Sioux Sports Talk

#17 North Dakota (14-11-2 overall, 7-5-3-1 NCHC) travels to face #6 Denver (20-7-1 overall, 7-5-2-2 NCHC) in a key conference series at Magness Arena this weekend. The Pioneers earned a road sweep at UND back in November.

The Fighting Hawks are currently one point ahead of Denver for fourth place in the NCHC, with six points up for grabs in this series. The next-closest team – Colorado College – trails DU by three points and has played two more games than either UND or Denver.

After a blistering 12-0-0 start to the season, DU has gone just 8-7-1 to find itself squarely in the middle of the league standings. On the plus side, however, the Pioneers went 11-1-0 in non-conference action this season, so an NCAA tournament bid is well within reach for David Carle’s squad. (By comparison, UND went just 5-5-1 and is in a Pairwise predicament.)

In the NCHC preseason poll, Denver was picked to finish in first place, while North Dakota was tabbed for second place.

The NCHC has been the premier hockey conference since its inception, and particularly over the past ten seasons. The eight teams in the league have gone 547-286-87 (.642) in non-conference action since the start of the 2014-15 season and sent thirteen teams to the Frozen Four (UND and Omaha in 2015, UND and Denver in 2016, Denver and Duluth in 2017, Duluth in 2018, Denver and Duluth in 2019, Duluth and St. Cloud State in 2021, and Denver in both 2022 and 2024) over that nine-year stretch (there was no national tournament in 2020). Conference members North Dakota (2016), Denver (2017, 2022, 2024), and Minnesota Duluth (2018, 2019) have won six of the last eight national titles.

This year, it appears as though there will be fewer NCAA tournament berths for NCHC teams. The league’s out-of-conference winning percentage was just .586, the worst since the league’s first season (.533 in 2013-14).

Only Western Michigan (5th in the Pairwise) and Denver (10th) are relatively safe; the rest of the teams in the league may have to go on a run or win the Frozen Faceoff to make the field of sixteen.

Here are the current Pairwise rankings for the other seven NCHC programs:

Arizona State: 13th
North Dakota: 23rd
Omaha: 28th
Colorado College: 33rd
St. Cloud State: 36th
Minnesota Duluth: 40th
Miami: 63rd

Before we dig into this weekend’s matchup, let’s take a quick look back at the past few games between the two teams…

Denver came into Grand Forks back in November of 2024 and handled the homestanding Hawks by final scores of 5-2 and 3-2. The Pios’ Zeev Buium scored a hat trick on Friday night, and DU survived Saturday’s finale by blocking eighteen North Dakota shot attempts.

UND swept the Pios at Ralph Engelstad Arena on January 26th and 27th, 2024. Eight different Fighting Hawks lit the lamp in the two victories (by final scores of 5-2 and 4-2), and North Dakota went 4-for-6 on the power play while holding DU powerless on four man-advantage situations. The final shot counter for the weekend showed 62-43 in favor of the home team.

On December 1st and 2nd, 2023, North Dakota traveled to Denver for a pair of NCHC contests. In Friday’s opener, UND’s Dylan James got the visitors on the board less than two minutes into the action. The Pioneers would storm back with four first-period goals of their own, and it looked like the rout was on. The Fighting Hawks pulled within one in the middle frame, but a late DU goal from Tristan Broz had the Pios up by two with just twenty minutes remaining. The third period was all Green and White, as Jackson Blake, Louis Jamernik V, Riese Gaber, and Cameron Berg all potted goals en route to a 7-5 North Dakota victory.

In Saturday’s finale, UND never trailed in regulation but also never extended a lead past a single goal. DU tied things up at two goals apiece with nine minutes remaining and scored the game-winner during 3-on-3 action to take the extra league point.

Given how things started out on Friday night, grabbing four out of six points in the conference standings was a good result for the Fighting Hawks.

UND looked overmatched against the visiting Pios back in November 2022, as David Carle’s squad managed a 3-2, 6-3 road sweep over a Fighting Hawks team that had taken five of six points at Omaha the week before. Friday’s opener ended up as a one-goal DU victory, but that was only because North Dakota held the Pioneers scoreless on six man-advantage opportunities.

And in the rematch at altitude in February 2023, it was more of the same. Denver scored five goals each night and held the Fighting Hawks to five total goals on the weekend in securing the rare four-game season sweep. In Friday’s opener, UND played well enough to win but were undone by poor goaltending, as Drew DeRidder allowed four goals on the eleven shots he faced before giving way to Jacob Hellsten just five minutes into the second period. The last two goals that DeRidder allowed came just fourteen seconds apart.

In the 2021 NCHC Frozen Faceoff semifinals (held at Ralph Engelstad Arena in Grand Forks), North Dakota needed overtime to outlast a gutsy performance by a Pios squad that had been decimated by COVID-19. DU dressed only nine forwards for the contest but led 1-0 with under 90 seconds remaining. With the goalie pulled, the Fighting Hawks’ Shane Pinto blasted a shot on net that hit Jasper Weatherby on the way in to send the game to overtime. It took over eight minutes of extra time before Gavin Hain sent the home crowd into a frenzy with a blast of his own that advanced the Green and White into the championship game; Denver had just killed Antti Tuomisto’s boarding minor but could not clear the zone. UND outshot the weary Pioneers 20-4 in the third period and overtime.

With the playoff victory, North Dakota moved to 20-5-1 on the season; David Carle’s squad saw its season end at 10-13-1, the first time DU failed to advance to the NCAA tournament since 2007. The 2020-2021 season was the first losing campaign for DU since the 1999-2000 team went 16-23-2. UND won five of the seven meetings between the teams three years ago, outscoring the Pios 22-14. North Dakota allowed ten goals in the first three meetings with a record of 1-2; since their loss in game one at Denver on January 17th, the Fighting Hawks notched four consecutive victories over DU (15 goals for, 4 goals against). That mid-January defeat was definitely a wakeup call for Brady Berry’s squad; from that point until the end of the season, the Green and White went 13-3, outscoring opponents 69-28.

Denver definitely rebounded three seasons ago, going 31-9-1 and defeating Minnesota State 5-1 for the program’s ninth national title. That championship game was tied 1-1 until the 7:33 mark of the third period. The Pios would add two empty-net goals for the misleading final score.

Since Denver ended North Dakota’s season in 2019, UND has gone 11-9-1 against the Pios.

In the NCHC, it is clear that Denver/North Dakota is at the top of the league rivalries, with the two programs combining for nine NCHC regular season titles and averaging a top-three finish in the league standings each year (UND 2.4, DU 2.8).

The teams have played 51 times during the first eleven seasons of the new conference (with seven ties and each side winning 22 games), but the feud goes all the way back to Geoff Paukovitch’ illegal check on Sioux forward Robbie Bina during the 2005 WCHA Final Five.

Since that 2005 Final Five contest (a Denver victory), the two teams have met thirteen times in tournament play. Denver won the 2005 NCAA title with a victory over North Dakota and claimed a 2008 WCHA Final Five win as well. UND has earned six victories and a tie in the last ten playoff games between the schools, including three consecutive victories in the WCHA Final Five (2010-2012), the 2011 NCAA Midwest Regional final which sent the Fighting Sioux to the Frozen Four, 2016’s thrilling Frozen Four semifinal (a 4-2 UND victory) in Tampa, Florida, and the 2017 NCHC Frozen Faceoff semifinal in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Denver turned the tables by dispatching North Dakota in the first round of the league playoffs at Magness Arena to end the Fighting Hawks’ 2018-2019 campaign.

(It is impossible to bring up the Paukovitch/Bina incident without also writing that Brad Malone‘s check on Denver’s Jesse Martin during an October 2010 contest at Ralph Engelstad Arena fractured three of Martin’s vertebrae and ended the hockey career of the Atlanta Thrashers’ draft pick.)

The rivalry intensified four seasons ago, with the teams combining for 187 penalty minutes in six regular season games (the NCHC semifinal game featured just four minor penalties). The last contest between the squads in Denver saw a DU goaltender run over with nine minutes remaining, which ignited tempers further. That spilled over to the series in Grand Forks in February, with the Pioneers “winning” the penalty minute battle 54-29. North Dakota won the specialty teams battle, scoring two goals on ten man-advantage opportunities and blanking DU on its ten power play chances.

In Saturday’s series finale, North Dakota led on the scoreboard 5-2 thanks to two goals by Jasper Weatherby and 18 saves from Peter Thome, who started in place of injured netminder Adam Scheel. And how was Scheel injured, you might ask? Denver’s Kohen Olischefski ran Scheel from behind late in Friday’s 3-0 UND victory. Olischefski was given a five-minute major and a game misconduct for goaltender interference and was issued an additional one-game suspension by the league office.

And in the only series played between the teams three years ago, the two sides combined for 78 penalty minutes and ten power play opportunities. UND swept the series 3-1 and 4-1, thanks in no small part to a 1-for-5 effort on the power play and a perfect penalty kill.

Turning our attention to this season…

Just when it appeared that his squad was finally healthy, UND bench boss Brad Berry will be without the services of Jayden Perron (9-8-17 in 26 games played). The sophomore forward was injured last Friday night against Colorado College and remains out this weekend.

Senior defenseman Bennett Zmolek (out for the season) and junior goaltender Kaleb Johnson (out long-term) remain on the sidelines.

On the plus side, senior forward Cameron Berg (8-7-15 in fifteen games) has played the last eight games after missing five consecutive weekends of action.

A half-point per game or better is my benchmark for solid offensive production, and David Carle’s squad boasts an impressive ten players who meet that threshold, including FIVE averaging a point per game or better:

Senior forward Jack Devine: 6-33-39
Junior forward Aidan Thompson: 16-19-35
Senior forward Carter King: 13-15-28
Sophomore forward Sam Harris: 19-9-28
Sophomore defenseman Zeev Buium: 6-26-32

Other important contributors for the Pios include junior forward Samu Salminen (8-11-19), junior forward Rieger Lorenz (5-9-14), freshman forward James Reeder (7-7-14), sophomore defenseman Eric Pohlkamp (7-18-25), and sophomore defenseman Boston Buckberger (5-12-17).

North Dakota will have just seven players in the lineup this weekend at a half-point per game or better.

The aforementioned Cameron Berg leads the way in scoring average with his fifteen points in fifteen games. Other consistent contributors include freshman forward Sacha Boisvert (9-11-20), junior forward Owen McLaughlin (3-13-16), freshman forward Mac Swanson (2-13-15), junior forward Dylan James (10-8-18), sophomore defenseman Jake Livanavage (3-18-21), and sophomore defenseman Abram Wiebe (4-15-19).

Denver far outpaces UND in two key puck possession statistics:

Denver: 3rd in Corsi (56.9%) and 7th in Fenwick (56.2%)
North Dakota: 23rd in both Corsi (52.1%) and Fenwick (52.1%)

Corsi measures the share of shot attempts for each team at even strength, while Fenwick measure the share of unblocked shot attempts for each team at even strength.

As always, a key area to watch this weekend is the face-off circle. The Fighting Hawks are the nation’s 17th-best team on draws (52.7%), while the Pioneers clock in at 55.0% (3rd).

For UND, senior Jake Schmaltz has been making a living on draws, winning 270 of 478 (56.5%). Graduate Carter Wilkie (220 of 398; 55.3%) has been more than capable, while senior Cameron Berg has won 126 of 243 (51.9%) in limited action.

For Denver, it’s been senior Carter King (344 of 598, 57.5%) taking the majority of draws, with sophomore Kieran Cebrian (242 of 446, 54.3%) and junior Samu Salminen (206 of 355, 58.0%) contributing as well.

North Dakota has five drafted skaters among its eight first-year players, including a pair of highly-touted recruits:

Forward Sacha Boisvert: 2024 Round 1 #18 overall to the Chicago Blackhawks

Boisvert last played with the Muskegon Lumberjacks (USHL).

Defenseman E.J. Emery: 2024 Round 1 #30 overall to the New York Rangers

Emery spent the last two seasons with the U.S. National Development Team in Ann Arbor.

Other North Dakota freshmen who were drafted by NHL teams over the past three years include:

Defenseman Andrew Strathmann: 2023 Round 4 #98 overall to the Columbus Blue Jackets

Forward Mac Swanson: 2024 Round 7 #207 to the Pittsburgh Penguins

Forward Cade Littler: 2022 Round 7 #219 overall to the Calgary Flames

The three freshman forwards listed above have combined for fourteen goals and 26 assists in 78 games played this season, while Emery and Strathmann have totaled a goal and three assists while playing heavy minutes for the Hawks (Emery 19:34, Strathmann 12:31).

According to College Hockey News, North Dakota’s freshman class ranks #4 in the country. Denver clocks in at #10, with four drafted players among five first-year skaters:

Forward Jake Fisher: 2024 Round 4 #121 overall to the Colorado Avalanche

Fisher, who spent the last two seasons with the Fargo Force (USHL), was a teammate of UND freshman forward Mac Swanson.

Forward Hagen Burrows: 2024 Round 4 #128 overall to the Tampa Bay Lightning

Burrows, a Mr. Hockey Award winner (19-40-59 in his final season at Minnetonka), spent last season with the Sioux City Musketeers of the USHL.

Forward James Reeder: 2024 Round 7 #198 overall to the Los Angeles Kings

Last season, Reeder put up an eye-popping stat line of 20-40-60 in 53 games with the Dubuque Fighting Saints (USHL).

Defenseman Tory Pitner: 2024 Round 6 #185 overall to the Colorado Avalanche

Pitner spent the past two seasons with the Youngstown Phantoms (USHL), winning a Clark Cup title in 2023. The Avs draft pick turned up the offense last season, scoring 24 points (eight goals) in fifty games.

This is a pivotal series for North Dakota, with both league points and Pairwise positioning at play. UND has four weekends of league action remaining in the regular season, with the much more difficult matchups away from Ralph Engelstad Arena:

at Denver (PWR 10)

vs. Minnesota Duluth (PWR 40)

at Western Michigan (PWR 5)

vs. Omaha (PWR 28)

UND is not scheduled to face league foes Arizona State (PWR 13), Colorado College (PWR 33), St. Cloud State (PWR 36), or Miami (PWR 63) again this season.

Denver Team Profile

Head Coach: David Carle (7th season at DU, 168-69-17, .695)

National Rankings: #6/#6
Pairwise Ranking: 10th
KRACH: 353.6 (8th)

This Season: 20-7-1 overall, 7-5-2-2 NCHC (5th of 9 teams)
Last Season: 32-9-3 overall (National Champions), 12-7-4-1 NCHC (2nd)

2024-2025 Team Statistics:

Team Offense: 4.07 goals scored/game – 1st of 64 teams
Team Defense: 2.21 goals allowed/game – 7th of 64 teams

Power Play: 32.0% (31 of 97) – 1st of 64 teams
Penalty Kill: 82.3% (65 of 79) – 20th of 64 teams

Key players: Senior F Jack Devine (6-33-39), Junior F Aiden Thompson (16-19-35), Senior F Carter King (13-15-28), Sophomore F Sam Harris (19-9-28), Junior F Samu Salminen (8-11-19), Sophomore D Zeev Buium (6-26-32), Sophomore D Eric Pohlkamp (7-18-25), Sophomore D Boston Buckberger (5-12-17), Senior G Matt Davis (19-6-1, 2.20 GAA, .918 SV%, 1 SO)

North Dakota Team Profile

Head Coach: Brad Berry (10th season at UND, 220-115-35, .642)

National Rankings: #17/#17
Pairwise Ranking: 23rd
KRACH: 147.4 (22nd)

This Season: 14-11-2 overall, 7-5-3-1 NCHC (4th of 9 teams)
Last Season: 26-12-2 (NCAA tournament appearance), 14-4-1-5 NCHC (1st)

2024-2025 Season Statistics:

Team Offense: 3.15 goals scored/game – 23rd of 64 teams
Team Defense: 2.89 goals allowed/game – 35th of 64 teams

Power Play: 23.1% (18 of 78) – 17th of 64 teams
Penalty Kill: 75.3% (70 of 93) – 54th of 64 teams

Key Players: Freshman F Sacha Boisvert (9-11-20), Junior F Owen McLaughlin (3-13-16), Junior F Dylan James (10-8-18), Freshman F Mac Swanson (2-13-15), Senior F Jake Schmaltz (4-7-11), Senior F Cameron Berg (8-7-15 in fifteen games), Sophomore D Jake Livanavage (3-18-21), Sophomore D Abram Wiebe (4-15-19), Junior D Caleb MacDonald (3-4-7), Graduate G T.J. Semptimphelter (11-7-2, 2.70 GAA, .901 SV%, 1 SO)

By The Numbers

Last Meeting: November 16, 2024 (Grand Forks, ND). DU hung on for a 3-2 victory and a series sweep by blocking eighteen North Dakota shot attempts. One night earlier, the Pios’ Zeev Buium scored a hat trick in a 5-2 Denver win.

