College hockey has gotten into the outdoor fun in recent years. Wisconsin defeated Ohio State 4-2 in the first-ever hockey game played at Lambeau Field back in February of 2006, with Hershey Bears’ forward Andrew Joudrey scoring in the game. Beantown puck rivals Boston University and Boston College faced off at Fenway Park this past January a week after the Winter Classic between Philly and the Bruins. But college hockey — heck, any level of hockey — has no precedent for what’s coming its way this December in Ann Arbor.

Finley, a native of Edina, Minnesota, was the Capitals' first-round selection in the 2005 NHL Entry draft, selected 27th overall. He played four seasons with the North Dakota Fighting Sioux of the WCHA, where he made his presence very known on most shifts. He spent the 2009-10 season with the Capitals' ECHL affiliate in South Carolina. He arrives at Development Camp this week listed by the Caps at 6 '8 and nearly 250 pounds. Let there be pain.]

Hey Capitals Fans, it’s Joe Finley and I was asked by OFB to share a week in Arlington, Va., at the Washington Capitals Conditioning Camp with you. The Capitals call it Development Camp, but I think of it as Conditioning Camp, it makes you so tired! I am excited to take the time each day and make my best attempt to bring you all closer to the process as experienced by me, the player.

Day One has been a long one. I started my travels jumping out of bed at 5:30 a.m. and hustling to the airport to catch a 7 o’clock flight from Minneapolis to D.C. It was nice to have been set up with a direct flight and be seated next to a number of familiar faces (Trevor Bruess and Kurt Davis) on the flight.

The next step was to get all of our gear dropped off at the rink and to get situated in the hotel before diving in face first for some great food and Vapiano’s right next to the hotel. I fell into a quick “deja vu” scenario after realizing I’ll be rooming with Bruess again (we were roommates at training camp last year).

A number of guys, including myself, went out for a 30-minute skate at Kettler today to get the blood flowing. Coach Woods ran us through some skating and passing drills before we broke for a informal 5-on-5 scrimmage. It was great to get out and start competing.

We had all our medicals and off-ice testing conducted after the skate. I always enjoy this portion of camp because you get to measure up against other guys but most importantly against yourself. I work to keep setting the bar higher year after year with test scores and am able to measure up when Mark Nemish and Jack Blatherwick present us with the numbers at the end of the week.

The day wrapped up with Braden Holtby gracing us with his presence to prolong testing (not his fault: plane delays and a cancellation), but you have to give him a hard time. We had an introduction to all the coaching staff, medical staff, equipment trainers, scouts, and strength and conditioning crew. A nice dinner at the hotel and some down time is wrapping it up. Time to catch some sleep before we hit it hard on the ice tomorrow!

RIT started its impressive run by upending Denver in a nail-biter, then dominating New Hampshire this past weekend, becoming just the fourth 4-seed to make it to the Frozen Four. Guess how students and supporters celebrated at a Rochester watering hole while watching the upsets? By eating free chicken wings.

So which D-I newcomer is the bigger Frozen Four surprise? On Monday we asked the local resident college hockey expert, the Capitals’ Nate Ewell, who is a founding member of the Inside College Hockey team.

“I think RIT’s a bigger surprise. The thing that struck me was that they hadn’t beaten a team outside their conference all year. I think their conference combined only had seven wins outside of the conference.

“Bemidji had at least played with some of the big boys — or at least big conferences. They had beaten St. Cloud State and UMass, lost to North Dakota in OT. RIT is much more out of nowhere,” Ewell noted.

“But one thing that’s consistent between the two is that they are both proud hockey schools, at Division II or III levels, that have tremendous support on campus.”

RIT announced its decision to go D-I in December of 2004 and joined the fledgling American Hockey Association. They won national titles at both the D-II and III levels, and so brought a rich hockey tradition to the transition, as Ewell noted. The school first became eligible for the AHA postseason — and the NCAAs — in the 2007-08 season. Just two seasons later the Tigers are in the Frozen Four.

Bemidji transitioned to D-I little more than a decade ago and is a mover and shaker among D-I programs today. They’ll christen a brand new, 4,000-seat rink on Lake Bemidji next season — and also join what many believe is college hockey’s best conference, the WCHA. The Beavers qualified for the NCAAs again this year and lost to Michigan in the first round over the weekend. Still, that’s a remarkable two-year run for the relative newcomer to D-I.

