'Right Time and Place'

Schuldt, Ahcan Hungry for More  Much More  as St. Cloud Enters Stretch Run

by Avash Kalra/Senior Writer (@AvashKalra)

"It's not something you talk about with your friends 10 years from now. It really means nothing."

With six games to go in the regular season, St. Cloud State sits atop the all-important Pairwise, on pace to enter the NCAA tournament as the No. 1 overall seed. In other (ultimately inconsequential) national polls, the Huskies sit in the top spot, too — just as they did in preseason polls before the season began, a reflection of national expectations for a team that brought back its core and added a national-championship winning coach in Brett Larson.

But St. Cloud entered last year's NCAA tourney as the top overall seed, too, before bowing out to Air Force in a 4-1 loss in the first round. Two years earlier, the favored Huskies fell in overtime to Ferris State in the tournament's opening round as well.

So, the polls that produce press releases from teams around the country each week?

"That's white noise to us," said senior defenseman and captain Jimmy Schuldt, an All-American and Top 10 Hobey finalist last season. "It wasn't something we focused on. Being No. 1 in the country in the middle of February doesn't mean anything. It's not something you talk about with your friends 10 years from now. It really means nothing. For us, it's about taking steps every day to get better, and I think just grow as a team, try to move forward and be the best team we can be at the end of the year."

In years past, Schuldt has helped lead a team that has been known for a dynamic offense under prior coach Bob Motzko. That offense was silent in back-to-back losses to end last season, but the key change made by Larson, in his first year as head coach, was on defense. And so far, for a team that's won 21 of its 28 games this season, that's made all the difference.

"Shorten the time in the defensive zone so that we can have more energy to bring the puck up the ice," Schuldt said, of the key change. "In the past, we've had some really good defensemen. This year, we've been more focused on trying to step up the play as soon as we can, so that we can get going and create chances on the other side of the ice. Our guys have really bought into that."

"He said he wasn't going to fix many things," said junior defenseman Jack Ahcan. "But there was a lot of stuff that he noticed watching film against us, that he thought he could fix. He's done a great job finding a happy medium, letting the forwards go, but also make sure we take care of the D-zone before we play offense. He really focused on it, especially in our D zone, with watching video, what he noticed when he was a coach at Duluth watching our film. It's really helped us this year."

Ahcan leads the NCHC this season with 22 assists. He's also tied — with Schuldt — for the league lead among defenseman with 25 points. And for Achan, his playmaking from the blue line isn't an accident. It's completely by design.

"You've got to pick your spots," Ahcan said. "That's one of the bigger things I've worked on during my time at St Cloud — picking the right time and place to get up into the play. If I see something, I'll take advantage of it pretty much every time I can. But if it's not there, hopefully I can look back at my other defenseman and we can communicate and make sure we're both on the same page, when I'm going, or when he's going. So that's been one of the bigger things I've been working on."

Ahcan played as a forward until high school, switching to defense because he "could skate well but [didn't] have that scoring touch."

"I feel like I can read plays and see the ice a lot better when leading a rush," Ahcan said. "I love getting up in the play, and those forwards, hopefully they hear me as the fourth guy coming into the zone."

Since Jan. 4, Ahcan has 11 points in 12 games — including four assists in the Huskies' weekend sweep of Colorado College last weekend.

"He's the guy who sets up goals," said Schuldt of his teammate. "He's in the offense every time he's on the ice. I think he's the most skilled defenseman in our league, one of the most skilled in the country. You just watch him, you see the plays he makes, the athletic ability he has, he's every bit as strong as the big defensemen in our league. I think he doesn't get enough credit. This year, he's had some huge plays for us, putting up points."

Still, timing is everything. Ahcan and his teammates have clearly benefited from a fresh perspective in Larson, and that's led to a more offensively active defensive corps this season. Last year, en route to Minnesota-Duluth's national title, Larson — as an assistant coach — helped lead a defense that fielded five freshmen in the national title game.

Timing's been everything for Schuldt, too — coming back for his senior season, now taking over the team's all time lead for points by a defenseman (108). He also is the team's all-time leader for goals by a defenseman (36).

But is this the time for this team to finally win a national title?

"What's happened in the past is the past," Schuldt said. "We've got a new team now, a lot of new players and a chip on our shoulder for the shortcomings that my class especially has had, being a 1-seed in the tournament, not winning a game yet. As of right now, we're focusing on the task at hand, the games we have coming up. But for us, a lot of guys have been there. We've had a coach who's been there. I think we just have to trust the process as much as we can — not be satisfied with where we're at.

"We want to do better."