2023–24 Colorado College Tigers men's ice hockey season

The 2023–24 Colorado College Tigers men's ice hockey season was the 84th season of play for the program and the 11th in the NCHC. The Tigers represented Colorado College in the 2023–24 NCAA Division I men's ice hockey season, played their home games at the Ed Robson Arena and were coached by Kris Mayotte, in his 3rd season.

2023–24 Colorado College Tigers
men's ice hockey season
ConferenceT–3rd NCHC
Home iceEd Robson Arena
Rankings
USCHO#15
USA Hockey#15
Record
Overall21–13–3
Conference14–8–2
Home12–8–2
Road9–5–1
Coaches and captains
Head coachKris Mayotte
Assistant coachesPeter Mannino
John Lidgett
Andrew Oglevie
Captain(s)Logan Will
Alternate captain(s)
  • Ray Christy
  • Stan Cooley
  • Jack Millar
Colorado College Tigers men's ice hockey seasons
« 2022–23 2024–25 »

Season

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After narrowly missing out on a surprise conference championship the year before, there was a sense of renewed hope for the program. With the goaltending situation presumably taken care of, thanks to returning starter Kaidan Mbereko, the biggest task for CC was to fix its scoring woes. Having had one of the worst offenses in the nation in '23, Colorado College entered this season by losing it top scorer and more than a quarter of its goals. The Tigers would need to see improvements from across the board if they wanted to end their decade-plus of losing hockey and that's exactly what they received. Noah Laba, who had finished second in scoring the year before, took over as the primary threat for the Tigers and became a 20-goal scorer for CC. The team also got a huge boost from Gleb Veremyev who looked to be completely recovered from a torn ACL.[1]

The team looked strong in October, beginning the season 5–0 for the first time since 2005.[2] However, the next month proved that the team still had some problems to fix. The Tigers slumped over a 9-game span, only managing to win two games against Miami, the worst team in the conference. Mbereko was a little shaky during the stretch but it was the lack of offense that doomed CC. In the six games they played against ranked teams, the Tigers managed just 5 goals and were shutout twice. If Colorado College had any pretentions of being a contender for the NCAA tournament they would have to find a way to win against good teams.

Just before the winter break, CC travelled up to face North Dakota who was then the #1 team in the country. Defying their recent struggles, Colorado College overcame a 2-goal deficit to win in overtime thanks to Laba's 7th of the season. The Tigers appeared to be strengthened by the win and fought even harder in the rematch, this time with Veremyev netting the winning goal. As the team headed into its mid-season vacation, the road sweep of the Fighting Hawks completely altered the fortunes of the Tigers. Upon the team's return to the ice, Mbereko found a new level and become one of the top goaltenders in the nation. From mid-January through early March, Mbereko allowed more than 2 goals in just two games and his stellar play enabled the team to go 9–2–2 in that span.

CC rocketed up the rankings and at the end of the regular season, they were sitting 11th in the PairWise. With the club all but guaranteed a spot in the NCAA tournament, all the Tigers needed to do was win their semifinal match against Omaha and they'd make their first postseason appearance since 2011. However, the Mavericks were also playing for the lives and played desperate in the first game. CC found itself down by 3 goals in the second period but a stellar game from their special teams enabled the Tigers to tie the game and win it in overtime. After Omaha countered with a win in the rematch, the season came down to the deciding game three. Klāvs Veinbergs got CC a lead in the first but the rest of the offense was silent in the game. Despite a strong defensive effort, Omaha took the lead in the third and Colorado College was unable to respond.[3]

Despite the loss, the Tigers still had a chance to make the NCAA tournament. They had dropped to 14th in the PairWise but that was still good enough to receive an at-large bid if events broke their way over the final weekend. All the Tigers needed was for either Quinnipiac to win the ECAC Hockey title, North Dakota to win the NCHC title, or Boston College to lose in the Hockey East championship game and, so long as there were no other upsets, the Tigers would make the field of 16.[4] Unfortunately, none of those events came to pass. Both Quinnipiac and North Dakota lost in their respective semifinal games while Boston College won their championship. The final rankings put Massachusetts .0004 points ahead of CC for the last spot in the tournament and left the Tigers out in the cold.

