2024–25 American International Yellow Jackets men's ice hockey season

2024–25 American International Yellow Jackets men's ice hockey season
Conference8th AHA
Home iceMassMutual Center
Rankings
USCHONR
USA HockeyNR
Record
Overall13–23–2
Conference9–16–1
Home6–8–0
Road6–15–2
Neutral1–0–0
Coaches and captains
Head coachEric Lang
Assistant coachesMatthew Woodward
Brendan Riley
Nielsson Arcibal
Captain(s)Casey McDonald
Evan Stella
American International Yellow Jackets men's ice hockey seasons
« 2023–24 2025–26 »

The 2024–25 American International Yellow Jackets men's ice hockey season was the 77th season of play for the program, the 27th at the Division I level and 1st in the Atlantic Hockey America conference. The Yellow Jackets represented American International College, played their home games at MassMutual Center and were coached by Eric Lang in his 9th season.

Season

At the start of the season, seemingly the biggest issue the program had to figuring out who would be the team's starting goaltender. While neither Chase Clark nor Peyton Grainer seemed able to take hold of the reins through the first month of the season, the difficult schedule the team had to content with was at least partly to blame. AIC was able to win just twice in its first nine games but most of their opponents during that stretch would end the season as nationally ranked teams.[1] Despite their poor record, the team had high hopes for their prospects in conference play but the program was able to receive some of the worst news imaginable.

In mid-November, American International College announced that it would be reclassifying its ice hockey team as a Division II program for the following year.[2] The Yellow Jackets were a D-II school for most of their teams; however, the school had taken advantage of an NCAA rule that allowed them to promote one sport to a higher tier, similar to the RIT Tigers and Clarkson Golden Knights. AIC has had some of the lowest attendance numbers in college hockey, routinely drawing fewer than 500 people in a building that could seat more than 6,800.[3] American International's primary conference, Northeast-10, is the only league that sponsors Division II ice hockey, so the immediate expectation is that the Yellow Jackets will join that conference as soon as possible.

The announcement was a gut-punch to the team who had to continue knowing that many players were spending their final months at the school. Unsurprisingly, the team had to fight through inconsistent play as they finished off the first half of its season, however, AIC ended up in a very unfortunate position at the beginning of December. After dropping the first game of the weekend to Holy Cross, the Yellow Jackets were forced to cancel the rematch when all three of the team's goaltenders were unable to compete due to injury.[4] While the initial plan was to just have the game not played, eventually it was rescheduled for the end of the regular season. Fortunately, the team was set to go on the winter break immediately after the match so no other games were impacted.

Not much changed for the club when they began the second half. Both the offense and defense had good and bad moments but only occasionally were they able to align to provide the team with a win. Clark ended up commanding the bulk of the minutes in goal but still gave way to Grainer or Adam Manji from time to time. AIC played poorly to end the campaign but did earn just enough points in the standings to merit a home game in the first round of the conference playoff. However, as if to add insult to injury, the team was unable to use the MassMutual Center and were forced to borrow the Tate Rink from Army. The slight seemed to wake the team up and the Yellow Jackets fought hard in their final D-I postseason run. The team Clark starred in the neutral site match against RIT, making 31 saves and forced overtime. While the Tigers collected the first four shots in the extra session, team captain Casey McDonald extended the program's season with just his second goal of the year.[5]

The reward for the victory was a quarterfinal showdown with Holy Cross, the regular season champion. AIC showed no fear against the Crusaders and built a 3–0 lead in the through the first two periods. Holy Cross managed to get two goals past Clark in the third but the Yellow Jackets were able to carry the day. The rematch began with CHC scoring twice on special teams before American International replied with two markers to tie the match. A goal by the home team late in the third proved to be the game-winner and evened the series at 1-all. In the rubber match, AIC had to come from behind on three separate occasions, using the power-play to their advantage twice. The final time, Lauri Sertti scored his first of the year with just 35 seconds left in regulation. At the time, Clark was on the bench to give the club a 6-on-4 opportunity. Despite the huge boost to the team's morale, they were unable to carry any momentum into overtime and the first shot eluded Clark.[6] The loss ended the team's season as well as their time at the top level of college hockey.

