With a year of direction from second-year head coach Jennifer Kranz under its belt, the Saint Benedict hockey team takes the ice this winter with something to prove.
 
Recently picked 10th in the MIAC preseason coaches' poll, the Blazers took their lumps last season, including a skid to close the year where they lost 9-of-11. They finished with a 5-17-3 record, and a 3-12-3 mark in the MIAC to tie for ninth place. Coach Kranz knows they have the ability to move up in the standings this season and they will lean on their upperclassmen to do so.
 
“We'll look to our returners, our senior class, to add leadership with their experience,” Kranz said. “And a couple of our sophomores and juniors too, to add some more depth, not only in the offense end of the ice but also in the defensive end.”
 
Leading the charge this season will be a quartet of seniors, who will not only attempt to shoulder the scoring load and make up for lost points, but also must lead a team that has just nine total juniors and seniors, but 17 combined first-years and sophomores.
 
Ashley Olson returns for her senior season with 16 career points, after notching six as a junior on three goals and three assists. Catherine Pollock has 15 points to her credit, and makes the move up to forward this season from her previous spot on the blue line. Anchoring the defense with be captain Alex Carlson and fellow senior Mara Kohl, rounding out the Blazers' senior class.
 
The rookie class is a talented one, and they will have to be early as they help replace three of the Blazers' top four scorers from a year ago. Graduated are Kerri Graske's team leading eight goals, eight assists and 16 points. Also gone are 10 points (5G/5A) from Amie Ernst and nine (3G/9A) from Brenna Gould.
 
“I think all the first-years that we have coming in come from pretty decent programs and they're used to making the playoffs and they understand what it's like to have tough string of games and a tough schedule,” Kranz said.  “Our first-years are ready to get things going right now, and they're all just so excited about starting that if we can rein that in and channel that excitement into being productive and not into too many nerves, then I think we should start out pretty good here.”
 
Megan Brettingen will enter the season as the leading returning scorer, after ranking second on the team as a first-year with 12 points on four goals and eight assists. Juniors Allyson Nielsen and Christine Borderson are also among the top returning scorers entering their junior seasons, after scoring nine (3G/6A) and eight (4G.4A) points respectively last year.
 
Scoring goals will be at a premium this winter, as the Blazers averaged just over two a game in conference play last season, ranking seventh in the MIAC. After finding the net four times in their season opening 4-2 win over Marian, they were held to two goals or less in 15 games throughout the rest of the season.
 
One key to quickly turning around the Blazers' fortunes will be their record in one-goal games. The Blazers lost seven games by a single goal last season, with six coming in MIAC action. Just turning around those results would put them right in the mix for a playoff spot, but Coach Kranz knows the schedule does them no favors.
 
“It's kind of a different world here in the MIAC, you only see a team twice and it's in the same weekend, so you can't really look to getting experience in the first half of the season. Every weekend counts, you don't really have a chance to work yourself into having your younger kids get experience in the first half and then look to make a surge in the second half. You really have to get points every weekend, and I think that that's the most important thing, just recognizing that we can't take one weekend off. There were a few weekends that we dropped four points and we shouldn't have dropped points, and ultimately that ends up hurting us in the end.”
 
Keeping the opposition out of the net will be paramount as well, as the Blazers look to rise in the standings. Kaitlyn Rolando and Jenna Traut return between the pipes after sharing the load a year ago. The competition between the two, as well as a pair of first-years, should bring out the best in each as CSB looks to solidify its position at goaltender.
 
“It will be interesting to see now that Kaitlin is healthy and Jenna as a year of experience under her belt. It will be fun to see them push each other and I think that that's kind of a perfect situation for us,” Kranz said. “It will be exciting to see how things shake out and see the competition between them. It will make my job tough as a coach to make the decision on who plays every night, but it's ultimately going to be the best thing for the team to have good competition back there and keep everybody honest.”
 
The right blend of the new faces and new talent with the returning experience will tell the story for the red and white this winter, as the Blazers look to make their move in the MIAC.