The former Hancock Bulldogs star scored his first career hat trick last Friday in the Huskies’ 6-1 dismantling of the Ferris State Bulldogs. To be able to achieve that accomplishment at home was even better.

“Yeah, we have a great environment here,” he said after the Huskies’ win on Friday. “So, be able to score some goals at home is always special.”

After the Winter Carnival series against the Bemidji State Beavers, the Huskies (16-13-3 overall, 12-9-3 CCHA) announced that Nordstrom would be an alternate captain for the remainder of the season. He has rewarded the team’s confidence in him by scoring five goals in four games.

“Since I got the letter, (I’m) just trying to keep it simple, and just kind of stick to my game,” he said. “Obviously, the goals are a bonus.”

Michigan Tech forward Alex Nordstrom talks with TV6’s Dave Ellis after a game against Ferris State Friday at the MacInnes Student Ice Arena in Houghton. (David Archambeau/For the Gazette)

Against the Bulldogs, in scoring the hat trick, he did something no Huskies skater had done in 17 years, he scored a power play goal, an even strength goal, and a shorthanded goal. The last Huskies’ skater to do that, former Hancock star, and current coach, Pete Rouleau, who did it in a game against Minnesota-Duluth. Nordstrom played for Hancock while Rouleau served as an assistant coach.

“Pete was my assistant coach at Hancock, so, obviously, (that’s) pretty cool,” he said.

Huskies coach Joe Shawhan mentioned how happy he was with how Nordstrom performed on Friday.

“Well, (I’m) extremely proud of him,” Shawhan said. “He does it the right way. It’s important that we send the right message, do things as they’re earned, and this isn’t a participation sport, no matter how many people would like it to be that way. He’s mature about the game.”

Shawhan praised how hard Nordstrom works.

“‘Nordy’ is the guy that over his career, he’s the guy that always does (play the game the right way),” said Shawhan. “Right now, I’m proud of (how) he’s gaining confidence with the puck.

“He’s always had that ability, but, I think, ever since he went into junior hockey, he had a big, ‘I need to do this, I need to do this. I need to do…’ Now, he’s just being Nordy, and he’s getting into the end of his college career. He’s just playing. He’s just playing the way he plays, which is intelligent, competitive hockey, the right way.”

This past week, Nordstrom skated on a line with junior forward Stiven Sardarian and sophomore center Max Koskipirtti. When the final buzzer sounded on Friday, the trio had four goals and four assists in the win.

“Now you have Stiven saying, ‘I want to play with Nordy. I like the way Nordy plays.’ Of course, everybody wants to play with a guy that grinds it out and gets a puck,” Shawhan said. “When you put on his stick, he puts it in the net. Good for him. The leading scorer in the league is asking, ‘I want to play with Nordy.’ That’s awesome. No disrespect to anybody else. A guy appreciates a hockey player, appreciates someone who plays it the right way, is effective, and knows when I give him the puck, something will happen. When he gets a puck, something’s going to happen.”

For Nordstrom, getting to play with Sardarian and Koskipritti has been fun.

“They’re both highly skilled players, and great players,” he said, “so, (I’m) just trying to get them the puck. Get them the puck, and just try to stick to my game.”

While scoring three goals in a game is an accomplishment, and to score all three in succession is an even bigger one, Nordstrom knows what is important.

“Our goal is to get home ice, so (we) just kind of (have to) come out every night, do our best, and control what we can control,” he said. “We win games, we take care of it. So, that’s what we’re focusing on.”

SCOUTING THE TOMMIES

The Huskies hit the road for the final time in the regular season this weekend when they head to St. Paul to take on the Tommies. The Huskies enter the weekend 7-2-3 on the road. The Tommies are 14-13-5 overall, 11-9-4 in CCHA play.

They are currently on a three-game winning streak after defeating Bowling Green State on Saturday, Feb. 8, and then sweeping Northern Michigan last weekend in Marquette.

They are led offensively by senior forward Liam Malmquist, who has 13 goals and 36 points in 32 games. Junior forward Lucas Wahlin is also playing well, with 14 goals and 33 points in 32 games. Junior forward Cooper Gay has a team-high 15 goals and 25 points.

Junior goaltender Aaron Trotter has taken the reigns in net, appearing in 21 games, starting 19 of them. He has a 7-9-2 record with a 2.63 goals against average and a .909 save percentage.

GAME TIMES

The Huskies and Tommies will face off Friday at 8:07 p.m. in St. Paul, Minnesota. Saturday, the two teams will meet again at 7:07 p.m.