Departures

Player Position Nationality Cause
Alexandros Aslanidis Goaltender  United States Graduate transfer to Lindenwood
Brett Callahan Defenseman  United States Graduation (retired)
Grayson Dietrich Forward  United States Left program (retired)
Cole Hudson Goaltender  United States Left program (retired)
Julius Janhonen Forward  Finland Graduation (signed with HPK)
Logan Jenuwine Forward  United States Graduation (retired)
Brian Kramer Defenseman  United States Graduate transfer to Western Michigan
Darwin Lakoduk Forward  Canada Graduation (retired)
Tomi Leppänen Defenseman  Finland Signed professional contract (Iisalmen Peli-Karhut)
Austen Long Forward  United States Graduation (signed with Fayetteville Marksmen)
Dustin Manz Forward  United States Graduation (signed with Wheeling Nailers)
Akseli Pennanen Forward  Finland Signed professional contract (TUTO Hockey)
Matthew Rickard Defenseman  United States Graduation (retired)
Jake Sacratini Forward  United States Left program (retired)
Casper Söderling Defenseman  Sweden Left program (retired)
Nico Somerville Defenseman  Canada Graduation (retired)
Nils Wallström Goaltender  Sweden Transferred to Merrimack
Blake Wells Forward  Canada Graduation (signed with Utah Grizzlies)

Recruiting

Player Position Nationality Age Notes
Brett Bamber Defenseman  Canada 23 St. Albert, AB; transfer from Alaska Anchorage
Chase Clark Goaltender  United States 22 Williamsville, NY; transfer from Sacred Heart; drafted 183rd overall in 2021
Blake Dangos Defenseman  United States 22 St. Louis, MO; transfer from Sacred Heart
Wilhelm Forsberg Forward  Sweden 20 Sollentuna, SWE
Tobias Bjercke Larsen Defenseman  Norway 20 Oslo, NOR
Adam Manji Goaltender  Canada 21 New Westminster, BC
Justin Mexico Forward  United States 20 Madison Heights, MI
David Posma Defenseman  United States 21 Pomona, NY
Tyler Procious Defenseman  United States 21 Pittsford, NY
Noah Serdachny Forward  Canada 21 Edmonton, AB; transfer from Colorado College
Nikolai Tishkevich Forward  Belarus 20 Minsk, BLR
Nicky Wallace Defenseman  United States 21 Atlantic Highlands, NJ; transfer from Quinnipiac
Danny Weight Forward  Canada 23 Edmonton, AB; graduate transfer from Colorado College
Tanner Willick Defenseman  Canada 20 Saskatoon, SK

Roster

As of July 29, 2024.[7]

