By Jon Brooks Omaha Hockey’s Griffin and Tanner Ludtke are the subject of the season debut of “Inside the NCHC” (the conference’s online docuseries). The brothers have garnered quite a bit of attention this season now that Tanner (a freshman) has joined Griffin (a sophomore) on the Maverick roster for the 2023-24 campaign. There have been some notable siblings who have played for UNO since the program’s inaugural outing in the 1997-98 season. The earliest to come to mind are Josh (one of the original Mavericks) and Bryce Lampman. The siblings (Josh was a forward; Bryce was a defenseman) never took the ice at the same time for Omaha (one season separated their tenures with UNO). In that same era, Christian Graham (also an original Maverick) and his brother David played for UNO. Two seasons separated their tenures as Mavericks. In recent years, we had the Megna brothers. Jayson (a forward) and Jaycob (a defenseman) played together for a single season (the 2011-12 season, before Jayson went pro). We almost had another sibling pair during the “Dean Blais Era” with forwards Terry and Alex Broadhurst. Alex committed to the Mavericks, but never made it to Omaha. Terry left Omaha after his junior season to play professional hockey (eventually reuniting with his brother at the Rockford IceHogs of the AHL in 2013). Having these familial bonds is a special thing to see in collegiate hockey. On this week’s episode of the Mavpuckcast, Bridget and I discussed the lauded Buium brothers at Denver this season (Omaha fans will get to see Shai and Zeev Buium play when the Pioneers roll into Baxter Arena for the series on Jan. 19-20). In the case of the Ludtkes (who hail from Lakeville, MN), they say their family is close (their parents have only missed a handful of their games over the years). We happened to sit by a relative of Tanner and Griffin at the Desert Hockey Classic in Arizona two weeks ago, and the pride the family shares in the brothers’ accomplishments was evident during Omaha’s game against Arizona St. on Jan. 6. The Ludtke brothers have also launched a special line of “Ludtke Bros.” merchandise — a portion of the sales benefits The Hope Center for Kids. As watchers of this program, it will be interesting to see how the brothers do the rest of this season, and seasons ahead with Omaha. It is exciting to see them both sporting the crimson-and-black for UNO this season. Watch “Inside the NCHC: The Ludtke Brothers” on the NCHC YouTube channel below:
By Jon Brooks UNO Hockey senior forward Brock Bremer puts away the #2 play in the NCHC Top 5 Plays of the Week – Jan. 16, 2024. Bremer’s goal came at a critical juncture in the Jan. 12 game against North Dakota at Ralph Engelstad Arena. At the 16:06 mark in the second period, Bremer was streaking down the ice when junior forward Ty Mueller sent a no look, behind-the-back pass Bremer’s direction (Mueller was named the NCHC Forward of the Week). Bremer skated the puck up the slot and fired high on UND goalie Ludvig Persson, knotting the score at 3-3. The goal (scored at 16:03 in the period) helped the Mavericks to a 5-4 overtime win against the Fighting Hawks. The native of Forest Lake, Minnesota, currently has 3 goals and 4 assists for Omaha this season. >> Bremer’s performance is also discussed on this week’s episode of the #mavpuckcast — click here to view the episode.
By Jon Brooks Omaha Hockey junior forward Ty Mueller is the “Forward of the Week” in the KJ Branding NCHC Players of the Week: Jan. 9-14, 2024. Mueller tallied four points (1 goal, 4 assists) in the weekend series against North Dakota on Jan. 12-13 in Grand Forks. The native of Cochrane, Alberta, had a highlight reel, behind-the-back pass that keyed a goal by senior forward Brock Bremer during the Jan. 12 game against the Fighting Hawks (featured in the NCHC Top 5 Plays of the Week).
He also won 19-of-33 face-offs during the series. Mueller currently leads the Mavericks with 17 points (7 goals, 10 assists) in the 2023-24 campaign. >> Mueller’s performance in the North Dakota series is discussed on this week’s episode of the #mavpuckcast — click here to view episode. Read the full NCHC release: KJ Branding NCHC Players of the Week: Jan. 9-14, 2024 This week’s episode of the #mavpuckcast:
On this episode of the #mavpuckcast... Jon and Bridget breakdown the Omaha Maverick Hockey team’s series at North Dakota — including their picks for “Player of the Week.” They discuss the recently announced changed to the National Collegiate Hockey Conference’s (NCHC) Frozen Faceoff playoff format coming in 2025 and 2026. They wrap up the episode with their predictions and analysis for the upcoming series against the Denver Pioneers at Baxter Arena. Video version: Audio-only versions:
By Jon Brooks UNO Maverick Hockey sophomore goalie Simon Latkoczy snags the #5 play in the NCHC Top 5 Plays of the Week – Jan. 9, 2024. Latkoczy’s featured save came at the 16:56 mark in the 3rd period of the Jan. 6 game at Arizona St. in the Desert Hockey Classic. Latkoczy stopped an initial shot by ASU freshman defenseman Anthony Dowd, then he shifted to make a pad save on the rebound, thwarting Sun Devil junior forward Jackson Niedermayer’s attempt (Niedermayer is the son of NHL Hall of Famer Scott Niedermayer). The native of Trencin, Slovakia, had 33 saves in the game against Arizona St. Omaha went on to lose the contest 2-1 in overtime. Latkoczy currently has a 2.44 goals against average and a .911 save percentage this season for the Mavericks. >> Latkoczy’s performance during the Desert Hockey Classic is also discussed on this week’s episode of the #mavpuckcast — click here to view this week’s episode.