Departures

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Player Position Nationality Cause
Cade Ahrenholz Forward   United States Transferred to Alaska
Brett Chorske Forward   United States Transferred to Colgate
Patrick Cozzi Forward   United States Graduation (retired)
Matthew Gleason Forward   United States Transferred to St. Thomas
Hunter McKown Forward   United States Signed professional contract (Columbus Blue Jackets)
Noah Prokop Forward   United States Graduate transfer to St. Thomas
Chad Sasaki Defenseman   United States Graduation (retired)
Nate Schweitzer Defenseman   United States Transferred to Lake Superior State
Matt Vernon Goaltender   United States Graduation (signed with Reading Royals)
Bryan Yoon Defenseman   United States Graduation (signed with Utah Grizzlies)

Recruiting

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Player Position Nationality Age Notes
Max Burkholder Defenseman   United States 20 Chaska, MN
Tyler Dunbar Defenseman   United States 19 Sault Ste. Marie, MI
Antonio Fernandez Defenseman   United States 19 San Jose, CA
Bret Link Forward   United States 21 Anchorage, AK
Drew Montgomery Forward   United States 20 Grand Forks, ND
Riley Stuart Forward   United States 21 Phoenix, AZ
Klāvs Veinbergs Forward   Latvia 20 Riga, LAT; selected 224th overall in 2022
Evan Werner Forward   United States 20 Flower Mound, TX
Henry Wilder Goaltender   United States 22 Needham, MA; transfer from Boston College
Zaccharya Wisdom Forward   Canada 19 Toronto, ON; selected 212th overall in 2023

Roster

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As of July 24, 2023.[5]

