Crookston, Minn. - The Golden Eagles season came to a close earlier than they had hoped at the Central Regional Tournament. However, this season was one of the best in program history. The Golden Eagles put together a 25-5-2 record, a 12-3-1 conference record, had several members on All-Conference teams, two on the WCCHA All-Tournament team, one on an All-Region team and had the WCCHA Coach of the Year, made it to the Conference Championship, and were ranked #5 in the Central Region, their highest ranking in program history. Several records were broken, a number of players had career years, and a few freshmen made names for themselves.
The Golden Eagles have plenty to be proud of this season and much to look forward to in the fall. The roster has tons of talent returning for the next season, despite losing some stars. Among those departing are Tyler Zahradka (Sr., F, Grand Forks, N.D.) who scored 21 goals and 21 assists in 2023-24, Jake Huska (Sr., D, Preeceville, Saskatchewan) who had 7 goals and 25 assists in 2023-24, Dylan Borseth (R-Sr., F, Williston, N.D.) who put up nine goals and eight assists in 2023-24, Zach Larson (Sr., D, Grand Forks, N.D.) who had eight goals and 20 assists in 2023-24, Gunner Ferrier (Sr., D, Baudette, Minn.) with four goals and 12 assists in 2023-24, and Jake Sumner (Sr., G, Alta Loma, Calif.) who had been with the program since it started in 2020 and was the only goalie on the roster at the time.
There will be five of the top six scorers returning to the roster in 2024-25, with Anthony Foster (Fr., F, Warroad, Minn.) who tallied 15 goals and 38 assists in 2023-24, Logan Syrup (Jr., F, Park River, N.D.) who had 24 goals and 26 assists in 2023-24, Jackson Fuller (Jr., F, Bloomington, Minn.) who scored 16 goals and 28 assists in 2023-24, Fox Dodds (Jr., F, Watford City, N.D.) with 24 goals and 19 assists in 2023-24, and Nathan Ayotte (Fr., F, St. Jean Baptiste, Manitoba) who put up 22 goals and 14 assists in 2023-24.
The Golden Eagles will also see the return of a three-headed monster in net with Adam Goody (Fr., G, Airdrie, Alberta), Wyatt Olsonawski (So., G, Hallock, Minn.), Jared Aamold (Jr., G, Breckenridge, Minn.) coming off of incredible seasons. Adam Goody had a season where he put up incredible numbers, having a 2.16 goals against average, a .922 save percentage and a record of 12-2-1-. Wyatt Olsonawski had a great sophomore year where he held a 2.31 goals against average, a .915 save percentage and a record of 9-1-1. Jared Aamold had his second best season with the Golden Eagles, putting up a 2.85 goals against average, .916 save percentage, and a 4-1-0 record.
There were some major wins this season for the Golden Eagles. On November 10th the Golden Eagles would face off against St. Thomas to open their season series against the Tommies in Crookston. The game was intense and would be a preview for how the next two matchups would go. In all three games between the Tommies and Golden Eagles, the game ended 3-2. This game featured a two goal performance from Jackson Fuller, a goal and an assist from Jake Huska, two assist nights from Tyler Zahradka and Anthony Foster, and 43 saves on 45 shots by Wyatt Olsonawski.
Another big win was the first game of the WCCHA Tournament vs the University of Minnesota. The Golden Eagles would take that game by a final score of 4-1. Tristan Morneault (Sr., F, Dieppe, New Brunswick) had two assists, Fox Dodds had a goal and two assists, Anthony Foster had two goals and an assist, and Adam Goody stopped 18 of 19 shots.
The biggest win of the season was the second round of the WCCHA Tournament as the Golden Eagles took down the University of Wisconsin Badgers 2-0. The Badgers entered the tournament as the #1 seed, with the Golden Eagles entering as the #4 seed. Dalston Kelly (Fr., F, Grafton, N.D.) would score the game winning goal, Logan Syrup would have two assists, and Adam Goody had a 49 save shutout.
Overall, this was a season to remember for the Golden Eagles. It also showed that the Golden Eagles have high hopes and expectations entering this fall. New names will be added to the roster, with old ones leaving. The Golden Eagles have a very talented core of players despite their losses and hope that next year is the year that they head to the National Tournament.
