George Mason University Ice Hockey is excited to announce the opening of their new locker room facility at Prince William Ice Center. Whether seen in still photos or our new video, there is no doubt this facility will be welcomed by current & future George Mason Ice Hockey M1 rostered players.
The 4,500 square foot project has been in the making since 2021, when GMU also transitioned to ACHA M1 from M3. The new state-of-the-art facility will provide an official “Home” for GMU M1 players for years to come.
GMU Ice Hockey would like to thank all of those involved in the process of completing this new facility, including the ownership group of the Prince William Ice Center – George Mason University Ice Hockey’s home rink.
After qualifying multiple times for ACHA Nationals as an M3 team, GMU Ice Hockey made the jump to the Division 1 level of the ACHA in 2021. This 2023-24 season saw Mason finish their best season to date, winning a program high 21 games (21-6-2 overall). The upward trajectory of the program is evident, as the 21 wins and second place finish in the Eastern Collegiate Hockey Association (ECHA) were both program firsts. GMU missed an autobid to the 2024 ACHA Nationals Tournament by one point, as conference rival West Chester University would secure the bid by capturing the ECHA regular season title.
The ECHA issued two Conference awards to members of the GMU M1 team. First-year goaltender Lukas Heuberger (Linz, Austria) was awarded “Rookie of the Year” honors for the conference and First-year defenseman Drew Tsakounis (Arlington, VA) was announced as a Second-Team All-Conference member. Heuberger finished the year with a total record of 11-4-0-1, 2.67 GAA and a 0.930 save percentage. He also secured his first collegiate shutout on December 12th in a 1-0 OT win against The College of New Jersey. Tsakounis played in 29 games for the Patriots this year and amassed 11 Goals and 15 Assists in the process. A leader on the blue-line, Tsakounis would net 2 GWG against Towson and Temple in conference play and led the ECHA in points by a Defenseman. GMU’s M1 team also finished the year with 4 players in the top 20 in scoring for the ECHA (Matthew Price (Sr.), Raymond Booth (Sr.), Joe Petite (Fr.), Mike Miranda (So.)).
Steve Hyjek, who led Mason Ice Hockey for over 12 years, is very optimistic about the future of the program as he leaves behind a great legacy. Hyjek coached for his final time in the ECHA playoffs in February.
James Vuillemot will take over behind the bench moving forward after serving as an assistant coach the previous three seasons. He will be joined by returning Assistants Keith Fagerquist and Cade Groton. GMU officially moves into their new “Home” in April, seeing the team’s new facility as an advantage to further spur the program as an M1 ACHA program of choice in the years to come.
