LetsGoDU Names BU Team "Bad Boyz Of The Year"

On the holiest of college hockey days, when the Hobey Baker Committee awards its grand prize to the best player, LetsGoDU awards its 2012 Bad Boyz Of The Year Award.

For the first time ever an entire hockey team has walked away with the prestigious Golden Handcuffs.  2011-12 was the "Year of the Felony."  College hockey players players took social irresponsibility to to a new low.  But no individual or team did more to sully its reputation than the once mighty Boston University hockey program.

Gone are the days of bar fights, pinching co-eds in bars, drunk driving and missing curfew.  Now the buzzwords are money laundering, sexual assault and battery.

Boston University senior and Hockey East leading goal scorer Corey Trivino kicked things off in December charged with three counts of indecent assault and battery. Charlie Coyle, a Minnesota Wild prospect, quit the BU hockey team five days after Trivino’s arrest, saying he was “done being a student-athlete’’ and wanted to focus fully on hockey.  Not to be outdone, Max Nicastro, a defenseman on the BU men’s hockey team, was arrested in February by the Boston University Police and charged with sexual assault.

Trivinio was a two-time Bad Boyz contender.  Back in May 2010, Trivino was suspended for an alcohol-related incident before the Hockey East semifinals and missed time at the start of the 2010-11 season.

Runner-Up - Michael Colavecchia, after completing his freshman hockey season (6g, 12a) at Rochester Institute of Technology, was arrested over the Summer and charged with money laundering and conspiracy in an alleged scheme to defraud the Toronto Transit Commission.

Past Winners
2010-11 - Stop Sign Bandit, St. Cloud State
2010  -     Lifetime Achievement Award - North Dakota Hockey Program
2009-10 - Lawn Mower Tossing & Running From Cops, North Dakota
2008-09 - Hockey Team Fights Football Team, Michigan State
2007-08 - Threesome Recruiting Visit, Colorado College
2006-07 - Casino Brothers, Nebraska-Omaha
2005-06 - John Scott, Michigan Tech

R.I.T. Bad Boy Arrested For Money Laundering

R.I.T.'s Michael Colavecchia

From: USCHO.com

Its the oldest story in hockey.  A Canadian hockey player comes down to the United States on a college scholarship.  Then when he returns home after his Freshman season he is arrested by the Toronto Police Department for money laundering, having fraudulantly obtained money in his bank account and conspiracy.  Oh yeah, his Mom and Dad are chucked in jail as well.

"Michael Colavecchia, who recently completed his freshman season (6g, 12a) at Rochester Institute of Technology, was arrested this week and charged with money laundering and conspiracy in an alleged scheme to defraud the Toronto Transit Commission [read entire article]."

News & Notes From Around PioNation

DU Alum Joe Colborne likes Boston College to beat the Badgers.

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The North Dakota Board of Education voted to remove the Fighting Sioux logo from the University of North Dakota. The Ralph Englestad Arena general manager Jody Hodgson said, "The Sioux logos are staying in the building." Someone needs to donate some "Boone" marble to the foyer of Magness Arena.

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Most common question asked of DU fans at Ford Field yesterday? How the Hell did you lose to R.I.T.?

R.I.T. Not Intimidated By DU

(above) R.I.T. has nothing to lose on Friday afternoon

From: Troy Record
by Ed Weaver

Rochester Institute of Technology vs. University of Denver in the first round of the NCAA Hockey Tournament appears like a good-sized mismatch on paper; it’s David vs. Goliath.

Remember, though, Goliath has won previous such meetings in recent seasons.

The Tigers, 26-11-1 and the 2nd-ranked Pioneers (27-9-6) clash at 3 p.m. today in the East Region opener at the Times Union Center.

Sixth-ranked Cornell at No. 12 New Hampshire clash at 6:30

The unranked Tigers, Atlantic Hockey conference champions of both the regular-season and playoffs, don’t view themselves as a ‘David’, don’t look upon top-seeded Denver as a ‘Goliath’ and is loose and confident coming into the event.

