31 Wins and It's No Miracle: How Adrian College Became the Best Team in Div. III

Photo by Meghan Abbee

On March 26th, 2007, fifteen years ago, there was no hockey in Adrian, Michigan.

There was no Arrington Ice Arena, but a pile of dirt sitting where the rink was planned to be. In fact, when now head coach Adam Krug toured the school that’s exactly what was standing in the place where Arrington Ice Arena stands today. Adrian was not a hockey town, in fact, the entire Lenawee County did not have a single ice rink in it.

Five months prior to March 2007, President Jeffrey Docking had announced his intention to start a hockey program at Adrian College and build an ice rink on campus as part of his “Renascence Plan” to reinvigorate the small liberal arts college he had taken the helm of the year prior.

“I grew up playing hockey so I am familiar with the culture, students, families, and sacrifices that people must make to play this sport. Early morning practices, incredibly long road trips, expensive equipment, and hard knocks are all part of this sport. The qualities of character that one needs to be a successful hockey player are the same qualities one needs to be a successful college student, community member, parent, and human being,” said Docking of his decision to bring hockey to Adrian, “Even though Adrian did not have a tradition for hockey, or even a rink, it is located in a cold-weather state, one-hour from Hockey Town USA. It was a natural fit and I had no doubt that it would be successful if I can find the right people to lead the program. These leaders arrived as coaches under the direction of Mike Duffy, and the rest is a wonderful and successful story.”

Seven months later, hockey came alive in Adrian, Michigan when the inaugural Adrian College Men’s NCAA hockey team bested Potsdam 9-1 at the newly constructed Arrington Ice Arena.

The inaugural team, captained by Krug, who would score twice in his Bulldog debut, went on to absolutely demolish everyone that stood in their way that season, winning the Harris Cup, their league playoff title, that season.

At the time, the league’s playoff title didn’t come with the NCAA Tournament Autobid that it does today, so the team’s season hung on the decision of the NCAA Selection Committee.

The Bulldogs were hot, even Mitch Albom of the Detroit Free Press went to bat for them on ESPN to urge the NCAA Committee to give the Bulldogs a chance at the big dance. It would’ve been straight out of a movie, a first year team with a shot at winning it all the same season that the DIII Frozen Four was hosted in Lake Placid, New York, home of the Miracle On Ice.

Unfortunately, the Bulldogs’ season ended with the 1-0 overtime win in the Harris Cup Final after the NCAA Selection Committee revealed the 2008 bracket. But everyone involved with the Bulldog Hockey program was left wondering what might’ve been.

The Bulldogs finally got to the NCAA Tournament in 2010 after the then MCHA (now NCHA) Playoff Winner got an autobid to the tournament, where they dropped their first round game to the St. Norbert College Green Knights. Their inaugural recruiting class was in their senior year the following year and would take the team to the national championship game where they would fall by a 3-4 score to St. Norbert.

They would make the tournament twice more after the national championship game appearance under their first head coach Ron Fogarty, who would depart Adrian for Div. I Princeton University after the 2013-14 season.

After the announcement of Fogarty’s departure, there were big shoes left to fill at the helm of the Bulldog bench. And who better to lead a team with a deeply ingrained culture of success and tradition and brotherhood than its first captain?

“Adam was a terrific leader for the program during his 2 years at Adrian College where he earned his diploma. When graduated, he became an assistant Coach with the Indianapolis Ice, where he was very successful with recruiting players and winning on the ice. His whole body of work pointed towards being the next in line for the position, as he understood the hard work and commitment it took to be a part of a program that wanted Championship status,” said Fogarty.

Since then, Krug has lead the Bulldogs to the national tournament four times, including the 2020 tournament that was cancelled a little over 24 hours until puck drop. That number would’ve been five had the 2021 tournament not been cancelled because of COVID

The seven overall appearances in team history include three Frozen Four appearances as well, two of them under Krug. But other than the 2011 game, the Bulldogs had never made it to Saturday night and the National Championship Game at the Frozen Four.

