PREVIEW: Hockey heads to New York for non-conference pair

ON THE ROAD
• Michigan Tech travels to upstate New York for a pair of non-conference games against ECAC opponents.
• The Huskies play at St. Lawrence on Friday at 7 p.m. at Appleton Arena in Canton.
• The weekend wraps up at Clarkson on Saturday at 7:30 p.m. at Cheel Arena in Potsdam.
• Tech is 0-3-2. SLU is 1-3-0 and Clarkson is 2-3-0.
• Lake Superior State is also making the trip, playing Clarkson Friday and St. Lawrence Saturday.

ON THE RADIO
• Mix 93.5 FM WKMJ broadcasts all Michigan Tech hockey games.
• Fans can listen live on the radio at Mix 93.5 FM WKMJ, online at TheMix93.com or Pasty.com, or by using your favorite radio streaming app.
• Dirk Hembroff will call all the action in his 22nd year behind the microphone.

WATCH THE GAMES
• Both games will be streamed on ESPN+.
• The ECAC also provides a stream for international viewers.

SCOUTING THE OPPONENT
• St. Lawrence is 1-3 overall. The Skating Saints defeated RIT in the season-opener and have losses to Vermont, Penn State, and Merrimack. SLU was picked fifth in the ECAC Preseason Poll and defenseman and captain Luc Salem was named to the Preseason All-ECAC Team.
• Clarkson is 2-3 overall with wins over Notre Dame and Vermont. The losses have been to Notre Dame, Penn State, and Merrimack. The Golden Knights were picked fourth in the ECAC Preseason Poll and forward Ayrton Martino and defenseman Noah Beck were honored on the Preseason All-ECAC Team.

CONNECTION
• Former Michigan Tech assistant coach Chris Brooks is an assistant coach at Clarkson.
• Coach Shawhan hired Brooks when he was named head coach before the 2017-18 season.
• The Huskies won 95 games while Brooks was with the Huskies and went to a pair of NCAA Championships while winning the 2018 WCHA Tournament Championship.

SERIES INFO
• Michigan Tech 9-3-2 overall against St. Lawrence dating back to 1960. The Huskies are 2-2-1 against the Skating Saints in Canton.
• Tech is 3-5-1 all-time versus Clarkson, dating back to 1962. The Golden Knights lead 3-2 in games in Potsdam. The teams met in the 1962 NCAA Championship which Tech won and in the 1970 NCAA Semifinal which Clarkson won.

LAST MEETING WITH SLU
• Michigan Tech swept St. Lawrence in its only home non-conference series of the season on October 28-29, 2022.
• The Huskies picked up two shutouts with a 6-0 win Friday and a 3-0 victory Saturday.
• Blake Pietila earned both shutouts, making 18 saves each night.
• Nine Huskies scored the nine goals: Logan Pietila, Tristan Ashbrook, Jake Crespi, Kash Rasmussen, Parker Saretsky, Chris Lipe, Ryland Mosley, Kyle Kukkonen, and Jack Works.

LAST MEETING WITH CLARKSON
• Michigan Tech split at Clarkson on October 29-30, 2021.
• Tech shutout Clarkson 3-0 Friday at Cheel Arena. Brian Halonen had a pair of goals and Blake Pietila made 23 saves for his fourth career shutout. The Huskies improved to 3-1 with their first win over Clarkson since 1966.
• The Golden Knights won 3-1 on Saturday. Brian Halonen scored the lone goal and Blake Pietila made 11 saves.

POINT STREAKS
• Three Games – Logan Pietila (3 goals, 1 assist)
• Three Games – Kyle Kukkonen (3 assists)
• Two Games – Max Koskipirtti (2 assists)

LAST TIME OUT
• Michigan Tech dropped a pair of games to Wisconsin last weekend at the John MacInnes Student Ice Arena.
• The Badgers won 4-2 Friday and 5-2 Saturday. Ryland Mosley, Isaac Gordon, Logan Pietila, and Tyrone Bronte scored.

HOME OPENER
• Tech fell 4-1 to Alaska Friday in the home opener and tied the Nanooks 2-2 Saturday.
• Max Koskipirtti scored Friday and Logan Pietila scored both goals Saturday. Koskipirtti and Pietila scored in the 2-1 exhibition shootout win Saturday after the tie.
• Isaac Gordon, Patriks Marcinkevics, and Chase Pietila all registered their first assists in a Michigan Tech uniform on Saturday.