“I’m not really looking at it like ‘David and Goliath’”, said RIT coach Wayne Wilson. “I don’t think we can look at it that way. We think we have a good hockey team and we know we’re playing an exceptional team. They weren’t ranked that high (No. 2 nationally, formerly No. 1) for nothing.

“We’re worried about ourselves,” Wilson said. “How are we going to play and what can we do and are we going to be able to execute and do the things we like to do. If we start focusing too much on what Denver is doing, (then) we're trying to be a different team and we don’t want to do that.”

Remember, again, some of the big upsets and near upsets of the past:

Fifteen seed Holy Cross shocked No. 2 Minnesota in 2006; Niagara, the 12th seed, whipped fifth seed New Hampshire, 4-1 in 2000, the first season the smaller conferences, College Hockey America Atlantic Hockey were awarded automatic bids to the NCAA tourney; Bemidji State whipped No. 1 Notre Dame, 5-1 last season (then beat Cornell, 4-1);

Second overall seed Miami had to go overtime to beat Air Force, 3-2 in 2008;

Mercyhurst lost by one goal to two highly-ranked teams — Michigan (4-3) in 2001, and 5-4 to No. 1-ranked Boston College in 2005.

And also, in 2005, long before Bemidji became the Top 10 team the Beavers are now, Denver needed overtime to dispatch them, 4-3.

Center Cameron Burt, RIT’s leading scorer, echoed Wilson, saying, “We’re just 16 hockey teams (in the entire tournament). We all made it to the same place. I think we’re just really worried about ourselves, the game and what we’re going to bring. If we win, it’s great.”

Longtime Denver head coach George Gwozdecky also addressed the above question and said his players “respect the heck out of” RIT and will not be over-confident.

“I think everyone who follows college hockey, whether you’re a fan, a coach or a player, understands that in the final 16, every team is good, competitive, and has earned their way in here. There may be big schools versus small schools or non-traditional schools against well-known schools but every game is challenging. There is no easy game.

“We’ve watched and played against teams from Atlantic Hockey (the Pioneers needed overtime to beat Air Force, 2-1) and we know how good RIT is,” Gwozdecky added. “We watched them play on tape and (have) endless scouting reports. We’re old enough and experienced enough to know that ... every game is a challenge and if you don’t show up (focused and intense), you’re setting yourself up for failure. It’s one of the things this team had learned over the course of this year.”

Be sure; the Tigers, the only unranked team in the East Regional, are a clear underdog but they come in loose, relaxed and on a 10-game winning streak.

“I think our mindset has been tremendous,” Wilson said. “Monday, I wasn’t sure if we were going to be so full of ourselves, giddy or just (plain) excited about this weekend, or if we were going to be nervous, scared or what … but it was really business as usual. The guys have been very level-headed.”

“We’re very relaxed, and we’re excited to be here” RIT captain Dan Ringwold said. “We’ve had a great stretch the past couple months, playing our best hockey. We've had great practices this week. So, we’re just excited and we're going to bring our best this weekend.”

DU News And Notes From Albany

Mike Chambers of the Denver Post has been very busy in Albany with the University of Denver hockey team team. He posted four reports today.

First, both DU and RIT had/have 10-game win streaks this season. He compares the two in his first report.

Second, Jesse Martin did not practice today but is likely to play tomorrow. Chris Nutini went through a full practice and appears ready to go. Mike posted this second report.

Third, he went through the various machinations of DU's potential Friday line-up depending upon who plays. Here is his third report.

Lastly, he has some notes about the teams in the regional and a quick interview with Patrick Wiercioch. Here is the last report.

Chris Knowlton's Fan Club Is Based In Albany

(above) Chris Knowlton will have his cheering section in Albany this weekend

From: Troy Record
by Ed Weaver

DU Freshman forward Chris Knowlton will be a proud guest of his father this weekend.

The University of Denver player will be on the Times Union Center ice as the Pioneers compete in the NCAA Tournament’s East Regional; which is hosted by Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute; where his father Jim Knowlton is the Athletic Director.

