Pairwise) came out Sunday and four CCHA teams are in the top 20, which means the league has a good chance to get more than one team into the NCAA Tournament this year. That is, if those teams continue to play

By Ryan Stieg  This is tough to say folks, but the perfect week has escaped my grasp again. The worst part is that I came so close to achieving it, going 3 for 4 with my picks, but one school didn’t cooperate with my plans.   That team was Minnesota State, who ended up sweeping Michigan Tech when I thought it’d be a split. The good thing

By Ryan Stieg  ST. PAUL, Minn. — After Friday’s overtime loss to Bowling Green, St. Thomas head coach Rico Blasi emphasized the importance of having a better start in the rematch Saturday.   The Tommies didn’t exactly get the start they were hoping for, but they had a great finish as UST scored four goals in the third period to defeat the Falcons 6-2 and get its first CCHA

By Ryan Stieg  ST. PAUL, Minn. — The last time the St. Thomas men’s hockey team played at home, it played its best game of the season and earned a hard-fought win over St. Cloud State. Friday night’s performance against Bowling Green was far from that. The Tommies struggled through most of the game and didn’t come together until the final

By Ryan Stieg  With every set of predictions I announce, I strive to achieve the perfect week, and I came agonizingly close last week.   I was correct with almost all my picks except for the one in Sioux Falls. I thought St. Thomas would win in regulation against Augustana and although the Tommies tied it up late, they’d eventually lose in a shootout. Going 4