Sunday, July 28, 2013

NCAA: Notre Dame schedule

The Notre Dame Fighting Irish have announced their 2013-14 schedule, their first season of competition in Hockey East.

The regular season opens with a home-and-home with Western Michigan Oct. 11-12. Conference play begins Nov. 1 at Vermont. The Irish will host a Thanksgiving-weekend tournament Nov. 29-30, and also compete in the Frozen Fenway event on Jan. 4 against Boston College at Fenway Park.

Link to the full schedule. 

Also, looking ahead to 2014-15, the Irish will host the Ice Breaker Tournament at Compton Family Ice Arena, with Minnesota, RPI and Minnesota-Duluth coming to South Bend.

ECHL: Komets/IceMen schedules

Since we posted the Indiana Ice schedule, other schedules for in-state hockey teams, starting with the two ECHL teams.

The season runs from Oct. 19-April 12 for both teams.

Evansville IceMen
Fort Wayne Komets

Thursday, July 25, 2013

Indiana Ice 2013-14 schedule & Fall Classic schedule

The USHL has announced its 2013-14 schedule and the Fall Classic schedule. Here is the Indiana Ice's schedule.


Link to the Fall Classic schedule. Games begin at 2 p.m. Friday, Sept. 13 at Pan Am Pavilion, then a quadruple header on Sept. 14 with the Ice playing Green Bay at 8 p.m. at Bankers Life Fieldhouse. Back to Pan Am for a doubleheader Sunday, games at 12:30 p.m. and 5:45 p.m., the latter is a tilt between the Ice and Muskegon Lumberjacks. 


The Ice will formally announce the schedule later, as they'll be once again splitting games between the Pan Am Pavilion and Bankers Life Fieldhouse. The schedule returns to a 60-game length, after being 64 games last year. The Ice will play Youngstown nine times, Team USA and Muskegon eight, Cedar Rapids seven, and the other Eastern Division foes (Green Bay, Chicago, Dubuque) four times. They will play two games against all of the Western Division teams. The Ice will not host Fargo or Lincoln this year, not travel to Sioux City or Tri-City, and play home-and-homes with the other four teams.

