University of St. Thomas Athletics

Friday, January 10
Mendota Heights, Minn.
7:07 p.m. Central

vs

Ferris State

Aaron Trotter

Back at home and back in conference

1/9/2025 2:17:00 PM | Men's Hockey

Men’s Hockey battles with the Ferris State Bulldogs at Saint Thomas Ice Arena

THIS WEEKEND'S GAMES
  • Tommie Men's Hockey (6-10-4 overall, 3-6-3 CCHA) returns to conference play with two games on home ice against the Ferris State Bulldogs (6-12-1 overall, 5-7-0 CCHA) this Friday, January 10th at 7:07 p.m. and Saturday, January 11th at 6:07 p.m.
  • The Bulldogs, under 29-year head coach Bob Daniels, come into town after a crippling showing against Wisconsin and Alaska Anchorage to finish off the first half. They fell to the Badgers 8-0 and 4-1 to the Nanooks. They had won four of their last five games before that late December weekend. They are led offensively by Caiden Gault with eight goals and 10 points in 20 games. In goal has been Noah West with a 6-10-2 record, 2.92 GAA and .909 SV%. They have the second lowest power play percentage in the CCHA (12.9%) and the worst penalty killing percentage (68.4%), they have given up 24 power play goals, nearly double the Tommies' 14 allowed. 
  • St. Thomas comes in off their first series sweep of the season. They defeated the Lindenwood Lions on the road, 3-2 in overtime and 4-2 in regulation. All six of their goals were scored by different skaters. Cooper Gay leads the team with nine goals and Liam Malmquist is a top the team with 23 points. Aaron Trotter made both starts against the Lions and is have a career season with a .912 SV% and 2.49 GAA. The Tommies remain atop the CCHA's power play units with a 23.4% and their penalty kill is 4th in the conference (.818). 
 
ON THE RADIO
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  • Fans can listen on the radio at 1500 AM, online at https://live.skornorth.com/listen/ or on the Varsity Sports App. 
 
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SOMEBODY, STOP THAT MALM!
Liam Malmquist's four-point performance last weekend moved him into the top-three in program history with 50 points in Purple. He is the third Tommie to surpass 50 career points (Lucas Wahlin 67 points and Ryan O'Neill 55). 
 
He completed the feat in 56 games, a program record. It took O'Neill 82 games and Wahlin 62 games.  
 
TROT TROT TROT, TROT TO THE TOP
Aaron Trotter set a new season-high with 33 saves in the Tommies' game one-win last weekend. The junior netminder is having the best season of his career with a .912 save percentage and 2.49 goals against average.
 
Of the Tommies' 35 overall wins at the Division I level, Trotter has been between the pipes for 69% of them (24 wins). He also owns all three of the program's shutouts (one each season) and has played 4,092 minutes in goal for the Purple, the first to do so in program history. He has played 66% of every minute of St. Thomas Hockey since 2021. 
 
ON A ROLL
  • Last weekend's road sweep of Lindenwood was the first in 420 days since the Tommies swept Bowling Green on Nov. 10-11 of 2023 (4-1 & 4-3)
  • For the second consecutive season, the Toms are off to a 2-0 start in January
  • Saturday's win was their first win following a win since their 3-1 victory over Michigan Tech last season on 1/13/24
  • Lucas Wahlin recorded his second career +3 rating on Saturday. His first was against Ferris State in that 7-1 win last season
 
RAZOR-THIN MARGINS
Before last weekend, the Tommies had played five one-goal games this season and lost all five. They had also played into overtime four times and tied all four. Overall, that was nine games decided by no more than one goal, and a record of 0-5-4.
 
That all changed on Friday against with Lions with their 3-2 overtime win. It was their first OT win in 454 days since Ryder Donovan and the Toms shocked the Huskies on 10/7/23. It was also their first win in a one-goal game since 1/11/24 when the defeated Michigan Tech 4-3 at home. 
 