The Bulldogs came out with a vengeance this season unlike any other in their fifteen season history. They dropped their first game to Utica in overtime with a short bench in October, but after that, there was no looking back.

They ran through the NCHA in league play, including a 12-3 beatdown of the St. Norbert Green Knights in the Harris Cup Final to earn them the autobid to the National Tournament.

They’d first host the Hobart Statesmen at Arrington Ice Arena on March 19th, who they’d drop 7-4.

That 7-4 win would send them to Lake Placid, New York and the Frozen Four.

Like I said before, the Bulldogs had appeared in three prior Frozen Fours, but none of them were in Lake Placid where it had been in 2008 when they missed the chance at the big dance.

Until now.

That significance was not lost on anyone in attendance this past weekend, but perhaps the person that it meant the most to was Head Coach Adam Krug.

Krug, the program’s first captain, only played two seasons with the Bulldogs, transferring in and taking the role of captain and the lone upperclassman on the inaugural team, so he did not get that chance to ever take his team to the NCAA Tournament.

What was nearly as impressive as the Bulldogs’ run to the Frozen Four was the support of alumni this past weekend.

Messages flooded various Adrian College NCAA Hockey social media inboxes and timelines as the team arrived in Lake Placid for the Frozen Four and as the puck dropped for the first game against Augsburg University.

And that all started at the top back in 2007 when Coach Fogarty instilled the idea of the brotherhood that this team has become as well as a mantra of “Tradition Never Graduates” or a once a Bulldog, always a Bulldog mentality.

“Tradition Never Graduates is important, as all actions are impactful, and make a difference, either positively or negatively,” said Fogarty of culture he instilled in his players, “ It takes a long time to establish a winning culture with positive people, and it was going to be the fabric of our new program. There have been a lot of players who have passed through the dressing room doors, and new traditions have emerged, but the one standard that has been consistent, is that all alumni care for everyone who is associated with Bulldog Hockey.

Not only were messages flooding in from alumni, but from nearly every other team and coach on campus as well. That camaraderie between teams, no matter the sport and no matter the level, is another thing Fogarty wanted to set in place as soon as he started at Adrian fifteen years ago.

“That is important for a small college. The Coaches learn from each other, the students see each other on a daily basis, and the entire campus community wants everyone to succeed. There are a lot of sports at Adrian College, and it is truly one team,” said Fogarty.

The Bulldogs struck first with senior Sam Ruffin netting the first goal of the Frozen Four with 2:53 left in the first period. Senior captain Matt Eller and standout transfer Ty Enns would assist. Fellow senior Trevor Coykendall would net the second of the game less than a minute and a half later. The Captain alongside freshman Ryan Pitoscia, the lone rookie in the lineup that weekend, would assist.

The Bulldogs, who had noticeable nerves as the puck first dropped for the first period, had found their groove in the final three minutes of the first and it had given them a 2-0 lead heading into the middle frame.

The second period would go by scoreless and the Bulldogs would hold the same 2-0 lead heading into the final twenty minutes of play.

Augsburg would cut that lead in half with 6:20 gone in the third period. The next goal would be the big one, the momentum giver. A goal for Augsburg would tie the game and fire up their bench and possibly deflate the Bulldogs who had not found the back of the net in thirty minutes. A goal for the Bulldogs would reinvigorate them and kill any momentum the Auggies had gained from their third period push.

Zach Goberis would be the tide turner in the third, scoring the insurance goal less than two minutes after the Auggies own goal. Zach Heintz and Ayo Adeniye would assist on Goberis’ goal. The Auggies would then pull their goalie in the final minutes of the game after Matus Spodniak was called for interference with 2:42 left in the game.

