No. 12/14 St. Cloud State Men's Hockey set for Homecoming Series against Augustana

Friday, October 25

St. Cloud, Minn.

7:00 P.M. CT

St. Cloud State

Augustana

Tickets

Men's Hockey photos vs. Bemidji State (10-11-24) Photos by Jason Soria (@jasonsoriaphotography)

Photo by: Jason Soria

No. 12/14 St. Cloud State Men's Hockey set for Homecoming Series against Augustana

10/24/2024 5:01:00 PM | Men's Hockey

Huskies and Vikings will meet for the first time on the ice

THE MATCHUP

After playing four of its first five games on the road, No. 12/14 St. Cloud State Men's Hockey begins a six-game homestand this weekend with a nonconference series against (RV) Augustana for homecoming on Oct. 25-26 at the Herb Brooks National Hockey Center. Start times will be adjusted from normal for this weekend, as Friday's puck drop is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. CT and Saturday's slated for 5:00 p.m. CT. Both game's will be televised on Fox 9 + (tape delay on Friday beginning at 8:00 p.m. CT) and live on NCHC.tv with Jim Erickson, Geno Parrish and Olivia Stephes on the call. On the radio, Nick Maxson and Dave Reichel will have the call on KNSI (1450 AM / 99.3 FM).
The Huskies enter the weekend following a thrilling top-10 split on the road at No. 10/9 Michigan, dropping Friday's game 3-0 (0-0 heading into the third period) before Saturday's 4-0 winner behind 24 saves from sophomore goaltender Isak Posch. Augustana is nearing its first-ever top-20 ranking after a road sweep over then-No. 12 Omaha last weekend, beating the Mavericks 2-1 and 4-0 at Baxter Arena.

GOING POLLING

Following the split with Michigan, the Huskies moved up one spot to No. 12 in the USCHO poll and down one spot int he USA Today / The Rink Live Top-20 poll. Augustana is on the verge of entering the top-20 for the first time in its short two-year history, checking in as the team with the most votes outside the top-20 in the USCHO poll and the fourth team outside the top-20 in the USA Today / The Rink Live poll.

SERIES HISTORY

This weekend's series will be the first-ever meeting between the two programs, as the Vikings are in the midst of their second season. Augustana announced the addition of a men's ice hockey team in October 2021 and played its first season in 2023-24 as a member of the Central Collegiate Hockey Association (CCHA).

WELCOME BACK, HUSKIES!

In addition to being homecoming weekend, the Huskies will welcome back a pair of former Huskies this weekend in Augustana head coach Garrett Raboin and senior defenseman Brady Ziemer. Raboin was a two-year captain, wore a letter for three seasons and earned two All-WCHA honors as a student-athlete for the Huskies from 2006-10. He still ranks 10th among Husky defesnemen in career scoring with 83 points (21-62-83). After his playing career, Raboin was an assistant coach for the Huskies from 2012-18, helping the Huskies reach five NCAA Tournaments, win three conference championships and the program's first NCAA Frozen Four appearance in 2013. Ziemer was a three-year student-athlete for the Huskies from 2020-23, as he scored four points in 50 games.

UNDERCLASSMEN LEAD THE WAY

St. Cloud State has been led by its freshmen and sophomore classes through five games this season, as a freshman or sophomore has accounted for 10 of 12 and 26 of 32 points overall so far this season. In the Bemidji State series alone, the freshmen scored five of seven goals while sophomores scored the other two, with underclassmen producing 17 of 19 points scored. Additionally, sophomore goaltender Isak Posch has been in net for each of the Huskies first five games, producing a 4-1-0 mark with a 1.41 GAA, .952 S% and two shutouts. His S% and GAA both rank second in the NCHC, as well as eighth and 10th, respectively, in the NCAA. Freshman forward Austin Burnevik has started his freshman campaign extremely strong, as he ranks third among NCAA freshmen in goals (three) and points (six).

A LOOK BACK AT LAST SERIES

SCSU earned its first-ever win against Michigan with a 4-0 win on Saturday, securing a road split at historic Yost Ice Arena. Sophomore goaltender Isak Posch made 24 saves in the shutout victory, while four different Huskies scored, including sophomore forwards Tyson Gross and Barrett Hall on the power play. On Friday, the Wolverines pulled out a 3-0 victory in a game that went into the third period scoreless before Michigan scored a shorthanded and even strength goal in the first 10 minutes of the final period. An empty net score made the final score 3-0.

