2020–21 Notre Dame Fighting Irish men's ice hockey season

2020–21 Notre Dame Fighting Irish
men's ice hockey season
NCAA Tournament, Regional semifinals
Conference4th Big Ten
Home iceCompton Family Ice Arena
Rankings
USCHO17
USA TodayNR
Record
Overall14–13–2
Conference12–10–2–1–2–2
Home5–11–2
Road9–2–1
Neutral0–0–0
Coaches and captains
Head coachJeff Jackson
Assistant coachesPaul Pooley
Andy Slaggert
Jack Ceglarski
Captain(s)Nate Clurman
Alternate captain(s)Pierce Crawford
Matt Hellickson
Colin Theisen
Notre Dame Fighting Irish men's ice hockey seasons
« 2019–20 2021–22 »

The 2020–21 Notre Dame Fighting Irish men's ice hockey season was the 61st season of play for the program and the 4th season in the Big Ten Conference. The Fighting Irish represented the University of Notre Dame and were coached by Jeff Jackson, in his 16th 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 Notre Dame'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]

Notre Dame had an up and down season, routinely following up stellar performances with disappointing efforts. The team hovered around the bottom of the top-20 for most of the season and were never more than 2 games away from a .500 record. After alternating multi-game winning streaks through January and February, Notre Dame was ranked #19 and there was belief that the Irish could make the NCAA Tournament despite being just 14–12–2.[3] A solid performance in their conference tournament would definitely improve the team's chances, and with the Fighting Irish hosting the entire tournament their odds were even better.[4] Unfortunately, the team laid an egg in the opening game against Penn State and lost 3–6.

Notre Dame could only watch and hope but when St. Lawrence won the ECAC Tournament it appeared that the door had shut on Notre Dame's season. In less than 24 hours everything changed; St. Lawrence's head coach tested positive for COVID-19 the following day and the team was forced to withdraw from the national tournament.[5] The ECAC automatic bid was given to Quinnipiac (who were likely to make the tournament anyway), opening up one more spot in the bracket. The final open spot came down essentially to how schools performed against the best teams in their conference; Notre Dame splitting their season series against Michigan and Minnesota gave them the edge and the Fighting Irish received the final at-large bid.[6]

While the team's selection was not without controversy, the Fighting Irish lost the ability to prove they were the right choice when members of the team tested positive for COVID-19.[7] Because their withdrawal happened two days before the game had been scheduled, there was no opportunity for another team to be installed as a replacement and the match was declared a 'no contest'.

Brady Bjork, Ryan Carmichael and Christian DiCesare sat out the season.

Departures

Player Position Nationality Cause
Cal Burke Forward  United States Graduation (signed with Colorado Eagles)
Tory Dello Defenseman  United States Graduation (signed with Grand Rapids Griffins)
Mike O'Leary Forward  Canada Graduation (signed with Hartford Wolf Pack)
Jack MacNab Forward  United States Transfer to Holy Cross
Cale Morris Goaltender  United States Graduation (signed with Rockford IceHogs)
Cam Morrison Forward  Canada Graduation (signed with Chicago Blackhawks)

Recruiting

Player Position Nationality Age Notes
Brady Bjork Forward  United States 21 Mequon, WI
Jake Boltmann Defenseman  United States 18 Edina, MN; selected 80th overall in 2020
Zach Plucinski Defenseman  United States 20 Eagle River, AK
Ryder Rolston Forward  United States 18 Birmingham, MI; selected 139th overall in 2020
Grant Silianoff Forward  United States 19 Edina, MN
Landon Slaggert Forward  United States 18 South Bend, IN; selected 79th overall in 2020

Roster

As of January 3, 2021.[8]

