St. Thomas (Minnesota) Tommies men's ice hockey
The St. Thomas (Minnesota) Tommies men's ice hockey team represents the University of St. Thomas (Minnesota) in NCAA Division I ice hockey.
| St. Thomas (Minnesota) Tommies men's ice hockey | |
|---|---|
 Current season | |
 | |
| University | University of St. Thomas (Minnesota) |
| Conference | CCHA |
| First season | 1920–21 |
| Head coach | Enrico Blasi 3rd season, 14–55–3 (.215) |
| Arena | St. Thomas Ice Arena Capacity: 1,400 |
| Location | Saint Paul, Minnesota |
| Colors | Purple and gray[1] |
| NCAA Tournament Frozen Four | |
| DIII: 2000, 2005 | |
| NCAA Tournament appearances | |
| DIII: 1984, 1985, 1986, 1988, 1990, 1992, 1994, 1999, 2000, 2002, 2004, 2005, 2008, 2010, 2012, 2014, 2020 | |
| Conference Tournament championships | |
| MIAC: 1986, 1988, 1992, 1994, 1999, 2002, 2004, 2005, 2008, 2010, 2014, 2020 | |
| Conference regular season championships | |
| MIAC: 1923, 1934, 1938, 1940, 1941, 1942, 1947, 1949, 1951, 1952, 1953, 1974, 1983, 1985, 1986, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2006, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2017, 2018 | |
History
St. Thomas is one of the oldest ice hockey programs in the nation, predating even Minnesota, having played their first varsity game in the 1920–21 season. That year St. Thomas, along with six other small Minnesota colleges, formed the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference and began playing one another in many sports. Over the course of the first sixty five years, St. Thomas was one of the better teams in the conference but it became the leading program once Terry Skrypek arrived in 1987. In his 23 years with the program, Skrypek won 13 conference championships, 9 conference tournament titles and reached the NCAA Division III championship game twice.[2]
In 2019 the MIAC took the unprecedented step of removing St. Thomas from its membership because of concerns about “athletic competitive parity.”[3] Because the removal affected all sports and was effective at the end of the 2020–21 season, St. Thomas had time to decide what it would do next. The men's ice hockey program was given the green light to jump directly to the Division I level in July 2020.[4] Before the end of the month, the seven teams who had previously announced their intention to restart the CCHA with the 2021–22 season voted unanimously to accept the Tommies as the eighth member of the conference.[5]
In 2023, St. Thomas announced plans for the new Lee and Penny Anderson Arena, with the team planned to begin playing its home games there in the fall of 2025.[6]
Season-by-season results
Source:[2]
Head coaches
As of completion of the 2022–23 season
| Tenure | Coach | Years | Record | Pct. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1920–1921 | Harold Dudley | 1 | 6–1–0 | .857 |
| 1921–1923, 1925–1926 | Joe Brandy | 3 | 19–9–0 | .679 |
| 1923–1924 | Dave Hayes | 1 | 8–2–0 | .800 |
| 1924–1925 | Bill Houle | 1 | 1–0–1 | .750 |