Last Meeting in Denver: December 2, 2023. UND never trailed in regulation but also never extended a lead past a single goal. DU tied things up at two goals apiece with nine minutes remaining and scored the game-winner during 3-on-3 action to take the extra league point. One night earlier, UND’s Dylan James got the visitors on the board less than two minutes into the action. The Pioneers would storm back with four first-period goals of their own, and it looked like the rout was on. The Fighting Hawks pulled within one in the middle frame, but a late DU goal from Tristan Broz had the Pios up by two with just twenty minutes remaining. The third period was all Green and White, as Jackson Blake, Louis Jamernik V, Riese Gaber, and Cameron Berg all potted goals en route to a 7-5 North Dakota victory.

A Recent Memory: April 7, 2016 (Tampa, Florida). In the semifinals of the NCAA Frozen Four, the two league rivals squared off in a tightly-contested matchup. Senior forward Drake Caggiula scored twice early in the middle frame to stake UND to a 2-0 lead, but the Pioneers battled back with a pair of third-period goals. The CBS line came through when it mattered most, with Nick Schmaltz scoring the game winner off of a faceoff win with 57 seconds remaining in the hockey game. North Dakota blocked 27 Denver shot attempts and goaltender Cam Johnson made 21 saves for the Fighting Hawks, who won the program’s eighth national title on the same sheet of ice two nights later.

Most Important Meeting: It’s hard to pick just one game, as the two teams have played four times for the national title. Denver defeated UND for the national championship in 1958, 1968, and 2005, while the Sioux downed the Pioneers in 1963. But the game that stands out in recent memory as “the one that got away” was DU’s 1-0 victory over the Fighting Sioux in the 2004 NCAA West Regional final (Colorado Springs, CO). That North Dakota team went 30-8-4 on the season (Dean Blais’ last behind the UND bench) and featured one of the deepest rosters in the past twenty years: Brandon Bochenski, Zach Parise, Brady Murray, Colby Genoway, Drew Stafford and David Lundbohm up front; Nick Fuher, Matt Jones, Matt Greene, and Ryan Hale on defense; and a couple of goaltending stalwarts in Jordan Parise and Jake Brandt.

Last Ten Games: DU has won seven of the last ten games between the teams, with a 39-32 edge in goals scored over that stretch. Only four of the past ten games in the series were played in Denver.

All-time Series: UND leads the all-time series, 159-137-16 (.535), although Denver holds a 80-57-5 (.581) advantage in games played at altitude. The teams first met in 1950, with North Dakota prevailing 18-3 in Denver. The 312 games played between the schools is the most among all of UND’s opponents.

Game News and Notes

Since Denver ended North Dakota’s season in 2019, UND has gone 13-9-1 against the Pios. Twelve of Denver head coach David Carle’s 69 head coaching losses have come against UND. Last season, the Fighting Hawks won the Penrose Cup as NCHC regular season champions for the sixth time in the eleven-year history of the league; the Pioneers have captured the Penrose only three times (2016-2017 and back-to-back in 2021-2022 and 2022-2023). Three Pios players hail from the state of Colorado, while five Fighting Hawks are from North Dakota. Since seven of Michigan’s nine titles were earned by 1964, I consider Denver (ten titles) and UND (eight titles) to be the top two men’s college hockey programs of all time.

The Prediction

Denver appears to have every advantage in this series, but stranger things have happened. I expect the Pios to blitz North Dakota in the opener, with a much closer rematch on Saturday night. DU’s defensemen are active and offensive-minded, so the recipe for success is to make them work in their own end by getting pucks in and forcing them to defend and work hard to break out pucks. As always. goaltending and special teams will be huge. Fans of the Green and White should be hoping for a split, and that’s what I’ve got here. DU 5-2, UND 4-3.

Broadcast Information

Friday’s opener will be broadcast exclusively on CBS Sports Network, with Saturday’s rematch available via webcast at NCHC.tv. All UND men’s hockey games can be heard on stations across the UND Sports Home of Economy Radio Network as well as through the iHeart Radio app. Puck drop is set for 8:06 p.m. Central Time on Friday and 7:00 p.m. Central Time on Saturday.

Social Media

Keep up with the action live during all UND hockey games by following @UNDmhockey and @UNDInsider on Twitter. Fans can also read the action via Brad Schlossman’s live chat on the Grand Forks Herald website.

As always, thank you for reading. I welcome your questions, comments, and suggestions. Follow me on Twitter (@DBergerHockey) for more information and insight. Here’s to hockey!

#16 North Dakota (13-10-2, 6-4-3-1 NCHC) hosts #20 Colorado College (13-12-1 overall, 4-7-4-1 NCHC) in a key conference series at Ralph Engelstad Arena this weekend. The two teams have yet to meet during the 2024-2025 season.

UND – currently one point ahead of Denver for fourth place in the NCHC – leads Colorado College by four points in the league standings, with six point up for grabs in this series.

To this point in the season, North Dakota has played fourteen conference games, while CC has already played sixteen.

Earlier this week, I detailed the most likely order of finish in the NCHC standings, and due to its remaining schedule (and particularly road series at Denver and at Western Michigan), UND is in danger of falling out of a home-ice spot. Good results for the Fighting Hawks this weekend (read: better than a split) would go a long way toward solidifying a home series in the first round of the league playoffs.

Last season, Colorado College secured home ice for the first round of the conference playoffs for the first time in league history. In the NCHC, Colorado College has finished 7th, 8th, 8th, 8th, 7th, 6th, 8th, 7th, 7th, 7th, and 4th for the worst average finish (7.0) among all eight league teams. North Dakota leads the conference with an average finish of 2.5 (2nd, 1st, 1st, 4th, 4th, 5th, 1st, 1st, 2nd, 5th, and 1st).

Remarkably, CC suffered SEVEN losses in January 2025 (2-7-0) after winning their first eight games of the season and finishing the first half at 10-5-1. Colorado College currently sits at 34th in the Pairwise, while UND is 22nd.

Before we dig into this weekend’s matchup between the Hawks and Tigers, let’s take a quick look back at the past few games between the two teams…

Last season, UND won the program’s fifth Penrose Cup by earning points in every league game up until they went to Colorado Springs to face the Tigers on February 16th and 17th, 2024. CC embarrassed the Green and White with a weekend sweep (7-1, 6-2).

Back on December 8th and 9th, 2023, unranked Colorado College shocked the college hockey world by not only taking then-#1 North Dakota to overtime in back-to-back games but also finishing the job each night during the five-minute 3-on-3 session.

On Friday night, UND outshot the Tigers 34-23 but were undone by sloppy specialty teams play. The Fighting Hawks went 0-for-1 on the power play and gave up a late second-period power play goal that tied the game at two goals apiece. North Dakota led 2-0 midway through the middle frame but could not extend or hold that lead.

Saturday night was a more even affair, with the teams trading chances and putting an identical 24 shots on goal apiece. CC shined in the faceoff circle, however, winning 42 of 64 draws (65.6%).

Two seasons ago, the teams only played two games, and, in a strange February series in the Springs, North Dakota earned a 2-1 overtime victory on Friday before the two teams skated to a 0-0 tie in the rematch, just the third scoreless game in UND hockey history.

North Dakota went 6-0 against CC three seasons ago, outscoring the Tigers 20-7. The two first-round playoff games in Grand Forks were tight affairs, with UND advancing to St. Paul by virtue of a pair of 2-1 victories. In that series, all six goals were scored in the second period.

When the teams squared off at brand-new Robson Arena for a December 2021 series in Colorado Springs, the Fighting Hawks secured the road sweep with 5-2 and 4-1 victories. Those games dropped the Tigers to 3-10-3 on the season.

UND held the advantage in all phases, outshooting the Tigers 62-54 and winning 72 of 119 faceoffs (60.5%). North Dakota scored three power play goals on nine attempts and held Colorado College to just a single power play goal in ten man-advantage opportunities.

After that weekend, the Tigers went 4-4-0 against Arizona State, Miami, Denver, and Omaha to close out January, much more respectable results for first-year head coach Kris Mayotte. Mayotte replaced Mike Haviland, who went just 74-177-28 (.315) in his seven seasons behind the Tiger bench, with no regular season or postseason titles and zero NCAA tournament appearances. Haviland had something brewing from 2017-2019, with his teams going 32-37-9 (.468). Things fell off over his last two seasons, however (15-37-5, .307), and it was time for a change.

February and March of 2022 were not kind to Mayotte’s squad, however, as the Tigers won just twice in their last twelve games. Both of those victories came in overtime against Miami (4-3, 3-2). In the other eight, CC was outscored 30-11.

Two of those losses came on February 11th and 12th at UND. Colorado College put up a good showing in Friday night’s 3-2 defeat, nearly overcoming a 3-0 first-period deficit and outshooting North Dakota 26-21 for the game. The Fighting Hawks turned the tables in Saturday’s 4-0 triumph, sweeping the regular season series between the two teams by a combined score of 16-5.

Prior to the last series in Grand Forks, North Dakota had only trailed for a total of eleven minutes and fifty seconds over the previous eight games.

Colorado College also traveled to Grand Forks to face UND in the first round of the playoffs in 2014, 2015, and 2016. As I’ve written about before, it is difficult to end a team’s season, and tight Saturday night elimination games are to be expected, even after relatively comfortable Friday night victories. In fact, UND’s 2016 sweep (7-1, 5-1) is one of only two playoff series in recent memory that did not feature at least one close contest.

Here are the results from the past four first-round playoff series between North Dakota and Colorado College:

2014: UND 4-2, CC 3-2 (OT), UND 4-3
2015: UND 5-1, UND 3-2
2016: UND 7-1, UND 5-1
2022: UND 2-1, UND 2-1

CC was also scheduled to face the Fighting Hawks in 2020 before the college hockey season was canceled due to COVID-19. And two seasons ago, the Tigers dressed just eleven forwards, five defensemen, and one goalie for their opening-round game against St. Cloud State at Ralph Engelstad Arena. Despite losing a blueliner to a major penalty in the second period, Colorado College took SCSU to the wire, surrendering the game-winning goal with less than four minutes remaining in the contest.

UND bench boss Brad Berry has a healthier lineup than he’s had virtually all season. Senior forward Cameron Berg (8-5-13 in rhiteen games) has played the last six games after missing five consecutive weekends of action. Berg’s return leaves just senior forward/defenseman Dane Montgomery (day-to-day), senior defenseman Bennett Zmolek (out for the season), and junior goaltender Kaleb Johnson (out long-term) on the sidelines.

A half-point per game or better is my benchmark for solid offensive production, and Kris Mayotte’s squad has just four players who meet that threshold: junior forward Noah Laba (7-14-21), freshman forward Owen Beckner (5-13-18), graduate defenseman Ty Gallagher (5-14-19), and sophomore defenseman Max Burkholder (6-13-19).
A pair of junior forwards have regressed somewhat for the Tigers:

Ryan Beck posted a strong sophomore campaign (3-17-20 in 34 games); this year, Beck has zero goals and six assists in 23 games played.

Glem Veremyev scored 28 points (15 goals) in 37 games a year ago; as a junior, his scoring pace has slowed considerably (7-4-11 in 26 games).

North Dakota boasts impressive scoring depth, with nine players at a half-point per game or better. The aforementioned Cameron Berg leads the way in scoring average with his thirteen points in thirteen games. Other consistent contributors include freshman forward Sacha Boisvert (9-10-19), graduate forward Louis Jamernik V (4-5-9 in seventeen games), junior forward Owen McLaughlin (3-13-16), sophomore forward Jayden Perron (8-8-16), freshman forward Mac Swanson (2-12-14), junior forward Dylan James (8-6-14), sophomore defenseman Jake Livanavage (2-16-18), and sophomore defenseman Abram Wiebe (4-15-19).

The Colorado College and North Dakota team rosters feature a family connection. Grand Forks native Drew Montgomery (6-6-12 in 26 games) is a sophomore forward for the Tigers. His brother Dane Montgomery is a senior forward and assistant captain for UND, and he has proven to be a valuable asset to the roster, playing both forward and defense while scoring a goal and adding five assists in twenty games played.

Offensively, UND far outpaces Colorado College. To this point of the season, North Dakota has scored 78 goals (3.12 goals per game, 21st in the country), while CC has managed just 70 (2.69, 40th).

Despite being nearly even in shots on goal per game (UND 30.0, CC 29.9), Colorado College leads North Dakota by a significant margin in two key puck possession statistics:

North Dakota: 21st in Corsi (52.5%) and 22nd in Fenwick (52.4%)
Colorado College: 10th in Corsi (54.1%); 16th in Fenwick (53.1%)

Corsi measures the share of shot attempts for each team at even strength, while Fenwick measure the share of unblocked shot attempts for each team at even strength.

As always, a key area to watch this weekend is the face-off circle. The Fighting Hawks are the nation’s 12th-best team on draws (53.7%), while the Tigers clock in at #9 (54.2%).

For UND, senior Jake Schmaltz has been making a living on draws, winning 260 of 454 (57.3%). Graduate Carter Wilkie (208 of 372; 55.9%) has been more than capable, while senior Cameron Berg has won 111 of 205 (54.1%) in limited action.

For the Tigers, three centermen are nearing or have exceeded 200 faceoff wins this season:

Sophomore Klavs Veinbergs: 201 of 339 (59.3%)
Junior Noah Laba: 201 of 359 (56.0%)
Senior Stanley Cooley: 198 of 370 (53.5%)

To this point in the season, North Dakota has had slightly the better of the specialty teams play, although the penalty kill has far too often been their downfall. UND has been a combined minus-3, with 18 power play goals scored (18 of 74, 24.3%, 9th in the country) and 21 power play goals allowed (63 of 84, 75.0%, 56th), with three shorthanded goals scored and three allowed.

The Tigers have posted a minus-7, with just eleven power play goals scored (11 of 79, 13.9%, 56th), fourteen power play goals allowed (72 of 86, 83.7%, 15th), no shorthanded goals scored, and four allowed.

Colorado College junior netminder Kaidan Mbereko has not been quite as effective as he was a year ago for the Tigers, but he is still affecting games and keeping CC competitive:

2023-24: 21-13-3, 2.40 goals-against average, .915 save percentage
2024-25: 11-11-1, 2.43 goals-against average, .909 save percentage

The difference in the won-loss record for Mbereko?

