2020–21 Michigan Tech Huskies men's ice hockey season

The 2020–21 Michigan Tech Huskies men's ice hockey season was the 100th season of play for the program and the 59th in the WCHA conference. The Huskies represented Michigan Technological University and were coached by Joe Shawhan, in his 4th season.

2020–21 Michigan Tech Huskies
men's ice hockey season
ConferenceT–5th WCHA
Home iceMacInnes Student Ice Arena
Rankings
USCHONR
USA TodayNR
Record
Overall17–12–1
Conference7–7–0–1–0–0
Home9–4–0
Road8–8–1
Neutral0–0–0
Coaches and captains
Head coachJoe Shawhan
Assistant coachesChris Brooks
Dallas Steward
Jamie Phillips
Captain(s)Alec Broetzman
Alternate captain(s)Trenton Bliss
Eric Gotz
Colin Swoyer
Michigan Tech Huskies men's ice hockey seasons
« 2019–20 2021–22 »

Season

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As a result of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic the entire college ice hockey season was delayed. Because the NCAA had previously announced that all winter sports athletes would retain whatever eligibility they possessed through at least the following year, none of Michigan Tech's players would lose a season of play.[1] However, the NCAA also approved a change in its transfer regulations that would allow players to transfer and play immediately rather than having to sit out a season, as the rules previously required.[2]

Michigan Tech got off to a bumpy start but quickly recovered and pulled themselves into the top-20 by late January. As sophomore netminder Blake Pietila was establishing himself as the team's starter, the Huskies were able to play a majority of their games without interruptions from COVID-19. Tech lost its ranking after getting swept at the end of the month but then reeled off seven consecutive wins. The only downside was that their opponents in six of those games were some of the worse teams in college hockey in 2021, so MTU could only get up to 18th in the rankings. When they did play good teams, the Huskies were able to compete on defense but the scoring was reduced to a paltry amount. In their final 8 games against teams that were in the top-20 at some point, MTU scored more than 1 goal twice and lost all but one contest. As a result of their failures against good teams, the Huskies had only a slim chance to make the NCAA Tournament without a WCHA championship. Being swept in the quarterfinals effectively ended the Huskies' campaign.

Cayden Bailey, Jed Pietila and Marcus Russell sat out the season.

Departures

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Player Position Nationality Cause
Robbie Beydoun Goaltender   United States Transferred to Wisconsin
Ray Brice Forward   United States Graduation (signed with Macon Mayhem)
Seamus Donohue Defenseman   United States Transferred to St. Cloud State
Keegan Ford Defenseman   United States Left program
Matt Jurusik Goaltender   United States Graduation (signed with Texas Stars)
Todd Kiilunen Defenseman   United States Graduation
Mitch Meek Defenseman   Canada Transferred to Long Island
Zach Noble Forward   United States Left program
Alex Smith Forward/Defenseman   Canada Graduation

Recruiting

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Player Position Nationality Age Notes
Tristan Ashbrook Forward   United States 22 Manistique, MI; transfer from Rensselaer
Cayden Bailey Goaltender   United States 21 Estero, FL
Carson Bantle Forward   United States 20 Onalaska, WI; Selected 142nd overall in 2020
Arvid Caderoth Forward   Sweden 20 Göteborg, SWE
Rylan Mosley Forward   Canada 20 Arnprior, ON
Nick Nardella Forward   United States 21 Rosemont, IL
Jed Pietila Defenseman   United States 21 Howell, MI
Blais Richartz Forward   United States 20 Menomonie, WI
Mark Sinclair Goaltender   Canada 21 Hamilton, ON; transfer from Alabama–Huntsville
Brett Thorne Defenseman   Canada 21 Brampton, ON

Roster

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As of January 20, 2021.[3]

