Inside the NCHC: Team-by-Team 2021-22 Previews

(photo: Matt Dewkett)

by Avash Kalra and Jordan McAlpine/CHN Reporter

The NCHC's run of four consecutive NCAA titles may have ended last spring — when Massachusetts shut out St. Cloud State, 5-0, in the 2021 national championship game — but the league should produce a number of contenders once again.

Still, with players shuffling to and from programs, and two teams welcoming new head coaches, a sense of unpredictability defines the conference's outlook heading into the 2021-22 season. North Dakota returns as the reigning regular-season and NCHC tournament champion.

In order of predicted finish based on the league's preseason media poll:

St. Cloud State

Head coach: Brett Larson
2020-21 Record: 20-11-0 (15-9-0 NCHC)

Changes: The Huskies lost Jared Cockrell and Will Hammer, who were two parts of a line head coach Brett Larson loved. However, SCSU brings back nearly everyone else from last season and adds five new faces. Four of those five are freshmen, including 2021 Minnesota Mr. Hockey Award winner Jack Peart.

“He just plays a mature game,” Larson said of the freshman defenseman. “Even in practice early he looks like a veteran and looks like that guy that almost plays like a pro. Even as an 18-year-old kid he’s back having coffee with our equipment guy in the morning like he’s been here for 10 years, which is pretty fun to see.”

Larson said Peart will have to earn his ice time but the mobile defenseman should see some big minutes for the Huskies this season.

Strengths: Look up and down this SCSU roster you’ll find three things; depth, skill and a lineup that can beat any team in several different ways. The Huskies may have the most dynamic forward in the conference in Veeti Miettinen, plus his Finnish partner in crime Jami Krannila. Add Kevin Fitzgerald, Sam Hentges, Zach Okabe, Nolan Walker and Micah Miller to the mix, plus a healthy Easton Brodzinski (who was hurt in last year's NCAA Regional), and there are few teams with a better mix of talent and depth.

That’s backed up with one of the most talented bluelines in the conference anchored by Nick Perbix, Spencer Meier and Seamus Donohue, plus the addition of Peart. Whether a game requires finesse or a gritty effort, this team has proven it can win in multiple different fashions.

Weaknesses: It may be crazy to think a goaltender that led his team to the national championship game could be a question mark, but that’s one of the biggest questions looming over this St. Cloud State team. David Hrenak put together a solid 2020-21 campaign, but consistency was lacking.

Larson said some of Hrenak’s best games last season came after being pushed, and he’s shown the potential is there. Now he wants his goaltender to prove this season he can consistently be a top goalie in the league.

2021-22 Outlook: The runner-up last spring is the favorite in the NCHC Preseason Poll. Miettinen and Perbix are both projected All-Conference caliber players. And why not? The Huskies — who swept aside St. Thomas in a pair of season-opening wins with ease — are one of the most experienced groups in the conference.

Expectations are high within and around this group and the Huskies look like a lock to finish at or near the top of the NCHC. Even with last year’s success, it’s in the rearview mirror.

“As fun as last season was, there’s a new challenge ahead,” Larson said. “We can’t keep looking back, it’s time to go forward.”

Minnesota-Duluth

Head coach: Scott Sandelin
2020-21 Record: 15-11-2 (13-9-2 NCHC)

Changes: The national champs in 2018 and 2019, the Bulldogs fell short of a three-peat last season when they bowed out to eventual champion Massachusetts in the national semifinal. When the Bulldogs take the ice this weekend for a home-and-home series with Bemidji State, Sandelin's group will look a little bit different, but returning fifth-year players like Louie Roehl, Koby Bender and Kobe Roth will provide a familiar feel. Gone, however, are  Nick Swaney (graduated), as well Cole Koepke and Jackson Cates, who signed NHL deals in the offseason. The Bulldogs add plenty of experience, too, with fifth-year forward Casey Gilling, who transferred from Miami after scoring 77 points in 131 games for the RedHawks.

Strengths: Experience in big-game situations is going to remain the biggest strength for the Bulldogs until other teams wrestle that away from them. It showed last season, too, when UMD won an all-time classic in the NCAAs, a 5-OT thriller over North Dakota to send the Bulldogs back to the Frozen Four over the favored Fighting Hawks. Goaltenders Zach Stejskal and Ryan Fanti both played in the game — famously so — and return this season to given Sandelin excellent options behind his well-oiled defense.

