By Sara Guymon
The crowd went wild as the buzzer signaled the end of the game. Sweat was dripping down the athletes as they barrelled onto the ice and exchanged victorious cheers, embracing each other. Nick Swaney, a freshman at the time of his first national championship, will always remember this moment, especially now as he reflects on his time as a Bulldog.
Swaney is a senior forward this season and one of the highest point scorers in the National Collegiate Hockey Conference (NCHC). So far this season, he has tallied 21 points from 7 goals and 14 assists. Throughout his career as a Bulldog, he has been on the winning team of two national championships and hopes for the opportunity again this year. This would be
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FEBRUARY 2021
THEBARKUMD.COM
NICK SWANEY CONTINUES TO PERFORM ON THE ICE AS HIS SENIOR YEAR FLIES BY especially meaningful after the abrupt end to last season due to COVID-19. On top of all that, he was a 7th round draft pick for the Minnesota Wild in 2017.
The Lakeville, Minnesota native started skating at the age of 2 at Apple Valley Ice Arena and played on his first team shortly after that. However, he was not always the forward that UMD is so used to seeing on the ice.
“I actually played defense until right before my freshman year of high school,” Swaney explained. “Then I switched and the switch has paid off pretty good. So, I’m glad I did it.”
Growing up in Minnesota, Swaney watched a lot of
PHOTO BY SARA GUYMON
