As December begins, most college hockey teams have met several conference opponents, and the standings are beginning to take shape.  Bob Motzko's Minnesota Gophers are at the top of the Big Ten.  Motzko played for the Waterloo Black Hawks during the 1979/80 season.  Another former Waterloo player is among Motzko's top players: Sam Rinzel has 15 points in 16 games.  The Gophers have celebrated weekend sweeps of Penn State, Wisconsin, and Notre Dame.  Minnesota is looking ahead to a significant visit by Michigan this Friday and Saturday.

On the east coast, many ECAC teams didn't begin play until the start of November.  That includes co-conference leader Dartmouth.  Five of the Big Green's eight games have been against ECAC foes, and Dartmouth has earned four wins, plus a tie.  Black Hawks alum Emmett Croteau has chipped in after transferring from Clarkson.  Dartmouth is tied with Colgate, where the roster includes former Hawks Nic Belpedio and Jake Schneider.
 
Whether their teams are at the top of the standings or hoping to make their move as the winter continues, here are the former Hawks who had the most success individually during November.

#3 Star – Sam Rinzel, So.
Minnesota

Two months into the schedule, Rinzel is the second-highest scoring defenseman in the NCAA.  His 15 points (seven goals, eight assists) trail Zeev Buium of the Denver Pioneers by one.  During November, Rinzel charted three goals and four assists.  He also was +3, giving him a +9 plus/minus mark for the season.

Rinzel's contributions were particularly timely during a two-game sweep of Notre Dame over the weekend ahead of Thanksgiving.  He produced a pair of power play goals – including the game-winner – on November 22nd.  It was his second multigoal game of the season.  He followed up with two assists the next night, including on a go-ahead third period goal in the 5-3 decision.

#2 Star – Logan Stein, Gr.
Michigan

November was a nearly perfect month for the Wolverines and for Stein.  Michigan won seven of their eight games, and Stein was in net five times, with four victories.  He stopped 119 of the 132 shots he faced (.902).  Facing Notre Dame on November 8th, Stein held the Irish to one goal for more than 62 minutes, and the Wolverines pulled out a 2-1 decision in overtime.

The graduate transfer faced a season-high 37 shots against Western Michigan on November 29th in his only loss of the month.  Now with six wins across eight total appearances, Stein is only one victory away from matching his best single-season total from any of the four years he spent at Ferris State (the seven-win season was in 2021/22).  After visiting Minnesota this weekend, Stein and the Wolverines host Wisconsin during the final weekend before Christmas.

#1 Star – Casey Severo, Jr.
Harvard

The Crimson's first official game was on November 1st.  Dartmouth held Severo off the stat sheet that night, but back in action against Princeton the next week, he scored a third period power play goal that gave Harvard their first lead of the season.  The Crimson went on to a 4-3 overtime victory.

Severo picked up assists against Colgate and UMass during the weeks that followed, then the Crimson made their way to Belfast, Northern Ireland, for a four-team tournament involving Notre Dame, Merrimack, and Boston University.  Severo capped the competition with his first collegiate hat trick.  The Crimson edged Merrimack 4-2, including the junior's game-winner.  Across eight games, Severo totaled four goals and three assists in November, putting him within five points of matching the 13 he accumulated last season.

Honorable Mention
Emmett Croteau, So. – Dartmouth: 2 GP, 2-0-0, 1.56 GAA, .929 SV%
John Mustard, Fr. – Providence: 10 GP, 3 G, 3 A, 6 Pts, Ev
Ryan O'Hara, Sr. – Bowling Green: 6 GP, 0 G, 6 A, 6 Pts, Ev
Ben Robertson, So. – Cornell: 9 GP, 1 G, 4 A, 5 Pts, +4
Jake Schneider, So. – Colgate: 8 GP, 1 G, 4 A, 5 Pts, +7

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