SERIES HISTORY
All five of the series between the Tommies and Bulldogs have been splits since the two teams began battling in 2021. St. Thomas won just three games during year one at the DI level and two of those wins were against Ferris State. The very first win in program history was against Ferris on 10/23/21, the winning goaltender was Peter Thome and the game-winning goal came off the stick of Trevor Zins. Ethan Gauer is the only remaining player from that team currently on the roster. 
 
The Tommies are 2-2 at Saint Thomas Ice Arena and 3-3 at Ewigleben Ice Arena in Big Rapids. They did win the last game of the series, one of their largest margins of victory in the program's history, 7-1. Mack Byers recorded the only hat trick in Tommie history while Lucas Wahlin and Ryan O'Neill each record five points. Jake Sibell was on top of his game, allowing just one goal on 34 shots (.971SV%). 
 
Lucas Wahlin leads the way with 11 career points against the Bulldogs with Ryan O'Neill's 10 points following closely behind. Wahlin and Jake Braccini are tied with three goals apiece against FSU. 
 
Special teams play has been dominated by the Tommies with a 25.9% power play conversion rate and 88.5% penalty killing rate. Last season, the Toms were 4-10 on the power play and 8-9 on the PK. 
 
LUCAS WAHLIN – CCHA FORWARD OF THE WEEK
Lucas Wahlin was named CCHA Forward of the Week for the second time in his career.
 
Wahlin, a native of Woodbury, Minn. scored the game-tying goal in the Tommies' come-from-behind win on Saturday and assisted on both game-winning goals to help St. Thomas to a sweep of Lindenwood. His productive weekend boosted his season totals to eight goals and eight assists for 16 points and a +3 rating. 
 
The Tommies won their first overtime game in five tries this season during game one against the Lions. Wahlin was the primary assist on Chase Foley's game-winning goal. The very next night, Wahlin ignited a third period comeback with a goal to tie the game at two with under nine minutes to play. He then got the primary assist on Matthew Gleason's goal with under six to play which ultimately became the game-winning goal. 
 
The Tommie captain is top-10 in the CCHA in goals, points, shots, face-off wins, goals per game, and points per game. He is just nearly on pace for his second consecutive 30-point season. 
 
CCHA RANKINGS  
NCAA RANKINGS
  • Liam Malmquist 9th with .85 assists per game 
  • Matthew Gleason 29th with 185 faceoff wins
  • Lucas Wahlin T-37th with 176 faceoff wins
  • Aaron Trotter 40th with 2.50 GAA
  • Cooper Gay T-20th with .53 goals per game
  • Malmquist 19th with 1.15 points per game
  • Gay T-15th with 4 power play goals 
  • Gleason and Malmquist T-26th with 3 power play goals
  • Aaron Trotter T-41st with .912 SV%
  • Malmquist T-3rd with 2 shorthanded goals
  • Matthew Gleason T-15th with 1 shorthanded goal
  • St. Thomas – T-24th with .818 penalty kill 
  • St. Thomas – 14th with .234 power play
  • St. Thomas – 4th with 12.80 penalty minutes per game
  • St. Thomas – T-3rd with 4 shorthanded goals
 
CURRENT TOMMIES AGAINST FERRIS STATE  
GOING STREAKING  
2024-25 CCHA PLAYERS OF THE WEEK  
2024-25 CCHA PLAYERS OF THE MONTH  
JANUARY RECAP
  • 2-0-0 record, +3 goal differential 
  • Swept Lindenwood for the first of the season. They won their first overtime game of the year, 3-2 before a come-from-behind effort in game two. 
  • Liam Malmquist leads the Toms with four points in January. Each of St. Thomas' seven goals against Lindenwood came from different players: Wahlin, Gleason, Foley, Braccini, Gauer, Luc Laylin, and Gay. 
  • Aaron Trotter played in both games against Lindenwood and has a 2-0-0 record with a 1.96 goals against average and .933 save percentage in January. One of his four goals allowed was on the power play.
  • The Toms are 2-5 on the power play (40.0%) and 5-6 on the penalty kill (83.3%).
 