No. S/P/C Player Class Pos Height Weight DoB Hometown Previous team NHL rights
2   Ryland Mosley Freshman F 5' 11" (1.8 m) 185 lb (84 kg) 2000-02-15 Arnprior, Ontario Carleton Place (CCHL)
3   Tyrell Buckley Junior D 6' 0" (1.83 m) 195 lb (88 kg) 1997-03-01 Penticton, British Columbia Merritt (BCHL)
4   Chris Lipe Sophomore D 6' 1" (1.85 m) 195 lb (88 kg) 1999-11-23 Rockford, Michigan Dubuque (USHL)
5   Brenden Datema Sophomore D 6' 5" (1.96 m) 220 lb (100 kg) 1999-03-18 Sterling Heights, Michigan Amarillo (NAHL)
6   Cooper Watson Senior D 6' 3" (1.91 m) 195 lb (88 kg) 1996-04-18 Appleton, Wisconsin Vernon (BCHL)
7   Nick Nardella Freshman F 5' 10" (1.78 m) 174 lb (79 kg) 1999-02-09 Rosemont, Illinois Janesville (NAHL)
8   David Raisanen Senior F 6' 5" (1.96 m) 215 lb (98 kg) 1998-01-17 Cokato, Minnesota Minot (NAHL)
9   Tommy Parrottino Junior F 6' 0" (1.83 m) 170 lb (77 kg) 1998-03-03 Rochester Hills, Michigan Youngstown (USHL)
10   Jake Crespi Sophomore F 6' 0" (1.83 m) 190 lb (86 kg) 1998-12-10 Brighton, Michigan Tri-City (USHL)
11   Carson Bantle Freshman F 6' 4" (1.93 m) 201 lb (91 kg) 2002-01-22 Onalaska, Wisconsin Madison (USHL) ARI, 142nd overall 2020
12   Brian Halonen Junior F 6' 0" (1.83 m) 207 lb (94 kg) 1999-01-11 Delano, Minnesota Des Moines (USHL)
13   Logan Pietila Sophomore F 5' 11" (1.8 m) 165 lb (75 kg) 2000-01-27 Howell, Michigan Dubuque (USHL)
14   Logan Ganie Sophomore F 5' 10" (1.78 m) 175 lb (79 kg) 1999-06-28 Irma, Alberta Spruce Grove (AJHL)
15   Parker Saretsky Sophomore F 6' 0" (1.83 m) 175 lb (79 kg) 1999-04-23 Wainwright, Alberta Spruce Grove (AJHL)
16   T.J. Polglaze Junior F 5' 11" (1.8 m) 175 lb (79 kg) 1997-02-17 Beloit, Wisconsin Janesville (NAHL)
17   Justin Misiak Senior F 5' 10" (1.78 m) 178 lb (81 kg) 1996-04-25 St. Clair Shores, Michigan Austin (NAHL)
18   Greyson Reitmeier Senior F 6' 4" (1.93 m) 208 lb (94 kg) 1996-05-16 Nakusp, British Columbia Flin Flon (SJHL)
19   Eric Gotz (A) Junior D 5' 10" (1.78 m) 181 lb (82 kg) 1998-04-23 Hermantown, Minnesota Minnesota Wilderness (NAHL)
20   Arvid Caderoth Freshman F 6' 4" (1.93 m) 215 lb (98 kg) 2000-05-14 Askim, Sweden Frölunda J20 (J20 SuperElit)
21   Blais Richartz Freshman F 6' 0" (1.83 m) 183 lb (83 kg) 2000-06-23 Menomonie, Wisconsin Lincoln (USHL)
22   Tyler Rockwell Senior D 5' 8" (1.73 m) 160 lb (73 kg) 1996-06-27 San Jose, California Wenatchee (BCHL)
23   Trenton Bliss (A) Junior F 6' 0" (1.83 m) 192 lb (87 kg) 1998-03-16 Appleton, Wisconsin Green Bay (USHL)
24   Colin Swoyer (A) Junior D 6' 0" (1.83 m) 185 lb (84 kg) 1998-03-31 Hinsdale, Illinois Sioux Falls (USHL)
25   Jed Pietila Freshman D 6' 0" (1.83 m) 181 lb (82 kg) 1999-01-13 Howell, Michigan Austin (NAHL)
26   Marcus Russell Senior F 5' 9" (1.75 m) 175 lb (79 kg) 1996-03-06 Traverse City, Michigan Sioux Falls (USHL)
27   Brett Thorne Freshman D 6' 2" (1.88 m) 190 lb (86 kg) 1998-03-15 Bedford, Nova Scotia Carleton Place (CCHL)
28   Tristan Ashbrook Sophomore F 5' 11" (1.8 m) 175 lb (79 kg) 1998-07-16 Manistique, Michigan RPI (ECAC)
29   Alec Broetzman (C) Junior F 6' 0" (1.83 m) 200 lb (91 kg) 1997-02-05 Hudson, Wisconsin Madison (USHL)
30   Mark Sinclair Senior G 6' 0" (1.83 m) 180 lb (82 kg) 1996-03-08 Dundas, Ontario Alabama–Huntsville (WCHA)
31   Blake Pietila Sophomore G 5' 11" (1.8 m) 164 lb (74 kg) 2000-01-27 Howell, Michigan Cedar Rapids (USHL)
35   Cayden Bailey Freshman G 5' 11" (1.8 m) 181 lb (82 kg) 1999-09-21 Estero, Florida Lone Star (NAHL)