| 1926–1927 | Willard Faulk | 1 | 5–9–0 | .357 |
| 1927–1928 | John O'Halloran | 1 | 4–5–3 | .458 |
| 1928–1930 | Matt Coogan | 2 | 15–13–0 | .536 |
| 1930–1932 | Frank Penas | 2 | 7–7–4 | .500 |
| 1932–1933 | Joe Boland | 1 | 7–3–0 | .700 |
| 1933–1935 | Frank Halder | 2 | 6–6–1 | .500 |
| 1935–1937 | Frank Klingberg | 2 | 12–10–3 | .540 |
| 1937–1939 | Leo McGuire | 2 | 13–7–2 | .636 |
| 1939–1942 | Wee Walsh | 3 | 18–3–3 | .813 |
| 1946–1948 | Tom Cunningham | 2 | 20–9–0 | .690 |
| 1948–1951, 1952–1955 | Bill Funk | 6 | 66–19–11 | .745 |
| 1951–1952 | Norm Robertson | 1 | 7–3–0 | .700 |
| 1955–1959 | Ken Staples | 4 | 38–19–0 | .667 |
| 1959–1962 | Don Saatzer | 3 | 19–14–0 | .576 |
| 1962–1963 | Tom Martinson | 1 | 11–4–1 | .719 |
| 1963–1970 | Joe Flood | 7 | 57–53–4 | .518 |
| 1970–1982 | Gus Schwartz | 12 | 150–150–5 | .500 |
| 1982–1987 | Terry Abram | 5 | 105–45–2 | .697 |
| 1987–2010 | Terry Skrypek | 23 | 415–194–45 | .669 |
| 2010–2021 | Jeff Boeser | 11 | 160–81–33 | .644 |
| 2021–Present | Enrico Blasi | 2 | 14–55–3 | .215 |
| Totals | 26 coaches | 99 Seasons | 1183–721–121 | .614 |
Current roster
As of July 21, 2022.[7]
| No. | S/P/C | Player | Class | Pos | Height | Weight | DoB | Hometown | Previous team | NHL rights |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 |  |
Trevor Zins | Senior | D | 6' 1" (1.85 m) | 195 lb (88 kg) | 1998-07-23 | St. Michael, Minnesota | St. Cloud State (NCHC) | — |
| 3 | |
Lucas Wahlin | Freshman | F | 5' 11" (1.8 m) | 160 lb (73 kg) | 2001-05-03 | Woodbury, Minnesota | Lincoln (NAHL) | — |
| 4 | |
Nolan Sawchuk | Graduate | D | 5' 11" (1.8 m) | 185 lb (84 kg) | 1997-09-25 | Burnsville, Minnesota | UMass Lowell (HEA) | — |
| 5 | |
Garrett Daly | Graduate | D | 6' 0" (1.83 m) | 195 lb (88 kg) | 1999-08-11 | Lakeville, Minnesota | Bowling Green (CCHA) | — |
| 6 | |
Josh Eernisse | Freshman | F | 6' 2" (1.88 m) | 205 lb (93 kg) | 2001-12-31 | Apple Valley, Minnesota | Tri-City (USHL) | — |
| 7 | |
Luke Kron | Freshman | F | 6' 0" (1.83 m) | 175 lb (79 kg) | 2002-05-24 | Andover, Minnesota | Sioux Falls (USHL) | — |
| 8 |  |
Cameron Recchi | Sophomore | F | 5' 10" (1.78 m) | 165 lb (75 kg) | 2001-05-24 | Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania | Salmon Arm (BCHL) | — |
| 9 | .svg.png.webp){kind=small} |
Matthew Jennings | Graduate | F | 5' 8" (1.73 m) | 173 lb (78 kg) | 1997-06-07 | Buford, Georgia | Ohio State (Big Ten) | — |
| 10 | |
Andrew Kangas | Senior | F | 5' 9" (1.75 m) | 185 lb (84 kg) | 1998-01-28 | Mahtomedi, Minnesota | Minot (NAHL) | — |
| 11 | |
Ryan O'Neill | Freshman | F | 5' 10" (1.78 m) | 175 lb (79 kg) | 2001-02-25 | Roseville, Minnesota | St. Cloud (NAHL) | — |
| 12 | |
Tim Piechowski | Sophomore | F | 6' 2" (1.88 m) | 210 lb (95 kg) | 2000-12-08 | Eden Prairie, Minnesota | Bismarck (NAHL) | — |
| 15 |  |
Quinton Pepper | Freshman | F | 6' 3" (1.91 m) | 187 lb (85 kg) | 2002-01-31 | London, Ontario | Steinbach (MJHL) | — |
| 16 | |