DECEMBER RECAP
  • 1-2-0 record, +1 goal differential 
  • Split series on the road against a strong Michigan Tech team. Outshot the Huskies 26-25 but could not find the equalizer after taking and giving up an early lead. St. Thomas was greatly outshot against Tech in game two 30-17 but rode a three-goal first period to an easy victory. 
  • Fell in second game of split series with #12 St, Cloud state in 5th one-goal loss of the season, 2-1.  
  • Mason Poolman, Cole Miller, Lucas Wahlin, Matthew Gleason, Liam Malmquist, Alexander Tell, and Chase Cheslock each led the Tommies with 2 points during December. Poolman, Miller, Wahlin, Gleason, Malmquist, and Cooper Gay each had one of the Toms' six goals. 
  • Aaron Trotter appeared in three games with an 0-2-0 record, 1.65 GAA, .942SV%, 4GA, 65SV in 145 minutes 
  • Jake Sibell made one start but was removed midway due to injury. He has a 1-0-0 record, 1.94GAA, .944SV%, 1GA, 17SV in 31 minutes.  
  • The Toms were 1-11 on the power play (9.1%) and 4-6 on the penalty kill (66.6%).
 
NOVEMBER RECAP
  • 2-5-3 record, -1 goal differential 
  • Split series with Augustana, won game one 4-0 and lost game two 3-2
  • Took one of the six possible points from Minnesota State with a 5-3 home loss and 1-1 tie (SOL) on the road
  • Tied Bowling Green in game one, lost in the shootout, defeated the Falcons 6-3 in game two, their second largest margin of victory this season.
  • Tied Bemidji State in game one 2-2, lost in the shootout, fell to the Beavers in regulation, 2-1 in game two. 
  • Fell in both games by two goals each against Lake State. 
  • Cooper Gay was named CCHA Forward of the Week for the first time in his career after his three-goal weekend against the Falcons.  
  • Chase Foley was named CCHA Defenseman of the Month for his eight power play points to lead the Tommie power play to its top spot in the conference (25%)
  • Lucas Wahlin and Matthew Gleason each pace the Tommies with five goals in November, Liam Malmquist's 12 points led the team.  
  • Aaron Trotter made six starts in goal with a .900 SV% and 2.67 GAA.
  • Jake Sibell saw action in four games with a .933 SV% and 1.94 GAA. 
  • The Toms were 12-31 on the power play (38.7%) and 37-44 on the penalty kill (84.1%).
 
OCTOBER RECAP
  • 1-3-1 record, -9 goal differential 
  • Lost a 1-0 game to open the season against nationally ranked St. Cloud State 
  • Tied with Vermont 5-5 in game one at home and then took the season series with a 3-1 win over the Catamounts
  • Mason Poolman's three goals in the series set a new high-water mark for his career and earned him his first CCHA Defenseman of the Week honor
  • Lost both games to a tremendously talented Minnesota Golden Gophers squad, 7-1 and 6-2
  • Poolman was named CCHA Defenseman of the Month, the first in program history 
  • Cooper Gay and Mason Poolman led the way with three goals in October, Poolman and Liam Malmquist each led the way with five points over the five games. Casy Laylin played all five games and finished the month with a team-best +3 rating 
  • The Tommies were 0-17 on the power play and 17-21 (.810) on the penalty kill
 
COACH BLASI
  • Entering fourth season for St. Thomas
  • During his 20-year tenure at Miami (Ohio) Blasi was the head coach of 10 NCAA Tournament teams, one national runner-up and one other Frozen Four team
  • National Coach of the Year in 2005-06
  • Coached one Hobey Baker Award winner (Andy Miele) and 10 Hobey Baker finalists, 10 All-America players, and 25 who went on to play in the NHL, including Stanley Cup Champions Alec Martinez, Jeff Zatkoff, Blake Coleman, and Riley Smith. 
  • 433 career wins (23rd all-time / seventh among active head coaches)
 
