# 2021–22 Bemidji State Beavers men's ice hockey season

The 2021–22 Bemidji State Beavers men's ice hockey season was the 66th season of play for the program. The team represented Bemidji State University in the 2021–22 NCAA Division I men's ice hockey season and for the first season in the Central Collegiate Hockey Association (CCHA). The Beavers were coached by Tom Serratore, in his 21st season, and played their home games at Sanford Center.

## Season

Bemidji State joined with six other members of the WCHA to restart the CCHA for the 2021–22 season. The Beavers began the year with a difficult string of games, going 1–3 against non-conference teams that would both make the tournament. While the losses put them near the bottom of the standings, BSU was able to stay in the polls and keep their NCAA hopes alive with a sweep of Northern Michigan. The Beaves spent November hovering around 20th in the polls but a couple of losses knocked them out for good come December.
The chief problem for Bemidji State during the first half of their season was inconsistent goaltending. Tom Serratore had used all three of his netminders at times but none performed at a high level. Eventually, the team went with freshman Mattias Sholl as the primary starter but the young goalie still was getting used to the college game.
After losing four consecutive games to ranked teams in December, Bemidji State had dropped down to .500 but, because of the poor record against good teams (2–8 against eventual tournament teams), the Beavers had very little to buoy themselves in the standings. Both the offense and defense played well for a three-game stretch, however, that ended rather abruptly; BSU went 1–8 over a month-long stretch, only once score more than 2 goals (the solitary win) and surrendering 5 goals in five separate games. The losing streak made it impossible for the Beavers to make the tournament without a conference championship and put them in jeopardy of having to play on the road in the quarterfinals. The only thing that arrested their free-fall was a date with the worst team that season, St. Thomas, who was playing its first season at the Division I level.
The uninspired play to end their year did not bode well for Bemidji State in the conference tournament. Despite their play of late, the team recovered in the postseason and the defense led them to a pair of victories over Bowling Green. The conference semifinal could hardly have gone better for the Beavers as the offense finally reappeared during the third period, potting 3 goals in 5 minutes to lead them to a stunning upset of Michigan Tech.
Bemidji State was now just one win shy of making the tournament but standing in their way was the best team in the country, Minnesota State. Despite the pressure from the Mavericks, Sholl played probably his best game of the season and held MSU off of the scoresheet for the first half of the game. The Beavers took a lead halfway through the second but lost it on a power play goal just before the end of the period. After neither team was able to score in the third, Bemidji State found themselves in the improbable position of needing just one goal to continue their year. Unfortunately, just three minutes into overtime, Minnesota State scored and ended the Beaver's run. 50 minutes later, after the Mavericks had been awarded the trophy and both teams had returned to their locker rooms, the game-winning goal was called off after additional replay angles revealed that the puck had not crossed the goal-line between the pipes but instead gone under the goal cage. Bemidji State's season was given new life and, after a warm-up period for both teams, the game was resumed. Unfortunately, like a boxer on their last legs, the Beaver's comeback only lasted until the next shot. Two minutes after resuming play, the Mavericks scored their second overtime goal, this time with no controversy, and the Beavers were knocked out.

## Departures

| Player | Position | Nationality | Cause |
| Zach Driscoll | Goaltender | United States | Transferred to North Dakota |
| Ethan Gauer | Defenseman | United States | Transferred to St. Thomas |
| Darby Gula | Defenseman | Canada | Left program (retired) |
| Nick Leitner | Defenseman | United States | Left program (retired) |
| Aaron Miller | Forward | United States | Graduation (signed with Jokipojat) |
| Tyler Vold | Defenseman | United States | Graduation (retired) |

## Recruiting

| Player | Position | Nationality | Age | Notes |
| Tony Follmer | Defenseman | United States | 20 | O'Fallon, MO |
| Donte Lawson | Forward | United States | 20 | Taconite, MN |
| Jakub Lewandowski | Forward | Poland | 19 | Toruń, POL |
| Alexander Lundman | Forward | Sweden | 20 | Norrköping, SWE |
| William Magnuson | Defenseman | United States | 19 | Chaska, MN |
| Mattias Sholl | Goaltender | United States | 20 | Hermosa Beach, CA |
| Jere Väisänen | Forward | Finland | 21 | Espoo, FIN |

## Roster

As of September 13, 2021.

