Lake Forest College Sports Information
Contact: Mike Wajerski, SID

2005-06 Preview: Different Players...Same Goals   

Tyler Steen will look to have another solid season as the Foresters compete for the Peters Cup.
LAKE FOREST, IL - During their first 11 seasons as a member of the North Collegiate Hockey Association, the Foresters were never quite able to climb into the top half of the league. In 2003-04, however, Lake Forest finally made that jump by placing fourth out of eight teams and both hosting and winning an NCHA quarterfinal series for the first time. The 2004-05 Foresters followed that up with a 7-7-0 NCHA record and advanced to the semifinals again before suffering its second straight season-ending one-goal loss to the eventual Peters Cup champs.

Although nine member of his team will graduate before the 2005-06 season, Head Coach Tony Fritz does not expect a drop-off in performance. “I’m looking forward to next year and all the challenges that come with replacing so many seniors,” he explains. “Our plan is to continue climbing the league standings and to make more of a name for ourselves at the national level.” Lake Forest was ranked as high as #4 in the country during the 2003-04 season and played more than one-third of its games against nationally-ranked teams last year.

One reason for Fritz’s optimism about the future is that Honorable Mention All-NCHA selection Tyler Canal, the team’s leading scorer each of the last two seasons, still has two more years ahead of him. Canal has scored 30 goals and added 40 assists in his career and leads the team in plus/minus over that span. The Foresters will also welcome back forwards Tyler Steen, Greg Ihnken, Troy Lother, and Cory Wilson, who all ranked among the team’s top five in goals or assists last season and will provide quality leadership for next year’s freshmen.

The strength of the 2005-06 Foresters should be a solid group of returning defensemen, led by Bryan Lafevor, who led that unit in both assists and points last year. Matt Forsyth, who posted the team’s highest plus/minus rating as a freshman in 2003-04, should be healthy after an injury-plagued sophomore campaign. Jordan Kniaziew and Kevin Russette are also proven veterans who make the goaltender’s job much easier.

“The nucleus of a very good team exists,” comments Fritz. “If we can add just a few talented newcomers, we’ll have an opportunity to pick up where we left off late last season when we were playing as well as almost anyone in the country.”

“Our plan is to continue climbing the league standings and to make more of a name for ourselves at the national level.”