St. Norbert Men’s Hockey returning to national tournament

DE PERE – The St. Norbert College Men’s Hockey team is again heading back to the NCAA Division III National Tournament after a 7-4 win over Adrian College at the Cornerstone Community Center on March 8.

The Green Knights (23-5-1), ranked No. 4 in the USCHO.com Division III Poll, earned the automatic bid into the national tournament by winning the Northern Collegiate Hockey Association Harris Cup Finals over the No. 9 Bulldogs.

After Adrian took a 1-0 lead late in the opening period, St. Norbert scored three goals in the second period to take a commanding 3-1 lead.

Carter Hottmann scored on the power play three minutes into the period before the Green Knights scored a pair of goals late in the period.

Calvin Hanson and Byron Hartley scored goals 27 seconds apart for the two-goal lead.
Hartley’s tally came with one second remaining on the clock.

St. Norbert went up 5-1 on Gustav Portillo and Curtis Hammond tallies, only to see Adrian (18-10-1) make things interesting.

The Bulldogs scored three consecutive goals in an eight-minute span to pull within 5-4, but a pair of empty-netters by Hottmann and Liam Fraser sealed the game for the Green Knights.

Goalie Hunter Garvey made 18 saves in net for St. Norbert.
“I don’t think either coaching staff would have told you this game would end with a 7-4 score,” St. Norbert Coach Tim Coghlin said. “I thought it would be a one-goal game and a tight game. We had to chase the game a little bit when Adrian scored first, but I liked our resolve in the second period when we popped in three quick ones.”

After the Green Knights took the 5-1 lead, Coghlin said his squad “probably relaxed a bit too much.”

“There are a few plays we’d like to have back – we’ll take a look at the film – but Adrian is a really good team,” he said.

The victory for St. Norbert marked the third time Coghlin’s team beat the Bulldogs this season.

“Adrian has a bunch of proud seniors and has a lot of NCAA experience,” Coghlin said. “I’m really proud of my guys. It was a fun game in front of a nice crowd.”