NON-CONFERENCE
  • St. Thomas played eight non-conference games this season. They opened with the #16 ranked St. Cloud State Huskies for their first ranked-on-ranked matchup in program history. Vermont made their first journey to Mendota Heights before the Toms headed across the river for a game on the road against the Minnesota Golden Gophers. Game two of the cross-town series returned to Xcel Energy Center on Saturday October 26, presented by Wings Credit Union. The Toms' dropped the second half of their split series with #12 St. Cloud. They wrapped up their out-of-conference schedule with a sweep of the Lindenwood Lions, their first of the season.  
  • The Toms were 3-4-1 outside of the CCHA this season. They fell to the #16 St. Cloud State Huskies, 1-0, to open the season. St. Thomas tied Vermont 5-5 and beat them 3-1 to take the series. They fell in two games to #5 Minnesota, 7-1 and 6-2 and lost another one-goal battle with #12 St. Cloud State. Most recently they swept Lindenwood on the road, 3-2 in overtime and 4-2. 
  • St. Thomas had a -7 goal differential in eight non-con games.
  • The Tommies have played four games against ranked non-conference opponents and they are 0-4-0. 
  • 1-1-1 home record, 2-2-0 away record, 0-1-0 neutral site record
 
MALMQUIST'S TORRID START 
Liam Malmquist is one of three players in the CCHA with at least a point per game of production (1.15). He scored a career-high 27 points in 36 games last season (0.75 points per game). He scored 12 points during the month of November and has added four points in two games this month. 
 
It took him just eight games to surpass the 10-point mark when he scored his 10th and 11th against Minnesota State on 11/8/24. He was the fastest Tommie to 10 points in program history. 
2021-22: Christiano Versich – 17 games
2022-23: Lucas Wahlin – 15 games
2023-24: Lucas Wahlin – 10 games
2024-25: Liam Malmquist – 8 games 
 
Lucas Wahlin will hold onto the title for fastest to the 20-point mark, he did so in just 16 games last season, Malmquist has played 17 already this year. Wahlin scored 30 points for the first time in program history last season, it took him 36 games, Malmquist is currently on pace for 41.4 points (including two CCHA playoff games). 
 
CHASE FOLEY – NOVEMBER DEFENSEMAN OF THE MONTH
The Central Collegiate Hockey Association released its monthly honors and named grad transfer Chase Foley CCHA Defenseman of the Month, the second Tommie defenseman to be honored this season. 
 
Foley, a native of Mendota Heights, Minn. has helped propel the Tommie power play from worst in the CCHA and one of the worst in the country through the first six games to the best in the conference and 12th best in the nation at 25% (12-48). The blue liner contributed on eight power play goals with one goal of his own and seven assists during November. The Tommies' power play during that 10-game stretch jumped to 42.9% (12-28). 
 
His nine points this season are the fourth most all-time for a Tommie defenseman. He has 19 games to tie Ethan Gauer's single-season program record 12 points. Foley has also climbed into the top 20 all-time scoring list for the Tommies' short Division I history.
 
The Colorado College transfer has a point in five of his last six games and added a point in seven of the Tommies' ten November games. He added his only multi-point game of the season against Minnesota State on 11/8 and scored his first goal in purple on 11/29 against Lake Superior State. 
 
The award is Foley's first CCHA honor. He is the second Tommie in program history to be named Defenseman of the Month, Mason Poolman did it earlier this season for the month of October. 
 
MASON POOLMAN – CCHA DEFENSEMAN OF THE MONTH
Mason Poolman was named CCHA Defenseman of the Month, the first Tommie to receive the honor in program history. 
 
Poolman, a native of East Grand Forks, Minn.. scored two goals and added an assist in game one against the Vermont Catamounts and tallied the game-winning goal in game two against the nonconference foe. His second goal on Friday tied the game at five and pushed the affair to overtime. 
 
He matched the Tommies' single-season program record for goals by a defenseman in just one weekend. The sophomore is now tied with Ethan Gauer (2022-23) and Trevor Zins (2021-22). He also surpassed his freshman season goal total of two. 
 
After a week off for the Toms' early season bye, Poolman added an assist in St. Thomas' game-two loss against #5 Minnesota at the Xcel Energy Center. 
 
He is currently tied for the team-lead with five points and sits in the top 10 in the CCHA in points, goals, points per game, and goals per game. He also paced all conference defenseman in goals and points during October. 
 