“I’m pretty stoked,” Chris Knowlton said from Denver on Tuesday. “Can’t wait. I had talked to my parents about (the possibility) for a couple of weeks. It’s real exciting.

“It’s pretty hard for them to come see me play,” Chris said, noting the WCHA schedule brings the Pioneers no further East than

The No. 2-ranked Pioneers (27-9-4), the Region’s top seed, play unranked Rochester Inst. of Technology (26-11-1) at 3 p.m. Friday, the Cornell meets New Hampshire at 6:30.

When Chris Knowlton heard that Denver was in the Albany Region, he said, “we had just landing, coming back from our league (WCHA) Tournament in Minnesota. Everyone got on his phone. I texted my dad, then I texted my mom. She called back first, so I talked to her first.

“I guess I know which one cares more about me,” he said with a laugh.

He said “as many as 20,” family members will be in town for the tournament and he’ll need help from teammates with ticket allocations.

“My mom (Corey) told me right away to get on that,” he said.

Knowlton’s rookie season didn’t begin with a bang but he credits head coach George Gwozdecky and his staff for both instruction and encouragement.

“I think I’ve definitely improved a lot,” he said. “The coaching here is so fantastic, you can’t help but get better. Early in the year, being in and out of the lineup, it’s hard to find a niche and that makes it hard to prove yourself.

“But I got in for couple games and obviously coach saw something in me to keep me in the lineup. As a freshman, I haven’t put up big numbers (he has three goals, three assists) but I think I’ve definitely progressed.”

The Pioneers were ranked No. 1 in the nation at times during the season. They took a 27-7-4 record into the WCHA playoffs semifinals but were beaten by North Dakota, 4-3, then lost the consolation game to Wisconsin, 6-3.

Do they have something to prove in the NCAA event coming off two losses, or were the two defeats just a testament to the brutal competition of the rugged WCHA playoffs? And do the Pioneers have something to prove?

“You know, I think it’s a little bit of both,” Knowlton said. “Obviously we wanted to win both games but losing to (No. 4) North Dakota and (No. 5) Wisconsin … I think they’re both in the Top 5 … isn’t anything to get alarmed with. North Dakota had something to prove against us; we had beaten them four times (in four games) in the regular season.

“All we have to prove is maybe to ourselves,” he added. “People have been writing us off and (ESPN analyst) Barry Melrose was giving grief, saying we’re done, we don’t have the goaltending. But I think we’ll be alright.”

Albany Regional Features Steller Goaltenders

(above) New Hampshire Senior goaltender Brian Foster

From: Seacoast Online
by Mike Zhe

Maybe it's not a group of death out in Albany, N.Y., this weekend. But you could easily call it a group of goalies.

In Cornell senior Ben Scrivens, Denver junior Marc Cheverie and RIT senior Jared DeMichiel, the Division I hockey tournament's East Regional features three of the top seven in goals-against average in Division I, and three of the top nine in save percentage.

The one goalie from the quartet who isn't near the top of those rankings — University of New Hampshire senior Brian Foster — was still a first-team All-Star in Hockey East.

Of course, with a big, red, first-round roadblock in Cornell (21-8-4) starting them in the face, the Wildcats (17-13-7) aren't spending a lot of time thinking about Denver and RIT these days. It's Cornell and Scrivens, and whether Foster can stay hot, match his counterpart and give the 'Cats a chance to win.

"I think they're the two best goalies in the East, to be honest with you," said UNH coach Dick Umile. "I think it'll be a good match-up."

Foster has won back his confidence and improved his numbers by rebounding from an ugly first month of the season, one that mirrored his team's.

After a 6-3 loss at UMass-Lowell on Nov. 8, Foster owned a 4.19 goals-against average and .871 save percentage. Since then, those two numbers have gone steadily down and up, respectively.

After stopping 105 of 111 shots in a Hockey East quarterfinals series loss to Vermont — 74 of 76 in the pair of 1-0 losses that closed the series — he checks in at a respectable 2.95 and .910.

