Jump to content

2021–22 St. Cloud State Huskies men's ice hockey season

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

2021–22 St. Cloud State Huskies
men's ice hockey season
NCAA tournament, Regional semifinal
ConferenceT–4th NCHC
Home iceHerb Brooks National Hockey Center
Rankings
USCHO#11
USA Today#11
Record
Overall18–15–4
Conference10–10–4
Home11–5–3
Road7–9–1
Neutral0–1–0
Coaches and captains
Head coachBrett Larson
Assistant coachesDave Shyiak
Nick Oliver
Matt Bertram
Captain(s)Spencer Meier
Alternate captain(s)Seamus Donohue
Kevin Fitzgerald
Luke Jaycox
St. Cloud State Huskies men's ice hockey seasons
« 2020–21 2022–23 »

The 2021–22 St. Cloud State Huskies men's ice hockey season was the 87th season of play for the program, the 25th at the Division I level and the 9th in the NCHC conference. The Huskies represented St. Cloud State University and were coached by Brett Larson, in his 4th season.

Season

[edit]

After reaching the championship game for the first time in program history, St. Cloud entered this season hoping to return and complete the job. The Huskies returned most of the men from the year before and lost none of the principle players, giving them a leg-up in the teamwork department. They retained the high ranking from the end of 2021 as they began the season and did so in tremendous fashion, scoring 12 goals in the season opener. While it did come against St. Thomas, a team that was playing its first game at the Division I level, it was still an impressive start. The second week could not have been a bigger contrast as the Huskies faced the #1 team in the nation, Minnesota State. St. Cloud acquitted itself well with a split, a feat that repeated the next week against #4 Minnesota. After a sweep of Wisconsin, St. Cloud found itself as the #1 ranked team and set about proving that they were worth of the honor.

A loss in mid-November caused the team to slip down to #2 but the Huskies took a bigger hit when they were swept by a surprising Western Michigan squad just before Thanksgiving. After following with another split, the Huskies fell out of the top-5 for the first time and entered the winter break with a solid but unspectacular record. St. Cloud was, however, the beneficiary of playing in the toughest conference in the nation. With their good non-conference mark, the team could afford a few losses and still earn a return to the national tournament.

After coming back with a sweep of Bemidji State, St. Cloud's season was put on hold due to positive COVID-19 tests that forced several games around the country to be delayed or cancelled. They didn't get back onto the ice until late-January and, though the Huskies played well in their return, the extra time off appeared to have taken the jam out of their game. St. Cloud went through a 6-game streak without a win and plummeted in the conference standings. Three ties during that run prevented them from falling out of postseason contention, but they found themselves on the edge by mid-February. A good weekend against WMU helped arrest their slide but they were back in trouble after losing two to Omaha.

The final five game of the Huskies season would make or break the team and 5th-year starter Dávid Hrenák came up huge. He sandwiched three stirling performances against Minnesota Duluth around a pair of wins that kept the team's head above water, making it all but certain that St. Cloud would receive an at-large bid regardless of what happened in the postseason. Unfortunately, as the Huskies were preparing for the conference quarterfinals, Hrenák came down with pneumonia and was unable to play.[1] Backup Jaxon Castor had played decently in spots during the season, so there was hope that the team could play well enough defensively to insulate the understudy. That hope was banished by Duluth, who fired a total of 79 shots on goal in the two games, and scored 9 goals to knock St. Cloud out in the first round.

As was expected, however, St. Cloud State ended the season as #10 in the PairWise rankings and was guaranteed a spot in the tournament. With Hrenák on the mend, the team would need to put forth a better effort and give their starter the time he needed to return. In the opening game they faced the nation's top defensive team, Quinnipiac. The Huskies got behind early, allowing two goals in the first, but then responded by completely outplaying the Bobcats in the final 40 minutes. St. Cloud scored three times in the second, tying the game on two separate occasions, and limited their opponents to just 16 shots on goal. Senior Nolan Walker led the way with a 3-point night as the team scored four goals against Quinnipiac, the most they had allowed all season. Unfortunately, Castor did not play well in goal. He was beaten on 5 of the shots he faced and St. Cloud's season ended in heartbreaking fashion.

