Tropp leaves Spartans for Buffalo deal

MSU Press Release

Michigan State junior forward Corey Tropp has opted to forego his final season of collegiate eligibility, signing a three-year entry-level contact with the Buffalo Sabres.

Tropp was the Spartans’ top scorer a season ago and is the third underclassman to sign a professional contract this off-season. Terms of his contract were not announced.

“Obviously, we are going to miss a player of Corey’s caliber in the lineup,” noted MSU head coach Rick Comley. “This, though, is the reality of college hockey – good players are leaving school after their sophomore and junior seasons. We wish him the best as he pursues his dream to play professional hockey.”

Tropp is coming off a season where he earned team MVP honors and was named a Second Team All-CCHA performer, notching 42 points (20 goals, 22 assists) in 37 games last season. He spent the season ranked among national leaders in goals, as well as power-play markers (9) and game-winning tallies (5). The winger appeared in 100 career games in Green and White and had a 29-41-70 scoring line.

An alternate captain this season, Tropp was a fifth-round draft pick of the Sabres in the 2007 NHL entry draft.

Tropp joins classmates Jeff Petry (Edmonton Oilers) and Andrew Rowe (Philadelphia Flyers) as early departures from the Spartans. All were among the team’s top four scorers.

Former NMU Wildcat wins InLine gold

Compiled by MiCHO Staff

Former Northern Michigan forward Nathan Sigmund helped power the U.S. InLine National Team to the gold medal at the 2010 International Ice Hockey Federation InLine Hockey World Championship in Karlstad, Sweden.

Team USA scored with five minutes remaining to down the Czech Republic, 4-3, and secure their fifth gold medal in tournament history.

Sigmund was named the best forward of the tournament by the directorate after racking up five goals and three assists in six games. He was also a member of Team USA’s silver medal-winning team in 2009.

Sigmund scored five goals and 17 points in 106 career games (2005-09) for the Wildcats.

MTU to host regionals in 2011, 2012

MTU Press Release

The NCAA recently announced the hosts and sites of the 2012 Division I Men’s Ice Hockey Regionals and Michigan Technological University has been given the Midwest Regional to host at the Resch Center in Green Bay, Wis.

The announcement from the NCAA is the first regarding Division I Men’s Ice Hockey Championship sites since September 2008, when Tech and the Resch Center were given the 2011 Midwest Regional.

The 2011 and 2012 regionals will be the second and third time Michigan Tech and the Resch Center have combined up to host NCAA Hockey Tournament events. The pair hosted the 2006 NCAA Men’s Ice Hockey Midwest Regional, which featured three sellout games and saw Wisconsin defeat Cornell, 2-1, in three overtimes in the championship.

The dates for the regionals are March 26-27 in 2011 and March 24-25 in 2012.