Standings

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Conference record Overall record
GP W L T OTW OTL 3/SW PTS GF GA GP W L T GF GA
#4 Minnesota State 14 13 1 0 1 1 0 39 56 15 27 22 5 1 100 46
#14 Lake Superior State * 14 9 5 0 2 2 0 27 39 34 29 19 7 3 86 63
#18 Bowling Green 14 8 5 1 0 2 0 27 46 34 31 20 10 1 108 67
#10 Bemidji State 14 8 5 1 3 2 0 24 42 34 29 16 10 3 82 70
Michigan Tech 14 7 7 0 1 0 0 20 38 35 30 17 12 1 78 63
Northern Michigan 14 6 7 1 2 2 1 20 40 47 29 11 17 1 79 103
Alabama–Huntsville 14 3 11 0 1 0 0 8 18 49 22 3 18 1 31 80
Ferris State 14 0 13 1 0 1 1 3 28 59 25 1 23 1 55 103
Alaska 0 - - - - - - - - - 0 - - - - -
Alaska Anchorage 0 - - - - - - - - - 0 - - - - -
Championship: March 20, 2021
† indicates conference regular season champion
* indicates conference tournament champion
Rankings: USCHO.com Top 20 Poll

Schedule and Results

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Date Time Opponent# Rank# Site TV Decision Result Attendance Record
Regular Season
November 21 4:54 PM at Lake Superior State* Taffy Abel ArenaSault Ste. Marie, Michigan   Sinclair T 0–0 SOL 8 0–0–1
November 22 3:07 PM at Lake Superior State* Taffy Abel ArenaSault Ste. Marie, Michigan   Sinclair L 1–4  0 0–1–1
December 6 6:07 PM vs. #6 Minnesota State* MacInnes Student Ice ArenaHoughton, Michigan   Pietila W 3–1  0 1–1–1
December 7 5:07 PM vs. #6 Minnesota State* MacInnes Student Ice ArenaHoughton, Michigan   Pietila L 0–2  0 1–2–1
December 12 5:07 PM at Bemidji State* Sanford CenterBemidji, Minnesota   Sinclair L 3–6  105 1–3–1
December 13 3:07 PM at Bemidji State* Sanford CenterBemidji, Minnesota   Pietila W 3–0  105 2–3–1
December 18 7:07 PM vs. Northern Michigan* MacInnes Student Ice ArenaHoughton, Michigan   Pietila W 4–3 OT 0 3–3–1
December 19 6:07 PM at Northern Michigan* Berry Events CenterMarquette, Michigan   Pietila W 3–1  0 4–3–1
January 2 6:07 PM vs. Alabama–Huntsville MacInnes Student Ice ArenaHoughton, Michigan FloHockey.tv Pietila W 4–0  200 5–3–1 (1–0–0)
January 3 2:07 PM vs. Alabama–Huntsville* MacInnes Student Ice ArenaHoughton, Michigan FloHockey.tv Sinclair W 4–0  200 6–3–1 (2–0–0)
January 23 4:07 PM vs. Northern Michigan* MacInnes Student Ice ArenaHoughton, Michigan   Sinclair W 2–0  200 7–3–1
January 25 5:07 PM vs. Northern Michigan* #18 Berry Events CenterMarquette, Michigan   Pietila W 4–1  0 8–3–1
