The beginning of February brought the renewal of a great college hockey tradition: The Beanpot Tournament.  On Monday night in Boston, Harvard met Boston College and Northeastern faced off against Boston University.

Unfortunately, there won't be a former Black Hawk among this year's Beanpot champions.  Casey Severo and the Crimson were relegated to the third-place game due to a 5-1 loss to BC.  Severo assisted on Harvard's only goal in the game, during what will likely be his final Beanpot Tournament.  Meanwhile, freshman Dylan Compton played 22 minutes and put two shots on goal during his first appearance at the longstanding event.  However, Compton, Griffin Erdman, and the rest of the Huskies fell to BU in a shootout.  The championship and third place games are slated for Monday at Boston's TD Garden.
 
The rest of college hockey is laser-focused on conference play as the last full month of the regular season gets going.  Here are Waterloo's top-performing alumni from January.

#3 Star – John Mustard, So.
Providence

After just 25 games this season, Mustard is only one point away from matching his freshman scoring total, achieved across 37 appearances in 2024/25.  Mustard ranks second among the Friars with 10 goals and third in points (19).  The Chicago Blackhawks draft pick also notched his first game-winning goal of the current season last month during a 4-0 shutout of Boston University.

That goal on the 24th was Mustard's final point of January, capping a month where he recorded three goals and four assists across nine games.  It was a steady start to the new calendar year; Mustard was only held off the stat sheet three times.  He helped Providence to an 8-1-0 run during the month, boosting the Friars' overall record to 16-7-2 (11-3-1 in Hockey East).

#2 Star – Garrett Schifsky, Jr.
Michigan

The Wolverines only played six times in January, but they made those contests count.  Michigan won them all, and each one was against a Big Ten opponent.

Schifsky tallied a point or more in five of six games and finished with a total of seven (three goals, four assists).  It was a big boost for the junior who had ten points in the first 20 games of the season.  Schifsky's biggest night was a three-point effort against Notre Dame on January 10th.  He assisted on the first goal during that 7-4 win, then scored during the second and third periods.

#1 Michigan will open February with an in-state rivalry series against #2 Michigan State.  Saturday's matchup with the Spartans will be at Little Caesars Arena, home of the Detroit Red Wings.

#1 Star – Alex Gaffney, Gr.
St. Thomas

Gaffney continues to make the most of his final season in the NCAA.  As of today, he is tied for 12th in scoring across all of Division I hockey with 33 points (16 goals, 17 assists).  With one more good month, Gaffney could equal or surpass the 41 points he recorded for Harvard across four seasons and 100 games.  This is his first season skating for St. Thomas.

The 23-year-old was certainly in top form last month.  He produced three multipoint nights.  On the 2nd, he notched a pair of assists in a 5-3 win against Ferris State.  During a rematch the next evening, the Tommies fell behind 2-0 but roared back to an 8-4 victory; Gaffney scored shorthanded and assisted on two other goals.  Last weekend against Michigan Tech, his two goals included the game winner during a 4-2 decision.  Add in the other St. Thomas games and Gaffney finished with four goals and seven assists in nine appearances.

By earning an 8-1-0 record in January, the Tommies are now 17-8-3 overall, and their 14-4-2 mark in the CCHA puts them in the driver's seat by four points ahead of Augustana.

Honorable Mention
Ray Fust, Gr. – Sacred Heart: 9 GP, 3 G, 3 A, 6 Pts, +1
Reid Morich, Fr. – Minnesota State: 8 GP 3 G, 3 A, 6 Pts, Ev
Aaron Pionk, Jr. – Minnesota-Duluth: 8 GP, 0 G, 6 A, 6 Pts, -3
Casey Severo, Sr. – Harvard: 10 GP, 2 G, 3 A, 5 Pts, -5

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