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Lukas Swedin – Bentley University Lukas Swedin went down as one of the greatest goaltenders in Minot Minotauros history with a 39-18-0 record and a save percentage north of .935, and he has done good on his commitment to Bentley University where he’s been the last two years. Last season with Bentley, Sweden posted a 14-7-4 record with a .917 save percentage, and he’s off to a blazing hot start in 2026-27. He shut out Vermont on Bentley’s Opening Night on October 9th, stopping all 30 shots he faced against the Catamounts, then just a few days ago on October 23rd, he blanked Robert Morris on 30 shots for his second shutout of the season in just his third game. Swedin was named Atlantic Hockey American Goalie of the Week after his Opening Night shutout, and it was announced today that he was awarded his second Goalie of the Week honors after his clean slate against Robert Morris. Lassi Lehti – Minnesota State University – Mankato Another former Tauros netminder is also having a fantastic start to the college season. Lass Lehti posted a .920 save percentage with Minot in the 2021-22 season before going on to play with the University of Alaska-Fairbanks, where he went 23-13-5 in four seasons with a .920 save percentage and two shutouts. Before this season, Lehti transferred to Minnesota State University-Mankato. In Lehti’s most recent two starts, he held St. Thomas (MN) to just one (1) goal on 81 shots, including a 30 save shutout on the second day of a back-to-back that was a one-goal hockey game for the vast majority of time. In the front-end, Lehti stopped a career high 50 of 51 shots on the way to a 3-1 win with a staggering goals saved above expected metric of +7.79. He was named CCHA Goaltender of the Week.
Brian Cooke – London Knights (OHL) Keeping on the trend of goaltenders, 2025-26 Tauros’ goaltender Brian Cooke is off to an undefeated start with the London Knights in his first OHL action. With the Tauros, Cooke went 15-10-0 with a .909 save percentage with two shutouts, and he’s already made a big impact for London as they find themselves firmly in second place in the OHL’s Midwest Division. Cooke was drafted in the 3rd Round with the 61st overall pick in the latest OHL Draft. Cooke has won all four of his starts, in which he’s had a .904 save percentage facing on average 29 shots per game. He was Second Star of the Game in his OHL debut against the Windsor Spitfires, stopping 28 of 30 shots to help the Knights in a 6-2 win. His best start so far was on the road against the Erie Otters where he gave up just one goal on 29 shots. Cooke is enjoying a very successful start to his OHL tenure, still at just 18 years old with an upcoming commitment to College of the Holy Cross. Wilmer Skoog – Grand Rapids Griffins (AHL) While the Tauros have obviously had some remarkable netminders over the course of time that have moved on to be successful at the higher levels, don’t balk at the skaters that have come through Minot as well. Wilmer Skoog had 47 points in 57 games with the Tauros in the 2018-19 season with two goals in the playoffs as well. Skoog went on to play one more season in the NAHL with the Maryland Black Bears before fulfilling his commitment to Boston University where he had 40 goals and 36 assists in 103 collegiate games. His output with Boston University got him a look with the Florida Panthers organization in 2023-24 where he split time between the Florida Everblades (ECHL) and Charlotte Checkers (AHL). Last season, Skoog made his NHL debut with the Florida Panthers and potted two assists against the Detroit Red Wings on April 15th. He finished the season on the Panthers’ roster and finished with a +3 rating in his three games played. Skoog’s output against the Red Wings piqued their interest, and they signed him to a one year contract for the 2026-27 season. So far this season, Skoog has a goal and two assists with the Grand Rapids Griffins, the AHL affiliate of the Red Wings. Braden Fischer – University of Minnesota-Duluth Braden Fischer had a very productive half-season stint with the Tauros in 2022-23 with 19 points in 24 games as well as a pair of goals in the Tauros’ three playoff games that season. Since then, he has fulfilled his commitment to the University of Minnesota-Duluth, where he played 51 games in three seasons entering this year. Already in six games this season, Fischer has tied a collegiate high in goals (2) on a UM-Duluth team that is off to a hot 5-1-2 start, the best start they’ve had since Fischer joined in 2023-24. Colby Joseph – Minot State University The final stop on our alumni report takes us a long ways away…actually it takes us to our backyard. Colby Joseph, a two-year Tauro from 2021-2023 stayed in the Magic City to continue his playing career with the Minot State Beavers. His immense output with the Tauros (33 goals and 30 goals in 115 games) got him the looks from the hometown scouts and he is now in his fourth season with Minot State, and sixth straight year in the city overall. Over the last three seasons, Joseph hasn’t slowed down a bit. He notched 62 goals and 39 assists in 99 games, and he’s arguably off to a start that would make even those numbers pale in comparison. Already in 10 games this season, Joseph has seven (7) goals and nine (9) assists. He has a point in all 10 games this season with two multi-goal games, one of which came on opening night against Arizona State. Joseph also ripped the heart out of ranked rival University of Jamestown with a game-tying goal in the final 33 seconds of regulation, then won the game 30 seconds into overtime to stun the home barn. Minot State is off to a fantastic 8-0-1 start and find themselves ranked 4th in ACHA Men’s Division 1.
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