An open letter to the MTU Pep Band

February 15, 2023

Dear Michigan Tech Pep Band, From the very first hockey game I ever attended with my family after we moved to the Copper Country in 1983, I have always enjoyed listening to you play music and lead chants, whether at the MacInnes Student Ice Arena, at Kearly Stadium, in the SDC Gym, or even on campus. I even had the opportunity to see you perform on Michigan’s field, scaring the pants off the Grand Valley State band, who saw you hit the field, and I watched their collective mouths hit the ground, in unison. Your job is not always easy. In the 1990s and early 2000s, the hockey program ...

Gremlins have huge matchup this week

January 25, 2023

Editor’s note: I know it has been about a month or so since I last wrote a column, but I have been busy taking care of things on our end to give you the best coverage we can muster. As the No. 13 Michigan Tech Huskies hockey team gets ready to face their rivals from down the road, the Northern Michigan Wildcats, the Houghton Gremlins, who are ranked No. 2 in Michigan according to mihshockeyhub.com, are preparing for a massive matchup of their own on Friday night at Dee Stadium. Why is that, you ask? The Gremlins are preparing to host the No. 2 team in Wisconsin, the Bay Port ...

Early returns mixed for top-ranked Gremlins

December 14, 2022

As of Nov. 28, the Houghton Gremlins hockey team is the top-ranked squad in Division 3, according to the Michigan High School Hockey Hub poll. They are also the No. 2 team in the Super 10, which ranks the teams regardless of division. The Gremlins are 6-0 on the season thanks to wins this past weekend against Saginaw Heritage and Kingsford of 6-3 and 6-2, respectively. Houghton had not surrendered a goal until their fourth game of the season, a rivalry matchup against Hancock at the Dee Stadium last Wednesday. So, why don’t the Gremlins feel like the best team in the ...

Fourth line comes to play

December 7, 2022

After Saturday’s 3-1 win over the Northern Michigan Wildcats, the No. 18 Michigan Tech Huskies hockey coach Joe Shawhan was quick to praise a trio of forwards. The Huskies’ fourth line of sophomore Levi Stauber, junior Nick Nardella and junior Tyrone Bronte logged a regular shift the entire night. “Wow,” said Shawhan. “I mean, wow. That is all I can say. They were incredible.” Shawhan sometimes slid sophomore Marcus Pedersen onto the line in place of Bronte, and the results were much the same. Shawhan felt that the adjustments the team made between Friday night and ...

I scored a goal, but didn’t like it

November 30, 2022

After winning our first five games of our Oldtimer’s season, CSI was 5-0. We had won our last two games, 8-0 and 9-1. We were on a roll. It seemed like we might never lose. That came crashing down the next week. We jumped out to a 1-0 lead against Calumet Electronics, but found ourselves in a 1-1 tie at half time on Nov. 20. In the second half, the proverbial wheels fell off our bus. We surrendered five more goals in a row, and lost 6-1. It felt like nothing we could did worked. We stopped shooting. We stopped skating. We just struggled collectively. The next weekend, we took ...

World Cup in full swing in Qatar

November 29, 2022

The 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar has just wrapped its first week. Although the governing body of international soccer and the host nation have faced heavy criticism in preceding weeks from both teams and fans, the opening group stage of the competition has proven to be as thrilling as ever. Though this year’s tournament is being held in November and December to account for Qatar’s brutal year round heat, the nature of the competition remains the same. The chance to lift the legendary trophy for team and country is an accomplishment unlike any other in the sport. As an ...