BULLS ALL-TIME ADVANCEMENT LIST
MOLINE, Ill. – He’s been a national champion…an academic standout…all-conference…even had a scholarship named after him.
Where does a player like Tommy Stang go with a resume like that?
Straight to the pros.
Stang has signed with the Quad City Storm of the Southern Professional Hockey League (SPHL), after a tremendous four-year collegiate career at St. Mary’s University in Winona, Minnesota. He is set to become the 13th former North Iowa Bull to suit up for a professional team, and the third to land a spot on an SPHL roster.
The Mendota Heights, Minnesota native joined the North Iowa Bulls and older brother Jack in 2015-16, following a two-year varsity high school career at St. Thomas Academy and capping his prep career with a run to the Minnesota state high school hockey tournament. He was a solid contributor to the Bulls’ Silver Cup national championship run in 2016, totaling 34 points in 37 appearances during the regular season and an additional four points in six outings during the postseason. He would land a brief call-up the following year to the NAHL’s Northeast Generals before finishing his junior run with the Dauphin Kings in the Manitoba Junior Hockey League and Thief River Falls in the Superior International Junior Hockey League.
Stang landed a spot in the lineup right away at St. Mary’s, playing in 24 games as a freshman and notching seven points. He posted all-Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference numbers each of the next two seasons, notching 22 points in 27 games as a sophomore and 28 points in 25 games as a junior. 2020-21 saw Stang post 10 points in 11 games, with no all-MIAC teams announced. The Cardinals’ 11 games led the circuit, while two teams – St. Olaf and Concordia – played just two.
He was a standout in the classroom as well as on the ice, earning Academic All-MIAC honors in his pursuit of a Business Intelligence & Analytics/Finance degree. His work in the community also did not go unnoticed, with a scholarship named in his honor in 2019 by the Thief River Falls NorsKids Foundation.
He and Jack became a formidable force on the ice for both the Bulls and St. Mary’s, and Tommy now follows his older brother into the ranks of professional hockey. Jack played two games for the Evansville Thunderbolts of the SPHL in 2019-20 before signing with the Stenungsund Stingers club in Sweden this past season, notching more than a point a game in his first full season of professional hockey.
“Carrying on the family legacy here at Saint Mary’s over his four years, Tommy has proven himself to be an elite player in the MIAC,” said Cardinals head coach Ryan Egan in a farewell announcement to this past year’s seniors. “His contributions on and off the ice will always be remembered. We thank Tommy for his sacrifice and contributions to Saint Mary’s Men’s Hockey and wish him the best in his future endeavors.”
He joins a Quad City team that is looking forward to getting back on the ice after sitting out the 2020-21 SPHL season due to COVID-related restrictions in the state of Illinois. The 2019-20 Storm finished 16-20-8 before the cancellation of the season in mid-March. He also joins 2015-16 Bulls teammate Brett Gravelle, who played last season for the Elmira Enforcers in the Federal Prospects Hockey League.
The North Iowa Bulls congratulate Tommy Stang on his signing with the Quad City Storm and wish him well as he enters the next stage of his hockey career.