# 2021–22 St. Thomas Tommies men's ice hockey season

The 2021–22 St. Thomas Tommies men's ice hockey season was the 98th season of play for the program, the 1st in Division I and the 1st season in the CCHA conference. The Tommies represented the University of St. Thomas (Minnesota) and were coached by Enrico Blasi, in his 1st season.

## Season

St. Thomas began its first season at the Division I level knowing that it wasn't expected to compete with many of its new opponents. While the roster was full of transfers from other D-I programs, few had been high-level players. The Tommies began their season with a bad if unsurprising 2–12 loss to the defending national runner-up, St. Cloud State. The second game, however, was much better; even though it was a loss, it was a much closer affair and demonstrated that St. Thomas could at least rise to the level of play.
While the Tommies started the season 0–7, there were a few close games and the team finally broke through with its first D-I win in late October. After the victory, the St. Thomas offense went dormant for several months, scoring more than 2 goals on just one occasion until mid-January. The 15-game losing streak that resulted made it very difficult for St. Thomas to do anything but finish last in the CCHA standings.
The scoring picked up slightly in the later part of the season, and the Tommies were able to get two more wins before the season was out, but it was hardly a shock when St. Thomas was ranked as the worst team at the Division I level by season's end.

## Departures

| Player | Position | Nationality | Cause |
| Tucker Bender | Defenseman | United States | Graduation (retired) |
| Jackson Bond | Forward | United States | Transferred to Hamline |
| Chris Conway | Defenseman | United States | Left program (retired) |
| Lewis Crosby | Forward | United States | Transferred to St. John's |
| Phil Fromberger | Defenseman | Canada | Graduation (retired) |
| Will Graves | Goaltender | United States | Left program (retired) |
| Kyle Gudme | Defenseman | United States | Left program (retired) |
| Sam Huff | Forward | United States | Left program (retired) |
| Charlie Kiefer | Defenseman | United States | Left program (retired) |
| Ian Mageau | Forward | United States | Left program (retired) |
| Josh Maucieri | Forward | United States | Transferred to St. John's |
| Austin Nault | Forward | Canada | Transferred to Marian |
| Josh Norman | Forward | United States | Transferred to Lake Forest |
| Max Osborne | Defenseman | United States | Transferred to St. John's |
| John Pesek | Defenseman | United States | Left program (retired) |
| Jake Peterson | Defenseman | United States | Left program (retired) |
| Luke Radetic | Forward | United States | Left program (retired) |
| Zac Risteau | Forward | United States | Left program (retired) |
| John Serafin | Defenseman | United States | Transferred to Endicott |
| Anthony Szurlej | Defenseman | United States | Left program (retired) |
| Jack Vincent | Forward | United States | Left program (retired) |
| Spencer Zwiener | Forward | United States | Graduation (retired) |

## Recruiting

| Player | Position | Nationality | Age | Notes |
| Michael Ferrandino | Defenseman | United States | 21 | Lisle, IL |
| Ethan Gauer | Defenseman | United States | 21 | Farmington, MN; transfer from Bemidji State |
| Kyler Grundy | Forward | United States | 21 | Pleasant Prairie, WI |
| Matthew Jennings | Forward | United States | 24 | Buford, GA; transfer from Ohio State |
| Trevor LeDonne | Defenseman | Canada | 18 | Stoney Creek, ON |
| Tim Piechowski | Forward | United States | 20 | Eden Prairie, MN |
| Cameron Recchi | Forward | United States | 20 | Pittsburgh, PA |
| Sam Renlund | Forward | United States | 21 | Verona, WI; transfer from Colorado College |
| Nolan Sawchuk | Defenseman | United States | 23 | Burnsville, MN; transfer from Massachusetts Lowell |
| Paul Schmid | Forward | Austria | 21 | Linz, AUT |
| John Schuldt | Defenseman | United States | 24 | Minnetonka, MN; transfer from Omaha |
| Peter Thome | Goaltender | United States | 24 | Minneapolis, MN; graduate transfer from North Dakota; selected 155th overall in 2016 |
| Christiano Versich | Forward | United States | 24 | Saint Paul, MN; transfer from Colorado College |
| Blaine Warnert | Forward | United States | 21 | Chaska, MN |
| Trevor Zins | Defenseman | United States | 21 | St. Michael, MN; transfer from St. Cloud State |