Last season, Colorado College outscored opponents 111-93 in 37 games.
This year, they’ve played teams exactly even (70-70 in 26 games).

Both UND netminders could appear in this weekend’s series. Sophomore Hobie Hedquist played well at St. Cloud State last Saturday night (33 saves on 35 shots), although he allowed two goals on thirteen shots in relief of Ludvig Persson in his only appearance against Colorado College last season.

T.J. Semptimphelter is 3-0-1 in his collegiate career against the Tigers, with a goals-against average of 1.47 and a save percentage of .953.

North Dakota has five drafted skaters among its eight first-year players, including a pair of highly-touted recruits:

Forward Sacha Boisvert: 2024 Round 1 #18 overall to the Chicago Blackhawks

Boisvert last played with the Muskegon Lumberjacks (USHL).

Defenseman E.J. Emery: 2024 Round 1 #30 overall to the New York Rangers

Emery spent the last two seasons with the U.S. National Development Team in Ann Arbor.

Other North Dakota freshmen who were drafted by NHL teams over the past three years include:

Defenseman Andrew Strathmann: 2023 Round 4 #98 overall to the Columbus Blue Jackets

Forward Mac Swanson: 2024 Round 7 #207 to the Pittsburgh Penguins

Forward Cade Littler: 2022 Round 7 #219 overall to the Calgary Flames

The three freshman forwards listed above have combined for fourteen goals and 24 assists in 72 games played this season, while Emery and Strathmann have totaled a goal and three assists while playing heavy minutes for the Hawks (Emery 19:43, Strathmann 12:32).

According to College Hockey News, North Dakota’s freshman class ranks #4 in the country.

Colorado College’s drafted newcomers include freshman defenseman Fisher Scott (2024 Round 7 #208 to Detroit), freshman forward Owen Beckner (2023 Round 7 #204 to Ottawa), grad transfer forward Chase McLane (2020 Round 7 #209 to Nashville), and freshman netminder Carsen Musser (2023 Round 6 #166 to Arizona).

This is a pivotal series, with both league points and Pairwise positioning at play. This weekend marks the first of five consecutive league series to end the regular season, alternating away and home along the way, with the much more difficult matchups away from Ralph Engelstad Arena:

vs. Colorado College (PWR 34)

at Denver (PWR 8)

vs. Minnesota Duluth (PWR 38)

at Western Michigan (PWR 5)

vs. Omaha (PWR 35)

UND is not scheduled to face league foes Arizona State (PWR 13), St. Cloud State (PWR 30), or Miami (PWR 63) again this season.

Colorado College Tigers

Head Coach: Kris Mayotte (4th season at CC, 56-71-9, .445)

National Rankings: #20/#22
Pairwise Ranking: 34th
KRACH Rating: 123.5 (26th)

This Season: 13-12-1 overall, 4-7-4-1 NCHC (7th of 9 teams)
Last Season: 21-13-3 (missed NCAA tournament); 9-6-5-4 NCHC (4th of 8 teams)

2024-2025 Season Statistics:

Team Offense: 2.69 goals scored/game – 40th of 64 teams
Team Defense: 2.69 goals allowed/game – 28th of 64 teams

Power Play: 13.9% (11 of 79) – 56th of 64 teams
Penalty Kill: 83.7% (72 of 86) – 15th of 64 teams

Key players: Junior F Noah Laba (7-14-21), Freshman F Owen Beckner (5-13-18), Sophomore F Drew Montgomery (6-6-12), Sophomore F Zaccharya Wisdom (6-6-12), Senior F Stanley Cooley (4-6-10), Junior F Gleb Veremyev (7-4-11), Sophomore D Max Burkholder (6-13-19), Graduate D Ty Gallagher (5-14-19), Junior G Kaidan Mbereko (11-11-1, 2.43 GAA, .909 SV%, 2 SO)

North Dakota Team Profile

Head Coach: Brad Berry (10th season at UND, 219-114-35, .643)

National Rankings: #16/#16
Pairwise Ranking: 22nd
KRACH: 151.3 (19th)

This Season: 13-10-2 overall, 6-4-3-1 NCHC (t-4th of 9 teams)
Last Season: 26-12-2 (NCAA tournament appearance), 14-4-1-5 NCHC (1st)

2024-2025 Season Statistics:

Team Offense: 3.12 goals scored/game – 21st of 64 teams
Team Defense: 2.84 goals allowed/game – 32nd of 64 teams

Power Play: 24.3% (18 of 74) – 9th of 64 teams
Penalty Kill: 75.0% (63 of 84) – 56th of 64 teams

Key Players: Freshman F Sacha Boisvert (9-10-19), Junior F Owen McLaughlin (3-13-16), Junior F Dylan James (8-6-14), Sophomore F Jayden Perron (8-8-16), Freshman F Mac Swanson (2-12-14), Senior F Jake Schmaltz (4-7-11), Senior F Cameron Berg (8-5-13 in thirteen games), Sophomore D Jake Livanavage (2-16-18), Sophomore D Abram Wiebe (4-15-19), Junior D Caleb MacDonald (3-4-7), Sophomore G Hobie Hedquist (3-3-0, 2.41 GAA, .911 SV%, 1 SO)

By The Numbers

Last Meeting: February 17, 2024 (Colorado Springs, CO). North Dakota’s Cameron Berg put the visitors up 2-1 on a brilliant power play goal with just nine seconds remaining in the first period. It was all Tigers after that, however, as the home team scored once in the middle frame and four more times in the third. At the end of it all, CC led 6-2 on the scoreboard even though UND outshot Colorado College 45-32. One night earlier, it was even worse for the Hawks, as the Tigers went 4-for-5 on the power play in a 7-1 victory.

Last Meeting in Grand Forks: December 9, 2023. For the second night in a row, the teams skated to a 2-2 regulation tie. And for the second night in a row, it was the Tigers scoring in the 3-on-3 session for the extra league point. On Friday night, UND outshot the Tigers 34-23 but were undone by sloppy specialty teams play. The Fighting Hawks went 0-for-1 on the power play and gave up a late second-period power play goal that tied the game at two goals apiece. North Dakota led 2-0 midway through the middle frame but could not extend or hold that lead. Saturday night was a more even affair, with the teams trading chances and putting an identical 24 shots on goal apiece. CC shined in the faceoff circle, however, winning 42 of 64 draws (65.6%).

Most Important Meeting: March 27, 1997. UND defeated Colorado College, 6-2, in the Frozen Four Semifinals in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Two nights later, North Dakota downed Boston University, 6-4, to claim its sixth NCAA Championship. North Dakota and Colorado College also met in the 2001 East Regional (Worcester, Mass.), with UND prevailing, 4-1.

All-time Series: UND leads the all-time series, 173-88-12 (.656), with a dominant record of 111-24-7 (.806) in games played in Grand Forks. The teams first met in 1948; North Dakota’s 173 wins over the Tigers are the most against any single opponent in program history.

Last Ten: North Dakota is just 5-4-1 (.550) against the Tigers in the last ten meetings between the teams, with five wins and a tie from February 2022 through February 2023 followed by four consecutive losses (which all came during the 2023-2024 season). Over those ten games, UND scored a total of just 20 goals and allowed 24.

Game News and Notes

North Dakota head coach Brad Berry is 24-8-2 (735.) in his head coaching career against Colorado College. CC has won two national titles (1950, 1957). Since 1957, the Tigers have appeared in the NCAA tournament thirteen times (most recently in 2011) and advanced to three Frozen Fours (1996, 1997, 2005). Head coaches Scott Owens (1999-2014) and Don Lucia (1993-1999) combined to lead CC to six regular-season titles, twelve NCAA tournament appearances, three Frozen Fours, and one national championship game appearance (1996). UND’s 173 wins over CC are the most over a single opponent in the history of the program.

The Prediction

If North Dakota wants to secure home ice for the NCHC playoffs and move up in the Pairwise, they need to collect league points at home. CC netminder Kaidan Mbereko has given up three or more goals in five of his last seven starts and has a record of just 3-11-1 since November 15th, so the opportunities will be there for UND to break at least one game open. I’ve got the Fighting Hawks in the opener, with an overtime tilt on Saturday night. UND 4-2, 3-2 (OT).

Broadcast Information

Game times are set for 7:07 p.m. Central Time on Friday and 6:07 p.m. Central Time on Saturday. Both games will be broadcast live on Midco Sports Network and also available via webcast at NCHC.tv. All UND men’s hockey games can be heard on stations across the Fighting Hawks Radio Network as well as through the iHeart Radio app.

Social Media

Keep up with the action live during all UND hockey games by following @UNDmhockey and @UNDInsider on Twitter. Fans can also read the action via Brad Schlossman’s live chat on the Grand Forks Herald website.

As always, thank you for reading. I welcome your questions, comments, and suggestions. Follow me on Twitter (@DBergerHockey) for more information and insight. Here’s to hockey!

#16 North Dakota (12-10-1 overall, 5-4-2-1 NCHC) travels to St. Cloud this weekend to face the unranked Huskies (11-13-0 overall, 3-7-1-3 NCHC) in a key league matchup at the National Hockey Center.

UND – currently tied with Denver for fourth place in the NCHC – leads St. Cloud State by six points in the conference standings, with six points up for grabs in this series. When the teams battled in Grand Forks back on December 13th and 14th, the Fighting Hawks took five of six possible points with a 2-0 regulation win and a 4-3 overtime victory.

Since those two losses at North Dakota, SCSU has gone 1-6, with a 2-1 home victory over St. Thomas and six straight conference losses (two each at Duluth, vs. Arizona State, and at Omaha). In those six NCHC defeats, the Huskies were outscored 27-12.

What is going on in St. Cloud?

In a word: goaltending.

Over the first two months of the season, sophomore Isak Posch played every minute between the pipes and gave SCSU nearly flawless goaltending, helping the Huskies win nine games while posting a goals-against average of 1.68, a save percentage of .938, and two shutouts.

Since his injury during warmups back on December 6th, here are the stat lines for St. Cloud’s other two netminders:

Graduate Gavin Enright: 2-7-0, 3.27 GAA, .892 SV%

Freshman James Gray: 0-2-0, 2.98 GAA, .900 SV%

Enright played both games at North Dakota last month (both losses), allowing six goals while making 63 saves.

Two seasons ago, St. Cloud State got the better of the Fighting Hawks, winning four of five games and ending UND’s season in the semifinals of the 2023 NCHC Frozen Faceoff in St. Paul.

During the 2022-23 regular season, SCSU embarrassed North Dakota in St. Cloud, winning both games on the wide sheet by comfortable margins (7-2, 6-3). On Friday night, a disastrous second period saw the Huskies score every which way: at even strength, shorthanded, with the extra attacker on a delayed penalty, and on the ensuing power play. Saturday’s game at the Herb Brooks Center was a different kind of disturbing for fans of the Green and White, as the visitors led 3-0 early in the second period. The Huskies would get on the board just 23 seconds after UND’s third tally, and then it was the Zach Okabe show, as the senior forward scored a natural hat trick in under nine minutes of game action (from the 18:12 mark of the middle frame through the 7:05 mark of the third period). SCSU would add two late goals – including an empty-netter – to make the score look lopsided.

In the rematch in Grand Forks, both games went to overtime, with UND scoring during 3-on-3 play on Friday night before losing in a shootout in Saturday’s finale.

Last season, the two teams tangled only twice, and North Dakota took four of six points on the road, winning Friday’s opener 5-3 before tying the homestanding Huskies 3-3 and losing in a shootout.

Turning our attention to this season…

A half-point per game or better is my benchmark for solid offensive production, and Brett Larson’s squad has just four lineup regulars who meet that threshold through the team’s first 24 games: freshman forward Austin Burnevik (10-10-20), sophomore forward Barrett Hall (4-13-17), sophomore forward Tyson Gross (8-7-15), and sophomore forward Verner Miettinen (3-9-12).

North Dakota bench boss Brad Berry has a healthier lineup than he’s had virtually all season. Senior forward Cameron Berg (6-5-11 in eleven games) has played the last four games after missing five consecutive weekends of action. Berg’s return leaves just senior forward/defenseman Dane Montgomery (day-to-day), senior defenseman Bennett Zmolek (out for the season), and junior goaltender Kaleb Johnson (out long-term) on the sidelines.

North Dakota boasts impressive scoring depth, with nine players at a half-point per game or better. The aforementioned Cameron Berg leads the way in scoring average with his eleven points in eleven games. Other consistent contributors include freshman forward Sacha Boisvert (9-9-18), graduate forward Louis Jamernik V (4-5-9 in seventeen games), junior forward Owen McLaughlin (1-13-14), sophomore forward Jayden Perron (7-6-13), freshman forward Mac Swanson (2-10-12), junior forward Dylan James (7-6-13), sophomore defenseman Jake Livanavage (2-14-16), and sophomore defenseman Abram Wiebe (4-13-17).

Offensively, UND outpaces SCSU by a large margin. To this point of the season, North Dakota has scored 69 goals in 23 games (3.00 goals per game, 25th in the country), while St. Cloud State has managed just 54 in 24 games (2.25, 54th).

The Fighting Hawks are 27th in the nation in shooting percentage at 10.0%. SCSU clocks in at 7.9%, good for 58th in the country. Both teams do an adequate job of getting the puck to the net, with UND averaging 30.1 shots on goal per game (24th) and the Huskies at 28.5 shots on goal per contest (39th).

On the defensive side, UND has only allowed 624 shots on goal this season in 23 games (27.1/game, 17th), while St. Cloud State has allowed 704 in 24 games (29.3, 31st).

Despite being outshot to this point in the season, SCSU is only allowing 2.67 goals per game, a mark good for 30th in the country. UND? 2.87 (35th).

Unfortunately for SCSU, it’s been a whole lot worse since early December:

With Isak Posch: 24 goals allowed in thirteen games (1.85)

Without Isak Posch: 40 goals allowed in eleven games (3.63)

Posch is not expected in the lineup this weekend.

UND has also lost the services of one if its goaltenders for the foreseeable future: junior Kaleb Johnson looks to be sidelined for an extended period of time; the team brought in Aleksi Huson to be the third goaltender on the roster. Huson backstopped Shakopee High School last season, serving as team captain while posting a record of 20-5-1 with a goals-against average of 2.13 and a save percentage of .934.

On the team side of things, I’m looking at a few important areas in this matchup…

UND far outpaces St. Cloud State in two key puck possession statistics:

North Dakota: 17th in Corsi (53.0%) and 21st in Fenwick (52.6%)
St. Cloud State: 34th in Corsi (49.8%) and 36th in Fenwick (49.0%)

Corsi measures the share of shot attempts for each team at even strength, while Fenwick measure the share of unblocked shot attempts for each team at even strength.

As always, a key area to watch this weekend is the face-off circle. The Fighting Hawks are the nation’s seventh-best team on draws (54.5%), while the Huskies clock in at 54.8% (6th).

For UND, senior Jake Schmaltz has been the go-to guy in all key situations, winning 249 of 427 (58.3%). Graduate transfer Carter Wilkie (56.5%, 194 of 343) has been a solid second option, and Cameron Berg has won 56.3 percent of his draws (90 of 160) in his eleven games.

For SCSU, three centers have split the majority of the duties. Senior Mason Salquist (246 of 440, 58.6%) has won the most draws, while sophomore Verner Miettinen has had almost identical success (202 of 351, 57.5 percent) and sophomore Tyson Gross (228 of 399, 57.1%) has shown remarkable improvement.

