FARGO — Nick Oliver’s tenure in Fargo will last just one season as multiple sources close to the team told Forum Communications that the Force head coach has accepted an assistant position at the University of Wisconsin.
Oliver will join Mike Hastings’ staff in Madison, which also includes former Minnesota State assistant Todd Knott.
In his one season with the Force, Oliver led Fargo to a 40-14-4-4 regular-season record and an Anderson Cup. The Wannaska, Minnesota, native was named the USHL Coach of the Year — becoming just the second in Force history (Dean Blais, 2008-09) to take home the honor — and became Fargo’s winningest first-year coach in the process.
The Force earned a first-round bye in the playoffs before sweeping Tri-City in the second round and beating Lincoln in four games to win the Western Conference title.
However, Fargo was swept by Youngstown in the Clark Cup Final.
ADVERTISEMENT
Oliver, 32, returns to the college game after one season as Oliver spent the previous four seasons as an assistant coach at St. Cloud State. Oliver played for the Huskies from 2011-2015 and helped lead SCSU to its first Frozen Four (2013) and was also a senior captain during the 2014-15 season.
He got his coaching career started the following year as an assistant with the Sioux Falls Stampede and spent three seasons behind the Stampede bench before returning to his alma mater and eventually making his way to Fargo.
The Trust Project
