DULUTH, Minn. (csssaints.com) – The St. Scholastica men's hockey team begins its 2015-16 season at home this weekend when it hosts University of Wisconsin-River Falls on Friday and University of Wisconsin-Stout on Saturday.
 
Where:
Mars Lakeview Arena – Duluth, Minn.
 
When:
Friday vs. UW-River Falls – 7 p.m.
Saturday vs. UW-Stout – 4 p.m.
 
Live Video/Stats: http://www.csssaints.com/ssn
 
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St. Scholastica Saints
Roster | 2014-15 Stats
2014-15 Record: 12-13-3, 8-8-2 NCHA
Northern Collegiate Hockey Association: Standings | Stats
 
Key Returners:
-Dylan Nowakowski (Calgary, Alberta/Centennial HS (Brooks-AJHL) ) – Forward – Led the team with 12 goals, 18 assists and 30 points last season and was named the team's offensive player of the year.
-Tyler Bruggeman (North Mankato, Minn./Mankato West HS (Austin-NAHL) ) – Goaltender– Was an All-NCHA selection in 2014 and finished fourth in the conference with 537 saves last season.
-Derek Sutliffe (Las Vegas, Nev./Odyssey Charter School (Langley Rivermen-BCHL) ) – Forward – Finished third on the team with 11 goals last season and was named the team's rookie of the year in 2014.
-Justin Krabben (Rocky Mountain House, Alberta/Hunting Hills HS (Canmore-AJHL) ) – Defenseman – Has been an assistant the captain the past two seasons and was named the team's defensive player of the year in 2014.
 
Key Losses:
-Dave Williams (Okotoks, Alberta/Athol Murray College of Notre Dame (Waywayseecappo-MJHL) ) – Forward – Was key on the penalty-kill for the Saints and also tied for the team lead with 18 assists last season.
-Derek Hills (Campbell River, British Columbia/Timberline Secondary (Bowling Green State) ) – Forward – Came alive for the Saints in the second half of last season once he was switched back to forward and scored the game-winner in the mini-game vs. Lake Forest.
-Luke Simpson (Canmore, Alberta/Athol Murray College of Notre Dame (Canmore-AJHL) ) – Forward – Tied for the team lead with 12 goals and finished second on the team with 26 points … Was named the team's rookie of the year.
 
Additions: Of the six new Saints on the roster, two of which are West Region Division III transfer defenseman … Connor Faupel (Rochester, Minn./Rochester Century HS (UW-Superior)) heads across the bridge from UW-Superior where he played in 37 games the past two seasons … The other transfer comes within the conference as Mark Whiteley (Surrey, British Columbia/Holy Cross HS (Marian University)) arrives from Marian University (Wis.) … Whiteley was named to the NCHA All-Freshmen Team last season after scoring four goals and added eight assists in 26 games.
 
Can the Trend Continue?: The Saints have alternated winning and losing seasons the past six years … CSS finished a game below .500 in 2014-15.
 
Did You Know: The Saints have advanced to the NCHA Postseason Semifinals eight times in the last nine seasons.
 
Coach Wick: After being away from the team in the second half of last season due to medical issues, head coach Mark Wick returns to the bench for his 12^th season … The two-time NCHA Coach of the Year, winningest coach in program history is three wins shy of 150 at St. Scholastica.
 
New Conference Layout: New this season in the NCHA is a divisional format … The Saints are part of the North Division, which consists of St. Norbert College, Northland College, Finlandia University (Mich.), Lawrence University (Wis.) and Milwaukee School of Engineering … The other five schools are in the South Division … The top three teams from each division will make the NCHA Postseason … The reasons divisions were put into place was because the NCHA Postseason playoffs have been trimmed down to two weekends, so the second and third place teams in each division will play their single-elimination game on a Wednesday with the winner going to either divisional winner based on record … Thus travel was a concern based on the geographical landscape of the league, if a road team won on Wednesday and had to hit the road again on Saturday.
 
Fore!: Nowakowski, Krabben and Brandon Parrone (Peoria, Ariz./Brophy College Prep (Melfort-SJHL) ) all took part on the inaugural St. Scholastica men's golf team this fall … Krabben had the best scoring average of the three and competed in all seven events.

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Top 5 Games to Watch
10/30 – vs. UW-River Falls
The Falcons won 20 games last season and won the WIAC Tournament title.
11/13-14 – at Lake Forest
The Saints eliminated the Foresters in the NCHA quarterfinals last season by way of the mini-game.
12/12 – at Saint John's
The Saints defeated the then No. 14-ranked Johnnies at Mars Lakeview Arena last season 2-1.
2/12-13 – vs. St. Norbert
The Green Knights have won four national championships since 2008.
2/19-20 – vs. Adrian
The Bulldogs won the NCHA last season and made it the NCAA semifinals … Adrian is once again the preseason favorite this season.

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NCHA Preseason Poll
1. Adrian 99 points (9 first-place votes)
2. St. Norbert 91 (2 first-place votes)
3. MSOE 76
4. College of St. Scholastica 71
5. Lake Forest 69
6. Marian 50
7. Concordia Wisconsin 47
8. Lawrence 40
9. Northland 29
10. Finlandia 22
11. Aurora 11

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Upcoming Opponents
UW-River Falls Falcons
2014-15 Record: 20-7-1, 7-5-0 WIAC
The Falcons return 20 players from last year's squad that captured the WIAC Tournament title … Of those returnees, forward Kyle Gattelaro led the team with 13 goals and 25 points last season … Also back is goaltender Tanner Milliron, who started every game last season and made a conference-best 729 saves … Both Gattelaro and Milliron were First Team All-WIAC choices last season … The Falcons had the eighth-best scoring defense in NCAA Division III last season, allowing 2.14 goals per game … River Falls also had the ninth-best power-play unit in the country with a conversion rate of 25 percent.
 
UW-Stout Blue Devils
2014-15 Record: 8-17-1, 3-9-0 WIAC
Only two seniors return on this year's Blue Devils squad as the rest of the roster features 12 juniors and 13 freshmen … The Blue Devils return 13 of their top-15 scorers and six of their top-eight scorers from last season, including junior forward Justin Moody, who led the squad with 11 goals, 12 assists and 23 points … Moody was an honorable mention All-WIAC choice last season … Stout will open at Finlandia on Friday in the U.P. of Michigan before facing the Saints Saturday afternoon.
 
Series Histories:
-UW-River Falls leads CSS 59-39-7
-UW-Stout leads CSS 23-19-5
 
Last Meetings: The Saints rallied to tie No. 13 UW-River Falls 3-3 two seasons ago in River Falls … The Saints are winless against the Falcons in the last three meetings (0-1-2) after winning four straight … CSS also faced UW-Stout two seasons ago and defeated the Blue Devils in Menomonie 4-3 … The Saints are 4-0-5 vs. UW-Stout in the last nine meetings at Mars Lakeview Arena.

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Looking Ahead: The Saints open conference play at Lake Forest College (Ill.) on November 13 and 14.