To this point in the season, the two teams are nearly identical in terms of overall specialty teams production, although they have chosen vastly different paths to get there.

North Dakota continues to live and die by the power play, with seventeen man-advantage goals scored in 70 opportunities (24.3%, 11th-best in the country). On the other side of the coin, UND has allowed TWENTY power play goals to opponents (56 of 76, 73.7%, 58th in the country). Add in three shorthanded goals scored and three allowed, and the Fighting Hawks are sitting at minus-3.

The Huskies are sitting at minus-1, but their splits are a bit less extreme. SCSU has scored twelve power play goals this season (12 of 62, 19.4%, 38th) and allowed thirteen (62 of 75, 82.7%, 20th). St. Cloud State has scored two shorthanded goals and allowed two this season.

North Dakota has five drafted skaters among its eight first-year players, including a pair of highly-touted recruits:

Forward Sacha Boisvert: 2024 Round 1 #18 overall to the Chicago Blackhawks

Boisvert last played with the Muskegon Lumberjacks (USHL).

Defenseman E.J. Emery: 2024 Round 1 #30 overall to the New York Rangers

Emery spent the last two seasons with the U.S. National Development Team in Ann Arbor.

Other North Dakota freshmen who were drafted by NHL teams over the past three years include:

Defenseman Andrew Strathmann: 2023 Round 4 #98 overall to the Columbus Blue Jackets

Forward Mac Swanson: 2024 Round 7 #207 to the Pittsburgh Penguins

Forward Cade Littler: 2022 Round 7 #219 overall to the Calgary Flames

The three freshman forwards listed above have combined for thirteen goals and 21 assists in 66 games played this season, while Emery and Strathmann have totaled a goal and three assists while playing heavy minutes for the Hawks (Emery 20:03, Strathmann 12:06).

According to College Hockey News, North Dakota’s freshman class ranks #4 in the country.

By contrast, St. Cloud State boasts three drafted skaters among its eight-member freshman class, and they all bring quite a bit of size to the lineup:

6-3 200-pound defenseman Colin Ralph: 2024 Round 2 #48 overall to the St. Louis Blues

6-5 205-pound forward Daimon Gardner: 2022 Round 4 #112 overall to the Vancouver Canucks

6-4 200-pound forward Austin Burnevik: 2024 Round 6 #182 overall to the Anaheim Ducks

Burnevik leads the Huskies in scoring with a line of 10-10-20 in 23 games played. Gardner has scored four goals and added three assists in his first twenty collegiate games, while Ralph leads all SCSU blueliners with five assists.

This is a pivotal series, with both league points and Pairwise positioning at play. This weekend marks the first of six consecutive league series to end the regular season, alternating away and home along the way, with the much more difficult matchups away from Ralph Engelstad Arena:

at St. Cloud State (Pairwise 27)

vs. Colorado College (PWR 32)

at Denver (PWR 7)

vs. Minnesota Duluth (PWR 37)

at Western Michigan (PWR 6)

vs. Omaha (PWR 35)

UND is not scheduled to face league foes Arizona State (PWR 14) or Miami (PWR 62) again this season.

St. Cloud State Team Profile

Head Coach: Brett Larson (7th season at SCSU, 134-89-21, .592)

National Rankings: NR/NR
Pairwise Ranking: 27th
KRACH Rating: 116.4 (29th)

This Season: 11-13-0 overall, 3-7-1-3 NCHC (8th of 9 teams)
Last Season: 17-16-5 overall (missed NCAA tournament), 10-6-3-5 NCHC (tied for 3rd)

2024-25 Season Statistics:

Team Offense: 2.25 goals scored/game – 54th of 64 teams
Team Defense: 2.67 goals allowed/game – 30th of 64 teams

Power Play: 19.4% (12 of 62) – 38th of 64 teams
Penalty Kill: 82.7% (62 of 75) – 20th of 64 teams

Key players: Freshman F Austin Burnevik (10-10-20), Sophomore F Barrett Hall (4-13-17), Sophomore F Tyson Gross (8-7-15), Sophomore F Verner Miettinen (3-9-12), Junior F Grant Ahcan (5-6-11), Freshman D Colin Ralph 1-5-6), Senior D Josh Luedtke (2-5-7), Junior D Cooper Wylie (0-3-3), Graduate G Gavin Enright (2-7-0, 3.27 GAA, .892 SV%)

North Dakota Team Profile

Head Coach: Brad Berry (10th season at UND, 218-114-34, .642)

National Rankings: #16/#17
Pairwise Ranking: 26th
KRACH: 148.2 (22nd)

This Season: 12-10-1 overall, 5-4-2-1 NCHC (t-4th of 9 teams)
Last Season: 26-12-2 (NCAA tournament appearance), 14-4-1-5 NCHC (1st)

Team Offense: 3.00 goals scored/game – 25th of 64 teams
Team Defense: 2.87 goals allowed/game – 35th of 64 teams

Power Play: 24.3% (17 of 70) – 11th of 64 teams
Penalty Kill: 73.7% (56 of 76) – 58th of 64 teams

Key Players: Freshman F Sacha Boisvert (9-9-18), Junior F Owen McLaughlin (1-13-14), Junior F Dylan James (7-6-13), Sophomore F Jayden Perron (7-6-13), Freshman F Mac Swanson (2-10-12), Senior F Jake Schmaltz (4-7-11), Senior F Cameron Berg (6-5-11 in eleven games), Sophomore D Jake Livanavage (2-14-16), Sophomore D Abram Wiebe (4-13-17), Junior D Caleb MacDonald (2-3-5), Graduate G T.J. Semptimphelter (10-7-1, 2.80 GAA, .899 SV%, 1 SO)

By The Numbers

Last Meeting: December 14, 2024 (Grand Forks, ND). North Dakota’s Jake Schmaltz was the overtime hero for the Green and White, potting the game-winner just over two minutes into the 3-on-3 portion of the contest. UND never led in regulation and needed a third-period tally by Sacha Boisvert knot the game at three and send the game to an extra session. One night earlier, UND won 2-0 behind a 24-save shutout from T.J. Semptimphelter.

Last Meeting in St. Cloud: Saturday, January 20, 2024. One night after Jackson Blake’s three-point night propelled the visitors to a 5-3 victory, it was Cameron Berg who saved the day for the Green and White, potting his twelfth of the season with less than seven minutes remaining in regulation to knot the game at three. After a scoreless five-minute three-on-three session, two of three SCSU shooters scored in the skills competition to give the Huskies a second league point. For the weekend, SCSU outshot UND 72-48 and had to feel like they left some points on the table. Had St. Cloud State swept the visitors, the two teams would have tied for the regular-season league title.

A Recent Memory: March 16, 2021 (Grand Forks, ND). One night before St. Patrick’s Day, North Dakota enjoyed playing for the NCHC playoff title in front of a whole bunch of green. St. Cloud State led 2-1 after two periods, but the Fighting Hawks stormed back with four third-period goals – including three in the span of 122 seconds early in the final frame and an empty-netter to seal the 5-3 victory and the program’s first Frozen Faceoff championship. UND senior Jordan Kawaguchi and freshman Riese Gaber each had two goals and an assist.

Most Important Meeting: NCAA West Regional Final in Fargo, ND (March 28, 2015). North Dakota scored three unassisted goals over the final two periods of the hockey game to defeat St. Cloud State 4-1 in the West Regional Final and advance to the NCAA Frozen Four. Jimmy Murray got the Huskies on the board less than 90 seconds in to the hockey game, but that did nothing to quiet the partisan crowd of 5,307 at SCHEELS Arena. Four different players scored for UND, while Zane McIntyre made 19 stops to earn his 29th and final victory of the season.

All-Time Series: North Dakota leads the all-time series, 83-49-18 (.613), including a slim edge (31-26-9,.538) in games played in St. Cloud. The teams have been squaring off regularly since the 1989-90 season but have only met once in the NCAA tournament (2015).

Last Ten: UND holds a slight 4-3-3 (.550) edge in the last ten games between the schools, although the Huskies hold a scoring advantage of 33-30 in those contests due to a pair of lopsided victories (7-2, 6-3) in St. Cloud in December 2022. North Dakota has only lost once in the last seven games in this series (4-1-2).

Game News and Notes

Since SCSU began competing in the WCHA in 1990, the Huskies have made the national tournament sixteen times, with Frozen Four appearances in 2013 and 2021 (zero titles). Over that same stretch, North Dakota has appeared in the NCAA tourney 24 times, with eleven Frozen Fours and three national championships (1997, 2000, 2016). UND head coach Brad Berry is 17-12-6 (.571) in his head coaching career against the Huskies. North Dakota (2015, 2016, 2020, 2021, 2022, and 2024) and St. Cloud State (2014, 2018, and 2019) have combined to win the regular season title in nine of the eleven seasons of the NCHC. The Huskies also won the last WCHA conference title in 2013.

The Prediction

There is no question that this season has been up and down for the Fighting Hawks so far, and Brad Berry’s squad has a tremendous opportunity this weekend to build a Pairwise resume. As was the case last month in Grand Forks, I think that North Dakota is catching the Huskies at the right time, with some question marks in the St. Cloud crease. Unlike past iterations, this year’s version of the Cardinal and Black will not want to run and gun with the Hawks, and I expect both games to be close, tightly-contested affairs. SCSU has been in a tailspin over the past couple of months, and the Fighting Hawks will be rested and ready for this weekend. UND 4-2, 3-2.

Broadcast Information

Both games this weekend will be broadcast live on Midco Sports Two and also available via webcast at NCHC.tv. Puck drop is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. Central Time on Friday, with a 6:00 p.m. start time on Saturday night. All UND men’s hockey games can be heard on stations across the UND Sports Home of Economy Radio Network as well as through the iHeart Radio app.

Social Media

Keep up with the action live during all UND hockey games by following @UNDmhockey and @UNDInsider on Twitter. Fans can also read the action via Brad Schlossman’s live chat on the Grand Forks Herald website.

As always, thank you for reading. I welcome your questions, comments, and suggestions. Follow me on Twitter (@DBergerHockey) for more information and insight. Here’s to hockey!

#14 North Dakota (12-8-1 overall, 5-3-2-0 NCHC) hosts #4 Western Michigan (13-4-1 overall, 5-0-1-2 NCHC) in the first meeting between the two teams this season. UND will make a return trip to Kalamazoo for games on February 28th and March 1st in a series that may well determine the 2025 Penrose Cup champions.

The Broncos and Fighting Hawks are two of three teams tied for first place (19 points each) in the league standings, although WMU has played two fewer conference games than UND and Arizona State. Denver and Omaha sit two points back with 17 points.

Two seasons ago, UND managed to take five of six league points on the road (2-2 tie/shootout win; 3-0 win), but the Broncos swept the Fighting Hawks at Ralph Engelstad Arena (4-0, 7-6) to take the season series.

Last year, in the only series between the teams, North Dakota swept Western Michigan at home (5-3, 3-0) to capture the program’s sixth Penrose Cup. In the eleven completed seasons of the National Collegiate Hockey Conference, only UND, Denver, and St. Cloud State have hoisted the Penrose.

Fourth-year head coach Pat Ferschweiler (WMU ’93) recently earned a contract extension that will keep him behind the Broncos’ bench through April 2030. Ferschweiler, who had previously been the WMU associate head coach under Andy Murray, also spent four seasons as an assistant coach for the NHL’s Detroit Red Wings.

In his rookie campaign three seasons ago, Ferschweiler went 26-12-1 and brought his team within one game of the Frozen Four, falling to Minnesota in the regional final. In September of 2022, the Western Michigan bench boss was extended through the 2025-26 season. Two seasons ago, he led the Broncos to a 2nd-place finish in the NCHC, an overall record of 23-15-1, and another NCAA tournament appearance. Last season, Ferschweiler once again led his team to the NCAA tourney with an overall mark of 21-16-1.

This year might turn out to be Ferschweiler’s best behind the bench.

After losing seven of his top nine point producers – forwards Luke Grainger (14-34-48 last season), Dylan Wendt (23-21-44), Sam Colangelo (24-19-43), Chad Hillebrand (7-19-26), and Ethan Phillips (9-14-23) and defensemen Zak Galambos (9-12-21) and Carter Berger (4-16-20) – Ferschweiler has his team scoring at almost the same rate this season (3.33 goals scored per game in 2024-25; 3.58 in 2023-24).

And the scary part is that this year’s version of the Broncos is much better defensively than any we’ve seen in the Ferschweiler era:

2024-25: 1.89 goals allowed/game
2023-24: 2.55 goals allowed/game
2022-23: 2.62 goals allowed/game
2021-22: 2.59 goals allowed/game

Western Michigan has the luxury of starting either graduate netminder Cameron Rowe (10-1-0, 1.82 goals-against average, .931 save percentage,) or freshman Hampton Slukynsky (3-3-1, 1.84 GAA, .941 SV%) between the pipes.

Rowe played two seasons at Wisconsin before transferring to WMU, winning just two of his ten starts in his final season with the Badgers with a 4.30 GAA and a save percentage of just .861.

Slukynsky was slated to attend Northern Michigan University before head coach Ryan Potulny departed the program to become the head coach of the Hartford Wolf Pack (AHL). Slukynsky got out of his NLI and chose to attend WMU along with his brother Grant Slukysnky, who entered the portal after playing one season (6-3-9 in 34 games) under Potulny.

The NCHC has been the premier hockey conference since its inception, and particularly over the past ten seasons. The eight teams in the league have gone 547-286-87 (.642) in non-conference action since the start of the 2014-15 season and sent thirteen teams to the Frozen Four (UND and Omaha in 2015, UND and Denver in 2016, Denver and Duluth in 2017, Duluth in 2018, Denver and Duluth in 2019, Duluth and St. Cloud State in 2021, and Denver in both 2022 and 2024) over that nine-year stretch (there was no national tournament in 2020). Conference members North Dakota (2016), Denver (2017, 2022, 2024), and Minnesota Duluth (2018, 2019) have won six of the last eight national titles.

In the Division I era (since 1975), the Broncos have had sixteen twenty-win seasons, with nine of those coming between 1984 and 1996 under head coach Bill Wilkinson. At 13-4-1, Pat Ferschweiler will almost certainly lead his team to twenty victories for the fourth consecutive year.

In the first round of last season’s NCAA tournament, Western Michigan led Michigan State 4-2 heading into the third period. The Spartans pulled within one with eleven minutes remaining and scored an extra-attacker goal with just 55 ticks on the clock. MSU scored less than nine minutes into the first overtime period to complete the comeback.

Turning our attention to this weekend’s matchup, a half-point per game or better is my benchmark for solid offensive production, and the Broncos boast TEN lineup regulars who meet that threshold: sophomore forward Grant Slukysnky (4-11-15), graduate forward Tim Washe (8-7-15), sophomore forward Alex Bump (5-10-15), sophomore forward Owen Michaels (9-5-14), senior forward Liam Valente (7-7-14), freshman forward Zach Nehring (5-7-12), freshman forward Iiro Hakkarainen (3-7-10), senior forward Matteo Costantini (4-4-8), junior forward Ethan Wolthers (2-2-4 in eight games played), and junior defenseman Samuel Sjolund (0-11-11).

Matteo Costantini spent his first two seasons at North Dakota (10-14-24 in 60 games played) before transferring to Western Michigan. After amassing 21 points in a brilliant freshman campaign, the fifth-round draft pick of the Buffalo Sabres only managed three points in a disappointing sophomore season. Costantini was not in the UND lineup for the final six games of 2022-2023.

Liam Valente spent his last two seasons at Providence, scoring seven goals and adding thirteen assists in 59 games played.