Departures

[edit]
Player Position Nationality Cause
Tyler Anderson Defenseman  Canada Graduate transfer to Manitoba
Jared Cockrell Forward  United States Graduation (signed with Wheeling Nailers)
Will Hammer Forward  United States Graduation (retired)
Trevor Zins Defenseman  United States Transfer to St. Thomas

Recruiting

[edit]
Player Position Nationality Age Notes
Josh Luedtke Defenseman  United States 21 Minnetonka, MN
Jack Peart Defenseman  United States 18 Grand Rapids, MN; selected 54th overall in 2021
Ryan Rosborough Forward  Canada 21 Mount Brydges, ON
Mason Salquist Forward  United States 21 Grand Forks, ND
Aidan Spellacy Forward  United States 23 Lakewood, OH; transfer from Robert Morris

Roster

[edit]

As of August 30, 2021.[2]

No. S/P/C Player Class Pos Height Weight DoB Hometown Previous team NHL rights
2 Minnesota Brady Ziemer Sophomore D 5' 10" (1.78 m) 180 lb (82 kg) 2000-05-24 Carver, Minnesota Green Bay (USHL)
3 Minnesota Seamus Donohue (A) Graduate F 6' 0" (1.83 m) 190 lb (86 kg) 1996-06-01 North Oaks, Minnesota Michigan Tech (WCHA)
5 Czech Republic Ondřej Trejbal Junior D 6' 3" (1.91 m) 185 lb (84 kg) 1999-04-21 Hamry nad Sázavou, Czech Republic Minnesota Wilderness (NAHL)
6 Minnesota Luke Jaycox (A) Graduate D 6' 3" (1.91 m) 205 lb (93 kg) 1997-08-19 Warroad, Minnesota Lincoln (USHL)
7 Minnesota Jack Johnston Sophomore F 5' 10" (1.78 m) 170 lb (77 kg) 1999-06-29 St. Paul, Minnesota Fairbanks (NAHL)
8 Ohio Aidan Spellacy Senior F 5' 11" (1.8 m) 175 lb (79 kg) 1998-06-13 Lakewood, Ohio Robert Morris (AHA)
9 Minnesota Spencer Meier (C) Senior D 6' 4" (1.93 m) 212 lb (96 kg) 1999-04-15 Sartell, Minnesota Fargo (USHL)
10 Alberta Kyler Kupka Junior F 6' 0" (1.83 m) 185 lb (84 kg) 1999-05-11 Camrose, Alberta Camrose (AJHL)
12 Ontario Ryan Rosborough Freshman F 6' 3" (1.91 m) 190 lb (86 kg) 2000-05-24 Mt. Brydges, Ontario South Shore (NCDC)
13 Finland Jami Krannila Junior F 5' 10" (1.78 m) 165 lb (75 kg) 2000-10-03 Nokia, Finland Sioux Falls (USHL)
14 Alberta Zach Okabe Junior F 5' 9" (1.75 m) 170 lb (77 kg) 2001-01-04 Okotoks, Alberta Grande Prairie (AJHL)
15 Minnesota Micah Miller Senior F 5' 9" (1.75 m) 200 lb (91 kg) 1998-10-29 Grand Rapids, Minnesota Sioux City (USHL)
16 North Dakota Mason Salquist Freshman F 5' 8" (1.73 m) 165 lb (75 kg) 2000-03-21 Grand Forks, North Dakota Fargo (USHL)
17 Virginia Thomas Rocco Junior F 5' 10" (1.78 m) 160 lb (73 kg) 1999-11-04 Midlothian, Virginia Aberdeen (NAHL)
18 Minnesota Brendan Bushy Senior D 6' 2" (1.88 m) 230 lb (104 kg) 1998-08-23 Thief River Falls, Minnesota Dubuque (USHL)
19 Minnesota Sam Hentges Senior F 6' 0" (1.83 m) 190 lb (86 kg) 1999-07-26 New Brighton, Minnesota Tri-City (USHL) MIN, 210th overall 2018
20 Alaska Nolan Walker Senior F 5' 10" (1.78 m) 170 lb (77 kg) 1998-10-20 Anchorage, Alaska Sioux Falls (USHL)
21 Minnesota Josh Luedtke Freshman D 5' 9" (1.75 m) 175 lb (79 kg) 2000-09-29 Minnetonka, Minnesota Des Moines (USHL)
22 Minnesota Joe Molenaar Sophomore F 6' 1" (1.85 m) 175 lb (79 kg) 1999-10-16 Minnetonka, Minnesota Cedar Rapids (USHL)
23 Minnesota Jack Peart Freshman D 5' 11" (1.8 m) 175 lb (79 kg) 2003-05-15 Grand Rapids, Minnesota Grand Rapids (USHS–MN) MIN, 54th overall 2021
25 Minnesota Nick Perbix Senior D 6' 4" (1.93 m) 200 lb (91 kg) 1998-06-15 Elk River, Minnesota Omaha (USHL) TBL, 169th overall 2017
26 Minnesota Easton Brodzinski Graduate F 6' 2" (1.88 m) 198 lb (90 kg) 1996-08-13 Blaine, Minnesota Green Bay (USHL)
27 Minnesota Chase Brand Junior F 5' 10" (1.78 m) 165 lb (75 kg) 1999-02-25 Nevis, Minnesota Madison (USHL)
28 Illinois Kevin Fitzgerald (A) Graduate F 6' 0" (1.83 m) 175 lb (79 kg) 1996-07-31 Hinsdale, Illinois Aberdeen (NAHL)
29 Finland Veeti Miettinen Sophomore F 5' 9" (1.75 m) 160 lb (73 kg) 2001-09-20 Espoo, Finland Kiekko-Espoo (Nuorten SM-liiga) TOR, 168th overall 2020
30 Wisconsin Joey Lamoreaux Junior G 6' 1" (1.85 m) 180 lb (82 kg) 1999-02-01 Shorewood, Wisconsin Madison (USHL)
34 Slovakia Dávid Hrenák Graduate G 6' 2" (1.88 m) 180 lb (82 kg) 1998-05-05 Považska Bystrica, Slovakia Green Bay (USHL) LAK, 144th overall 2018
40 Arizona Jaxon Castor Junior G 6' 3" (1.91 m) 200 lb (91 kg) 1997-03-14 Phoenix, Arizona Shreveport (NAHL)