The 2013-14 Ice schedule (times local to INDIANAPOLIS)
Sa 9/21: at Team USA, 7 p.m.
F 9/27: SIOUX FALLS, 7:05 p.m.
Sa 9/28: at Muskegon, 7:15 p.m.
Th 10/3: at Team USA, 7 p.m.
F 10/4: at Team USA, 7 p.m.
Sa 10/12: YOUNGSTOWN, 7:05 p.m.
F 10/18: at Youngstown, 7:05 p.m.
Sa 10/19: OMAHA, 7:05 p.m.
Sa 10/26: DUBUQUE, 7:05 p.m.
Su 10/27: DES MOINES, 3:05 p.m.
F 11/1: CEDAR RAPIDS, 7:05 p.m.
Sa 11/9: CHICAGO, 7:05 p.m.
F 11/15: SIOUX CITY, 7:05 p.m.
Sa 11/16: SIOUX CITY, 7:05 p.m.
F 11/22: at Sioux Falls, 8:05 p.m.
Sa 11/23: at Omaha, 8:05 p.m.
W 11/27: YOUNGSTOWN, 7:05 p.m.
Sa 11/30: at Chicago, 8 p.m.
Su 12/1: CEDAR RAPIDS, 3:05 p.m.
Th 12/5: GREEN BAY, 7:05 p.m.
F 12/6: at Muskegon, 7:15 p.m.
F 12/13: MUSKEGON, 7:05 p.m.
Sa 12/14: at Cedar Rapids, 8:05 p.m.
F 12/27: at Youngstown, 7:05 p.m.
Sa 12/28: MUSKEGON, 7:05 p.m.
F 1/3: CEDAR RAPIDS, 7:05 p.m.
Sa 1/4: CEDAR RAPIDS, 7:05 p.m.
F 1/10: TEAM USA, 7:05 p.m.
Sa 1/11: MUSKEGON, 7:05 p.m.
F 1/17: at Fargo, 8:05 p.m.
Sa 1/18: at Fargo, 8:05 p.m.
W 1/22: at Youngstown, 10 a.m.
F 1/24: at Des Moines, 8:05 p.m.
Sa 1/25: at Cedar Rapids, 8:05 p.m.
Th 1/30: TEAM USA, 7:05 p.m.
Sa 2/1: at Muskegon, 7:15 p.m.
F 2/7: at Cedar Rapids, 8:05 p.m.
Sa 2/8: YOUNGSTOWN, 7:05 p.m.
Su 2/9: at Youngstown, 4:05 p.m.
F 2/14: TRI-CITY, 7:05 p.m.
Sa 2/15: TRI-CITY, 7:05 p.m.
Su 2/16: at Team USA, 3:30 p.m.
Sa 2/22: TEAM USA, 7:05 p.m.
Su 2/23: TEAM USA, 3:05 p.m.
F 2/28: WATERLOO, 7:05 p.m.
Sa 3/1: CHICAGO, 7:05 p.m.
Th 3/6: at Waterloo, 8:05 p.m.
F 3/7: at Lincoln, 8:05 p.m.
Sa 3/8: at Lincoln, 8:05 p.m.
F 3/14: at Green Bay, 8:05 p.m.
Sa 3/15: at Green Bay, 8:05 p.m.
F 3/21: at Muskegon, 7:15 p.m.
Sa 3/22: at Youngstown, 7:05 p.m.
Su 3/23: MUSKEGON, 3:05 p.m.
Th 3/27: YOUNGSTOWN, 7:05 p.m.
F 3/28: at Dubuque, 8:35 p.m.
Sa 3/29: at Dubuque, 8:05 p.m.
W 4/2: DUBUQUE, 7:05 p.m.
F 4/4: GREEN BAY, 7:05 p.m.
Sa 4/5: at Chicago, 8 p.m.

Home games by day of week
Wednesday (2), Thursday (3), Friday (9), Saturday (12), Sunday (4)
Road games by day of week
Wednesday (1), Thursday (2), Friday (12), Saturday (13), Sunday (2)

Games by opponent
West Division (16 games, 8 home/8 away)
Des Moines (2). Home-10/27, Away 1/24
Fargo (2). Away-1/17, 1/18
Lincoln (2). Away-3/7, 3/8
Omaha (2). Home-10/19, Away-11/23
Sioux City (2). Home-11/15, 11/16
Sioux Falls (2). Home-9/27, Away-11/22
Tri-City (2). Home-2/14, 2/15
Waterloo (2). Home-2/28, Away-3/6

East Division (44 games, 22 home/22 away).
Cedar Rapids (7). Home 11/1, 12/1, 1/3, 1/4; Away 12/14, 1/25, 2/7
Chicago (4). Home 11/9, 3/1. Away 11/30, 4/5
Dubuque (4). Home 10/26, 4/2; Away 3/28, 3/29
Green Bay (4). Home 12/5, 4/4; Away 3/14, 3/15
Muskegon (8). Home 12/13, 12/28, 1/11, 3/23. Away 9/28, 12/6, 2/1, 3/21
Team USA (8). Home 1/10, 1/30, 2/22, 2/23; Away 9/21, 10/3, 10/4, 2/16
Youngstown (9). Home 10/12, 11/27, 2/8, 3/27. Away 10/18, 12/27/ 1/22, 2/9, 3/22

Wednesday, June 5, 2013

ECHL protected lists

Earlier this week, the ECHL released the protected lists for all of its teams.

The link for the protected lists

Essentially, it means teams have exclusive negotiating rights with the following players in the ECHL until July.