## Roster

As of September 9, 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$^#$ | Site | TV | Decision | Result | Attendance | Record |
| Regular Season ||||||||||
| October 2 | 6:07 PM | at #2 St. Cloud State* | Herb Brooks National Hockey Center • St. Cloud, Minnesota | | Thome | L 2–12 | 4,151 | 0–1–0 |
| October 3 | 4:37 PM | #2 St. Cloud State* | Xcel Energy Center • St. Paul, Minnesota | | Thome | L 0–2 | 4,261 | 0–2–0 |
| October 8 | 5:37 PM | at Northern Michigan | Berry Events Center • Marquette, Michigan | | Thome | L 1–4 | 2,532 | 0–3–0 (0–1–0) |
| October 9 | 5:37 PM | at Northern Michigan | Berry Events Center • Marquette, Michigan | | Thome | L 3–8 | 3,080 | 0–4–0 (0–2–0) |
| October 15 | 6:07 PM | at Lake Superior State | Taffy Abel Arena • Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan | | Berger | L 1–3 | 0 | 0–5–0 (0–3–0) |
| October 16 | 5:07 PM | at Lake Superior State | Taffy Abel Arena • Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan | | Thome | L 3–6 | 1,646 | 0–6–0 (0–4–0) |
| October 22 | 7:07 PM | Ferris State | St. Thomas Ice Arena • Mendota Heights, Minnesota | | Thome | L 1–2 $^{OT}$ | 0 | 0–7–0 (0–5–0) |
| October 23 | 7:07 PM | Ferris State | St. Thomas Ice Arena • Mendota Heights, Minnesota | | Thome | W 5–2 | 0 | 1–7–0 (1–5–0) |
| October 29 | 6:05 PM | at Arizona State* | Oceanside Ice Arena • Tempe, Arizona | | Thome | L 2–5 | 0 | 1–8–0 |
| October 30 | 6:05 PM | at Arizona State* | Oceanside Ice Arena • Tempe, Arizona | | Berger | L 2–5 | 900 | 1–9–0 |
| November 5 | 6:07 PM | at Bowling Green | Slater Family Ice Arena • Bowling Green, Ohio | | Thome | L 2–4 | 1,676 | 1–10–0 (1–6–0) |
| November 6 | 6:07 PM | at Bowling Green | Slater Family Ice Arena • Bowling Green, Ohio | | Thome | L 0–3 | 1,811 | 1–11–0 (1–7–0) |
| November 18 | 7:07 PM | at #3 Minnesota State | Mayo Clinic Health System Event Center • Mankato, Minnesota | CCMk–14 | Thome | L 0–9 | 3,875 | 1–12–0 (1–8–0) |
| November 20 | 7:07 PM | #3 Minnesota State | St. Thomas Ice Arena • Mendota Heights, Minnesota | | Thome | L 0–5 | 885 | 1–13–0 (1–9–0) |
| November 23 | 7:07 PM | at Penn State* | St. Thomas Ice Arena • Mendota Heights, Minnesota | | Berger | L 1–5 | 559 | 1–14–0 |
| November 24 | 7:07 PM | at Penn State* | St. Thomas Ice Arena • Mendota Heights, Minnesota | | Berger | L 1–4 | 544 | 1–15–0 |
| December 3 | 7:07 PM | Bemidji State | St. Thomas Ice Arena • Mendota Heights, Minnesota | | Thome | L 2–5 | 664 | 1–16–0 (1–10–0) |
| December 4 | 7:07 PM | Bemidji State | St. Thomas Ice Arena • Mendota Heights, Minnesota | | Thome | L 1–6 | 567 | 1–17–0 (1–11–0) |
| December 10 | 6:07 PM | at Michigan Tech | MacInnes Student Ice Arena • Houghton, Michigan | | Thome | L 1–6 | 2,060 | 1–18–0 (1–12–0) |
| December 11 | 5:07 PM | at Michigan Tech | MacInnes Student Ice Arena • Houghton, Michigan | | Berger | L 3–4 | 2,589 | 1–19–0 (1–13–0) |
| January 7 | 7:07 PM | Bowling Green | St. Thomas Ice Arena • Mendota Heights, Minnesota | | Thome | L 2–4 | 504 | 1–20–0 (1–14–0) |
| January 8 | 7:07 PM | Bowling Green | St. Thomas Ice Arena • Mendota Heights, Minnesota | | Berger | L 1–2 $^{OT}$ | 540 | 1–21–0 (1–15–0) |
| January 14 | 6:07 PM | at Ferris State | Ewigleben Arena • Big Rapids, Michigan | | Thome | L 1–3 | 1,647 | 1–22–0 (1–16–0) |
| January 15 | 5:07 PM | at Ferris State | Ewigleben Arena • Big Rapids, Michigan | | Thome | W 4–3 | 1,749 | 2–22–0 (2–16–0) |
| January 20 | 7:07 PM | #2 Minnesota State | St. Thomas Ice Arena • Mendota Heights, Minnesota | | Berger | L 1–5 | 684 | 2–23–0 (2–17–0) |
| January 22 | 7:07 PM | at #2 Minnesota State | Blakeslee Stadium • Mankato, Minnesota (Hockey Day Minnesota) | BSN | Thome | L 1–7 | - | 2–24–0 (2–18–0) |
| February 4 | 7:07 PM | #15 Michigan Tech | St. Thomas Ice Arena • Mendota Heights, Minnesota | | Thome | T 3–3 $^{SOL}$ | 708 | 2–24–1 (2–18–1) |
| February 5 | 7:07 PM | #15 Michigan Tech | St. Thomas Ice Arena • Mendota Heights, Minnesota | | Thome | L 0–2 | 790 | 2–25–1 (2–19–1) |
| February 11 | 10:07 PM | at Alaska* | Carlson Center • Fairbanks, Alaska | | Thome | L 1–6 | 1,650 | 2–26–1 |
| February 12 | 10:07 PM | at Alaska* | Carlson Center • Fairbanks, Alaska | | Berger | L 3–7 | 1,738 | 2–27–1 |
| February 18 | 7:07 PM | Lake Superior State | St. Thomas Ice Arena • Mendota Heights, Minnesota | | Thome | W 2–1 | 643 | 3–27–1 (3–19–1) |
| February 19 | 7:07 PM | Lake Superior State | St. Thomas Ice Arena • Mendota Heights, Minnesota | | Thome | L 1–5 | 521 | 3–28–1 (3–20–1) |
| February 25 | 7:07 PM | at Bemidji State | Sanford Center • Bemidji, Minnesota | | Thome | L 3–5 | 2,275 | 3–29–1 (3–21–1) |
| February 26 | 6:07 PM | at Bemidji State | Sanford Center • Bemidji, Minnesota | | Thome | L 3–4 $^{OT}$ | 2,112 | 3–30–1 (3–22–1) |
| CCHA Tournament ||||||||||
| March 4 | 7:07 PM | at #1 Minnesota State* | Mayo Clinic Health System Event Center • Mankato, Minnesota (Quarterfinal game 1) | | Thome | L 2–3 | 3,351 | 3–31–1 |
| March 5 | 6:07 PM | at #1 Minnesota State* | Mayo Clinic Health System Event Center • Mankato, Minnesota (Quarterfinal game 2) | | Thome | L 2–8 | 3,627 | 3–32–1 |
| St. Thomas Lost Series 0–2 ||||||||||
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from USCHO.com Poll. All times are in Central Time. Source: ||||||||||

