DUDLEY, Mass. (2/25/2025) – The Nichols College men's hockey team enters the2024-25 Conference of New England (CNE) Hockey Tournament as the fifth seed. The Bison punched their ticket to the Tournament with their 1-1 tie against Suffolk last week.
The Bison will travel to Boston, Mass. and face off against the No. 4 seed Suffolk University on Wednesday, February 26
th with puck drop set for 6:00 p.m.
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Nichols enters the tournament for the second straight season and look to earn their first win since the 2021-22 season when they beat Salve Regina 3-1.
How The Bison Got Here: The Bison enter the tournament as the fifth seed, after posting a 9-12-4 overall record and earning 18 points in conference play with a 5-9-4 record this season. The Bison saw wins over Suffolk, Wentworth, Johnson & Wales, and Western New England, while also earning points for four ties against Johnson & Wales, Suffolk, Wentworth and No. 15 Endicott.
Bison and Rams in 2024-25: The Bison and Rams faced off three times season, with the Bison going 1-0-2 against them. Nichols skated to a 4-1 win on November 15, in the first match up between the teams, when Nichols scored two power-play goals and two goals from
Josh Dickson and
Nathan Carl. Dickson's goal provided to be the eventual game winning goal in the second period.
The second game, saw the extra period needed, in-which neither team scored in the first two period and Suffolk grabbed an early lead with a power-play goal and the Bison answered with a power-play goal of their own to force overtime. No one scored in overtime and a shootout was required for the extra conference point. Five rounds were required to determine a winner, and Suffolk clipped the Bison with a 1-0 shootout record.
The final meeting also saw the game go to a shootout after a 1-1 scored following an overtime period. The shootout went the same as the first time, with the Rams earning the extra point with a 2-1 shootout win.
All-Time Record: Nichols holds an all-time record of 24-18-6 in 48 games played against. Suffolk and Nichols faced off against each other in 2001.
Who to Watch: Josh Dickson,
Jack Lee, and
Aaron Hamel all are tied with the team lead in points (17) and all have set new season highs in points for their efforts.
Dickson (8 goals and 9 assists) saw two career highs in his final season with the Bison, scoring two game winning goal and a short-handed goal as well, while being one of the most constant players on the offensive side of the puck. He also added three multi-point games
Lee (6 goals and 11 assists) has made his living on the power-play this season with seven power-play goals including five power-play goals and two assists, for the Bison power-play that has cashed in 19 times.
Hamel (5 goals and 12 assists) leads the team in helpers, while being one of the new additions after transferring to "The Hill". Hamel posted a season high three assists against UMass Dartmouth, while also totaling four multi-point games this season.
Nathan Carl and freshman
Luca Ricci as well as
Ryan Austin are also some names to keep an eye on.
Carl (8 goals and 8 assists) leads the team in shots on goal (79) while also scoring two game winning goals. Ricci and Austin both made instant impacts for the Bison on the ice as first-year members. Ricci finished the season with one goal and 11 assists for 12 points. Austin scored four goals and added nine assists for 13 points. Ricci and Austin combined won three Conference Rookie's of the Week this season.
The Bison have split time in between the pipes with
Nick Anderson and
Liam Choquette each earning time. Anderson appeared in 12 games for the Bison, while starting 11 of them. He posted a 6-3-2 record and a .903 save percentage. Choquette started game down the stretch for the Bison, tallying 14 games and 13 started with a 3-8-2 record. Both Anderson and Choquette each earned Conference awards, with Anderson being Goalie of the Week and Choquette, Rookie of the Week.
2025 CNE MEN'S ICE HOCKEY TOURNAMENT
First Round - Wednesday, February 26
Game 1: No. 5 Nichols at No. 4 Suffolk - 6 p.m.
Game 2: No. 6 Wentworth at No. 3 Endicott - 7 p.m.
Semifinals - Saturday, March 1
Game 3: Lowest Remaining Seed at No. 1 Curry
Game 4: Highest Remaining Seed at No. 2 UNE
Championship - Saturday, March 8
Game 5: Winner of Game 3 vs Winner of Game 4 – Hosted by Highest Remaining Seed