SPORTSCENTER TOP 10
• Logan Pietila's shootout game-winner against Alaska was No. 8 on ESPN Sportscenter's Top 10 Plays of the night.
• Logan scored on between-the-legs goal in the 2-1 exhibition shootout win.

SEASON OPENER
• No. 10 Michigan Tech skated to a 2-2 tie at No. 17 Minnesota Duluth in the US Hockey Hall of Fame Game on October 7 at Amsoil Arena.
• The Huskies twice came back from a one-goal deficit in the season-opener and got goals from Ryland Mosley and Patriks Marcinkevics.
• Blake Pietila made a career-high 48 saves with 20 in the first, 11 in the second, 15 in the third, and two in overtime.
• It was the most saves by a Michigan Tech goalie since the 2010 GLI when Josh Robinson had 45 saves against Michigan in a 4-2 loss.

PIETILA NOTES
• Blake Pietila ranking amongst active goaltenders
    58 wins – leads nation
    108 games played – leads nation
    19 shutouts – leads nation
• Logan Pietila ranking amongst active players
    4 shorthanded goals – second nationally
    8 game-winners – third nationally
    143 games played – third nationally

COACH SHAWHAN
• Head Coach Joe Shawhan is in his seventh season behind the bench and holds a record of 119-91-22.
• He was named the 2023 CCHA Coach of the Year and is one of only two coaches to take three different Michigan Tech teams to the NCAA Tournament.
• He won his 100th career game at Bowling Green on November 5, 2022, and ranks second in wins by a Tech hockey coach.
• Shawhan's 22 wins in his first season tied for the most ever by a first-year Michigan Tech coach. Jim Nahrgang won 22 games in 1982-83.
• Shawhan was named the 22nd head coach of the Huskies on May 30, 2017, after serving as an assistant coach for Tech over the previous three seasons.

UPCOMING SCHEDULE
• November begins with the first-ever meeting against Augustana (Nov. 3-4) at home.
• The Huskies travel to Bemidji State (Nov. 10-11) to begin CCHA play.
• The first home CCHA series is against Ferris State (Nov. 17-18).

NON-CONFERENCE
• Tech tied Minnesota Duluth 2-2 in the season-opener.
• The Huskies lost and tied Alaska in the home-opening series on October 13-14.
• Tech dropped a pair of games to Wisconsin on October 20-21 at the MacInnes Student Ice Arena.
• The Black and Gold travel to New York to play St. Lawrence (Oct. 27) and Clarkson (Oct. 28).
• Tech plays Augustana for the first time ever on November 3-4.
• The 57th annual Great Lakes Invitational is on December 28-29.

GREAT LAKES INVITATIONAL
• Michigan Tech is hosting the 2023 Great Lakes Invitational at Van Andel Arena in Grand Rapids on December 28-29.
• Semifinals: Michigan Tech vs. Alaska, 3:30 p.m., Michigan State vs. Ferris State, 7 p.m.
• GLI Third Place Game, 3:30 p.m., GLI Championship Game, 7 p.m.

PRESEASON ALL-CCHA
• Senior goaltender Blake Pietila was named the Co-Preseason Player of the Year by the coaches.
• Blake Pietila was on the Preseason All-CCHA Team for both the coaches and media.
• Sophomore forward Kyle Kukkonen joined the Preseason All-CCHA Team for both coaches and media.
• Senior defenseman Jed Pietila was named to the media's Preseason All-CCHA Team.

NHL DEVELOPMENT CAMPS
• Kyle Kukkonen – Anaheim Ducks (2022, 2023)
• Blake Pietila – Dallas Stars (2023)
• Trevor Russell – New Jersey (2022, 2023)
• Max Vayrynen – Calgary Flames (2023)

NHL DRAFT PICK
• Kyle Kukkonen – Picked by the Anaheim Ducks in the 2021 NHL Draft as the 162nd overall pick in the sixth round.
• Kukkonen is the 84th Michigan Tech player to be drafted by an NHL club.

CAPTAINS
• Seniors Logan Pietila and Arvid Caderoth are the captains.
• Seniors Ryland Mosley and Blake Pietila and sophomore Kyle Kukkonen are alternate captains.

TRANSFERS
• Tyrone Bronte played at Alabama Huntsville in 2020-21. He was named to the WCHA All-Rookie Team after tallying 13 points on four goals and nine assists in 22 games.
• Matthew Campbell was a member of the NCAA National Championship Quinnipiac Bobcats during the 2022-23 season. He appeared in one game.
• Lachlan Getz played one season at Boston University, appearing in 16 games. He played against the Huskies in the Desert Hockey Classic Title game.
• Jack Works began his collegiate career with 15 games over the past two seasons with Denver. He tallied one assist with the Pioneers in his NCAA debut and was a member of the 2022 NCAA National Championship team.

