Ready for the Next Step
The Bismarck Bobcats have had a long history of players that have gone on to play at the Division I level. From players like Tommy Cronin, who committed to the University of Alaska-Fairbanks last year, to last year’s co-captain Ian Engel, who became the first Bobcat to go directly from the Bismarck Bobcat organization to the University of North Dakota, it is no secret that players from the Bobcat organization are Division I ready.
Taking a closer look at Cronin, in 14 games as a freshman for the Nanooks he has scored 4 goals and added on 6 assists for a total of 10 points. In his last 5 games he has 3 goals and 3 assists. Cronin was a dynamic and prolific scorer in the NAHL. In 72 games with the Bobcats, Cronin found the back of the net 35 times to go along with 57 assists for a total of 92 points. That scoring trend wouldn’t go away during the playoffs as in 22 career playoff games, Tommy scored 7 goals and added on 14 assists for 21 points.
Tommy is one of 36 players over the span of the last 5 years to come through the Bobcat organization and move on to a Division I level.
Looking back 5 years at a standout goaltender for the Bobcats, Ian Shane came to the Bobcats with his commitment to Cornell University. Shane appeared in 16 games for the Bobcats in the 2020-21 season and notched an 8-6-1 record with a 2.60 GAA and a .914 save percentage. For the Big Red, Shane would go on to play 17 games in his freshman year, where he registered a 7-6-3 record, with a 1.72 GAA and a .933 save percentage. That year he would receive recognition to the NCAA All Ivy-League Honorable Mention Team. His breakout season would come in his junior year where he registered a 22-5-6 record and received a host of recognitions which include
- Hobey Baker Award Nominee
- NCAA (East) Second All-American Team
- NCAA (ECAC) Champion
- NCAA (ECAC) First All-Star Team
- NCAA (ECAC) Goaltender of the Year
- NCAA (USCHO) Third Team
- NCAA All-Ivy League First Team
- NCAA Ivy-League Player of the Year
Shane concluded his collegiate career last year and now plays in the ECHL with the Reading Royals.
Similarly, a teammate of Shane’s, Tommy Bergsland, has also had a profound impact, as he currently plays for the Texas Stars in the AHL. In 54 games with the Bobcats in the 2020-21 season, Bergsland recorded 5 goals and 28 assists for 33 points, before spending the next 4 years at Colgate University. His freshman year, coming straight from the Bobcats organization, Bergsland appeared in 40 games for Colgate and produced 11 points including 4 goals, as a defenseman. During Bergsland’s Junior and Senior seasons he was named to the ECAC Second All-Star team. Across his Junior and Senior seasons combined, Bergsland recorded 50 points which included 9 goals and 41 assists.
The big story for the Bobcats during the offseason last year was Ian Engel committing to the University of North Dakota. UND is ranked #3 in the collegiate hockey ranks trailing only Michigan State and Michigan. Engel, as a freshman, has cracked into the lineup twice and has proven that he is a Division I hockey player through and through.
Engel played in 161 career games for the Bobcats across parts of 4 seasons and earned his way to a Division I commitment. The Hortonville, WI native scored 9 career goals and 54 assists for a total of 63 points. Engel was known for his defensive prowess and ability to play in any situation on the ice. Engel played a massive role in bringing the Robertson Cup back to Bismarck for the first time in 15 years.
This year the Bobcats have committed 2007 birth years and first year NAHL forward Mark Evans to Robert Morris University. He is one of 9 Division I commits on the 2025-26 Bobcat team.