# 2022–23 Omaha Mavericks men's ice hockey season

The 2022–23 Omaha Mavericks men's ice hockey season was the 26th season of play for the program and 10th in the NCHC. The Mavericks represented the University of Nebraska Omaha, played their home games at Baxter Arena and were coached by Mike Gabinet in his 6th season.

## Season

As the Mavericks came into the season, the team was having to remake all three sections of the team. After losing both goaltenders from last year, coach Gabinet brought in freshman Simon Latkoczy and transfer Jake Kucharski to man the pipes. The defense was a little more stable, however, the two regular the team lost still had to be replaced. On the offensive side, Omaha was without 4 of its top 5 scorers from '22 and, while they did bring in graduate transfer Jacob Pivonka, Omaha would likely need to see significant improvements from the returning players.
The great uncertainty with they roster left the Mavs outside of the polls at the start of the season, but that was the least of their worries. Omaha opened the season at home against Niagara, with most expecting a pair of easy wins for the Mavericks. Both goaltenders got off to a poor start in their debuts by allowing 4 goals each and allowing the team to get swept. With the Purple Eagles expected to be a low-ranked team by the end of the year, those two losses could act like an albatross with the team's national ranking. In the meantime, the team had some work to do on the defensive end and saw some improvements during the rest of their non-conference schedule. Omaha went 4–1–1 to finish out October and get themselves back above .500. Though the goaltending rotation initially favored the experienced Kucharski, Latkoczy quickly was getting used to the collegiate level.
As Omaha progressed into their NCHC slate, the team played well and had a credible record through 4 weeks, playing against a gauntlet of teams in the top 20. Right before the winter break, however, the Mavericks were swept by Colorado College and pushed back down to an exactly average mark.
When the team began the second half of its season, they were facing an uphill battle to make the NCAA tournament. While they weren't too far out of the race, sitting in the mid-20's in the PairWise, the NCHC was having a bad season with several of its usual contenders floundering. The reduced strength of schedule would make Omaha's task more difficult by requiring the team to play nearly perfect hockey in the second half. Unfortunately, the Mavericks' offense failed them against St. Lawrence and they began with a loss. With even less margin for error, Omaha's defense came into its own and led the team to a 5 game winning streak. After earning a split with Western Michigan, the Mavericks appeared in the polls for the first time on the year. Two weeks later, and no losses in 4 games, the Mavericks suddenly found themselves in the top 15 of the PairWise and in line for an at-large bid.
In the midst of the team's stellar run, tragedy struck when assistant coach Paul Jerrard died on February 15. Jerrard had been fighting cancer for a while but had not stopped coaching through his treatment.
With Omaha clinging to their playoff hopes, the team entered the final two weeks of the regular season needing to go even or better. The Mavs accomplished that goal against St. Cloud State with alternating 6–2 finals. Although they dropped to 16, a solid performance against North Dakota could easily undo that damage. Unfortunately, the team was inconsistent in their final weekend and ended up losing both games by 1 goal.
As the playoffs began, Omaha was sitting just under the cut line, however, the Mavericks had finished 3rd in the NCHC. Their strong second half enabled the team to get a home site for the quarterfinals and a rematch with the Fighting Hawks. Latkoczy was given the job of stifling UND and performed perfectly in the first game, stopping 40 shots en route to a 2–1 victory. Unfortunately, the team's offense was never able to get going in the series. Omaha scored just 5 goals in 3 games and lost the final two. In their season finale, the Mavs were only able to muster 14 shots and went 0–6 on the power play.

## Departures

| Player | Position | Nationality | Cause |
| Joseph Abate | Forward | United States | Signed professional contract (Providence Bruins) |
| Kevin Conley | Forward | United States | Graduation (signed with Reading Royals) |
| Jake Harrison | Defenseman | Canada | Left program (retired) |
| Nate Knoepke | Defenseman | United States | Graduation (signed with Rochester Americans) |
| Brannon McManus | Forward | Canada | Graduation (signed with Abbotsford Canucks) |
| Chayse Primeau | Forward | United States | Graduate transfer to Notre Dame |
| Austin Roden | Goaltender | Canada | Transferred to Providence |
| Isaiah Saville | Goaltender | United States | Signed professional contract (Vegas Golden Knights) |
| Brandon Scanlin | Defenseman | Canada | Signed professional contract (New York Rangers) |
| Jason Smallidge | Defenseman | United States | Graduation (retired) |
| Martin Sundberg | Forward | Sweden | Graduation (retired) |
| Taylor Ward | Forward | Canada | Graduation (signed with Los Angeles Kings) |

