ICE BREAKER TOURNAMENT
–by John Fineran
WHAT: The unofficial beginning of the NCAA Division I college hockey season administered by College Hockey, Inc. on behalf of the Hockey Commissioners Association.
WHO: Notre Dame (Big Ten) (0-0-0), Quinnipiac (ECAC) (1-0-0), Alaska Fairbanks (Independent) (0-2-0) and host Arizona State (NCHC) (0-2-0).
WHERE: Mullett Arena (5,000) in Tempe, Ariz.
WHEN: Friday, Quinnipiac vs. Alaska Fairbanks, 6 p.m. EDT and Notre Dame vs. Arizona State, 10 p.m. EDT; Saturday, Notre Dame vs. Quinnipiac or Alaska Fairbanks, 6 p.m.; Arizona State vs. Quinnipiac or Alaska Fairbanks, 10 p.m.
RADIO: WSBT-FM (96.1) and UND.com with Tyler Reidy on the call.
STREAMING: NCHC.tv (subscription needed)
SCOUTING NOTRE DAME FIGHTING IRISH
Coach: Brock Sheahan (Notre Dame 2008), first season, 0-0-0.
Last week: Notre Dame beat the USNTDP Under-18 Team 5-2 in an exhibition game Friday at USA Hockey Arena in Plymouth, Mich.
Notes: Irish receiving votes in both the USCHO.com media and USA Hockey/The Rink Live coaches polls. … Notre Dame is playing in its fifth Ice Breaker Tournament and has won titles in 2012 and 2018. … Captains this year are junior center Danny Nelson and senior defenseman Michael Mastrodomenico with junior right wing Cole Knuble, junior defenseman Paul Fischer and senior defenseman Axel Kumlin serving as alternate captains. … Sheahan skated seven newcomers against Team USA and 10 of his players got into the scoring column. … Freshman center Pano Fimis, Knuble, Mastrodomenico, freshman right wing Will Belle and junior center Jayden Davis scored goals for Irish against Team USA, with Mastrodomenico and Belle also contributing an assist. … Expect sophomore Nicholas Kempf to get the start in goal for the Irish after he allowed just one goal and stopped eight shots in two periods of play. … Irish outshot Team USA 26-12, including 12-3 in final period. … Notre Dame, runner-up in last season’s Friendship Four tournament at Belfast, Northern Ireland, will return there in 2028 to play along with Maine, Dartmouth and Omaha.
Irish vs. foes: Notre Dame is 4-2-0 vs. Arizona State, 0-0-0 vs. Quinnipiac and 34-27-4 vs. Alaska Fairbanks. … Notre Dame and Arizona State have played six times, all in South Bend beginning with a 9-2, 4-2 sweep by Irish on Oct. 7 and 8, 2016. … Irish and Sun Devils played four times during the 2020-21 COVID-19 season when Arizona State played four road games against each Big Ten team. … Arizona State won 6-3 on Dec. 3, 2020 but the Irish rebounded with a 5-4 victory the next night. … Irish then added another 5-4 victory on Jan. 9 before losing 5-3 the following evening. … Notre Dame has never played Quinnipiac. … But the Irish have quite a history with Alaska Fairbanks. … In fact, three former Irish players have coached the Nanooks – forward/defenseman Ric Schafer (1980-87), defenseman Don Lucia (1987-93) and goaltender Dave Laurion (1993-99). … Irish and Nanooks met last season in South Bend with Irish scoring 4-1 victory Dec. 18, 2024 before losing 1-0 the following evening as since departed Alaska goalie Nicholas Grabko made 37 saves.
Next week: Thursday and Friday evenings at 7 p.m. EDT vs. St. Lawrence at Lefty Smith Rink in Compton Family Ice Arena, South Bend.
SCOUTING ARIZONA STATE SUN DEVILS
Coach: Greg Powers (Arizona State 1999), 11th season, 153-164-26.
Last week: The Sun Devils lost 6-3 Friday and 4-2 Saturday to Penn State at Mullett Arena.
Notes: The Sun Devils are ranked No. 15 in both the USCHO.com media and USA Hockey/The Rink Live coaches polls. … Arizona State senior goaltender Connor Hasley, who had a 1.96 goals-against average, a .935 saves percentage and 11 shutouts last season at Bentley (Atlantic Hockey Association), made 82 saves for his new team against the fourth-ranked Nittany Lions. … Players to watch are sophomore center Cullen Potter, a 2025 first-round pick of the NHL’s Calgary Flames, and three transfers – left wing Cruz Lucius (Wisconsin), right wing Bennett Schimek (Providence) and center Logan Morrell (Michigan Tech).
Arizona State is: 2-4-0 vs. Notre Dame, 3-6-1 vs. Quinnipiac, 7-9-1 vs. Alaska Fairbanks.
SCOUTING QUINNIPIAC BOBCATS
Coach: Rand Pecknold (Connecticut College 1990), 32nd season, 667-359-107 (includes 3-2 OT victory against Minnesota in 2023 NCAA championship game at Tampa, Fla.)
Last week: Quinnipiac opened its season last Friday with 4-3 victory at No. 11-ranked Boston College and then suffered a 2-1 exhibition loss Sunday at No. 7/6 Providence.