No. Nat. Player Class Pos Height Weight DoB Hometown Previous team NHL rights
1 Canada Adam Manji Freshman G 6' 5" (1.96 m) 181 lb (82 kg) 2003-07-10 New Westminster, British Columbia Coquitlam Express (BCHL)
2 United States Tyler Procious Freshman D 5' 10" (1.78 m) 165 lb (75 kg) 2003-05-29 Pittsford, New York Rochester Jr. Americans (NAHL)
3 Canada Tanner Willick Freshman D 5' 9" (1.75 m) 157 lb (71 kg) 2003-12-20 Saskatoon, Saskatchewan Blackfalds Bulldogs (BCHL)
4 United States Blake Dangos Junior D 5' 10" (1.78 m) 174 lb (79 kg) 2002-04-08 St. Louis, Missouri Sacred Heart (AHA)
6 Norway Tobias Bjercke Larsen Freshman D 6' 2" (1.88 m) 207 lb (94 kg) 2004-08-27 Oslo, Norway Färjestad BK J20 (J20 Nationell)
7 United States Danny Weight Graduate F 6' 0" (1.83 m) 185 lb (84 kg) 2001-05-01 Lattingtown, New York Colorado College (NCHC)
8 Canada Brett Bamber Junior D 5' 9" (1.75 m) 175 lb (79 kg) 2001-11-07 St. Albert, Alberta Alaska Anchorage (NCAA)
9 United States Hunter Longhi Sophomore F 5' 8" (1.73 m) 174 lb (79 kg) 2002-04-02 Collinsville, Illinois Minot Minotauros (NAHL)
10 Belarus Nikolai Tishkevich Freshman F 5' 11" (1.8 m) 185 lb (84 kg) 2004-01-09 Minsk, Belarus Aberdeen Wings (NAHL)
11 United States Justin Mexico Freshman F 5' 10" (1.78 m) 165 lb (75 kg) 2003-12-05 Madison Heights, Michigan Lincoln Stars (USHL)
12 United States David Posma Junior D 6' 0" (1.83 m) 170 lb (77 kg) 2003-08-27 Pomona, New York Niagara (AHA)
13 United States Hunter Jones Sophomore F 5' 10" (1.78 m) 190 lb (86 kg) 2002-07-13 Andover, Minnesota Oklahoma Warriors (NAHL)
14 Sweden Douglas Andersson Sophomore F 6' 6" (1.98 m) 209 lb (95 kg) 2002-04-04 Ängelholm, Sweden Kallinge-Ronneby IF (Hockeyettan)
15 United States Nicky Wallace Sophomore D 5' 8" (1.73 m) 165 lb (75 kg) 2003-05-07 Atlantic Highlands, New Jersey Quinnipiac (ECAC)
16 Canada Andrew Amousse Sophomore F 6' 3" (1.91 m) 215 lb (98 kg) 2001-07-16 Laval, Quebec Victoria Grizzlies (BCHL)
17 Sweden Oscar Geschwind Senior F 6' 0" (1.83 m) 195 lb (88 kg) 2001-02-24 Hällefors, Sweden Northern Michigan (CCHA)
19 Canada Jordan Biro Graduate F 5' 8" (1.73 m) 160 lb (73 kg) 2000-08-10 Sherwood Park, Alberta Colorado College (NCHC)
21 United States John Lundy Junior F 5' 9" (1.75 m) 163 lb (74 kg) 2001-04-27 Brooklyn, New York Jamestown Rebels (NAHL)
22 Russia Timofei Khokhlachev Junior F 6' 4" (1.93 m) 220 lb (100 kg) 2001-11-06 Moscow, Russia Shreveport Mudbugs (NAHL)
23 Sweden Theo Angesved Sophomore D 5' 11" (1.8 m) 172 lb (78 kg) 2003-06-23 Växjö, Sweden Borås HC (Hockeyettan)
24 Sweden Wilhelm Forsberg Freshman F 6' 3" (1.91 m) 190 lb (86 kg) 2004-04-26 Sollentuna, Sweden Djurgårdens IF J20 (J20 Nationell)
25 Sweden Alexander Malinowski Junior F 5' 11" (1.8 m) 185 lb (84 kg) 2001-02-07 Linköping, Sweden Fairbanks Ice Dogs (NAHL)
26 United States Hunter McCurdy Junior D 6' 1" (1.85 m) 220 lb (100 kg) 2001-08-09 Mokena, Illinois Danbury Jr. Hat Tricks (NAHL)
27 Canada Josh Barnes Junior F 5' 10" (1.78 m) 175 lb (79 kg) 2002-09-27 Cornwall, Ontario Des Moines Buccaneers (USHL)
28 Sweden Alfred Lindberg Sophomore F 5' 11" (1.8 m) 185 lb (84 kg) 2002-01-28 Hallsberg, Sweden New Mexico Ice Wolves (NAHL)
29 Canada Noah Serdachny Junior F 6' 1" (1.85 m) 190 lb (86 kg) 2003-03-09 Edmonton, Alberta Colorado College (NCHC)
33 United States Peyton Grainer Sophomore G 6' 1" (1.85 m) 179 lb (81 kg) 2002-03-12 Detroit, Michigan Jersey Hitmen (NCDC)
34 United States Chase Clark Junior G 6' 6" (1.98 m) 208 lb (94 kg) 2002-04-08 Williamsville, New York Sacred Heart (AHA) WSH, 183rd overall 2021
37 Sweden Evan Stella (C) Senior D 5' 11" (1.8 m) 180 lb (82 kg) 2001-05-11 Karlstad, Sweden Dubuque Fighting Saints (USHL)
39 Canada Dario Beljo Sophomore F 6' 3" (1.91 m) 190 lb (86 kg) 2002-08-15 Greater Sudbury, Ontario Brooks Bandits (AJHL)
55 Canada Brett Rylance Junior F 5' 9" (1.75 m) 167 lb (76 kg) 2001-08-03 Edmonton, Alberta Chilliwack Chiefs (BCHL)
61 Canada Casey McDonald (C) Junior F 6' 1" (1.85 m) 187 lb (85 kg) 2001-05-10 Plenty, Saskatchewan Penticton Vees (BCHL)