Standings

[edit]
Conference record Overall record
GP W L T OTW OTL 3/SW PTS GF GA GP W L T GF GA
#1 Denver 24 18 6 0 1 0 0 53 98 55 41 31 9 1 175 93
#9 North Dakota 24 17 6 1 1 1 1 53 78 58 39 24 14 1 119 99
#6 Western Michigan 24 14 9 1 1 0 1 43 84 68 39 26 12 1 138 101
#11 St. Cloud State 24 10 10 4 1 2 1 36 84 69 37 18 15 4 133 97
#5 Minnesota Duluth * 24 10 10 4 1 1 2 36 61 56 42 22 16 4 109 93
Omaha 24 11 13 0 2 1 0 32 65 74 38 21 17 0 123 102
Colorado College 24 6 17 1 2 1 0 18 48 87 36 9 24 3 79 116
Miami 24 4 19 1 0 3 1 17 54 105 36 7 27 2 94 153
Championship: March 19, 2022
† indicates conference regular season champion (Penrose Cup)
* indicates conference tournament champion (Frozen Faceoff Championship Trophy)
Rankings: USCHO.com Top 20 Poll

Schedule and results

[edit]
Date Time Opponent# Rank# Site TV Decision Result Attendance Record
Regular season
October 2 6:07 PM St. Thomas* #2 Herb Brooks National Hockey CenterSt. Cloud, Minnesota   Hrenák W 12–2  4,151 1–0–0
October 3 4:37 PM at St. Thomas* #2 St. Thomas Ice ArenaMendota Heights, Minnesota   Hrenák W 2–0  4,261 2–0–0
October 8 7:07 PM at #1 Minnesota State* #2 Mayo Clinic Health System Event CenterMankato, Minnesota Spectrum 191 Hrenák L 0–1  4,555 2–1–0
October 9 6:07 PM at #1 Minnesota State* #2 Mayo Clinic Health System Event Center • Mankato, Minnesota Spectrum 191 Hrenák W 3–1  4,838 3–1–0
October 15 7:00 PM at #4 Minnesota* #2 3M Arena at MariucciMinneapolis, Minnesota BSN Hrenák W 2–1  8,190 4–1–0
October 16 5:07 PM #4 Minnesota* #2 Herb Brooks National Hockey Center • St. Cloud, Minnesota   Hrenák L 3–4 OT 5,596 4–2–0
October 22 7:37 PM Wisconsin* #3 Herb Brooks National Hockey Center • St. Cloud, Minnesota   Hrenák W 5–1  3,774 5–2–0
October 23 6:07 PM Wisconsin* #3 Herb Brooks National Hockey Center • St. Cloud, Minnesota   Castor W 4–1  4,165 6–2–0
November 5 8:07 PM at Colorado College #1 Ed Robson ArenaColorado Springs, Colorado ATTRM Hrenák W 3–2 OT 3,566 7–2–0 (1–0–0)
November 6 6:07 PM at Colorado College #1 Ed Robson Arena • Colorado Springs, Colorado   Hrenák W 4–1  3,579 8–2–0 (2–0–0)
November 12 7:37 PM #11 Omaha #1 Herb Brooks National Hockey Center • St. Cloud, Minnesota   Hrenák W 5–1  3,825 9–2–0 (3–0–0)
November 13 6:07 PM #11 Omaha #1 Herb Brooks National Hockey Center • St. Cloud, Minnesota   Hrenák L 2–3 OT 0 9–3–0 (3–1–0)
November 19 6:05 PM at #13 Western Michigan #2 Lawson ArenaKalamazoo, Michigan   Hrenák L 2–6  3,369 9–4–0 (3–2–0)
November 20 6:05 PM at #13 Western Michigan #2 Lawson Arena • Kalamazoo, Michigan   Castor L 0–4  3,669 9–5–0 (3–3–0)
December 3 7:37 PM #7 North Dakota #5 Herb Brooks National Hockey Center • St. Cloud, Minnesota   Hrenák W 8–1  4,703 10–5–0 (4–3–0)
December 4 6:07 PM #7 North Dakota #5 Herb Brooks National Hockey Center • St. Cloud, Minnesota   Hrenák L 3–5  5,224 10–6–0 (4–4–0)