PRESEASON CCHA COACHES POLL
• Tech was picked first in the Preseason CCHA Coaches' Poll, with a point edge of Northern Michigan.
• Northern Michigan, Bowling Green, and Bemidji State round out the top four.
• St. Thomas and Minnesota State tied for fifth with Ferris State and Lake Superior State rounding out the poll.

PRESEASON CCHA MEDIA POLL
• Tech was picked first in the Preseason CCHA Media Poll.
• Northern Michigan, Bowling Green, and Minnesota State were also in the top four.
• Bemidji State, St. Thomas, Ferris State, and Lake Superior State were in slots five through seven.

BLAKE PIETILA HONORS LAST SEASON
• First Team All-American
• CCHA Player of the Year
• CCHA Goaltender of the Year
• All-CCHA First Team
• Mike Richter Top 3 Finalist
• Hobey Baker Top 10 Finalist
• Desert Hockey Classic MVP
• School record shutouts in a season (10) and career (20)
• Tied for the school's all-time wins record (58)

KYLE KUKKONEN HONORS LAST SEASON
• CCHA Rookie of the Year
• Unanimous selection on CCHA All-Rookie Team
• Scored the fifth-most goals by a Michigan Tech freshman in program history and his 18 goals were the most by a Tech freshman since 1988.
• Winter Carnival MVP

ALL-CONFERENCE SELECTIONS
• Blake Pietila – CCHA Player of the Year (2022-23), CCHA Goaltender of the Year (2022-23), CCHA First Team (2022-23) & Second Team (2021-22)
• Ryland Mosley – CCHA First Team (2022-23)
• Kyle Kukkonen – CCHA Rookie of the Year (2022-23) & All-CCHA Rookie Team (2022-23)
• Arvid Caderoth – All-WCHA Rookie Team (2020-21)
• Tyrone Bronte – All-WCHA Rookie Team (2020-21) with Alabama Huntsville

HUSKIES AT NHL TRAINING CAMPS
• Trenton Bliss – Detroit Red Wings
• Pheonix Copley – LA Kings
• Brian Halonen – New Jersey Devils
• Michael Karow – Dallas Stars
• Tanner Kero – Colorado Avalanche
• Jujhar Khaira – Minnesota Wild
• Joel L'Esperance – Detroit Red Wings
• Jake Lucchini – Minnesota Wild
• Mitch Reinke – Seattle Kraken
• Matt Roy – LA Kings
• Mark Sinclair – Ottawa Senators
• Colin Swoyer – Washington Capitals

INTERNATIONAL FLAVOR
• Tech's roster boasts players from five different countries.
• United States: 16
• Canada: 6
• Finland: 4
• Sweden: 2
• Australia: 1

RETURNERS
• Tech returns 20 players from last season with 12 forwards, five defensemen, and three goaltenders.
• The Huskies return their top three scorers with Ryland Mosley (31), Kyle Kukkonen (27), and Logan Pietila (22).
• Jack Works (17) and Jed Pietila (16) also notched over 15 points.

FRESHMEN
• Tech has seven freshmen on the roster with four forwards and three defensemen.
• Forwards: Henry Bartle, Lauri Raiman, Max Koskipirtti, Isaac Gordon.
• Defensemen: Cameron Moger, Chase Pietila, Nick Williams.

PIETILA TIMES FIVE
• Logan and Blake Pietila are twins and are joined by younger brother Chase. Blake is a goaltender, Chase is a defenseman, and Logan is a forward.
• Cousin and next-door neighbor Jed Pietila is a defenseman.
• Other Pietilas to play for the Huskies were Phil Pietila (2002-05), Aaron Pietila (2009-13), Chad Pietila (2011-13), and Blake Pietila (2011-15).
• Jimmy Pietila is currently a student assistant for the Huskies.

2022-23 RECAP
• Tech made its second straight appearance in the NCAA Tournament in 2022-23 and its third under Shawhan.
• The Huskies finished 24-11-4 overall and second in the CCHA with a 15-7-4 record.
• Tech won the Desert Hockey Classic with wins over Arizona State and No. 6 Boston University and went 7-2 in its non-conference schedule.

BLUE LINE CLUB
The Michigan Tech Blue Line Club provides additional resources to the hockey program, enabling hockey student-athletes to pursue success both in the classroom and on the ice. The annual membership drive is now open.