Junior Hunter Wendt, a transfer from Div. I Ferris State, would seal the deal thirteen seconds into the penalty kill sending the puck down into the empty net to make the score 4-1. The Auggies would pull their goaltender once again after the goal and Goberis would net his second of the game and send another to the empty net to send the Bulldogs to the National Championship game.

The Bulldogs, heading into their second championship game in program history, would face the SUNY Geneseo Knights on March 26th, 2022.

The Knights, a rather unfamiliar opponent who had last met the Bulldogs on January 5th, 2015 when they skated to a 1-1 tie, were playing in their first National Championship game.

The first almost five minutes of play was not dominated by the Bulldogs, but the Knights who outshot the #1 ranked Bulldogs. The game would shift when Jaden Shields took the puck down on a rush into the offensive zone and be on the receiving end of a high hit by a Geneseo defenseman.

In the NCAA tournament, coaches can challenge goals and major penalties as long as they have not used their timeout, so Coach Krug challenged the play as soon as the whistle blew to end the play.

After review, it was determined that it had, in fact, been a high hit on Shields, and the Bulldogs went to a five minute powerplay with 4:52 gone in the first period.

Rex Moe would get sent to the box for holding three seconds into the powerplay, however, the Bulldogs did not let this damper their powerplay efforts as Moe exited the box two minutes later.

Three minutes almost to the dot after Moe’s penalty, Ruffin would send home the first goal of the National Championship game. Sophomore Shields and Junior Alessio Luciani would assist.

The Knights would tie the game twenty seconds later while shorthanded, but Luciani would score to regain the lead with Ruffin garnering the lone assist.

Coykendall would put away his second of the weekend from the slot with help from Mathew Rehding. Once again, the Bulldogs were going into the second period with a two goal lead.

The Knights would net the only goal of the middle frame, making things 3-2 heading into the final twenty minutes of what was becoming the most prolific season in Bulldog hockey history.

Tensions were high as the puck dropped for the third period and the two teams battled to end their seasons with one last victory. The Bulldogs found themselves in the box three times, once at the 2:50 mark, then again at the 4:12 mark, then for the final time at the 9:11 mark. To make things more difficult, the Bulldogs were down one of their better penalty killers for each of the first two penalty kills when Spodniak was sent to the box for the first infraction of the third and Goberis for the second.

The Bulldogs would play through, killing off all three penalties, however, the Knights would do the same and kill off their lone penalty of the third.

It would be the lone freshman in the lineup, Ryan Pitoscia, who sent everyone to their feet with 10:55 left in the game with an even strength goal. Coykendall would grab the lone assist.

The Knights would sustain pressure in the Bulldog end in the final three minutes of play and pull their goaltender. The Bulldogs would send numerous attempts down into the empty net before Sam Ruffin, the senior from Westfield, Indiana, would hurl the puck down into the empty net.

I don’t know if I can capture in words the emotions that ran through the players on the bench, the coaching staff and the Bulldog faithful who had made the trek to Lake Placid as Ruffin celebrated his goal.

The Bulldogs were 11 seconds away from a national championship.

The Knights kept up the pressure before holding the puck the last few seconds, the buzzer sounded, or at least I think I did, it was hard to tell in the madness of the crowd next to the bench as the final seconds ticked away and the players jumped from the bench to the crease to dog pile goaltender Cam Gray.

As I stood there on the ice after the madness died down and the players from both teams shook hands, the bench was once again full, but now with the group of alumni who had come to support the Bulldogs, Coach Krug’s family, and none other than the first head coach in program history, Ron Fogarty, who was on FaceTime with more alumni of the program.

Soon after each player received their small trophy, Matt Eller, Alessio Luciani, Terry Ryder, Cam Gray and Sam Ruffin accepted the National Championship trophy and brought in into yet another dog pile, this time in front of their fan section who had travelled 10+ hours for this moment. Each player took his turn with the trophy, holding it up for the crowd of parents, girlfriends, siblings, family members and long time Bulldog hockey supporters before they called up their coaching staff to do the same.