December 31 6:07 PM at Bemidji State* #7 Sanford CenterBemidji, Minnesota   Hrenák W 4–1  3,433 11–6–0
January 1 6:07 PM Bemidji State* #7 Herb Brooks National Hockey Center • St. Cloud, Minnesota Fox9+ Castor W 5–2  4,634 12–6–0
January 21 7:37 PM Miami #6 Herb Brooks National Hockey Center • St. Cloud, Minnesota   Hrenák W 11–1  3,740 13–6–0 (5–4–0)
January 22 6:07 PM Miami #6 Herb Brooks National Hockey Center • St. Cloud, Minnesota   Hrenák W 8–0  4,107 14–6–0 (6–4–0)
January 28 7:07 PM at #13 North Dakota #6 Ralph Engelstad ArenaGrand Forks, North Dakota   Hrenák L 1–7  11,417 14–7–0 (6–5–0)
January 29 6:07 PM at #13 North Dakota #6 Ralph Engelstad Arena • Grand Forks, North Dakota   Hrenák T 3–3 SOL 11,876 14–7–1 (6–5–1)
February 4 8:00 PM at #4 Denver #7 Magness ArenaDenver, Colorado   Hrenák L 5–8  4,661 14–8–1 (6–6–1)
February 5 7:00 PM at #4 Denver #7 Magness Arena • Denver, Colorado   Hrenák L 0–2  5,375 14–9–1 (6–7–1)
February 8 6:00 PM #6 Minnesota Duluth #10 Herb Brooks National Hockey Center • St. Cloud, Minnesota   Hrenák T 2–2 SOW 3,842 14–9–2 (6–7–2)
February 11 7:30 PM #5 Western Michigan #10 Herb Brooks National Hockey Center • St. Cloud, Minnesota   Hrenák T 5–5 SOL 3,627 14–9–3 (6–7–3)
February 12 6:00 PM #5 Western Michigan #10 Herb Brooks National Hockey Center • St. Cloud, Minnesota   Hrenák W 4–1  4,567 15–9–3 (7–7–3)
February 18 7:00 PM at Omaha #8 Baxter ArenaOmaha, Nebraska   Hrenák L 2–5  5,011 15–10–3 (7–8–3)
February 19 7:00 PM at Omaha #8 Baxter Arena • Omaha, Nebraska   Hrenák L 1–5  5,454 15–11–3 (7–9–3)
February 22 6:00 PM #8 Minnesota Duluth #11 Herb Brooks National Hockey Center • St. Cloud, Minnesota   Hrenák T 1–1 SOL 4,230 15–11–4 (7–9–4)
February 25 7:30 PM Colorado College #11 Herb Brooks National Hockey Center • St. Cloud, Minnesota   Hrenák W 4–1  3,857 16–11–4 (8–9–4)
February 26 6:00 PM Colorado College #11 Herb Brooks National Hockey Center • St. Cloud, Minnesota   Hrenák W 6–2  5,128 17–11–4 (9–9–4)
March 4 7:30 PM at #11 Minnesota Duluth #10 AMSOIL ArenaDuluth, Minnesota CBSSN Hrenák L 2–3  5,582 17–12–4 (9–10–4)
March 5 7:00 PM at #11 Minnesota Duluth #10 AMSOIL Arena • Duluth, Minnesota   Hrenák W 2–0  5,791 18–12–4 (10–10–4)
NCHC Tournament
March 11 7:07 PM #10 Minnesota Duluth* #9 Herb Brooks National Hockey CenterSt. Cloud, Minnesota (Quarterfinal Game 1)   Castor L 2–5  2,594 18–13–4
March 12 6:07 PM #10 Minnesota Duluth* #9 Herb Brooks National Hockey CenterSt. Cloud, Minnesota (Quarterfinal Game 2)   Castor L 3–4 OT 3,227 18–14–4
St. Cloud State Lost Series 0–2
NCAA Tournament
March 25 7:00 PM vs. #8 Quinnipiac* #11 PPL CenterAllentown, Pennsylvania (Midwest Regional semifinal) ESPNews Castor L 4–5  2,155 18–15–4
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from USCHO.com Poll. All times are in Central Time.
Source:[3]