No. S/P/C Player Class Pos Height Weight DoB Hometown Previous team NHL rights
1   Jake Begley Senior G 6' 1" (1.85 m) 172 lb (78 kg) 1999-03-18 Mahtomedi, Minnesota Brockville (CCHL)
2   Zaccharya Wisdom Freshman F 6' 0" (1.83 m) 175 lb (79 kg) 2004-04-21 Toronto, Ontario Cedar Rapids (USHL) SEA, 212th overall 2023
4   Max Burkholder Freshman D 5' 9" (1.75 m) 176 lb (80 kg) 2003-08-08 Chaska, Minnesota Dubuque (USHL)
5   Jack Millar (A) Senior D 6' 5" (1.96 m) 220 lb (100 kg) 2000-11-30 Westminster, Colorado Cedar Rapids (USHL)
7   Chase Foley Senior D 5' 10" (1.78 m) 170 lb (77 kg) 2000-02-17 Mendota Heights, Minnesota Sioux Falls (USHL)
8   Ryan Beck Sophomore F 5' 9" (1.75 m) 195 lb (88 kg) 2002-08-25 Linden, Michigan Dubuque (USHL)
9   Noah Serdachny Sophomore F 6' 1" (1.85 m) 190 lb (86 kg) 2003-03-09 Edmonton, Alberta Salmon Arm (BCHL)
10   Bret Link Freshman F 6' 3" (1.91 m) 188 lb (85 kg) 2002-04-09 Anchorage, Alaska Fargo (USHL)
11   Ray Christy (A) Senior F 5' 11" (1.8 m) 185 lb (84 kg) 1999-09-15 Saint Paul, Minnesota Sioux City (USHL)
13   Tommy Middleton Junior F 5' 11" (1.8 m) 185 lb (84 kg) 2000-06-19 Midland, Michigan Janesville (NAHL)
15   Antonio Fernandez Freshman D 5' 8" (1.73 m) 178 lb (81 kg) 2003-10-11 San Jose, California Lincoln (USHL)
17   Tyler Coffey Senior F 5' 10" (1.78 m) 180 lb (82 kg) 2000-05-19 Hamilton, New Jersey Sioux Falls (USHL)
18   Connor Mayer Graduate D 5' 11" (1.8 m) 185 lb (84 kg) 1999-06-13 Champlin, Minnesota Central Illinois (USHL)
19   Evan Werner Freshman F 5' 8" (1.73 m) 173 lb (78 kg) 2003-02-13 Flower Mound, Texas Tri-City (USHL)
20   Logan Will (C) Senior F 5' 11" (1.8 m) 185 lb (84 kg) 2000-06-14 Ames, Iowa Omaha (USHL)
21   Tyler Dunbar Freshman D 6' 1" (1.85 m) 197 lb (89 kg) 2003-12-18 Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan Lincoln (USHL)
22   Nikolai Charchenko Sophomore D 6' 2" (1.88 m) 210 lb (95 kg) 2001-06-03 Victoria, Minnesota Minot (NAHL)
23   Ethan Straky Sophomore F 5' 11" (1.8 m) 181 lb (82 kg) 2003-04-18 Walnut Creek, California Green Bay (USHL)
24   Klāvs Veinbergs Freshman F 6' 3" (1.91 m) 198 lb (90 kg) 2003-03-27 Riga, Latvia Lincoln (USHL) TBL, 224th overall 2022
25   Riley Stuart Freshman F 6' 2" (1.88 m) 201 lb (91 kg) 2002-01-17 Phoenix, Arizona Dubuque (USHL)
26   Noah Laba Sophomore F 6' 2" (1.88 m) 192 lb (87 kg) 2003-08-04 Northville, Michigan Lincoln (USHL) NYR, 111th overall 2022
27   Stanley Cooley (A) Junior F 5' 11" (1.8 m) 188 lb (85 kg) 2002-05-27 Regina, Saskatchewan Lincoln (USHL)
28   Gleb Veremyev Sophomore F 6' 4" (1.93 m) 206 lb (93 kg) 2003-06-28 Sayreville, New Jersey Lincoln (USHL)
29   Drew Montgomery Freshman F 5' 11" (1.8 m) 174 lb (79 kg) 2003-03-27 Grand Forks, North Dakota Omaha (USHL)
31   Henry Wilder Freshman G 6' 0" (1.83 m) 180 lb (82 kg) 2001-03-19 Needham, Massachusetts Boston College (HEA)
33   Kaidan Mbereko Sophomore G 5' 11" (1.8 m) 185 lb (84 kg) 2003-07-28 Aspen, Colorado Lincoln (USHL)
37   Nicklas Andrews Senior D 5' 10" (1.78 m) 193 lb (88 kg) 2001-07-06 Canton, Michigan Des Moines (USHL)
39   Danny Weight Senior F 6' 0" (1.83 m) 185 lb (84 kg) 2001-05-01 Lattingtown, New York Boston College (HEA)

Standings

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Conference record Overall record
GP W L T OTW OTL SW PTS GF GA GP W L T GF GA
#8 North Dakota 24 15 8 1 1 4 0 49 87 67 40 26 12 2 151 105
#1 Denver * 24 15 7 2 3 0 1 45 110 80 42 30 9 3 198 119
#18 St. Cloud State 24 11 9 4 1 3 2 41 77 74 38 17 16 5 121 114
#15 Colorado College 24 14 8 2 5 2 0 41 66 56 37 21 13 3 111 93
#12 Omaha 24 13 8 3 5 0 3 40 68 74 40 23 13 4 117 112
#14 Western Michigan 24 11 13 0 1 5 0 35 78 64 38 21 16 1 136 97
Minnesota Duluth 24 8 14 2 3 3 2 28 65 80 37 12 20 5 103 125
Miami 24 1 21 2 0 2 0 7 44 100 36 7 26 3 78 135
Championship: March 23, 2024
† indicates conference regular season champion (Penrose Cup)
* indicates conference tournament champion (Frozen Faceoff Championship Trophy)
Rankings: USCHO.com Top 20 Poll

