By Joshua Boyd / USPHLPremier.com
On March 11, the Minnesota Moose were in the third period of Game 2 in their Midwest West Division Final series against the Minnesota Squatch. Down 4-3 in the third period and facing elimination, Logan Lake scored the game-tying goal with an assist by Ryan Mulrenin. The Moose went on to win that game, 8-5, and also won Game 3 to earn a trip to the USPHL Premier Nationals.
The Lake and Mulrenin Show was renewed for four more seasons by Hamline University, as Ryan Mulrenin committed to Hamline this past spring with essentially the same timeline as Lake. The Moose’s All-Star forward (Mulrenin) and All-Star defenseman (Lake) hope to keep up their on-ice chemistry to the benefit of their Pipers teammates beginning this fall.
“I’m excited to be able to go to Hamline with Logan Lake and already moved forward in getting an apartment near campus,” said Mulrenin, an ‘02 native of Wayzata, Minn. “I first began talking with Hamline before my last season of juniors. The coaches over at Hamline said they liked my offensive play style.
“On the athletic side, Hamline hockey has been around for a long time and is a highly-respected NCAA Division 3 program,” said Mulrenin. “On the academic side, Hamline has very small class sizes and each student gets the attention they need and deserve to succeed. I plan on majoring in Human Biology for four years and continuing two extra years of chiropractic school.”
Mulrenin is going from his small hometown of over 4,000 souls to Hamline’s home city of St. Paul, with more than 300,000 permanent residents. With a one-year stop at Blaine (over 70,000 population) to skate for the Moose, he said that despite the big city location, Hamline has a compact, easy-to-navigate campus with a small town college vibe.
“I like the size of the campus. You’re never too far from anywhere you need to go and it’s convenient,” said Mulrenin.
Mulrenin came to the Moose in 2022 after a Tier II season in British Columbia, and a prior two seasons with the Des Moines Buccaneers 18U AAA program. He made an immediate impact in Blaine, leading the team in points per game at 1.43 with a 27-23-50 line in just 35 games. He was absolutely on fire in the postseason, scoring 14 points in eight postseason games, including their three contests at the USPHL Nationals in Utica.
“Playing for the Minnesota Moose was nothing like any team I played on prior. The Moose team this year was the best group of guys and the tightest group you could have. The atmosphere was unbelievable and the coaching was top notch,” said Mulrenin. “I developed an incredible amount with the Minnesota Moose, not just on the ice, off the ice as well. I became a better teammate, a better person and a better 200-foot hockey player throughout the season and I thank coach Jon Jonasson and my teammates for that.”
He praised Coach Jonasson as well for constantly reaching out to NCAA scouts and for the USPHL Premier overall for its high compete level and showcase-heavy schedule that also attracted college attention.
“I thought the USPHL was a solid league for attracting NCAA scouts, especially on a well-rounded team like the Moose. The coach did a great job of having scouts come watch,” he said.
Now, with his NCAA future ahead of him, he’s working his way to get some of that Mulrenin-Lake magic going and adding as many Hamline teammates as possible to the chemistry mix in the process.
“I have been skating three times a week along with working out every single day to make sure I’m ready to compete at the next level against bigger, better and older competition,” he added.
The USPHL congratulates Ryan Mulrenin, his family, the Minnesota Moose and Hamline University for his commitment.