Weaknesses: Though this may certainly prove to be beneficial in the long run, the Bulldogs face a demanding first-half schedule that will test the ability of UMD to gain sustained momentum. Before 2021 ends, UMD travels to Minnesota, North Dakota and Minnesota State. That's in addition to the Ice Breaker opener against high-powered Michigan on Oct. 15. That matchup will finally happen after it was scheduled to be a first-round NCAA game last spring, only to have Michigan forced to bow out due to COVID protocols.

2021-22 Outlook: UMD has all the tools for another run at titles both in the conference and nationally, although that will require a deeper offense that will need to evolve through this season. For UMD, it usually does.

UMD returnee Noah Cates was named to the All-NCHC Preseason All-Conference team and will need to continue his production as a senior captain this season. Cates is a playmaker, and maintaining ideal linemates for him will be critical.

“We’ve been working hard in practice, and I know our group is excited to get back out there," Cates said. "Last year didn’t end how we wanted it to, so we’re really looking forward to getting started, and I think we’ll be ready. We definitely have something to prove this year, so I like where our team’s at mentally and physically.

"The culture in Duluth is the national championship. Bringing these fifth-year guys back that have two is huge for our experience, and showing these younger guys what it takes to add another. Bringing those guys back is huge to show the younger guys how we do things, the right way to play and just being ready for that big stage.”

North Dakota

Head coach: Brad Berry
2020-21 Record: 22-6-1 (18-5-1 NCHC)

Changes: Arguably the most interesting team to watch early this season may be the Fighting Hawks, who despite entering the campaign with plenty of talent, lost an astounding amount of it in the offseason from graduation (Jordan Kawaguchi, Collin Adams, Matt Kiersted, Grant Mismash), NHL signees (Shane Pinto, Jacob Bernard-Docker, Jasper Weatherby, Adam Scheel), or via the transfer portal (goaltender Peter Thome). In all, North Dakota enters the season without over 60 percent of its goal production from a year ago. 

Enter the likes of Jackson Kunz, Matteo Costantini and Brent Johnson (all of whom are NHL draft picks), as well as Bemidji State transfer Zach Driscoll, who figures to be UND's No. 1 option in net. The Fighting Hawks were active in the transfer portal, bringing in promising offensive production from Ashton Calder (Lake Superior) and Connor Ford (Bowling Green), as well as experience on the blue line from Chris Jandric (Alaska) and Brady Ferner (RPI).

Strengths: The 2021-22 Fighting Hawks have a chip on their shoulder. Regarded by most as the top team in the country each of the past two seasons (with the 2019-20 season shutdown halting a potential championship run), UND has a sense of unfinished business, and the team has been creative in making sure it'll remain competitive this winter. Though plenty of talent is gone from a year ago, last season's top offense in the country figures to be productive once again, and that'll create havoc on opposing defenses all season long.

“We had goals for ourselves and we had an opportunity," said Berry. "We did win a couple of championships — the regular season and playoff championships. And we were a goal away from getting to the Frozen Four to try and do the other. For us now, it’s about trying to get back to that level again in a short amount of time and with a totally different group."

Weaknesses: Returning sophomore Jake Sanderson, a 2020 first-round pick by the Ottawa Senators, is a preseason All-Conference selection. And while there's plenty of talent on paper on the blue line, it remains to be seen whether the relatively young defense — featuring no seniors — can gel quickly with the aforementioned transfers to produce UND's characteristic shut-down defense. They'll also be tasked with doing so in front of a new (for them) goaltender in Driscoll.

2021-22 Outlook: Obviously, North Dakota has the talent on paper to win the league again. The question, simply, is whether all the newcomers can fit in. If not, it'll be an uncharacteristic fight for home ice down the stretch instead of the Penrose.

“Expectations are high, high, high," Berry said. "We never hang any excuses on, 'Well we’ve got 14 (nine freshmen and five transfers) new players.’ I think it’s a situation where it even puts more motivation in our group to try and get to the level we need to be. We have some very good teams in this league and not to mention, a lot of these teams have retained a lot of great players for an extra year, and we know that. At the end of the day we know we have really good players coming in our group, too, so we feel we have a really good group. Now it’s about rying to get that new group together.”

Denver

Head coach: David Carle
2020-21 Record: 10-13-1 (9-12-1 NCHC)

Changes: The Pioneers are one of the NCHC teams that saw the most roster turnover; DU moved on from their captain, Kohen Olischefski, and nine others. In an offseason full of seniors returning for a fifth year and finding homes via the transfer portal, David Carle and his staff were some of the least active on that front.

Instead, the Pioneers opted to go the other direction and get younger. Denver’s strong incoming freshman class features nine newcomers, including Carter Mazur, Shai Buium and Sean Behrens. The Pioneers' lone transfer portal addition was a big one, though, in Bowling Green’s Cameron Wright.

