2020–21 Omaha Mavericks men's ice hockey season

2020–21 Omaha Mavericks
men's ice hockey season
NCAA Tournament, Regional semifinals
Conference4th NCHC
Home iceBaxter Arena
Rankings
USCHO.com13
USA Today/
US Hockey Magazine		14
Record
Overall14–11–1
Conference14–9–1–4–0–1
Home4–3–0
Road4–3–0
Neutral6–5–1
Coaches and captains
Head coachMike Gabinet
Assistant coachesDave Noël-Bernier
Paul Jerrard
Captain(s)Kevin Conley
Alternate captain(s)Nathan Knoepke
Nolan Sullivan
Taylor Ward
Omaha Mavericks men's ice hockey seasons
« 2019–20 2021–22 »

The 2020–21 Omaha Mavericks men's ice hockey season was the 24th season of play for the program and the 8th in the NCHC conference. The Mavericks represented the University of Nebraska Omaha and were coached by Mike Gabinet, in his 4th season.

Season

As a result of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic the entire college ice hockey season was delayed. Because the NCAA had previously announced that all winter sports athletes would retain whatever eligibility they possessed through at least the following year, none of Omaha's players would lose a season of play.[1] However, the NCAA also approved a change in its transfer regulations that would allow players to transfer and play immediately rather than having to sit out a season, as the rules previously required.[2]

Due to ongoing COVID-19 concerns, The entire NCHC conference began the season playing in Omaha, Nebraska.[3] Despite playing all of these game in their home building, the Mavericks didn't officially play a home game in December. All games were considered 'neutral site' matches but Omaha was still able to use the familiar surroundings to get off to a good start. It took the Mavs a few games to get used to the compressed schedule but, by the end of the third week of play, the team had shot up into the middle of the top-20 rankings. UNO would hover around that point for the remainder of the regular season and, despite losing 3 out of 4 to North Dakota at the end, Omaha was projected to make the NCAA Tournament under normal circumstances.[4]

When their conference tournament began, Omaha was hoping it could at least improve its standing and get a better matchup in late March. However, the team was outplayed by Denver for most of the contest and lost the quarterfinal 4–5. As a result, Omaha was ranked 14th by the selection committee and placed opposite to Minnesota in the regional semifinals. The Mavericks never really were in the game, surrendering the first three goals before ending the first down 1–3. The Gophers scored an additional trio in the second and then skated to a rather easy 7–2 win over Omaha.

Jacob Zab sat out the season.

Departures

Player Position Nationality Cause
Colby Enns Defenseman  United States Transferred to Northern Michigan
Ryan Jones Defenseman  United States Graduation (Signed with Rochester Americans)
Zach Jordan Forward  United States Graduation (Signed with Cleveland Monsters)
Tristan Keck Forward  Canada Graduation (Signed with Coventry Blaze)
Teemu Pulkkinen Forward  Finland Graduation (Signed with Mikkelin Jukurit)
Dean Stewart Defenseman  Canada Graduation (Signed with Wichita Thunder)

Recruiting

Player Position Nationality Age Notes
Kaden Bohlsen Forward  United States 19 Willmar, MN
Brock Bremer Forward  United States 21 Forest Lake, MN
Jimmy Glynn Forward  United States 20 Lemont, IL
Jake Harrison Defenseman  Canada 21 West Kelowna, BC
Nolan Krenzen Defenseman  United States 19 Duluth, MN
Matt Miller Forward  United States 21 Leo, IN
Jack Randl Forward  United States 20 Carpentersville, IL
Jonny Tychonick Defenseman  Canada 20 Calgary, AB; transfer from North Dakota; selected 48th overall in 2018

Roster

As of March 1, 2021.[5]