## Standings

2021–22 Central Collegiate Hockey Association 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 | 3/SW | PTS | GF | GA | GP | W | L | T | GF | GA |
| #2 Minnesota State †* | 26 | 23 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 67 | 115 | 28 | 44 | 38 | 6 | 0 | 178 | 60 |
| #14 Michigan Tech | 26 | 16 | 8 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 54 | 93 | 53 | 37 | 21 | 13 | 3 | 118 | 75 |
| Bemidji State | 26 | 14 | 12 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 42 | 83 | 81 | 39 | 19 | 20 | 0 | 118 | 121 |
| Lake Superior State | 26 | 13 | 13 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 39 | 69 | 64 | 37 | 18 | 18 | 1 | 107 | 104 |
| Northern Michigan | 26 | 12 | 13 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 35 | 86 | 99 | 37 | 20 | 16 | 1 | 132 | 136 |
| Bowling Green | 26 | 11 | 14 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 33 | 67 | 87 | 37 | 15 | 19 | 3 | 94 | 119 |
| Ferris State | 26 | 9 | 16 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 28 | 66 | 99 | 36 | 11 | 24 | 1 | 90 | 135 |
| St. Thomas | 26 | 3 | 22 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 14 | 45 | 112 | 36 | 3 | 32 | 1 | 61 | 168 |
| Championship: March 19, 2022 † indicates conference regular season champion (MacNaughton Cup) * indicates conference tournament champion (Mason Cup) Rankings: USCHO.com Top 20 Poll ||||||||||||||||||