Standings

Conference record Overall record
GP W L T OW OL SW PTS GF GA GP W L T GF GA
Holy Cross 26 19 5 2 4 0 1 56 92 47 40 24 14 2 130 94
Sacred Heart 26 16 7 3 1 1 2 53 80 64 39 21 13 5 118 101
#19 Bentley * 26 16 9 1 1 2 1 51 79 57 40 23 15 2 115 83
Niagara 26 15 9 2 3 3 1 48 90 70 37 18 16 3 124 109
Army 26 14 10 2 2 0 2 44 84 74 38 16 20 2 105 117
Canisius 26 11 13 2 0 3 0 38 84 79 37 12 23 2 98 120
Air Force 26 11 13 2 2 3 1 37 59 58 40 16 21 3 86 112
26 9 16 1 0 3 0 31 63 77 38 13 23 2 92 117
RIT 26 9 15 2 2 0 1 28 65 102 35 10 23 2 82 133
Robert Morris 26 7 15 4 1 2 1 27 72 86 35 10 20 5 95 115
Mercyhurst 26 4 19 3 1 0 2 16 59 113 35 4 27 4 77 150
Championship: March 22, 2025
† indicates conference regular season champion (DeGregorio Trophy)
* indicates conference tournament champion (Riley Trophy)
Rankings: USCHO.com Top 20 Poll