No. S/P/C Player Class Pos Height Weight DoB Hometown Previous team NHL rights
2 Minnesota Jason Smallidge Junior D 6' 2" (1.88 m) 193 lb (88 kg) 1998-05-20 Eagan, Minnesota Youngstown (USHL) —
3 Alberta Kirby Proctor Sophomore D 6' 3" (1.91 m) 197 lb (89 kg) 2001-04-20 Okotoks, Alberta Des Moines (USHL) —
4 Ontario Brandon Scanlin Sophomore D 6' 4" (1.93 m) 213 lb (97 kg) 1999-06-02 Hamilton, Ontario Brooks (AJHL) —
5 Minnesota John Schuldt Junior D 6' 4" (1.93 m) 216 lb (98 kg) 1997-02-10 Minnetonka, Minnesota Fargo (USHL) —
7 Minnesota Nate Knoepke (A) Senior D 6' 3" (1.91 m) 205 lb (93 kg) 1999-04-08 Farmington, Minnesota Sioux City (USHL) —
9 Quebec Ryan Brushett Sophomore F 6' 0" (1.83 m) 180 lb (82 kg) 1998-06-14 Verdun, Quebec Powell River (BCHL) —
10 Wisconsin Kevin Conley (C) Senior F 6' 0" (1.83 m) 191 lb (87 kg) 1997-02-17 Wausau, Wisconsin Sioux Falls (USHL) —
11 Minnesota Nolan Sullivan (A) Sophomore F 5' 11" (1.8 m) 203 lb (92 kg) 1999-05-21 Eden Prairie, Minnesota Muskegon (USHL) —
12 Minnesota Nolan Krenzen Freshman D 5' 9" (1.75 m) 180 lb (82 kg) 2001-07-13 Duluth, Minnesota Omaha (USHL) —
13 New Jersey Chayse Primeau Junior F 6' 3" (1.91 m) 185 lb (84 kg) 1997-09-15 Margate City, New Jersey Dubuque (USHL) —
16 Sweden Martin Sundberg Senior F 6' 4" (1.93 m) 197 lb (89 kg) 1996-12-04 Linköping, Sweden Fargo (USHL) —
17 British Columbia Taylor Ward (A) Junior F 6' 2" (1.88 m) 207 lb (94 kg) 1998-03-31 Kelowna, British Columbia Penticton (BCHL) —
20 Alberta Jonny Tychonick Junior D 6' 0" (1.83 m) 187 lb (85 kg) 2000-03-03 Calgary, Alberta North Dakota (NCHC) OTT, 48th overall 2018
21 Colorado Noah Prokop Sophomore F 6' 1" (1.85 m) 198 lb (90 kg) 2000-01-15 Littleton, Colorado Green Bay (USHL) —
22 Minnesota Jordan Klehr Graduate D 5' 10" (1.78 m) 197 lb (89 kg) 1997-03-18 Lino Lakes, Minnesota Shattuck-St. Mary's (Midget AAA) —
23 Minnesota Travis Kothenbeutel Junior F 5' 9" (1.75 m) 177 lb (80 kg) 1997-01-10 Sauk Rapids, Minnesota Austin (NAHL) —
24 Illinois Jimmy Glynn Freshman F 5' 10" (1.78 m) 168 lb (76 kg) 2000-02-24 Lemont, Illinois Dubuque (USHL) —
26 Minnesota Brock Bremer Freshman F 5' 5" (1.65 m) 140 lb (64 kg) 1999-08-26 Forest Lake, Minnesota Lincoln (USHL) —
27 Indiana Matt Miller Freshman F 6' 2" (1.88 m) 194 lb (88 kg) 1999-09-04 Leo, Indiana Lincoln (USHL) —
28 Illinois Jack Randl Sophomore F 5' 10" (1.78 m) 175 lb (79 kg) 2000-05-07 Carpentersville, Illinois Omaha (USHL) —
29 Minnesota Kaden Bohlsen Freshman F 6' 3" (1.91 m) 192 lb (87 kg) 2001-01-10 Willmar, Minnesota Fargo (USHL) —
31 Alaska Isaiah Saville Sophomore G 6' 1" (1.85 m) 196 lb (89 kg) 2000-09-21 Anchorage, Alaska Tri-City (USHL) VGK, 135th overall 2019
35 Ohio Jacob Zab Sophomore G 5' 9" (1.75 m) 175 lb (79 kg) 1998-04-12 Mentor, Ohio Pittsburgh (USPHL) —
36 British Columbia Austin Roden Sophomore G 6' 0" (1.83 m) 183 lb (83 kg) 1998-04-30 Victoria, British Columbia Merritt (BCHL) —
40 North Carolina Tyler Weiss Junior F 5' 11" (1.8 m) 146 lb (66 kg) 2000-01-03 Raleigh, North Carolina USNTDP (USHL) COL, 109th overall 2018
44 British Columbia Jake Harrison Freshman D 5' 9" (1.75 m) 179 lb (81 kg) 1999-04-13 Kelowna, British Columbia West Kelowna (BCHL) —
45 Illinois Joey Abate Sophomore F 6' 2" (1.88 m) 188 lb (85 kg) 1998-09-26 Bloomingdale, Illinois Youngstown (USHL) —
47 Quebec Alex Roy Sophomore D 6' 7" (2.01 m) 215 lb (98 kg) 1998-09-21 Beaumont, Quebec Jamestown (NAHL) —
48 Alaska Josh Boyer Sophomore F 6' 3" (1.91 m) 200 lb (91 kg) 1999-10-07 Wasilla, Alaska Sioux City (USHL) —