Evansville: Kevin Moore, James Reid, Matt Krug, Dustin Hopfner, Jake Obermeyer, Donnie Harris, Aaron Gens, Jesse Perrin, Nathan Martine, Matt Gens, Daniel Tetrault, Philippe Plante, Peter Sakaris, Colin Reddin, Jason Dale, Dylan Clarke, Mark Cody, Patrick Kennedy, Chris Forfar, Myles McCauley, Darick Ste-Marie, Matt Schepke, Josh Beaulieu, Kevin R. Baker, Todd Robinson, Nathan Moon.

Fort Wayne: Charlie Effinger, Daniel Maggio, Scott Kishel, Nick Wheeler, Mathieu Gagnon, Jeremy Gates, Tyler Butler, Jamie Milam, Eric Giosa, Matt Firman, Jean-Michel Rizk, John Dunbar, Chris Auger, Mike Hoban, Brandon Marino, Matt Syroczynski, Thomas Beauregard, Kaleigh Schrock, Brett Smith, Colin Chaulk.

The Journal-Gazette's Justin Cohn has a decent explanation of the protected lists.

Ice main camp this weekend

The Indiana Ice are hosting their main tryout camp this weekend at the Fishers Forum.

Play begins at 2:30 p.m. Thursday, and runs all day Friday and Saturday. The All-Star Game play-in games will begin at 6 p.m. Saturday. The All-Star Game is at 10 a.m. Sunday, with the team roster to be posted shortly thereafter.

Eight teams of hopefuls -- draftees in the Phase I and Phase II USHL draft, returnees from last season and free agents -- will compete for 30 roster spots -- which will eventually be cut down to 23.

Komets hire Gary Graham as new coach

The Fort Wayne Komets have hired former assistant Gary Graham as their new head coach.

Graham replaces Al Sims, who retired this offseason after leading the Komets to four championships and on a journey through three leagues -- the now-defunct International Hockey League, the Central Hockey League and now the ECHL.

Graham, 34, is a Fort Wayne native who comes to Fort Wayne after coaching in the Southern Professional Hockey League, winning a championship in Pensacola. He also had been a high school coach, a coach with the Indiana Junior Ice program and an assistant with the Komets.

Media coverage
News-Sentinel: New Komets coach anxious to catch up
News-Sentinel column: Komets reach for Graham, but not by much
News Sentinel: Komets name Gary Graham head coach
Journal-Gazette: Komets coach comes home
Journal-Gazette: Players approve of Komets' new coach
Journal-Gazette: Komets hire Gary Graham
Team official press release

The official release:

06/04/2013
Fort Wayne, IN --- The Komets announced Tuesday that Gary Graham has been selected as the next head coach of the Fort Wayne ECHL club.  The announcement was made during a press conference at the Allen County War Memorial Coliseum.  As per team policy, terms of the contract will not be disclosed.

“I’m extremely proud of this opportunity the Komet organization has given me," Graham said.  "We will begin a new chapter of Komet hockey with a lot of new faces, but the identity of this team will be simple; total commitment to getting better each and every day.  We will bring a fast, young, hungry team into the Coliseum that our great fans can be proud of. There is no other team in hockey I would rather be coaching than the Fort Wayne Komets.”

Graham becomes the 28th person to handle head coaching duties with the Komets since the team was established in Fort Wayne in 1952.  Graham replaces Al Sims, who announced his retirement after the 2012-13 season.  "Gary is the right coach at the right time for the Komets," Komet president Michael Franke said. "He knows the Komet way of doing business and will be a tremendous asset to the Komet organization."

Graham is returning to the Komets after guiding Pensacola last season to the Ice Flyer's first Southern Professional Hockey League Championship.  The Ice Flyer's finished 2012-13 with a 33-18-5 record and 71 points, two points shy of capturing the regular season title.  It was the first time Pensacola skated to a regular season winning percentage over .600 (.634) since joining the SPHL in 2009-10.  

