Non-UND College Hockey 2026-27

[cberkas]

A start to a new season as the portal opens. 

• Good to see Miami get their 1st win in over a year. Really liked their team last year and expect them to have success this year
• Denver just does Denver things time to take that top spot from them and start the run to get 12 first.
• St. Thomas joining will make the conference stronger 
• Oliver with a tough task at St. Cloud to keep them competitive.
• I think the conference can get 5 possibly 6 teams to the NCHC Invitational 
• Another season of @gfhockey asking the simple question and not liking the simple answers.
• NCHC keeps the tradition going and if UND doesn't get 9th at least someone gets their 1st in the conference or CC finally ends the drought 
• Hopefully no more teams end their program this year after AIC and Mercyhurst ended their programs. At least NCAA gained Maryville 
• Still nothing on Tennessee State
• I think we hear from 3 new programs coming in and 5 new NHL/NCAA Feasibility Studies being done.

[cberkas]

https://x.com/GabbyJChernoff/status/2043924892912103746?s=20

ASU hockey roster overhaul reflects economic challenges, desire to improve defense (if the first link doesn't work)

Some interesting stuff here. Sounds like most of the guys in the portal were told to look somewhere else to play. 

Quote

Powers outlined the financial challenges of the endeavor in an email obtained by Sun Devil Source, which was sent following the season. In the email,  he invited boosters to a private meeting at his home on March 16 to help generate more resources for his program.

 

"We are often up against teams with payrolls of $1M+, when ours has been just north of $100k, entirely fundraised by myself," Powers wrote in the email. "Some teams we play have one player making more than our entire roster."

Because the hockey team's players received none of the roughly $18 million paid to athletes by the school in 2025-26, Powers and the Sun Devils are entirely reliant on name, image and likeness money from local businesses and boosters to fund their roster, in addition to their 26 full-cost-of-attendance scholarships, the maximum allowed for Division I teams.

As much as other teams' fans say they have money to pay players. When the Football coach is out there saying they need to get people in Pheonix to donate to NIL. There is probably a NIL/revenue share issue in the Athletic Department, and the AD replaced both basketball coaches. So, the money probably isn't there for the hockey team even though there are more people at the Mullett Arena than Desert Financial Arena (which is getting renovated when they want to replace it). I know Arizona State has money, with the roughly $1 billion they are putting into the Poly Campus right now.

Quote

"With as young as we were, we probably internally set the bar a little too high for ourselves," Powers said, toward the end of last season. "I haven't been able to get through to this team and convince them what it takes to win games." 

You could see when their play changed during the season almost like they didn't care. As much as Powers gets the blame and people want him fired. He does have capable assistant coaches on the staff for them to not be competitive. Can't say he's that bad of a coach when he made 2 NCAAs as an independent and finished 2nd in the first season in the NCHC. For Powers to get fired they'd have to finish last the next 4 years. 

WMU fans disrespecting the great Gowz by calling Powers the ASU version of him. Come on Gowz has titles and a really good coach I wish was still coaching 

[Johnny Five]

Duluth is going to be a problem.  

[cberkas]

In no particular order my top 5 in the NCHC as of right now.

1. Denver
2. North Dakota
3. Duluth
4. Miami
5. St. Thomas

Edit I forgot there will be 5 teams with home ice (think Red Barron Final Five)

[cberkas]

GPL: UND fans think they are getting all the top tier defensemen

Also, GPL: we are getting all the top tier defensemen and players.

🤣🤣

[tnt]

18 hours ago, cberkas said:

In no particular order my top 5 in the NCHC as of right now.

1. Denver
2. North Dakota
3. Duluth
4. Miami
5. St. Thomas

Edit I forgot there will be 5 teams with home ice (think Red Barron Final Five)

Replace Miami or St. Thomas with Western Michigan.  Ferschweiler will find guys to fill spots and will somehow get them playing the right way.  

[cberkas]

11 minutes ago, tnt said:

Replace Miami or St. Thomas with Western Michigan.  Ferschweiler will find guys to fill spots and will somehow get them playing the right way.  

I’d like to see who is in net before I’d move them up. 

[ubish]

That is fair, but our defense will be greatly improved with vaisanen and ccr back regardless of who is in net. 

[nascar99]

3 hours ago, ubish said:

That is fair, but our defense will be greatly improved with vaisanen and ccr back regardless of who is in net. 

Really like your additions of Lafreniere and Benak. Some relatively high end offensive producers who should be able to produce right off the bat in the NCAA

[tnt]

4 hours ago, ubish said:

That is fair, but our defense will be greatly improved with vaisanen and ccr back regardless of who is in net. 

Plus you got the coveted defenseman from Colgate.

[cberkas]

Yost Ice Arena significantly damaged by high-wind storm - mlive.com

Yost roof damaged.

[farce poobah]

4 minutes ago, cberkas said:

Yost Ice Arena significantly damaged by high-wind storm - mlive.com

Yost roof damaged.

