COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – After winning three straight Goaltender of the Month honors from the National Collegiate Hockey Conference (NCHC), Colorado College sophomore Kaidan Mbereko has been selected the HCA Men’s National Goaltender of the Month for February, the Hockey Commissioners Association (HCA) announced Wednesday.
 
Mbereko earns his first career national monthly honor, after becoming only the second NCHC player in conference history to win three straight monthly awards (along with former North Dakota goalie Adam Scheel). Mbereko, a five-time NCHC Goalie of the Month for his career, is also a semifinalist for the 2024 Mike Richter Award.
 
Mbereko continued his stellar play in February, backstopping CC to a 3-2-1 record during the month. The Aspen, Colo. native led the NCHC with a .939 save percentage and 168 saves last month, averaging 28.00 saves per game. His 1.79 goals-against average was second in the NCHC in February. He allowed two goals or fewer in five of his six starts and no more than three in any game, with all six February games coming against ranked competition.
 
The highlight of Mbereko’s month came on Feb. 16-17 when he compiled 66 saves while surrendering only three goals in a sweep of then-No. 2 North Dakota to earn NCHC Goaltender of the Week. The sophomore made 23 saves in a 7-1 win on Feb. 16, before making a career-high 43 stops against UND in a 6-2 victory a night later. Mbereko closed February with a bang as well, giving up only three goals in a series at then-No. 19 Omaha. He racked up 58 saves against UNO, including 41 stops in a 1-1 tie to close the series on Feb. 24.
 
On the season, Mbereko leads the NCHC with both a 2.31 GAA and a .920 save percentage, the latter of which ranks 12th nationally. His 855 saves this year are also tops in the NCHC. Mbereko has compiled a 19-10-3 record in net so far this season, with the 19 wins second in the conference.
 
Mbereko is the third NCHC player to earn HCA national monthly honors this season after Denver junior forward Massimo Rizzo was October Player of the Month and DU freshman defenseman Zeev Buium shared Player of the Month honors in November. Mbereko is the first NCHC netminder to snag National Goaltender of the Month since St. Cloud State’s Jaxon Castor last March.
 
The other men’s February monthly honors went to Boston College. Sophomore forward Cutter Gauthier earned HCA Men’s National Player of the Month, while his freshman linemate at BC, Ryan Leonard, took home National Rookie of the Month for February. North Dakota sophomore forward Jackson Blake, the NCHC Player of the Month in February, was a runner-up to Gauthier for HCA National Player of the Month.
 
Mbereko and the Tigers close out the regular season this weekend with a home-and-home series against rival and No. 4 Denver. Friday’s game can be seen nationally on CBS Sports Network, while Saturday’s finale will be available on NCHC.tv.