2023–24 Northern Michigan Wildcats men's ice hockey season
College ice hockey team season
The 2023–24 Northern Michigan Wildcats men's ice hockey season was the 48th season of play for the program and 26th in the CCHA . The Wildcats represented Northern Michigan University in the 2023–24 NCAA Division I men's ice hockey season , played their home games at Berry Events Center and were coached by Grant Potulny in his 7th season.
Season
Despite high hopes for a squad that was picked to finish second in the conference pre-season poll,[ 1] [ 2] hat-trick in his first college game and then scored in each of the next three as well. Unfortunately, he was bit by the injury bug against Ferris State and played just three games afterwards.
The loss of Latsch was bad enough but the team was also in desperate need for offense. Northern Michigan got a reprieve in mid-November when backup Charlie Glockner turned in a few good performances but those results were unsustainable. Halász did start playing better once he got his starting job back but the scoring never really materialized. Over the course of the season, the Wildcats recorded 40 fewer goals than they had in 2023, which equated to about 0.8 goals per game. Even with the defense improving as the season went along, that missing offense prevented the team from being able to capitalize on its chances and left NMU stuck in neutral. In the second half of the season, Northern Michigan lost just five games, however, the team was unable to break a tie on several occasions and could only manage a .500 mark in the spring semester.
The mediocre results placed the team 5th in the conference and forced them to hit the road for their playoff series with Minnesota State . The first game saw the Wildcats outshoot the Mavericks by a wide margin, particularly in the second, but the pop-gun offense could only muster a single goal and the team fell 1–2. They opened the scoring in the rematch with a shorty from André Ghantous but afterwards NMU could only watch as the Minnesota State offense poured on the offense to the tune of 6 goals. The Wildcats couldn't come close to matching that output and quietly ended their disappointing season.
After the season, Grant Potulny stepped down as head coach to continue his career in the professional ranks.[ 3]
Departures
Recruiting
Player
Position
Nationality
Age
Notes
Mitchel Deelstra
Forward
Canada 24
Wallace, ON ; transfer from Ferris State
Viking Gustafsson Nyberg
Defenseman
Sweden 20
Stockholm, SWE
Travis Hensrud
Forward
Canada 21
Thunder Bay, ON
Matvei Kabanov
Forward
Russia 20
Togliatti, RUS
Kevin Marx Norén
Forward
Sweden 21
Knivsta, SWE
Michael Mesic
Forward
United States 19
Plymouth, MI
Jack Perbix
Defenseman\Forward
United States 22
Elk River, MN ; graduate transfer from Western Michigan ; selected 116th overall in 2018
Brendan Poshak
Forward
United States 21
Green Bay, WI
Grant Slukynsky
Forward
United States 21
Edina, MN
Carsen Stokes