North Dakota bench boss Brad Berry has a healthier lineup than he’s had virtually all season. Senior forward Cameron Berg (5-5-10 in nine games) returned to the lineup last weekend at Arizona State after missing ten straight games.Berg’s return leaves just senior defenseman Bennett Zmolek and junior goaltender Kaleb Johnson on the sidelines. Zmolek is out for the season, while Johnson is out long-term.

North Dakota also boasts impressive scoring depth, with ten players at a half-point per game or better. The aforementioned Cameron Berg leads the way in scoring average with his ten points in nine games. Other consistent contributors include freshman forward Sacha Boisvert (9-9-18), graduate forward Louis Jamernik V (4-5-9 in fifteen games), junior forward Owen McLaughlin (1-12-13), sophomore forward Jayden Perron (7-6-13), freshman forward Mac Swanson (2-9-11), junior forward Dylan James (6-6-12), senior forward Jake Schmaltz (4-7-11), sophomore defenseman Jake Livanavage (2-14-16), and sophomore defenseman Abram Wiebe (4-12-16).

Western Michigan has a decided edge in the specialty teams department, with a plus-7 to this point in the season. The Broncos have scored eleven power play goals and allowed just four while scoring one shorthanded goal and giving up one. North Dakota has scored and allowed seventeen power play goals and is even in the shorthanded tallies ledger (3-3).

The other underlying metrics seem to be a toss-up or slightly in favor of Western Michigan.

The Fighting Hawks are scoring on 10.4% of their shots on goal, good for 18th in the country; the Broncos clock in at 10.1% (22nd).

For the first time in recent memory, UND will square off against a team with better faceoff statistics. Western Michigan has won 55.9% of draws this season (2nd-best in the nation), while North Dakota is just behind at 54.7% (3rd). On the plus side, UND recently saw Cameron Berg return to the lineup; the senior center had won 60 of his 100 faceoffs before being injured and followed that up by winning slightly less than half (14 of 29) in his first weekend back.

Puck possession statistics are a mixed bag as well:

Corsi: North Dakota 54.0 (15th); Western Michigan 52.8 (20th)
Fenwick: North Dakota 53.5 (27th); Western Michigan 54.1 (14th)

Corsi measures the share of shot attempts for each team at even strength, while Fenwick measure the share of unblocked shot attempts for each team at even strength.

If North Dakota has an area to clean up, it is the penalty kill. UND has allowed seventeen power play goals through the first 21 games of this season and has a success rate of just 76.4% when shorthanded; that mark ranks in the bottom quarter in the country (49th of 64 teams). Last season, the Fighting Hawks allowed just nineteen power play goals all season (40 games).

This is a pivotal series, with both league points and Pairwise positioning at play. After this weekend, UND will be off next weekend before competing in six consecutive league series to end the regular season, alternating away and home along the way, with the much more difficult matchups away from Ralph Engelstad Arena:

at St. Cloud State (Pairwise 17)

vs. Colorado College (PWR 34)

at Denver (PWR 6)

vs. Minnesota Duluth (PWR 33)

at Western Michigan (PWR 7)

vs. Omaha (PWR 42)

UND is not scheduled to face league foes Arizona State (PWR 14) or Miami (PWR 61) again this season.

Western Michigan Broncos

Head Coach: Pat Ferschweiler (4th season at WMU, 83-47-4, .634)

National Rankings: #4/#5
Pairwise Ranking: 7th
KRACH Ranking: 460.0 (6th)

This Season: 13-4-1 overall, 5-0-1-2 NCHC (1st of 9 teams)
Last Season: 21-16-1 overall (NCAA Midwest Regional Semifinalist), 10-8-1-5 NCHC (6th of 9 teams)

2024-2025 Season Statistics:

Team Offense: 3.33 goals scored/game – 8th of 64 teams
Team Defense: 1.89 goals allowed/game – 3rd of 64 teams

Power Play: 23.4% (11 of 47) – 17th of 64 teams
Penalty Kill: 91.5% (43 of 47) – 2nd of 64 teams

Key Players: Sophomore Forward Grant Slukysnky (4-11-15), Graduate F Tim Washe (8-7-15), Sophomore F Alex Bump (5-10-15), Sophomore F Owen Michaels (9-5-14), Senior F Liam Valente (7-7-14), Freshman F Zach Nehring (5-7-12), Junior D Samuel Sjolund (0-11-11), Freshman D Joona Vaisanen (1-7-8), Graduate G Cameron Rowe (10-1-1, 1.82 GAA, .931 SV%)

North Dakota Team Profile

Head Coach: Brad Berry (10th season at UND, 218-112-34, .646)

National Rankings: #14/#16
Pairwise Ranking: 20th
KRACH: 175.8 (19th)

This Season: 12-8-1 overall, 5-3-2-0 NCHC (t-2nd of 9 teams)
Last Season: 26-12-2 (NCAA tournament appearance), 14-4-1-5 NCHC (1st)

Team Offense: 3.14 goals scored/game – 20th of 64 teams
Team Defense: 2.76 goals allowed/game – 34th of 64 teams

Power Play: 25.8% (17 of 66) – 8th of 64 teams
Penalty Kill: 76.4% (55 of 72) – 49th of 64 teams

Key Players: Freshman F Sacha Boisvert (8-9-17), Junior F Owen McLaughlin (1-12-13), Junior F Dylan James (5-5-10), Sophomore F Jayden Perron (6-6-12), Freshman F Mac Swanson (2-9-11), Senior F Jake Schmaltz (3-6-9), Senior F Cameron Berg (4-4-8 in seven games), Sophomore D Jake Livanavage (2-12-14), Sophomore D Abram Wiebe (4-10-14), Junior D Caleb MacDonald (2-3-5), Graduate G T.J. Semptimphelter (10-5-1, 2.56 GAA, .903 SV%, 1 SO)

By The Numbers

Last Meeting: March 1, 2024 (Grand Forks, ND). North Dakota’s Ludvig Persson posted a 35-save shutout as the Fighting Hawks won 3-0 to secure the program’s sixth Penrose Cup. One night earlier, UND won 5-3 by surviving a furious third-period comeback that saw the Broncos outshoot their hosts 11-2. For the weekend, Western Michigan was swept despite a 72-44 combined advantage in shots on goal. In the two-game series, North Dakota’s Owen McLaughlin and Louis Jamernik V scored two goals apiece while Jackson Blake and Abram Wiebe each produced three points.

Most Important Meeting: March 24, 2012 (St. Paul, MN). North Dakota upended Western Michigan 3-1 in the NCAA West Regional semifinal. Brock Nelson had two points, including an empty net goal with 25 seconds remaining that sent UND to the regional finals against Minnesota. Aaron Dell made 24 saves for the Green and White. The Broncos, who have played at the Division I level since 1975-76, have nine NCAA tournament appearances.

A Trip Down Memory Lane: Saturday, March 22, 2014 (Minneapolis, MN). North Dakota faced a must-win situation in the 3rd place game at the inaugural NCHC Frozen Faceoff, and did not disappoint the partisan crowd. The Green and White rolled to a 5-0 victory behind two first-period goals from Conner Gaarder. UND netminder Zane Gothberg made 25 saves for the shutout, and Dave Hakstol’s crew played the waiting game for several more hours before discovering that they had indeed made the NCAA tournament for the twelfth consecutive season.

All-Time Series: In the short history between the schools, UND has won 30 of the 43 games (30-12-1, .709), including fourteen of the twenty games played in Grand Forks. Before the 2016-17 season in which Western Michigan won three of the four meetings, WMU’s lone victory over North Dakota was a 2-1 road win on March 8th, 2014. The teams first met in 1997.

Last Ten: North Dakota has a slight 5-4-1 (.550) advantage in the last ten meetings between the two teams, although only three of those ten games were played in Kalamazoo. Before the Broncos’ home sweep of North Dakota in January 2022, UND had swept the previous six with a scoring margin of 28-10.

Game News and Notes

Western Michigan moved up to the Division I ranks beginning with the 1975-76 season and has advanced to the NCAA tournament nine times. The Broncos have made the NCAA tourney four times (2017, 2022, 2023, 2024) in their first eleven seasons in the NCHC after advancing to the national tournament twice (2011, 2012) in the last three seasons in the now-defunct CCHA.

The Prediction

It will be interesting to see how much of an impact last Saturday’s comeback and overtime victory at Arizona State will make in the UND locker room. Equally interesting is the fact that UND played more than six periods of hockey last weekend, while the Broncos were off. It’s the classic rest vs. rust debate, and I give the early edge on Friday night to the Fighting Hawks. As the weekend progresses, however, fatigue may set in, particularly if Brad Berry shortens up the bench in a tight game. North Dakota hockey fans should be hopeful for a split, but it might be worse than that for the Green and White. UND 3-2, WMU 4-1.

Broadcast Information

Game times are set for 7:07 p.m. Central Time on Friday and 6:07 p.m. Central Time on Saturday. Both games will be broadcast live on Midco Sports Network and also available via webcast at NCHC.tv. All UND men’s hockey games can be heard on stations across the UND Sports Home of Economy Radio Network as well as through the iHeart Radio app.

As always, thank you for reading. I welcome your questions, comments, and suggestions. Follow me on X-Twitter (@DBergerHockey) for more information and insight. Here’s to hockey!

#14 North Dakota (11-7-1 overall, 5-2-1-0 NCHC) travels to Tempe, Arizona this weekend to square off against #16 Arizona State (10-7-1 overall, 4-2-1-1 NCHC), the newest member of the National Collegiate Hockey Conference. This key league series will mark just the second and third times that the two teams have ever met on the ice.

On October 29th, 2022, UND and ASU battled at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada, with the Sun Devils coming back from a 2-0 deficit and prevailing by a final score of 3-2. Current UND netminder T.J. Semptimphelter was the winning goaltender for Arizona State in that contest; he only had to make thirteen saves to secure the victory.

That loss was the second straight destination-game defeat for the Green and White, as they also lost 6-4 to Penn State at Bridgestone Arena (Nashville, Tennessee) on October 30th, 2021.

Prior to those two losses, North Dakota had won four straight showcase events:

2012: Bell MTS Place (Winnipeg, Manitoba)
North Dakota 3, Clarkson 1

2013: T.D. Ameritrade Park (Omaha, Nebraska)
North Dakota 5, Omaha 2

2016: Madison Square Garden (New York City)
North Dakota 4, Boston College 3

2018: Orleans Arena (Las Vegas, Nevada)
North Dakota 3, Minnesota 1

UND’s next destination game has been scheduled for Saturday, October 31st, 2026 in Austin, Texas; the opponent for that contest will be Michigan State.

Prior to this year, the Sun Devils competed at the Division I level in men’s ice hockey as an independent for nine seasons, with mixed results:

2015-2018 (three seasons): 21-62-8 (.275)

2018-2020 (two seasons): 43-24-4 (.634) and two NCAA tournament bids

2020-2023 (three seasons): 42-54-4 (.440)

2023-2024 (one season): 24-8-6 (.711)

In the fall of 2022, ASU moved from Oceanside Ice Arena to Mullett Arena, a beautiful 5,000 seat rink on the Arizona State University Campus. Mullett, also known as “The Party Barn”, served as a temporary home for the NHL’s Arizona Coyotes before that team’s hockey assets (players, staff, and draft picks) were transferred to the Utah Hockey Club, an expansion franchise based in Salt Lake City.

Turning our attention to this weekend’s games, North Dakota bench boss Brad Berry has a healthier lineup than he’s had virtually all season. Senior forward Cameron Berg (4-4-8 in seven games) is expected to play this weekend, and that leaves just senior defenseman Bennett Zmolek and junior goaltender Kaleb Johnson on the sidelines. Zmolek is out for the season, while Johnson is out long-term.

For Arizona State, junior transfer Cruz Lucius may make his first appearance of the season. Lucius scored 34 points in each of his two seasons with the Wisconsin Badgers before entering the portal.

As I’ve stated many times before, a half-point per game or better is my benchmark for solid offensive production, and the Sun Devils have nine players who meet or exceed that threshold, including two averaging a point per game or better: senior forward Bennett Schimek (7-11-18) and graduate defenseman Noah Beck (3-15-18). Other solid offensive contributors include graduate forward Ryan Kirwan (11-5-16), graduate forward Artem Shlaine (5-5-10), sophomore forward Kyle Smolen (4-10-14), graduate forward Dylan Jackson (5-7-12), graduate forward Lukas Sillinger (1-11-12), graduate forward Ty Jackson (4-7-11), and freshman forward Cullen Potter (6-4-10).

Two seasons ago, Sillinger scored the game-tying goal against UND in Las Vegas and also assisted on the game-winner.

*UPDATE* It has been reported that both Dylan and Ty Jackson will miss this weekend’s series.

In addition to six freshman, Arizona State head coach Greg Powers brought in six players through the transfer portal. Four of the six ASU freshmen are defensemen, including three who have seen significant playing time.

North Dakota boasts similar scoring depth, with nine players at a half-point per game or better. The aforementioned Cameron Berg leads the way in scoring average with his eight points in seven games. Other consistent contributors include freshman forward Sacha Boisvert (8-9-17), graduate forward Louis Jamernik V (4-5-9 in thirteen games), junior forward Owen McLaughlin (1-12-13), sophomore forward Jayden Perron (6-6-12), freshman forward Mac Swanson (2-9-11), junior forward Dylan James (5-5-10), sophomore defenseman Jake Livanavage (2-12-14), and sophomore defenseman Abram Wiebe (4-10-14).

Despite being the younger team overall, UND will definitely have a size advantage in this series. On average, North Dakota players are more than an inch taller and more than ten pounds heavier (the Fighting Hawks are the nation’s fourth-heaviest team; ASU, the seventh-lightest).

In terms of specialty teams, both squads are a plus-2 to this point in the season. Arizona State has scored eleven power play goals and allowed ten while scoring three shorthanded goals and giving up two. North Dakota has a 16-14 edge in power play goals scored and is even in the shorthanded tallies ledger (2-2).

So far this season, Arizona State has outscored opponents 58-44 while playing the 21st-most difficult schedule in the country (according to KRACH). North Dakota has enjoyed a scoring margin of 61-51 while facing the 17th-toughest slate of opponents.

The other underlying metrics seem to favor UND. The Fighting Hawks are scoring on 10.7% of their shots on goal, good for 13th in the country; the Sun Devils clock in at 9.7% (32nd).

Faceoffs and puck possession metrics also favor the Green and White:

UND has won 54.6% of draws this season (5th-best in the nation) and now sees Cameron Berg return to the lineup; the senior center won 60 of his 100 faceoffs before being injured. ASU has won just 49.6% (38th).

Corsi: North Dakota 53.6 (15th); Arizona State 52.2 (25th)
Fenwick: North Dakota 53.2 (20th); Arizona State 53.0 (23rd)

Corsi measures the share of shot attempts for each team at even strength, while Fenwick measure the share of unblocked shot attempts for each team at even strength.

If North Dakota has an area to clean up, it is the penalty kill. UND has allowed fourteen power play goals through the first nineteen games of this season and has a success rate of just 77.8% when shorthanded; that mark ranks in the bottom third in the country (42nd of 64 teams). Last season, the Fighting Hawks allowed just nineteen power play goals all season (40 games).

In terms of common opponents, both of these teams have faced #5 Providence, #6 Denver, #18 Cornell, and unranked Minnesota Duluth and Robert Morris this season.

Arizona State lost twice at Providence (1-4, 1-2), won twice at Denver (3-2, 5-2), swept Duluth at home (5-3, 3-2 OT), and defeated both Robert Morris (7-3) and Cornell (4-0) at home.

