No. 2 Middle Tennessee club hockey (21-6, 20-2 ACHA) clinched the No. 2 seed in the ACHA Division III national tournament, returning for the second consecutive season.
After falling short of a national title a season ago, the Blue Raiders return to the national stage with a roster full of offensive firepower and momentum off a decisive victory at Bridgestone Arena.
“We’re going to focus on ourselves and play our best,” MTSU head coach JJ Murray said. “The second we start worrying about other teams, that’s when we let off the throttle.”
The Blue Raiders are one of 16 teams competing in St. Louis for the ACHA Division III crown. Middle Tennessee first competes in pool play, playing three games against different teams in three days for a chance to advance to the knockout stage of the tournament.
“Group play is huge,” MTSU goaltender Ayden Kopec said. “Even though it’s not single elimination, we’re coming into it like it is. You want to be in control of your fate, not leave it up to other teams.”
One team from each pool advances to the final four of the bracket, where the stage moves to single-elimination games for a spot in the national championship game.
The Blue Raiders enter pool play as the No. 2 overall seed and will play Grand Valley State University, Northwood University, and Saint Vincent University, with the winner advancing to the Frozen Four.
March 18, Saint Vincent
Middle Tennessee’s first game in St. Louis is against the College Hockey East champion Saint Vincent Polar Bearcats. The Bearcats step onto the national stage as no strangers to winning, having won the past three consecutive CHE conference championships.
Saint Vincent finished the season with a 19-5 record, going 8-2 over its past 10 games. The Bearcats defeated Pitt Johnstown 3-2, clinching the CHE title.
SVU’s sustained success comes on the back of a suffocating defense. In 24 games this season, the Bearcats allowed 1.75 goals per game. Backstopping the defenseman is goaltender Vinny Amatucci, the 6 ‘2 netminder, who has won 14-of-18 starts behind a .947 save percentage.
March 19, Northwood
The first of two teams from the Michigan Collegiate Hockey Conference that the Blue Raiders face is the Northwood Timberwolves. Northwood finished the season with a 19-7-1 record and a loss to the University of Michigan in the MCHC playoff quarterfinals.
The Timberwolves boast a strong offense that scores four goals per game from multiple forwards. NU has seven forwards with 20 or more points, with forward Aidan French leading the pack with 27.
Northwood relies on goaltender Aidan Schultz, who has played all but two games this season. Schultz resembles a brick wall in net, posting a save percentage of .942 and allowing 1.92 goals per game.
The key to MTSU’s game against the Timberwolves is beating Schultz using traffic in front of the net to block the netminder’s vision.
March 20, Grand Valley State
The Lakers come into the tournament as the No. 7 overall seed. Grand Valley finished the 2025-2026 season with an 18-5-3 record and a 5-4 shootout victory over No. 1 seed Calvin University earlier in the season.
Grand Valley’s postseason run in the MCHC postseason ended in the quarterfinals against Oakland University. Leading the charge for the Lakers is junior winger Jacob Lewis, who notched 30 points this season, including 19 goals and 11 assists.
GVSU has two main goaltenders who split reps during weekends. Bobby Masters and Ryan Price both posted a save percentage over .900 in at least 11 starts. The two netminders, along with the team’s core of defensemen, limit opposing offenses to just over two goals per game.
Keys to the tournament
Defense is the key in any sport, especially in the postseason. The Blue Raiders saw this firsthand in the win over Vanderbilt University. MTSU shut down the Commodores’ offense, limiting shots toward the net.
“Team defense is key,” Murray said. “It’s not just the defensemen. It’s all three forwards and the goalies playing sound defense. If we take care of our zone, the offense will come.”
Middle Tennessee’s offense had a strong regular season, averaging over seven goals a game in conference play. In the College Hockey South quarterfinal match with the University of Central Florida, the Blue Raiders tallied nine goals before being held to just two in the semifinal matchup against the University of Tampa.
Following the early postseason loss in the conference tournament, Middle Tennessee mixed up the offensive lines based on player feedback after a morning practice, Murray said.
The tweaked lineups put on a show in the ‘Battle at the Stone,’ tallying eight goals behind two from forward Tommy Chunchukov.
“I think it’s [the lines] something we’re going to stick with,” Murray said. “It worked out very well.”
The Blue Raiders’ Achilles’ heel this season has been stranding players in the penalty box. Middle Tennessee averages 12 penalty minutes per game. Staying out of the box, especially in physical playoff games late in pool play, will be a deciding factor if MTSU wants to make a deep run.
“This year it’s a business trip,” Kopec said. “We’re honored to represent our school…”
The Blue Raiders open pool play against Saint Vincent at 5 p.m. CDT on Wednesday, followed by Northwood on Thursday at 8:15 p.m. CDT and Grand Valley State on Friday at 8 p.m. CDT. All games of the ACHA tournament will be held at the Centene Community Ice Center & Maryville University Hockey Center. All games can be streamed on FloHockey.
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