On Campus: NCAA's 10 most memorable moments from 2022

After a couple of difficult years during the COVID-19 pandemic, college hockey returned to a better place in 2022.

One sure sign things were getting back to normal was an entertaining Frozen Four in Boston in April that featured blue-blood hockey schools Denver, Michigan and Minnesota, joined by Minnesota State, which has joined the nation's elite teams under coach Mike Hastings.
As part of NHL.com's Year in Review package are 10 of the most memorable moments from college hockey in 2022.
Denver on top
After winning NCAA championships in Boston in 1960 and 2004, Denver did it again in 2022. It was the ninth national title for the school, tying Michigan for the most in NCAA history.
Coached by David Carle, 33, Denver did it with style.
It defeated Michigan 3-2 in overtime in the semifinals on a goal by forward Carter Savoie on April 7; Denver then trailed by a goal after 40 minutes in the championship game before scoring three times and adding a pair of empty-net goals in a 5-1 win against Minnesota State on April 9. Denver finished with a record of 32-9-1.
Hobey McKay-ker
Minnesota State goalie Dryden McKay capped a brilliant collegiate career by winning the Hobey Baker Award, voted as the top men's player in Division I ice hockey, on April 8.
The first goalie to win the award since Ryan Miller of Michigan State in 2001, McKay was 38-5-0 with a 1.31 goals-against average, .931 save percentage and 10 shutouts.
An undrafted free agent and three-time All-American, he set NCAA records for most career shutouts with 34 and most wins in a season (38).
New arena in desert
Arizona State's eight-year-old Division I team finally has an on-campus rink.
The first game at the $140 million Mullett Arena was played Oct. 14. Arizona State defeated Colgate 2-0 and the first goal in the new building was scored by Josh Doan, son of Arizona Coyotes icon Shane Doan.
Mullett Arena will serve as the temporary home of the Coyotes for the next three seasons.
Big Ten title game
The Big Ten championship game between second-seed Michigan and top-seed Minnesota, played before a boisterous sellout crowd of 10,774 at Mariucci Arena in Minneapolis on March 19, was a wildly entertaining showcase of the best of college hockey.
Michigan won 4-3 to end Minnesota's nine-game winning streak and capture the conference crown.
Kent Johnson, who scored what proved to be the winning goal at 7:26 of the second period, was selected by the Columbus Blue Jackets with the No. 5 pick in the 2021 NHL Draft and has 14 points (six goals, eight assists) in 25 games as a rookie with the Blue Jackets this season.
State-ing their case
A year after reaching the Frozen Four for the first time, Minnesota State got there again in 2022 and this time advanced to the national championship game for the first time.
To get to the Frozen Four in Boston, Minnesota State defeated Harvard 4-3 and Notre Dame 1-0 in the Albany Regional. Minnesota State then defeated Minnesota 5-1 in the national semifinal.
That win was as good as it got for Minnesota State, which finished 38-7-0 record after a 5-1 loss to Denver in the championship game.
Levi's stellar season
Devon Levi received the Mike Richter Award, voted as the top men's goalie in Division I ice hockey at the Frozen Four. It was the culmination of a year to remember for the Northeastern junior.
A member of Canada's team at the 2020 Beijing Olympics, Levi led Northeastern to its first regular-season Hockey East championship with an NCAA-leading save percentage of .952. He posted a school record 10 shutouts and had a 1.54 GAA.
Levi was acquired by the Buffalo Sabres in a trade with the Florida Panthers on July 24, 2021 after the Panthers selected him in the seventh round (No. 212) of the 2020 NHL Draft.
Levi was also a Hobey Baker Award Top Ten Finalist.
Making the jump
Lindenwood University, located in St. Charles, Mo., is playing its first season as a Division I program and has been competitive playing a schedule that includes five home games.
The addition of a D-I program in the St. Louis area, which produced Coyotes forward Clayton Keller and Tampa Bay Lightning forward Pat Maroon among others, is a step forward for college hockey.
Lindenwood (4-10-0) earned its first win against Air Force on Oct. 14, scoring five unanswered goals in a 7-6 home victory.
Superstar alum
It was a great for collegiate hockey last season when Cale Makar won the Stanley Cup with the Colorado Avalanche, the Norris Trophy voted as the top defenseman in the NHL and the Conn Smythe Trophy as the most valuable player in the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
After playing two seasons for coach Greg Carvel at Massachusetts, where Makar won the Hobey Baker Award in 2019, he has achieved superstar status in three NHL seasons. His success underscores the increasing role college hockey plays in developing top players.
Beanpot surprise
In one of the feel-good stories of the season, freshman backup goalie T.J. Semptimphelter made 41 saves to pace Northeastern to a 3-1 win against Boston College at TD Garden in Boston on the opening night of the 69th Beanpot tournament on Feb. 7.
Semptimphelter, who was coached as a youngster by former NHL goalie Brian Boucher, was filling in for Levi, who was playing with Canada at the 2022 Beijing Olympics.
The championship game on Feb. 14 was a classic, with Boston University edging Northeastern 1-0 on a third-period goal by fourth-line forward Dylan Peterson. It was BU's first Beanpot title since 2015.
Simply the best
The retirement of Jerry York, the winningest coach in college hockey history at age 76 on April 13 provided an opportunity to reflect on his remarkable career.
York was a Division I head coach for 50 consecutive seasons, at Clarkson, Bowling Green and then BC.
He won a record 1,123 games and five NCAA championships -- at Bowling Green in 1984 and BC in 2001, 2008, 2010 and 2012. He coached 17 players who went on to become first-round picks in the NHL Draft.