North Dakota beat Providence 5-2 in its home opener before getting swept on the road at Cornell (1-4, 3-5). UND swept at Duluth (7-3, 4-1) and dropped two home games to Denver (2-5, 2-3) before a home sweep of Robert Morris (4-3 OT, 1-0).

If you’re keeping score at home, ASU’s combined record against those five teams is 6-2, while UND’s is 5-4.

This is a pivotal series, with both league points and Pairwise positioning at play. Arizona State currently sits in third place in the NCHC standings, just two points behind North Dakota (Western Michigan is in first place, two points ahead of UND). The WMU Broncos are off this weekend but will face off against the Fighting Hawks at Ralph Engelstad Arena next weekend (January 17th and 18th).

The Sun Devils are not scheduled for a return series in Grand Forks this season.

Arizona State Team Profile

Head Coach: Greg Powers (10th season at ASU, 140-155-23, .476)

National Ranking: #16/#15
Pairwise Ranking: 16th
KRACH: 16th (204.5)

This Season: 10-7-1 overall, 4-2-1-1 NCHC (3rd of 9 teams)
Last Season: 24-8-6 overall (missed NCAA tournament)

Team Offense: 3.22 goals scored/game – 16th of 64 teams
Team Defense: 2.44 goals allowed/game – 20th of 64 teams

Power Play: 20.8% (11 of 53) – 28th of 64 teams
Penalty Kill: 80.0% (40 of 50) – 32nd of 64 teams

Key Players: Senior F Bennett Schimek (7-11-18), Graduate F Ryan Kirwan (11-5-16), Graduate F Artem Shlaine (5-5-10), Sophomore F Kyle Smolen (4-10-14), Graduate F Dylan Jackson (5-7-12), Graduate F Lukas Sillinger (1-11-12), Graduate F Ty Jackson (4-7-11), Freshman F Cullen Potter (6-4-10), Graduate D Noah Beck (3-15-18), Freshman D Sam Court (2-5-7), Senior G Luke Pavicich (7-4-0, 2.36 GAA, .916 SV%), Junior G Gibson Homer (3-3-1, 2.01 GAA, .927 SV%, 2 SO)

North Dakota Team Profile

Head Coach: Brad Berry (10th season at UND, 217-111-34, .646)

National Rankings: #14/#17
Pairwise Ranking: 20th
KRACH: 17th (198.2)

This Season: 11-7-1 overall, 5-2-1-0 NCHC (2nd of 9 teams)
Last Season: 26-12-2 (NCAA tournament appearance), 14-4-1-5 NCHC (1st)

Team Offense: 3.21 goals scored/game – 19th of 64 teams
Team Defense: 2.68 goals allowed/game – 29th of 64 teams

Power Play: 27.6% (16 of 58) – 3rd of 64 teams
Penalty Kill: 77.8% (49 of 63) – 42nd of 64 teams

Key Players: Freshman F Sacha Boisvert (8-9-17), Junior F Owen McLaughlin (1-12-13), Junior F Dylan James (5-5-10), Sophomore F Jayden Perron (6-6-12), Freshman F Mac Swanson (2-9-11), Senior F Jake Schmaltz (3-6-9), Senior F Cameron Berg (4-4-8 in seven games), Sophomore D Jake Livanavage (2-12-14), Sophomore D Abram Wiebe (4-10-14), Junior D Caleb MacDonald (2-3-5), Graduate G T.J. Semptimphelter (10-5-1, 2.56 GAA, .903 SV%, 1 SO)

Game News and Notes

UND is 6-1-1 in its last eight games, outscoring opponents 24-17 over that stretch. Arizona State has won seven games in a row. In 2023-24, Arizona State played its last season as an independent. Despite a record of 24-8-6, the Sun Devils finished in 20th in the Pairwise and missed the NCAA tournament. Greg Powers has been the only head coach in Arizona State Division I men’s hockey history. Powers, a former goaltender from the Sun Devils’ club level (WCHL/ACHA) days, graduated from ASU in 1999 and is a member of the Arizona State Athletic Hall of Fame.

Media Coverage

Friday’s game (9:06 p.m. Central Time) will be broadcast live on CBS Sports Network, while Saturday’s rematch (6:05 p.m.) will be available on Midco Sports and via webcast at NCHC.tv. (Friday’s game will not be available on NCHC.tv due to conference broadcasting rights.) All UND men’s hockey games, home and away, can be heard on stations across the UND Sports Home of Economy Radio Network as well as through the iHeart Radio app.

Social Media

Keep up with the action live during all UND hockey games by following @UNDmhockey and @UNDInsider on Twitter. Fans can also read the action via Brad Schlossman’s live chat on the Grand Forks Herald website.

The Prediction

Both teams ended the first half on a high note, and Arizona State picked up right where they left off with an impressive pair of victories over Robert Morris and Cornell to ring in the new year. When two teams without a lot of history get together, there’s usually a bit of a feeling-out period before both teams ramp up their compete levels, and that’s what I’m expecting in the first period of Friday’s opener. I am also very curious to see how these games will be officiated. North Dakota is at its best when it can finish every check and yet stay at even strength. If the Fighting Hawks can roll four lines all weekend, they can earn more than a split out of this series. At some point, though, we will most likely see a parade to the penalty box, and that favors the Sun Devils. I like the home team tonight, with the Fighting Hawks earning the split in tomorrow’s rematch. ASU 3-2, UND 4-2.

As always, thank you for reading. I welcome your questions, comments, and suggestions. Follow me on Twitter (@DBergerHockey) for more information and insight. Here’s to hockey!

#16 North Dakota (9-7-1 overall, 4-2-0-0 NCHC) hosts the #9 Huskies (10-5-0 overall, 3-0-1-2 NCHC) in a key league matchup at Ralph Engelstad Arena this weekend.

UND trails SCSU by just one point in the conference standings, with six points up for grabs in this series. The two teams – trailing only Western Michigan in the race for the Penrose Cup – will also tangle on January 31st and February 1st, 2025 in St. Cloud, Minnesota.

After this weekend, UND is off until a January 4th home exhibition against Manitoba. SCSU will resume play with a single non-conference home game against future league opponent St. Thomas on December 29th. The Tommies will join the NCHC on July 1st, 2026.

The Fighting Hawks and Huskies have combined for a record of 19-12-1 against some impressive competition.

St. Cloud State split on the road against both #8 Michigan and #10 Colorado College and suffered a home sweep at the hands of #2 Boston College.

North Dakota has faced #7 Providence (a home win), #12 Minnesota State (road split), #13 Boston University (home split), #14 Cornell (two road losses), and #4 Denver (two home losses).

Overall, SCSU’s strength of schedule ranks 6th in the country out of 64 teams. UND’s schedule strength clocks in at 21st overall, mostly due to the fact that its other opponents to this point in the season have been Bemidji State, Robert Morris, and Miami.

Interestingly, St. Cloud State’s home/road splits are even this season, with a record of 6-3-0 at home and 4-2-0 on the road. As one of the few remaining teams playing on a wider sheet of ice, that has not often been the case for the Huskies.

Two seasons ago, St. Cloud State got the better of the Fighting Hawks, winning four of five games and ending UND’s season in the semifinals of the 2023 NCHC Frozen Faceoff in St. Paul.

During the 2022-23 regular season, SCSU embarrassed North Dakota in St. Cloud, winning both games on the wide sheet by comfortable margins (7-2, 6-3). On Friday night, a disastrous second period saw the Huskies score every which way: at even strength, shorthanded, with the extra attacker on a delayed penalty, and on the ensuing power play. Saturday’s game at the Herb Brooks Center was a different kind of disturbing for fans of the Green and White, as the visitors led 3-0 early in the second period. The Huskies would get on the board just 23 seconds after UND’s third tally, and then it was the Zach Okabe show, as the senior forward scored a natural hat trick in under nine minutes of game action (from the 18:12 mark of the middle frame through the 7:05 mark of the third period). SCSU would add two late goals – including an empty-netter – to make the score look lopsided.

In the rematch in Grand Forks, both games went to overtime, with UND scoring during 3-on-3 play on Friday night before losing in a shootout in Saturday’s finale.

Last season, the two teams tangled only twice, and North Dakota took four of six points on the road, winning Friday’s opener 5-3 before tying the homestanding Huskies 3-3 and losing in a shootout.

The Fighting Hawks have clearly struggled lately against the Huskies, winning just twice in the past eight games (2-3-3).

Turning our attention to this season…

A half-point per game or better is my benchmark for solid offensive production, and Brett Larson’s squad has just four lineup regulars who meet that threshold: freshman forward Austin Burnevik (8-6-14), sophomore forward Barrett Hall (2-11-13), sophomore forward Tyson Gross (6-4-10), and sophomore forward Verner Miettinen (2-7-9).

By that same measure, North Dakota has ten players at a half point or better, although, sadly, at least two of them will be out of the lineup this weekend:

Senior forward Cameron Berg (4-4-8 in seven games played)
Senior defenseman Bennett Zmolek (0-1-1 in one game played)

Graduate forward Louis Jamernik V (4-5-9 in twelve games played) is questionable to return to the lineup after being injured against Robert Morris back on November 22nd.

Berg and Jamernik have combined for six goals and six assists in their twenty career games against St. Cloud State.

Left to pick up the offensive production for Brad Berry’s squad are freshman forward Sacha Boisvert (7-8-15), junior forward Owen McLaughlin (1-10-11), sophomore forward Jayden Perron (5-6-11), freshman forward Mac Swanson (2-8-10), freshman forward Cody Croal (1-3-4 in eight games played), sophomore defenseman Jake Livanavage (1-12-13), and sophomore defenseman Abram Wiebe (3-9-12).

Offensively, UND outpaces SCSU by a large margin. To this point of the season, North Dakota has scored 55 goals in seventeen games (3.24 goals per game, 14th in the country), while St. Cloud State has managed just 37 in fifteen games (2.47, 44th).

The Fighting Hawks are 13th in the nation in shooting percentage at 10.9%. SCSU clocks in at 9.0%, good for 40th in the country. UND also gets the puck to the net, averaging 29.6 shots on goal per game (26th). The Huskies aren’t far behind, with 27.3 shots on goal per contest (42nd).

On the defensive side, UND has only allowed 443 shots on goal this season in seventeen games (26.1/game, 15th), while St. Cloud State has allowed 416 in fifteen games (27.7, 26th).

Despite being outshot to this point in the season, SCSU is only allowing 2.0 goals per game, a mark good for 8th in the country. UND? Nearly a full goal per game more, at 2.82 (32nd).

How have the Huskies held opponents to just two goals per game? Two words: Isak Posch. The sophomore netminder boasts some eye-popping stats over the first half of the season, including a record of 9-4-0, a goals-against average of 1.68 (7th in the country), a save percentage of .938 (8th), and two shutouts (5th). Posch’s nine goaltending victories are the seventh-most in the nation, and he ranks first in the country in College Hockey News’ CHIP rating, which factors in strength of schedule and quality of shots faced.

The problem? Posch will be sidelined for at least the next ten weeks with an injury he suffered sometime prior to warmups last Friday night; the team is calling it a lower-body injury and has not shared any more details.

Prior to his injury, Posch had played every minute in net for the Huskies. Each of SCSU’s other goalies started a game against Omaha last weekend, with freshman James Gray losing in overtime on Friday night and graduate transfer Gavin Enright winning Saturday’s rematch.

UND has also lost the services of one if its goaltenders for the foreseeable future: junior Kaleb Johnson looks to be sidelined for an extended period of time; the team brought in Aleksi Huson to be the third goaltender on the roster. Huson backstopped Shakopee High School last season, serving as team captain while posting a record of 20-5-1 with a goals-against average of 2.13 and a save percentage of .934.

On the team side of things, I’m looking at a few important areas in this matchup…

UND far outpaces St. Cloud State in two key puck possession statistics:

North Dakota: 12th in Corsi (53.6%) and 19th in Fenwick (53.0%)
St. Cloud State: 32nd in both Corsi (49.9%) and Fenwick (49.2%)

Corsi measures the share of shot attempts for each team at even strength, while Fenwick measure the share of unblocked shot attempts for each team at even strength.

As always, a key area to watch this weekend is the face-off circle. The Fighting Hawks are the nation’s fifth-best team on draws (54.8%), while the Huskies clock in at 54.3% (7th).

For UND, senior Jake Schmaltz has been the go-to guy in all key situations, winning 192 of 314 (61.1%). Graduate transfer Carter Wilkie (53.1%, 128 of 241) has been a solid second option.

North Dakota’s Cameron Berg won 60 percent of his draws when he was in the lineup.

For SCSU, three centers have split the majority of the duties. Senior Mason Salquist (148 of 262, 56.5%) has won the most draws, while sophmore Verner Miettinen has had the most success (137 of 229, 59.8 percent) and sophomore Tyson Gross (130 of 227, 57.3%) has shown remarkable improvement.

To this point in the season, the two teams are identical in terms of overall specialty teams production, although they have chosen vastly different paths to get there.

North Dakota continues to live and die by the power play, with fifteen man-advantage goals scored in its first seventeen games (15 of 51, 29.4%). That efficiency ranks 4th-best in the country. On the other side of the coin, UND has allowed thirteen power play goals to opponents (44 of 57, 77.2%, 47th in the country). Add in two shorthanded goals scored and one allowed, and the Fighting Hawks are sitting at plus-3.

The Huskies are also a plus-3, but they’ve done it by allowing just FOUR power play goals all season (39 of 43, 90.7%, 4th-best in the country). And you guessed it, dear reader: SCSU is scoring less than twenty percent of the time with the man advantage (8 of 41, 19.5%, 28th). St. Cloud State has scored one shorthanded goal and allowed two this season.

North Dakota has five drafted skaters among its eight first-year players, including a pair of highly-touted recruits:

Forward Sacha Boisvert: 2024 Round 1 #18 overall to the Chicago Blackhawks

Boisvert last played with the Muskegon Lumberjacks (USHL).

Defenseman E.J. Emery: 2024 Round 1 #30 overall to the New York Rangers

Emery spent the last two seasons with the U.S. National Development Team in Ann Arbor.

Other North Dakota freshmen who were drafted by NHL teams over the past three years include:

Defenseman Andrew Strathmann: 2023 Round 4 #98 overall to the Columbus Blue Jackets

Forward Mac Swanson: 2024 Round 7 #207 to the Pittsburgh Penguins

Forward Cade Littler: 2022 Round 7 #219 overall to the Calgary Flames

The three freshman forwards listed above have combined for eleven goals and eighteen assists in 49 games played this season, while Emery and Strathmann have totaled a goal and three assists while playing heavy minutes for the Hawks (Emery 20:43, Strathmann 12:18).

According to College Hockey News, North Dakota’s freshman class ranks #4 in the country.

By contrast, St. Cloud State boasts three drafted skaters among its eight-member freshman class, and they all bring quite a bit of size to the lineup:

6-3 200-pound defenseman Colin Ralph: 2024 Round 2 #48 overall to the St. Louis Blues

6-5 205-pound forward Daimon Gardner: 2022 Round 4 #112 overall to the Vancouver Canucks

6-4 200-pound forward Austin Burnevik: 2024 Round 6 #182 overall to the Anaheim Ducks

Burnevik leads the Huskies in scoring with a line of 8-6-14 in fifteen games played. Gardner has scored two goals and added two assists in his first thirteen collegiate games, while Ralph leads all SCSU blueliners with three assists.

Gardner is expected to miss this series with an upper-body injury.

