University of St. Thomas Athletics
Friday, November 6
St. Paul, Minn.
7:00 p.m. CT
vs
Alaska Anchorage
11/5/2026 12:46:00 PM | Men's Hockey
Tommies welcome first-time opponent to St. Paul
ST. PAUL, Minn. – St. Thomas men's hockey (2-4-0, 1-1-0 NCHC) returns home to Lee & Penny Anderson Arena following a conference-opening split with Miami on the road last weekend. The Tommies host the Alaska Anchorage Seawolves (1-7-0) on Friday and Saturday, Nov. 6-7, in St. Paul.
Game one is Friday at 7 p.m. CT, and game two is Saturday at 6 p.m. CT. Both games can be streamed on NCHC.tv, and Sam Ekstrom has the radio call both nights on ESPN 1500.
St. Thomas earned its first NCHC victory last Saturday at Goggin Ice Center in Oxford, Ohio, against the Miami RedHawks, the former team of head coach Rico Blasi. Nathan Pilling bounced back from a costly major boarding penalty in the third period of Friday's 2-1 loss by recording the first natural hat trick in program history on Saturday. All three goals came within a span of seven game minutes, with the first two coming in the same minute on assists from Kaeden Hawkins and Justin Kipkie. Kipkie then assisted on Pilling's third goal early in the second period. The Tommies are led in goals by Pilling and Lucas Van Vliet (3 each), in assists by Kipkie (4) and in points by Chase Cheslock (5), who scored the Tommies' lone goal in Friday's loss. Will Ingemann established himself in net with two standout performances against the RedHawks that earned him the first NCHC weekly honor in program history. His 1.35 goals-against average is third in the conference, and his .957 save percentage is first. The sophomore is top 10 nationally in both categories. The Tommies scored three power-play goals last weekend and have converted at a 16% rate while killing penalties at a 73.9% clip.
It has been a slow start for Alaska Anchorage, which has just one win in its first eight games. That lone win came at home against Lake Superior State. The Seawolves have been outscored 41-16 to begin the year, and their 41 goals allowed are the second most in the country, behind Long Island's 44. They are coming off a bye last weekend, having last played on Oct. 23-24, when they lost twice at Miami, 5-1 and 3-2. Sophomore Ty Spencer leads the Seawolves with three goals, and Oren Shtrom leads with seven points. Goaltender Joey Rocha has received most of the starts (6) and is 1-5-0 with a 3.85 goals-against average and .874 save percentage. Alaska Anchorage is 4-for-26 (15.4%) on the power play and 77.1% on the penalty kill.
WALL INGEMANN
St. Thomas sophomore goaltender Will Ingemann was named NCHC Goaltender of the Week for the first time in program history, the league office announced Tuesday. It is also Ingemann's first career conference weekly award.
Ingemann stopped 67 of the 70 shots he faced in the Tommies' conference-opening weekend on the road against Miami. His .957 save percentage and 1.51 goals-against average propelled St. Thomas to its first NCHC points with a win over the RedHawks in game two.
The Plymouth, Minn., native lowered his season goals-against average to 1.35 and raised his save percentage to .957 across the three games he has played. His GAA ranks third in the conference behind Minnesota Duluth's Carl Axelsson and Denver's Johnny Hicks, and his save percentage currently leads the NCHC.
TOMMIE TIDBITS
By splitting their first NCHC series against Miami, the Tommies joined seven other teams in earning a win during the league's opening conference weekend. Only Denver and Arizona State failed to record a win in their first conference series.
SECOND FRAME SIGNIFICANCE
The second period has been a dividing line for the Tommies early on. They are 2-0 when leading after two periods and 0-4 when trailing or tied. They are 2-1 when scoring first and 0-3 when not.
CENTURY MARK FOR CHESLOCK
Chase Cheslock played in his 100th and 101st career games during last weekend's split with Miami. The senior defenseman added a goal on Friday and an assist on Saturday to reach 46 career points, eighth in program history and first among defensemen.
His goal was his second of the season, the first time in his career he has scored more than one in a year after recording one goal in each of his first three seasons with the Tommies.
BLUE LINE BUFFET
Defenseman Justin Kipkie has been eating early this season and leads the Tommies with four assists. He is tied for the conference lead with three points in NCHC games this season.