Updated: April 1, 2024

Schedule and results

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Date Time Opponent# Rank# Site TV Decision Result Attendance Record
Exhibition
October 7 6:00 pm Simon Fraser* Ed Robson ArenaColorado Springs, Colorado (Exhibition)     W 6–3   
Regular Season
October 13 7:00 pm Union* Ed Robson ArenaColorado Springs, Colorado SOCO CW Mbereko W 7–3  3,607 1–0–0
October 14 6:00 pm Union* Ed Robson ArenaColorado Springs, Colorado   Mbereko W 6–2  3,611 2–0–0
October 20 7:00 pm Long Island* Ed Robson ArenaColorado Springs, Colorado SOCO CW Mbereko W 3–2  3,412 3–0–0
October 21 6:00 pm Long Island* Ed Robson ArenaColorado Springs, Colorado   Mbereko W 4–2  3,407 4–0–0
October 27 7:05 pm at Air Force* Cadet Ice ArenaColorado Springs, Colorado (Rivalry)   Mbereko W 6–2  2,701 5–0–0
October 28 6:00 pm Augustana* Ed Robson ArenaColorado Springs, Colorado SOCO CW Mbereko L 3–4  3,407 5–1–0
November 3 7:00 pm at #2 Denver Magness ArenaDenver, Colorado (Rivalry)   Mbereko L 1–6  7,021 5–2–0 (0–1–0)
November 4 6:00 pm #2 Denver Ed Robson ArenaColorado Springs, Colorado (Rivalry) SOCO CW Mbereko L 1–5  3,749 5–3–0 (0–2–0)
November 10 5:00 pm at Miami Steve Cady ArenaOxford, Ohio   Mbereko W 5–1  2,107 6–3–0 (1–2–0)
November 11 5:00 pm at Miami Steve Cady ArenaOxford, Ohio   Mbereko W 4–1  2,431 7–3–0 (2–2–0)
November 17 7:00 pm #16 Western Michigan Ed Robson ArenaColorado Springs, Colorado SOCO CW Mbereko L 1–3  3,407 7–4–0 (2–3–0)
November 18 6:00 pm #16 Western Michigan Ed Robson ArenaColorado Springs, Colorado   Mbereko L 0–4  3,410 7–5–0 (2–4–0)
December 1 7:00 pm #12 Arizona State* Ed Robson ArenaColorado Springs, Colorado SOCO CW Mbereko T 2–2 OT 3,519 7–5–1
December 2 6:00 pm #12 Arizona State* Ed Robson ArenaColorado Springs, Colorado   Mbereko L 0–2  3,463 7–6–1
December 8 6:07 pm at #1 North Dakota Ralph Engelstad ArenaGrand Forks, North Dakota Midco, SOCO CW Mbereko W 3–2 OT 11,569 8–6–1 (3–4–0)
December 9 5:07 pm at #1 North Dakota Ralph Engelstad ArenaGrand Forks, North Dakota Midco Mbereko W 3–2 OT 11,673 9–6–1 (4–4–0)
December 29 7:00 pm Minot State* #20 Ed Robson ArenaColorado Springs, Colorado (Exhibition)   Wilder W 7–1  3,416
January 7 4:00 pm at #10 Minnesota* #20 3M Arena at MariucciMinneapolis, Minnesota Fox 9+, BTN+ Mbereko W 6–4  9,490 10–6–1
January 8 6:00 pm at #12 Minnesota* #17 3M Arena at MariucciMinneapolis, Minnesota Fox 9+, BTN+ Mbereko L 2–6  7,369 10–7–1