Goaltender
United States 21
Prior Lake, MN
Jeppe Urup
Defenseman
Denmark 24
Odense, DEN ; graduate transfer from Sacred Heart
Roster
As of September 18, 2023.[ 4]
No. S/P/C
Player
Class
Pos
Height
Weight
DoB
Hometown
Previous team
NHL rights
1
Charlie Glockner Junior
G 6' 3" (1.91 m)
181 lb (82 kg)
2000-06-27
Minnetonka, Minnesota Waterloo (USHL —
4
Michael Van Unen Graduate
D 6' 1" (1.85 m)
190 lb (86 kg)
1999-02-26
Kamloops, British Columbia Merritt (BCHL —
5
Colby Enns Senior (RS )
D 6' 2" (1.88 m)
201 lb (91 kg)
1999-09-16
Minot, North Dakota Lincoln (USHL —
6
Kevin Marx-Norén Freshman
F 6' 1" (1.85 m)
190 lb (86 kg)
2002-07-15
Knivsta, Sweden Minnesota (NAHL —
7
Brendan Poshak Freshman
F 5' 8" (1.73 m)
170 lb (77 kg)
2002-07-13
Green Bay, Wisconsin Brooks (AJHL —
8
Artem Shlaine C Senior
F 6' 1" (1.85 m)
190 lb (86 kg)
2002-03-07
Moscow, Russia UConn (HEA NJD 2020
9
Josh Zinger Sophomore
D 5' 11" (1.8 m)
185 lb (84 kg)
2001-08-05
Red Deer, Alberta Brooks (AJHL —
10
Aiden Gallacher C Senior
D 6' 1" (1.85 m)
205 lb (93 kg)
2000-03-20
Rochester Hills, Michigan Michigan State (Big Ten —
11
André Ghantous C Graduate
F 5' 9" (1.75 m)
185 lb (84 kg)
1998-12-07
Glendale, California Penticton (BCHL —
12
Jack Perbix Graduate
F 6' 1" (1.85 m)
185 lb (84 kg)
2000-09-13
Elk River, Minnesota Western Michigan (NCHC ANA 2018
13
Mikey Colella Senior
F 5' 7" (1.7 m)
155 lb (70 kg)
1999-06-12
Wenonah, New Jersey Trail (BCHL —
14
Tyrell Boucher Senior
D 6' 1" (1.85 m)
185 lb (84 kg)
1999-06-03
Nampa, Alberta Cowichan Valley (BCHL —
15
Rylan Van Unen Senior
F 6' 1" (1.85 m)
190 lb (86 kg)
1999-02-26
Kamloops, British Columbia Merritt (BCHL —
16
Kristóf Papp Senior
F 5' 11" (1.8 m)
176 lb (80 kg)
2001-06-27
Budapest, Hungary Michigan State (Big Ten —
17
Luke Gramer Sophomore
D 5' 9" (1.75 m)
180 lb (82 kg)
2002-07-02
Moorhead, Minnesota Fargo (USHL —
18
Michael Mesic Freshman
F 5' 9" (1.75 m)
180 lb (82 kg)
2004-08-15
Plymouth, Michigan Lincoln (USHL —
19
Grant Slukynsky Freshman
F 6' 1" (1.85 m)
200 lb (91 kg)
2002-03-12
Edina, Minnesota Sioux City (USHL —
20
Mitch Deelstra Senior
F 6' 0" (1.83 m)
191 lb (87 kg)
1999-07-15
Wallace, Ontario Ferris State (CCHA —
21
Connor Eddy Sophomore
F 6' 1" (1.85 m)
200 lb (91 kg)
2002-04-18
Victoria, British Columbia Victoria (BCHL —
22
Tanner Latsch Freshman (RS )
F 6' 2" (1.88 m)
190 lb (86 kg)
2002-01-02
Muskegon, Michigan Des Moines (USHL —
23
Jakob Peterson Sophomore (RS )
D 6' 3" (1.91 m)
172 lb (78 kg)
2002-04-18
Marquette, Michigan Amarillo (NAHL —
24
Isack Bandu Sophomore
D 6' 2" (1.88 m)
195 lb (88 kg)
2001-05-03
Montreal, Quebec Victoria (BCHL —
25
Jeppe Urup Graduate
D 6' 2" (1.88 m)
196 lb (89 kg)
1999-03-14
Odense, Denmark Sacred Heart (AHA —
26
Travis Hensrud Freshman
F 5' 11" (1.8 m)
185 lb (84 kg)
2002-05-02
Thunder Bay, Ontario Steinbach (MJHL —
27
Zach Michaelis Sophomore
F 6' 1" (1.85 m)
203 lb (92 kg)
2002-05-30
Elk River, Minnesota Trail (BCHL —
28
