Notre Dame has announced that graduate student Chase Blackmun will return for the 2022-23 season, which will be his fifth NCAA season overall.
“The gratitude and appreciation I have for my teammates and for this university is hard to put into words,” Blackmun said in a statement. “Notre Dame has changed me in the best ways, which is why I’m so proud to announce that I’ll be coming back to earn my MBA and compete alongside my best friends. I’m excited to see what next year holds for our team and, as always, go Irish.”
“We’re excited to welcome Chase back to our program,” added Notre Dame coach Jeff Jackson. “Chase is a quality, puck-moving defenseman. His vision and instincts make him an effective offensive player on transition and as a power-play point man. Last season, his maturity and character brought a calming presence to our locker room. This year, we feel that he can use those traits to help lead.”
Blackmun played 40 games this past season for the Irish, scoring two goals and adding a career-high 14 assists for 16 points. It was his first season with Notre Dame after previously playing three seasons at UMass Lowell (2018-21).
Both of Blackmun’s goals in 2021-22 proved to be game winners, including Irish victories over Penn State (Feb. 4) and at Michigan State (Feb. 19). His 14 assists tied for fifth on the team as he helped the Fighting Irish go on a run to the NCAA Albany Regional final. He also had three two-assist games, including two of those in victories against RIT (Oct. 22) and Michigan (Feb. 25).
Blackmun pursued a Master of Science in Business Analytics degree this past year after graduating from UMass Lowell in three years as a finance and business analytics major.