St. Cloud State Team Profile

Head Coach: Brett Larson (7th season at SCSU, 133-81-21, .611)

National Rankings: #9/#9
Pairwise Ranking: 7th
KRACH Rating: 433.2 (9th)

This Season: 10-5-0 overall, 3-0-1-2 NCHC (2nd of 9 teams)
Last Season: 17-16-5 overall (missed NCAA tournament), 10-6-3-5 NCHC (tied for 3rd)

2024-25 Season Statistics:

Team Offense: 2.47 goals scored/game – 44th of 64 teams
Team Defense: 2.00 goals allowed/game – 8th of 64 teams

Power Play: 19.5% (8 of 41) – 28th of 64 teams
Penalty Kill: 90.7% (39 of 43) – 4th of 64 teams

Key players: Freshman F Austin Burnevik (8-6-14), Sophomore F Barrett Hall (2-11-13), Sophomore F Tyson Gross (6-4-10), Sophomore F Verner Miettinen (2-7-9), Junior F Grant Ahcan (3-2-5), Freshman D Colin Ralph 1-3-4), Senior D Josh Luedtke (2-2-4), Junior D Cooper Wylie (0-2-2), Graduate G Gavin Enright (1-0-0, .2.00 GAA, 931 SV%)

North Dakota Team Profile

Head Coach: Brad Berry (10th season at UND, 215-111-34, .644)

National Rankings: #16/#18
Pairwise Ranking: 27th
KRACH: 164.8 (20th)

This Season: 9-7-1 overall, 4-2-0-0 NCHC (3rd of 9 teams)
Last Season: 26-12-2 (NCAA tournament appearance), 14-4-1-5 NCHC (1st)

Team Offense: 3.24 goals scored/game – 14th of 64 teams
Team Defense: 2.82 goals allowed/game – 32nd of 64 teams

Power Play: 29.4% (15 of 51) – 3rd of 64 teams
Penalty Kill: 77.2% (44 of 57) – 47th of 64 teams

Key Players: Freshman F Sacha Boisvert (7-8-15), Junior F Owen McLaughlin (1-10-11), Junior F Dylan James (5-2-7), Sophomore F Jayden Perron (5-6-11), Freshman F Mac Swanson (2-8-10), Senior F Jake Schmaltz (2-6-8), Sophomore D Jake Livanavage (1-12-13), Sophomore D Abram Wiebe (3-9-12), Junior D Caleb MacDonald (2-2-4), Graduate G T.J. Semptimphelter (8-5-1, 2.74 GAA, .898 SV%)

By The Numbers

Last Meeting: Saturday, January 20, 2024 (St. Cloud, MN). One night after Jackson Blake’s three-point night propelled the visitors to a 5-3 victory, it was Cameron Berg who saved the day for the Green and White, potting his twelfth of the season with less than seven minutes remaining in regulation to knot the game at three. After a scoreless five-minute three-on-three session, two of three SCSU shooters scored in the skills competition to give the Huskies a second league point. For the weekend, SCSU outshot UND 72-48 and had to feel like they left some points on the table. Had St. Cloud State swept the visitors, the two teams would have tied for the regular-season league title.

Last Meeting in Grand Forks: February 18, 2023. This series was as tight as they come, with Riese Gaber scoring the overtime winner in a 4-3 victory on Friday night and the two teams battling to a 2-2 tie in the rematch. Gaber scored the extra attacker goal with less than 100 seconds remaining on the opener to make his game-winning goal possible in the extra frame. UND probably deserved a better fate on Saturday night, as they outshot the visiting Huskies 30-13, including 12-2 in the second period. Somehow, St. Cloud State scored the only goal in the middle frame.

A Recent Memory: March 16, 2021 (Grand Forks, ND). One night before St. Patrick’s Day, North Dakota enjoyed playing for the NCHC playoff title in front of a whole bunch of green. St. Cloud State led 2-1 after two periods, but the Fighting Hawks stormed back with four third-period goals – including three in the span of 122 seconds early in the final frame and an empty-netter to seal the 5-3 victory and the program’s first Frozen Faceoff championship. UND senior Jordan Kawaguchi and freshman Riese Gaber each had two goals and an assist.

Most Important Meeting: NCAA West Regional Final in Fargo, ND (March 28, 2015). North Dakota scored three unassisted goals over the final two periods of the hockey game to defeat St. Cloud State 4-1 in the West Regional Final and advance to the NCAA Frozen Four. Jimmy Murray got the Huskies on the board less than 90 seconds in to the hockey game, but that did nothing to quiet the partisan crowd of 5,307 at SCHEELS Arena. Four different players scored for UND, while Zane McIntyre made 19 stops to earn his 29th and final victory of the season.

All-Time Series: North Dakota leads the all-time series, 81-49-18 (.608), including a sparkling record of 41-19-0 (.683) in games played in Grand Forks. The teams have been squaring off regularly since the 1989-90 season but have only met once in the NCAA tournament (2015).

Last Ten: UND holds a slight 4-3-3 (.550) edge in the last ten games between the schools, with a scoring advantage of 36-34 in those contests.

Game News and Notes

Since SCSU began competing in the WCHA in 1990, the Huskies have made the national tournament sixteen times, with Frozen Four appearances in 2013 and 2021 (zero titles). Over that same stretch, North Dakota has appeared in the NCAA tourney 24 times, with eleven Frozen Fours and three national championships (1997, 2000, 2016). UND head coach Brad Berry is 15-12-6 (.545) in his head coaching career against the Huskies. North Dakota (2015, 2016, 2020, 2021, 2022, and 2024) and St. Cloud State (2014, 2018, and 2019) have combined to win the regular season title in nine of the eleven seasons of the NCHC. The Huskies also won the last WCHA conference title in 2013.

The Prediction

There is no question that this season has been up and down for the Fighting Hawks so far, and Brad Berry’s squad has a tremendous opportunity this weekend to go into the break on a high note. On the other hand, disappointing results in front of the home fans right before the holidays could leave lots of question marks for the second half. I think that North Dakota is catching the Huskies at the right time, with some question marks in the St. Cloud crease. Unlike past iterations, this year’s version of the Cardinal and Black will not want to run and gun with the Hawks, and I expect both games to be close. My gut tells me that the home squad will manage better than three league points, but things have been so unpredictable thus far. I might regret it, but I’ll call a split. UND 4-2., SCSU 3-2

Broadcast Information

Both games this weekend will be broadcast live on Midco Sports Network and also available via webcast at NCHC.tv. Puck drop is scheduled for 7:07 p.m. Central Time on Friday, with a 6:07 p.m. start time on Saturday night. All UND men’s hockey games can be heard on stations across the UND Sports Home of Economy Radio Network as well as through the iHeart Radio app.

Social Media

Keep up with the action live during all UND hockey games by following @UNDmhockey and @UNDInsider on Twitter. Fans can also read the action via Brad Schlossman’s live chat on the Grand Forks Herald website.

As always, thank you for reading. I welcome your questions, comments, and suggestions. Follow me on Twitter (@DBergerHockey) for more information and insight. Here’s to hockey!

#16 North Dakota (7-7-1 overall; 2-2-0 NCHC) will travel to Oxford, Ohio this weekend to take on the unranked Miami Redhawks (3-11-2 overall; 0-6-0 NCHC)

Miami has played the 57th-toughest schedule in the country and is winless in November, going a combined 0-8-0 against Rensselaer, #9 St. Cloud State, Minnesota Duluth, and Omaha. MU was outscored 34-9 in those eight games. SCSU is the only ranked opponent that the Redhawks have faced to this point in the season.

The other result from the first half that jumps off of the page is that the Redhawks were swept 5-1 and 4-1 by Robert Morris back in October, one week before UND defeated the Colonials (4-3 in overtime and 1-0).

By contrast, North Dakota has played the tenth-toughest schedule to this point of the season. Over the first thirteen games, UND has faced #10 Providence (home win), #15 Minnesota State (road split), #11 Boston University (home split), #12 Cornell (two road losses), unranked Minnesota Duluth (a road sweep), #2 Denver (two home losses), unranked Robert Morris (home sweep), and unranked Bemidji State (a loss and a shootout win).

The hard reality is that North Dakota needs two victories this weekend to start climbing in the Pairwise rankings, and bench boss Brad Berry will be without a handful of players as he tries to secure a road sweep:

Junior goaltender Kaleb Johnson looks to be sidelined for an extended period of time; the team brought in Aleksi Huson to be the third goaltender on the roster. Huson backstopped Shakopee High School last season, serving as team captain while posting a record of 20-5-1 with a goals-against average of 2.13 and a save percentage of .934.

Junior defenseman Bennett Zmolek remains out of the lineup; Zmolek has missed the last fourteen games.

Forward Louis Jamernik V – the team’s captain – was injured two weeks ago but has begun skating in practice. His return to the lineup is questionable.

And finally, forward Cameron Berg, who had returned to the lineup at Duluth after missing both games against the Big Red, was injured in practice three weeks ago and has missed the last six games. Berg leads the team in points per game (4-4-8 in seven games played).

Even though UND has played a much tougher schedule to this point in the season, the Fighting Hawks still far outpace the RedHawks in two key puck possession statistics:

Miami: 46th in Corsi (46.9%) and 46th in Fenwick (46.0%)
North Dakota: 22nd in Corsi (52.1%) and 27th in Fenwick (51.4)

Corsi measures the share of shot attempts for each team at even strength, while Fenwick measure the share of unblocked shot attempts for each team at even strength.

As always, a key area to watch this weekend is the face-off circle. The Fighting Hawks are the nation’s 5th-best team on draws (55.0%), while the Beavers clock in at 50.3% (31st).

North Dakota has five drafted skaters among its eight first-year players, including a pair of highly-touted recruits:

Forward Sacha Boisvert: 2024 Round 1 #18 overall to the Chicago Blackhawks

Boisvert last played with the Muskegon Lumberjacks (USHL).

Defenseman E.J. Emery: 2024 Round 1 #30 overall to the New York Rangers

Emery spent the last two seasons with the U.S. National Development Team in Ann Arbor.

Other North Dakota freshmen who were drafted by NHL teams over the past three years include:

Defenseman Andrew Strathmann: 2023 Round 4 #98 overall to the Columbus Blue Jackets

Forward Mac Swanson: 2024 Round 7 #207 to the Pittsburgh Penguins

Forward Cade Littler: 2022 Round 7 #219 overall to the Calgary Flames

The three freshman forwards listed above have combined for ten goals and eleven assists in 43 games played this season, while Emery and Strathmann have each picked up an assist while playing heavy minutes for the Hawks (Emery 20:52, Strathmann 11:05). Strathmann was averaging nearly thirteen minutes a game before being injured early in last Friday’s game at Cornell.

According to College Hockey News, North Dakota’s freshman class ranks #4 in the country.

Last season, these two teams met six times, including a March NCHC playoff series in Grand Forks. North Dakota won all six games, with only one close contest among them (a 5-4 overtime victory at Miami in February). The other five scores: 6-4, 5-1, 4-1, 5-1, and 7-1.

Remarkably, when North Dakota traveled to face to RedHawks back in January of 2023 (two seasons ago), the two teams were both at the bottom of the league standings. Last year, UND and Miami were at opposite ends of the spectrum: the Fighting Hawks were Penrose Cup champions, while the RedHawks won just ONE conference game all year (a 4-3 home victory over Western Michigan on January 13th, their last win of the season). Let me say that again: over the past seven weekends of hockey (one series each against every league foe), MU did not win a game (0-13-1, with a shootout loss at Denver the only bright spot). Over those fourteen games, Miami was outscored 58-26, an average margin of defeat of 4.14 – 1.86.

The common thread? Miami is and will continue to be at the bottom of the league standings.

Over the first eleven completed regular seasons of the NCHC, Miami has averaged a seventh-place finish among the eight conference teams (8th, 2nd, 5th, 7th, 8th, 8th, 7th, 8th, 8th, 8th, and 8th), with a combined league record of 63-168-33 (.301).

By comparison, North Dakota has finished 2nd, 1st, 1st, 4th, 4th, 5th, 1st, 1st, 1st, 5th, and 1st, for an average finish just under second place, with a combined league record of 154-81-29 (.638). No other league member has collected as many conference wins as UND.

This season, Miami is 0-6-0 in league play, but may have found a way out of eighth place. The solution? Arizona State has now joined the league, so MU will move down to ninth.

When the National Collegiate Hockey Conference was formed, Miami appeared positioned to be a dominant program. Prior to the 2013-14 season (their inaugural campaign in the NCHC), the RedHawks had made eight consecutive NCAA tournament appearances, with consecutive Frozen Four bids in 2009 (2nd) and 2010 (3rd). Since joining the NCHC, Miami has just one NCAA tournament appearance (2015), and that ended quickly with a first-round loss to eventual national champion Providence.

Long-tenured head coach Enrico Blasi was fired after posting a fourth consecutive losing season in 2018-2019. Over that stretch of time, the RedHawks were 47-81-19 (.384). There was reason for optimism in Oxford when Chris Bergeron was hired; Bergeron took over the program after leading Bowling Green to six consecutive winning seasons, five consecutive years with twenty or more victories, and an NCAA tournament appearance in 2018-2019.

Bergeron was fired after last season; he compiled a record of 35-116-16 (.257) in his five years at Miami and never won more than eight games in a season.

New head coach Anthony Noreen takes over behind the Miami bench; he played his collegiate hockey at UW-Stevens Point.

After this weekend’s series, UND will host #9 St. Cloud State in NCHC action to close out the first half of the season. A record of 3-1 (or better) over the final four games of 2024 would put North Dakota in position to make a run to the NCAAs.

Miami Team Profile

Head Coach: Anthony Noreen (1st season at Miami, 3-11-2, .250)

National Rankings: NR/NR
Pairwise Ranking: 59th
KRACH Rating: 16.8 (59th)

This Season: 3-11-2 overall; 0-5-0-1 NCHC (9th)
Last Season: 7-26-3 overall (missed NCAA tournament), 1-19-0-4 NCHC (8th)

2024-2025 Season Statistics:

Team Offense: 1.94 goals scored/game – 58th of 64 teams
Team Defense: 3.63 goals allowed/game – 58th of 64 teams

Power Play: 17.7% (11 of 62) – 39th of 64 teams
Penalty Kill: 88.3% (53 of 60) – 12th of 64 teams

Key players: Graduate F Matt Choupani (5-7-12), Graduate F Colby Ambrosio (3-8-11), Junior F Johnny Waldron (2-6-8), Graduate F Christophe Fillion (2-4-6), Freshman D Michael Quinn (1-4-5), Senior D Conner Hutchison (1-4-5), Sophomore G Bruno Bruveris (2-6-1, 3.66 GAA, .876 SV%)

North Dakota Team Profile

Head Coach: Brad Berry (10th season at UND, 213-111-34, .642)

National Rankings: #16/#17
Pairwise Ranking: 26th
KRACH: 180.2 (21st)

This Season: 7-7-1 overall, 2-2-0-0 NCHC (6th of 9 teams)
Last Season: 26-12-2 (NCAA tournament appearance), 14-4-1-5 NCHC (1st)

2024-2025 Season Statistics:

Team Offense: 3.07 goals scored/game – 16th of 64 teams
Team Defense: 2.80 goals allowed/game – 32nd of 64 teams

Power Play: 27.9% (12 of 43) – 6th of 64 teams
Penalty Kill: 78.0% (39 of 50) – 43rd of 64 teams

Key Players: Graduate F Louis Jamernik V (4-5-9), Freshman F Sacha Boisvert (6-6-12), Junior F Owen McLaughlin (1-8-9), Junior F Dylan James (5-2-7), Sophomore F Jayden Perron (3-5-8), Freshman F Mac Swanson (2-4-6), Senior F Jake Schmaltz (2-6-8), Sophomore D Jake Livanavage (1-11-12), Sophomore D Abram Wiebe (2-6-8), Freshman D E.J. Emery (0-1-1), Graduate G T.J. Semptimphelter (6-5-1, 2.69 GAA, .905 SV%)

By The Numbers

Last Meeting: March 16, 2024 (Grand Forks, ND). Normally it is difficult to end a team’s season in the first round of the NCHC playoffs, but UND made quick work of Miami, besting the RedHawks 5-1 and 7-1. MU put plenty of pucks on net (56 in the two-game series), but North Dakota netminder Hobie Hedquist was up to the challenge, allowing only a single goal each night. UND’s Jackson Blake and Riese Gaber both scored on back-to-back nights.