## Recruiting

| Player | Position | Nationality | Age | Notes |
| Michael Abgrall | Forward | Canada | 18 | Richmond, BC |
| Ray Fust | Forward | Switzerland | 19 | Bellinzona, SUI |
| Jacob Guévin | Defenseman | United States | 19 | Drummondville, QC |
| Jake Kucharski | Goaltender | United States | 23 | Erie, PA; Selected 197th overall in 2018; transfer from American International |
| Simon Latkoczy | Goaltender | Slovakia | 20 | Trenčín, SVK |
| Joaquim Lemay | Defenseman | Canada | 20 | St-Pierre-les-Becquets, QC; selected 119th overall in 2021 |
| Griffin Ludtke | Defenseman | United States | 19 | Elko, MN |
| Cam Mitchell | Forward | United States | 21 | Stony Plain, AB |
| Jacob Pivonka | Forward | United States | 20 | Olathe, KS; graduate transfer from Notre Dame |
| Tyler Rollwagen | Forward | United States | 21 | Bloomington, MN |
| Jacob Slipec | Forward | Canada | 20 | White Rock, BC |

### Current roster

As of December 24, 2022.

## Standings

2022–23 National Collegiate Hockey Conference Standingsvte :
| | Conference record | Conference record | Conference record | Conference record | Conference record | Conference record | Conference record | Conference record | Conference record | Conference record | Overall record | Overall record | Overall record | Overall record | Overall record | Overall record |
| | GP | W | L | T | OTW | OTL | SW | PTS | GF | GA | GP | W | L | T | GF | GA |
| #6 Denver † | 24 | 19 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 56 | 94 | 53 | 40 | 30 | 10 | 0 | 150 | 86 |
| #11 Western Michigan | 24 | 15 | 8 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 44 | 86 | 60 | 39 | 23 | 15 | 1 | 148 | 102 |
| #20 Omaha | 24 | 13 | 9 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 42 | 71 | 64 | 37 | 19 | 15 | 3 | 109 | 97 |
| #5 St. Cloud State * | 24 | 12 | 9 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 41 | 85 | 68 | 41 | 25 | 13 | 3 | 133 | 95 |
| Minnesota Duluth | 24 | 10 | 14 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 33 | 65 | 81 | 37 | 16 | 20 | 1 | 95 | 114 |
| #17 North Dakota | 24 | 10 | 10 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 33 | 75 | 70 | 39 | 18 | 15 | 6 | 127 | 110 |
| Colorado College | 24 | 6 | 15 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 25 | 37 | 60 | 38 | 13 | 22 | 3 | 79 | 99 |
| Miami | 24 | 3 | 18 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 14 | 39 | 96 | 36 | 8 | 24 | 4 | 73 | 137 |
| Championship: March 18, 2023 † indicates conference regular season champion (Penrose Cup) * indicates conference tournament champion (Frozen Faceoff Championship Trophy) Rankings: USCHO.com Top 20 Poll |||||||||||||||||||

