By Bridget (Weide) Brooks
The Omaha Mavericks hit the road for the first time this season, traveling to Colorado Springs to open National Collegiate Hockey Conference (NCHC) play against the Colorado College Tigers on Friday, Oct. 31 and Saturday, Nov. 1.
Colorado College is coming off a bye week after sweeping Northern Michigan in Marquette, Mich., winning 2-1 (OT) on Friday, and 5-2 on Saturday.
Colorado Springs is a familiar destination for Omaha Hockey — and a meaningful one. Omaha’s last visit to Ed Robson Arena — in March 2024 — ended with the Mavericks earning their first (and only) trip to the NCHC Frozen Faceoff in St. Paul.
Senior goaltender and co-captain Simon Latkoczy remembers those emotions well.
“I have good memories from that building for sure,” Latkoczy said. “I like to play in Colorado. I think it’s a cool spot — a nice hockey rink. So it’s always fun to go there. I don’t mind (traveling) there at all. I am excited, and I remember all those emotions we had there when we made it to the Frozen Faceoff.”
The Mavericks (2-2-0) are coming off a hard-fought home series split with UMass — a weekend that saw Omaha bounce back from a tough Friday loss to take a decisive 5-2 victory on Saturday. Head coach Mike Gabinet said he was pleased with the progress his group showed from night to night.
“Anytime early, you want to build on what you did the night before,” Gabinet said. “I think we’re always looking at ways to find those little improvements, find those little tweaks you can make to continue to grow as a team, (and) continue to grow individually.”
“On Saturday, we just really took care of the puck — especially in that first period — and that led to good things happening all night for us,” he added.
This weekend’s matchup marks the start of conference play, and the beginning of the long grind of critical games.
“It’s always exciting to start NCHC play,” Gabinet said. “We’re starting to play for some points, and we’re looking forward to getting on the road. I don’t mind being on the road, especially early in the season — it’s a chance to kind of connect a little bit more as a team, and play in a different environment.”
Colorado College (5-1-0) enters the weekend ranked in the national polls and off to a strong start. Gabinet praised the Tigers’ depth and structure.
“They’re a really structured team that plays well,” he noted. “They’re off to a great start being 5-1 and ranked. I know their coach (Kris Mayotte) has mentioned this might be the most deep team they’ve had, just with some of the personnel they’ve added. So they’ll be ready to go — and so will we. It should be a really good matchup.”
Latkoczy, the reigning NCHC Goaltender of the Year, is expected to start both nights. His presence — and poise — remain a steadying force for a Maverick squad still meshing 15 new players into the lineup.
“Anytime you’ve got a good goaltender, it makes the head coach feel a little more comfortable,” Gabinet said. “When I think about the program, I think about Simon. It’s kind of hard to imagine him not being here — and I think that’s a good thing.”
For his part, Latkoczy downplays the individual accolades.
“The trophies are just something that you get after all the hard work,” he said. “I haven’t had the national championship trophy or even the NCHC trophy yet. Those are goals as well. I’m really kind of a day-by-day-oriented goalie. I just focus on getting better every day and hopefully the success is going to come at the end of the season.”
As for the challenge of playing in front of a loud home crowd in Colorado Springs, Gabinet sees it as fuel rather than distraction.
“Any time you’re on the road in our conference, usually the venues are full and loud and tough to play in,” he said. “That’s kind of fun, right? We want to compete. We want to go make other buildings quiet.”
Interesting Tidbits:
Series history: Omaha holds an edge in the all-time series against Colorado College (32-15-7), and has won its last four games against the Tigers. Omaha swept Colorado College in Omaha during the 2024-25 season, winning 3-1 and 5-2. The Mavericks clinched a playoff series victory at Ed Robson Arena in 2024 to advance to the NCHC Frozen Faceoff — a trip that remains a strong memory for returning seniors Jacob Guevin, Simon Latkoczy, Griffin Ludtke, Cam Mitchell, Tyler Rollwagen, and Jacob Slipec.
Goaltending duel: Expect another marquee matchup in net between Omaha’s Simon Latkoczy and Colorado College’s Kaiden Mbereko. Both are among the top goaltenders in the NCHC, each boasting save percentages north of .920 to start the season. (Mbereko, 2.31 GAA, .915 save percentage; Latkoczy, 3.03 GAA, .911 save percentage)
Hot start for the Tigers: Colorado College enters the weekend 5-1-0 and nationally ranked (no. 15 in the USCHO poll, no. 16 in the USA Hockey poll), with balanced scoring from all four lines and an improved blue line corps. Head coach Kris Mayotte has called this season’s roster “the deepest team we’ve had.”
Omaha’s balanced attack: Eleven different Mavericks have already scored this season, highlighting the team’s depth and chemistry as 15 newcomers settle into the lineup.
Altitude awareness: The Tigers’ home ice sits at 6,033 feet above sea level — one of the highest elevations in college hockey. Conditioning and short shifts will be key factors in Friday’s opener.
Game previews:
UNO Gateway (Tyler Doremus):
Hurrdat Sports (Jordan McAlpine):
Colorado College Athletics:
Omaha Hockey:
Omaha World-Herald (Mike Patterson): ($)
https://omaha.com/sports/college/uno/article_0485825e-cc0e-4fad-a7df-257d7eef5cb5.html
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