On this episode of the #mavpuckcast... Jason and Jon look at the Omaha Maverick Hockey team’s recent trip to Tempe, AZ, for Arizona State’s Desert Hockey Classic holiday tournament — includes their picks for “Player of the Week.” They look at a number of interesting Things You Missed at Mullet Arena (Jason, Jon, and Bridget traveled to Arizona for the tournament and took plenty of video and pictures chronicling their visit to the Sun Devils’ arena) — includes an interview with UNO Director of Spirit, Tradition, and Special Events Bill Pickett about the student trip to ASU. The episode concludes with a preview of Omaha’s upcoming trip to North Dakota’s Ralph Engelstad Arena in Grand Forks, ND, to take on the Fighting Hawks. Video version: Audio-only versions:
On this episode of the #mavpuckcast... Jason and Jon discuss the Omaha Hockey team’s recent series against St. Cloud State. They break down UNO’s two games against the Huskies and give their picks for “Player of the Week.” They look at some “Things You Missed at Baxter Arena” during the St. Cloud series — including Ugly Sweater Night and the university’s tribute to Maverick Hockey players playing pro hockey. They conclude the episode with discussion of Omaha’s upcoming trip in January to Arizona State for the Desert Hockey Classic — includes details on fan events put on by the University of Nebraska at Omaha Athletic Department and the UNO Alumni Association. Video version: Audio-only versions:
On this episode of the #mavpuckcast, Jason and Jon discuss the Omaha Maverick Hockey team’s recent split on the road against the Minnesota Duluth Bulldogs — including their picks for “Player of the Week.” They look at some of the interesting things that are featured at Duluth’s AMSOIL Arena during UMD hockey games. They also talk about the upcoming Sheila Leahy Toys for Tots collection at Baxter Arena and Ugly Sweater Night that will be held during the St. Cloud State series. They conclude the episode with their predictions for Omaha’s upcoming series against the St. Cloud State Huskies at Baxter Arena. Video version: Audio-only versions:
By Jon Brooks Omaha Hockey defenseman Simon Latkoczy was named “Goaltender of the Week” in the KJ Branding NCHC Players of the Week: Nov. 27-Dec. 3, 2023. Latkoczy’s performance helped UNO earn a split in its conference series at Minnesota Duluth on Dec. 1-2, 2023. The sophomore netminder stopped 24 shots during the Friday game (Omaha lost that game 4-2). He posted a shutout (29 saves) on Saturday night — his first of the season and the third in his career for UNO. His play in net helped the Mavericks secure a 1-0 victory in overtime. At the Omaha Mavericks weekly press conference on Dec. 6, MavPuck.com’s Bridget Brooks asked Latkoczy how he prepares for series like the one at Duluth. “My preparation doesn’t start Thursday,” said Latkoczy. “I would say my preparation started in August. I do things every day and every night. Eight to 10 p.m. is kind of my time. I do some meditation. I work on my confidence — on the visualization. I see every game happen five times before it actually happens. I’m prepared for every possible outcome that can happen in a game.” Latkoczy had 53 saves during the UMD series — a weekend that saw Omaha stop all of Duluth’s power play opportunities. He had a 1.49 goals-against average and a .946 save percentage on the weekend. Overall on the season, the native of Trencin, Slovakia, has a .912 save percentage and a 2.45 goals-against average. >> Latkoczy’s performance in the UMD series is discussed on this week’s episode of the #mavpuckcast — click here to view episode.
Read the Full NCHC Release: KJ Branding NCHC Players of the Week: Nov. 27-Dec. 3, 2023 This week’s episode of the #mavpuckcast:
UNO Hockey grad student goaltender Seth Eisele is featured in the NCHC Top 5 Plays of the Week – Nov. 28, 2023. Eisele’s heroics in net midway through the first period in the Nov. 25 game at Augustana landed the goalie the #2 play of the week. Eisele stopped an initial shot by Augustana defenseman Evan McIntyre — fired from the top of the circle — at the 11:15 mark in the period. Then he shifted position and used his right leg pad to stop an attempt by forward Luke Mobley on the rebound (at the side of the crease). The Mavs went on to win the game 5-2. Eisele (a native of Stillwater, MN) has a 2.99 goals-against average and a .881 save percentage in five games this season. He transferred to Omaha from Lake Superior State during the offseason. >> Eisele’s performance is also discussed on this week’s episode of the #mavpuckcast — click here to view this week’s episode.