BLOCK PARTY
The Tommies have averaged 16 blocks per game over their first six games, a mark that leads the NCHC. Although it is early, they are on pace to break Omaha's NCHC record of 15.83 blocks per game, set in 2017-18. Freshman Hawke Huff leads the Tommies with 13 blocks, seventh in the NCHC.
FACE-OFF FACTORY
The Tommies are winning faceoffs at a 54.6% clip, their best mark ever through the first six games of a season. Jakub Altrichter leads the team with 73 wins at a 61.3% rate and is on pace to break the single-season program record held by Lucas Wahlin (385, an average of 10.1 per game). Nathan Pilling is also off to a hot start, winning 61 draws at a 53% rate.
469 FOR BLASI
With his 469th career win on Oct. 31 against Miami, Blasi moved into 20th place all-time. Blasi, who won his 450th game on Tuesday, Nov. 11, 2025, against St. Cloud State, is in his 26th year as a head coach and ranks fourth among active head coaches. He is three wins shy of Don Vaughan for 19th all-time.
WHITE WALL
Freshman Ajay White is one of three goaltenders in the Tommies' room and earned his first career win in impressive fashion against Air Force on Oct. 10. He is the second goaltender in program history to win his debut start for the Purple, following Carsen Musser last season.
ALT-READY FITTING IN
Junior center Jakub Altrichter made a statement in his first weekend as a Tommie. The former Northern Michigan Wildcat scored his first goal in purple, the team's first shorthanded goal since Bauer Berry scored one last February against Bemidji State. St. Thomas tied for the national lead with 11 shorthanded goals last season.
Altrichter followed that up on Saturday with the first +4 rating of his collegiate career in the 4-2 win, his 61st career game. He won 25 of 38 faceoffs (.658) and logged 20:45 of ice time, second among Tommie forwards behind only Van Vliet.
CO-CAPTAINS
St. Thomas is captained by a pair of four-year Tommie defensemen, Chase Cheslock and Cole Miller. This is the first time in the D-I era that Blasi has named co-captains. A third four-year defenseman, Mason Poolman, wears the "A."
OCTOBER'S IN THE REARVIEW MIRROR
The Tommies are 10-32-4 in October during the D-I era and have yet to post a winning month. The Purple have never won more than two games in the year's 10th month.
The Tommies opened their 10-game non-conference slate on Oct. 9-10 against Air Force, splitting the home-opening series by dropping game one 5-1 and winning game two 4-2. St. Thomas is playing a 34-game schedule in 2026-27, plus one exhibition game for Hockey Day Minnesota on Jan. 30 in Brainerd.
The non-league schedule also includes CCHA rivals Minnesota State and Bemidji State, first-time opponent Alaska Anchorage and NCAA tournament team Providence. Air Force, Bemidji State and Alaska Anchorage are three of the Tommies' five opponents that did not receive a vote in the preseason USCHO poll.
The Tommies dropped both games of their Oct. 23-24 home-and-home series with Minnesota State. The Mavericks won game one 3-1 at Anderson Arena and then shut out the Tommies 2-0 the following night in Mankato. After opening NCHC play last weekend at Miami, St. Thomas hosts the Seawolves on Nov. 6-7.
Thanksgiving week brings a home-and-home with Bemidji State, with games on Nov. 25 in Bemidji and Nov. 28 at Anderson Arena. The final non-conference series of the season is at Providence on Jan. 1-2, 2027, in Rhode Island.
NHL DEVELOPMENT CAMPS
The Tommies were picked to finish seventh in the NCHC Preseason Media Poll.
COACH BLASI
St. Thomas returned just 11 players from its 2025-26 squad and welcomes 15 newcomers: nine freshmen and six transfers.
Freshmen
The Tommies have had a different player lead the team in points in each of their first five seasons of D-I play.
Game one is Friday at 7 p.m. CT, and game two is Saturday at 6 p.m. CT. Both games can be streamed on NCHC.tv, and Sam Ekstrom has the radio call both nights on ESPN 1500.