January 29 7:07 PM at #8 Bowling Green #18 Slater Family Ice ArenaBowling Green, Ohio FloHockey.tv Pietila L 3–6  300 8–4–1 (2–1–0)
January 30 7:07 PM at #8 Bowling Green #18 Slater Family Ice ArenaBowling Green, Ohio FloHockey.tv Pietila L 2–5  300 8–5–1 (2–2–0)
February 2 7:07 PM at Ferris State Ewigleben ArenaBig Rapids, Michigan FloHockey.tv Pietila W 6–4  250 9–5–1 (3–2–0)
February 5 8:00 PM at Alabama–Huntsville* Von Braun CenterHuntsville, Alabama   Sinclair W 3–1  1,433 10–5–1
February 6 6:00 PM at Alabama–Huntsville* Von Braun CenterHuntsville, Alabama   Pietila W 4–1  1,373 11–5–1
February 9 4:07 PM at Ferris State Ewigleben ArenaBig Rapids, Michigan FloHockey.tv Pietila W 2–1  175 12–5–1 (4–2–0)
February 12 7:07 PM vs. Ferris State* MacInnes Student Ice ArenaHoughton, Michigan   Pietila W 3–0  300 13–5–1
February 13 6:07 PM vs. Ferris State* MacInnes Student Ice ArenaHoughton, Michigan   Pietila W 5–1  300 14–5–1
February 16 2:07 PM vs. #20 Lake Superior State #18 MacInnes Student Ice ArenaHoughton, Michigan FloHockey.tv Pietila L 1–3  300 14–6–1 (4–3–0)
February 19 7:07 PM vs. Bemidji State #18 MacInnes Student Ice ArenaHoughton, Michigan FloHockey.tv Pietila L 1–4  300 14–7–1 (4–4–0)
February 20 6:07 PM vs. Bemidji State #18 MacInnes Student Ice ArenaHoughton, Michigan FloHockey.tv Sinclair L 1–2  300 14–8–1 (4–5–0)
February 23 2:07 PM vs. #18 Lake Superior State #20 MacInnes Student Ice ArenaHoughton, Michigan FloHockey.tv Pietila W 4–1  300 15–8–1 (5–5–0)
February 26 7:07 PM vs. Northern Michigan #20 MacInnes Student Ice ArenaHoughton, Michigan FloHockey.tv Pietila W 6–1  300 16–8–1 (6–5–0)
February 27 6:07 PM vs. Northern Michigan #20 Berry Events CenterMarquette, Michigan FloHockey.tv Pietila W 3–2 OT 250 17–8–1 (7–5–0)
March 5 6:07 PM vs. #4 Minnesota State #19 Mayo Clinic Health System Event CenterMankato, Minnesota FloHockey.tv Pietila L 1–2  250 17–9–1 (7–6–0)
March 6 6:07 PM vs. #4 Minnesota State #19 Mayo Clinic Health System Event CenterMankato, Minnesota FloHockey.tv Pietila L 2–3  250 17–10–1 (7–7–0)
WCHA Tournament
March 12 7:07 PM at #15 Bemidji State* Sanford CenterBemidji, Minnesota (WCHA Quarterfinals Game 1)   Pietila L 1–3  250 17–11–1
March 13 6:07 PM at #15 Bemidji State* Sanford CenterBemidji, Minnesota (WCHA Quarterfinals Game 2)   Pietila L 1–4  250 17–12–1
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from USCHO.com Poll. All times are in Eastern Time.

