University of St. Thomas Athletics
Nick Williams and Lucas Van Vliet pick up CCHA weekly honors
12/1/2025 1:00:00 PM | Men's Hockey
Williams earned Defenseman of the Week and Van Vliet earned his second straight Rookie of the Week
ST. PAUL, Minn. – A point-filled weekend has been rewarded by the CCHA league office with both the Defenseman of the Week and Rookie of the Week honors. Nick Williams is the conference's Defenseman of the Week and Lucas Van Vliet is the Rookie of the Week for the second week in a row.
Williams added a goal, an assist, and 15 blocks in the Toms' five-point weekend against the Michigan Tech Huskies. The Edina, Minn. native and former Husky, has already set a career high in points with nine in 15 games. He also tied St. Thomas' single season DI program record for goals by a defenseman with his fourth on Friday. He is the third Tommie defenseman to earn the honor behind Mason Poolman and Chase Foley.
Lucas Van Vliet has elevated his play to another level over the past few weekends and outdid himself against Michigan Tech. He scored a pair of goals on Friday and delivered the final blow in the shootout to earn the Toms the second conference point. Van Vliet added on with the game-winning goal on Saturday, a shorthanded tally to send St. Thomas back to St. Paul with a lion's share of the points. He is the second Tommie in program history to earn a weekly honor in back-to-back weeks, the first was Liam Malmquist last season on 1/13 and 1/20 (Forward of the Week). Van Vliet's 13 points are the most by a Tommie freshman since 2022-23.
Up Next
The Tommies return home for the final time in 2025 with a two-game set against the Lake Superior State Lakers (5-10-1, 2-8-0) on Friday, December 5 at 7:07 p.m. and Saturday, December 6 at 6:07 p.m.
Follow Along
For any and all information pertaining to the St. Thomas Men's Hockey team, follow along on Instagram and X (formerly known as Twitter) at @TommieMHockey.
Tickets
Tickets to see Tommie Men's Hockey can be purchased HERE.
Williams added a goal, an assist, and 15 blocks in the Toms' five-point weekend against the Michigan Tech Huskies. The Edina, Minn. native and former Husky, has already set a career high in points with nine in 15 games. He also tied St. Thomas' single season DI program record for goals by a defenseman with his fourth on Friday. He is the third Tommie defenseman to earn the honor behind Mason Poolman and Chase Foley.
Lucas Van Vliet has elevated his play to another level over the past few weekends and outdid himself against Michigan Tech. He scored a pair of goals on Friday and delivered the final blow in the shootout to earn the Toms the second conference point. Van Vliet added on with the game-winning goal on Saturday, a shorthanded tally to send St. Thomas back to St. Paul with a lion's share of the points. He is the second Tommie in program history to earn a weekly honor in back-to-back weeks, the first was Liam Malmquist last season on 1/13 and 1/20 (Forward of the Week). Van Vliet's 13 points are the most by a Tommie freshman since 2022-23.
Up Next
The Tommies return home for the final time in 2025 with a two-game set against the Lake Superior State Lakers (5-10-1, 2-8-0) on Friday, December 5 at 7:07 p.m. and Saturday, December 6 at 6:07 p.m.
Follow Along
For any and all information pertaining to the St. Thomas Men's Hockey team, follow along on Instagram and X (formerly known as Twitter) at @TommieMHockey.
Tickets
Tickets to see Tommie Men's Hockey can be purchased HERE.
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