St. Thomas earned its first NCHC victory last Saturday at Goggin Ice Center in Oxford, Ohio, against the Miami RedHawks, the former team of head coach Rico Blasi. Nathan Pilling bounced back from a costly major boarding penalty in the third period of Friday's 2-1 loss by recording the first natural hat trick in program history on Saturday. All three goals came within a span of seven game minutes, with the first two coming in the same minute on assists from Kaeden Hawkins and Justin Kipkie. Kipkie then assisted on Pilling's third goal early in the second period. The Tommies are led in goals by Pilling and Lucas Van Vliet (3 each), in assists by Kipkie (4) and in points by Chase Cheslock (5), who scored the Tommies' lone goal in Friday's loss. Will Ingemann established himself in net with two standout performances against the RedHawks that earned him the first NCHC weekly honor in program history. His 1.35 goals-against average is third in the conference, and his .957 save percentage is first. The sophomore is top 10 nationally in both categories. The Tommies scored three power-play goals last weekend and have converted at a 16% rate while killing penalties at a 73.9% clip.
It has been a slow start for Alaska Anchorage, which has just one win in its first eight games. That lone win came at home against Lake Superior State. The Seawolves have been outscored 41-16 to begin the year, and their 41 goals allowed are the second most in the country, behind Long Island's 44. They are coming off a bye last weekend, having last played on Oct. 23-24, when they lost twice at Miami, 5-1 and 3-2. Sophomore Ty Spencer leads the Seawolves with three goals, and Oren Shtrom leads with seven points. Goaltender Joey Rocha has received most of the starts (6) and is 1-5-0 with a 3.85 goals-against average and .874 save percentage. Alaska Anchorage is 4-for-26 (15.4%) on the power play and 77.1% on the penalty kill.
WALL INGEMANN
St. Thomas sophomore goaltender Will Ingemann was named NCHC Goaltender of the Week for the first time in program history, the league office announced Tuesday. It is also Ingemann's first career conference weekly award.
Ingemann stopped 67 of the 70 shots he faced in the Tommies' conference-opening weekend on the road against Miami. His .957 save percentage and 1.51 goals-against average propelled St. Thomas to its first NCHC points with a win over the RedHawks in game two.
The Plymouth, Minn., native lowered his season goals-against average to 1.35 and raised his save percentage to .957 across the three games he has played. His GAA ranks third in the conference behind Minnesota Duluth's Carl Axelsson and Denver's Johnny Hicks, and his save percentage currently leads the NCHC.
TOMMIE TIDBITS
- Nathan Pilling's hat trick was the first by a Tommie since Liam Malmquist against Ferris State on March 7, 2025.
- It was the first natural hat trick in program history.
- It was also the first time a Tommie forward had scored two power-play goals in the same game since Malmquist against Ferris State on Jan. 10, 2025.
- Justin Kipkie recorded the first three-assist game by a Tommie since Lucas Van Vliet on Jan. 3, 2026, against Ferris State. It was Kipkie's first career three-point game.
- Pilling and Kipkie each recorded three points in a game for the first time since Lucas Wahlin on March 7, 2026, against Lake Superior State.
- Will Ingemann's 35 saves in the Tommies' game-two win were a career high. His previous best was 31 against St. Cloud State on Nov. 15, 2025.
- Kaeden Hawkins recorded his first career multi-point game, scoring his first career point on the same night.
- The Tommies are on a program-record pace for both penalties per game (5.5) and penalty minutes per game (14.7).
By splitting their first NCHC series against Miami, the Tommies joined seven other teams in earning a win during the league's opening conference weekend. Only Denver and Arizona State failed to record a win in their first conference series.
SECOND FRAME SIGNIFICANCE
The second period has been a dividing line for the Tommies early on. They are 2-0 when leading after two periods and 0-4 when trailing or tied. They are 2-1 when scoring first and 0-3 when not.
CENTURY MARK FOR CHESLOCK
Chase Cheslock played in his 100th and 101st career games during last weekend's split with Miami. The senior defenseman added a goal on Friday and an assist on Saturday to reach 46 career points, eighth in program history and first among defensemen.
His goal was his second of the season, the first time in his career he has scored more than one in a year after recording one goal in each of his first three seasons with the Tommies.
BLUE LINE BUFFET
Defenseman Justin Kipkie has been eating early this season and leads the Tommies with four assists. He is tied for the conference lead with three points in NCHC games this season.
BLOCK PARTY
The Tommies have averaged 16 blocks per game over their first six games, a mark that leads the NCHC. Although it is early, they are on pace to break Omaha's NCHC record of 15.83 blocks per game, set in 2017-18. Freshman Hawke Huff leads the Tommies with 13 blocks, seventh in the NCHC.