Viking Gustafsson Nyberg Freshman
D 6' 6" (1.98 m)
205 lb (93 kg)
2003-09-21
Stockholm, Sweden Leksands IF J20 (J20 Nationell —
29
Reilly Funk Sophomore (RS )
F 6' 3" (1.91 m)
194 lb (88 kg)
2000-12-23
Portage, Manitoba Youngstown (USHL —
30
Béni Halász Sophomore
G 5' 11" (1.8 m)
184 lb (83 kg)
2001-08-13
Budapest, Hungary New Mexico (NAHL —
32
Carsen Stokes Freshman
G 5' 10" (1.78 m)
170 lb (77 kg)
2002-02-13
Prior Lake, Minnesota New Mexico (NAHL —
33
Matvei Kabanov Freshman
F 5' 11" (1.8 m)
160 lb (73 kg)
2003-01-15
Togliatti, Russia Amurskie (MHL —
Standings
Conference record
Overall record
GP
W
L
T
OTW
OTL
SW
PTS
GF
GA
GP
W
L
T
GF
GA
Bemidji State †24
15
7
2
2
1
2
48 82
64
38
20
16
2
117
111
St. Thomas 24
12
11
1
0
2
0
39 68
62
37
15
20
2
97
105
#19 Michigan Tech *
24
12
10
2
1
2
0
39 63
54
40
19
15
6
109
102
Minnesota State 24
12
10
2
2
1
1
38 73
62
37
18
15
4
111
96
Northern Michigan 24
10
10
4
1
1
2
36 57
67
34
12
16
6
83
105
Bowling Green 24
11
12
1
1
1
1
35 60
69
36
13
22
1
86
116
Lake Superior State 24
11
12
1
2
2
0
34 79
73
38
17
20
1
114
113
Ferris State 24
6
17
1
3
2
1
19 49
80
36
10
24
2
83
125
Augustana ^0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0 0
0
34
12
18
4
90
105
Championship : March 22, 2024† indicates conference regular season champion (MacNaughton Cup ) * indicates conference tournament champion (Mason Cup ) ^ Augustana is playing a transition schedule of 16 games against conference opponents that are not counted in the standings Rankings: USCHO.com Top 20 Poll
Schedule and results
Date
Time
Opponent#
Rank#
Site
TV
Decision
Result
Attendance
Record
Regular Season
October 13
8:07 pm
at #17 Minnesota Duluth *
AMSOIL Arena • Duluth, Minnesota
Halász
T 5–5 OT
5,947
0–0–1
October 14
8:07 pm
at #17 Minnesota Duluth *
AMSOIL Arena • Duluth, Minnesota
Glockner
L 5–8 6,497
0–1–1
October 20
9:00 pm
at #18 Arizona State *
Mullett Arena • Tempe, Arizona
Halász
L 2–3 4,495
0–2–1
October 21
9:00 pm
at #18 Arizona State *
Mullett Arena • Tempe, Arizona
Halász
L 1–5 4,357
0–3–1
October 27
7:07 pm
Ferris State
Berry Events Center • Marquette, Michigan FloHockey
Halász
L 1–2 OT
4,040
0–4–1 (0–1–0)
October 28
6:07 pm
Ferris State
Berry Events Center • Marquette, Michigan FloHockey
Halász
W 4–1 4,135
1–4–1 (1–1–0)
November 3
8:07 pm
at St. Thomas
St. Thomas Ice Arena • Mendota Heights, Minnesota FloHockey
Halász
L 2–4 614
1–5–1 (1–2–0)
November 4
7:07 pm
at St. Thomas
St. Thomas Ice Arena • Mendota Heights, Minnesota FloHockey
Halász
L 1–6 922
1–6–1 (1–3–0)
November 10
7:07 pm
Lake Superior State
Berry Events Center • Marquette, Michigan FloHockey
Halász
W 6–4 3,239
2–6–1 (2–3–0)
November 11
6:07 pm
Lake Superior State
Berry Events Center • Marquette, Michigan FloHockey
Glockner
W 4–3 OT
3,774
3–6–1 (3–3–0)
November 17
7:07 pm
Alaska *
Berry Events Center • Marquette, Michigan FloHockey
Glockner
W 3–1 2,303
4–6–1
November 18
6:07 pm
Alaska *
Berry Events Center • Marquette, Michigan FloHockey
Glockner
