As another season of hockey gets underway in the NCHA, there is no doubt the conference is poised to have a big year.
Adrian is the reigning national runner-up and has played in the title game the last two seasons, winning it all in 2021, while Aurora is once again among the top teams nationally. And don’t count out St. Norbert, which has a tradition of success.
The league is always one of the more competitive in D-III hockey and this year should be no exception.
Adrian
The Bulldogs are the favorite to win the conference once again and expected to contend for the national championship as well. They finished 25-5-2 overall and 13-4-1 in the NCHA last year.
While four players have gone on to play in the pros this season, the cupboard isn’t bare for the Bulldogs. Sixteen players are back, with 11 of those guys playing in the national championship game against Hobart.
Zach Heintz and Riley Murphy are expected to step up in a big way offensively after the team lost its top four scorers, while Matt Rehding will be counted on to contribute in a key role as well and bring consistency to the table. Ryan Pitoscia is a year older and set to step into a more prominent role on the team.
Jaden Shields will be vital to Adrian’s success and is a big-time playmaker, dishing out 27 assists last season, making him the top defenseman in the nation when it comes to dishing out the puck. He’ll be motivated having been left off the All-American team last season.
Matt Couto aims to bounce back from a season-ending injury and Dershahn Stewart should rise to the occasion in goal.
Western Michigan Transfer Theo Thrun should make an immediate impact. He previously played in the NAHL and tallied 88 points in 120 games. Julien Jacobs is a newcomer to watch as well after playing in the OJHL.
If the Bulldogs play up to their potential, and all signs point to them doing just that the opportunity is there for this team to make another run at the title.
St. Norbert
The Green Knights were 17-9-2 overall and 12-5-1 in the conference and should be in the title hunt once again.
Liam Fraser will help lead the way after coming off a year where he was the points leader for the Green Knights, scoring 16 goals and dishing out 19 assists.
Adam Stacho also returns and was one of the key contributors last season. He tallied 15 goals and 10 assists. Brock Baker is back as well after scoring five goals and racking up 11 assists.
Curtis Hammond will be a key player as well. He finished with seven goals and eight assists last season. Johnny Roberts will anchor the goalie position. He played in 18 games last year, fashioning a 2.29 goals against average.
Aurora
The Spartans finished third overall in the conference last season, winning nearly 20 games. They finished 19-8-2 overall and 13-3-2 in the NCHA.
Aurora has been a program on the rise and looks to take the next step forward in a conference that is one of the most challenging night in and night out.
Eighteen players are back, including Giovanni Procopio, who ranked third on the team in points, coming through with 10 goals and 20 assists. He’ll be a big part of the offense again this year.
Derrick Budz also returns after tallying 12 goals and 16 assists and Hassan Akl is also back after dishing out 21 assists. He also scored six goals.
Matt Weber (14 goals, 8 assists), Juliano Santalucia (3 goals, 7 assists) and Tyler Pang (3 goals, 13 assists) are also among the key players back.
Aurora has added several new players who could make an impact right away, including Spencer DenBeste from Lake Superior State, as the Spartans take aim at a title and NCAA tourney bid.
Trine
The Thunder have had a pretty good run in the NCHA but are going to be younger this year after graduating three of their top five scorers and five of their top 10 scorers overall.
Both goalies return in Kyle Kozma and Christian Wong-Ramos, and both players split time in the net and had success.
Bobby Price and Sam Antenucci will lead the way offensively for Trine. Price scored seven goals and dished out 17 assists while Antenucci ranked second on the team in scoring with nine goals and 19 assists despite missing the last few games of the year.
Josh Wright will also make an impact. He’s the team’s top defender and came through with 13 points last year.
Another winning season is possible for the Thunder. It may take time to get the offense rolling but the defense should keep Trine in games early on in the year.
MSOE
The Raiders finished with a winning record last year, going 15-12 and they were right at .500 (9-9) in the conference.
A total of 23 players are back. Among them is Gramm McCormack, the NCHA Freshman of the Year. He’ll be a player opposing defenses will focus but he seems to be up for the challenge. McCormack punched in 12 goals last season and also dished out 18 assists, ranking third on the team in points.
Carson Jones is another player the Raiders will turn to for production. He scored three goals and tallied 10 assists last year. Cole Beilke is also back after tallying three goals and nine assists a year ago.
