Alright, after a day spent wrist deep in the guts of my computer, Fear The Triangle is back online and ready to go for the Hockey East stretch run.

Coming away from the weekend with only a tie was enough to drop Boston College out of the top spot in the USCHO rankings.  The Fight Sioux are the new top team in the land.  Merrimack’s sweep of UMass not only allowed them to jump to #4, but Merrimack is even receiving a first place vote currently.

North Dakota takes over #1 in the USA Hockey/USA Today poll as well. 

Pretty much the same with INCH’s Power Rankings as well.

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No weekly awards for Minutemen from Hockey East today.  They do mention that Paul Dainton is 19 saves shy of tying Brian Regan for the all-time saves mark at UMass.  After Merrimack put up 21 shots in the first period on Saturday I started wondering if we’d see him break the record sometime later in that game.

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Of course BC dropping three points to Northeastern this past weekend is a big surprise considering that Huskies coach Greg Cronin was suspended indefinitely for possible recruiting violations before Friday’s matchup between the two teams.  USCHO’s Jim Connolly has an interesting look at the situation, including some past issues with programs that Cronin has been a part of that I wasn’t aware of.  Personally I hope this ends up being a misunderstanding.  I respect Cronin and think he’s doing a stellar job turning around the Northeastern program which I’ve always thought has had a ton of potential but not a lot of success.  Let’s hope the recent accomplishments by Northeastern are not tarnished by whatever this situation may entail.

BC is hoping to regain that second seed spot so they can avoid the Huskies again the Hockey East Quarterfinals.  I have a feeling losing three points to Northeastern will make for an angry Eagle team this coming weekend.

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I think it’s important to remember that Western Mass is an area with a rich hockey tradition beyond the Mullins Center, Orr Rink, and the campus pond where UMass hockey has called home.  Legends of the game from Eddie Shore to Billy Guerin have left their mark on the local hockey scene.   And covering that scene was Sam Pompei, whom Dick Baker has an entertaining remembrance of in today’s Republican.