## Schedule and results

| Date | Time | Opponent$^#$ | Rank$^#$ | Site | TV | Decision | Result | Attendance | Record |
| Exhibition ||||||||||
| October 2 | 6:07 PM | at #8 North Dakota* | #14 | Ralph Engelstad Arena • Grand Forks, North Dakota (Exhibition) | | | L 1–2 | 11,812 | |
| Regular Season ||||||||||
| October 8 | 7:07 PM | #5 Minnesota Duluth* | #15 | Sanford Center • Bemidji, Minnesota | | Carr | L 2–4 | 3,436 | 0–1–0 |
| October 9 | 7:07 PM | at #5 Minnesota Duluth* | #15 | AMSOIL Arena • Duluth, Minnesota | My9 | Enright | L 1–2 | 5,374 | 0–2–0 |
| October 15 | 7:07 PM | #7 North Dakota* | #20 | Sanford Center • Bemidji, Minnesota | | Enright | L 3–4 | 4,242 | 0–3–0 |
| October 16 | 6:07 PM | at #7 North Dakota* | #20 | Ralph Engelstad Arena • Grand Forks, North Dakota | | Carr | W 4–3 $^{OT}$ | 11,314 | 1–3–0 |
| October 22 | 5:37 PM | at Northern Michigan | #19 | Berry Events Center • Marquette, Michigan | | Sholl | W 5–4 | 2,684 | 2–3–0 |
| October 23 | 5:37 PM | at Northern Michigan | #19 | Berry Events Center • Marquette, Michigan | | Sholl | W 4–3 | 2,975 | 3–3–0 |
| October 29 | 7:07 PM | Bowling Green | #17 | Sanford Center • Bemidji, Minnesota | | Sholl | L 2–3 | 2,402 | 3–4–0 (0–1–0) |
| October 30 | 6:07 PM | Bowling Green | #17 | Sanford Center • Bemidji, Minnesota | | Enright | W 2–1 | 2,304 | 4–4–0 (1–1–0) |
| November 12 | 6:07 PM | at Lake Superior State | | Taffy Abel Arena • Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan | | Enright | W 4–2 | 1,273 | 5–4–0 (2–1–0) |
| November 13 | 5:07 PM | at Lake Superior State | | Taffy Abel Arena • Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan | | Enright | W 5–4 | 0 | 6–4–0 (3–1–0) |
| November 19 | 7:07 PM | Michigan Tech | #20 | Sanford Center • Bemidji, Minnesota | | Enright | L 3–4 | 2,278 | 6–5–0 (3–2–0) |
| November 20 | 6:07 PM | Michigan Tech | #20 | Sanford Center • Bemidji, Minnesota | | Sholl | W 4–3 | 2,142 | 7–5–0 (4–2–0) |
| November 24 | 8:00 PM | at Arizona State* | #20 | Oceanside Ice Arena • Tempe, Arizona | | Sholl | W 4–3 | 861 | 8–5–0 |
| November 26 | 8:00 PM | at Arizona State* | #20 | Oceanside Ice Arena • Tempe, Arizona | | Enright | L 4–6 | 0 | 8–6–0 |
| December 3 | 7:07 PM | at St. Thomas | | St. Thomas Ice Arena • Mendota Heights, Minnesota | | Enright | W 5–2 | 664 | 9–6–0 (5–2–0) |
| December 4 | 7:07 PM | at St. Thomas | | St. Thomas Ice Arena • Mendota Heights, Minnesota | | Sholl | W 6–1 | 567 | 10–6–0 (6–2–0) |
| December 10 | 7:07 PM | #1 Minnesota State | | Sanford Center • Bemidji, Minnesota | | Sholl | L 1–5 | 2,941 | 10–7–0 (6–3–0) |
| December 11 | 6:07 PM | #1 Minnesota State | | Sanford Center • Bemidji, Minnesota | | Sholl | L 1–3 | 3,212 | 10–8–0 (6–4–0) |
| December 31 | 6:07 PM | #7 St. Cloud State* | | Sanford Center • Bemidji, Minnesota | | Sholl | L 1–4 | 3,433 | 10–9–0 |
| January 1 | 6:07 PM | at #7 St. Cloud State* | | Herb Brooks National Hockey Center • St. Cloud, Minnesota | Fox9+ | Enright | L 2–5 | 4,634 | 10–10–0 |
| January 7 | 7:07 PM | Lake Superior State | | Sanford Center • Bemidji, Minnesota | | Sholl | W 5–1 | 2,165 | 11–10–0 (7–4–0) |
| January 8 | 6:07 PM | Lake Superior State | | Sanford Center • Bemidji, Minnesota | | Sholl | W 5–1 | 2,609 | 12–10–0 (8–4–0) |
| January 14 | 6:07 PM | at Bowling Green | | Slater Family Ice Arena • Bowling Green, Ohio | | Sholl | W 5–3 | 3,686 | 13–10–0 (9–4–0) |
| January 15 | 6:07 PM | at Bowling Green | | Slater Family Ice Arena • Bowling Green, Ohio | | Sholl | L 2–3 $^{OT}$ | 2,465 | 13–11–0 (9–5–0) |
| January 21 | 7:07 PM | Ferris State | | Sanford Center • Bemidji, Minnesota | | Sholl | L 1–2 | 2,446 | 13–12–0 (9–6–0) |
| January 22 | 6:07 PM | Ferris State | | Sanford Center • Bemidji, Minnesota | | Sholl | L 2–5 | 2,681 | 13–13–0 (9–7–0) |
| January 28 | 6:07 PM | at #18 Michigan Tech | | MacInnes Student Ice Arena • Houghton, Michigan | | Sholl | L 2–5 | 2,043 | 13–14–0 (9–8–0) |
| January 29 | 5:07 PM | at #18 Michigan Tech | | MacInnes Student Ice Arena • Houghton, Michigan | | Sholl | L 2–5 | 2,333 | 13–15–0 (9–9–0) |
| February 4 | 7:07 PM | Northern Michigan | | Sanford Center • Bemidji, Minnesota | | Sholl | L 1–2 | 2,557 | 13–16–0 (9–10–0) |
| February 5 | 6:07 PM | Northern Michigan | | Sanford Center • Bemidji, Minnesota | | Enright | W 5–3 | 2,120 | 14–16–0 (10–10–0) |
| February 18 | 7:07 PM | at #1 Minnesota State | | Mayo Clinic Health System Event Center • Mankato, Minnesota | CCMk–14 | Enright | L 1–5 | 5,058 | 14–17–0 (10–11–0) |
| February 19 | 6:07 PM | at #1 Minnesota State | | Mayo Clinic Health System Event Center • Mankato, Minnesota | CCMk–14 | Sholl | L 1–5 | 5,130 | 14–18–0 (10–12–0) |
| February 25 | 7:07 PM | St. Thomas | | Sanford Center • Bemidji, Minnesota | | Sholl | W 5–3 | 2,275 | 15–18–0 (11–12–0) |
| February 26 | 6:07 PM | St. Thomas | | Sanford Center • Bemidji, Minnesota | | Sholl | W 4–3 $^{OT}$ | 2,112 | 16–18–0 (12–12–0) |
| CCHA Tournament ||||||||||
| March 4 | 7:07 PM | Bowling Green* | | Sanford Center • Bemidji, Minnesota (Quarterfinal game 1) | | Sholl | L 1–2 | 1,422 | 16–19–0 |
| March 5 | 6:07 PM | Bowling Green* | | Sanford Center • Bemidji, Minnesota (Quarterfinal game 2) | | Sholl | W 4–2 | 1,601 | 17–19–0 |
| March 6 | 5:07 PM | Bowling Green* | | Sanford Center • Bemidji, Minnesota (Quarterfinal game 3) | | Sholl | W 3–1 | 1,512 | 18–19–0 |
| Bemidji State Won Series 2–1 ||||||||||
| March 12 | 5:07 PM | at #13 Michigan Tech* | | MacInnes Student Ice Arena • Houghton, MI (Semifinal) | | Sholl | W 5–2 | 2,634 | 19–19–0 |
| March 19 | 6:07 PM | at #1 Minnesota State* | | Mayo Clinic Health System Event Center • Mankato, Minnesota (Championship) | | Sholl | L 1–2 $^{OT}$ | 5,126 | 19–20–0 |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from USCHO.com Poll. All times are in Central Time. Source: ||||||||||

