Eight of the best teams in college hockey will be playing in New England this weekend at the NCAA Division I Men’s Ice Hockey Tournament. The Manchester, N.H., regional and Bridgeport, Conn., regionals are set to be played Thursday through Sunday.
All four local entrants are staying close to home. Boston University is the No. 2 seed in Manchester while No. 1 Quinnipiac, No. 2 Harvard and No. 4 Merrimack make up three of the four teams in Bridgeport.
While New England hockey fans are used to seeing those four teams, those making the trek to SNHU Arena in Manchester or Total Mortgage Arena in Bridgeport will be treated to seeing four talented teams from other parts of the country. Denver, Western Michigan, Ohio State and Cornell are also in the two New England regionals.
Below is a look at why fans should pay close attention to a select few players on each of the eight teams this weekend at local regionals:
Manchester, N.H., Regional
No. 1 Denver
The defending national champions have a ton of talented players. The Pioneers are looking to break into the win column when playing in New England this season. David Carle’s team was swept by UMass during the second weekend of the regular season in October. While Massimo Rizzo is the team’s leading scorer, my favorite player to watch on DU is sophomore right wing Carter Mazur. The Jackson, Mich., native has 22 goals and 14 assists, but he plays the game the right way and his skill set will translate to the NHL. Mazur is the type of player you’ll want to hone in on when watching the Pioneers against Cornell on Thursday evening.
THE BRACKET: Click or tap here to check out the 2023 NCAA Hockey Tournament bracket
No. 2 Boston University
Lane Hutson, the Hockey East Rookie of the Year and playoff MVP, is a game-changer on a team with an abundance of NHL draft picks and talented players. The Montreal Canadiens second-round pick in 2022 is an offensive, puck-moving defenseman. While the Holland, Mich., native’s skating and stick are certainly valuable assets, Hutson’s brain is what’s going to get him to the NHL some day. Against Merrimack in the Hockey East final, he had two goals, including the game-winner. Hutson will be going up against a WMU team that has a good mix of skill and heavy. It will be a challenge, but there’s one thing I’ve learned over the years: Don’t bet against Hutson.
No. 3 Western Michigan
The nation’s leading goal scorer is Jason Polin, the Broncos’ senior right wing from Holt, Mich. Polin was never a blue-chip recruit, but he’s hardly a complete unknown. He made national camps growing up, but he succeeded by not rushing his development. After scoring seven goals in each of his first two seasons at Western Michigan, he tallied 16 as a junior in 2021-22. The '99 enters the regional with 29 goals in 38 games played. Polin plays right wing on the top line with center Max Sasson and left wing Ryan McAllister. He’ll likely get an NHL contract when WMU’s season ends.
“(The first line) has been practicing since the first game on, and obviously is one of the highest-scoring lines in college hockey. At the end of the day, Jason is, I believe, the best player in college hockey as far as he's a leading goal scorer,” said WMU head coach Pat Ferschweiler. “I also believe he’s the best defensive forward in college hockey. He is always above the puck. He’s basically a professional player out there.”
BU head coach Jay Pandolfo (Burlington, Mass.) concurred.
“(Polin) can score. That line is dynamic and very good offensively,” Pandolfo said.
No. 4 Cornell
Defenseman Travis Mitchell wears the ‘C’ for the Big Red and he’s a player that fans will notice at both ends of the ice. That hasn’t always been true for the South Lyon, Mich., native, but he’s slowly built up that part of his game at each step of his hockey journey. He has six goals and 12 assists this season, but he’s also capable of playing with a mean streak and being hard to play against for Denver’s big offensive guns.
Bridgeport, Conn., Regional
No. 1 Quinnipiac
Sophomore right wing Collin Graf has taken the road less traveled to college hockey stardom. The Lincoln, Mass., native played two years in the USPHL NCDC after three seasons of midget hockey – all with the Boston Junior Bruins organization. After his freshman year at Union, in which he scored 11 goals and had 11 assists in 37 games, he transferred to Quinnipiac. In his first season in Hamden, Graf lit up ECAC Hockey, scoring 20 goals and notching 35 assists. He’s always been skilled and his offensive instincts shine, but size was a question. He was light, but he continued showing he can overcome that. He’s the right wing on QU’s top line, alongside center Jacob Quillan, a Salisbury alum, and left wing Sam Lipkin.
ROAD TO TAMPA: Why each NE team can make a run in the NCAA Hockey Tournament
No. 2 Harvard
There is talent galore on Ted Donato’s (Scituate, Mass.) roster. The offensive firepower up front has been well chronicled. Sean Farrell (Hopkinton, Mass.), Matt Coronato, Alex Laferriere and John Farinacci have the necessary skill sets to put the puck in the back of the opponent’s net. The Harvard blue line, with five NHL draft picks, has the ability to break pucks out and contribute offensively. Senior captain Henry Thrun (Southboro, Mass.) is the leader of the team and the defensive group. He has six goals and 24 assists in 31 games. Defense wins championships. If Harvard is to make a deep run, the Crimson will be counting on Thrun and his comrades.
No. 3 Ohio State
Three of the top four and four of the top seven leading scorers on the Buckeyes have a connection to New England. Jake Wise (North Andover, Mass.), Tate Singleton (West Lebanon, N.H.) and Jake Dunlap (Windham, N.H.) have all hit double digits for goals scored. Wise transferred to OSU from BU while Singleton and Dunlap originally committed to other programs. All three local players are finding success for a Big Ten team that hadn’t historically had a lot of New Englanders on the roster.
The fourth player with a connection to New England is Boston Bruins prospect Mason Lohrei, the team’s third-leading scorer with three goals and 26 assists. There will be plenty of eyes on him and he’ll be counted on at both ends of the ice when OSU does battle with an explosive Harvard squad.
No. 4 Merrimack
We’ve talked about and praised junior left wing Alex Jefferies (Lunenburg, Mass.) and sophomore center Matt Copponi (Mansfield, Mass.) a number of times in this space over the course of the season and in previous ones. Their accolades have been well deserved. One player who I wanted to call out, as I think his game has come a long way, is junior defenseman Christian Felton. The Kimball Union product skates well and jumped up into the rush a few times at the Hockey East Championships last weekend. He had a goal against BU, but his stick and hands are still parts of his game that he can improve upon, in order to make it to the next level. Still, he’s a vital part of this Merrimack team and had solid outings against BU and UMass Lowell.