January 12 6:07 pm at Minnesota Duluth #17 AMSOIL ArenaDuluth, Minnesota SOCO CW Mbereko L 2–3 OT 5,671 10–8–1 (4–5–0)
January 13 6:07 pm at Minnesota Duluth #17 AMSOIL ArenaDuluth, Minnesota   Mbereko W 3–2 OT 6,246 11–8–1 (5–5–0)
January 19 7:00 pm Miami #18 Ed Robson ArenaColorado Springs, Colorado SOCO CW, CBSSN Mbereko W 2–1  3,474 12–8–1 (6–5–0)
January 20 4:00 pm Miami #18 Ed Robson ArenaColorado Springs, Colorado   Mbereko W 4–2  3,454 13–8–1 (7–5–0)
January 26 5:00 pm at #12 Western Michigan #16 Lawson ArenaKalamazoo, Michigan   Mbereko W 2–1 OT 3,611 14–8–1 (8–5–0)
January 27 4:00 pm at #12 Western Michigan #16 Lawson ArenaKalamazoo, Michigan   Mbereko W 2–1 OT 3,710 15–8–1 (9–5–0)
February 2 7:00 pm #16 St. Cloud State #14 Ed Robson ArenaColorado Springs, Colorado SOCO CW Mbereko L 1–2 OT 3,640 15–9–1 (9–6–0)
February 3 6:00 pm #16 St. Cloud State #14 Ed Robson ArenaColorado Springs, Colorado SOCO CW Mbereko W 5–3  3,687 16–9–1 (10–6–0)
February 16 7:00 pm #2 North Dakota #15 Ed Robson ArenaColorado Springs, Colorado SOCO CW Mbereko W 7–1  3,503 17–9–1 (11–6–0)
February 17 6:00 pm #2 North Dakota #15 Ed Robson ArenaColorado Springs, Colorado   Mbereko W 6–2  3,585 18–9–1 (12–6–0)
February 23 6:00 pm at #19 Omaha #10 Baxter ArenaOmaha, Nebraska   Mbereko L 0–3  7,802 18–10–1 (12–7–0)
February 24 6:00 pm at #19 Omaha #10 Baxter ArenaOmaha, Nebraska   Mbereko T 1–1 SOL 7,802 18–10–2 (12–7–1)
March 1 7:00 pm Minnesota Duluth #11 Ed Robson ArenaColorado Springs, Colorado SOCO CW Mbereko T 2–2 SOL 3,602 18–10–3 (12–7–2)
March 2 6:00 pm Minnesota Duluth #11 Ed Robson ArenaColorado Springs, Colorado SOCO CW Mbereko W 4–1  3,600 19–10–3 (13–7–2)
March 8 7:00 pm #4 Denver #10 Ed Robson ArenaColorado Springs, Colorado (Rivalry) SOCO CW, CBSSN Mbereko W 4–3  3,912 20–10–3 (14–7–2)
March 9 6:00 pm at #4 Denver #10 Magness ArenaDenver, Colorado (Rivalry)   Mbereko L 3–4  7,033 20–11–3 (14–8–2)
NCHC Tournament
March 15 7:07 pm #12 Omaha* #10 Ed Robson ArenaColorado Springs, Colorado (Quarterfinal Game 1)   Mbereko W 4–3 OT 3,410 21–11–3
March 16 6:07 pm #12 Omaha* #10 Ed Robson ArenaColorado Springs, Colorado (Quarterfinal Game 2)   Mbereko L 1–3  3,425 21–12–3
March 17 6:07 pm #12 Omaha* #10 Ed Robson ArenaColorado Springs, Colorado (Quarterfinal Game 3)   Mbereko L 1–2  3,416 21–13–3
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from USCHO.com Poll. All times are in Mountain Time.
Source:[6]