Luke Manning | Senior | F | 5' 10" (1.78 m) | 190 lb (86 kg) | 1999-04-13 | Stillwater, Minnesota | Air Force (AHA) | — |
| 17 | |
Jake Braccini | Freshman | F | 5' 11" (1.8 m) | 192 lb (87 kg) | 2001-07-02 | Hanover, Minnesota | Muskegon (USHL) | — |
| 18 | |
Ethan Gauer | Junior | D | 6' 0" (1.83 m) | 185 lb (84 kg) | 1999-12-23 | Farmington, Minnesota | Bemidji State (WCHA) | — |
| 19 | |
Luc Laylin | Freshman | F | 5' 8" (1.73 m) | 170 lb (77 kg) | 2001-12-30 | St. Michael, Minnesota | Prince George (BCHL) | — |
| 20 | |
Cooper Gay | Freshman | F | 6' 4" (1.93 m) | 210 lb (95 kg) | 2002-03-15 | Edina, Minnesota | Fargo (USHL) | — |
| 21 | |
Carson Peters | Freshman | D | 6' 3" (1.91 m) | 200 lb (91 kg) | 2002-10-28 | Medina, Minnesota | Cedar Rapids (USHL) | — |
| 22 | |
Mack Byers | Junior | F | 6' 1" (1.85 m) | 190 lb (86 kg) | 1999-02-08 | Long Lake, Minnesota | Northern Michigan (CCHA) | — |
| 24 | |
Grant Docter | Sophomore | D | 5' 10" (1.78 m) | 174 lb (79 kg) | 2000-12-06 | Golden Valley, Minnesota | Michigan Tech (CCHA) | — |
| 25 | |
Trevor LeDonne | Sophomore | D | 6' 1" (1.85 m) | 195 lb (88 kg) | 2000-02-27 | Stoney Creek, Ontario | Nanaimo (BCHL) | — |
| 26 | |
Blaine Warnert | Sophomore | F | 6' 5" (1.96 m) | 190 lb (86 kg) | 2000-07-17 | Chaska, Minnesota | Minot (NAHL) | — |
| 27 | |
Luke Perunovich | Graduate | D | 6' 1" (1.85 m) | 185 lb (84 kg) | 1997-05-12 | Edina, Minnesota | Providence (HEA) | — |
| 28 |  |
Braidan Simmons-Fischer | Freshman | D | 6' 7" (2.01 m) | 220 lb (100 kg) | 2002-01-26 | Detroit, Michigan | Austin (NAHL) | — |
| 29 | |
Jarrett Lee | Graduate | F | 5' 10" (1.78 m) | 154 lb (70 kg) | 1999-06-04 | Hibbing, Minnesota | Minnesota Duluth (NCHC) | — |
| 31 |  |
Aaron Trotter | Freshman | G | 6' 2" (1.88 m) | 170 lb (77 kg) | 2001-04-07 | Victoria, British Columbia | Prince George (BCHL) | — |
| 35 |  |
Henry Baribeau | Senior | G | 6' 3" (1.91 m) | 190 lb (86 kg) | 1998-10-15 | Hudson, Wisconsin | New Ulm (NA3HL) | — |
| 42 |  |
Ethan Roberts | Freshman | G | 6' 1" (1.85 m) | 172 lb (78 kg) | 2002-09-24 | Cary, North Carolina | Springfield (NAHL) | — |
References
- "Athletic Brand Standards – The University of St. Thomas". March 3, 2022. Retrieved September 6, 2022.
- "St. Thomas Men's Hockey Team History". USCHO.com. Retrieved July 29, 2020.
- "D-III Powerhouse St. Thomas Is Getting Kicked Out of Its Conference Because It's Too Good at Sports". Sports Illustrated. May 22, 2019. Retrieved July 29, 2020.
- "At the rink, it's 'Tommie Time,' as St. Thomas moves hockey programs to Division I". Duluth News Tribune. July 15, 2020. Retrieved July 29, 2020.
- "St. Thomas men's team moves to Division I, will join new CCHA for 2021-22 season". USCHO.com. July 29, 2020. Retrieved July 29, 2020.
- Wald, Jeff (17 January 2023). "St. Thomas announces plans for hockey, basketball arena starting in 2025". FOX 9. Retrieved 17 January 2023.
- "2022–23 Men's Ice Hockey Roster". The University of St. Thomas. Retrieved July 27, 2017.