After placing second in the National Tournament last year, the Gustavus Men’s Hockey team is back for more this season. So far, the Gusties have started off their season 3-2-1, defeating St. Olaf last Saturday 5-4.

Junior forward Brad Wieck feels the team has been doing well so far. “The season is still early, but so far we have the same attitude as last year. We just need to find our groove and be more consistent game to game,” Wieck said.

However, Senior forward Rory Dynan felt differently. “Right now we would like to be 4-0, but that didn’t happen. We need to be more consistent in practice and translate that over to our games,” Dynan said.

Despite a slow start the guys feel the St. Olaf game was a success. Junior defenseman Mitch Carlson was especially excited about playing St. Olaf. “Playing against St. Olaf is always fun, especially when we’re at home because there is a bit of a rivalry there, and both teams are obviously huge contenders for the MIAC title. We also love playing in our home arena. For us it is all about the atmosphere, and our home crowd knows how to deliver,” Carlson said.

Senior Captain Cody Mosbeck was also excited about playing St. Olaf at home. “We’ve lost to them in the past and learned from our mistakes. This year our upperclassmen bring experience, and our new players are bringing in talent,” Mosbeck said.

This weekend the Gusties play Bethel at home on Friday, Nov. 20 at 7:05 p.m. at the Don Roberts Ice Arena. Bethel is currently ranked No. 1 in the MIAC.
Senior forward Patrick Dynan is particularly excited for the games against Bethel this weekend. “Aside from the fact that there is pride on the line this weekend, we want the points and two wins under our belts. It’s all about who wants it more,” Dynan said.

Carlson added to the anticipation for the games this weekend. “Whenever we play Bethel, it is always a close game, and for some reason we’re always able to feed off of their ridiculous fans,” Carlson said.

Aside from the excitement this weekend and last weekend, not much has changed for the Gusties from last year. “[We have the] same format [and] same attitude. We have higher expectations for everyone, but we’re still taking the season one game at a time,” Wieck said.

Carlson added to Wieck’s thoughts about the season. “Coach hasn’t changed much from last year; all he wants is for us to work hard, have fun and play the game,” Carlson said.

After finishing second in the nation last year, the Gusties haven’t done much to change their goals for this year. “Our first goal is to win our Conference and go from there. Ultimately we want to get back to the National Tournament, but to do that we have to be consistent throughout our games,” Rory Dynan said.

Mosbeck added to Dynan’s goals for the season. “We’re taking this season one game at a time. We want to win the MIAC and go from there. If we were going to set a team goal for ourselves right now it would be peaking at the right time during the season and playing consistently game in and game out. If we can accomplish those things, we’ll be unstoppable,” Mosbeck said.

The Gusties have not had too many obstacles thrown their way, aside from a few injuries and new players adjusting to the team. Rory Dynan felt the team is lucky not to have experienced any sort of challenges so early in the season, but the players need to work on fixing mental mistakes. “In the past when we’ve lost, it has mainly been because of penalties and mental mistakes. We need to fix those early on this year and not have any break downs in the middle of the season,” Dynan said.

Patrick Dynan felt the team has adjusted well so far. “It is still really early in the season, but the new players have been adjusting well and pretty soon our football players will be back on the ice with us, which will be a good adjustment for everyone. That way no one settles down, and everyone is always on their toes,” Dynan said.

This year’s team is unique in that they have a good chemistry among the players both on and off the ice, making a close-knit team all around. Wieck felt the team has definitely improved from last year. “We’re a more skilled team this year. This is a team that will give their best every game,” Wieck said.