The 2013 SPHL Presidents' Cup Title was Graham's fourth career league crown.  Before his stint with Pensacola, Graham collected three league championships in four seasons as an assistant coach with the Komets (earned league titles in 2009, 2010, 2012). 

"Gary's tremendous work ethic, knowledge and experience in preparing players to play was a huge factor for me in picking him as our next coach," Komet general manager David Franke said.  "He pays attention to detail and teaches players not only on the ice but also in video sessions.  I'm extremely excited to work with Gary as we prepare to assemble the Komet team for the 2013-14 ECHL season."

Prior to Graham's first tenure with the Komets, the Fort Wayne native enjoyed success as head coach of the Indiana Jr. Ice Tier 1 team, guiding the Ice to a 38-17-3 record in the Midwest Elite League during 2008-09 before serving as associate coach for the USHL Clark Cup Champion Indiana Ice.

Graham, 34, majored in Exercise Science at Ball State University and resides in Fort Wayne with his children Connor and Isabella. 

Gary Graham coaching record
Regular Season                                             Playoff Results
Season Club                         League     W L   T/OTL Pts  
2008-09 Fort Wayne (AC) IHL         46 18  12         104    **Championship ( IHL Turner Cup)
2009-10 Fort Wayne (AC) IHL         50 21    5         105  Championship (IHL Turner Cup)
2010-11 Fort Wayne (AC) CHL         31 27    8           70  Second Round
2011-12 Fort Wayne (AC) CHL         40 19    7           87   *Championship (CHL Presidents’ Cup)
2012-13 Pensacola                 SPHL        33 18    5           71  Championship (SPHL Presidents' Cup)
(AC)- assistant coach
*-Division titles
**-Regular season title

Wednesday, May 8, 2013

Ice: Draft release

The official team release from the Indiana Ice regarding the 2013 USHL Draft.


TEAM PICKS 18 FORWARDS, FIVE DEFENSEMEN AND FIVE GOALTENDERS IN DRAFT


INDIANAPOLIS—The Indiana Ice capitalized on five first-round draft picks and six of the first 20 selections to reload the squad for the 2013-2014 season and beyond.  Indy had 28 total picks in the seven-hour event, acquiring 18 forwards, five defensemen and five goaltenders.
 
The Ice selected forward Aiden Muir from the Victory Honda (MI) program with the first overall pick.  Muir recorded 40 points (17G, 23A) in 37 games with Victory Honda while earning a scholarship to Western Michigan University.  He is also listed as the 108th ranked skater on the Final Scouting Rankings for the 2013 NHL Draft on June 30.
 
Back-to-back picks with the sixth and seventh selections saw Indy pick up Brian Pinho (St. John’s Prep-MA) and Scott Conway (Texas-NAHL) to further boost the Ice offense.  Pinho immediately follows Muir on the Central Scouting list at the 109th spot while Conway was the top-scoring 1995 forward for the Tornado with 54 points (18G, 36A).
 
Indy rounded out their first group of picks with Brett Beauvais (Kalamazoo-NAHL), a 6-0 defenseman from Summerside, P.E.I. and Jason Pawloski (Austin-NAHL), a 6-0 goaltender from Omaha, NE.  Beauvais finished the season tied for fourth among NAHL blueliners in assists (27) while Pawloski recorded 17 wins and two shutouts in 24 contests.  The Ice also had some local flavor as the Ice selected captain Joe Chitwood from the Indiana Jr. Ice U18 program.
 
“I thought the draft went extremely well for the Indiana Ice,” said head coach and general manager Jeff Brown.  “We’re excited about the players we were able to acquire and we can’t wait for camp and the next hockey season.  It’s going to be a very competitive.  The talent level is extremely good and we hope to turn things around next season.”
 