NOTES FROM LAST SERIES

GAME 1 - 3-0 loss at No. 10/9 Michigan (10-18-24)
- SCSU went 4-of-4 on the penalty kill, improving to 92.9 percent (13-of-14) on the season. It marked the third time in four games SCSU has held its opponent scoreless with a man down.
- Sophomore forward Verner Miettinen continued his impressive start in the faceoff dot, going 9-5 in the circle (64.3 percent) in the game.
- Sophomore goaltender Isak Posch made 27 saves, the third time this season and 11th time in his career he has made 25 or more saves.
- Junior defenseman Josh Zinger recorded a season-best with three blocks.
GAME 2 - 4-0 win at No. 10/9 Michigan (10-19-24)
- With the win, SCSU improves to 1-4-1 all-time against Michigan and 1-2-0 in Ann Arbor.
- SCSU turned away both Michigan power play chances in the game, improving to 3-1-0 on the season when keeping its opponent scoreless on the man advantage. SCSU improved to 93.8 percent (15-of-16) on the penalty kill this season.
- Sophomore goaltender Isak Posch earned his second shutout of the season and third of his career with 24 saves. On the season, he improved to 4-1-0 with a 1.42 GAA and .952 S%.
- Sophomore forward Tyson Gross scored his first goal of the season and recorded his first career game-winning goal. He added an assist on frehsman forward Gavyn Thoreson's goal to record his seventh career multi-point game.
- Thoreson scored his first career goal and first career point with his third period score.
- Junior forward Grant Ahcan scored his first goal of the season and sixth of his career with his third period goal.
- Sophomore forward Barrett Hall's power play goal late in the third period marked his 10th career goal.
- Sophomore forward Verner Miettinen and freshman forward Austin Burnevik recorded assists on Gross' goal, moving their assist totals to four and three on the season, respectively. Miettinen leads the team in assists while Burnevik ranks second.
- Sophomore forward Daimon Gardner recorded his first point as a Husky, recording the primary assist on Thoreson's goal.
- Salquist and junior forward Jack Rogers each recorded an assist on Hall's goal, their first points of the season.

MIETTINEN CONTROLS THE DOT

Sophomore forward Verner Miettinen has been lights out in the faceoff dot through five games this season, producing an incredible 67.8 percent mark in the circle (59-28). Miettinen's 59 wins are the sixth-most in the NCAA this season.
Miettinen set a career-best with 20 wins in the circle against Bemidji State (20-6, Oct. 12), shattering his previous career high mark of 12 set twice, last on March 8, 2024, against Minnesota Duluth.

POSCH EARNS NCHC WEEKLY HONOR FOR SECOND TIME IN THREE WEEKS

Sophomore goaltender Isak Posch was named NCHC Goaltender of the Week for the second time this sean after helping lead the Huskies to a top-10 road split against No. 10/9 Michigan.
Posch made 51 saves with a 1.02 GAA and .962 S% with one shutout. He was stellar between the pipes for SCSU against the Wolverines, only allowing one even-strength goal all weekend while posting his second shutout of the season. He made 27 saves in Friday's 3-0 setback and then 24 saves in a 4-0 victory on Saturday, his third career shutout. He helped the Huskies turn away all six of Michigan's chances on the power play, making nine saves down a man as SCSU improved to 93.8 percent (13-14) on the PK this season. SCSU's mark with a man-down currently ranks second in the NCHC and 12th in the NCAA.
Earlier this season, Posch's 34-save shutout performance against the Tommies earned him the same weekly honor. It marked the seventh time in his career he has made 30 or more saves in a game and was his second career shutout. He also helped the penalty kill unit turn away all four Tommie power play chances, making six short-handed saves.
On the season, Posch's marks of 1.41 GAA and .952 S% both rank second in the NCHC, while ranking 10th and eighth, nationally, respectively. He's one of three netminders in the nation to record multiple shutouts this season. The sophomore netminder was also named to the 2023-24 NCHC All-Rookie Team.

MORE ON BURNEVIK'S HOT START

After a breakout five-point weekend against Bemidji State, freshman forward Austin Burnevik was named NCHC Rookie of the Week following the Bemidji series. Burnevik scored three goals and two assists for five points, with a +4 mark on the ice with a power play goal in a series sweep over Bemidji State (Oct. 11-12).
Burnevik scored the first and second collegiate goals of his career in Friday's 4-3 win over Bemidji State, as he became the first Husky to record his first two career goals in the same game since Zach Okabe scored his first four collegiate goals against Minnesota State on Dec. 28, 2019. The Husky freshman then scored a power play goal and had two assists in Saturday's 3-2 win at Bemidji.
He is the first Husky to produce three goals and five points through the first three games of the season since Patrick Newell had six points (3-3-6) in 2018-19. He is the first freshman to reach those marks through three games since Andres Nodl, who had 3-4-7 through three games in 2006-07. Additionally, Burnevik is the first Husky freshman to produce five points in a series since Adam Ingram had a five-point game against Omaha on Feb. 24, 2023, and the first freshman to score three goals in a series since Veeti Miettinen had three against Minnesota Duluth on Jan. 2-3, 2021.
Burnevik added an assist in the Michigan series to move his season total to three goals and three assists for six points. Among NCHC ranks this season, Burnevik currently ranks fourth in goals (three) and seventh in points (six). Among NCAA freshmen, he ranks third in both categories.