Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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BLUEGOLDONLINE.COM NOV. 29, 2025 45 BY TODD D. BURLAGE A ll it took was one puck to the head as a youngster and Sutter Muzzatti knew right then that he wasn't inter- ested in following his father's hockey career path. Muzzatti's father, Jason Muzzatti, played goalie collegiately at Michigan State, then 16 professional seasons, in- cluding 62 NHL games, before becom- ing an accomplished goaltending coach. So, it seemed natural that the younger Sutter — now a Notre Dame forward and graduate student — would put on the pads and become a netminder? "No chance," Muzzatti said with a laugh. "I played one game at goalie and I took a puck to the head. I think I cried on the way home, so, enough of that." The elder Muzzatti coached his son as a youth player, and the relationship be- tween goalkeeper and goal scorer helped the younger player polish his game. "Just working on my shot with my dad, and just being able to pick his brain all of the time, that really helped my improvement," Sutter explained. "And my dad never forced anything on me. He always made it my decision to go out there and put in some extra work and I always did. So, that was always fun." And so was scoring goals. A natural, Sutter rose up through the elite youth league circuit and became a star with the Muskegon Lumberjacks of the USHL, the Austin Bruins of the NAHL, and as a member of the United States National Team U18 Development Program. Prior to transferring to Notre Dame in the summer, Muzzatti played three sea- sons at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute where he tallied 19 goals and 31 assists in 78 games. The Okemos, Mich., native also graduated from RPI with a busi- ness management degree and became a fifth-round pick of the Nashville Preda- tors in the 2023 NHL Entry Draft. Looking for a change of scenery to finish his college career, Muzzatti be- came acquainted with first-year Irish head coach Brock Sheahan, and a mu- tual interest was born. The player and coach hit it off via long distance com- munication, and Muzzatti ended up committing to Notre Dame without ever visiting campus, and with no regrets. "Everything definitely exceeded my expectations," Muzzatti said. "Every- thing here is breathtaking from the fa- cilities at the rink to just walking cam- pus at night. It's so beautiful. I love it." By his own admission, Muzzatti is a man of few words. He prefers letting his play and quiet leadership do his talking. But through an acceptance from new teammates and a love for a new envi- ronment, Muzzatti is thriving. Through 12 games, he led the Irish with 6 goals and also had contributed 4 assists. "I'm more of a reserved guy, so going into new environments is always dif- ferent. But everyone here made it really easy," said Muzzatti, who earned Big Ten Second Star of the Week honors Oct. 28, after scoring 2 goals with 2 assists in a 6-3 win over Robert Morris Oct. 24. "These guys are so welcoming. It's just a great family culture here." ✦ Graduate Transfer Sutter Muzzatti Is Heating Up For The Irish Icers N O T R E D A M E S P O R T S Through 12 games, Muzzatti led the Irish with 6 goals and also had 4 assists. PHOTO COURTESY NOTRE DAME ATHLETICS Irish Roundup CROSS COUNTRY Both the men and women competed at the NCAA Championship Nov. 22 in Columbia, Mo. FENCING (MEN 3-1 OVERALL; WOMEN 5-0 OVERALL) Both squads took part in the Elite Invitational Nov. 9 at Columbus, Ohio, with the women notching a 5-0 record and the men posting a 3-1 mark. HOCKEY (3-8-1 OVERALL, 0-6-0 BIG TEN) Saw its losing streak extended to six with 4-1 and 3-1 losses to Michigan State Nov. 14-15 in South Bend. MEN'S SOCCER (9-6-4 OVERALL, 3-3-2 ACC) Notre Dame earned an at-large bid to the NCAA Championship for the 25th time in program history … Shut out Michigan 1-0 Nov. 20 in Ann Arbor and advanced to play at No. 14 national seed Akron Nov. 23. WOMEN'S SOCCER (15-2-3 OVERALL, 8-1-1 ACC) The No. 1-seeded Fighting Irish defeated Illinois-Chicago 4-0 in the first round of the NCAA Champion- ship Nov. 15 at Alumni Stadium … Their season came to an end, though, when they fell 1-0 in double overtime to Ohio State in the second round Nov. 20 in South Bend … The Buckeyes scored with 34 seconds remaining to record the upset. VOLLEYBALL (9-15 OVERALL, 6-10 ACC) Lost 3-1 at No. 14 Miami Nov. 14 and fell 3-2 at Florida State Nov. 16.