Scoring statistics

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Name Position Games Goals Assists Points PIM
Noah Laba C 36 20 17 37 27
Gleb Veremyev C 37 15 13 28 55
Zaccharya Wisdom RW 33 10 10 20 22
Ryan Beck C 34 3 17 20 26
Evan Werner F 37 6 13 19 10
Logan Will F 37 7 11 18 12
Nicklas Andrews D 37 3 14 17 29
Chase Foley D 32 2 14 16 6
Max Burkholder D 37 7 9 16 6
Bret Link RW 35 4 11 15 6
Stan Cooley C 37 5 9 14 14
Jack Millar D 37 4 8 12 24
Drew Montgomery F 35 5 5 10 12
Klāvs Veinbergs C/LW 19 4 6 10 10
Tommy Middleton F 36 4 4 8 8
Ray Christy F 36 2 5 7 15
Ethan Straky D 37 2 3 5 16
Tyler Coffey F 24 5 0 5 10
Connor Mayer D 37 0 5 5 24
Riley Stuart F 19 1 2 3 11
Danny Weight C 6 1 0 1 0
Tyler Dunbar D 17 1 0 1 8
Antonio Fernandez D 2 0 0 0 0
Henry Wilder G 3 0 0 0 0
Kaidan Mbereko G 37 0 0 0 0
Noah Serdachny F 5 0 0 0 2
Total 111 176 287 361

[7]

Goaltending statistics

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Name Games Minutes Wins Losses Ties Goals Against Saves Shut Outs SV % GAA
Kaidan Mbereko 37 2227:17 21 13 3 89 959 0 .915 2.40
Henry Wilder 4 18:30 0 0 0 1 12 0 .923 3.24
Empty Net - 15:19 - - - 3 - - - -
Total 37 2261:06 21 13 3 93 971 0 .913 2.47

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 22 23 24 25 26 (Final)
USCHO.com NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR 20 20 17 18 16 14 15 15 10 11 10 10 12 15 15
USA Hockey NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR 20 20 18 18 17 16 15 16 10 14 12 10 13 15 15 15

Note: USCHO did not release a poll in weeks 11 and 25.[8]
Note: USA Hockey did not release a poll in week 12.

Awards and honors

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Player Award Ref
Kaidan Mbereko AHCA West First Team All-American [9]
Noah Laba AHCA West Second Team All-American [9]
Kaidan Mbereko NCHC Goaltender of the Year [10]
Noah Laba NCHC Defensive Forward of the Year [10]
Noah Laba NCHC Three Stars Award [10]
Kris Mayotte Herb Brooks Coach of the Year [10]
Kaidan Mbereko NCHC First Team [11]
Noah Laba
Round Pick Player NHL team
7 208 Fisher Scott Detroit Red Wings

† incoming freshman [12]

References

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  1. ^ "Colorado College scoring leader Gleb Veremyev having tremendous success following ACL tear". The Gazette. November 9, 2023. Retrieved May 10, 2024.
  2. ^ "COLORADO COLLEGE TIGER HOCKEY RECORD BOOK" (PDF). The Gazette. Retrieved May 10, 2024.
  3. ^ "Colorado College vs Omaha - NCAA College Hockey - Highlights - March 17, 2024". YouTube. Retrieved May 10, 2024.
  4. ^ "NCAA Tournament Pairwise Comparison Ratings". College Hockey News. Retrieved May 10, 2024.
  5. ^ "2023–2024 Men's Ice Hockey Roster". Colorado College Athletics. Retrieved August 2, 2018.
  6. ^ "2023-2024 Men's Ice Hockey Schedule". Colorado College Tigers. Retrieved August 13, 2023.
  7. ^ "Colorado College 2023-2024 Skater Stats". Elite Prospects. Retrieved July 3, 2020.
  8. ^ "USCHO Division I Men's Poll". USCHO.com. Retrieved November 26, 2019.
  9. ^ a b "Top 25 men's college hockey players earn distinction as CCM/AHCA Hockey All-Americans for 2023-24 season". USCHO.com. April 12, 2024. Retrieved April 12, 2024.
  10. ^ a b c d Weisman, Michael (March 21, 2024). "NCHC Unveils 2023-2024 Individual Award Winners". nchchockey.com. Retrieved March 21, 2024.
  11. ^ Weisman, Michael (March 13, 2024). "NCHC Unveils 2023-2024 All-Conference Teams". nchchockey.com. Retrieved March 13, 2024.
  12. ^ "NCAA player rankings, selections in 2024 NHL Draft". USCHO.com. Retrieved June 29, 2024.