MARCH 27, 2025 | SPORTS | By Lilly Asano (Co Editor-In-Chief)
The Colorado College Tigers hockey team finished their 2024-25 season campaign on Sunday, March 16, in a decisive 2-9 loss to the University of Denver Pioneers. They finished the season 18-18-1, sitting at a .500 win percentage.
After No. 6 Denver swept the second half of the Battle for the Gold Pan, winning both campaigns on March 7 and 8, the Tigers earned the sixth seed in the National Collegiate Hockey Conference’s (NCHC) tournament and were scheduled to play third-seeded rivals Denver in Magness Arena. The bitter rivals were meeting for the second series in a week, and the Tigers no longer had home-ice advantage.
If their losses to the Pioneers the week before rattled them, the Tigers didn’t initially show it. During the opening game on Friday, March 14, the Tigers came back from a 0-1 deficit in the first two periods to defeat Denver 3-1. Down a goal, graduate student and Hobey Baker nominee Ty Gallagher put the Tigers on the board at 4:28 in the third period, firing from the left faceoff circle. The Tigers continued, scoring three unanswered goals, including Brady Cleveland’s ‘27 first collegiate goal and a game-winning empty net goal from Noah Laba ‘26.
DU bounced back to defeat the Tigers 3-6 the following night. With the series split, the teams would play on Sunday, and the winner would move on to the 2025 NCHC Frozen Faceoff in Saint Paul, Minn. If the unranked Tigers lost, their season would be over.
Starting goalie Kaidan Mbereko ‘26 left the ice on Saturday after suffering an apparent lower-body injury, unable to finish the game, and Zaccharya Wisdom ‘27 appeared to also be injured. As Sunday’s puck drop approached, fans started to worry. When neither Wisdom nor Mbereko were listed on the game’s lineup, one fan wrote “I am concerned” on the Colorado College Hockey Discussion Facebook group.
Last season, the Tigers propelled themselves back into the national rankings and prominence after a long stretch of losing seasons. They dominated in non-conference and NCHC games, ending with a 21-13-3 season record, with 14 wins coming from NCHC play, a conference home to powerhouses like the University of North Dakota, Western Michigan University, and Denver, the 2024 national champions. With 16 returners including Mbereko, Laba, Gleb Veremyev ‘26, Wisdom, Bret Link ‘27 and Klavs Veinbergs ‘27, the team was set on making the NCAA tournament this year.
Head coach Kris Mayotte also brought in eight freshmen and four transfer students in August. Now, nine rostered players are NHL draftees. The team seemed to have it all: experience, speed and physicality.
In mid-October, the Tigers ranked No. 8 in the USCHO and USA Hockey polls and held steady at No. 8 for over a month. On Nov. 18, 2024, they cracked into No. 7, their highest weekly rank in 12 years.
Mid-season, they started to fall apart.
The Tigers went on a four-game losing streak, finally snapping it on Jan. 17 in a 7-2 win against the University of Minnesota Duluth.
On Sunday, March 16, the Tigers ended their season in a crushing 2-9 defeat. The Pioneers moved onto St. Paul, eventually losing in the conference championship game. The dream season initially hoped for from CC fans, students, and the team ended disappointingly, short of last season’s accomplishments.
“We’ll just have to grow and be better from it and really make sure that we understand how hard it is,” Mayotte told Adam Wodon of College Hockey News. “When you have the second-half like we had last year … you allow yourself to forget how hard winning is. (It’s) learning how to keep their focus where it needs to be and not allowing us to get too focused on results and the ups and downs of a hockey season. It still is the team that improves the most as the year goes on that has the best chance at the end.”
Laba, Veremyev and Gallagher signed pro deals between March 18 and 20, and with the transfer portal scheduled to open on March 30, it’s unclear if the success they set out to chase this season is feasible.
However, if players like Mbereko, Link, Veinbergs, Wisdom, Max Burkholder ‘27, Drew Montgomery ‘27, Philippe Bais-Savoie ‘28, Owen Beckner ‘28 and Fisher Scott ‘28 return next year, the Tigers may have a fighting chance to redeem themself in the national polls and prominence.
Beckner led the Tigers in points this season, finishing with seven goals and 20 assists. Laba, Burkholder and Gallagher trailed behind him with 26 total points, respectively, followed by Wisdom, Link and Veinbergs.
Other bright spots include Mbereko’s goaltending, which often kept the team afloat when they struggled with offensive output or communication on the ice. Rookie goaltender Carsen Musser was able to back up Mbereko in games and even started over Mbereko in a few. A Utah Hockey Club draft pick, Musser will hopefully continue to flourish under the guidance of Mbereko and associate head coach Peter Mannino.
Despite the team’s season conclusion, fans remain committed to the Tigers.
“Win or lose I stand behind this team,” Blake Waterman wrote in a Facebook post. “We had a good year and we were the only team in the quarter finals to have a third game. We play in the toughest conference in college hockey. Next year will be better.”