W 3–1 2,381
5–6–1
November 24
7:07 pm
at Bowling Green
Slater Family Ice Arena • Bowling Green, Ohio FloHockey
Glockner
L 2–6 2,610
5–7–1 (3–4–0)
November 25
7:07 pm
at Bowling Green
Slater Family Ice Arena • Bowling Green, Ohio FloHockey
Halász
W 2–0 1,340
6–7–1 (4–4–0)
December 1
7:07 pm
Augustana *
Berry Events Center • Marquette, Michigan FloHockey
Halász
T 2–2 OT
2,859
6–7–2
December 2
6:07 pm
Augustana *
Berry Events Center • Marquette, Michigan FloHockey
Glockner
L 3–5 2,911
6–8–2
December 8
7:07 pm
at Michigan Tech
MacInnes Student Ice Arena • Houghton, Michigan (Rivalry )FloHockey
Halász
L 2–4 3,649
6–9–2 (4–5–0)
December 9
6:07 pm
Michigan Tech
Berry Events Center • Marquette, Michigan (Rivalry )FloHockey
Halász
W 3–1 —
7–9–2 (5–5–0)
January 6
6:07 pm
Michigan Tech *
Berry Events Center • Marquette, Michigan (Rivalry , Exhibition)FloHockey
Halász
W 7–2 3,911
January 12
7:07 pm
at Lake Superior State
Taffy Abel Arena • Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan FloHockey
Halász
L 1–5 995
7–10–2 (5–6–0)
January 13
6:07 pm
at Lake Superior State
Taffy Abel Arena • Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan FloHockey
Glockner
L 2–5 877
7–11–2 (5–7–0)
January 19
7:07 pm
St. Thomas
Berry Events Center • Marquette, Michigan FloHockey
Halász
W 3–2 2,562
8–11–2 (6–7–0)
January 20
6:07 pm
St. Thomas
Berry Events Center • Marquette, Michigan FloHockey
Halász
L 1–3 —
8–12–2 (6–8–0)
January 26
8:07 pm
at Minnesota State
Mayo Clinic Health System Event Center • Mankato, Minnesota FloHockey
Halász
T 2–2 SOW
4,667
8–12–3 (6–8–1)
January 27
7:07 pm
at Minnesota State
Mayo Clinic Health System Event Center • Mankato, Minnesota FloHockey
Halász
L 0–4 4,981
8–13–3 (6–9–1)
February 2
7:07 pm
Michigan Tech
Berry Events Center • Marquette, Michigan (Rivalry )FloHockey
Halász
W 4–1 4,260
9–13–3 (7–9–1)
February 3
6:07 pm
at Michigan Tech
MacInnes Student Ice Arena • Houghton, Michigan (Rivalry )FloHockey
Halász
T 3–3 SOW
3,730
9–13–4 (7–9–2)
February 9
7:07 pm
Bemidji State
Berry Events Center • Marquette, Michigan FloHockey
Halász
L 2–4 2,645
9–14–4 (7–10–2)
February 10
6:07 pm
Bemidji State
Berry Events Center • Marquette, Michigan FloHockey
Halász
T 3–3 SOL
3,011
9–14–5 (7–10–3)
February 23
7:07 pm
at Ferris State
Ewigleben Arena • Big Rapids, Michigan FloHockey
Halász
W 3–2 1,950
10–14–5 (8–10–3)
February 24
6:07 pm
at Ferris State
Ewigleben Arena • Big Rapids, Michigan FloHockey
Halász
T 1–1 SOL
2,389
10–14–6 (8–10–4)
March 1
7:07 pm
Bowling Green
Berry Events Center • Marquette, Michigan FloHockey
Halász
W 4–1 2,565
11–14–6 (9–10–4)
March 2
6:07 pm
Bowling Green
Berry Events Center • Marquette, Michigan FloHockey
Halász
W 1–0 3,007
12–14–6 (10–10–4)
CCHA Tournament
March 8
8:07 pm
at Minnesota State *
Mayo Clinic Health System Event Center • Mankato, Minnesota (Quarterfinal Game 1)FloHockey
Halász
L 1–2 3,084
12–15–6
March 9
7:07 pm
at Minnesota State *