Notes: The Bobcats are ranked No. 8 in USCHO.com media poll and No. 9 in USA Hockey/The Rink Live coaches poll. … Senior left wing Jeremy Wilmer got the Bobcats started in the first period at Boston College and freshman center Matthew Lansing, freshman defenseman Graham Sward and sophomore center Chris Pelosi scored goals in the second period for Quinnipiac, which outshot BC 30-15 for the game. … Junior goaltender Dylan Silverstein stopped 12 of the 15 shots.
Quinnipiac is: 0-0-0 vs. Notre Dame, 6-3-1 vs. Arizona State, 1-0-0 vs. Alaska Fairbanks.
SCOUTING ALASKA FAIRBANKS NANOOKS
Coach: Erik Largen (Alaska Fairbanks 2010), eighth season, 111-101-24.
Last week: The Nanooks opened with 5-1 and 4-1 losses Friday and Saturday to visiting Minnesota Duluth.
Team: The Nanooks, who are unranked, got goals last weekend from senior left wing Braden Birnie and grad right wing Michael Citara, a transfer from Merrimack. … Lassi Lehti, a senior from Finland, made 24 saves in goal in the Friday loss before freshman Calvin Vachon, the grandson of NHL Hall of Famer Rogie Vachon, stopped 21 shots in his debut.
Alaska Fairbanks is: 27-34-4 vs. Notre Dame, 9-7-1 vs. Arizona State, 0-1-0 vs. Quinnipiac.
BIG TEN STANDINGS AND SCHEDULE
(Numbers in parentheses are school’s rankings in this week’s USCHO.com media/USA Hockey-The Rink Live coaches polls):
(nr/nr) Notre Dame 0-0-0, 0 points (0-0-0 overall)
(2/2) Michigan State 0-0-0, 0 points (0-0-0 overall)
(4/4) Penn State 0-0-0, 0 points (2-0-0 overall)
(9/7) Michigan 0-0-0, 0 points (2-0-0 overall)
(12/12) Minnesota 0-0-0, 0 points (1-1-0 overall)
(16/16T) Ohio State 0-0-0, 0 points (0-0-0 overall)
(18/18) Wisconsin 0-0-0, 0 points (2-0-0 overall)
Thursday’s games
Clarkson at Penn State, 6:30 p.m.
New Hampshire at Michigan State, 7 p.m.
Boston College at Minnesota, 9 p.m.
U.S. Under-18 Team at Wisconsin, 8 p.m. (exhibition)
Friday’s games
Notre Dame at Arizona State, 10 p.m.
Northern Michigan at Ohio State, 6:30 p.m.
Michigan at Providence, 7 p.m.
Clarkson at Penn State, 7 p.m.
Boston College at Minnesota, 7 p.m.
New Hampshire at Michigan State, 7:30 p.m.
Saturday’s games
Notre Dame vs. Quinnipiac or Alaska Fairbanks at Tempe, Ariz., 6 p.m.
Northern Michigan at Ohio State, 5 p.m.
Michigan at Providence, 7 p.m.
GAMES INVOLVING USCHO.com MEDIA POLL TEAMS THIS WEEK
1. Western Michigan (NCHC) (0-0-0) vs. Ferris State Thursday, at Ferris State Friday.
2. Michigan State (Big Ten) (0-0-0) vs. New Hampshire Thursday and Friday.
3. Boston University (Hockey East) (1-0-0) vs. Colgate Friday and Saturday.
4. Penn State (Big Ten) (2-0-0) vs. Clarkson Thursday and Friday.
5. Denver (NCHC) (0-0-0) at Air Force Friday, vs. Bentley Saturday.
6. Maine (Hockey East) (0-0-0) vs. Holy Cross Friday and Saturday.
7. Providence (Hockey East) (0-0-0) vs. No. 9 Michigan Friday and Saturday.
8. Quinnipiac (ECAC) (1-0-0) vs. Alaska Friday; Notre Dame or Arizona State Saturday.
9. Michigan (Big Ten) (2-0-0) at No. 7 Providence Friday and Saturday.
10. North Dakota (NCHC) (0-0-0) vs. No. 19 St. Thomas Friday, at No. 19 St. Thomas Saturday.
11. Boston College (Hockey East) (0-1-0) at No. 12 Minnesota Thursday and Friday.
12. Minnesota (Big Ten) (1-1-0) vs. No. 11 Boston College Thursday and Friday.
13. Connecticut (Hockey East) (1-1-0) is idle.
14. Massachusetts (Hockey East) (2-0-0) at Stonehill Friday.
15. Arizona State (NCHC) (0-2-0) vs. Notre Dame Friday; Quinnipiac or Alaska Saturday.
16. Ohio State (Big Ten) (0-0-0) vs. Northern Michigan Friday and Saturday.
17. Cornell (ECAC) (0-0-0) is idle.
18. Wisconsin (Big Ten) (2-0-0) vs. U.S. Under-18 team Thursday (exhibition)
19. St. Thomas (CCHA) (1-0-0) at No. 10 North Dakota Friday, vs. No. 10 North Dakota Sunday.
20. Minnesota State (CCHA) (0-0-0) at Omaha Friday and Saturday.