Jacob Willis, ??
A new era has arrived for the Auggie Hockey program, and with it comes a daunting new challenge. Augsburg Hockey has been dominating the ice in the MIAC for decades, and finally the conference has had enough. Auggie Hockey will no longer be allowed to compete in MIAC play, and as a result the men’s team will be moving up to the Big Ten, while the women will be playing in the WCHA beginning in the 2023-2024 season. This move comes off the heels of both the men’s and women’s hockey teams making it to the MIAC championship, with the Auggie men being able to secure yet another MIAC championship for the program. Fortunately or unfortunately, depending on how you look at it, this will very likely be the last impression the Auggies will leave on their former home conference. The Auggie Hockey dynasty will now be tested by the gauntlet of Division I NCAA hockey.
For both the men’s and women’s programs, the first test will be against a next door neighbor, one that we know all too well. The University of Minnesota will be coming down to Ed Saugestad Rink next winter to face off in a two game weekend series against an Auggie team that will be looking to prove they belong. Despite the home ice advantage, the Auggies will of course be the underdogs in this matchup. Starting with the men, the Gophers men’s team will end the 2022-2023 season as one of, if not the, top teams in the nation. At the time this is being written, the Gophers are set to play Boston University in the NCAA Frozen Four. This resume will be tough for the Auggies to stack up against, seeing as the Auggies fell in the first round of the NCAA Division III playoffs to the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point.
On the women’s side, things do not appear to be any easier for the Auggies. The Gophers women’s team, who also made it all the way to the Frozen Four, ended their season with a dominant 30-6-3 record. The Auggies aren’t too shabby themselves however, as they finished with a record of 18-7-2, although they did fall short in the MIAC championship, losing to the eventual national champion Gustavus 4-2.
For both the men’s and women’s squads, the Gophers will prove to be a great test for the Auggies. Regardless of the results from the series, Auggie fans will have many questions answered. Are we ready for the jump from Division III to Division I? Is it too soon, or is it about time? Only time can tell, but what we know right now is that the Auggies have an opportunity that doesn’t come around often. St. Thomas may have gotten the DI nod first, but they are no longer the only Minnesota school to make the jump in the past couple of years. There’s a new contender in the ring, and the opportunity to represent Minneapolis on the national scale no longer belongs solely to the Gophers. A new landscape of college hockey is here, and with it comes a chance to prove why a DIII school moving to Division I shouldn’t be taken as a joke.