"He's a special goaltender," said Vermont coach Kevin Sneddon, whose team will play Wisconsin in its NCAA first-round game Friday in St. Paul, Minn. "He had my vote for All-League and he certainly played that way this weekend."

One of three New Hampshire natives on the team, Foster ranks among the Division 1 leaders in just one goaltending category — minutes played. Handed the job prior to 2008-09, after Kevin Regan wrapped up his decorated career, he's enjoyed the luxury — or curse — of never being pushed. The two other goalies in the program these past two years, sophomores Matt DiGirolamo and Tyler Scott, have played a grand total of 312 minutes.

Scrivens' season has been steadier. He leads Division I in GAA (1.78), save percentage (.937) and shutouts (seven), and presents a formidable last line of defense on a Cornell team that's made good defense a trademark.

"All our lines have to be ready to play," said right wing Bobby Butler, UNH's leading scorer. "We've got to pepper him with shots. ... He's playing very well. We've just got to crack him once and go from there and keep the puck out of our net."

Scrivens isn't Superman. He was yanked in a 5-3 loss to Princeton on Feb. 6 after allowing four goals in 27 minutes. But he's had many, many more good nights than bad ones, including in the ECAC Hockey tournament, when he let in just one goal in four games and made 32 saves in a 3-0 win over Union in the championship.

Of course, UNH knows all about facing touted Cornell goalies in the NCAAs. Flash back seven years to the Frozen Four in Buffalo, N.Y., and there was Cornell senior David LeNeveu — a Hobey Baker finalist that year — getting outdueled by Mike Ayers in a 3-2 classic that sent the 'Cats on to the national championship game.

Now they face Scrivens.

"I think they have the best goaltender in the country," Union coach Nate Leaman said after Saturday's ECAC final. "I've seen (David) McKee and I've seen LeNeveu and I believe he's better than both those guys."

Friday's early game in Albany will pit top-seeded Denver (27-9-4) against underdog RIT (26-11-1), the regular-season and tournament champion in Atlantic Hockey. If the fourth-seeded Tigers are to advance, they'll likely need a huge game from DeMichiel, whose 25 wins are the most in Division I.

Like Scrivens, Denver goalie Cheverie is a Hobey Baker top-10 finalist, with a 24-5-3 record, 2.08 GAA and .932 save percentage. Like Foster, his professional rights are owned by the Florida Panthers. He was a seventh-round draft pick in 2006, while Foster was chosen in the fifth round one summer earlier.

Denver Post: Maiani To Have Surgery Today

(above) Anthony Maiani's season may be over

Mike Chambers of the Denver Post is reporting that Anthony Maiani, DU's second leading assist leader, will have surgery on his injured finger today.

The article also has some interesting quotes from Air Force coach Frank Serratore who's team faced Rochester Institute of Technology four times this season.

Who Is Rochester Institute Of Technology?

(above) DU's opponents this weekend may not be well known, but they have been winning recently

Nickname: Tigers - Pioneers hate Tigers
Location: Rochester, N.Y. - Home of Kodak a company that used to make stuff called "film"
Founded: 1829 - Older than DU
Enrollment: 15,000 - The 9th largest private college in US
Colors: Burnt Umber,Orange,White - Umber?

The Rochester Institute of Technology hockey team had an interesting season. The Tigers started the year 0-5-0 before righting the ship and going 26-11-1.

Of interest to DU fans; R.I.T. was waxed twice by WCHA near-cellar dweller Minnesota State Mankato 6-1 & 3-0 over New Year's holiday.

R.I.T. has won 10 games in a row and were an impressive 15-3-0 at home, but only 9-8-1 on the road. They play in the American Hockey Association, statistically the worst conference in college hockey. The Tigers were 0-6-0 in non-conference games.

If not for all the NCAA upsets last year and DU's ongoing problems with Air Force, who play in the same league, the Pioneers might be taking R.I.T. lightly.