FACE-OFF FACTORY
The Tommies are winning faceoffs at a 54.6% clip, their best mark ever through the first six games of a season. Jakub Altrichter leads the team with 73 wins at a 61.3% rate and is on pace to break the single-season program record held by Lucas Wahlin (385, an average of 10.1 per game). Nathan Pilling is also off to a hot start, winning 61 draws at a 53% rate.
469 FOR BLASI
With his 469th career win on Oct. 31 against Miami, Blasi moved into 20th place all-time. Blasi, who won his 450th game on Tuesday, Nov. 11, 2025, against St. Cloud State, is in his 26th year as a head coach and ranks fourth among active head coaches. He is three wins shy of Don Vaughan for 19th all-time.
WHITE WALL
Freshman Ajay White is one of three goaltenders in the Tommies' room and earned his first career win in impressive fashion against Air Force on Oct. 10. He is the second goaltender in program history to win his debut start for the Purple, following Carsen Musser last season.
ALT-READY FITTING IN
Junior center Jakub Altrichter made a statement in his first weekend as a Tommie. The former Northern Michigan Wildcat scored his first goal in purple, the team's first shorthanded goal since Bauer Berry scored one last February against Bemidji State. St. Thomas tied for the national lead with 11 shorthanded goals last season.
Altrichter followed that up on Saturday with the first +4 rating of his collegiate career in the 4-2 win, his 61st career game. He won 25 of 38 faceoffs (.658) and logged 20:45 of ice time, second among Tommie forwards behind only Van Vliet.
CO-CAPTAINS
St. Thomas is captained by a pair of four-year Tommie defensemen, Chase Cheslock and Cole Miller. This is the first time in the D-I era that Blasi has named co-captains. A third four-year defenseman, Mason Poolman, wears the "A."
- Chase Cheslock – Five goals, 41 assists and 46 points in 101 career games. He has captained two previous teams: Rogers High School for two years and the Omaha Lancers in 2023. He joined the Tommies at the holiday break in 2024.
- Cole Miller – Two goals, 15 assists and 17 points in 112 career games. Miller also has two previous captaincies: the Ohio Blue Jackets 18U AAA team in 2020-21 and the Sioux Falls Stampede in 2022-23.
- Mason Poolman – Seven goals, 18 assists and 25 points in 110 career games.
OCTOBER'S IN THE REARVIEW MIRROR
The Tommies are 10-32-4 in October during the D-I era and have yet to post a winning month. The Purple have never won more than two games in the year's 10th month.
- 2021-22: 1-9-0
- 2022-23: 2-6-0
- 2023-24: 2-5-1
- 2024-25: 1-3-2
- 2025-26: 2-5-1
- 2026-27: 2-4-0
The Tommies opened their 10-game non-conference slate on Oct. 9-10 against Air Force, splitting the home-opening series by dropping game one 5-1 and winning game two 4-2. St. Thomas is playing a 34-game schedule in 2026-27, plus one exhibition game for Hockey Day Minnesota on Jan. 30 in Brainerd.
The non-league schedule also includes CCHA rivals Minnesota State and Bemidji State, first-time opponent Alaska Anchorage and NCAA tournament team Providence. Air Force, Bemidji State and Alaska Anchorage are three of the Tommies' five opponents that did not receive a vote in the preseason USCHO poll.
The Tommies dropped both games of their Oct. 23-24 home-and-home series with Minnesota State. The Mavericks won game one 3-1 at Anderson Arena and then shut out the Tommies 2-0 the following night in Mankato. After opening NCHC play last weekend at Miami, St. Thomas hosts the Seawolves on Nov. 6-7.
Thanksgiving week brings a home-and-home with Bemidji State, with games on Nov. 25 in Bemidji and Nov. 28 at Anderson Arena. The final non-conference series of the season is at Providence on Jan. 1-2, 2027, in Rhode Island.
NHL DEVELOPMENT CAMPS
- Bauer Berry (Edmonton Oilers)
- Hawke Huff (Seattle Kraken)
- Justin Kipkie (Minnesota Wild)
- Carsen Musser (Utah Mammoth)
- Nathan Pilling (Vegas Golden Knights)
- David Rozsival (New Jersey Devils)
- Lucas Van Vliet (Vegas Golden Knights)
- Ajay White (Dallas Stars)
- Bauer Berry was selected 218th overall (seventh round) in the 2024 NHL Draft by the Edmonton Oilers.
