Alexa Martin. contributor

The Augsburg Men’s Hockey team went up against the #8 ranked Men’s Hockey team in the country, St. Norbert College, twice last weekend, coming out on top with two wins. In the first matchup, the Auggies pulled ahead with a winning score of 3-1. When facing them the next day, the Auggies won the second game against St. Norbert with a win of 4-1. 

Gavin Holland stuck out for the Auggies, with four goals in the two games combined as well as an assist. Holland accounted for four of the seven goals scored that weekend for the Auggies. His performance awarded him the MIAC Player of the Week. 

The Auggies have impressed early on, and new head coach Greg May is a big reason for their success. In an interview with the Echo, May was asked about his team’s hot start. “It feels good,” said May. “It’s two games out of twenty-five. At the end of the day it is great to win, yes of course, but our job even before we started playing games, our goal was to get better every single day, that was our mindset.” He then adds, “This week asking the guys at practice what our goal today was, everyone one of them said to get better. We have bought into that philosophy as a group. Our job is to get better every single day, and our hope at the end of the week when we have our games is to reveal what we have been doing through the week.” 

May is an Augsburg alumnus and former forward of the Augsburg Men’s Hockey team. He played all four years of his collegiate career here from 2003-2007. “It’s great, it’s awesome, it’s been really fun,” May said of his return to Augsburg as the head coach. “My wife went here, my brother went here, my brother’s wife went here, so it’s come full circle coming back. I couldn’t ask for a better spot to land.” Needless to say that the program is excited to have May back at Augsburg.

Though the season is just getting started, it looks to be an exciting season for the team, which is aiming to hold true to its core values throughout the season. “We have a set of core values we have; discipline, professional, humble, relentless, and leaders,” said May. “These are things that we try to carry in ourselves as a group from staff all the way down. Whether that is on the ice, off the ice, in the classroom, at home, wherever that may be. I truly believe that if we do these things consistently every single day we will have success.”

It is an exciting start to the men’s team this year and we wish them the best of luck in their upcoming season and hope to see them go far. Their next game will be on December 3 against Concordia Moorhead. Go catch a game at home or on the road and watch what this team can do!