This Weekend
Colorado College opens the 2021-22 regular season in its brand new arena this weekend against St. Lawrence University. The regular-season opener at Ed Robson Arena on Friday, Oct. 8 begins at 7:30 p.m., while the contest on Saturday, Oct. 9 starts at 6 p.m. Friday's game will be televised live in the Southern Colorado and Pikes Peak Region on KRDO NewsChannel 13, while both games will broadcast on KRDO NewsRadio 105.5 FM, 1240 AM and 92.5 FM.

First Game at Ed Robson Arena
Never in the storied 80-plus year history of Colorado College Tiger Hockey has the team played its home games on campus. Thanks to the generosity of former CC hockey player Ed Robson '54, along with several other donors, that will change this season. The Ed Robson Arena is a state-of-the-art, multi-purpose arena with a capacity of 3,407.

The Kris Mayotte Era Begins
Kris Mayotte was named the 15th head coach in the history of the Colorado College hockey program on April 7, 2021. Mayotte brought a wealth of success as one of the top assistant coaches and recruiters in the nation to Colorado College. Throughout his 10 years as a Division I assistant and associate head coach, he helped his teams to an NCAA National Championship in 2015, two Frozen Fours and seven NCAA Tournament appearances. In addition, Mayotte won a pair of gold medals and a bronze in three stints as an assistant coach with Team USA at the World Junior Championships, and is on the staff for the 2022 National Junior Team. Four players with ties to the University of Michigan were taken among the top five selections in the 2021 NHL Draft in July. The Nos. 1, 2 and 5 picks played for the Wolverines last season, while the No. 4 pick will attend UM this season. Mayotte either recruited or coached all four of the players.

Peter Mannino and Mark Stuart Named Assistant Coaches
A couple of standout collegiate players join Mayotte on the Colorado College bench this season. Peter Mannino, who spent the last two seasons as the head coach of the Des Moines Buccaneers of the USHL and was the starting goaltender for the 2005 NCAA Division I national champion Denver Pioneers, returns to the NCHC in 2021-22. Prior to joining the Des Moines franchise, he spent two seasons coaching in the National Collegiate Hockey Conference, as an assistant coach at Omaha in 2018-19, and the associate head coach at Miami University the following campaign.

Meanwhile, Mark Stuart was one of the most menacing defensemen to play at CC,    starring as a Tiger from 2002-05. He captained the 2004-05 squad to the NCAA Frozen Four before falling to eventual champion Denver in the semifinals. Stuart, who collected 54 points (12g,42a) in 118 career games at CC, earned NCAA All-America honors that season. One of two former Tigers to be selected in the first round of the NHL Draft, Stuart was picked 21st overall in 2003 by the Boston Bruins. He made his NHL debut on April 15, 2005, and played 673 career games with the Bruins, Atlanta Thrashers and Winnipeg Jets, serving as an alternate captain in Winnipeg from 2012-16.

Getting Started
This season marks the 83rd year of varsity ice hockey at Colorado College and ninth season as a member of the National Collegiate Hockey Conference. CC was a charter member of the Western Collegiate Hockey Association (1951-52) for 62 seasons before joining the NCHC with seven other schools prior to the 2013-14 campaign.

For the Record
Colorado College finished the 2020-21 season with a 4-17-2 record, including a 4-16-2 mark and seventh-place finish in the NCHC standings ... St. Lawrence was 6-8-3 last season.

The Coaches
Kris Mayotte enters his first season at the helm of the Tigers. He came to Colorado College after serving two years as an assistant coach at the University of Michigan. Mayotte was an assistant coach for Providence College when the Friars won the NCAA Division I title in 2015. In addition, he has won a pair of gold medals and a bronze in three stints as an assistant coach with Team USA at the World Junior Championships … Brent Brekke is in his third season as head coach at St. Lawrence. He is the 15th head coach in program history. Prior to his arrival at St. Lawrence, Brekke served as an associate head coach and assistant coach at the Division I level for the past twenty years, including a decade as an assistant and associate head coach at Miami University.