Mayo Clinic Health System Event Center • Mankato, Minnesota (Quarterfinal Game 2)FloHockey
Halász
L 1–6 3,494
12–16–6
*Non-conference game. # Rankings from USCHO.com Poll . All times are in Eastern Time . [ 5]
Scoring statistics
Name
Position
Games
Goals
Assists
Points
PIM
André Ghantous RW 34
9
23
32 48
Artem Shlaine C 27
10
13
23 23
Josh Zinger D 34
3
17
20 20
Kristóf Papp C 34
6
13
19 6
Kevin Marx-Norén LW /RW 30
4
13
17 14
Connor Eddy C 34
7
6
13 40
Michael Colella F 34
7
5
12 6
Rylan Van Unen F 33
4
6
10 55
Grant Slukynsky C 34
6
3
9 6
Michael Mesic C 26
4
5
9 8
Matvei Kabanov LW 26
4
5
9 4
Tanner Latsch C 8
7
1
8 6
Aiden Gallacher D 34
3
5
8 25
Isack Bandu D 26
1
4
5 45
Reilly Funk C 17
2
2
4 10
Mike Van Unen D 17
1
3
4 8
Colby Enns D 28
1
3
4 4
Jack Perbix D /RW 31
1
3
4 35
Viking Gustafsson Nyberg C 33
2
1
3 24
Mitch Deelstra LW 25
1
2
3 8
Zach Michaelis C 9
0
3
3 2
Jakob Peterson D 18
0
1
1 2
Tyrell Boucher D 21
0
1
1 4
Brendan Poshak F 7
0
0
0 0
Jeppe Urup D 8
0
0
0 2
Charlie Glockner G 9
0
0
0 0
Béni Halász G 28
0
0
0 15
Total
83
138
221
438
[ 6]
Goaltending statistics
Name
Games
Minutes
Wins
Losses
Ties
Goals Against
Saves
Shut Outs
SV % GAA
Béni Halász 28
1650:30
9
12
6
78
707
2
.901
2.84
Charlie Glockner 10
405:12
3
4
0
22
169
0
.885
3.26
Empty Net
-
19:57
-
-
-
5
-
-
-
-
Total
34
2075:39
12
16
6
105
876
2
.893
3.04
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
22
23
24
25
26 (Final)
USCHO.com
NR
NR
NR
NR
NR
NR
NR
NR
NR
NR
NR
–
NR
NR
NR
NR
NR
NR
NR
NR
NR
NR
NR
NR
NR
–
NR
USA Hockey
NR
NR
NR
NR
NR
NR
NR
NR
NR
NR
NR
NR
–
NR
NR
NR
NR
NR
NR
NR
NR
NR
NR
NR
NR
NR
NR
Note: USCHO did not release a poll in weeks 11 and 25. [ 7] Note: USA Hockey did not release a poll in week 12.
Awards and honors
† incoming freshman
[ 9]
References
^ "Preseason Coaches' Poll and Awards Announced" . CCHA . September 18, 2023. Retrieved April 10, 2024 .^ "Northern Michigan University hockey player Tanner Latsch continues to collect CCHA hardware" . The Mining Journal . October 24, 2023. Retrieved April 10, 2024 .^ "Grant Potulny Named Head Coach of the AHL's Hartford Wolf Pack" . New York Rangers . June 27, 2024. Retrieved September 13, 2024 .^ "2023-24 Men's Ice Hockey Roster" . Northern Michigan Wildcats . Retrieved September 18, 2023 .^ "2023-24 Men's Ice Hockey Schedule" . Northern Michigan Wildcats . Retrieved August 31, 2023 .^ "Northern Michigan Univ. 2023-2024 Skater Stats" . Elite Prospects . Retrieved March 2, 2020 .^ "USCHO Division I Men's Poll" . USCHO.com . Retrieved November 26, 2019 .^ "Six Earn All-CCHA Second Team" . CCHA.com . March 11, 2024. Retrieved March 12, 2024 .^ "NCAA player rankings, selections in 2024 NHL Draft" . USCHO.com . Retrieved June 29, 2024 .
Playing venues Head coaches Seasons Conference affiliations
CCHA (1977–1984, 1997–2013, 2021–present)WCHA (1984–1997, 2013–2021) Rivalries Culture & lore All-time leaders National championships Frozen Four appearances NCAA Tournament appearances Conference Tournament titles