The award is Poolman's second CCHA honor of any sort in his 33-game collegiate career. He is the first Tommie in program history to be named Defenseman of the Month and the first defenseman to receive more than one in-season CCHA honor in program history. 
 
PRESEASON PLAYER OF THE YEAR – LUCAS WAHLIN 
Junior, Lucas Wahlin was the first Tommie to score 30 points in a season, the first Tommie to be named to an All-CCHA team, and now the first Tommie in Division I program history to be named CCHA Preseason Player of the Year. 
 
He was one of three named by conference head coaches along with Isaac Gordon of Michigan Tech and Connor Milburn of Lake Superior State. Wahlin was the only Preseason Player of the Year selected by the media. He was also named to both Preseason All-CCHA Teams. 
 
The junior captain set career marks in goals (12), assists (18), and points (30) while playing in all 37 games last season. He ranked t-11th in goals, t-7th in assists, t-7th in points, and 3rd in shots in the conference. 
 
Wahlin, a native of Woodbury, Minn., is the program's leader in points (51) and is the only Tommie above the 50-point milestone during the DI era. He was also the program's first sophomore captain. 
 
He earned Second-Team All-CCHA, CCHA All-Academic, and CCHA Scholar Athlete honors last season and was named conference player of the week on November 6 for his four points in a weekend series sweep of Northern Michigan.
 
DI SCORING RECORD HOLDERS
  • Mack Byers (2022-24; 31), Lucas Wahlin (26), and Cooper Gay (25) round out the top three in DI goals scored 
    • Wahlin scored his fourth goal in his last seven games with a crucial game-tying score in the Tommies' game two win over Lindenwood. 
    • Gay scored in his second consecutive game back from injury in the Toms' game one win over the Lions but his four-game point streak ended in game two.  
  • Lucas Wahlin (67), Ryan O'Neill (55), and Liam Malmquist (50), make up the top three in DI points 
    • Wahlin added three points over the weekend against Lindenwood.    
    • O'Neill's last point was an assist on 12/6 against Michigan Tech. 
    • Malmquist joined the 50-point club with four points (two in each game) against Lindenwood.
 
NHL DEVELOPMENT CAMPS  
NHL DRAFT PICKS
  • Ryder Donovan was selected as the 110th overall pick in the fourth round of the 2019 NHL Draft by the Vegas Golden Knights. 
    • Donovan played three games last season for the Purple but made an instant impact with the overtime game-winner against ranked St. Cloud State to open the season. 
  • Chase Cheslock was selected as the 154th overall pick in the fifth round of the 2023 NHL Draft by the New Jersey Devils and is the Tommies first "homegrown" draft pick. 
    • Cheslock joined the Tommies mid-season and played 19 games with one goal and two assists. His first career goal came in the Toms' game-two playoff win over Lake Superior State. 
 
CAPTAINS
  • Junior, Lucas Wahlin, wears the "C" on his chest for coach Rico Blasi's squad for the second consecutive season. Wahlin, a Woodbury, Minn. native, finished with 30 points in 37 games last season. He became the first Tommie in program history to surpass the 50-point career milestone on March 9thagainst Lake Superior State. He played for three teams over three seasons in both the NAHL and USHL before finding a home on the corner of Cretin and Summit. 
  • Seniors Ethan Gauer and Matthew Gleason along with junior Cooper Gay don the "A" this season. 
  • Both Gauer and Gleason are one-time transfers, but Gauer has played in each season of the Tommies' four at the DI level. He has 25 career points and leads the program with 124 blocked shots in 103 career games in purple. 
  • Matthew Gleason transferred in from Colorado College last season and had a career year. He scored five goals and added 18 assists for 23 points. Gleason is originally from St. Paul and played high school hockey for Cretin Derham Hall. 
  • Cooper Gay was on track for a tremendous season before going down with an injury in the second half of the season. The Hanover, Minn. native scored 12 goals and added 10 assists for a total of 22 points in 29 games as a sophomore. Gay has scored the fifth most goals in program history (16) and is sixth in points (29). 
 