Previous Meetings
Colorado College leads the all-time series against St. Lawrence, 6-0. The teams last met on Dec. 29, 2019 at the Ledyard Classic, hosted by Dartmouth College. The Tigers defeated SLU, 7-3.

Tiger Tales
Colorado College lost to Air Force, 2-1, in an exhibition game last Saturday at Ed Robson Arena ... Logan Will scored for the Tigers just 1:17 into the contest ... Dominic Basse (14 saves) and Matt Vernon (nine) split goaltending duties for Colorado College ... Sophomores Hunter McKown and Jack Millar are the Tigers' top returning scorers after posting two goals and four assists apiece last season.

Scouting the Saints
St. Lawrence defeated Clarkson, 3-0, in an exhibition game last Saturday ... Justin Paul scored a pair of goals for the Saints ... Junior Cameron Buhl led SLU in scoring last season with 15 points (5g,10a), while senior goaltender Emil Zetterquist was 6-7-3 with a 2.40 goals-against average and .926 saves percentage.   

Up Next
The Tigers travel to the East Coast for a pair of games against Union College on Friday, Oct. 15, and Saturday, Oct. 16.

On the Air
All CC games in 2021-22, home and away, will be broadcast live throughout Southern Colorado on KRDO NewsRadio 105.5 and 92.5 FM and 1240 AM, featuring Ken Landau with the play-by-play. The broadcasts also can be heard worldwide via the internet.

Another Tough Schedule
The Tigers will play 15 of their 34 regular season games against teams that participated in the 2021 NCAA Division I Tournament, including six against Frozen Four teams. In addition, Colorado College is scheduled to play 12 games versus four of the last five national champions (Minn. Duluth (2), Denver and North Dakota).

Leadership Named for 2021-22 Season
Seniors Bryan Yoon and Brian Hawkinson will serve as co-captains of the Colorado College hockey team for the 2021-22 season.
 
Yoon, a defenseman from Parker, Colo., is the team's active scoring leader with 45 points (5g,40a) in 93 career games. He was selected to the all-College Hockey News Rookie Team and NCHC all-Rookie Team as a freshman after finishing second in the NCHC and third in nation among freshmen with 23 assists. His 26 points (3g,26a) that season were the most by a CC freshman defenseman since Scott Swanson had 48 in 1995-96. Yoon finished second on the team with 16 assists as a sophomore and posted a goal and an assist in 19 games last season.

Hawkinson, meanwhile, appeared in 23 games and notched two goals and one assist last season, his first as a Tiger after spending two years at Miami University. The forward from Centennial, Colo., scored 18 points (3g,15a) in 60 games for the RedHawks, including 16 as a freshman, the second-most by a rookie on the team in '18-19.

CC to Televise 12 Games This Season
Colorado College will televise more games during the 2021-22 hockey season than any other season in program history. The regular-season opener on Friday, Oct. 8, against St. Lawrence University will be shown in Colorado Springs and throughout the Southern Colorado region on KRDO NewsChannel 13, while 11 other games will be televised live on AT&T SportsNet, including nine from CC's new home, Ed Robson Arena.

Seven Newcomers Join Program
Including transfers Noah Prokop (Omaha) and Danny Weight (Boston College), the Tigers welcome seven newcomers to the program. Freshmen Cooper Fensterstock, Tommy Middleton, Brett Chorske, Nate Schweitzer and Stanley Cooley join the team in 2021-22.

Three Tigers Have Stanley Cup Genes
Three current CC players, Matt Vernon, Brett Chorske and Danny Weight, each have a father that played in the NHL and won the Stanley Cup. Mike Vernon won a pair of titles with Calgary ('89) and Detroit ('97), while Tom Chorske won with New Jersey in 1995 and Doug Weight with Carolina in 2006.  

Tigers Picked Eighth in NCHC Preseason Poll
Colorado College was picked eighth in the 2021-22 NCHC Preseason Poll.

1.    St. Cloud State – 195 points (20 first-place votes)
2.    Minnesota Duluth – 143 (3)
3.    North Dakota – 142 (1)
4.    Denver – 123 (1)
5.    Omaha - 114
6.    Western Michigan - 105
7.    Miami - 45
8.    Colorado College – 33