Strengths: Skill, skill and more skill. Carter Savoie finished his freshman campaign with 13 goals, which led all NCHC rookies. It was just two goals shy of the overall league-leader, Shane Pinto. Senior Cole Guttman led the Pioneers with 22 points last season and he’s back with a 'C' on his chest now too. If Bobby Brink returns anywhere near his freshman form and with Mazur now also in the fold, the Pioneers forwards have plenty of skill.

Tack on Mike Benning and Anti Tuomisto on defense, plus a pair of second-round picks this summer in Behrens and Buium, and talent is not lacking on this Denver roster.

Weaknesses: Even with that skill at the top of the lineup, the Pioneers simply need more scoring. Take away the five previously mentioned returners and Olischefski, and nobody else on the roster had double-digit points. Savoie and Guttman alone combined for 21 of Denver’s 67 goals. In his media day press session, Carle said his two keys for this season are to score more goals and not give up as many. It sounds obvious and cliche, but with this team, it’s true.

The Pioneers shot just 9.3 percent last season, and averaged 2.8 goals per game. They’ll need better play in net too if they want a chance. Denver’s team save percentage was .890 last season. A big part of that falls on Magnus Chrona, who struggled to find consistency in 2020-21. Similar to Brink, if Chrona can find the form again that landed him on the NCHC All-Rookie Team, this Denver team is a force to be reckoned with.

“He’s vital to our success and we feel that we’ve added a freshman in Matty Davis out of Green Bay who can come in and push him and fight for minutes as well,” Carle said. “To have competition at the position I think is really important in the college game, so both guys will push each other and they’ll ultimately decide through their practice and game performance who ends up being the guy.”

2021-22 Outlook: Last season, the Pioneers were never able to get much going early on. Denver left Omaha with a 3-6-1 record during the early season "pod" and stumbled to start the second half with a loss at Colorado College. The Pioneers should make a push for one of the top spots in the NCHC, but they have to get off to a better start out of the gate.

“The key is building the right way,” Carle said. “Building our foundation in our three weeks of camp, having an attitude and swagger to us and some confidence going into those first games.”

Although they were able to turn it around down the stretch and beat Omaha in the NCHC Frozen Faceoff opening round, with no Pairwise in place, it was 'too little, too late.' Carle found himself petitioning for his team, and the Pioneers ultimately found themselves on the outside looking in during the NCAA Tournament. It doesn’t look like this group will find itself on the outside looking in next spring.

“Last year was not the year we wanted and that can’t happen again,” Guttman said. “We’re making it an emphasis to come out strong and be consistent throughout the year.”

Omaha

Head coach: Mike Gabinet
2020-21 Record: 14-11-1 (14-9-1 NCHC)

Changes: There aren’t many changes for Mike Gabinet’s group as 19 skaters return and all three seniors (Kevin Conley, Nate Knoepke and Martin Sundberg) are back. Isaiah Saville will carry the baton between the pipes once again, and the Mavericks lose just one goal from their 2020-21 roster. The most noticeable change is an addition from the transfer portal: Minnesota forward Brannon McManus.

“He’s got a little bit of an element to his game that we need in our program, so I think he’s going to find a good role for us this season,” Gabinet said. “Ultimately I think we can help him continue to develop too.”

Strengths: There might not be one line that exactly strikes fear into the opposition on paper, but Omaha has one of the most balanced lineups in the conference. Chayse Primeau, Taylor Ward and Tyler Weiss did most of the damage offensively last season, and all three are back. Primeau was also tabbed as a Preseason All-Conference selection.

On defense, the Mavericks have one of the deepest young cores in the conference, which is led by Brandon Scanlin. The undrafted junior had a 2-15-17 line last season and is one of the most underrated players in the conference. A big part of that defensive effort also comes from their goaltender, who is one of the biggest strengths on this team. Saville earned a 3-0 shutout of Lake Superior State on Saturday night, recovering from a tough overtime loss the night before.

Weaknesses: It boils down to one word with this Omaha team: consistency. The Mavericks caught fire out of the gate last season at 6-2-2 and were second in the NCHC standings at the end of the Pod. However, they stumbled down the stretch and posted a 4-8 record against teams other than Colorado College during the second half and postseason.

Looking ahead at this season, the Mavericks finish the regular season with 12 of 16 against Denver, North Dakota, St. Cloud and UMD. 

When the Mavericks reached the big stage against Denver in the NCHC Frozen Faceoff and Minnesota in the NCAA Regional, it wasn’t the same dynamic and explosive team that started the year so strong. Which Omaha team will show up on that stage this season?