No. S/P/C Player Class Pos Height Weight DoB Hometown Previous team NHL rights
1 Michigan Dylan St. Cyr Senior G 5' 9" (1.75 m) 170 lb (77 kg) 1999-05-23 Northville, Michigan USNTDP (USHL) —
2 Colorado Nate Clurman (C) Junior D 6' 2" (1.88 m) 200 lb (91 kg) 1998-05-08 Boulder, Colorado Langley (BCHL) COL, 161st overall 2016
3 Connecticut Ryan Carmichael Sophomore D 6' 2" (1.88 m) 191 lb (87 kg) 1999-03-03 Greenwich, Connecticut Lincoln Stars (USHL) —
4 Minnesota Nick Leivermann Junior D 5' 11" (1.8 m) 180 lb (82 kg) 1998-09-14 Eden Prairie, Minnesota Penticton (BCHL) COL, 187th overall 2017
5 Minnesota Matt Hellickson (A) Senior D 6' 1" (1.85 m) 192 lb (87 kg) 1998-03-21 Rogers, Minnesota Sioux City (USHL) NJD, 214th overall 2017
6 Minnesota Jake Boltmann Freshman D 6' 1" (1.85 m) 196 lb (89 kg) 2001-10-19 Edina, Minnesota Lincoln (USHL) CGY, 80th overall 2020
8 Minnesota Matt Steeves Senior F 6' 0" (1.83 m) 193 lb (88 kg) 1997-10-04 Eden Prairie, Minnesota Muskegon (USHL) —
9 Minnesota Grant Silianoff Freshman F 5' 11" (1.8 m) 167 lb (76 kg) 2001-01-04 Edina, Minnesota Cedar Rapids (USHL) —
10 Massachusetts Cam Burke Junior F 5' 9" (1.75 m) 175 lb (79 kg) 1999-01-08 Boxborough, Massachusetts Sioux Falls (USHL) —
12 Michigan Ryder Rolston Freshman F 6' 2" (1.88 m) 175 lb (79 kg) 2001-10-31 Birmingham, Michigan Waterloo (USHL) COL, 139th overall 2020
13 Michigan Colin Theisen (A) Senior F 6' 0" (1.83 m) 181 lb (82 kg) 1997-04-24 Monroe, Michigan Dubuque (USHL) —
14 British Columbia Jesse Lansdell Sophomore F 5' 11" (1.8 m) 181 lb (82 kg) 1998-08-05 Surrey, British Columbia Vernon (BCHL) —
15 Minnesota Michael Graham Junior F 6' 2" (1.88 m) 195 lb (88 kg) 1997-11-27 Eden Prairie, Minnesota Muskegon (USHL) —
16 Minnesota Alex Steeves Junior F 5' 10" (1.78 m) 187 lb (85 kg) 1999-12-10 Eden Prairie, Minnesota Dubuque (USHL) —
17 Illinois Pierce Crawford (A) Senior F 5' 9" (1.75 m) 175 lb (79 kg) 1997-06-23 Park Ridge, Illinois Youngstown (USHL) —
18 Indiana Graham Slaggert Junior F 6' 0" (1.83 m) 185 lb (84 kg) 1999-04-06 South Bend, Indiana Cedar Rapids (USHL) —
19 Indiana Landon Slaggert Freshman F 6' 0" (1.83 m) 185 lb (84 kg) 2002-06-25 South Bend, Indiana USNTDP (USHL) CHI, 79th overall 2020
20 Illinois Jake Pivonka Junior F 6' 0" (1.83 m) 198 lb (90 kg) 2000-02-28 Naperville, Illinois USNTDP (USHL) NYI, 103rd overall 2018
21 Michigan Max Ellis Sophomore F 5' 9" (1.75 m) 160 lb (73 kg) 2000-01-18 Plymouth, Michigan Muskegon (USHL) —
22 Indiana Jack MacNab Sophomore F 6' 3" (1.91 m) 197 lb (89 kg) 1998-07-03 Indianapolis, Indiana Central Illinois (USHL) —
23 Wisconsin Brady Bjork Senior F 6' 1" (1.85 m) 173 lb (78 kg) 1999-05-17 Mequon, Wisconsin St. Cloud (NAHL) —
24 Wisconsin Spencer Stastney Junior D 5' 11" (1.8 m) 187 lb (85 kg) 2000-01-04 Mequon, Wisconsin USNTDP (USHL) NSH, 131st overall 2018
25 Texas Solag Bakich Sophomore F 6' 0" (1.83 m) 189 lb (86 kg) 1998-01-08 Dallas, Texas Waterloo (USHL) —
26 Alaska Zach Plucinski Freshman D 6' 1" (1.85 m) 206 lb (93 kg) 2000-07-26 Eagle River, Alaska Omaha (USHL) —
27 Minnesota Trevor Janicke Sophomore F 5' 10" (1.78 m) 194 lb (88 kg) 2000-12-25 Maple Grove, Minnesota Central Illinois (USHL) ANA, 132nd overall 2019
28 New Jersey Christian DiCesare Sophomore D 6' 1" (1.85 m) 205 lb (93 kg) 1998-03-28 Morristown, New Jersey Omaha (USHL) —
29 Illinois Charlie Raith Junior D 5' 9" (1.75 m) 170 lb (77 kg) 1997-04-30 Winnetka, Illinois Central Illinois (USHL) —
30 Minnesota Ryan Bischel Sophomore G 6' 1" (1.85 m) 180 lb (82 kg) 1999-07-05 Medina, Minnesota Fargo (USHL) —
33 New Jersey Nick Sanford Senior G 6' 1" (1.85 m) 189 lb (86 kg) 1996-12-15 Morristown, New Jersey Boston Jr. Bruins (USPHL) —

