Puck University

It's almost time for the calendar to turn over, which is a monumentous occasion in college hockey.  It means teams can no longer brush off bad starts as being "early" and surprise teams need to start acting like contenders.  This week on Puck University, Tim Williams and Chris Lynch go over the week's slate and a few of our biggest surprises thus far.

Tim Williams and Chris Lynch are back at it with Puck University!  Attendance issues are the topic of the day, with both hosts taking in games this weekend where the crowd was the only disappointment,  But first, a story about Hockey East's very first introduction to Thunderstix and how Tim was directly involved. 

RPI managed to do something that Tim Williams had no idea actually could happen in a hockey game on Sunday against Massachusetts-Lowell.  The show starts with Tim and Chris Lynch breaking it down, before going into the continued fall of BC and what even BC's biggest detractors aren't happy to think about.

Goaltenders across the country were under siege last weekend as high-scoring hockey dotted the collegiate landscape.  We break it all down on Puck University, from Michigan's lamp-friendly visit to Hockey Valley to Providence's destruction of the Merrimack Warriors.

It's the ultimate hockey achievement for a single player: Getting into Toronto's Hockey Hall of Fame.  Martin St. Louis has entered the great museum, and Tim Williams and Chris Lynch celebrate another college hockey product getting enshrined. We also break down a big week for the Minnesota schools as the "state of hockey" takes a stranglehold on the USCHO rankings, and give credit where due to Arizona State on their huge leap forward this year.  Of course, there is also talk about how far the UMass-Amherst Minutemen have come this season.

Last week, after all we talked about, it's hard to believe that Puck University didn't even touch on the unfolding situation at Connecticut, where the Huskies are creating a new arena plan.  Chris Lynch discusses all the difficulties in that after we review a busy weekend in college hockey and preview another big one.

Things just keep getting worse for the hockey teams on Boston's B-Line.  The BU Terriers and BC Eagles remain winless after rough weekends for both teams, and meanwhile it's Northeastern who's making noise, coming off a huge win over St. Cloud State at Matthews Arena.  Tim Williams and Chris Lynch take you through the weekend's action in Boston before going around the country to cover a busy week, and another hectic weekend to come.

The biggest surprise of the early season might be the struggles of the Boston schools.  At Puck University, Tim Williams and Chris Lynch examine the struggles of Boston College, Boston University, and Northeastern to see what can be made of the three programs.  The rest of the weekend in college hockey is then reviewed, with an exclamation point split for Massachusetts-Amherst at Ohio State.

Puck University is in full session with the college hockey season giving us full slates every weekend.  Tim Williams and Chris Lynch start by taking a look back at a big hit last weekend that led to a scary moment.  From there, the two discuss last weekend's crazy slate in college hockey, from Notre Dame's wild weekend to Minnesota State re-establishing themselves as a power.  This weekend's preview involves a number of ranked teams looking to prove that they belong.

The season is underway, and it's off to a great start.  Minnesota-Duluth came out with just one point out of a possible four against Minnesota in a thrilling start.  Is their goalie in trouble?  Michigan got upset by Vermont.  How good are the Catamounts?  Tim Williams and Chris Lynch break it all down before previewing this week's matchups starting with Thursday night's big one between Clarkson and Penn State.

It's finally here:  Happy Hockey, everyone!  The college hockey season begins on the men's side this weekend with schools in action across the country.  Just in time, Puck University finishes up our two-part season preview.  The ECAC and Hockey East both look like wide open conferences that could be anybody's game, and Tim Williams discusses both conferences with Chris Lynch of InsideHockey.com. 

We are just days from the 2018-19 College Hockey Season getting underway, and at Puck University we could not be more excited!  Host Tim Williams and correspondant Chris Lynch take a look out west at the defending champion Minnesota-Duluth Bulldogs and their NCHC, the resurgent WCHA, and the Big Ten.  Tim and Chris also talk about Air Force as the class of the Atlantic and maybe, just maybe, the best college hockey squad in the state of Colorado.

As any of our listeners know, we love the Beanpot here at Puck University.  We love it so much, in fact, that we believe every college sports fan should have something comparable.   Chris Lynch and Tim Williams look into each of the current midseason tournaments, then start to think up a few more that should exist.  Old rivalries could be renewed yearly.  Smaller schools could have a yearly opportunity to get one over on a regional rival.   While we're at it, why not give some Beanpot-like tournaments to the other college sports?  Tim discusses a few ideas he's had for college football, basketball, and even baseball before we wrap up.  Full season previews coming soon!

One of the reasons this podcast launched in the first place was the support of reddit.com/r/collegehockey and we at Puck University can't say enough about what that support means to us.  In recognition, it's our second Reddit Special!  But first, a quick look at college hockey's growing relationship with the NHL, some thoughts on the NHL playoffs, and a Northeastern-Tampa Bay Lightning comparison.

The 2017-18 season has come to a close, with the Bulldogs of Minnesota-Duluth taking home the hardware.  Puck University looks at the Frozen Four, the Hobey Baker and Mike Richter Awards, and takes one look back at the season before heading off for the summer.

A full season of college hockey is almost in the books as Notre Dame, Michigan, Minnesota-Duluth, and Ohio State meet up in St. Paul for the Frozen Four.  Chris Lynch is at the Xcel Center with practices in the background.  We discuss the four entrants, their journeys to the Frozen Four and how each of them can win.  We then go on to talk about the Hobey Baker and Mike Richter Awards.  Crowded fields like every year, but this time around we both have similar opinions on who should take home the hardware.  Best of luck to the schools involved this weekend and the fanbases who follow them.

Since October, we’ve been building to an inevitable and thrilling end to college hockey season.  Here it comes, with the NCAA Regionals getting underway on Friday and taking us through the weekend.  It’s a wide-open field, even compared to other years, and with so many teams capable of making a run it’s really anyone’s game at this point.  Chris Lynch of Insidehockey.com joins the show to break down last week’s conference finals, this year’s bracket, and whether one of the Hockey East teams in the northeast region will advance. This year’s bracket, courtesy of USCHO

It's conference championship weekend, and a lot is at stake for several bubble teams.  Chris Lynch of insidehockey.com joins the show once again as we break down the conference tournaments, who needs to win at least once to get into the tournament, and who we like to win each of the conferences. Chris and I also break down some potential NCAA matchups that could happen, and handicap the ten Hobey Baker nominees.

Puck University celebrates the best time on the hockey calendar:  Three whole months (and change) of playoff hockey.  Before we can have the NHL Playoffs and the Stanley Cup Finals, the college tournaments are taking center stage.  Chris Lynch of Insidehockey.com joins the show to discuss the regular season, the Hobey Baker race, and the first round of the conference playoffs.

College hockey season can be long, but it moves quickly.  It's hard to believe, then, that the regular season is coming to a close (for everybody but the NCHC) this weekend.  This has myself and Chris Lynch of Insidehockey.com thinking about the playoffs, the Hobey Baker race, and the thrilling finish of three conferences that do not yet have a Regular Season Champion.  There is still a lot of seeding that needs to be decided over the weekend, and a couple upsets here and there could tip the balance a bit in the coming postseason.