Scoring statistics

[edit]
Name Position Games Goals Assists Points PIM
Kevin Fitzgerald C 37 17 19 36 22
Nick Perbix D 31 6 25 31 14
Jami Krannila F 37 15 15 30 40
Zach Okabe RW 37 11 17 28 14
Easton Brodzinski RW 36 12 15 27 72
Nolan Walker C 37 11 13 24 26
Veeti Miettinen RW 37 10 13 23 0
Sam Hentges C/LW 20 12 10 22 19
Micah Miller C/RW 37 10 9 19 6
Spencer Meier D 36 5 13 18 6
Kyler Kupka F 37 5 13 18 6
Jack Peart D 32 2 15 17 24
Seamus Donohue D 35 1 15 16 30
Ondřej Trejbal D 31 2 9 11 8
Josh Luedtke D 33 3 6 9 16
Joe Molenaar F 33 5 3 8 19
Mason Salquist F 34 3 4 7 4
Chase Brand C 35 2 5 7 4
Brendan Bushy D 36 1 5 6 21
Brady Ziemer D 12 0 2 2 4
Dávid Hrenák G 31 0 2 2 0
Luke Jaycox D 13 0 1 1 10
Aidan Spellacy F 19 0 1 1 4
Joseph Lamoreaux G 2 0 0 0 0
Thomas Rocco F 7 0 0 0 0
Jaxon Castor G 9 0 0 0 0
Bench - - - - - 8
Total 133 230 363 377

[4]

Goaltending statistics

[edit]
Name Games Minutes Wins Losses Ties Goals Against Saves Shut Outs SV % GAA
Dávid Hrenák 31 1755 16 11 4 66 704 3 .914 2.26
Joey Lamoreaux 2 24 0 0 0 1 18 0 .947 2.52
Jaxon Castor 9 449 2 4 0 24 195 0 .890 3.21
Empty Net - 30 - - - 6 - - - -
Total 37 2258 18 15 4 97 917 3 .904 2.58

Rankings

[edit]
Poll[5] Week
Pre 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 (Final)
USCHO.com 2 (13) 2 (18) 2 (14) 3 (1) 1 (22) 1 (29) 1 (42) 2 (4) 5 5 6 7 (1) 4 5 6 6 7 10 8 11 10 9 12 11 - 11
USA Today 3 (2) 1 (16) 2 (11) 3 1 (17) 1 (21) 1 (30) 2 (4) 6 6 6 7 4 4 5 6 6 10 8 11 11 9 10 11 11 11

Note: USCHO did not release a poll in week 24.[6]

Awards and honors

[edit]
Player Award Ref
Nick Perbix NCHC First Team [7]
Kevin Fitzgerald NCHC Second Team [8]

Players drafted into the NHL

[edit]
Round Pick Player NHL team
3 82 Adam Ingram Nashville Predators
6 164 Barrett Hall Seattle Kraken

† incoming freshman [9]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "SCSU goalie David Hrenak signs with the Los Angeles Kings". The Rink Live. March 29, 2022. Retrieved June 18, 2022.
  2. ^ "2020–21 Men's Ice Hockey Roster". St. Cloud State Huskies. Retrieved July 10, 2018.
  3. ^ "St. Cloud State 2021-22 Team Schedule". College Hockey Inc. Retrieved February 2, 2022.
  4. ^ "St. Cloud State Univ. 2021-2022 Skater Stats". Elite Prospects. Retrieved July 16, 2020.
  5. ^ "USCHO Division I Men's Poll". USCHO.com. Retrieved November 26, 2019.
  6. ^ "USCHO Division I Men's Poll". USCHO.com. Retrieved November 26, 2019.
  7. ^ "Five Different Teams Represented on All-NCHC First Team". NCHC. March 9, 2022. Archived from the original on March 12, 2022. Retrieved March 16, 2022.
  8. ^ "Record four Pioneers, two Fighting Hawks recognized for strong freshman seasons". nchchockey.com. March 8, 2022. Retrieved March 16, 2022.
  9. ^ "NCAA player rankings, selections in 2022 NHL Draft". USCHO.com. Retrieved July 9, 2022.