Standings

2020–21 Big Ten ice hockey Standings
Conference record Overall record
GP W L T OTW OTL 3/SW PTS PT% GF GA GP W L T GF GA
#8 Wisconsin † 24 17 6 1 1 1 0 52 .722 92 52 31 20 10 1 118 80
#7 Minnesota * 22 16 6 0 0 0 0 48 .727 69 44 31 24 7 0 117 64
#9 Michigan 20 11 9 0 1 0 0 32 .550 69 45 26 15 10 1 91 51
#17 Notre Dame 24 12 10 2 1 2 2 41 .542 65 53 29 14 13 2 84 78
Penn State 18 7 11 0 2 1 0 20 .389 48 68 22 10 12 0 65 81
Ohio State 22 6 16 0 0 2 0 20 .273 39 82 27 7 19 1 53 101
Michigan State 22 5 16 1 2 0 0 15 .250 32 70 27 7 18 2 40 77
Championship: March 16, 2021
† indicates conference regular season champion
* indicates conference tournament champion
Rankings: USCHO.com Top 20 Poll

Schedule and Results

Date Time Opponent# Rank# Site TV Decision Result Attendance Record
Regular season
November 13 7:06 PM vs. Wisconsin #20 Compton Family Ice Arena • Notre Dame, Indiana NBCSN St. Cyr L 0–2  0 0–1–0 (0–1–0)
November 14 7:06 PM vs. Wisconsin #20 Compton Family Ice Arena • Notre Dame, Indiana NHL Network St. Cyr L 3–5  0 0–2–0 (0–2–0)
November 27 7:05 PM at #4 Michigan Yost Ice Arena • Ann Arbor, Michigan   Bischel W 3–2  0 1–2–0 (1–2–0)
November 28 7:04 PM at #4 Michigan Yost Ice Arena • Ann Arbor, Michigan   Bischel W 2–1  0 2–2–0 (2–2–0)
December 3 7:06 PM vs. #20 Arizona State* #16 Compton Family Ice Arena • Notre Dame, Indiana NHL Network Bischel L 3–6  0 2–3–0
December 4 7:06 PM vs. #20 Arizona State* #16 Compton Family Ice Arena • Notre Dame, Indiana NBCSN St. Cyr W 5–4  0 3–3–0
December 12 7:06 PM vs. #14 Ohio State #15 Compton Family Ice Arena • Notre Dame, Indiana NBCSN St. Cyr W 3–0  0 4–3–0 (3–2–0)
December 13 5:06 PM vs. #14 Ohio State #15 Compton Family Ice Arena • Notre Dame, Indiana NBCSN St. Cyr W 2–3  0 4–4–0 (3–3–0)
December 19 6:36 PM vs. Michigan State #16 Compton Family Ice Arena • Notre Dame, Indiana NBCSN Bischel T 1–1 SOW 0 4–4–1 (3–3–1)
December 20 5:06 PM vs. Michigan State #16 Compton Family Ice Arena • Notre Dame, Indiana NBC Sports Chi Bischel L 3–4 OT 0 4–5–1 (3–4–1)
January 9 6:36 PM vs. Arizona State* #18 Compton Family Ice Arena • Notre Dame, Indiana   St. Cyr W 5–4  74 5–5–1
January 10 5:06 PM vs. Arizona State* #18 Compton Family Ice Arena • Notre Dame, Indiana   Bischel L 3–5  0 5–6–1