For schools like the Naval Academy and Penn State, who’ve toyed and flirted with the idea of  moving up to D-I, the stories of Bemidji and RIT ought to be powerful inducements to getting on with it at long last, and at last giving the Mid-Atlantic region some opportunity to witness college hockey at its highest level. It’s expensive as heck making that jump, but the experiences of these two Cinderella schools the past two Frozen Fours proves that there can be big payoffs for making it.

Our DC Sports Chick had a brother who went to RIT in the early ’90s and has lived in Rochester ever since.  We asked him for his thoughts on RIT making it to the Frozen Four:

“Well, let’s hope Cinderella gets back to Tigersville before midnight.

Ranked #15 in the 16-team field and yet made it this far!!! First AHA league team to make it to the Frozen Four. Win or lose, they’ve already done an incredible job and turned quite a few heads outside the area.  Their magical march through March sure got hotter thanks to their 12-game winning streak, peaking at the precisely right time. I’m just hoping their peak keeps up another two games. The goalie has been hot, standing on his head lately. I just hope the long wait between last and next game doesn’t get to them; mind games can be bad.

ESPN put it so well: “RIT? Yes, and thanks to these Tigers, it also stands for Really Interesting Tournament.”  Right on! Well, we’ll see . . . they’re up against some respectable opponents. Win or lose, the Tigers have exceeded already-high expectations and done a great job.

P.S. A funny joke around here, even if on the puerile side, is that since RIT is technically in the south part of Henrietta (the town) and is an institute of technology, shouldn’t they be South Henrietta Institute of Technology?  But I think that joke is taking a backseat for now; Tiger mania has definitely taken hold, biiiiiig time. The newspaper said this is the only Division I program at any of Rochester area’s colleges/universities.  RIT’s known for being a hockey school with a strong fan base. I’ve seen it up close since 1992, so I concur.”

The two bitter CCHA rivals actually met outdoors in early October of 2001, a 3-3 tie at MSU’s football stadium. That game drew just under 75,000.

Michigan will play at Wisconsin on February 6 in the Camp Randall Hockey Classic in the Badgers’ football stadium. A really cool-looking gallery of a recent UW outdoor practice skate can be found here. No word yet on television coverage for the December renewal of ‘The Cold War’ beyond a regional outlet.

It was interesting to see how many picked Bemidji State.  But then again, who doesn’t love an underdog?

Thanks to all for participating, and congrats to Dan!  (We’ll be in touch with you.)

The Marriott (12th & H) where Miami & Bemidji State are staying is buzzing with anticipation. The lobby was filled with supporters of both teams clad in their respective school’s gear. One of the teams was boarding a bus to go to the Phone Booth during my visit.

Of note for fans: a Frozen Four sales stand is operating in the hotel lobby. Thursday & Saturday they’re open from 8:00 a.m. until after the games end. On Friday, merchandise will be available from 8:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m., and Sunday morning as well.

I’ve no idea how the lobby’s prices compare to the arena, but I can guarantee the lines will be shorter at the hotel. For reference, I picked up a nice Frozen Four puck for 10 bucks. They have a wide variety of shirts ($22-$24), hats, pins, and other goodies. Merchandise was plentiful this afternoon, though so were customers. I still regret not spending more rubles in Moscow early in the IIHF championship when they had more items in stock… so if there’s something you know you want, don’t delay!

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From Pucksandbooks:

All NCAA events take place under a prohibition of alcohol sales. That means that hockey fans attending tonight’s two hockey games may not enjoy the games as God intended. There may be some merit to this policy for events at which thousands of undergraduate students attend, such as autumn Saturday football games, but this obviously isn’t that.

However well intentioned, it is not a policy I support.

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From Pucksandbooks:

Count me as one who was gravely concerned about Verizon’s ice quality for this event, given what the building has provided the Caps this season. But the puck stayed pretty flat in the first period, and there was a good bit of snow on it near period’s end. But guess what – it’s not warm in here, not by a long shot. It’s a new sheet, too, installed right after the Caps’ last home game on Sunday.

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From Pucksandbooks:

Supreme Court Chief Justice Roberts is in the house, which is cool, as we saw him up close at the Caps’ outdoor skate at Chevy Chase CC a few months back. But for my money the most impressive celeb sighting thus far – happily in my section – is 1980 Olympics hero Mike Eruzione. Folks in my section are all over him to pose for pics. He was a BU guy, if you didn’t know.

We’ll recognize all the Carnacs the Magnificent out there who pick the four correctly, and one of them will receive a free OFB mug.

And if you can’t wait for the hands of fate to carry a mug to you, feel free to browse the OFB store for mugs and other goodies.

Good luck, and hope to see you at the Verizon Center for the Frozen Four! 

Happy Thanksgiving from all of us at OFB.