Kerdiles Appeal to be Heard Today by NCAA

Posted on October 18, 2012 by Chris Peters

It appears the long drawn-out process that has kept freshman Nic Kerdiles from playing for the University of Wisconsin will reach its conclusion no later than Friday. The NCAA will hear today Wisconsin’s appeal of the decision that ruled Kerdiles ineligible for the year.

The decision was reached after a months-long investigation which was apparently sparked by a series of tweets sent by Kerdiles family advisor Ian Pulver and other staff members of the Pulver Sports agency. While the breadth of the NCAA’s investigation is not known, it appears the investigation surrounded Kerdiles’s relationship with Pulver.

Players are allowed to have family advisors, but there are rules on what those advisors are allowed to do. It is unclear if the tweets were the only violations committed, as those tweets could all be perceived as promoting or marketing Kerdiles’s talent, especially since many of those tweets came prior to the NHL Draft.

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NHL’s Proposed ELC Structure Could Benefit College Hockey

Posted on October 17, 2012 by Chris Peters

The NHL today released to the public details of its proposal to the NHLPA in hopes of saving an 82-game season. Among the highlights is a change to the entry-level contract (ELC) structure and a lengthened timeline for players to reach unrestricted free agency. Both of those moves could directly impact college hockey with mixed results.

College hockey coaches and administrators believed coming out of the last lockout that the new collective bargaining agreement would be a positive, but as the years showed the impact was in fact negative. Players began signing contracts earlier, oftentimes too early, and teams were beginning to lose players sometimes unnecessarily.

Here’s what the NHL has proposed to change the ELC structure:

• Entry Level System commitment will be limited to two (2) years (covering two full seasons) for all Players who sign their first SPC between the ages of 18 and 24 (i.e., where the first year of the SPC only covers a partial season, SPC must be for three (3) years).

Until the entire CBA is known, every word of it in regards to ELCs, there’s not a lot we can gather from what has been released, as it is merely the surface. Also, the NHLPA still has to accept this offer and based on most reports, we’ll see some sort of counter. According to an interview between NHLPA rep Steve Montador and Adam Jahns of the Chicago Sun Times, the NHLPA was opposed to changes to the ELC structure, so this may not happen anyway.

Even with that in mind, here’s why a two-year ELC, in general, would benefit college hockey programs.

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Miami Hockey Team Releases Stunning You Can Play Video

Posted on October 15, 2012 by Chris Peters

The You Can Play Project, the initiative to promote equality for LGBT athletes in locker rooms everywhere, is in many ways the realization of a vision. That vision belonged to Brendan Burke. His name gave him a platform, his voice gave him a following.

As we are now all painfully aware, Brendan Burke was never able to see his vision through to completion, as he died tragically in a car accident in 2010. His father Brian, president and general manager of the Toronto Maple Leafs, and  brother Patrick, a scout for the Philadelphia Flyers, have picked up the torch lit by the spark that was Brendan Burke.

When Brendan came out as a gay man, he was a student manager for the Miami University hockey team. While Brendan was the engine driving this movement, the gas was provided by the RedHawks. It was Miami’s acceptance of Brendan after his revelation to the group known as “The Brotherhood” that proved there were safe places for LGBT athletes and team staff.

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VIDEO: Dylan McLaughlin’s Early Entry for USHL Goal of the Year

Posted on October 15, 2012 by Chris Peters

Sometimes I’ll get an email in my inbox from Brian Werger, communications director for the United States Hockey League with a subject of “USHL Highlight” and it rarely disappoints.

The latest email included a link to an incredible goal from Cedar Rapids RoughRider forward Dylan McLaughlin. So incredible, it’s an early candidate for goal of the year in the USHL and we’re only three weeks in.

Check the video… Be sure to hold for the replay of the reverse angle.

Alright, so let’s get this straight… On the rush, below the faceoff dot, puck and stick go between legs and then he roofs it to the top-left corner? OK, then.

Sure, it’s a spot of bad goaltending, but you can’t deny the skill with which a play like that requires. I mean… on the rush? Between the legs? Roof shot?

The goal came Saturday night in what was an absolutely ridiculous game Cedar Rapids ended up losing 8-7 in a shootout to Green Bay. The game also included more than 200 minutes in penalties with multiple ejections and made for one of the longest box scores you’ll ever see. At least something good came out of it.

The Lancaster, N.Y., native is a former first-round Futures Draft selection (9th overall in 2011) in the USHL and skated for the Sioux Falls Stampede last year as a 16-year-old. After posting a mere seven points last season, including just one goal, McLaughlin is already picking up steam in his second USHL season with three goals and an assist.

McLaughlin, who is draft eligible for the first time this year, decommitted from Northeastern last season and has yet to make a new commitment. He’s a legit Division I prospect and a little internet stardom never hurt anyone. What a goal.

Posted in Junior Hockey, NCAA, NHL Draft | 1 Comment

College Hockey Roundup: Week 1 Thoughts

Posted on October 15, 2012 by Chris Peters

The college hockey season is officially underway with the vast majority of Division I teams having played at least one regular-season game. As always seems to be the case, Week 1 was full of shocking upsets and entertaining hockey.

