Joe Gladziszewski

  (2:31 PM)

Hello and welcome to another college hockey chat on The Show. We'll be here to answer your questions for the next 30 minutes.

JS (New Haven, CT)

Does Quinnipiac have the ability to win a National Championship say within the next 5 years especially with the new arena built?

Joe Gladziszewski

  (2:34 PM)

The Bobcats will have to start taking some smaller steps before thinking about Frozen Fours and National Championships, but in the last four years they've gone from a quarterfinal exit in the Atlantic Hockey playoffs to currently ranking near the top of the ECACHL, and have been nationally-ranked for several weeks this season. Their talent has increased every season, and I expect them to be a regular participant in the NCAA Tournament over the next five years. A national championship ... probably not.

Jeff from Tampa, FL

Will BC's history be enough to carry them into the tournament or do they need to win the Hockey East tournament to get a bid? Are they a real contender if they do get in?

Joe Gladziszewski

  (2:36 PM)

The tournament selection is based on this year's performance, not history or any biases of that sort. The difficulty of BC's schedule will help it for at-large consideration to the NCAAs, but they'll need to help themselves with a strong showing down the stretch and in the Hockey East playoffs.

Ty Potsdam, NY

Why doesn't Clarkson get any credit? Look at the Hobey Tracker where is Nick Dodge?

Joe Gladziszewski

  (2:38 PM)

Clarkson is getting lots of credit, and it's deserved. They're in the top 10 of the national polls and right near the top of the ECACHL standings. Nick Dodge is an excellent player, I think the best in the league as a matter of fact, but there are a number of excellent players around college hockey. The Hobey Tracker just lists the top three, as we see it, on a given week. If we published the top six or 10, Dodge would definitely be on the list.

Joe Gladziszewski

  (2:39 PM)

... and another quick note on Dodge. He suffered an injury last weekend and his status for this weekend's games at Cornell and Colgate is up in the air.

JB (Burlington, VT)

Where does Vermont goalie Joe Fallon fit in the race for the Hobey Baker Award? In terms of goaltenders being considered, he has better statistics than David Brown. Granted Brown has 20 wins already and Fallon has 13. But Brown has 3 more games in hand than Fallon.

Joe Gladziszewski

  (2:42 PM)

Fallon's had an excellent season, no doubt about it. Two things hurt his candidacy for the Hobey. The first is that there are other great goaltenders around the nation. David Brown at Notre Dame and John Curry at Boston University in particular are also having seasons worthy of Hobey consideration. The second, which you mentioned, is his win total and Vermont's standing. When guys like Dave McKee from Cornell and Brian Elliott from Wisconsin were in the running, they had gaudy stats, and also played for winning teams.

MJ (Grand Forks, ND)

Given ND's recent sweep over Minnesota, and knowing that Coach Hakstol seems to always do better in the second half of the season, how well do you think ND will fare if they make it to the frozen four?

Joe Gladziszewski

  (2:46 PM)

Whoa down a second ... and this has been the tone from many North Dakota fans who've submitted feedback to the site. Yes, North Dakota's wins at Minnesota were impressive. Yes, they're playing well right now. But two wins on the road in January don't mean that a Frozen Four berth is the next logical step. North Dakota still has some work to do just to get into the NCAAs. After this bye week, the Sioux have a favorable schedule with four consecutive home games against Minnesota State and Minnesota Duluth, but the last two weekends of the year are road trips to St. Cloud State and Denver. There's work to be done, but the Sioux are gaining momentum.

Singer (CT)

Will teams from Hockey East, WCHA and CCHA play road games at Quinnipiac now that they have their new arena?

Joe Gladziszewski

  (2:49 PM)

Quinnipiac will probably be able to get more home games, but it's not going to have much to do with their arena. The ECACHL teams play just 22 league games in a season, meaning they have more non-league games that they need to schedule. Teams in other leagues want home dates, especially the marquee programs with large arenas. It's tough to get them to travel.

