There are no surprises atop the MIAC as the first half comes to a close. Saint John’s and Augsburg have established themselves as the top two teams in the league at the moment.
The Johnnies have won their last six while the Auggies have won two in a row and nine of their first 10 games overall.
Check out more on those teams and a few other news and notes from around the league.
Johnnies are red-hot
The Johnnies have scored five or more goals four times during their win streak, outscoring the opposition 27-5. Only one opponent during the stretch has scored more than a goal against them.
Credit a lot of their success to the play on defense, particularly Mac Berglove, who sports the best save percentage in the MIAC at .944. He also owns a league-best 1.37 goals against average and has come through with 235 saves, the third highest total in the MIAC.
Offensively, Lewis Crosby has helped pave the way. Only a sophomore and a transfer from St. Thomas, he leads the league in goals scored (9).
Then there is Auggie Moore, who has tallied at least point in his last eight games. Moore ranks second in points (14), nine of which have come off assists.
With the way Saint John’s has played up to this point, it’s unlikely things will change in the second half. The Johnnies are expected to be in the mix for the league title.
Auggies looking impressive
Augsburg has looked like a legit contender in the first half of the season, having won nine of its first 10 games of the season. The Auggies skate into the holiday season with a two-game win streak and are ranked fourth in the DCU/USCHO.com Division III poll.
They have been dominant on both ends of the ice, scoring 35 goals and allowing just 12. Gavin Holland ranks second in the league in goals scored (8) while Austin Martinsen has been one of the top playmakers in the MIAC, dishing out 10 assists. He leads the team in points (13).
A total of 18 players have tallied at least one point for Augsburg while Jack Robbel has seen the most time in goal, appearing in eight games and fashioning a 1.58 goals against average.
Augsburg is poised to pick up where it left off when the second half of the season begins.
Keep an eye on the Cobbers
Concordia has positioned to be in the hunt for the MIAC title. The Cobbers are 5-4-2 overall and 3-2-1 in the conference heading into Christmas. They won a game against Augsburg by a 4-2 score to close out the first half, and that win gives the Cobbers a boost of confidence.
Tyler Bossert is going to give the Cobbers a chance to win each night. The talented senior star has been an assist machine through the first 11 games, dishing out 13 assists in that stretch. He has also scored two goals and is well on his way to reaching the 100-point mark of his career. Bossert currently has 82 points.
Jackson Nelson has led the way in goal. He has started eight games and fashioned a 2.20 goals against average.
The big thing to watch for Concordia is how it handles the first month of 2022. The Cobbers have played only twice away from home so far this season but will play four of its eight games on the road in January. Having success in those situations is key to setting itself up for a title run.
Oles among the teams to watch
St. Olaf ended its first half of the season with a 5-2 win over Bethel and Tyler Cooper played a big role in that game, scoring four goals. He’s the first to score at least three goals in a game for the oles since 2017 and it’s been at least 20 years since a player from St. Olaf has scored four goals.
Cooper is only a freshman, which makes his success that much more impressive, and he currently sits at eight goals on the year to go along with six assists.
St. Olaf has shown it can compete with top-tier teams, winning a game against then nationally ranked UW-Eau Claire in early November, and they should be in the mix for the MIAC crown when it’s all said and done.
Tight race ahead
There is typically little separation between the teams in the standings throughout the season and that should hold true again over the final two months of the year.
Six teams have three or more wins in conference play, with four teams tied with three wins apiece while only one game separates Augsburg and Saint John’s at the top of the standings. Augsburg is 5-1 and Saint John’s is 4-2.
The two teams will square off in the final weekend of the regular season and it won’t be a surprise to anyone if that home-and-home series determines the top seed for the MIAC tournament.