Another potential area of concern is how much time this team spends short-handed. Although the Mavericks play an aggressive style and their penalty kill unit was lights-out for most of last season, it’s a tough ask to spend nearly 15 minutes a game down a man. Omaha racked up 396 penalty minutes as a team last season, which was the most in the country, and 487 in 2019-20.

2021-22 Outlook: Tabbed fifth in the NCHC Preseason Poll this team has a very strong chance to finish in the top four and make another trip to the NCAA Tournament. Expected a breakthrough from this Omaha team in 2021-22.

“I think we’re right there,” Conley said. “From what I’ve seen so far this summer and the work we’re putting in right now, we’re right there on the verge. Just need to put it all together once the season starts.”

Western Michigan

Head coach: Pat Ferschweiler
2020-21 Record: 10-12-3 (10-11-3 NCHC)

Changes: The biggest and most obvious change comes behind the bench, as Pat Ferschweiler takes over his alma mater from Andy Murray. Ferschweiler also added Jason Herter to be his right-hand-man, which bodes well for the future in Kalamazoo. Roster-wise, the Broncos return all of their key contributors from the past few seasons, and experience is the main story for this team. Their freshmen class features five new players and they’ll also see the return of Rhett Kingston, who missed all of last season with an injury.

However, the biggest change on the ice should be having a healthy goaltender. Brandon Bussi was lights-out as a freshman, but the NCHC All-Rookie Team member went down in the second period of the first game of last season with an injury. He’ll return to the Broncos crease this season.

Strengths: The biggest strength for this Western Michigan team is its experience. The Broncos return all 10 of their top scorers from last season, which includes Drew Worrad (5-18-23), Ethen Frank (13-8-21), Paul Washe (8-13-21) and Josh Passolt (7-12-19). Frank scored six of his eight goals on the power play, which was the second-most in the conference.

Philadelphia Flyers draft pick Ronnie Attard is back on the blue line and is one of the biggest offensive threats from the point in the conference. A First-Team All-American and First-Team All-NCHC pick last season, Attard put up 8-14-22 in 25 games. He was tabbed an All-NCHC Preseason Team selection heading into this season.

In addition to that experience, the Broncos' biggest potential strength resides in Bussi. The New York native posted an 18-12-4 record as a freshman and had a .910 save percentage. He returned late last season but never found his form coming off the injury. Having him healthy for a full season should provide some stability to a position that was an achilles heel last year.

“Two years ago he was a really, really good goalie in the league,” Ferschweiler said of Bussi. “The five or six weeks we had before the pod last year, I looked at Andy Murray and said we need a new (goalie) recruit. We need a guy at the end of the year, he’s signing (a pro deal).

“If Brandon is healthy all year long, then we have a chance to be a real hard team to beat.”

Weaknesses: The two biggest questions surrounding this team are if they have the depth and how healthy will they be. Although Bussi flashed the potential as a freshman and Kingston scored 9-8-18 as a sophomore, there are no guarantees they return to that form. The Broncos were beat up as a team for parts of last season, too. Even though there’s no way to control it, it’ll be interesting how they hold up.

Depth-wise, do the Broncos have enough to compete against some of the perennial powers in the conference? They have the skill at the top and have shown the ability to put the puck in the net, but is their lineup balanced enough to do it on a consistent basis? Beyond Attard, are Aiden Fulp and Michael Joyaux enough to lead a defensive core and slow down the competition they will face this season? Time will tell.

2021-22 Outlook: The team several people view as the dark horse in the NCHC, the Broncos have the ability to turn some heads and finish in the top half of the conference this season. Two years ago the Broncos caught fire late and were a team nobody wanted to play in the NCHC playoffs before COVID-19 cut the season short.

Even last season, they came on late with a sweep and split against St. Cloud State, plus a home sweep over Minnesota-Duluth. The Broncos also took UMD to overtime in the NCHC Frozen Faceoff. With so much returning experience, there’s potential in Kalamazoo.

“We have high expectations for ourselves,” Washe said. “We’ve had an excellent summer training and there’s a lot of excitement about our team and we feel like we’ve got a lot of potential here.”

Miami

Head coach: Chris Bergeron
2020-21 Record: 5-18-2 (5-17-2 NCHC)

Changes: The RedHawks bring in potential impact players via the transfer portal — Michael Regush (Cornell) and Thomas Daskas (Air Force), both of whom found the scoresheet already in Miami's opening weekend. Miami didn't have a player score more than five goals last season (then-freshman Matthew Barbolini), so any potential offense will be welcomed. 