Schedule and results

Date Time Opponent# Rank# Site TV Decision Result Attendance Record
Regular Season
October 5 7:00 pm at #12 Maine* Alfond ArenaOrono, Maine ESPN+ Clark L 0–6  5,043 0–1–0
October 11 7:00 pm at Ohio State* Value City ArenaColumbus, Ohio   Clark T 3–3 OT 2,623 0–1–1
October 12 5:00 pm at Ohio State* Value City ArenaColumbus, Ohio   Grainer L 2–5  2,464 0–2–1
October 18 7:00 pm at #2 Boston College* Conte ForumChestnut Hill, Massachusetts ESPN+ Grainer L 0–5  7,224 0–3–1
October 25 1:00 pm Air Force MassMutual CenterSpringfield, Massachusetts FloHockey Clark L 1–2  212 0–4–1 (0–1–0)
October 26 1:00 pm Air Force MassMutual CenterSpringfield, Massachusetts FloHockey Clark W 4–2  238 1–4–1 (1–1–0)
November 2 1:00 pm #17 Massachusetts* MassMutual CenterSpringfield, Massachusetts FloHockey Clark L 3–4  678 1–5–1
November 7 7:00 pm at Holy Cross Hart CenterWorcester, Massachusetts FloHockey Grainer L 2–5  661 1–6–1 (1–2–0)
November 8 7:00 pm at Holy Cross Hart CenterWorcester, Massachusetts FloHockey, NESN+ Manji W 3–2  814 2–6–1 (2–2–0)
November 15 7:00 pm at Bentley Bentley ArenaWaltham, Massachusetts FloHockey Grainer L 2–5  1,050 2–7–1 (2–3–0)
November 16 6:00 pm at Bentley Bentley ArenaWaltham, Massachusetts FloHockey Grainer L 0–3  850 2–8–1 (2–4–0)
November 19 7:00 pm at Stonehill* Bridgewater Ice ArenaBridgewater, Massachusetts NEC Front Row Grainer W 3–0  76 3–8–1
November 23 1:00 pm Niagara MassMutual CenterSpringfield, Massachusetts FloHockey Grainer L 1–2  3–9–1 (2–5–0)
November 24 3:00 pm Niagara MassMutual CenterSpringfield, Massachusetts FloHockey Manji W 5–2  259 4–9–1 (3–5–0)
November 29 5:00 pm at Robert Morris Clearview ArenaMoon Township, Pennsylvania FloHockey Clark L 1–4  652 4–10–1 (3–6–0)
November 30 5:00 pm at Robert Morris Clearview ArenaMoon Township, Pennsylvania FloHockey Clark W 4–2  787 5–10–1 (4–6–0)
December 6 1:00 pm Holy Cross MassMutual CenterSpringfield, Massachusetts FloHockey Clark L 0–1 OT 362 5–11–1 (4–7–0)
December 28 1:00 pm Sacred Heart MassMutual CenterSpringfield, Massachusetts FloHockey Clark L 1–4  187 5–12–1 (4–8–0)
December 29 4:00 pm at #18 Quinnipiac* M&T Bank ArenaHamden, Connecticut ESPN+ Clark L 5–6  3,111 5–13–1
January 3 7:00 pm at Stonehill* Bridgewater Ice ArenaBridgewater, Massachusetts NEC Front Row Grainer W 3–1  107 6–13–1
January 7 7:00 pm Army MassMutual CenterSpringfield, Massachusetts FloHockey Clark W 8–2  357 7–13–1 (5–8–0)
January 17 7:00 pm at Sacred Heart Martire Family ArenaFairfield, Connecticut FloHockey Clark L 2–5  2,566 7–14–1 (5–9–0)
January 18 7:00 pm at Sacred Heart Martire Family ArenaFairfield, Connecticut FloHockey Clark L 3–6  3,112 7–15–1 (5–10–0)
January 21 7:00 pm Bentley MassMutual CenterSpringfield, Massachusetts FloHockey Grainer L 1–6  258 7–16–1 (5–11–0)
January 24 1:00 pm Canisius MassMutual CenterSpringfield, Massachusetts FloHockey Clark L 2–4  108 7–17–1 (5–12–0)
January 25 5:00 pm Canisius MassMutual CenterSpringfield, Massachusetts FloHockey Clark W 3–2  287 8–17–1 (6–12–0)
February 7 7:00 pm at Mercyhurst Mercyhurst Ice CenterErie, Pennsylvania FloHockey Clark W 5–0  1,286 9–17–1 (7–12–0)
February 8 4:00 pm at Mercyhurst Mercyhurst Ice CenterErie, Pennsylvania FloHockey Clark W 4–1  1,307 10–17–1 (8–12–0)
February 14 7:05 pm at RIT Gene Polisseni CenterHenrietta, New York FloHockey Clark L 0–3  2,517 10–18–1 (8–13–0)
February 15 7:05 pm at RIT Gene Polisseni CenterHenrietta, New York FloHockey Clark T 3–3 SOL 2,617 10–18–2 (8–13–1)
February 18 7:00 pm Sacred Heart MassMutual CenterSpringfield, Massachusetts FloHockey Grainer L 2–3  151 10–19–2 (8–14–1)
February 21 7:00 pm Army MassMutual CenterSpringfield, Massachusetts FloHockey Clark W 3–2  497 11–19–2 (9–14–1)
February 22 4:00 pm at Army Tate RinkWest Point, New York FloHockey Clark L 2–3  2,604 11–20–2 (9–15–1)
February 24 7:00 pm at Holy Cross Hart CenterWorcester, Massachusetts FloHockey Manji L 1–3  826 11–21–2 (9–16–1)
Atlantic Hockey America Tournament
February 28 6:05 pm vs. RIT* Tate RinkWest Point, New York (AHA First Round) FloHockey Clark W 2–1 OT 171 12–21–2
March 7 7:00 pm at #20т Holy Cross* Hart CenterWorcester, Massachusetts (AHA Quarterfinal Game 1) FloHockey Clark W 3–2  614 13–21–2
March 8 7:00 pm at #20т Holy Cross* Hart CenterWorcester, Massachusetts (AHA Quarterfinal Game 2) FloHockey Clark L 2–3  678 13–22–2
March 9 5:00 pm at #20т Holy Cross* Hart CenterWorcester, Massachusetts (AHA Quarterfinal Game 3) FloHockey Clark L 3–4 OT 852 13–23–2
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from USCHO.com Poll. All times are in Eastern Time.
Source:[8]

