MINNEAPOLIS – Eden Prairie, Minnesota native Jarod Blackowiak was a top-flight forward for the North Iowa Bulls and a Top Prospect across the North American Tier 3 Hockey League landscape. Now, Blackowiak is hoping to top the depth chart at Augsburg University in the Twin Cities. The second-year Bulls forward made his commitment official earlier this week, becoming the sixth player on this year’s team to decide on a college destination.
Blackowiak began his junior career with a pair of appearances for the Austin Bruins at last year’s North American Hockey League showcase, and made another appearance with the Bruins last December. After tallying five assists in as many games, his power play goal last November 11 against the Granite City Lumberjacks lit the fuse for a 36-point rookie season.
After posting better than a point-per-game average in last year’s regular season and Central Division playoffs, Blackowiak stepped it up a notch this past year, with 24 goals and 24 assists, and nine more points during the postseason. He closed out his Bulls career with a flourish, posting points in seven of his eight postseason appearances, including all five of North Iowa’s games in the West Division playoffs.
He was also selected to the NA3HL’s Top Prospects showcase in 2018, notching a goal and an assist in front of scouts from across the college landscape and the NAHL.
Blackowiak becomes the second North Iowa Bulls player to make a commitment to Augsburg, after goaltender Matthew Bartels’s move to Minneapolis in 2013. More than 100 North Iowa Bulls players have moved on to play college hockey, including more than 70 who made their commitments while with the Bulls. Eight Bulls alumni have advanced to the NCAA Division I level, with two players active on Division I rosters this year and a third alumnus making his Division I commitment this year.
The Auggies finished with a 21-4-3 record this past season, including a four-overtime win over St. John’s in the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference title game. Augsburg’s NCAA tournament appearance was its sixth in school history, and its fourth in a row.
The North Iowa Bulls congratulate Jarod Blackowiak on his commitment to Augsburg University, and wish him continued success in his future with the Auggies.