WINONA, Minn. — It was a crowded post-season podium for the Saint Mary's University men's hockey team when the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference handed out its post-season awards on Tuesday.
 
The Cardinals had five players — Brady Lindauer (Cary, Ill.), Matt Hutton (Carmel, Ind.), Matt Sankner (Pennington, N.J.), Callahan Nauss (Des Moines, Ill.), and Kellen Tharaldson (Wausau, Wis.) — recognized for their stellar 2021-22 seasons. The five were all named honorable-mention All-MIAC, while Nauss was also selected to the MIAC's All-Rookie Team.
 
Lindauer had a breakout year this season, appearing in all 12 conference games, leading the team in both assists (7) and points (11), while sitting second in goals (4). The junior forward closed out the conference schedule with his most productive series, posting back-to-back two-point games against Bethel — netting a goal and an assist in a 3-2 overtime loss on Feb. 18, and adding a pair of assists in SMU's 4-0 victory the following evening.
 
For the season, Lindauer finished at or near the top in all three offensive categories, compiling team highs with 11 assists and 16 points, while his five goals were second.
 
The Cardinals' other four post-season award-winners certainly made a splash in their first seasons in a Saint Mary's jersey.
 
Hutton played in 10 of the team's 12 MIAC contests, delivering four goals and four assists to finish second to Lindauer in points with eight. In 19 overall games, Hutton once again sat No. 2 on the team in points with 14, thanks to five goals and nine assists. The sophomore forward closed out his first Saint Mary's campaign having posted four two-point games — including his first collegiate two-goal effort in SMU's 4-0 win over Bethel on Feb. 19.
 
Sankner was the workhorse between the pipes for the Cardinals, as the freshman goalie started nine of the team's 12 MIAC contests, compiling a 2.30 goals-against-average and a .923 save percentage. The freshman — who appeared in 15 overall contests in 2021-22, owning a 2.83 GAA and .910 save percentage — closed out year No. 1 at Saint Mary's stopping 30 or more shots in a game five times, including a career-high 35 saves twice. Sankner stopped all 31 shots he faced against Bethel on Feb. 19 in recording his first collegiate shutout.
 
Nauss thrived against conference opponents this season, recording seven of his eight points during his freshman campaign in SMU's 12 MIAC contests. Nauss boasted one goal and six assists for seven points in 12 conference games, while adding a nonconference assist to end the year with one goal and seven assists for eight points. Nauss netted his first goal as a Cardinal against nationally ranked and league-leading Augsburg on Feb. 11.
 
In his first year in a Cardinal jersey, Tharaldson picked up seven points (1 goal, 6 assists) in 12 conference games, while appearing in 23 games overall, posting one goal and seven assists for eight points. Theraldson's goal — his first as a Cardinal — came against St. Olaf on Dec. 4. The sophomore defenseman also posted his first collegiate three-point game this season, dishing out three assists in SMU's 4-2 win over Hamline on Jan. 21.
 
Regular-season champion Augsburg swept the conference's top two honors, as senior Austin Martinsen was named MIAC Player of the Year, while first-year head coach Greg May was tabbed the league's Coach of the Year.  
 
As part of a conference-wide sportsmanship initiative, the MIAC also announced the annual All-MIAC Sportsmanship team for men's hockey, which included Saint Mary's Trevor Paradise (Colorado Springs, Colo.). Members of the All-MIAC Sportsmanship team are selected by their coaches and teammates as individuals who demonstrate ideals of positive sportsmanship both on and off the field of competition.