2013 USHL ENTRY DRAFT SELECTIONS
Aiden Muir-F, Victory Honda U18
Brian Pinho-F, St. John’s Prep (MA)
Scott Conway-F, Texas (NAHL)
Brett Beauvais-D, Kalamazoo (NAHL)
Jason Pawloski-G, Austin (NAHL)
Tyler Andrew-F, Topeka (NAHL)
Jacob Pritchard-F, Victory Honda U18
Timothy Shoup-D, Pittsburgh Penguins U18
Samu Perhonen-G, Akatemia (Finland)
Karl El-Mir-F, Selects Academy U16
Nick Kunin-F, St. Louis Blues U18
Roy Radke-F, Culver U16
Michael Ederer-F, Nichols School (NY)
Christopher Forney-D, Thief River Falls (MN)
Nathan Churchill-G, Omaha AAA U16
Alex Alger-F, Cranbrook (MI)
Nick Azar-D, Belle Tire U16
Vaughan Ahrens-G, Wayzata (MN)
Ryan Collins-C, Ottawa (CCHL)
Michael Turner-F, Cushing (MA)
Tyler Boston-C, York Simcoe Express
Tyler Augustinsen-F, Selects Academy U16
Joe Chitwood-F, Indiana Jr. Ice U18
Andrew Debrincat-D, Cumberland (CCHL)
Mitch Slattery-F, Hill Murray (MN)
Drew Best-F, South Surrey (BCHL)
Nick Vilardo-G, WBS Knights
Logan Brown-F, St. Louis Blues 98’s
 
The Indiana Ice is now taking deposits for 2013-2014 season ticket packages.  Call the Ice office at 317-925-4423 or visit www.indianaice.com.
 
The Indiana Ice is a member of the United States Hockey League, America’s only Tier One League.

Tuesday, May 7, 2013

Welcome to Hoosier Puck Report

Welcome to the Hoosier Puck Report. This blog will try to cover all things hockey in Indiana, from the state's professional teams (the ECHL Evansville IceMen & Fort Wayne Komets) to the USHL Indiana Ice, to the NCAA Notre Dame Fighting Irish, as well as the state's college club programs, midget hockey, high school hockey and players with Hoosier ties in the NHL.

If you have info to share, please do so, via the comments at the moment. Later,

There will be a significant history component, and if all goes well, a weekly podcast to go along with the blog. This is an expansion of the Indianapolis Hockey blog that I had done -- but had to shelve for the last season and a half due to personal issues. We'll also try to interview key people with regards to hockey in the Hoosier state at all levels and post them both on the podcast and here.

Sit back & enjoy the game we love, hockey!

You can follow us on Twitter at @HoosierPuck.

You can also subscribe by clicking the link at the bottom of the main page.

Ice: USHL Entry Draft

The Indiana Ice continued to stock their team with the USHL Entry Draft (or, what is now known as the Phase II draft). These players are of any birth year, while the Futures Draft is primarily '97 birth year players. The Ice did draft multiple '97s in this year's Phase II draft, but also a '98 and a handful of 198 and 19-year-olds who should be ready to jump in.

The Ice had five first-round picks, including the No. 1 overall pick. They also had the top pick of the second round, giving them six of the first 16 selections to re-stock the roster. Several of the top picks are from the North American Hockey League, so they already have junior experience. One is an NHL draftee, and a handful of others are ranked in the NHL CSB rankings.

The full list below the jump.

Ice: USHL Futures Draft selections

The Indiana Ice began steps toward their 10th season in the USHL this week with the two USHL drafts.
The first day is the so-called Phase I draft (formerly known as the Futures Draft), in which teams select underage players who are longer-term projects. Some are immediate prospects, too.
On Tuesday, the Phase II draft (the Entry Draft) takes place. The Ice have four first-round picks in the Entry Draft. (note that all ht/wt/DOB data is from eliteprospects.com)

Here is the official team release

Quoting Ice coach Jeff Brown: “Our organization is ecstatic about the talent level of our selections tonight,” said head coach Jeff Brown.  “So many different things fell into place for us in this draft.  All these selection will be future stars on the Indiana Ice roster. 

The full list below the jump.