SCSU Homecoming Builds to First Men’s Hockey Game of the Season

(KNSI) – St. Cloud State University will keep the homecoming fires burning late into the night on Thursday.

Live music, s’mores, and the warmth of a bonfire on the Holes Hall Lawn are some of the signature traditions on campus. It goes from 6:00 to 9:00.

Friday will feature several programs at the planetarium and the Our SCSU Gala. Saturday is the busiest day of St. Cloud State University’s Homecoming calendar, capped off with the first men’s hockey game of the year. Family and Friends Day will include the 5K Paws on the Pavement run, the 2023 SCSU Athletics Hall of Fame Ceremony, and Husky Fest prior to puck drop.

Head Coach Brett Larson says homecoming isn’t a huge consideration for the team on the ice. They’re focused on St. Thomas. “The guys’ve been going for about six weeks now. They can’t wait to play another team, and they’re looking forward to that battle. The team’s continued to build each year. I think you’re gonna see the best St. Thomas team we’ve seen so far. So, there’s going to be no overlooking a team like that.”

Puck drop is at 6:00 at the Herb Brooks National Hockey Center. The series is home-and-home. The Huskies will head down Interstate 94 on Sunday to Mendota Heights for a late afternoon contest at 4:00.

Larson says his team has some question marks up front, but they’ll make up for it early on with solid net and blue-line play. “Thankfully, we’re built pretty well from the net out. We’ve got Dominic Basse, who played a lot for us last year and a couple younger goalies pushing him. And then you got guys like Jack Peart and Dylan Anhorn, Josh Luedtke, Mason Reiners, Cooper Wiley. We’ve got five or six returning defenders that have played a lot of minutes for us.”

Larson says the National Collegiate Hockey Conference will again be a highly competitive league. The Huskies were picked to finish third in the preseason poll.

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