## Schedule and results

| Date | Time | Opponent$^#$ | Rank$^#$ | Site | TV | Decision | Result | Attendance | Record |
| Exhibition ||||||||||
| October 1 | 6:07 PM | #3 Minnesota State* | | Baxter Arena • Omaha, Nebraska (Exhibition) | | Kucharski | W 7–2 | 4,597 | |
| Regular Season ||||||||||
| October 7 | 7:07 PM | Niagara* | | Baxter Arena • Omaha, Nebraska | | Kucharski | L 3–4 | 5,748 | 0–1–0 |
| October 8 | 7:07 PM | Niagara* | | Baxter Arena • Omaha, Nebraska | | Latkoczy | L 3–4 | 5,567 | 0–2–0 |
| October 14 | 6:07 PM | at Lake Superior State* | | Taffy Abel Arena • Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan | FloHockey | Kucharski | W 3–1 | 1,654 | 1–2–0 |
| October 15 | 5:07 PM | at Lake Superior State* | | Taffy Abel Arena • Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan | FloHockey | Kucharski | T 4–4 $^{OT}$ | 1,444 | 1–2–1 |
| October 21 | 7:07 PM | Alaska* | | Baxter Arena • Omaha, Nebraska | | Kucharski | L 2–3 $^{OT}$ | 6,414 | 1–3–1 |
| October 23 | 2:07 PM | Alaska* | | Baxter Arena • Omaha, Nebraska | | Latkoczy | W 3–2 $^{OT}$ | 4,697 | 2–3–1 |
| October 28 | 6:45 PM | at Long Island* | | Northwell Health Ice Center • East Meadow, New York | ESPN+ | Kucharski | W 2–1 | 738 | 3–3–1 |
| October 29 | 6:07 PM | at Long Island* | | Northwell Health Ice Center • East Meadow, New York | ESPN+ | Latkoczy | W 7–1 | 300 | 4–3–1 |
| November 4 | 7:07 PM | #10 North Dakota | | Baxter Arena • Omaha, Nebraska | Midco | Kucharski | L 1–4 | 6,543 | 4–4–1 (0–1–0) |
| November 5 | 7:07 PM | #10 North Dakota | | Baxter Arena • Omaha, Nebraska | Midco | Kucharski | T 3–3 $^{SOW}$ | 6,314 | 4–4–2 (0–1–1) |
| November 11 | 7:00 PM | at #20 Minnesota Duluth | | AMSOIL Arena • Duluth, Minnesota | MY9 | Kucharski | W 3–2 | 5,941 | 5–4–2 (1–1–1) |
| November 12 | 6:00 PM | at #20 Minnesota Duluth | | AMSOIL Arena • Duluth, Minnesota | MY9 | Kucharski | L 2–3 $^{OT}$ | 6,103 | 5–5–2 (1–2–1) |
| November 25 | 8:00 PM | at #1 Denver | | Magness Arena • Denver, Colorado | | Kucharski | W 3–0 | 5,689 | 6–5–2 (2–2–1) |
| November 26 | 7:00 PM | at #1 Denver | | Magness Arena • Denver, Colorado | | Kucharski | L 3–6 | 5,269 | 6–6–2 (2–3–1) |
| December 2 | 7:07 PM | #14 Western Michigan | | Baxter Arena • Omaha, Nebraska | | Kucharski | W 7–6 | 6,623 | 7–6–2 (3–3–1) |
| December 3 | 7:07 PM | #14 Western Michigan | | Baxter Arena • Omaha, Nebraska | | Latkoczy | W 3–1 | 6,766 | 8–6–2 (4–3–1) |
| December 9 | 8:30 PM | at Colorado College | | Ed Robson Arena • Colorado Springs, Colorado | ATTRM | Kucharski | L 4–6 | 3,409 | 8–7–2 (4–4–1) |
| December 10 | 7:00 PM | at Colorado College | | Ed Robson Arena • Colorado Springs, Colorado | | Latkoczy | L 0–1 | 3,416 | 8–8–2 (4–5–1) |
| December 30 | 7:07 PM | St. Lawrence* | | Baxter Arena • Omaha, Nebraska | | Kucharski | L 1–2 | 7,347 | 8–9–2 |
| December 31 | 8:07 PM | St. Lawrence* | | Baxter Arena • Omaha, Nebraska | | Latkoczy | W 5–2 | 5,817 | 9–9–2 |
| January 13 | 7:07 PM | Minnesota Duluth | | Baxter Arena • Omaha, Nebraska | CBSSN | Kucharski | W 3–2 | 6,398 | 10–9–2 (5–5–1) |
| January 14 | 7:07 PM | Minnesota Duluth | | Baxter Arena • Omaha, Nebraska | | Latkoczy | W 6–1 | 6,451 | 11–9–2 (6–5–1) |
| January 20 | 7:07 PM | Miami | | Baxter Arena • Omaha, Nebraska | | Kucharski | W 4–1 | 6,134 | 12–9–2 (7–5–1) |
| January 21 | 7:07 PM | Miami | | Baxter Arena • Omaha, Nebraska | | Latkoczy | W 2–0 | 6,650 | 13–9–2 (8–5–1) |
| January 27 | 6:00 PM | at #9 Western Michigan | | Lawson Arena • Kalamazoo, Michigan | | Kucharski | L 1–6 | 3,872 | 13–10–2 (8–6–1) |
| January 28 | 5:00 PM | at #9 Western Michigan | | Lawson Arena • Kalamazoo, Michigan | | Latkoczy | W 2–0 | 3,924 | 14–10–2 (9–6–1) |
| February 10 | 7:07 PM | Colorado College | #16 | Baxter Arena • Omaha, Nebraska | | Latkoczy | W 3–2 | 7,942 | 15–10–2 (10–6–1) |
| February 11 | 7:07 PM | Colorado College | #16 | Baxter Arena • Omaha, Nebraska | | Latkoczy | T 2–2 $^{SOL}$ | 7,755 | 15–10–3 (10–6–2) |
| February 17 | 6:05 PM | at Miami | #15 | Steve Cady Arena • Oxford, Ohio | | Latkoczy | W 3–1 | 2,025 | 16–10–3 (11–6–2) |
| February 18 | 4:05 PM | at Miami | #15 | Steve Cady Arena • Oxford, Ohio | | Kucharski | W 3–2 | 2,573 | 17–10–3 (12–6–2) |
| February 24 | 7:07 PM | #6 St. Cloud State | #14 | Baxter Arena • Omaha, Nebraska | | Latkoczy | L 2–6 | 7,027 | 17–11–3 (12–7–2) |
| February 25 | 7:07 PM | #6 St. Cloud State | #14 | Baxter Arena • Omaha, Nebraska | | Latkoczy | W 6–2 | 7,802 | 18–11–3 (13–7–2) |
| March 3 | 7:07 PM | at North Dakota | #14 | Ralph Engelstad Arena • Grand Forks, North Dakota | Midco | Latkoczy | L 4–5 $^{OT}$ | 11,728 | 18–12–3 (13–8–2) |
| March 4 | 6:07 PM | at North Dakota | #14 | Ralph Engelstad Arena • Grand Forks, North Dakota | Midco | Kucharski | L 1–2 | 11,731 | 18–13–3 (13–9–2) |
| NCHC Tournament ||||||||||
| March 10 | 6:07 PM | North Dakota* | #17 | Baxter Arena • Omaha, Nebraska (Quarterfinal Game 1) | Midco | Latkoczy | W 2–1 | 6,510 | 19–13–3 |
| March 11 | 6:07 PM | North Dakota* | #17 | Baxter Arena • Omaha, Nebraska (Quarterfinal Game 2) | Midco | Latkoczy | L 1–3 | 7,348 | 19–14–3 |
| March 12 | 5:07 PM | North Dakota* | #17 | Baxter Arena • Omaha, Nebraska (Quarterfinal Game 3) | Midco | Latkoczy | L 2–5 | 5,571 | 19–15–3 |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from USCHO.com Poll. All times are in Central Time. Source: ||||||||||

