July 3, 1998
NOTRE DAME, Ind. – The Notre Dame hockey team has released its schedule for the 1998-99 season, with the home highlights including two games versus defending NCAA champion Michigan and single games with NCAA semifinalist Ohio State and defending Central Collegiate Hockey Association regular-season champion Michigan State. The road highlights include a season-opening game at Wisconsin, a game at NCAA runner-up Boston College and two games at perennial power North Dakota. The challenging CCHA road schedule also includes two games at Michigan, Ohio State, Michigan State and Miami University plus a neutral-site game versus Ferris State at Van Andel Arena in Grand Rapids, Mich.
The Irish will play host to 15 games at the Joyce Center Fieldhouse, all within CCHA play. The first home weekend includes Lake Superior State and Western Michigan (Oct. 9-10) before Ohio State comes calling on Oct. 23. Consecutive home dates in November will see the Irish play host to Bowling Green (Nov. 13), Michigan (Nov. 14) and Western Michigan (Nov. 20). Notre Dame then will not return home until a Jan. 9 game vs. Miami, followed by a Jan. 15-16 weekend series vs. Alaska-Fairbanks. Notre Dame closes January with another meeting versus Michigan (Jan. 30).
For the second straight season, the CCHA schedule makers have forced Notre Dame and Michigan State to play their entire season series in the span of two weeks. MSU will visit the Joyce Center on Feb. 5 before playing host to the Irish on Feb. 12 and 19.
Notre Dame’s final home games come vs. UAF (Feb. 6), Ferris State (Feb. 13) and Northern Michigan (Feb. 26-27).
Two Friday-night home games will be held during home football weekends: Oct. 23 vs. OSU (football vs. Army on the 24th) and Nov. 20 vs. WMU (football vs. LSU on the 21st).
Notre Dame opens Oct. 3 at Wisconsin before playing later in the month at Ferris State (Oct. 16), Lake Superior (Oct. 17) and WMU (Oct. 24). The Irish will play at Boston College on Nov. 6, the day before the school meet in football at BC, before heading across town to play at Northeastern in Nov. 7.
The Irish close the fall semester with four games away from home, at Michigan on Nov. 21, vs. FSU in Grand Rapids (Nov. 24) and at Ohio State (Dec. 4-5).
Notre Dame will return from the Christmas break by playing a Saturday-Sunday series at North Dakota on Jan. 2-3 and at Bowling Green on the 8th. Six of the next eight games then will be at home, with a Jan. 22-23 trip to the upper peninsula to face NMU and LSSU.
In addition to the MSU games, Notre Dame’s final road tests will come at Bowling Green (Feb. 20) and Miami (March 5-6).
The CCHA Tournament best 2-of-3 opening-round series will be held March 12-14, at the sites of the top-four regular season finishers. The CCHA semi-finals and finals again will be held in Detroit’s Joe Louis Arena, on March 19-20.
The NCAA Tournament regionals will be held March 26-28 in Madison, Wis. and Worchester, Mass. while the NCAA semi-finals and finals will be held on April 1 and 3 at the Arrowhead Pond in Anaheim, Calif. All games are scheduled to begin at 7:00 p.m., except for the Feb. 12 game at Michigan State (which has an 8:00 p.m. start).
1998-99 Notre Dame Hockey Schedule
(as of July 3)
OctoberSat. 3 at Wisconsin Madison, WI 7:00 p.m.FRI. 9 *lake superior state JOYCE CENTER 7:00 p.m.SAT. 10 *western michigan JOYCE CENTER 7:00 p.m.Fri. 16 *at Ferris State Big Rapids, MI 7:00 p.m.Sat. 17 *at Lake Superior State Sault Ste. Marie, MI 7:00 p.m.FRI. 23 *Ohio State JOYCE CENTER 7:00 p.m.SAT. 24 *at Western Michigan Kalamazoo, MI 7:00 p.m. NovemberFri. 6 at Boston College Boston, MA 7:00 p.m.Sat. 7 at Northeastern Boston, MA 7:00 p.m.FRI. 13 *BOWLING GREEN JOYCE CENTER 7:00 p.m.SAT. 14 *MICHIGAN JOYCE CENTER 7:00 p.m.FRI. 20 *WESTERN MICHIGAN JOYCE CENTER 7:00 p.m.SAT. 21 *at Michigan Ann Arbor, MI 7:00 p.m.Tue. 24 *vs. Ferris State (Van Andel Arena) Grand Rapids, MI 7:00 p.m.
DecemberFri. 4 *at Ohio State Columbus, OH 7:00 p.m.Sat. 5 *at Ohio State Columbus, OH 7:00 p.m.
JanuarySat. 2 at North Dakota Grand Forks, ND 7:00 p.m.Sun. 3 at North Dakota Grand Forks, ND 7:00 p.m.Fri. 8 *at Bowling Green Bowling Green, OH 7:00 p.m.Sat. 9 *MIAMI JOYCE CENTER 7:00 p.m. FRI. 15 *ALASKA-FAIRBANKS JOYCE CENTER 7:00 p.m.SAT. 16 *ALASKA-FAIRBANKS JOYCE CENTER 7:00 p.m.Fri. 22 *at Northern Michigan Marquette, MI 7:00 p.m.Sat. 23 *at Lake Superior State Sault Ste. Marie, MI 7:00 p.m.SAT. 30 *MICHIGAN JOYCE CENTER 7:00 p.m.
February Fri. 5 *MICHIGAN STATE JOYCE CENTER 7:00 p.m.SAT. 6 *ALASKA-FAIRBANKS JOYCE CENTER 7:00 p.m. Fri. 12 *at Michigan State East Lansing, MI 8:00 p.m.SAT. 13 *FERRIS STATE JOYCE CENTER 7:00 p.m.Fri. 19 *at Michigan State East Lansing, MI 7:00 p.m.Sat. 20 *at Bowling Green Bowling Green, OH 7:00 p.m.FRI. 26 *NORTHERN MICHIGAN JOYCE CENTER 7:00 p.m.SAT. 27 *NORTHERN MICHIGAN JOYCE CENTER 7:00 p.m.
MarchFRI. 5 *at Miami Oxford, OH 7:00 p.m.SAT. 6 *at Miami Oxford, OH 7:00 p.m.
Fri.- 12 CCHA Tournament TBA TBASun. -14 (home sites, best 2-of-3) TBA TBAFri. 19 CCHA Semifinals (Joe Louis Arena) Detroit, MI TBAsat. 20 CCHA Final (Joe Louis Arena) Detroit, MI TBA
Fri.- 26 NCAA Regional TBA Sun. -28 (Madison, WI or Worcester, MA) TBA
AprilThur. 1 NCAA Semifinals Anaheim, CA TBASat. 3 NCAA Final (Arrowhead Pond) TBA
HOME GAMES IN ALL CAPSAll times local * - Central Collegiate Hockey Association game