Matt Nicholson is in his first year as the assistant coach for the men’s hockey team at Adrian College.

The London, Ontario native will be largely responsible for the defense of the inaugural varsity hockey program for the Bulldogs. Nicholson has had extensive playing experience over the past seven years. A four-year letter winner at Colgate University, he was named Eastern Conference Athletic Conference Rookie of the Week. Nicholson and the Raiders won the ECAC crown in 2004 for only the second time in school history and finished the season ranked as the #13 team in the country.

After graduating from Colgate in 2004 with a bachelor of arts in Education, Nicholson took part in the Phoenix Coyotes’ rookie camp. He went on to play for the Bossier-Shreveport Mudbugs of the Central Hockey League for the 2004-05 season. Nicholson was then acquired from the Mudbugs by the Youngstown Steelhounds for the 2005-06 season. His career, however, was cut short due to injury, and Nicholson moved back to London, Ontario where he worked as a personal trainer at GoodLife Fitness.