- Chase Cheslock was selected 154th overall in the 2023 NHL Draft by the New Jersey Devils and was the first drafted player to commit to the Tommies out of high school.
- Hawke Huff was selected 148th overall (fifth round) in the 2026 NHL Draft by the Seattle Kraken. He is the highest-drafted freshman in program history.
- Justin Kipkie was selected 141st overall (fifth round) in the 2025 NHL Draft by the Minnesota Wild.
- Carsen Musser was selected 166th overall in the 2023 NHL Draft by the Utah Mammoth.
- David Rozsival was selected 161st overall in the 2025 NHL Draft by the New Jersey Devils.
- Lucas Van Vliet was selected 197th overall in the 2024 NHL Draft by the Vegas Golden Knights.
The Tommies were picked to finish seventh in the NCHC Preseason Media Poll.
- Denver – 304 points (14 first-place votes)
- North Dakota – 302 points (12 first-place votes)
- Minnesota Duluth – 273 points (7 first-place votes)
- Western Michigan – 237 points
- Miami – 175 points
- Colorado College – 159 points
- St. Thomas – 121 points
- St. Cloud State – 102 points
- Arizona State – 73 points
- Omaha – 69 points
COACH BLASI
- Entering his sixth season at St. Thomas.
- During his 20-year tenure at Miami, Blasi led 10 NCAA tournament teams, including 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), 10 Hobey Baker finalists, 10 All-Americans and 25 players who went on to play in the NHL, including Stanley Cup champions Alec Martinez, Jeff Zatkoff, Blake Coleman and Reilly Smith.
- His 469-415-91 record makes him 20th all-time in wins and fourth among active head coaches.
St. Thomas returned just 11 players from its 2025-26 squad and welcomes 15 newcomers: nine freshmen and six transfers.
Freshmen
- Vincent Collard | 6-2 | Forward | Chicoutimi, Quebec | Blainville-Boisbriand (QMJHL)
- Aiden Grossklaus | 6-0 | Forward | Woodbury, Minn. | Wenatchee (WHL)
- Kaeden Hawkins | 6-0 | Forward | St. Louis, Mo. | London (OHL)
- Hawke Huff | 6-3 | Defenseman | Plymouth, Minn. | Cedar Rapids (USHL)
- Andrew O'Neill | 6-2 | Forward | Fargo, N.D. | Edmonton (WHL)
- Jackson Potulny | 6-3 | Forward | Maple Grove, Minn. | El Paso (NAHL)
- David Rozsival | 6-1 | Forward | Liberec, Czechia | Green Bay (USHL)
- Kade Stengrim | 6-4 | Forward | Brainerd, Minn. | Medicine Hat (WHL)
- Ajay White | 6-3 | Goaltender | Bryn Mawr, Pa. | Fargo (USHL)
- Jakub Altrichter | 5-11 | Forward | Prague, Czechia | Northern Michigan (CCHA)
- Kevin Anderson | 6-0 | Forward | Regina, Saskatchewan | Princeton (ECAC)
- Sam Groebner | 6-2 | Defenseman | Apple Valley, Minn. | Army (AHA)
- Justin Kipkie | 6-4 | Defenseman | Calgary, Alberta | Arizona State (NCAA)
- Quinn Rudrud | 6-3 | Forward | Farmington, Minn. | Augustana (CCHA)
- Winter Wallace | 6-4 | Forward | Boulder, Colo. | Cornell (ECAC)
The Tommies have had a different player lead the team in points in each of their first five seasons of D-I play.
- Christiano Versich, 2021-22 (15 points)
- Mack Byers, 2022-23 (26 points)
- Lucas Wahlin, 2023-24 (30 points)
- Liam Malmquist, 2024-25 (45 points)
- Alex Gaffney, 2025-26 (40 points)
- Lucas Wahlin (56, 2022-26), Cooper Gay (35, 2022-25) and Jake Braccini (33, 2022-26) are the top three in career D-I goals.
- Lucas Wahlin (131, 2022-26), Ryan O'Neill (94, 2022-26) and Liam Malmquist (72, 2023-25) are the top three in career points.
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