## Scoring statistics

| Name | Position | Games | Goals | Assists | Points | PIM |
| Jack Randl | LW | 37 | 18 | 16 | 34 | 22 |
| Tyler Weiss | C/LW | 37 | 6 | 21 | 27 | 26 |
| Jonny Tychonick | D | 35 | 8 | 18 | 26 | 24 |
| Matt Miller | RW | 34 | 13 | 12 | 25 | 32 |
| Ty Mueller | F | 34 | 12 | 13 | 25 | 4 |
| Cameron Berg | C | 37 | 10 | 14 | 24 | 38 |
| Jake Pivonka | C | 37 | 10 | 8 | 18 | 16 |
| Jacob Guévin | D | 36 | 4 | 14 | 18 | 6 |
| Davis Pennington | D | 36 | 1 | 15 | 16 | 10 |
| Nolan Sullivan | F | 35 | 6 | 9 | 15 | 31 |
| Joaquim Lemay | D | 32 | 2 | 10 | 12 | 23 |
| Jacob Slipec | F | 28 | 5 | 4 | 9 | 8 |
| Jimmy Glynn | F | 30 | 4 | 5 | 9 | 18 |
| Ray Fust | LW/RW | 24 | 3 | 6 | 9 | 4 |
| Nolan Krenzen | D | 34 | 1 | 8 | 9 | 4 |
| Kirby Proctor | D | 37 | 1 | 7 | 8 | 30 |
| Victor Mancini | D | 32 | 0 | 8 | 8 | 10 |
| Brock Bremer | LW | 22 | 2 | 5 | 7 | 30 |
| Tyler Rollwagen | F | 33 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 14 |
| Kaden Bohlsen | C | 26 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 26 |
| Cam Mitchell | LW | 14 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Jacob Zab | G | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Griffin Ludtke | D | 14 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Michael Abgrall | C | 15 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 16 |
| Šimon Latkoczy | G | 20 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Jake Kucharski | G | 20 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Total | | | 109 | 198 | 307 | 392 |

## Goaltending statistics

| Name | Games | Minutes | Wins | Losses | Ties | Goals Against | Saves | Shut Outs | SV % | GAA |
| Jacob Zab | 1 | 1:32 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1.000 | 0.00 |
| Simon Latkoczy | 20 | 1110:42 | 11 | 6 | 1 | 43 | 490 | 2 | .919 | 2.32 |
| Jake Kucharski | 20 | 1123:14 | 8 | 9 | 2 | 51 | 481 | 1 | .904 | 2.72 |
| Empty Net | - | 15:57 | - | - | - | 3 | - | - | - | - |
| Total | 38 | 2251:25 | 19 | 15 | 3 | 97 | 972 | 3 | .909 | 2.59 |

## Rankings

| Poll | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week |
| Poll | 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 | 27 (Final) |
| USCHO.com | NR | - | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | - | NR | NR | NR | NR | 19 | 16 | 15 | 14 | 14 | 17 | 18 | 20 | - | 20 |
| USA Today | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | 16 | 16 | 15 | 15 | 14 | 18 | 19 | NR | NR | NR |
Note: USCHO did not release a poll in weeks 1, 13, or 26.

## Awards and honors

| Player | Award | Ref |
| Joaquim Lemay | NCHC Rookie Team | |
| Jacob Guévin | NCHC Rookie Team | |

## Players drafted into the NHL
### 2023 NHL Entry Draft

| Round | Pick | Player | NHL team |
| 3 | 81 | Tanner Ludtke $^†$ | Arizona Coyotes |
| 4 | 105 | Ty Mueller | Vancouver Canucks |
† incoming freshman