Ben (Oxford)

Since Miami lost 1 this past weekend to ND and tied the other, odds are they won't win the CCHA. Will they be an at large team?

Mike Eidelbes

  (2:50 PM)

I think so, Ben. The RedHawks have a pretty favorable schedule the rest of the way -- at Alaska, home against Lake Superior, a home-and-home with Robert Morris, and at Northern Michigan. By the time Selection Sunday rolls around, they'll likely be a 25-win team.

Andy (St. Cloud, MN)

What can the Minnesota Gophers do to get back on track? The last several weeks they have been thoroughly outplayed.

Mike Eidelbes

  (2:52 PM)

The Gophers need to take a deep breath, forget about last weekend, and start all over again this weekend at Alaska Anchorage. As bad as the losses to North Dakota were, they still only account for 1/18th of the regular-season schedule. Put it this way -- Minnesota got absolutely drilled last weekend, but they still have more wins than anyone else, fewer losses than all but one team, and a three-point lead in the WCHA standings. There could be worse predicaments.

Matt Dinky Town,MN

Do you think the loss of Tyler Hirsch to the gophers is the reason for the sub-par offense in the second half? and Do you think that Minnesota can bounce back and make a run at the title?

Mike Eidelbes

  (2:53 PM)

Losing Hirsch certainly doesn't help. Kyle Okposo seems to miss him, that's for sure. There's a reason the Gophers coaching staff gave him numerous chances to get his affairs in order -- he's a good player. But he could no longer be counted on, so he had to go. While they miss Hirsch, they'll be a better team in the long run without him as a distraction.

Jeff (St. Louis, MO)

How soon can we see Maine's Ben Bishop step up and wear the Blue note?

Joe Gladziszewski

  (2:54 PM)

Bishop's size is impressive, and he's a good college goalie right now. Remember that it often takes goaltenders a lot longer to be NHL-ready than forwards and defensemen. Bishop will have his shot in the Blues' organization, but he's best served to stay in college hockey at this point.

Gerard (Houston, TX)

Hi guys, only 9 minutes of Podcast deterioration this week! No talk about my MTU Huskies taking 3 of 4 from CC? So is this season a 1 time thing or has Jamie Russell started to turn things around in Houghton? Thanks

Mike Eidelbes

  (2:55 PM)

Things are looking up in Copper Country. I like goalies Nolan and Teslak, and they're a young team -- only two seniors are regulars in the lineup. Scoring and consistency have been an issue, but I think that'll come with experience. I like where these guys are going. We're trying to sharpen our focus on the podcasts, so less screwing around last night. Although, had we heard about Boston freaking out over the Aqua Teen Hunger Force signs, we'd probably still be recording right now.

Joe Gladziszewski

  (2:56 PM)

Thanks for listening to the podcasts. We appreciate it, and home they're informative and enjoyable.

Jason (Rochester, NY)

RIT has been tearing up Atlantic Hockey play. Do you see them staying in the AHA long-term or using it as a stepping stone to move up to the ECACHL possibly?

Joe Gladziszewski

  (2:58 PM)

With 12 teams already, there's not much room for expansion in the ECAC Hockey League. RIT fits Atlantic Hockey best for the time being because as a school that competes in Division III for most of its sports, it can't offer athletic scholarships for hockey. Atlantic Hockey membership limits its member schools to offer a total of 11 scholarships, so that makes the playing field a little more level for RIT. They've been very impressive this season.

Fred (VT)

Do you think RPI can carry the momentum into this weekend's contests at Harvard and Dartmouth? And if so, what are the chances of the Engineers securing home ice come playoff time?

Joe Gladziszewski

  (3:00 PM)

These will be tough tests for RPI, but if they've proven anything this year, it's that they're capable of going on streaks ... both good and bad. This team definitely needed a boost of confidence, and they got it with two wins last weekend. I think they'll be energized for the stretch run.

Joe Gladziszewski

  (3:01 PM)

Thanks for all of the great questions, and thanks for reading Inside College Hockey. We'll be back next week for another chat.