DULUTH — Minnesota Duluth center Cole Spicer will not return to the Bulldogs for the 2024-25 season after being ineligible for academic reasons throughout the second half of the 2023-24 season.
Spicer, a Grand Forks, North Dakota, native who was selected by the Boston Bruins in the fourth round of the 2022 NHL Draft, was removed from the Bulldogs' 2024-25 roster this week. Spicer confirmed to The News Tribune on Friday that he will not be returning to UMD for his junior season.
Spicer said he will not be playing hockey “for the time being.”
“I need to get some personal and emotional sorting done first,” Spicer said. “Right now I need to take a step back and figure out some things.”
Spicer took classes at UMD this summer and recorded five goals and four assists in 17 games as a sophomore, but was declared academically ineligible in December before the Bulldogs took part in the Quick Trip Holiday Faceoff in Milwaukee.
Instead of leaving to play junior hockey, Spicer stayed enrolled at UMD to regain his eligibility, taking classes and being allowed to practice but not play in games.
“I love those guys. They're family to me,” Spicer said about remaining at UMD. “We basically do everything together the whole season. Definitely the hardest part is leaving those guys.”
Speaking to reporters during the Boston Bruins' development camp on July 3, Spicer sounded like a player who will return to UMD in the fall.
“I love Duluth with all my heart,” Spicer said. “They have a great staff. I have the best teammates. Seriously, I love it here. I don't want to leave. It feels like my second home. To be able to come back and play there really means something special to me.”
Cole Spicer said of life in Boston, “It's great. It's a really cool city, the staff is great, everybody is so welcoming, it's a great place to be drafted. I feel so honored every time I come here.”Follow | #NHLBruins pic.twitter.com/STbyECpozT
— Boston Bruins (@NHLBruins) July 3, 2024
Spicer played on the fourth line as a freshman at UMD in 2022-23 and recorded three goals and three assists, but he was given a larger role as a sophomore, especially after top-line center Dominique James suffered a season-ending injury in the second game of the 2022-23 season.
Spicer played two seasons with the U.S. National Team Development Program before coming to UMD and initially planned to play at his hometown school, the University of North Dakota, but was asked to defer his enrollment until 2023-24 and withdrew his commitment in April 2022.
What's next for Cole Spicer?
Clint Austin / File / Duluth News Tribune
If Spicer decides to continue playing hockey later in life, it probably won't be in the NCAA — he could apply to the transfer portal, but would need to be academically eligible to play for another NCAA program.
Spicer, who turned 20 in June, has one year of junior eligibility remaining. The Dubuque Fighting Saints of the United States Hockey League selected him in the sixth round of this spring's league draft and currently hold his rights.
The Youngstown Phantoms assumed Spicer's rights when he was declared ineligible in December but then waived him.
Spicer could potentially sign a professional contract with the Bruins but will likely be sent to one of the Bruins' minor league affiliates, either the Providence Bruins of the American Hockey League or the Maine Mariners of the ECHL.
What's next for the Bulldogs?
Clint Austin / File / Duluth News Tribune
With a big new addition of 11 freshmen and one transfer student, it was clear throughout the offseason that Scott Sandelin and the Bulldogs were already preparing for the possibility that Spicer would not be available again for the start of the 2024-25 season and beyond.
In addition to fifth-year player Joel Molenaar, a former winger at St. Cloud State, the Bulldogs enroll seven freshman forwards, more than half of whom have center experience.
UMD also returns five centers from last year, including senior captain James, and with 15 forwards, nine defensemen and three goalies, the Bulldogs won't need to add any freshmen or players through the transfer portal.
