College Hockey

College Hockey South Tournament in Coral Springs This Weekend

Published

1 month ago

February 20, 2025

The Miami Hurricanes won the DIII College Hockey South title in 2024. // Photo courtesy @CollegeHkySouth

College hockey is back in South Florida, with the Panthers IceDen in Coral Springs hosting the College Hockey South Division II and III tournament.

Teams from Miami, Florida, Florida State, and Florida Atlantic will be vying for a trip to the national tournament in Jacksonville.

Division III features two “play-in” games.

The top five teams from the South (Florida) and North (the rest of CHS) “divisions” advanced to the playoffs.

Here is a look at the games.

PLAY-IN GAME 1 – S4 FIT vs. N5 KENNESAW STATE; Tonight, 7

The FIT Panthers have enjoyed a bounceback season, completing an 11-6-0 (8-6-0 conference) season by winning five straight.

The Panthers are led by Derek Morgia who has 18 goals and 40 points in just 17 games. Their scoring doesn’t stop there, with four other players reaching double digits.

It is also worth noting that they are one of the few co-ed teams in College Hockey South, with forward Samantha Colliton on the team for a second season. Keegan Groom and Justin Howerter have split time in net, with nearly identical records. They have a tall task to win the tournament, but could make some noise if they win their opener.

PLAY-IN GAME 2 – N4 ALABAMA vs. MIAMI; Tonight, 9:45

The Frozen Tide finished with a 9-7-2 (7-4-1) record. The team can score, winning their final regular season series over Austin Peay by a combined 19-4.

Earlier this season, they dropped a combined 36 goals in two games against Alabama-Birmingham. Despite this, only two scorers are in double digits this season, Rhys Gulotta (18) and Joah Tratar (10), but 22 total players have at least one goal this season.

Miami has used its DIII team as a development team, and clinched a playoff spot despite falling twice (4-1 and 8-0) to the University of Florida. Miami finished 4-11-3 (4-8-1).

While Miami has seen most of their players bounce back and forth this season, their leading regular scorer is Jonathan Naas, with 13 goals and 19 points in 12 DIII games. Their three goalies played across both the DIII and DII teams, but Jamie Brooks got the bulk of the DIII work, going 2-7-2 with a 4.18 GAA.

The Hurricanes have effectively gutted most of the team to focus on DII success, which could give Alabama an edge in the Thursday night matchup.

GAME 3: S2 FSU vs. N3 GEORGIA; Friday, 12:30 p.m.

The Seminoles ended the season 13-2-2 (11-2-2), completing a turnaround from a 4-win season. Alexander Jensen (17-8-25) and Ryan Chambre (14-11-25) lead the team in scoring, with Matthew Silliman taking the bulk of the work in net, going 10-2-2 with an impressive 2.90 GAA.

While the Seminoles did not punch a ticket to Nationals, they are an opponent to watch in this tournament.

The Bulldogs scored in double digits five times in the 2024-25 season, finishing 10-5-0 (9-5-0). Tyler Casey led the team with 19 goals and 35 points in just 15 games, nearly quadrupling his scoring from 2023-24. Taveon Dees started all but 2 games for the Bulldogs, going 9-4-0 with a 2.85 GAA. This will be a matchup worth watching Friday.

GAME 4: N2 TENNESSEE vs. S3 FLORIDA; Friday, 3:15 p.m.

The Volunteers are one of just two CHS DIII teams to advance to the national tournament. They finished 16-3-1, but 13-3-1 in conference, which bumped them from 1st to second in the North Division. Tennessee has four players in double digit scoring, led by Dillon Segal’s 15 goals and 26 points. Their trio of goalies all finished with a 2.70 GAA or lower, with all three also over .900 in save percentage.

The Gators had a respectable season in their own right, going 9-7-0, with all games registered in their conference. Owen Ferenc led the team with 24 points, but Kelly Bartlett finished with 9 goals to lead the team. David Stenzel started all but one game, going 8-7-0 with a 3.40 GAA. Florida will need to rely on their depth scoring to earn a win Friday.

N1: SOUTH CAROLINA

The Gamecocks added a second team in 2024, and went 15-0-1 clinching a spot in AAU Nationals. Their one “blemish” was a 5-5 tie against ACCHL foe North Carolina Charlotte.

South Carolina is led by three 10-goal scorers; Sean Miller, Jared Kaliberda, and Owen Newnam. 9 goal scorer Matthew Baxter added 14 assists to lead the team with 23 points. Drew Durdov and Silas Dobbs split the goaltending duties, with Durdov finishing with a 1.43 GAA and .938 save percentage.

The Gamecocks will face the winner of FIT-Kennesaw State on Friday.

S1: FLORIDA ATLANTIC UNIVERSITY

The Owls have been hovering around the top of the league all year, their first as a DIII program (in addition to their DII program that ended up as national runners up in 2024).

They finished the season 2nd overall, going 15-5-0, with just one of the wins not counting in the conference standings. Christian Cuccia ended the season with an incredible 67 points (20-42) in just 20 games.

The next closest scorer is Ayden Georgiano with 39 points (22-17), but in only 14 appearances. Matthew McMillin and Seth Fisher both appeared in 10 games for the Owls, each earning 7 wins, but they have also been the team’s achilles heal, both finishing with a GAA over 3, and McMillin leading the team in save percentage with just .900.

Still, the Owls can outscore anyone in the tournament. They will face the winner of Alabama-Miami on Friday.

Justin’s Prediction: South Carolina wins the Pictsweet Cup over Tennessee.