By Nate Owen, News Staff

Perched atop the Hockey East standings, the men’s hockey team is having one of its best seasons in its 25th year in the conference. Tuesday, the Athletics Department honored some of the team’s top players over the last 25 years as a part of Hockey East’s 25th anniversary celebration with the announcement of the Hockey East All-Northeastern team.’
The team honors the tops players during Northeastern’s 25 years in Hockey East and was decided on by a committee that included Northeastern administrators, head coaches, alumni and supporters, as well’ as an online fan vote.
Junior goaltender Brad Thiessen is the only current player who made the team.’ He is joined in net by Bruce Racine, who played from 1984 to 1988. Six forwards, Jason Guerriero (2001-05), Jay Heinbuck (1982-86), Rod Isbister (1982-86), Harry Mews (1986-90), David O’Brien (1984-88) and Jordon Shields (1992-96) were elected to the team.’ On the blue line, Jim Averill (1981-85), Rob Cowie (1987-91), Jim Fahey (1998-02) and Dan McGillis (1992-96), were all honored.
‘It was a good promotion, I’m glad Hockey East did it,’ said Rob Rudnick, who has covered the men’s hockey team for 29 years on ESPN 890 AM. ‘It’s a great team, a really good representation of the players that Northeastern has had,’ he said.
The Huskies’ turnaround from a three-win team in the 2005-06 season to being top team in Hockey East this year has a lot to do with Thiessen. He won’ league All-Rookie honors his freshman year and set a Northeastern record with a .921 save percentage as a rookie. He’s been even better this season, posting a 15-5-2 record with a 1.89 goals-against-average and conference-best .940 save percentage. He set the Husky career record for shutouts with his eighth against Maine Oct. 24 and is a nominee for this year’s Hobey Baker award, which is given to the top player in Division I college hockey.
‘I got a letter from [Athletics Director] Peter Roby last week saying I had made the team,’ Thiessen said.’ ‘There’s been a lot of great goalies that have played at Northeastern the last 25 years. It’s pretty special for me, it’s a great honor. I’m definitely surprised.’
Racine was a two-time All-American for the Huskies. He led NU to Beanpot titles in 1985 and 1988 and was tournament MVP when the Huskies won the Hockey East title in 1988. He set the school record for wins with 19 during his sophomore year. He is in both the NU and Beanpot Hall of Fames.
‘ ‘With Racine and Thiessen, you really have a beginning and an end,’ Rudnick said. ‘Thiessen is current and Racine was one of the earliest guys around when Hockey East began. The game has changed a lot in 25 years, there were a lot more goals being scored, the butterfly technique of goaltending hadn’t been perfected, yet [Racine] was one of the most cerebral hockey players. I think he could be one of the top goalies in the 25 years of Hockey East, not just Northeastern.’
Racine was drafted by the Pittsburgh Penguins in the third round of the 1985 NHL draft and played in 11 games for the 1995-96 St. Louis Blues.
Among the defenders, Averill is in both the Northeastern and Beanpot Hall of Fames. He was voted to the All-New England team during his final three seasons and was an All-Hockey East and All-American during his senior year. Northeastern won the Beanpot during his final two seasons.
Cowie was the highest scoring defender in Hockey East history, still holding the league record with 107 points in 93 league games. Overall, he had 142 points in 139 games at Northeastern. He was a part of Northeastern’s only Hockey East title and last Beanpot title during his freshman year in 1988. As a junior, he scored a career-high 45 points and was an All-American.’ Cowie played in 78 NHL games with the Los Angeles Kings from 1994-96.
Fahey was Northeastern’s first and only’ NU player to be among the Hobey ‘Hat Trick’ finalists as one of the top three players in the nation his senior year. That same year he set a Husky single-season record for points by a defenseman, with 46, earning All-Hockey East, All-New England and All-American honors.
McGillis has the most NHL experience of the group, having played in 634 games, including parts of two seasons with the Bruins. He was drafted in the 10th round of the 1992 draft by Detroit. During his time at Northeastern, he earned Hockey East All-Rookie Honors. In his junior year he helped the Huskies to 19 wins and an NCAA tournament appearance. His senior year was perhaps his finest, as he was named All-Hockey East and an All-American.
‘[All these] guys made plays as defenseman. Some defenseman just stay at home and do their job and don’t score, but these guys certainly could,’ Rudnick said.
Up front, Guerriero set a Husky record by playing in 145 straight games, never missing a contest during his Northeastern career. During his senior year, he was first team Hockey-East, All-New England’ and an All-American. That year also saw the captain become Northeastern’s first-ever Hockey East scoring champ.
Heinbuck was one of three Huskies ever to be named a finalist for the Hobey Baker award during his senior year. He erupted for 30 goals and 40 assists that year, setting NU’s single season records for points and assists. He also earned first-team Hockey East honors and team MVP as the Huskies won 20 games. He is currently Director of Amateur Scouting for the Pittsburgh Penguins.
‘Jay Heinbuck probably had the best single season his senior year. He was a good player playing on a very good team,’ Rudnick said.
‘ Isbister ranks third all’-time in points at Northeastern. He was an All-New England selection his sophomore year when the Huskies won the Beanpot. He was inducted into the Northeastern and Beanpot Halls of Fame in 2003.
‘Isbister played on a great team and was a great all around scorer,’ Rudnick said.
Mews scored on the first shot of his collegiate career. He helped NU to both Beanpot and Hockey East titles his sophomore year and was a member of the Hockey East All-Tournament team. He earned All-Hockey East second team honors in both his junior and senior years.
O’Brien went from walk-on freshman year to winning the Gallagher Award as NU’s outstanding male scholar-athlete his senior year. He was a captain his senior year, posting 47 points en route to earning All-Hockey East honors and leading the Huskies to the Hockey East Tournament title as well as a win in the Beanpot. He was drafted by the Blues in the 12th round of the 1986 draft.
‘Dave O’Brien was the Larry Bird or Carl Yastrzemski of hockey,’ Rudnick said. He might have not been a Wayne Gretzky or Mario Lemieux [skill-wise], but he made the most of what he had and got better and better,’ he said.
Shields helped the Huskies reach the NCAA tournament in his sophomore year. His 166 career points are sixth-most at NU, and the most of any post-1980’s player.
‘The forwards were probably the toughest call. Northeastern has had a lot of really talented forwards throughout the years who didn’t get on the team,’ Rudnick said. ‘I think the forwards are interesting. They really span a lot of hockey, from an offensive era to the more recent era.’
The twelve players will be honored at Matthews on Feb. 27 during NU’s game with UMass Lowell
As for this year’s team, Rudnick said it was one of the most talented teams he’s seen at Northeastern in a long time.
‘Almost everybody [head coach] Greg Cronin puts on the ice could have played in any era over the last 25 years,’ he said.’ ‘Wade MacLeod, Tyler McNeely, Joe Vitale would be putting up numbers similar to some of those players that had gaudy offensive stats [in earlier]’ eras. They all skate well and have good ice vision.’