January 15 7:05 PM at #1 Minnesota 3M Arena at Mariucci • Minneapolis, Minnesota   Bischel W 3–2  116 6–6–1 (4–4–1)
January 16 5:00 PM at #1 Minnesota 3M Arena at Mariucci • Minneapolis, Minnesota   St. Cyr W 2–1  0 7–6–1 (5–4–1)
January 21 6:36 PM vs. #8 Michigan #16 Compton Family Ice Arena • Notre Dame, Indiana   St. Cyr L 1–5  136 7–7–1 (5–5–1)
January 22 6:36 PM vs. #8 Michigan #16 Compton Family Ice Arena • Notre Dame, Indiana   St. Cyr L 1–3  138 7–8–1 (5–6–1)
January 28 6:04 PM at Penn State Pegula Ice Arena • University Park, Pennsylvania   St. Cyr L 1–2 OT 175 7–9–1 (5–7–1)
January 29 6:04 PM at Penn State Pegula Ice Arena • University Park, Pennsylvania   St. Cyr W 3–2 OT 194 8–9–1 (6–7–1)
February 5 4:34 PM at Ohio State Value City Arena • Columbus, Ohio   St. Cyr W 6–1  0 9–9–1 (7–7–1)
February 6 1:34 PM at Ohio State Value City Arena • Columbus, Ohio   St. Cyr W 8–1  0 10–9–1 (8–7–1)
February 12 7:36 PM vs. #5 Minnesota Compton Family Ice Arena • Notre Dame, Indiana   St. Cyr L 0–3  79 10–10–1 (8–8–1)
February 13 5:36 PM vs. #5 Minnesota Compton Family Ice Arena • Notre Dame, Indiana   Bischel L 0–3  80 10–11–1 (8–9–1)
February 19 8:04 PM at #5 Wisconsin Kohl Center • Madison, Wisconsin   St. Cyr L 4–2  0 10–12–1 (8–10–1)
February 20 5:04 PM at #5 Wisconsin Kohl Center • Madison, Wisconsin   St. Cyr T 5–5 SOW 0 10–12–2 (8–10–2)
February 26 6:00 PM at Michigan State Munn Ice Arena • East Lansing, Michigan   St. Cyr W 2–0  103 11–12–2 (9–10–2)
February 27 3:00 PM at Michigan State Munn Ice Arena • East Lansing, Michigan   St. Cyr W 2–0  103 12–12–2 (10–10–2)
March 5 7:51 PM vs. Penn State Compton Family Ice Arena • Notre Dame, Indiana   St. Cyr W 5–2  104 13–12–2 (11–10–2)
March 6 5:36 PM vs. Penn State Compton Family Ice Arena • Notre Dame, Indiana   St. Cyr W 7–1  113 14–12–2 (12–10–2)
Big Ten Tournament
March 14 12:05 PM vs. Penn State* #19 Compton Family Ice Arena • Notre Dame, Indiana (Big Ten Quarterfinal) BTN Bischel L 3–6  166 14–13–2
NCAA Tournament
March 27 1:00 PM vs. #2 Boston College #18 Times Union Center • Albany, New York (NCAA Northeast Regional semifinal) ESPNews Cancelled due to COVID-19 protocols[9]
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from USCHO.com Poll. All times are in Eastern Time.

