Tufts ice hockey battled through the conference tournament, beating Bowdoin in a thrilling overtime and routing Colby 6–2 to earn a spot in the NESCAC championship game against Hamilton in Clinton, N.Y. In the semifinal matchup against the Colby Mules, the Jumbos kicked things into high gear offensively, exploding for four goals in the third period to eliminate the No. 3 seed team and advance to the conference final. While the score may not make it evident, the Jumbos actually came from behind against the Mules, facing a 1–0 deficit early before tying the score about halfway through the first and taking a 2–1 lead before the first intermission. Though Colby responded in the second by evening things up at 2–2, Tufts put on a show in the game’s final frame, taking a 3–2 lead only 14 seconds into the third period that just kept expanding, topped off by junior forward Brendan Fennell’s empty-net goal. The 6–2 win sent Tufts to face the No. 1 seeded hosts Hamilton in the title game.
The moment was familiar for the Jumbos, who fought their way to the final game in 2024 as well, but the title remains elusive to them. The Hamilton Continentals secured the program’s first-ever NESCAC championship in shutout fashion, stifling the Jumbos’ offense on the way to a 3–0 victory. Tufts had no shortage of chances offensively, outshooting Hamilton 32–27, but success during man-advantages made the difference in favor of Hamilton, who scored on two of their four power plays and put the game away with an empty-netter. Goalie Charlie Archer proved why he was a first-team all-conference selection, notching 32 saves for his fifth shutout performance of the season. He stepped up in a big way in the first period of the title game, stuffing a breakaway chance by sophomore forward Marcus Sang, a deflating blow for the Jumbos.
Archer’s offense backed him up in the second period, with forward Grisha Gotovets opening the scoring off of a rebound from forward William Neault’s shot from the point. Hamilton went on a power play late in the second following a cross-checking penalty by junior defenseman Chris Throndson and cashed in with less than 4 minutes remaining in the period to take a 2–0 lead heading into the final frame. The Continental defense won them the title in the third, as they added only five shot attempts but also kept the Jumbo offense quiet. An empty-net power play goal by Hamilton player Ben Zimmerman with only 39 seconds left to play propelled the final score to 3–0 and wrote the 2024–25 Hamilton squad into the college’s history books.
Sitting atop the NESCAC standings for the entire season and ranked No. 8 nationally, Hamilton emerged as a formidable powerhouse this season, and junior forward Liam O’Hare paid respect to the quality of the other school’s team. “They’re pretty highly regarded as a team, and they got good players, and obviously that’s why they were the number one seed and the host,” he said. “It was loud, I believe it was sold out, a lot of energy in the building, which the guys kind of fed off of, and I think they really played well.”
Despite the outcome, the Tufts team proved to be a perennial title contender. With each tournament appearance, the motivation to overcome that final hurdle and hoist the team’s first-ever NESCAC championship plaque grows stronger. O’Hare commented on the chemistry the team developed over the past few years, which has helped them become a more consistent championship threat.
“I think this has been a group that we’ve been together for a long time, and obviously making it all the way to the championship last year was great, and we wanted to get back to [the] championship game,” he said. “Obviously [we] wanted to end up going all the way, but [it] didn’t quite work out as we wished. We plan on trying to get back to it next year and be on the other side of things.”
The loss ended the collegiate careers of seven Tufts seniors — captain Tyler Sedlak, Harrison Bazianos, Marek Pechr, Brennan Horn, Sami Hakkarainen, Clark Bolin and Spencer Rose. The veteran group leaves behind a legacy of reinvigorating the program’s culture and establishing Tufts hockey as a routinely competitive force in the NESCAC. After notching only six wins in their freshman year, the squad put together three consecutive double-digit-win seasons and two consecutive conference final appearances, demonstrating their commitment to cultivating an environment of excellence and bringing Tufts hockey to bigger stages.
O’Hare described the seniors’ leadership and what they brought to the program over the past four years. “They really ingrained [the culture] into everyone and made sure everyone was bought in and everyone was contributing, everyone was involved,” he said. “I feel like they came in and changed the game, which says a lot.”
