Finishing with a record of 17-9-1, Suffolk University men’s hockey had their best record in 34 years, making it to the second round of the conference tournament before falling to Endicott College 3-1.
Suffolk was lead on the offensive side of the ice by Aidan O’Connell, Marko Giourof and Nolan Leonard. O’Connell and Giourof played their first season for Suffolk this past season, both coming in as transfers.
“Going back to last to last year Suffolk was always one of the schools on my radar, I had a lot of great conversations with coach McEachern,” said O’Connell about the decision to come to Suffolk. “Also having family be able to come to every game made the decision a no-brainer.”
The three players took no time to settle in at all, finishing as the top three scorers on the roster.
Giourof was first team all conference, finishing with 13 goals and 19 assists, leading the Rams in points. Leonard notched 24 assists, which was second best in the Conference of New England. O’Connell scored 15 goals, which was third best in the CNE.
Transferring from Stevenson University, O’Connell thrived in a bigger role at Suffolk. O’Connell took home all-conference third team honors, something he attributes to his coaches and linemates.
“I need to give credit to coach for having confidence in me on the ice in all situations,” said O’Connell. “I also need to give tons of credit to my linemates Nolan Lenard and Marko Giourof, we stuck together all year.”
The chemistry was built quickly between the three of them, as the Rams had the second-most assists in the conference.
Coupled with their success on special teams, the Rams had a recipe for success. Killing their opponents’ power plays 86% of the time while finishing their own 25% of the time, Suffolk special teams ranked third and second in the conference, respectively.
The Rams also got stellar play in goal from freshman goalie Austin McNicholas, finishing top 3 in goals allowed per game.
“It’s been such a great experience so far here. This year was a lot of fun, not just getting to play a lot more than last year but also seeing the team as a whole have tons of success,” said O’Connell.
Suffolk got stellar play in the net from freshman goalie Austin McNicholas. The freshman was top five in the conference in saves per game and was a big piece of this Suffolk defense that fared very well defensively on special teams.
For their efforts this season Suffolk had three players up for the Joe Concannon award, which recognizes the best American born player at the division three and two level. McNicholas, Girourof and Leonard were all semi finalists. They will look to improve on their success next season.
“It was exciting to have a good playoff run, it definitely was not how we wanted it to end. We had high expectations and I think it will drive us forward going into next year,” said McNicolas. “We have a lot of returning guys next year so everyone will remember how this season ended.”
The Rams will be chasing their first conference championship appearance in program history. The pieces are in place for a deep playoff run. After a playoff loss that left a sour taste, they have plenty of motivation to get back to the playoffs.
