DULUTH — Minnesota Duluth junior goaltender Ryan Fanti was named to the All-NCHC first team on Wednesday while his captain, senior wing Noah Cates, was an All-NCHC honorable mention.
In conference play this year, Fanti’s .918 save percentage ranked second and his 2.13 goals against average over 23 games was tops in the league. Throughout the entire college hockey season, none of the NCHC regulars came close to matching Fanti’s .921 save percentage and 1.97 GAA in 31 games. Fanti also had four shutouts this season, including three in NCHC play.
One of 11 semifinalists for the Mike Richter Award as national goalie of the year, Fanti is the fourth UMD goalie to be named All-NCHC in the league’s nine seasons and the second goalie to land on the first team, joining Hunter Shepard (2018-19, 2019-20). The Bulldogs have had an All-NCHC first, second and rookie team goalie in six of the league’s nine seasons.
UMD All-NCHC Goaltenders
Ryan Fanti, first team, 2021-22
Hunter Shepard, first team, 2019-20
Hunter Shepard, first team, 2018-19
Hunter Shepard, second team, 2017-18
Hunter Miska, second team, 2016-17
Kasimir Kaskisuo, rookie team, 2014-15
Cates, who played for the United States Olympic Men’s Hockey Team at the 2022 Olympics in Beijing, has eight goals and 11 assists in 31 games this year, with four goals and five assists coming in 19 league games.
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It’s the fourth All-NCHC honor for the Philadelphia Flyers prospect after being named to the all-rookie team as a freshman in 2018-19, the first team as a sophomore in 2019-20 and second team as a junior in 2020-21.
The Bulldogs finished in a tie for fourth in the NCHC this season with St. Cloud State. The fourth-seeded Huskies host the fifth-seeded Bulldogs in a best-of-three NCHC quarterfinal series at 6 p.m. Friday, 7 p.m. Saturday and (if necessary) 7 p.m. Sunday in St. Cloud.
2022 All-NCHC Teams
First Team
Bobby Brink, F, Denver
Ethen Frank, F, Western Michigan
Riese Gaber, F, North Dakota
Ronnie Attard, D, Western Michigan
Nick Perbix, D, St. Cloud State
Ryan Fanti, G, Minnesota Duluth
Second Team
Carter Savoie, F, Denver
Drew Worrad, F, Western Michigan
Kevin Fitzgerald, F, St. Cloud State
Jake Sanderson, D, North Dakota
Mike Benning, D, Denver
Zach Driscoll, G, North Dakota
Honorable Mention
Cole Guttman, F, Denver
Noah Cates, F, Minnesota Duluth
Connor Ford, F, North Dakota
Brandon Scanlin, D, Omaha
Michael Joyaux, D, Western Michigan
Magnus Chrona, G, Denver
All-Rookie
Carter Mazuer, F, Denver
Massimo Rizzo, F, Denver
Matteo Costantini, F, North Dakota
Sean Behrens, D, Denver
Shai Buium, D, Denver
Jakob Hellsten, North Dakota (unopposed)
