DULUTH, Minn. – A pair of Trine University men's hockey team student-athletes have earned end of season honors from the Northern Collegiate Hockey Association, the conference announced today, Thursday, March 3.
Senior Hunter Payment (Monroe, Mich.) becomes just the second player in program history to earn a spot on the NCHA All-Conference Team. The defender anchored the defense for the Thunder as they finished in fourth in the NCHA, the best finish in program history. The team finished the conference season with the fourth lowest goals-against average
Payment also made his efforts known on offense this season. He finished the year with 18 points including three goals and 15 assists. Those 18 points set the new benchmark for a defenseman in the programs record book and his assists tally is the fifth best season by any player at Trine.
Bobby Price (Sault Ste. Marie, Mich.) becomes the third freshman in team history to be named to the NCHA All-Freshman Team. Price turned in the best offensive season for a Thunder freshman in program history. He finished the season with 31 points including 15 goals and 16 assists, all three of which are new highs for freshmen at Trine.
Price came in a tie for second on the team this season for points and second on the team in goals. In conference play he finished 17th in among all skaters with 22 points including nine goals and 13 assists.
The Thunder turned in the program's best season thus far during the 2021-22 campaign shattering the old program record with 19 wins. The team's 300 points, 114 goals and 186 assists are all also program records.
The team which continues to boast a strong Pairwise ranking, currently sitting at 14th in the USCHO.com estimation of the metric has an outside chance at making the NCAA Division III Men's Hockey Championship Tournament as an at-large selection. The selection show is scheduled for Monday, March 7 at 10 a.m.