Well, the roof already fell in on them vs Denver. 

[tnt]

On 4/15/2026 at 11:58 AM, cberkas said:

I’d like to see who is in net before I’d move them up. 

What does Quentin Miller do for you in regards to moving Western in your top 5.

[brianvf]

Nice replacement for Hampton.

[cberkas]

8 minutes ago, tnt said:

What does Quentin Miller do for you in regards to moving Western in your top 5.

Denver, UND, and Western would have the 3 best goalies.

Arizona States add in net is interesting 2x WJC gold as the #3

[ubish]

3 hours ago, tnt said:

What does Quentin Miller do for you in regards to moving Western in your top 5.

Plus he's gonna have that Beat Denver fire. 

[Wilbur]

With Herter and that d-core I've got Western in the top four.  I thought Soller was coming in next year, but he must only be a junior school wise turning 18 in August.  I think its a toss up between UND-Denver-Duluth, but I'll never sleep on Fersch and what he's able to get out of his teams.

Will see if Hicks is able to be Matty Davis 2.0 and build on one remarkable season after another. 

Way too early opinion on life in the NCHC next year.  

1. UND-Green Glasses.  Finally got a Norwegian on the team.  Last time we had one of those we made the regional in Fargo.  

2. Duluth-Plante(s) and company.  Can Sandy win a league regular season championship?  Carl Axelsson a great goaltending recruit.   

3. Denver-Carle and company.  Likely in the F4 with the regional in Colorado again, regardless of their seed.  

4. Western-Miller Time in the Zoo.  Lost some points at the top, but they'll be fine.  I'm high on Adam Benak.  Elite playmaker.        

5. St. Thomas-just missed out on the NCAA tournament last season.  I think they sneak into the top 5 with an experienced guy like Musser.      

6. Miami-Baby steps, and terrific goaltending.  Still surprised that kid didn't sign.  

7. SCSU-See how the new regime under Nick Oliver starts off.  Some fresh faces into the fold as well.     

8. CC-Latvian kid is the leading returning scorer on a team that had 259 points collectively.  For reference UND, Denver, and Western were around 400 each.  Only Omaha had less.   

9. ASU-Complete roster rebuild..... 

10. Omaha-Life after Simon.  Jubenville could end up on the top pair.  Seriously.  

You can tell I, along with David Carle, put a lot of stock in goaltending.    

[cberkas]

Michigan State giving Potter $200K to $250K is an overpay to me. 

[atxsioux]

Woah, who’s reporting he got that much? Just can’t be the case…

[cberkas]

33 minutes ago, atxsioux said:

Woah, who’s reporting he got that much? Just can’t be the case…

The article at the top is what is reported. I was surprised he was taken in the 1st round. 

[I Ranger]

8 hours ago, cberkas said:

Michigan State giving Potter $200K to $250K is an overpay to me. 

That's around the same numbers I had heard a few years ago when we were supposedly his other finalist and he chose Michigan St. 

[Wilbur]

I was talking to Carter Krier who does a lot of work over the summer with local goaltenders in the metro and he made it seem that unless its public knowledge (Penn State 750K) that what we think kids get in NIL is a lot less than it actually is. 

[Johnny Five]

1 hour ago, Wilbur said:

I was talking to Carter Krier who does a lot of work over the summer with local goaltenders in the metro and he made it seem that unless its public knowledge (Penn State 750K) that what we think kids get in NIL is a lot less than it actually is. 

There is a pretty good thread on GPL regarding NIL where a lawyer attempts to break it down.  It is waaaaaaay more confusing than any of us think, or just a booster handing over a check to a top recruit.  The phrase "Big 10 Money" gets thrown around, but according to that thread and as you mentioned Wilbur, at the UM it's not necessarily the case (the $250K for a player, etc)...and on top of that, it's complicated as hell.  

[Wilbur]

3 hours ago, Johnny Five said:

There is a pretty good thread on GPL regarding NIL where a lawyer attempts to break it down.  It is waaaaaaay more confusing than any of us think, or just a booster handing over a check to a top recruit.  The phrase "Big 10 Money" gets thrown around, but according to that thread and as you mentioned Wilbur, at the UM it's not necessarily the case (the $250K for a player, etc)...and on top of that, it's complicated as hell.  

Exactly.  At Ohio state there are football players who make more in a week than the entire hockey team for an entire year.  

[I Ranger]

3 hours ago, Johnny Five said:

There is a pretty good thread on GPL regarding NIL where a lawyer attempts to break it down.  It is waaaaaaay more confusing than any of us think, or just a booster handing over a check to a top recruit.  The phrase "Big 10 Money" gets thrown around, but according to that thread and as you mentioned Wilbur, at the UM it's not necessarily the case (the $250K for a player, etc)...and on top of that, it's complicated as hell.  

David Carle was on Chiclets this week as well and was very insightful on all things college hockey along with NIL. It's a good listen.