And before it was said and done, Coach Krug called one last person to come up to take a moment with the trophy, Ron Fogarty.

"I didn’t expect that at all. I truly appreciate Adam including me in the celebration,” said Fogarty, “It shows the big picture of what it is like to be associated with the program.”

It was a full circle moment as Adam Krug lifted the National Championship trophy he never had the chance to play for.

Photo by Meghan Abbee

“Adam Krug embodies and personifies the successful student-athlete at Adrian College. He is the total package. As a player, he was our first team captain, the player voice that mattered most in the locker room, and a person who cared deeply about our success, not for his own edification, but for the team and community at large,” said Docking in praise of Krug, “Coach Krug is a quality person on the ice, and most importantly off the ice. People who know Adam find in him a set of values that extend far beyond his own personal achievements. He wants to build a successful program because he knows this will have the most enduring value for everyone involved. Adam Krug's legacy at Adrian College has already been established.”

The moment that it was handed off to President Docking, the man responsible for building a rink, building a hockey program.

Photo by Meghan Abbee

It was the moment Krug handed the trophy off to the unsuspecting Fogarty, the man responsible for starting the team's culture of success and tradition and brotherhood.

Photo by Meghan Abbee

It was the moment when Fogarty and Krug held up the trophy together, as the coach who started it all and the one who continues on the legacy he began.

Photo by Meghan Abbee

The moment that Adrian College sophomore Johnny Costello, who spent the 2007-08 season sitting wide eyed in the stands of Arrington Ice Arena watching his favorite player, Adam Krug, captain the Bulldogs, got to announce to the audience at Arrington Ice Arena on Adrian College’s WVAC that Krug had now led the Bulldogs to a National Championship.

It was the moment when I, a twenty-four year old who had never been to a hockey game fifteen years ago, now the team’s social media manager, got to send the tweet that read “For the first time in program history your Bulldogs are National Champions” before running onto the ice.

It was the moment that the team celebrated by bringing their friends and families out onto the ice, continuing the tradition that Fogarty started back in 2009 when the Bulldogs won their second Harris Cup and first on home ice.

“It was great to see that the tradition of bringing family and friends onto the ice to share in the championship winning experience continued in Lake Placid,” remarked Fogarty, “That started when we won the Harris Cup Championship at Arrington Ice Arena in 2009….There are a lot of people who had a hand in completing the circle that started 15 years ago. I am proud to be associated with Adrian College and extremely proud of Adam and the 21-22 to complete the journey.”

It was the moment when longtime PA announcer and Adrian Alum Dave Van Geison got to announce that your Bulldogs were the 2021-22 National Champions as Matt Eller brought the school’s first NCAA National Championship trophy onto the ice at Arrington Ice Arena during the community celebration days later.

Photo by Meghan Abbee

“The success of the hockey program is gratifying beyond words, not because of all of the wins - although this has certainly been nice - but more so because so many players have been able to enjoy a sport they love for four more years, and so many wonderful people in the Adrian community have embraced this team and found joy in attending games, knowing the players personally, and being part of the enormous community pride that comes from success on the ice,” said Docking of the community support of the team not just in Lake Placid, but for the last fifteen years.”

It may have been a miracle that took place back on February 22nd, 1980 as the US beat the USSR 4-3, but what happened on March 26th, 2022 in Lake Placid, New York was by no means a miracle. It was the culmination of not just six months of work or the ending to what could be called the most prolific season in NCAA DIII Hockey history, but the fruits of fifteen years of blood, sweat and tears poured into a program by coaches and players. And a moment when the thirty players and coaching staff cemented their place in Adrian College Hockey history. And a moment that everyone involved in the program in every fact for the last fifteen years will remember forever.

A special thank you goes out to Meghan Abbee and Copper Mountain Media for all of the incredible photos of the post game celebration! You can find Meghan's work on her Facebook page here.