Last Meeting in Oxford: February 3, 2024 (Oxford, Ohio). North Dakota cruised to a 4-1 win over the homestanding RedHawks to earn five of six league points on the weekend. UND defenseman Logan Britt scored twice in the victory to notch a three-goal weekend and nab NCHC Defenseman of the Week honors, Britt had two goals on the season coming into the road series at MU. In the opener, Miami took Friday’s game to overtime before falling 84 seconds in on yet another Jackson Blake overtime tally. UND netminder Ludvig Persson, who struggled to feel comfortable in his return to Goggin Ice Center (four goals allowed on 31 shots), assisted on the game winner in overtime.

Most Important Meeting: March 6, 2015 (Oxford, OH). North Dakota claimed the Penrose Cup with a 2-1 road victory over Miami. UND fell flat the following night, losing 6-3 in the final game of the regular season.

Last Ten: UND has picked up nine wins (9-1–0, .900) in the past ten contests between the teams, outscoring Miami 53-18 over that stretch of games.

All-time Series: North Dakota leads the all-time series 31-8-4 (.767), including a sparkling 15-3-2 (.800) record in games played in Grand Forks. The teams first played in 1999 (Badger Showdown, Milwaukee, WI).

Game News and Notes

MU has not made the national tournament since 2015, their second season in the NCHC. Brad Berry is 24-4-3 (.823) in his coaching career against Miami. Green Hawks are preferable to RedHawks.

The Prediction

Despite its injury concerns, the Fighting Hawks are deeper, more talented, and are getting better goaltending. Specialty teams can be the great equalizer, and UND’s penalty kill is suspect. I expect North Dakota to blow the doors off Miami in the opener, with a tighter contest in the rematch. UND 5-1, 4-2.

Broadcast Information

Both games this weekend are available via webcast at NCHC.tv. All UND men’s hockey games can be heard on stations across the UND Sports Home of Economy Radio Network as well as through the iHeart Radio app. Puck drop is set for 6:05 p.m. Central Time each night.

As always, thank you for reading. I welcome your questions, comments, and suggestions. Follow me on Twitter (@DBergerHockey) for more information and insight. Here’s to hockey!

#14 North Dakota (7-6-0, 2-2-0 NCHC) and unranked Bemidji State (6-6-1, 4-3-1 CCHA) will play a home-and-home series this weekend, with Friday’s opener at the Sanford Center in Bemidji, Minnesota and the rematch at Engelstad Arena in Grand Forks on Saturday night.

Over the past eight seasons, UND and BSU have had a schedule agreement which alternates between a series in Grand Forks and the arrangement we have before us this year.

Bemidji State has played the 16th-toughest schedule in the country, with marquee matchups against #9 St. Cloud State (two losses), #17 Minnesota State (split), and #3 Minnesota (split).

By contrast, North Dakota has played the eighth-toughest schedule to this point of the season. Over the first thirteen games, UND has faced #10 Providence (home win), #17 Minnesota State (road split), #13 Boston University (home split), #11 Cornell (two road losses), unranked Minnesota Duluth (a road sweep), #2 Denver (two home losses), and unranked Robert Morris (home sweep).

Eleven full seasons have come and gone since the college hockey landscape changed forever. With Minnesota and Wisconsin departing the Western Collegiate Hockey Association for the Big Ten after the 2012-13 season, several other conference schools and two members of the former Central Collegiate Hockey Association created the National Collegiate Hockey Conference and left Alaska Anchorage, Bemidji State, Michigan Tech, and Minnesota State behind in a watered-down WCHA.

And now, the WCHA is no more, and Bemidji State, Michigan Tech, and Minnesota State find themselves as three of nine programs in the latest version of the CCHA along with Bowling Green, Ferris State, Lake Superior State, Northern Michigan, St. Thomas (fourth season at the Division I level), and Augustana (second season at the Division I level).

The NCHC has been the premier hockey conference since its inception, and particularly over the past ten seasons. The eight teams in the league have gone 536-275-85 (.646) in non-conference action since the start of the 2014-15 season and sent thirteen teams to the Frozen Four (UND and Omaha in 2015, UND and Denver in 2016, Denver and Duluth in 2017, Duluth in 2018, Denver and Duluth in 2019, Duluth and St. Cloud State in 2021, and Denver in both 2022 and 2024) over that nine-year stretch (there was no national tournament in 2020). Conference members North Dakota (2016), Denver (2017, 2022, 2024), and Minnesota Duluth (2018, 2019) have won six of the last eight national titles.

Bemidji State had a very successful 2020-2021 season, going 16-5-3 overall, making the NCAA tourney, and shocking #4-overall Wisconsin 6-3 before being blanked 4-0 by eventual national champion Massachusetts. UMass also shut out St. Cloud State 5-0 in the title game and outscored their opponents 17-3 in their four tournament games.

The Beavers went 22-10-5 in 2020 and would have made the NCAA tournament. Tom Serratore’s head coaching mark of 38-20-8 (.636) from 2019-2021 was by far the best two-year for BSU since they made the jump from the CHA in 2010.

Since then, however, it has not been smooth sailing. The Beavers have played .500 hockey (59-59-8) since their most recent tournament run, with a third-place league finish in 2022 and a fifth-place finish two seasons ago. Last season, BSU won the regular season title but lost to Michigan Tech in the CCHA tournament championship and failed to make the NCAA tournament.

Through eight conference games this year, BSU sits in sixth place in the CCHA (by points percentage).

Non-conference games are crucial in the all-important Pairwise rankings, and this weekend is North Dakota’s last opportunity to build a resume. So far this season, UND has a record of 5-4-0 outside the NCHC.

The hard reality is that a loss this weekend would be devastating to North Dakota’s NCAA tournament aspirations, and bench boss Brad Berry will be without a handful of players as he tries to secure two victories:

Junior goaltender Kaleb Johnson looks to be sidelined for an extended period of time; the team brought in Aleksi Huson to be the third goaltender on the roster. Huson backstopped Shakopee High School last season, serving as team captain while posting a record of 20-5-1 with a goals-against average of 2.13 and a save percentage of .934.

Junior defenseman Bennett Zmolek remains out of the lineup; Zmolek has missed the last twelve games.

Two other players – freshman forward Cody Croal and freshman defenseman Andrew Strathmann – were injured in the opening game at Cornell on November 1st. Strathmann’s recovery has gone better than expected, and he may see game action before Christmas break. Croal returned to practice last week.

Forward Louis Jamernik V – the team’s captain – was injured last weekend and skated without contact in practice this week. His return to the lineup is questionable.

And finally, forward Cameron Berg, who had returned to the lineup at Duluth after missing both games against the Big Red, was injured in practice two weeks ago and has missed the last four games. Berg leads the team in points per game (4-4-8 in seven games played).

Even though UND has played a much tougher schedule to this point in the season, the Fighting Hawks still far outpace the Beavers in two key puck possession statistics:

Bemidji State: 45th in Corsi (47.1%) and 38th in Fenwick (48.1%)
North Dakota: 24th in Corsi (51.9%) and 29th in Fenwick (50.8)

Corsi measures the share of shot attempts for each team at even strength, while Fenwick measure the share of unblocked shot attempts for each team at even strength.

As always, a key area to watch this weekend is the face-off circle. The Fighting Hawks are the nation’s 7th-best team on draws (55.5%), while the Beavers clock in at 49.0% (39th).

North Dakota has five drafted skaters among its eight first-year players, including a pair of highly-touted recruits:

Forward Sacha Boisvert: 2024 Round 1 #18 overall to the Chicago Blackhawks

Boisvert last played with the Muskegon Lumberjacks (USHL).

Defenseman E.J. Emery: 2024 Round 1 #30 overall to the New York Rangers

Emery spent the last two seasons with the U.S. National Development Team in Ann Arbor.

Other North Dakota freshmen who were drafted by NHL teams over the past three years include:

Defenseman Andrew Strathmann: 2023 Round 4 #98 overall to the Columbus Blue Jackets

Forward Mac Swanson: 2024 Round 7 #207 to the Pittsburgh Penguins

Forward Cade Littler: 2022 Round 7 #219 overall to the Calgary Flames

The three freshman forwards listed above have combined for nine goals and eleven assists in 37 games played this season, while Emery and Strathmann have each picked up an assist while playing heavy minutes for the Hawks (Emery 21:20, Strathmann 11:05). Strathmann was averaging nearly thirteen minutes a game before being injured early in last Friday’s game at Cornell.

According to College Hockey News, North Dakota’s freshman class ranks #4 in the country.

During last season’s November series in Grand Forks, UND spotted Bemidji State the first two goals. North Dakota then rattled off the next eight, downing the Beavers 3-2 in overtime before blanking the visitors 5-0 on night two.

After this weekend’s series, UND (7-6-0) will battle two NCHC foes (at Miami, vs. #9 St. Cloud State) to close out the first half of the season. A record of 4-2 (or better) over the final six games of 2024 would put North Dakota in position to make a run to the NCAAs.

Bemidji State Team Profile

Head Coach: Tom Serratore (24th season at BSU, 394-366-100, .516)

National Rankings: NR/NR
Pairwise Ranking: 27th
KRACH Rating: 137.2 (24th)

This Season: 6-6-1 overall, 3-3-2-0 CCHA (6th)
Last Season: 20-16-12 overall, 13-6-4-1 CCHA (1st)

Team Offense: 2.38 goals scored/game – 39th of 64 teams
Team Defense: 2.54 goals allowed/game – 22nd of 64 teams

Power Play: 22.6% (7 of 31) – 19th of 64 teams
Penalty Kill: 80.0% (24 of 30) – 29th of 64 teams

Key Players: Graduate F Eric Martin (3-6-9), Junior F Kirklan Irey (5-4-9), Senior F Jere Vaisanen (4-4-8), Senior F Reilly Funk (4-3-7), Graduate F Carter Randklev (4-2-6), Freshman D Isa Parekh (2-3-5), Junior D Vince Corcoran (1-3-4), Senior G Mattias Sholl (5-6-1, 2.35 GAA, .915 SV%, 2 SO)

North Dakota Team Profile

Head Coach: Brad Berry (10th season at UND, 213-110-33, .645)

National Rankings: #14/#15
Pairwise Ranking: 19th
KRACH: 228.6 (17th)

This Season: 7-6-0 overall, 2-2-0-0 NCHC (5th of 9 teams)
Last Season: 26-12-2 (NCAA tournament appearance), 14-4-1-5 NCHC (1st)

Team Offense: 3.23 goals scored/game – 17th of 64 teams
Team Defense: 2.85 goals allowed/game – 28th of 64 teams

Power Play: 29.3% (12 of 41) – 4th of 64 teams
Penalty Kill: 76.1% (35 of 46) – 51st of 64 teams

Key Players: Graduate F Louis Jamernik V (4-5-9), Freshman F Sacha Boisvert (5-6-11), Junior F Owen McLaughlin (0-7-7), Junior F Dylan James (5-2-7), Sophomore F Jayden Perron (3-4-7), Freshman F Mac Swanson (2-4-6), Senior F Jake Schmaltz (1-6-7), Sophomore D Jake Livanavage (1-9-10), Sophomore D Abram Wiebe (2-6-8), Freshman D E.J. Emery (0-1-1), Graduate G T.J. Semptimphelter (6-4-0, 2.96 GAA, .898 SV%)

By The Numbers

Last Meeting: November 25, 2023 (Grand Forks, ND). It was all North Dakota in this one, as five Fighting Hawks lit the lamp in the 5-0 shutout. One night earlier, Bemidji State scored two first-period goals before seeing that lead evaporate late in regulation. UND’s Jackson Blake sent the home fans happy with a goal fifty seconds into the 3-on-3 overtime session.

Last Meeting in Bemidji: November 25, 2022. The Beavers held a 3-1 lead early in the second period but couldn’t make it hold up. North Dakota’s Jackson Blake and Judd Caulfield scored in the middle frame to knot the game at three goals apiece, and that’s the way it would end. UND outshot Bemidji State 31-21.

Most Important Meeting: October 15, 2010 (Bemidji, MN). In the first game played at the BREC, North Dakota spotted BSU the opening goal less than two minutes into the contest and then steamrolled the Beavers 5-2. The Fighting Sioux outshot their fellow Green-and-Whiters 38-14.

Last Ten: North Dakota is 6-2-2 (.700) in the last ten meetings between the teams, outscoring the Beavers 30-19 over that stretch of games. Seven of the last ten tilts have been decided by a goal or less, with UND having slightly the better of it in the close games (3-2-2).

All-time Series: UND leads the all-time series, 37-5-7 (.827), including a record of 26-3-4 (.848) in games played in Grand Forks. Three of BSU’s five wins over North Dakota have come in the past ten years (October 2014, October 2018, and October 2021). Bemidji’s other victories over UND came in 1970 and 2011.

Game News and Notes

UND head coach Brad Berry is 9-2-3 (.750) in his career against Bemidji State. BSU has competed at the Division I level since the 1999-00 season and has made the NCAA tournament five times (2005, 2006, 2009, 2010, and 2021), with a Frozen Four appearance in 2009. Current Beaver forwards Carter Randklev and Jaksen Panzer were former North Dakota commits. Fourteen of the past twenty games between these two teams have been decided by one goal or less.

Broadcast Information

Friday’s opener will be available via webcast at CCHA.TV and also available on Midco Sports Plus. Saturday’s rematch will be broadcast live on Midco Sports Network and also available via webcast at NCHC.tv. Puck drop is set for 7:07 p.m. Central Time on Friday and 6:07 p.m. Central Time on Saturday. All UND men’s hockey games can be heard on stations across the UND Sports Home of Economy Radio Network as well as through the iHeart Radio app.

On A Personal Note

I have participated in Movember for the past twelve years and have proudly raised over $35,000 to help change the face of men’s health. Will you join me and support the cause? Please visit my Movember fundraising page to learn more and to donate. Thank you!

The Prediction

If UND was at full strength, this would be an easier call. Bemidji State always seems to bring their best effort against UND, and this weekend will be no exception. I expect UND’s power play to stay hot this weekend, with multiple man-advantage goals possible each night. In the last seven series against the Beavers, North Dakota has only truly been held in check offensively over one weekend (two total goals scored in October 2018). In the other six series, the Fighting Hawks have managed 10, 7, 7, 6, 7, and 8 total goals. A hiccup is possible, but I’m calling another sweep. UND 5-3, 4-2.

Social Media

Keep up with the action live during all UND hockey games by following @UNDmhockey and @UNDInsider on Twitter. Fans can also read the action via Brad Schlossman’s live chat on the Grand Forks Herald website.

As always, thank you for reading. I welcome your questions, comments, and suggestions. Follow me on Twitter (@DBergerHockey) for more information and insight. Here’s to hockey!