SAULT STE. MARIE, Mich. - The Lake Superior State (LSSU) hockey program has selected Grant Hindman (Oakland, Mich.) as its next captain with Dawson Tritt (Spokane, Wash.) and Connor Milburn (Kamloops, B.C.) assisting him as alternate captains, as announced by Head Coach Damon Whitten on Friday.
"These three young men embody what we value in our program," said Whitten. "They are professionals in everything they do - on the ice, in the locker room, in the classroom, and in the community, and on top of doing things the right way, they are extremely high quality human beings."
Hindman's leadership from the blueline proved invaluable this past season. He posted five points on one goal and four assists, but his best contributions came in the defensive zone where he helped steady the top penalty kill unit in the CCHA that had ranked top-five nationally for a large portion of the season. Off the ice, Hindman represents his program within the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee, has a leadership role within the Fellowship of Christian Athletes on campus, serves as a pen pal and reading buddy with a local elementary school, and is active with the Soo Amateur Hockey Association, helping local teams and camps. He was also LSSU's nominee for the 2024 CCHA Outstanding Student-Athlete of the Year Award with one of the top GPAs among all student-athletes at LSSU, regardless of sport, and he was the 2024 recipient of the Ronald "Bud" Cooper Coaches Trophy at the athletic department's annual Anchor Awards for displaying outstanding qualities of citizenship, leadership, active campus participation, and significant contributions to his athletic program.
Tritt will don an A for the second-consecutive season after posting 25 points on 13 goals and 12 assists for one of the most productive lines in the CCHA (96 combined points). While most of Tritt's production on the ice seemingly came more quietly than his All-CCHA linemates that featured a Hobey Baker nominee and a Co-CCHA Best Defensive Forward, but his contributions did not go unnoticed by anyone within the program as he received the James Howie Award as his team's unsung hero. However, despite being his team's unsung hero, all of Laker Nation cheered his name on March 10 when he put LSSU ahead with 6.6 seconds remaining in regulation in game 3 at St. Thomas to eliminate the Tommies and send his team to the Mason Cup Semifinals.
Milburn centered the Lakers' most productive line alongside the aforementioned Tritt and outgoing senior Jared Westcott (Imperial, Mo.). As a sophomore, he exploded to septuple his production on the ice from his freshman campaign, finishing the season top-five in the CCHA in points (35), goals (16), assists (19), face-offs taken (668), and plus-minus (+14). He was voted as a CCHA Co-Best Defensive Forward, selected to the All-CCHA Second Team, named CCHA Forward of the Week after scoring in all three games of LSSU's Mason Cup Quarterfinal series at St. Thomas, named CCHA Forward of the Month in March, and recognized as his team's most valuable player.
"As a coach, you don't have concerns about anything in regards to your locker room and culture if Grant, Dawson, and Connor are leading the way," said Whitten. "We can't wait to get the whole group back to campus and get to work."