## Scoring statistics

| Name | Position | Games | Goals | Assists | Points | PIM |
| Owen Sillinger | C | 39 | 17 | 30 | 47 | 41 |
| Alex Ierullo | LW | 39 | 16 | 26 | 42 | 28 |
| Lukas Sillinger | F | 37 | 17 | 21 | 38 | 54 |
| Elias Rosén | D | 38 | 7 | 19 | 26 | 18 |
| Ethan Somoza | LW | 38 | 10 | 12 | 22 | 8 |
| Eric Martin | F | 39 | 3 | 16 | 19 | 8 |
| Tyler Kirkup | C/LW | 39 | 12 | 6 | 18 | 39 |
| Ross Armour | F | 34 | 8 | 8 | 16 | 18 |
| Will Zmolek | D | 38 | 5 | 10 | 15 | 26 |
| Jere Väisänen | F | 37 | 6 | 2 | 8 | 8 |
| Alex Adams | F | 36 | 4 | 4 | 8 | 6 |
| Kyle Looft | D | 39 | 3 | 5 | 8 | 46 |
| Bradley Johnson | D | 39 | 2 | 6 | 8 | 53 |
| Aaron Myers | F | 21 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 2 |
| William Magnuson | D | 34 | 0 | 5 | 5 | 4 |
| Sam Solenský | C/RW | 29 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 6 |
| Jakub Lewandowski | F | 18 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 6 |
| Austin Jouppi | F | 25 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 8 |
| Tyler Jubenvill | D | 39 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 31 |
| Donte Lawson | F | 6 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Carter Jones | F | 15 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Mattias Sholl | G | 26 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Jack Powell | D | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Mike Carr | G | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Alexander Lundman | LW/RW | 12 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| Gavin Enright | G | 13 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Nicholas Cardelli | RW | 14 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 |
| Tony Follmer | D | 26 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| Bench | - | - | - | - | - | 4 |
| Total | | | 118 | 184 | 302 | 428 |

## Goaltending statistics

| Name | Games | Minutes | Wins | Losses | Ties | Goals Against | Saves | Shut Outs | SV % | GAA |
| Mattias Sholl | 26 | 1463 | 13 | 13 | 0 | 67 | 629 | 0 | .904 | 2.75 |
| Gavin Enright | 14 | 712 | 5 | 6 | 0 | 40 | 320 | 0 | .889 | 3.37 |
| Mike Carr | 4 | 149 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 10 | 66 | 0 | .868 | 4.01 |
| Empty Net | - | 23 | - | - | - | 4 | - | - | - | - |
| Total | 39 | 2348 | 19 | 20 | 0 | 121 | 1015 | 0 | .893 | 3.09 |

## 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 |
| 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 (Final) |
| USCHO.com | 14 | 15 | 20 | 19 | 17 | 20 | NR | 20 | 20 | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | - | NR |
| USA Today | 15 | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR |
Note: USCHO did not release a poll in week 24.

## Awards and honors

| Player | Award |
| Elias Rosén | CCHA First Team |
| Owen Sillinger | CCHA Second Team |
| Mattias Sholl | CCHA Rookie Team |