So sad: Michigan’s Jackson Hallum, finally getting his dream comes true, with a painful asterisk….
The sophomore for the Wolverines, who is originally from Minnesota, averaged a point per game in October. However, since suffering an injury on November 3 during Michigan’s defeat to Wisconsin, he has not been in the starting lineup.
ANNARBOR, Michigan: Following his skate in a Da Beauty League game in Edina, Minnesota, on a sweltering summer night, Jackson Hallum acknowledged that it was a dream to return to his home state of Michigan with his teammates for the 2024 NCAA Frozen Four.
The high-speed forward from Eagan who prepped at St. Thomas Academy was heading into his second year in the Big Ten, looking to make an impact and have his team playing in April.
Hallum’sfantasy will come true next week, but only in the most literal sense. In fact, the Wolverines will be playing in the second semifinal of the tournament at Xcel Energy Center against Boston College, the top-seeded team. Hallum will also be present, but instead of wearing a dark blue pullover with maize numerals on the back, he will be dressed elegantly in a suit.
Through the Wolverines first eight games of his sophomore season, Hallum had eight points and was doing the things expected of him, using his speed, moving the puck and getting things to the net. But that ninth game was a disaster.
In the second period of a series opener at Wisconsin on Nov. 3, Hallum was clipped by a Badger’s open-ice check while carrying the puck, and crumpled to the ice. Michigan lost the game, and not long after, Wolverines coach Brandon Naurato delivered the news that Hallum was lost for the season.
The Wolverines sophomore, originally from Minnesota, averaged a point per game in October, but has been out of the lineup since a Nov. 3 injury suffered in a Michigan loss at Wisconsin.
The high-speed forward from Eagan who prepped at St. Thomas Academy was heading into his second year in the Big Ten, looking to make an impact and have his team playing in April.
Next week, Hallum’s dream will come true, but only in the most basic sense. The Wolverines will indeed be on the ice at Xcel Energy Center, taking on top-seed Boston College in the tournament’s second semifinal. And Hallum will be there, but he will be clad in a nice suit, rather than in a dark blue sweater with maize numbers on the back.
Through the Wolverines first eight games of his sophomore season, Hallum had eight points and was doing the things expected of him, using his speed, moving the puck and getting things to the net. But that ninth game was a disaster.
Inthe second period of a series opener at Wisconsin on Nov. 3, Hallum was clipped by a Badger’s open-ice check while carrying the puck, and crumpled to the ice. Michigan lost the game, and not long after, Wolverines coach Brandon Naurato delivered the news that Hallum was lost for the season.“
Jackson is a core part of our team,” Naurato said this week. “That’s a major loss and we’ve been without him all year. Everyone knows what his speed is all about and how hard of a worker he is.”
Flashforward five months, and Hallum can be seen in the back row of team photos as the Wolverines celebrated a 5-2 win over Michigan State in the finale of the Maryland Heights Regional, earning the program a third consecutive Frozen Four trip. Naurato said that physically, Hallum – who is enrolled in Michigan’s renowned Ross College of Business – looks great and praised him for the work put in to recover from the injury. Unfortunately, it is familiar territory for the second-year head coach.
“We’ve been through this. We went through it with Frankie (Nazar III), we went through it with Jacob Truscott, we went through it with Ethan Edwards, with season-ending injuries or not starting until the second half of the season,” Naurato said.
Nazar, one of the Wolverines more dynamic forwards, didn’t play until Feb. 10 of his freshman season due to injury. Truscott, a key defenseman, was injured in a Jan. 21, 2023 game at Minnesota, and was lost for the rest of that season, unable to play when the Wolverines went to Tampa a year ago. Edwards missed the first half of the current season, making his debut on Jan. 12 and playing in 20 games since then.
Naurato said that making sure players are OK psychologically while also recovering physically is an important job for him and his off-ice team.
“It’s a big deal and it’s a lot of time for the coaching staff, the support staff and their teammates, making sure these guys are in the right mental headspace,” said the coach. “It’s lonely when your teammates are traveling and you’re not on the road. We’ve tried bringing these guys with us, knowing that they’re not going to play but just to be around the guys and the camaraderie. I think the mental side’s big. You hope that they work through it and there’s some hope and they have an even better year when they come back.”
