COLLEGEVILLE, Minn. – Saint John's head hockey coach Doug Schueller announced his captains for the 2018-19 season on Tuesday, Oct. 24. Junior defenseman Cole Souto (Yorba Linda, Calif.) will serve as the team captain, while senior forwards Joe Chitwood (Carmel, Ind.), Matt Colford (Champlin, Minn.) and Evan Okeley (Carmel, Ind.) will serve as his assistants.

"One of the most important things we do every year is select our team captains," Schueller said. "We take this process very seriously and I think the team did a great job. We have a team full of leaders, but Cole, Evan, Matt and Joe all rose to the top.  

"All of these guys carry themselves the right way and display great leadership qualities every day. I look forward to the start of the season with the entire group of young men on this team."

All four earned 2017-18 America Hockey Coaches' Association (AHCA) All-America Scholar honors, which are bestowed upon any hockey student-athlete that attained a 3.6 GPA or better during the 2017-18 academic year and participated in 40 percent of the team's games.

An assistant captain as a sophomore last season, Souto played 16 games and recorded six points (4g/2a) from the blue line. He was named to the seven-man MIAC All-Rookie team and the eight-man USCHO.com All-Rookie in 2016-17.

Chitwood played 24 games and collected 14 points (3g/11a), while tying for third on the team with a plus/minus rating of +7. Colford and Okeley each played 25 games and posted 16 points (6g/10a) and 14 points (4g/10a), respectively. 

SJU opens the 2018-19 season with a pair of non-conference games as part of the annual MIAC Showcase Oct. 26 (7 p.m. vs. St. Thomas) and Oct. 28 (3:30 p.m. vs. Bethel) at the Schwan Super Rink in Blaine.

The Johnnies finished second in the MIAC, one point from the regular-season championship, with an 11-5 conference record (16-8-2 overall) last season. The 11 conference wins were the most since the 2005-06 season for SJU, which earned its fifth trip to the MIAC Playoffs in the last seven years. The 11 game-winning goals in conference play were scored by 11 different Johnnies, nine of whom return in 2018-19.