## Scoring statistics

| Name | Position | Games | Goals | Assists | Points | PIM |
| Christiano Versich | RW | 31 | 5 | 11 | 16 | 8 |
| Luke Manning | C | 36 | 8 | 7 | 15 | 12 |
| Matt Jennings | C | 35 | 4 | 11 | 15 | 24 |
| Cameron Recchi | C/LW | 35 | 5 | 8 | 13 | 14 |
| Kyler Grundy | F | 31 | 7 | 5 | 12 | 14 |
| Grant Loven | C | 35 | 7 | 5 | 12 | 18 |
| Trevor Zins | D | 35 | 3 | 8 | 11 | 18 |
| Tim Piechowski | RW | 32 | 5 | 5 | 10 | 8 |
| Nolan Sawchuk | D | 36 | 1 | 9 | 10 | 10 |
| Joe Sofo | F | 24 | 3 | 6 | 9 | 2 |
| Kimball Johnson | D | 23 | 2 | 6 | 8 | 12 |
| Ethan Gauer | D | 32 | 2 | 5 | 7 | 26 |
| Blaine Warnert | F | 26 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 8 |
| Sam Renlund | F | 7 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 10 |
| Lucas McGregor | F | 13 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 |
| Trevor LeDonne | D | 27 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 26 |
| John Schuldt | D | 32 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 51 |
| Andrew Kangas | F | 33 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 10 |
| Aaron Swanson | F | 34 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 43 |
| Logan Ommen | F | 9 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 2 |
| Justin Kelley | F | 18 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| Vincent Weis | D | 21 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 22 |
| Paul Schmid | F | 25 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 11 |
| Michael Ferrandino | D | 26 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Henry Baribeau | G | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Shayne Monahan | D | 13 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 |
| Jacob Berger | G | 17 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Peter Thome | G | 29 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Bench | - | - | - | - | - | 2 |
| Total | | | 61 | 101 | 162 | 367 |

## Goaltending statistics

| Name | Games | Minutes | Wins | Losses | Ties | Goals Against | Saves | Shut Outs | SV % | GAA |
| Henry Baribeau | 2 | 3:13 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1.000 | 0.00 |
| Jacob Berger | 17 | 644 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 44 | 293 | 0 | .869 | 4.10 |
| Peter Thome | 29 | 1522 | 3 | 24 | 1 | 115 | 811 | 0 | .876 | 4.53 |
| Empty Net | - | 18 | - | - | - | 9 | - | - | - | - |
| Total | 36 | 2168 | 3 | 32 | 1 | 168 | 1107 | 0 | .868 | 4.65 |

## 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 | 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 |
| USA Today | 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 | NR |
Note: USCHO did not release a poll in week 24.