Casey Gilling transferred to conference rival Minnesota-Duluth and is one of many players looking to be replaced by a large influx of newcomers. How those puzzle pieces fit together is Bergeron's task in the early going.

“In my experiences at the college level, it is a slow process," Bergeron said. "You’re not really trading anybody, and has the transfer portal allowed us to maybe speed it up a little? I don’t know that. To me that’s not how we’re going to make our living in the transfer portal. We want to recruit more of the traditional way. We did bring in 10 new faces this year, and six of those faces are going to be people we expect to make an impact and improve the internal competition. I think the team is going to look a little bit more like what we want it to look like in terms of competition."

Strengths: Goaltender Ludvig Persson had what must have been the most successful five-win freshman season in recent college hockey history. The Swedish netminder had a .925 save percentages, the 13th best in the nation — remarkable for a team that had the sixth-worst winning percentage in the country. Persson won his season opening start last weekend at Ferris State and figures to be the backbone for a team looking to build momentum on its road to rebuilding.

“Rarely do you see a 21-year-old who has the daily routine like this boy," Bergeron said. "What we want to do as a program is put less pressure on him. Score more for him, defend better in front of him — just make him be Ludvig. Last year he knew if he gave up two goals, there was a good chance we weren’t going to win. We just didn’t score. That’s not fair to the kid and it’s not about one person. He is our best player — he earned all league honors last season and he comes in with those expectations he should have, but we need to do a better job in front of him defending and supporting him with offense so he doesn’t have to carry the weight of the world on his shoulders.”

Weaknesses: To be fair, Miami struggled with injuries on its forward lines last season, but at the end of the day, the offensive production simply needs to improve. Last season, the lack of scoring was the most glaring weakness for the team. But Bergeron notes that there's much more than that, and it starts with the level of competition he's seeking in his players.

"Last year, we were trying to compete harder, but there were no guts or real bite to it and we’re trying to be more competitive," Bergeron said. "I’m not talking about on the scoreboard necessarily, I’m talking about inches on the ice, for pucks, defending better and those types of things. We’re going into year three, I think the foundation is laid and we’re hoping to start to chip away from a belief standpoint, because that’s a massive part of the transition.”

2021-22 Outlook: Miami is looking to avoid a seventh consecutive season under .500.

"We're hoping to take the system piece from last year because now it's year three under the same basic system," Bergeron said. "But we need to start to develop a little bit of swagger and confidence, and you don't get that for finishing in eighth. You get that from winning games, playing well and practicing well. So we'll see. It's something we've been through before, and going into year three, hopefully we'll see a better version of Miami hockey."

Colorado College

Head coach: Kris Mayotte
2020-21 Record: 4-17-2 (4-16-2 NCHC)

Changes: Top point-getter Josiah Slavin signed an NHL deal over the summer. And although there was plenty of movement in the transfer portal — in both directions from Colorado Springs — the most notable changes seem to give CC a breath of fresh air. As the highly anticipated era in the brand new Robson Arena begins, so too does a new head coaching era. 

Kris Mayotte takes over for Mike Haviland as head coach. Mayotte joins the Tigers after 10 years as an assistant — most recently at Michigan (2019-21). Prior to that, the former Union goaltender served the coaching staffs at St. Lawrence and Providence. 

Strengths: At this point for CC, it's all about a fresh perspective. Haviland was well-respected, but the results weren't there for a program that was once a national powerhouse. The Tigers have now lost 20 or more games in six of their last eight seasons. Mayotte seems eager to build on his team's resiliency, which was further put to the test last season with COVID-19 shutdowns.

"They've responded," Mayotte said. "They're eager. They bring a ton of energy and passion, and they have a ton of resilience as a group. I don't know if there's a team that went through more last year with four different shutdowns, so they're excited to get another crack at it and use this season to build towards where we want to be."

Weaknesses: One glaring weakness from last season was the Tigers' special teams play — the worst in the nation when combining power play and penalty killing efficiency. The Tigers had 89 power play opportunities last season. They scored five power play goals and allowed three shorthanded goals. When down a man, CC killed off opponent power plays just over 71 percent of the time.

2021-22 Outlook: No one is expecting CC to win the league this season, but there's an aura of excitement again around a program looking to grow under Mayotte.

"We're excited about the guys we have and what we've been able to add, and there's a lot of growth that happens in one year in college hockey," Mayotte said. "There really isn't much looking back. Everything is about looking forward and what we're trying to do, what we're trying to accomplish, and how we're trying to do it."