Standings

2020–21 National Collegiate Hockey Conference Standings
Conference record Overall record
GP W L T OTW OTL 3/SW PTS PT% GF GA GP W L T GF GA
#5 North Dakota †* 24 18 5 1 2 1 0 54 .750 94 47 29 22 6 1 114 57
#2 St. Cloud State 24 15 9 0 3 3 0 45 .625 78 64 31 20 11 0 101 84
#3 Minnesota Duluth 24 13 9 2 1 2 1 43 .597 72 54 28 15 11 2 84 66
#13 Omaha 24 14 9 1 4 0 1 40 .556 79 69 26 14 11 1 85 81
Denver 22 9 12 1 0 2 1 31 .470 61 60 24 11 13 1 67 66
Western Michigan 24 10 11 3 1 0 1 33 .458 73 84 25 10 12 3 77 89
Colorado College 22 4 16 2 0 2 2 18 .273 35 77 23 4 17 2 36 79
Miami 24 5 17 2 0 1 0 18 .250 46 83 25 5 18 2 48 89
Championship: March 16, 2021
† 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
Regular season
December 1 3:35 PM vs. #3 Minnesota Duluth Baxter Arena • Omaha, Nebraska   Saville L 3–5  0 0–1–0 (0–1–0)
December 3 7:35 PM vs. #17 Western Michigan Baxter Arena • Omaha, Nebraska   Saville W 10–2  0 1–1–0 (1–1–0)
December 5 4:05 PM vs. Miami Baxter Arena • Omaha, Nebraska   Saville W 2–1 OT 0 2–1–0 (2–1–0)
December 6 8:05 PM vs. St. Cloud State Baxter Arena • Omaha, Nebraska   Saville L 3–5  0 2–2–0 (2–2–0)
December 9 7:35 PM vs. Colorado College #18 Baxter Arena • Omaha, Nebraska AT&T RM Saville W 6–1  0 3–2–0 (3–2–0)
December 12 8:05 PM vs. Miami #18 Baxter Arena • Omaha, Nebraska   Saville L 0–1  0 3–3–0 (3–3–0)
December 13 8:05 PM vs. #13 St. Cloud State #18 Baxter Arena • Omaha, Nebraska   Roden W 2–0  0 4–3–0 (4–3–0)
December 16 3:35 PM vs. #3 Minnesota Duluth #17 Baxter Arena • Omaha, Nebraska   Saville T 2–2 SOW 0 4–3–1 (4–3–1)
December 18 3:35 PM vs. Western Michigan #17 Baxter Arena • Omaha, Nebraska   Saville W 6–5  0 5–3–1 (5–3–1)
December 21 12:05 PM vs. Colorado College #17 Baxter Arena • Omaha, Nebraska   Saville W 3–0  0 6–3–1 (6–3–1)
January 18 8:07 PM at Colorado College #11 Broadmoor World Arena • Colorado Springs, Colorado   Saville W 3–2  0 7–3–1 (7–3–1)
January 19 8:07 PM at Colorado College #11 Broadmoor World Arena • Colorado Springs, Colorado   Roden W 3–2 OT 0 8–3–1 (8–3–1)
January 23 6:07 PM vs. #19 Denver #11 Baxter Arena • Omaha, Nebraska   Saville L 1–4  1,322 8–4–1 (8–4–1)
January 24 6:00 PM vs. #19 Denver #11 Baxter Arena • Omaha, Nebraska   Saville W 5–2  611 9–4–1 (9–4–1)
January 29 6:00 PM vs. #2 North Dakota #9 Baxter Arena • Omaha, Nebraska CBSSN Saville L 2–6  1,429 9–5–1 (9–5–1)
January 30 6:07 PM vs. #2 North Dakota #9 Baxter Arena • Omaha, Nebraska   Saville W 5–4  1,771 10–5–1 (10–5–1)
February 5 8:07 PM at Denver #9 Magness Arena • Denver, Colorado   Saville L 1–3  0 10–6–1 (10–6–1)
February 6 7:07 PM at Denver #9 Magness Arena • Denver, Colorado CBSSN Saville W 5–4 OT 0 11–6–1 (11–6–1)
February 12 7:07 PM vs. Colorado College #10 Baxter Arena • Omaha, Nebraska   Saville W 7–1  1,248 12–6–1 (12–6–1)
February 13 6:07 PM vs. Colorado College #10 Baxter Arena • Omaha, Nebraska   Saville W 3–2  1,524 13–6–1 (13–6–1)
February 19 7:37 PM at #2 North Dakota #9 Ralph Engelstad Arena • Grand Forks, North Dakota   Saville L 1–4  2,420 13–7–1 (13–7–1)
February 20 6:07 PM at #2 North Dakota #9 Ralph Engelstad Arena • Grand Forks, North Dakota   Saville L 1–7  2,514 13–8–1 (13–8–1)
February 26 7:07 PM vs. #2 North Dakota #11 Baxter Arena • Omaha, Nebraska   Saville L 2–4  1,979 13–9–1 (13–9–1)
March 5 7:37 PM at #1 North Dakota #12 Ralph Engelstad Arena • Grand Forks, North Dakota   Saville W 3–2 OT 2,723 14–9–1 (14–9–1)
NCHC Tournament
March 13 2:30 PM vs. Denver* #11 Ralph Engelstad Arena • Grand Forks, North Dakota   Saville L 4–5  1,864 14–10–1
NCAA Tournament
March 27 8:00 PM vs. #2 Minnesota* #12 Budweiser Events Center • Loveland, Colorado (NCAA West Regional semifinal) ESPNU Saville L 2–7  125 14–11–1
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from USCHO.com Poll. All times are in Central Time.

