The University of Wisconsin-Platteville men’s hockey club has become a program competing with the best clubs in the nation, as they approach the 2014 playoffs.

Coached by Adam Nelson, a former player for the Pioneers, the hockey team entered its first year as part of the American College Hockey Association Division III hockey league.

Playing against the top schools in the nation, the team aims to continue playing at a high level and even bring the program at UW-Platteville to greater standards.

The hockey club competes within a local region, the Mid-America College Hockey Association, against teams such as Northern Illinois University, University of Iowa, and Iowa State University.

The Pioneers’ hockey program consists of two teams: the Blue team (A team), which competes against some of the best hockey clubs in the nation, and the Orange team (B team), which consists of players who did not quite make the A team but still get the chance to participate at UW-Platteville.

Ian McGilvray is one player from the Orange team who has played here for the past three years and continues his love for the game of hockey with the program here.

“The Blue team is our first team. Up until last year, we only had one team, but with all the new participants, a second team was a good option,” McGilvray said. “[The club] can go to the national championship, but with the B team, it’s more to play. It’s less game time and less expensive, but it’s still decent hockey. It’s a great club to join.”

The Blue team does compete at a high level and this season, much like last, has brought the hockey club success among the region.

Standing at a 17-8-2 record, the club clinched the MACHA conference title, however, it did not manage to win enough games for a regional title and a shot at the national championship.

President and senior Alex Walczak described the goal of the team was to make it to regional playoffs, but could not manage enough victories to do so.

“This being our first year at the ACHA Division III level made it somewhat of a learning experience. Our hopes were to make it to regionals, but a couple close losses to ranked teams seems to have postponed that goal,” Walczak said.

The hockey club at UW-Platteville is about more than just winning championships.

As a club organization, they have a broader goal and produce more than just rings and trophies to hang in the halls.

“To be a part of the team is way more than just the on-ice experience. Most of the people I hang out and live with I met from joining the team,” Walczak said.

Although the bonding experience of organized club hockey is beneficial to those on the team who travel to Dubuque three days a week for practice, the program does have expectation for future success.

“I think going into next season, the freshmen that came in this year are some of the best freshmen we’ve had in a long time. As a whole, we’re going to be stronger next year,” Nelson said.

With optimism and increasing levels of success each year, the UW-Platteville Hockey Club has brought the university a program that welcomes, not only the chance to compete at the highest club level, but also a chance to play a sport that is not offered at the varsity collegiate level at UW-Platteville.

“The ultimate goal is to grow every year. We just take it for what it is right now,” Nelson said. “We’re not going to become a Division I program. We want to give these guys that are here and want to continue to play hockey a chance to do that at the highest level possible, and I think every year they do a better job of that.”