Brian Monahan - NCHAhockey.org

Focused.  Athletic.  Mentally strong.  And one heck of a competitor.

These are the traits of St. Norbert junior goaltender David Jacobson, the 2013-14 NCHA Men's Conference Player of the Year.  No player in the league squeezed as much out of their skill set this season than the junior from Janesville, Wisconsin.

Jacobson ranked first in goals against average (1.28), save percentage (.935) and wins (19).  His goals against ranks second in the nation, although the player he trails has played roughly half the minutes Jacobson has.  Speaking of minutes, Jacobson's 12-hundred were second in the NCHA ... meaning he posted his outstanding statistics while playing nearly every game for the Green Knights.

He doesn't mean to sound disrespectful of the league's highest honor, but he hasn't really thought much about winning Player of the Year.  His team, after all, is fighting through the Harris Cup Playoffs.  And we are dealing with a very focused individual.

"I remember coming in as a freshman and winning a few awards," said Jacobson, who was named All-NCHA and All-Freshman back in 2012.  "The seniors all told me those don't mean anything unless you win nationals."

Perhaps it will all sink in when the off-season rolls around.  Which for Jacobson might not be for a month.  He has lead his team into great position in the Harris Cup Playoffs and built a strong resume that could very well lead to a NCAA tournament berth.

"Our success right now is really in our d-corps," said Jacobson.  "The defense and me working together, and the forwads coming back.  Our d-zone and the chemistry is really going well right now ... we've been working on communication all year and I think we're really nailing that down right now."

All the chemistry has helped minimize opponents' chances, but every player in the Green Knight locker room will tell you how many clutch saves their goalie has made.  The room admires Jacobson and they play better when he's on the ice - which might be part of the unwritten requirement to be named Player of the Year.

Setting Jacobson apart, besides his complete talents, is his work ethic. 

"He's a very confident young man," said head coach Tim Coghlin.  "His confidence stems from his work habits, his work ethic and his preparedness.  When he comes in for his goalie sessions, there's not a smile on his face.  When it's his rotation, he's in."

Those goalie sessions have played a huge role in getting Jacobson to where he is.  College hockey icon Mark Mazzoleni works with Jacobson and the St. Norbert goalies every Monday and Wednesday.  Those thirty minutes before the full team practice are where Jacobson sees specialty situations, stops a ton of shots and finishes covered in sweat and breathing hard.

"Sometimes they're actually a little more taxing than the entire practice itself," said Jacobson of the sessions.  "We get a lot of shots, everything is geared toward us ... A lot of momvement, a lot of game-type looks.  We work on specific things, such as when the puck is in tight, scrambles, back-door plays."

Jacobson thrives off the competitive nature of the goalie sessions, which makes sense given how competition runs through his veins.  On and off the ice.  Two years ago at the NCAA finals in Lake Placid, the St. Norbert team returned to the facility to find several Norwich players using the ping pong table.  Jacobson challenged the previous game's winner and proceded to hold court, beating everyone who wanted a piece of the action.  Jacobson hates to lose. 

In addition to Mazzoleni, Jacobson named two other coaches when asked who has had a significant influence on him throughout his career.  He acknowledged his youth and high school coach, John Mauermann, and his goalie coach in junior hockey, Larry Clemons.

Jacobson grew up and played his youth hockey in Janesville, Wisconsin, which is roughly 160 miles south-southwest of St. Norbert near the Illinois border.  He started playing goalie at age eight or nine out of necessity.  His team's regular goalie gave up a goal, became upset and was somehow injured after falling to the ice.  The squirt team needed a goalie and Jacobson volunteered.  Thus began his career between the pipes and his obsession with the position.

After youth and high school hockey, it was on to the North American Hockey League and his hometown Janesville Jets.  That's where Clemons took over for Mauermann and really molded Jacobson into the goalie he is now.

Always looking for an edge - his compete level is through the roof, of course - Jacobson has refined his gaoltending style from his freshman to his junior year.

"Growing up, I've always been an athletic goalie," said Jacobson.  "But I've been trying to beocme more of a positional goalie.  If I have to, I'll use my athleticism.  But I'd rather not rely on it."

Coghlin has seen the athleticism in action, robbing opposing players and firing up the Green Knight bench.  He loves that about his starter.

"He makes saves that he should not make," said Coghlin.  "He can do things like that."

Jacobson has started most of St. Norbert's games since coming to the Green Bay school for the 2011-12 season, but his path to the top was far from easy.  He came in after the Green Knights had just won a national championship and lost their All-American, Player of the Year goaltender, B.J. O'Brien.  The number one question mark for St. Norbert heading into Jacobson's freshman year was how it would proceed without O'Brien.

Jacobson fought hard for playing time.  He started just twice in the team's opening seven games. 

"I came into a goalie competititon that (freshman) year," said Jacobson.  "Sparks fired, because I knew I could get (the starting job).  It took me a while to get it, but once I did, I just tried to do my best.  I really enjoyed it, because nobody expected anything from me, so it was just go out there and play."

His opportunity came in a November series at UW-Eau Claire.  And he seized the moment.  With St. Norbert sitting at 3-2-2 overall, Jacobson played a solid two games and lead the team to a road sweep.  He won a one-goal game and stopped 57 of 61 shots for the weekend, righting the ship, grabbing the starting job and moving the team toward what would end up as a national title.  He started all but one game the rest of that freshman campaign.

That weekend in Eau Claire would be the first of many weekends that Jacobson would shine, really the jumping-off point that ultimately led to this year's Player of the Year award.  He's been in numerous pressure situations over his career, including many in the 2013-14 journey.  And he's just a junior, with a mostly blank postseason canvass waiting to be filled ... and a senior season still ahead. 

During this past off-season, Jacobson sat down with Coghlin and talked about what the upcoming year looked like.  The team was coming off an early exit from the NCAA Tournament and a new, talented freshman goalie was coming in to challenge for playing time - coincidentally, it was a former teammate of Jacobson's in Janesville, Tony Kujava.  So Jacobson told Coghling he was approaching the season like he did his freshman year.
 
"I told (Coghlin) I was going to come in just like the spot's open again," said Jacobson.  "I took this year like freshman year, where I have to earn that spot again."

If the year plays out like his freshman year, there will be a lot more to celebrate than just winning the starting job.