[6]

Scoring statistics

Name Position Games Goals Assists Points PIM
Chayse Primeau LW/RW 26 9 14 23 4
Tyler Weiss C/LW 26 7 16 23 36
Taylor Ward F 26 13 9 22 20
Kevin Conley F 25 9 10 19 39
Brandon Scanlin D 24 2 15 17 14
Matt Miller RW 26 8 5 13 2
Brock Bremer LW 25 6 7 13 10
Jack Randl LW 24 5 8 13 8
Jason Smallidge D 26 2 11 13 16
Martin Sundberg RW 24 6 4 10 37
Nolan Sullivan F 26 4 5 9 29
Kirby Proctor D 26 3 6 9 12
Joey Abate LW 22 1 8 9 63
Jonny Tychonick D 23 3 5 8 16
Jimmy Glynn F 25 2 5 7 2
Ryan Brushett C 18 1 6 7 4
Nate Knoepke D 25 4 2 6 6
Nolan Krenzen D 21 0 4 4 14
Jake Harrison D 10 0 3 3 2
Isaiah Saville G 24 0 2 2 0
John Schuldt D 1 0 0 0 0
Jordan Klehr D 2 0 0 0 0
Travis Kothenbeutel F 2 0 0 0 0
Kaden Bohlsen F 3 0 0 0 2
Austin Roden G 5 0 0 0 0
Josh Boyer C 5 0 0 0 15
Alex Roy D 9 0 0 0 8
Noah Prokop C 24 0 0 0 21
Bench - - - - - 16
Total 85 145 230 396

[7]

Goaltending statistics

Name Games Minutes Wins Losses Ties Goals Against Saves Shut Outs SV % GAA
Austin Roden 5 212 2 0 0 10 106 1 .914 2.83
Isaiah Saville 24 1348 12 11 1 68 661 1 .907 3.03
Empty Net - 12 - - - 3 - - - -
Total 26 1573 14 11 1 81 767 2 .904 3.09

Rankings

Main article: 2020–21 NCAA Division I men's ice hockey rankings
Poll Week
Pre 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 (Final)
USCHO.com NR NR NR NR 18 17 11 11 11 10 11 9 9 10 9 11 12 11 12 12 - 13
USA Today NR NR NR NR NR NR 14 11 11 9 11 9 10 10 10 12 12 12 13 12 14 14

USCHO did not release a poll in week 20.[8]

Awards and honors

Player Award Ref
Chayse Primeau NCHC Second Team [9]
Isaiah Saville NCHC Third Team [9]
Brandon Scanlin

Players drafted into the NHL

2021 NHL Entry Draft

Round Pick Player NHL team
4 119 Joaquim Lemay† Washington Capitals
4 125 Cameron Berg† New York Islanders

† incoming freshman [10]

References

  1. ^ "NCAA approves blanket waiver for 2020 fall sports athletes to retain year of eligibility". CBS Sports. August 21, 2020. Retrieved January 25, 2021.
  2. ^ "DI Council grants waiver to allow transfer student-athletes to compete immediately". NCAA. December 16, 2020. Retrieved January 25, 2021.
  3. ^ "NCHC Will Begin Season in Omaha Bubble". Neutral Zone. October 16, 2020. Retrieved April 15, 2021.
  4. ^ "Bracketology: With Selection Sunday around the corner, taking one last stab at how the NCAA hockey tournament field will look". USCHO. March 18, 2021. Retrieved March 29, 2021.
  5. ^ "2020–21 Hockey Roster". Omaha Athletics. Retrieved July 3, 2018.
  6. ^ "Omaha Mavericks (Men) 2020-2021 Schedule and Results". College Hockey Stats. Retrieved December 5, 2019.
  7. ^ "Univ. of Nebraska-Omaha 2020-2021 Skater Stats". Elite Prospects. Retrieved July 16, 2020.
  8. ^ "USCHO Division I Men's Poll". USCHO.com. Retrieved November 26, 2019.
  9. ^ a b "North Dakota Paces 2020-21 NCHC All-Conference Teams". nchchockey.com. March 8, 2021. Archived from the original on April 22, 2021. Retrieved April 5, 2021.
  10. ^ "NCAA player rankings, selections in 2021 NHL Draft". USCHO.com. Retrieved July 24, 2021.