The St. Thomas men’s hockey team claimed the MIAC lead after sweeping archrival St. John’s last weekend in convincing fashion, adding to its list of January successes.
“Friday night was a really good up and down game, and we were fortunate enough to get that win,” said head coach Jeff Boeser. “On Saturday we played really, really well up there. It was nice to see some pucks go in the net for our guys for all their hard work.”
Boeser said picking up the sweep was exciting.
“It’s hard to do. The teams are good. The coaches are good,” Boeser said. “Everybody is vying for a playoff spot, so everyone tries to bring their A game every night.”
St. Thomas sits one point ahead of Augsburg atop the conference standings with six games remaining in the regular season.
The Tommies’ success does not come from one superstar player, nor is there one player leading the stats. Instead, the victories are a team effort, and for a young group consisting of 18 underclassman, Boeser said senior leadership has been crucial.
“Our leaders are our seniors because we are so new as a team. It helps the young guys. They see our seniors playing well and that exudes confidence into them,” Boeser said.
Goalie Benjamin Myers said January term allowed the players to focus on hockey and propel into the final six games of the regular season.
“I think we made a lot of great strides in January, especially with the team coming together,” he said.
Over J-term, the team had the opportunity to participate in what has been adopted as a holiday for many Minnesotans: Hockey Day Minnesota.
Myers said Hockey Day Minnesota was a neat experience as a native of Wisconsin who had never taken part in the event — nor stepped foot in the Xcel Center.
He said the atmosphere was great and the team had a great fan base for support.
“It was really cool to be a part of something that is so dear to a lot of people in Minnesota’s hearts,” Myers said. “That was a surreal experience.”
With school back in session, the Tommies are concentrated on maintaining their focus and the top spot in the MIAC.
The Tommies play Concordia-Moorhead at 7 p.m. Friday at the St. Thomas Ice Arena.
Carolyn Meyer can be reached at cameyer@stthomas.edu.