[4]

Scoring statistics

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Name Position Games Goals Assists Points PIM
Trenton Bliss F 29 12 13 25 27
Alec Broetzman LW 30 13 8 21 16
Brian Halonen LW 28 8 10 18 16
Arvid Caderoth C/RW 30 2 16 18 12
Colin Swoyer D 30 3 14 17 24
Eric Gotz D 30 3 11 14 12
Tristan Ashbrook RW 20 7 5 12 0
Justin Misiak C 28 4 8 12 8
Tyler Rockwell D 30 4 7 11 12
Nick Nardella F 22 2 7 9 10
Chris Lipe D 29 1 8 9 4
Jake Crespi RW 26 5 3 8 8
Tommy Parrottino F 22 6 1 7 2
Brett Thorne D 30 1 6 7 29
Parker Saretsky F 29 0 6 6 4
Blais Richartz F 17 1 3 4 2
Logan Pietila F 28 0 4 4 2
Carson Bantle LW 19 2 1 3 22
Logan Ganie LW 20 2 1 3 8
Ryland Mosley LW 13 1 1 2 6
Tyrell Buckley D 29 1 1 2 12
Brenden Datema D 9 0 1 1 7
Greyson Reitmeier C/LW 11 0 1 1 2
Blake Pietila G 24 0 1 1 0
Cooper Watson D 2 0 0 0 2
David Raisanen F 2 0 0 0 0
T. J. Polglaze F 7 0 0 0 2
Mark Sinclair G 8 0 0 0 0
Bench - - - - - 8
Total 78 137 215 257

[5]

Goaltending statistics

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Name Games Minutes Wins Losses Ties Goals Against Saves Shut Outs SV % GAA
Blake Pietila 24 1394 14 9 0 42 596 3 .934 1.81
Mark Sinclair 8 398 3 3 1 15 132 2 .898 2.26
Empty Net - 16 - - - 6 - - - -
Total 30 1810 17 12 1 63 728 5 .920 2.09

Rankings

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Poll Week
Pre 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 (Final)
USCHO.com NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR 18 NR NR 18 20 19 NR NR NR - NR
USA Today NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR

USCHO did not release a poll in week 20.[6]

Awards and honors

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Player Award Ref
Colin Swoyer WCHA Second Team [7]
Trenton Bliss WCHA Third Team [7]
Arvid Caderoth WCHA Rookie Team [7]

Players drafted into the NHL

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Round Pick Player NHL team
6 162 Kyle Kukkonen Anaheim Ducks

† incoming freshman [8]

References

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  1. ^ "NCAA approves blanket waiver for 2020 fall sports athletes to retain year of eligibility". CBS Sports. August 21, 2020. Retrieved January 25, 2021.
  2. ^ "DI Council grants waiver to allow transfer student-athletes to compete immediately". NCAA. December 16, 2020. Retrieved January 25, 2021.
  3. ^ "2020–21 Hockey Roster". Michigan Tech Athletics. Retrieved January 20, 2021.
  4. ^ "Michigan Tech Huskies (Men) 2020-2021 Schedule and Results". College Hockey Stats. Retrieved December 5, 2019.
  5. ^ "Michigan Tech 2020-2021 Skater Stats". Elite Prospects. Retrieved March 2, 2020.
  6. ^ "USCHO Division I Men's Poll". USCHO.com. Retrieved November 26, 2019.
  7. ^ a b c "WCHA Announces 2020-21 All-League Teams". WCHA.com. March 10, 2021. Retrieved April 8, 2021.
  8. ^ "NCAA player rankings, selections in 2021 NHL Draft". USCHO.com. Retrieved July 24, 2021.