The Teams
Saint Mary's Cardinals (0-0-0, 0-0-0)
vs.
Concordia Cobbers (0-0-0, 0-0-0)
The Vitals
Friday, Nov. 3 • SMU Ice Arena • 7:05 p.m.
A Year Ago
The Cobbers swept SMU last season, beating the Cardinals 3-2 and 5-1.
Last Action
Tonight marks the season-opener for both teams.
Conference Standings
Final 1999-2000
This and That
The Cardinals slumped to a 9-14-2 overall record a year ago, the team’s worst finish in 16 years — including an eighth-place, 4-11-1 mark in the MIAC. … Concordia, meanwhile, is coming off a second-place (13-2-1) conference run a year ago. The Cobbers won the MIAC’s four-team tournament, but were eliminated in the NCAA Division III quarterfinals by UW-Superior. … SMU returns four of its top five scorers from a year ago: Ryan Stinson (Winona, Minn.) (10 goals, 12 assists), Denny O’Connor (Roseville, Minn.) (3 goals, team-high 19 assists), Todd Hangge (Rochester, Minn.) (11 goals, 10 assists) and Matt Hangge (Rochester, Minn.) (9 goals, 12 assists).
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CARDINAL PROFILEMatt Hangge
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as Cardinals begin MIAC climb
WINONA, Minn. — When Matt Hangge (Rochester, Minn.), Dustin Noble (Spring Lake Park, Minn.), Denny O’Connor (Roseville, Minn.) and the rest of this year’s seniors arrived on the Saint Mary’s University campus four years ago as freshmen, it didn’t take long to soak in the Cardinals’ rich hockey tradition.
There were the four Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference banners — the first from the 1928-29 season, while the latest was from the 1987-88 campaign.
There were the two MIAC playoff championship banners from the 1988-89 and 1994-95 seasons.
There were the NCAA Division III playoff appearances in 1988-89 and 1994-95, and there was the streak of 12 consecutive appearances in the four-team MIAC post-season playoffs.
Reaching the conference’s post-season tournament had almost become habit-forming for the Cardinals — and Hangge, Noble, O’Connor & Co. wanted to be a part of that.
They haven’t.
Now they’re seniors with one last shot at a post-season berth — and it’s one opportunity they aren’t about to let slip through their grasp.
“The atmosphere around this team is completely different than it’s been the past couple of years,” said SMU coach Don Olson, who is entering his 23rd season as the Cardinals’ head coach. “And a lot of the credit for that has to go to the seniors, who have worked very hard — both on ice and during (preseason) dryland — to bring everyone together.
“Last year certainly left a bad taste in everyone’s mouth,” admitted Olson, whose team slumped to a 9-14-2 overall record, the team’s worst finish in 16 years. “But last year is over and we’re ready to move on — to start fresh.”
And while the Cardinals are looking at this year as a fresh start, they certainly won’t be starting from scratch.
O’Connor (3 goals, team-high 19 assists) and Ryan Stinson (10 goals, 12 assists) tied for the team lead with 22 points, while Matt Hangge (9 goals, 12 assists) and brother Todd (11 goals, 10 assists) were one point back.
Add to that a solid corps of defensemen and a pair of returning goaltenders, and there’s no question the Cardinals have the potential.
But potential can only take you so far — and in a league like the MIAC, it’s what the Cardinals do once they lace up their skates and take the ice that matters most.
“It’s not going to be an easy road — the conference, top-to-bottom, just keeps getting tougher and tougher. Every week, every game is going to be a challenge for us,” said Olson, whose team faces a very stiff challenge in its opening weekend, as the Cardinals kick off the 2000-2001 season against Concordia — an NCAA Division III quarterfinalist a year ago, and a preseason pick to win the conference this year. “But from what I’ve seen so far, there’s no question we are up to the challenge.”
And if that’s the case, the Cardinals will also be up for a little extra playing time when the post-season playoff invitations are sent out.