TRANSFERS
  • Graduate student, Chase Foley, a Mendota Heights, Minn. native and Colorado College transfer, played 104 games for the Tigers and scored three goals with 28 assists over his four-year career as a defenseman. He is coming off a career season with two goals and 14 assists. 
  • Graduate student, Ray Christy, a St. Paul, Minn. native and Colorado College transfer, played 105 games for the Tigers and scored five goals with nine assists over his four-year career as a defenseman. He is coming off a career season with two goals and five assists while wearing the "A". 
  • Junior, Caige Sterzer, a Kimberley, B.C., Canada native and Lindenwood transfer, played 54 games for the Lions and scored 14 goals with 19 assists over his two-year NCAA career as a forward. He is coming off a career season with eight goals and 14 assists, he was the Lions leading point scorer. 
  • Both Chase Foley and Ray Christy played their Minnesota High School hockey at Saint Thomas Ice Arena for the Saint Thomas Academy Cadets. Neither Christy nor Foley has played in Mendota Heights since 2017-18. Foley was the captain of that 2017-18 Cadets team. 
 
FRESHMEN
  • First-year, Casy Laylin, native of St. Michael, Minn. most recently played for the Salmon Arm Silverbacks of the BCHL for a season and a half. The forward skated in 69 games and added 15 goals and 29 assists for Salmon Arm. 
  • First-year forward, Nick Mikan, an Edina, Minn. native, most recently played for the Vernon Vipers of the BCHL where he skated in 35 games with eight goals and five assists. 
  • First-year defenseman, Ethan Elias, a native of Maple Grove, Minn., most recently played for the Madison Capitols for two seasons where he skated in 105 games with 10 goals and 22 assists. He was the captain of the 2023-24 Capitols team. 
  • First-year forward, Alexander Tell, from Linkoping, Sweden, skated in 49 games for Linkoping HC 120 and added 11 goals and 14 assists while wearing an "A".
 
SIBELL NAMED ONE OF NATION'S TOP TENDERS
Jake Sibell was named to the semi-finalist list for the Mike Richter Award last season. Sibell was the first in program history and only last season from the Central Collegiate Hockey Association. 
 
The Hockey Commissioners Association (HCA) announced the semifinalists for this year's Mike Richter Award, given annually to the top goalie in men's NCAA Division I hockey since 2014. Ten goaltenders from a "Watch List" of 30 were singled out by a panel of voters across the hockey community. 
 
Sibell was one of two goalies on the list from Minnesota (Ryan Bischel of Notre Dame from Medina, Minn.). He was also one of two from a team within the Land of 10,000 Lakes (Justen Close from the University of Minnesota). 
 
Kyle McClellan of Wisconsin won the award for the 2023-24 season.  
 
PRESEASON CCHA COACHES POLL
St. Thomas was picked to finish first in the Preseason CCHA Coaches Poll on September 12th. The former high-water mark in the preseason poll was a fifth-place finish last season. The Toms earned 73 votes in total and tied with Bemidji State in first place votes (3). The Beavers earned 69 votes, four behind St. Thomas. Michigan Tech (2) and Minnesota State (1) finished third and fourth respectively and each earned at least one first place vote. Bowling Green (50), Lake Superior State (46), Augustana (46), Ferris State (28), and Northern Michigan (26) rounded out the poll. 
 
PRESEASON CCHA MEDIA POLL
St. Thomas was picked to finish second in the Preseason CCHA Media Poll on September 12th. This is the highest the Tommies have ever finished in the preseason media poll. Bemidji State came out on top with 107 total votes and five first place votes. The Tommies came up with the same amout of total votes (107) but earned one less first place vote. Minnesota State (2) and Michigan Tech (1) finished third and fourth respectively and each earned at least one first place vote. Bowling Green (63), Lake Superior State (60), Augustana (52), Northern Michigan (40), and Ferris State (33) rounded out the poll.
 
Press Conference: Rico Blasi January 27th 2025
Monday, January 27
St. Thomas Men's Hockey 2023-24 Intro Video
Friday, October 27
Rico Blasi Pre-Season Press Conference, September 26th, 2022
Friday, October 21
Rico Blasi Press Conference October 3rd
Friday, October 21