Coaching the Hobart Statesmen to back-to-back national championships while winning the NEHC and establishing a new consecutive home win-streak at 37 games and counting, has earned Hobart head coach Mark Taylor this year’s USCHO Coach of the Year.
Hobart finished the campaign with an impressive 28-2-1 record including a 16-1-1 record in the New England Hockey Conference while going 17-0-0 on home ice. Their last loss of the season took place on November 11, 2023 against Babson with an overtime tie at Norwich taking place on January 13, 2024 as their loss non-win event. The Statesmen ended the season with a 14-game win streak which included the game of the year in an epic NCAA quarterfinal against Curry that took four overtime periods to decide a winner and advance Hobart to the Frozen Four.
“I didn’t want it to end there for this team,” said Taylor. “We were dominating the game in so many ways and we, the coaches, were running out of things to say as the overtimes progressed. What are you going to say – keep it going boys? They were giving everything, and we couldn’t get a bounce. It was such a relief to get that goal and know this team was going to have a chance to defend their title in the Frozen Four.”
With a win on Thursday against Utica by a 3-1 score and Saturday’s 2-0 shutout of Trinity, the Statesmen became the first team since the 2011 and 2012 St. Norbert Green Knights to win back-to-back national championships. At the press conference following their first tile, Taylor hoped his team could get back there to give players who were unable to play for the title a chance to experience winning one too. Ironically, one of those key players, Matthew Iasenza scored the insurance goal into the empty-net on Saturday night and his teammates celebrated him like it was the game-winning goal.
“We practice something called “Mudita” [A Buddhist Term] here,” stated Taylor. “As good as these guys are on the ice they are better people and closer off it. Mudita is when you can joyfully celebrate others success and you saw that with Iasenza and his teammates after the goal. None of these guys are looking for personal accolades and are thrilled with the team’s success that everyone is a part of whether they are playing or not – everyone supports the team.”
Under Taylor, Hobart has the longest consecutive NCAA appearance streak at nine years, and they have advanced to the Frozen four in five of those winning the past two championships. Not one to rest on current achievements, there is a desire for more.
“A three-peat?” asked Taylor. “We don’t think of it like that but we will do everything we can to be good enough to get back here again next season. It is our goal every year to win games and championships.”