[10]

Scoring statistics

Name Position Games Goals Assists Points PIM
Alex Steeves F 29 15 17 32 8
Graham Slaggert C 27 7 18 25 10
Landon Slaggert C/LW 25 8 14 22 10
Nick Leivermann D 29 5 12 17 6
Max Ellis RW 24 5 11 16 8
Colin Theisen LW 27 8 6 14 49
Spencer Stastney D 29 5 7 12 6
Jesse Lansdell F 28 4 7 11 10
Trevor Janicke C/RW 29 4 6 10 4
Michael Graham D 18 2 8 10 8
Jake Pivonka C 29 2 7 9 8
Grant Silianoff RW 28 4 4 8 2
Matt Hellickson D 29 1 7 8 10
Nate Clurman D 27 4 3 7 31
Solag Bakich F 28 4 3 7 14
Ryder Rolston C/W 28 1 5 6 31
Pierce Crawford F 27 1 3 4 2
Cam Burke C 14 1 2 3 2
Matt Steeves F 12 2 0 2 2
Zach Plucinski D 20 1 0 1 10
Charlie Raith D 25 0 1 1 4
Nick Sanford G 2 0 0 0 0
Ryan Bischel G 9 0 0 0 0
Jake Boltmann D 19 0 0 0 10
Dylan St. Cyr G 22 0 0 0 0
Bench - 29 - - - 4
Total 84 141 225 249

[11]

Goaltending statistics

Name Games Minutes Wins Losses Ties Goals Against Saves Shut Outs SV % GAA
Nick Sanford 2 8:51 0 0 0 0 2 0 1.000 0.00
Dylan St. Cyr 22 1254 11 9 1 51 597 3 .921 2.44
Ryan Bischel 9 480 3 4 1 23 186 0 .890 2.87
Empty Net - 14 - - - 4 - - - -
Total 29 1758 14 13 2 78 785 3 .910 2.66

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 20 NR NR 16 15 16 18 18 18 NR 16 NR NR NR NR NR NR 19 20 18 - 17
USA Today NR NR NR 13 15 NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR

USCHO did not release a poll in week 20.[12]

Awards and honors

Player Award Ref
Spencer Stastney Big Ten Second Team [13]
Alex Steeves

Players drafted into the NHL

2021 NHL Entry Draft

Round Pick Player NHL team
3 66 Sasha Pastujov† Anaheim Ducks
7 195 Justin Janicke† Seattle Kraken

† incoming freshman [14]

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. ^ "Bracketology: What teams are in the NCAA tournament, what teams are not with men's college hockey playoffs starting". USCHO. March 10, 2021. Retrieved April 3, 2021.
  4. ^ "Notre Dame Set To Host 2021 Big Ten Hockey Tournament". Notre Dame Fighting Irish. January 26, 2021. Retrieved April 3, 2021.
  5. ^ "St. Lawrence withdraws from NCAA men's hockey tournament after coach tests positive for COVID-19". ESPN. March 21, 2021. Retrieved March 29, 2021.
  6. ^ "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.
  7. ^ "Notre Dame removed from Albany regional after positive COVID tests; Boston College advances to regional final to face BU-SCSU winner". USCHO. March 25, 2021. Retrieved March 29, 2021.
  8. ^ "2020-21 Hockey Roster". Notre Dame Fighting Irish. Retrieved January 3, 2021.
  9. ^ "Notre Dame and Michigan are removed from the NCAA hockey tournament because of positive COVID-19 tests in their programs". Chicago Tribune. March 26, 2021. Retrieved April 3, 2021.
  10. ^ "Notre Dame Fighting Irish (Men) 2020-2021 Schedule and Results". College Hockey Stats. Retrieved December 5, 2019.
  11. ^ "Univ. of Notre Dame 2020-2021 Skater Stats". Elite Prospects. Retrieved March 7, 2020.
  12. ^ "USCHO Division I Men's Poll". USCHO.com. Retrieved November 26, 2019.
  13. ^ "Hockey Postseason Honors Announced". Big Ten. March 16, 2021. Archived from the original on March 16, 2021. Retrieved April 1, 2021.
  14. ^ "NCAA player rankings, selections in 2021 NHL Draft". USCHO.com. Retrieved July 24, 2021.