Jacob Bosse should develop into more of an impact player as well this season for the Raiders.
One area where MSOE shouldn’t have any concerns is in goal, and that will benefit the team in its quest to contend in the conference.
Austin Schwab had the most starts (20 games) last season, making 534 saves, and Nick Stofcheck started five games, racking up 151 saves. Spencer Northway started only once but is capable of stepping up when needed.
Marian
The Sabres had a strong second half of the season, winning eight of their final 14 games. They finished 11-14-2 overall and 8-8-2 in the league. They are hoping to carry that momentum into this season.
They shouldn’t be short on confidence having beaten three ranked teams last year, including top-ranked Adrian on the road.
Marian also has experience. Jayes Knee led the team in goals (12) and tied for the team lead in points (28), scoring five game winners.
Noah Pickart was one of the top scoring defenseman in the NCHA, recording two goals and 11 assists while Daunte Fortner ranked third in points (19 and tallied a point in nine of the team’s final 11 games. He finished with nine goals and 19 assists.
Keep an eye on newcomers Nolan Flint, Andreai Proctor-Ramirez and Hayden Tuba. All three have the ability to be impact players when it comes to scoring goals and tallying assists.
Lake Forest
The Foresters are coming off an 11-12-4 campaign last season that included a 7-8-3 mark in the NCHA and a trip to the conference tournament. They hope to take steps forward this year in what will be the first season for Sean O’Malley as the head coach of the program. He had been the interim coach and has been on the staff since 2014.
Success is possible for the Foresters, who return seven of the nine players who hit doubles figures in points last year. That group includes one of the top freshman in the league from the 2022-23 season in Collin Bella,who led the team in goals (11) and also tallied 11 assists.
Justin Ross ranked third in points last season, racking up nine goals and eight assists, while Matteas Derraugh was right behind him with four goals and 13 assists.
Jared Gerger (8 goals, 7 assists) and Tyler Nielsen (8 goals, 7 assists) also return for the Foresters and play key roles in the team’s success. Ben Perkins (4 goals, 8 assists) is a key returnee as well.
Bobby McCloskey brings experience to the goalie position, though he only played in two games last season. Alexander Rohlf, Dylan Kraus and Salve Regina transfer Kohl Reddy are also listed as goalies on the roster.
Concordia
The Falcons are just hoping to take some steps forward after going 4-22-1 last season. That record included a 4-13-1 mark in the NCHA.
This will still be a young team but the potential is there to be an improved team from a season ago.
Colin Kerchoff, Nick Wieben and Zach Brydes lead the way for Concordia, with Brydes leading the team in goals scored (9) to go along with four assists.
Wieben and Kerchoff both came through with four goals and 11 assists and should build on that production this season.
Gabe Rosek comes back with experience in goal. He boasted a .902 save percentage last year. Newcomers to keep an eye on for the Falcons are transfers Garrett McArthur (SUNY-Potsdam) and Seth Bergeron (Stevenson) as well as freshman Logan Kroyman.
Lawrence
The Vikings won just four games last year, going 4-19-2 overall and 3-14-1 in the NCHA. Their top returning player is Kyle Gierman, who was an all-conference pick last year as a defenseman. He tallied three goals and dished out 12 assists.
He’s among the 17 players back for the Vikings, who also welcome back key players Jayden Jensen, Will Crull, Oliver DeCroock, Cory Checco and Owen Carlson.
Checco ranked second on the team in points with seven goals and nine assists while Crull scored two goals to go along with seven assists. Jensen racked up four goals and four assists.
Fourteen newcomers have been added as well, including Chatham transfer Max Wigfield and Framingham State transfer Dylan Marty.
Defense should be a strength for the Vikings, in part because Owen Carlson is back in goal. He started 17 games last year and owned a save percentage of just over 90 percent (.902).
Dubuque
While the Spartans are new to the league, there is some familiarity with this team. For starters, Seamus Gregory is the head coach. He used to coach at Northland, which was once in the NCHA.
Dubuque also added many players to its roster from Finlandia, which closed this past year and had been a team in the NCHA. The team will feature 12 upperclassmen and 16 newcomers.
No one knows what to expect with this being a new team, the first NCAA hockey team in Iowa, but the Spartans hope to lay the foundation for future success during their inaugural year.