After an offseason with early departures, decommitments, lawsuits and heavy-handed NCAA sanctions, it’s nice to have some real games to watch and talk about. It only takes a few minutes to remember what makes the college game so fun to follow.

Coming up after the jump a look at some of the storylines coming out of college hockey’s first week and what we learned about some of the top teams in the country.

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College Hockey’s Opening Weekend: The Beginning of the End

Posted on October 12, 2012 by Chris Peters

Though many traditions will soon end, 2012-13 should be a celebration of the college game (Photo: Dave Arnold)

It’s a rather ominous headline, I know. However, I can’t seem to feel as college hockey opens in earnest this weekend it is the end of an era. In a few months the college hockey landscape will be forever altered and if you’re a traditionalist (or a fan of a smaller school) this season will be bittersweet to say the least.

This is the final season of the Central Collegiate Hockey Association, a conference that provided some of the most exciting teams in college hockey history. No longer will the Western Collegiate Hockey Association be able to call itself the best conference in the country without a heartier snicker from the peanut gallery. Some decades old conference rivalries will come to a screeching halt.

Next year, new conferences will take hold, featuring some of the most storied programs in college hockey. The Big Ten will be the first “BCS” conference to adopt the sport as one of its own. The fledgling National Collegiate Hockey Conference will step into uncharted waters in 2013-14 amid some controversy surrounding how it was formed. Notre Dame heads to Hockey East. Then in 2014-15 UConn will join the Irish, stepping into the big leagues, committing unprecedented funding to its hockey program. The passion and excitement of college hockey will remain the same, but for many across the country, change will be hard.

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On the NCAA, Family Advisors and the Delicate Balance

Posted on October 11, 2012 by Chris Peters

The brewing eligibility situation between Wisconsin freshman Nicolas Kerdiles and the NCAA still has more to play out. Wisconsin has appealed the NCAA’s ruling that Kerdiles was in violation of the organization’s stringent amateurism rules, rendering the blue-chip recruit ineligible for the entire season.

The appeal process has been delayed, per Andy Baggot, and the clock is ticking. With each passing day, Kerdiles loses practice time and starting this weekend, game time. Contrary to previous reports, I’m told the Kerdiles family never set a Thursday (today) deadline for the NCAA to reach its decision before jumping to the Western Hockey League’s Kelowna Rockets. Kerdiles has expressed time and time again his preference to play for Wisconsin, but will the NCAA let him?

Much has been written about the NCAA’s role in this scenario, acting unfairly most would agree. As much as I’m right on that bandwagon, I can’t help but think how easily this scenario could have been avoided.

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Posted in American Prospects, Junior Hockey, NCAA | 1 Comment

Michigan’s Merrill Cracks Vertebrae in Exhibition Game

Posted on October 10, 2012 by Chris Peters

After going down in the exhibition game against the University of Windsor, those in attendance probably already knew that the apparent injury to Jon Merrill, junior defenseman for the University of Michigan, wasn’t good. Perhaps they didn’t know just how bad though.

Michigan Athletics

As reported by Tom Gulitti on the Fire & Ice blog, Merrill, a New Jersey Devils prospect and one of the best defensemen in college hockey, is likely to miss the first six weeks of the season.

From Gulitti:

New Jersey Devils general manager Lou Lamoriello said he spoke with Merrill today and he suffered “a little fracture”, will have to wear a neck brace and is expected to miss six weeks.

“It’s nothing that needs surgery,” Lamoriello said. “It’s just needs time to heal. But I spoke to him today and he’s doing fine.”

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Dismal Ticket Sales Could Put Damper on Ice Breaker

Posted on October 10, 2012 by Chris Peters

The Ice Breaker tournament has become an annual early-season celebration for college hockey. With teams representing four of the five conferences in the country, the Ice Breaker is a terrific showcase. Unfortunately, it looks like this year, there won’t many people in the building for the show. According to the Kansas City Star, less than 3,000 ticket books have been sold for the event that opens at Kansas City’s Sprint Center Friday.

“Let’s put it this way, we’re hopeful of good walk-up sales,” said Cindy Smith of the Kansas City Sports Commission. “We need to get going.”

For a building that can hold between 17,000 and 18,000 spectators for hockey, 3,000 may as well be three. If walk-up sales can somehow double the pre-sales, 6,000 may as well be six.

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NCAA Officially Rules Kerdiles Ineligible for Season, Wisconsin Appealing [Updated]

Posted on October 8, 2012 by Chris Peters

According to University of Wisconsin, the NCAA has ruled prized freshman forward Nic Kerdiles ineligible for the season, due to an apparent amateurism violation. Wisconsin head coach Mike Eaves said the school is appealing the decision.

As reported Sunday on United States of Hockey, photos surfaced on Twitter of Kerdiles, which apparently led to the investigation that ultimately has ruled him ineligible. According to Andy Johnson of Bucky’s 5th Quarter, a University of Wisconsin athletics blog, the photos showed Kerdiles at a dinner with his family advisor, NHL player agent Ian Pulver, and other clients of the Pulver Sports agency.

The issue at hand appears to be based around Kerdiles’s relationship with Pulver, and has nothing to do with the autographs for Twitter followers situation initially reported yesterday.

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Posted in American Prospects, NCAA | 2 Comments