2025 NCAA Men’s Quarterfinals (3/22/2025): #4 Utica Univ. defeats #5 St. Norbert 5-3 & Press Conference Notes!

#5 St. Norbert College (24-5-1) @ #4 Utica University (22-4-2): Saturday – March 22, 2025

2025 NCAA Quarterfinals – Winner plays #1 Curry College (24-3-0) / #9 Hamilton College (21-6-1)

A Dream Matchup

This game is one I, and many other longtime D-III hockey viewers have wanted for quite some time. Prior to this 2024-2025 season, the NCAA was extremely rigid with their 500-mile travel rule, making it very difficult to create variety in the NCAA tournament on both the Men’s & Women’s sides. Typically, the west would play down to one, two if they held two high seeds, but on most occasions (more notably on the women’s side as of late), we would know the matchups before the games even started and there was never  “true” bracket integrity.

Today, we’ve got Utica, coached by longtime Head Coach Garry Heenan (394-184-54) & 2 Frozen Fours, versus the legendary Head Coach of St. Norbert, Tim Coghlin (684-185-61, Most wins in D-III history), 5 National Championships (third most, #1 Middlebury – 8 & UW-Stevens Point – 6), 12 Frozen Fours, & 21 NCAA tournament appearances…

Two teams that are used to success, but Utica has had success at the conference level, not the national stage just yet, St. Norbert is used to this, they’re a contender every year and we will see how this incredible matchup goes!

If you’d like to read an expanded breakdown of this game, read Scott Huston’s quarterfinal preview article here!

1st Period

Opening puckdrop! 

SNC 1-0 (#24 Brock Baker – 3:17) St. Norbert takes advantage of a bad turnover by Utica, scoring a backhand goal, it was nothing but Baker and the goaltender Piros. Better start than versus Geneseo, but not great for Utica early on.

For the next six minutes or so, SNC controlled most of the game, getting some great chances compared to Utica’s one-and-done rushes, not able to get any noteworthy plays setup.

Just past the midway mark, the Pioneers get a pair of great chances, two point blank shots that are saved by goaltender #39 Hunter Garvey. Utica seems to be getting more comfortable as the game goes on, developing chances like their opponent. The physicality is increasing heavily as time goes on from both sides.

#12 Liam Fraser (friend of the podcast) is hit hard, an open ice collision and is slow to get back to the bench with about two minutes left in the period, big development as he’s their 1A with Logan Dombrowsky.

Another note, a penalty-less period, they’re letting them play.

Utica 1-1 (#24 Jakob Breault 19:10) scores, the puck trickling through Garvey’s butterfly and we have a tied game in the final minute of the period.

2nd Period

#12 Fraser is back on the ice, big win for St. Norbert he’s one of the best players in all of D-III.

SNC 2-1 (#19 Calvin Hanson 3:19) Just like the prior period, the Green Knights get on the board fast, only two seconds (time-of-goal-in-period) difference from the 1st.

Utica settles in again, creating some chances, but putting themselves behind the 8-ball once again, allowing St. Norbert to catch them starting slow, creating another early deficit.

A few minutes later Utica turned it up again, just like the 1st, the physicality ramps up and Utica creates more point blank chances, the main one being deterred by a Hunter Garvey poke check in front of the net, leading to a SNC rush.

SNC 3-1 (#17 Carter Hottmann 15:15) Similar to the others, the Green Knights capitalize on a turnover near the front of the Pioneers net and score five-hole, making it a two goal lead in a game where that feels like three…

SNC 3-2 (#17 Drake Morse 16:16) Utica answered right back, after a scuffle of bodies in front of the net caused Garvey to be on his back and one rebound too many leads to a Pioneer goal, keeping it a one-goal deficit.

A period that heated up mainly in the 2nd half ends with a St. Norbert 3-2 lead, we’ll see if the final period begins and ends like the previous two… very similar periods.

It seems like when Utica plays physical, they’ve gotten the better of the Green Knights, but the second they let off, St. Norbert capitalizes on their mistake.  Great game thus far!

3rd Period

St. Norbert came out rapid, they created a huge flurry in front of the net, causing Piros to lose his stick, but his defenseman blocked repeated shots and we remain 3-2 early on.

First four minutes or so have been back-and-forth, nothing crazy for either, minor chances here and there. Still no penalties in this game, quite remarkable.

#3 Dayton Deics had a wide open one-timer, but the stick exploded and SNC comes up empty on a big opportunity.

St. Norbert calls timeout with 12:52 left in the game leading 3-2, mainly due to the fact SNC had about 5 icing’s called in the matter of two minutes, tired legs out there, veteran move from Coach Coghlin.

Utica 3-3 (#24 Jakob Breault 8:06) Breault nets his second of the game, he’s been one of the star all year and is coming up big here, tying the game in the biggest game in Utica’s history at the Aud.

Utica 4-3 (#30 Gabriel Lundberg 9:49) Lundberg scores the rebound! This game is living up to all the hype, Utica gets their first lead of the game and we’re down to the last 10 minutes!

Utica calls timeout with 7:44 left in the game.

SNC’s #12 Fraser gets a rebound chance at the left faceoff marker and misses the net after a Green Knight rush, Piros saved the first one with his mask it seemed.

Back and forth, just an unbelievable hockey game… hard to type it into words sometimes.

St. Norbert has pulled the goalie with 2 minutes left!

A shot hits the post with the empty net!

The Winning Moment

Props to both teams, one of the bets games all year we’ve seen. St. Norbert looked like they were headed to their 13th Frozen Four, but Utica will head to their second-straight and third all time.

Press Conference Notes – St. Norbert

I asked Head Coach Tim Coghlin that despite the loss, what were his thoughts on the bracket integrity shown this year, he declined to answer, stating travel issues (team stayed and flew into Syracuse, NY… approx. 40 min away from Utica).

I also asked Coach Coghlin about their control early in the first halves of the first two periods, then Utica taking over in the 3rd period, Coach Coghlin said:

“From an execution standpoint, I thought we did the right things here, because they scored the first goal 22 times this year, we scored the first goal of the game… All you can do is give credit to the group on the other side that just keeps playing”.

Press Conference Notes – Utica

I asked Coach Gary Heenan about the slow starts but really taking control in the 3rd period, Coach Heenan said:

“I gotta watch the video, I thought there was certainly a lot of chess playing out there. You know, we were trying to get a match up to their first line with our first line, and all of a sudden, we’re like they like that matchup. So we were happy with that…

There was a lot of line changes made, might’ve been a record for both teams. I thought we had the chances and kept believing”.

I also asked Coach Heenan about if this was the biggest win of his Utica career:

“I mean, it’s a huge one, it really is, and you know, back to back frozen fours, we want to be one of those programs [St. Norbert College]… We have been a little safe in the past, but we had to say is it gonna be one of those times and everyone in the room was pumped up… We had a lot of fun, it was a lot of fun, it was a great audience”.