2010-11 Composite Schedule Announced
ALBANY, N.Y. -- ECAC Hockey today announced its
2010-11 men’s composite schedule, which
includes 132 conference contests, 22 by each team and a total of
248 games.
Five schools officially open the 2010-11 campaign Friday, October 8 as Quinnipiac hosts CCHA foe Ohio State for a two-game set, Union welcomes 2009-10 second-place Atlantic Hockey challengers, Sacred Heart, for two games, while St. Lawrence and Rensselaer battle a pair from the WCHA, with the Saints travelling to Minnesota State and Rensselaer visiting Colorado College for a pair of non-league contests. Rounding out a busy first night of play for ECAC Hockey teams is Clarkson which officially open its 89th season out in the Midwest when the Golden Knights make their first-ever trip to Nebraska. Clarkson will take part in the Mutual of Omaha Stampede when it faces host Nebraska-Omaha, of the CCHA.
One additional ECAC Hockey team will take to the ice during this opening weekend, as Colgate visits the Hyannis Youth Center, Cape Cod, MA Saturday, October 9 to battle Atlantic Hockey foe Army.
Two-time defending ECAC Hockey regular-season champion, Yale will begin its season the weekend of October 29-30, as it hosts the Ivy Shootout. Brown, Dartmouth, and Princeton will also begin play this same weekend at Ingalls Rink in the four team event.
2010 ECAC Hockey Tournament Champion Cornell looks to avenge a loss at the hands of New Hampshire in last season’s NCAA Tournament, as the Big Red host the Wildcats October 29 to open their 2010-11 season.
Harvard opens its season the weekend of November 5-6 welcoming league tournament finalist Union and Rensselaer before taking to the road in its next four contests.
League play officially gets into full swing Friday, November 5 when all 12 teams are in action to begin the historic 50th season playing two-game sets versus league foes. Travel-partner parings include Colgate-Cornell at Clarkson-St. Lawrence, Princeton-Quinnipiac at Yale-Brown, and Rensselaer-Union at Dartmouth-Havard.
There will be a total of six weekends during the regular-season
that will feature all 12 ECAC
Hockey-member teams engaged in league play, with those being
November 5-6, January 7-8, January 28-29, February 4-5, February
18-19, and February 25-26.
Ten of the league's 12 teams will be involved in tournaments throughout the 2010-11 campaign. In October, Clarkson will participate in the Mutual of Omaha Stampede in Omaha, NE, Union participates in the Brice Alaska Gold Rush in Fairbanks, AK, and Brown, Dartmouth, Princeton, and Yale compete in the Ivy Shootout in New Haven, CT. The Engineers host their annual RPI Holiday Tournament, Troy, NY in November, while Clarkson visits the ‘Rocky Mountain’ state to partake in the Denver Cup. Over the holiday season (December-January), Princeton represents ECAC Hockey in the Toyota UConn Classic, Storrs, CT, Cornell travels to the ‘Sunshine State’ in the Florida College Classic, Estero, FL, host Dartmouth looks to claim the Ledyard National Bank Classic, as does fellow league foe Colgate, Brown eyes the Shillelagh Tournament, Hoffman Estates, IL, Harvard has its sites on winning the Sheraton/TD Bank Catamount Cup, Burlington, VT, and Union partakes in the Dodge Holiday Classic in Minneapolis, MN. On consecutive Monday evenings in Boston, MA???Harvard will take place in the ‘winter social event of the season,’ as it looks to capture its 11th Beanpot title.
The ECAC Hockey Championship will have a new home for the first time in eight seasons, as Boardwalk Hall, Atlantic City, NJ becomes just the fifth location to host the league’s championship. The format once again features two rounds of action at campus sites. Championship play commences with first-round action March 4-6 featuring teams seeded Nos. 5-8 hosting teams seeded Nos. 9-12. The top four teams as determined by the final regular-season standings receive a first-round bye. Quarterfinals action will be held March 11-13 with the top four seeds hosting the winners of first-round action. The four quarterfinals winners advance to the 2011 ECAC Hockey Championship finals March 18-19.
The 2011 NCAA Men's Frozen Four will be hosted by the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities and played April 7 and April 9 at Xcel Energy Center, home of the NHL's Minnesota Wild. Xcel Energy Center also hosted the event in 2002. Teams will be seeded in four regions: East, Midwest, Northeast, and West. The East and West Regional competitions will be held Friday-Saturday, March 25-26 at the Arena at Harbor Yard, Bridgeport, CT and Scottsdale Center, St. Louis, MO respectively, while the Northeast and Midwest Regionals will be held Saturday-Sunday, March 26-27 at Verizon Wireless Arena, Manchester, NH and Resch Center, Green Bay, WI. The regional winners advance to the Frozen Four at Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, MN, with semifinal action taking place Thursday, April 7, and the national championship Saturday, April 9.
Other schedule highlights include:
Brown looks to claim the Mayor’s Cup over intra-state rival Providence Tuesday, December 7 in the 25th annual classic matchup.
Yale will venture to Colorado Springs for a pair of non-league showdowns, taking on Air Force (Nov. 12) and Colorado College (Nov. 13).
Celebrating its 20th season and looking to build on its .690 winning percentage since 1991-92 at Cheel Arena Clarkson hosts a two-game set versus WCHA power Minnesota-Duluth January 3-4.
On October 30 four conference teams clash in two non-league games for ‘Halloween Face-off Hockey’ at the 1980 Rink Herb Brooks Arena in Lake Placid, NY with Capital District rivals Rensselaer and Union facing off followed by North Country partners Clarkson and St. Lawrence in a special doubleheader.
New Jersey fans will get a dose of ECAC Hockey as Colgate and Cornell will meet November 27 at the Prudential Center, Newark, NJ. The Raiders have another dramatic holiday matchup, as they take in defending National Champions Boston College in the first round of the Ledyard National Bank Classic, December 30.
In non-league action Quinnipiac hosts first-year WCHA member Nebraska-Omaha for a two game set in Hamden, CT on December 30-31.
Three ECAC Hockey schools will face 2010 Atlantic Hockey Champions and Frozen Four participant RIT this season: Rensselaer (Oct. 22), Union (Oct. 23), and Cornell (Oct. 30).
Princeton will play its first six games on the road this season, followed by a seven game home stretch at Hobey Baker Memorial.
One of the biggest rivalries on the calendar will take place Saturday, January 15 in Manchester, NH as Dartmouth faces-off against intra-state rival New Hampshire at Verizon Wireless Arena.
Harvard will play up to eight regular-season games against teams ranked in last season’s final USCHO.com Division I Men's Poll (No. 3 Boston College, No. 6 Cornell, No. 8 Yale, No. 15 Vermont, and No. 16 Union) and up to six games against teams that competed in last season’s NCAA tournament (national champion BC, Cornell, Vermont, and Yale). Harvard will play two games against the programs that have won NCAA Division I’s last three national titles (BC and BU).
The Dutchmen will make trips three trips ‘out west’ this season: Alaska-Fairbanks (Oct. 16), Western Michigan (Dec. 18-19), and Minnesota (Dec. 31-Jan. 1) for non-league play.
Cornell will play a two-game series at home against Alabama-Huntsville, the only independent team in Division I hockey.
Rensselaer will play the U.S. National Junior Team as part of its 2010-11 schedule. The Engineers host Team USA – the defending World Junior Championship gold medalists – at the Houston Field House Sunday, December 19.
St. Lawrence clashes with a pair of 2010 NCAA Tournament participants, as it hosts Vermont (Dec. 18) ending the first half of the season and visits New Hampshire (Jan. 2) beginning the second half of the season.