Scoring statistics

Name Position Games Goals Assists Points PIM
Josh Barnes C 38 14 10 24 6
Dario Beljo C 30 11 9 20 10
John Lundy F 37 10 10 20 10
Timofei Khokhlachev LW 32 8 10 18 50
Brett Bamber D 35 6 12 18 14
Noah Serdachny F 37 4 12 16 10
Justin Mexico F 32 3 12 15 12
Brett Rylance C/W 35 3 10 13 12
Danny Weight C 34 5 7 12 37
Oscar Geschwind C 36 5 7 12 4
Jordan Biro C 36 3 9 12 6
Alfred Lindberg C 33 7 4 11 4
David Posma D 36 2 7 9 51
Alexander Malinowski LW/RW 25 0 8 8 6
Casey McDonald F 27 3 4 7 25
Evan Stella D 35 1 6 7 16
Lauri Sertti D 37 1 6 7 6
Wilhelm Forsberg RW 20 1 5 6 6
Tyler Procious D 32 1 5 6 8
Hunter Longhi LW 13 2 2 4 4
Blake Dangos D 33 1 2 3 18
Theo Angesved D 12 1 1 2 4
Tobias Bjercke Larsen D 18 0 2 2 10
Adam Manji G 7 0 1 1 0
Douglas Andersson LW 8 0 1 1 2
Chase Clark G 25 0 1 1 5
Joey LoVullo G 1 0 0 0 0
Nikolai Tishkevich F 1 0 0 0 0
Nicky Wallace D 1 0 0 0 0
Hunter McCurdy D 1 0 0 0 0
Hunter Jones F 5 0 0 0 0
Tanner Willick D 7 0 0 0 1
Peyton Grainer G 12 0 0 0 0
Total 92 162 254 348

[9]

Goaltending statistics

Name Games Minutes Wins Losses Ties Goals against Saves Shutouts SV % GAA
Joey LoVullo 1 1:41 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.00
Adam Manji 10 266:20 2 1 0 12 140 0 .921 2.70
Chase Clark 25 1459:01 9 14 2 68 715 1 .913 2.80
Alexandros Aslanidis 14 545:01 2 8 0 29 241 1 .893 3.19
Empty Net - 29:28 - - - 7 - - - -
Total 38 2301:31 13 23 2 116 1096 2 .903 2.73

Rankings

Poll Week
Pre 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 (Final)
USCHO.com NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR
USA Hockey NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR

Note: USCHO did not release a poll in week 12 or 26.[10]
Note: USA Hockey did not release a poll in week 12.

Awards and honors

Player Award Ref
Evan Stella All-Atlantic Hockey America Third Team [11]

References

  1. ^ "USCHO Division I Men's Poll". USCHO. Retrieved March 15, 2025.
  2. ^ "American International to reclassify as Division II beginning with 2025-26 college hockey season". USCHO. November 12, 2024. Retrieved November 12, 2024.
  3. ^ "Men's Division I Hockey Attendance: 2023-2024". USCHO. Retrieved November 12, 2024.
  4. ^ "Gameday". USCHO. December 7, 2024. Retrieved March 15, 2025.
  5. ^ "AIC Survives Elimination With Dramatic OT Winning Goal From Captain Casey McDonald". FloHockey. March 1, 2025. Retrieved March 15, 2025.
  6. ^ "Holy Cross Eliminates AIC With Stunning Goal In First Minute Of Overtime In Quarterfinal Game 3". YouTube. Retrieved March 15, 2025.
  7. ^ "2024-25 Ice Hockey Roster". American International Yellow Jackets. Retrieved July 29, 2024.
  8. ^ "American 2024-25 Men's Ice Hockey Schedule". AIC Yellow Jackets. Retrieved August 13, 2022.
  9. ^ "American International College 2024-2025 Skater Stats". Elite Prospects. Retrieved June 20, 2020.
  10. ^ "USCHO Division I Men's Poll". USCHO.com. Retrieved November 26, 2019.
  11. ^ "Atlantic Hockey America Announces 2024-25 Men's All-Conference Teams". atlantichockeyamerica.com. March 11, 2025. Retrieved March 11, 2025.