Month: January 2021

With all of the ties, shootouts, late-game heroics, and overtime winners as well as the disparity in each team’s number of games played in the Omaha pod and over the first few weeks of the second half, it can be difficult to get a handle on who is ahead in the conference standings. The best way I have found is to look at the average number of points earned. It is also possible that the teams will finish the regular season with an uneven number of games played; in that case, the league will use average points earned/game as the measuring stick to determine the league championship as well as the matchups in the first round of the conference playoffs.

With that as our guide, here’s the NCHC leaderboard (three points for a regulation win, two points for an overtime or shootout win, and one point for an overtime or shootout loss)

1. North Dakota 2.19 (35 points in 16 games)
2. St. Cloud State 1.94 (33 points in 17 games)
3. Omaha 1.93 (27 points in 14 games)
4. Minnesota Duluth 1.80 (27 points in 15 games)
5. Denver 1.31 (21 points in 16 games)
6. Western Michigan 1.06 (19 points in 18 games)
7. Colorado College 0.94 (15 points in 16 games)
7. Miami 0.94 (15 points in 16 games)

#9 Omaha (9-4-1) has been the biggest surprise in the NCHC this season. While I expected them to have good results in the pod (and they did, posting a record of 6-3-1), I thought that they might regress in the second half. Over the past two weekends, the Mavs went out to Colorado Springs and swept the Tigers (3-2, 3-2 OT) before splitting a home series with Denver (1-4, 5-2). A home split may not seem impressive, but Saturday’s win was the first time that Omaha had beaten the Pioneers in six years, snapping a nineteen-game winless streak.

Mike Gabinet’s squad could be ranked even higher were it not for a disappointing 1-0 defeat at the hands of Miami back on December 12th. In that contest, the Mavs outshot the RedHawks 30-12 (including 15-2 in the third period) but could not solve Ludvig Persson. Other than that frustration, Miami has fared extremely well in close games, winning two games in overtime and another in a shootout.

#2 North Dakota (12-3-1) played all ten scheduled games in the Omaha pod (going 7-2-1), but the second half has had a few hiccups. UND has already had four games scratched against Omaha, with those games rescheduled for later this season. Not wanting two consecutive weekends off, the Fighting Hawks worked with the NCHC to squeeze in a Sunday-Monday series in Colorado Springs three weekends ago. After sweeping the Tigers (3-0, 2-1), Brad Berry’s squad returned home to prepare for a road series against the 18th-ranked Pioneers, only to learn on Wednesday that that series would also be pushed back two days. Last week’s home series against CC was also pushed back to a Saturday-Sunday series, with UND winning both nights. As I mentioned last week, the flexibility that the Fighting Hawks have shown in adjusting to game times and days will benefit this team in the national tournament.

After a trip to the Frozen Four in 2015, Dean Blais could only manage a mark of 35-34-6 over his final two seasons behind the Omaha bench. He was replaced by Mike Gabinet (Omaha ’04), and Gabinet finished up his rookie campaign with an eerily similar record of 17-17-2.

Maverick fans were certainly hopeful that improvement was coming two seasons ago, but Omaha struggled out of the gate with a record of 0-6-1. Things leveled off a bit after that, with a record of 6-4-1 to close out 2018. Once the calendar year turned, however, Gabinet was only able to lead his team to three more wins (the last coming on February 8th) and a season record of 9-24-3. UNO fans had to have been a bit more pleased with last season’s results, as the 2019-20 version of the Mavs collected fourteen victories (14-17-5).

Seven 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 now-defunct 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.

It is abundantly clear that the NCHC has been the premier hockey conference since its inception, and particularly over the past six seasons. The eight teams in the league have gone 326-158-63 (.654) in non-conference action since the start of the 2014-15 season and sent nine teams to the Frozen Four (UND and Omaha in 2015, UND and Denver in 2016, Denver and Duluth in 2017, Duluth in 2018, and Denver and Duluth in 2019) over that five-year stretch (there was no national tournament last season). Conference members North Dakota (2016), Denver (2017), and Minnesota Duluth (2018, 2019) have won the last four national titles.

After winning its second consecutive national title (and third in team history) in 2019, the Minnesota Duluth Bulldogs were picked to finish first in the NCHC and capture the program’s first-ever Penrose Cup last season. Things looked to be on schedule for UMD, as they took a 7-1-2 record into St. Cloud. The Huskies earned a home sweep over Duluth (2-1, 2-0) to send the Bulldogs home reeling. North Dakota, which held a three-point lead over Scott Sandelin’s crew before those games, took five of six points at Miami to extend its lead to eight points over Duluth and nine points over Denver. UND never looked back, securing the program’s third Penrose Cup (2015, 2016) with a conference record of 17-4-3-2.

After sputtering to records of 17-13-10 (.550) and 18-17-2 (.514) and missing the NCAA tournament in consecutive seasons, UND head coach Brad Berry got his team on the right track last year, winning the program’s third Penrose Cup as NCHC champions and collecting an overall record of 26-5-4 (.800).

Turning our attention to this weekend’s matchup, sophomore netminder Isaiah Saville (7-4-1, 2.18 GAA, .928 SV%, 1 SO) has been spectacular in net for the Mavs, with classmate Austin Roden appearing in three games (2-0-0. 2.35 GAA, .933 SV%, 1 SO). Omaha has allowed more than two goals only four times all season, while North Dakota’s opponents have scored more than two goals six times.

Junior netminder Adam Scheel (11-2-1. 1.77 GAA, .928 SV%, 3 SO) has been the clear-cut #1 for North Dakota, with senior Peter Thome (1-1-0, 3.18 GAA, .870 SV%) appearing in three games. Scheel won both games against the Tigers last weekend in Grand Forks, allowing just one goal on 34 shots in the two-game sweep and earning NCHC Goaltender of the Week honors for the second time in the past three weeks.

A half-point per game or better is my benchmark for solid offensive production, and Mike Gabinet’s squad boasts eleven players who meet that threshold: junior forward Chase Primeau (4-9-13), junior forward Taylor Ward (7-4-11), junior forward Tyler Weiss (4-7-11), senior forward Kevin Conley (5-5-10), freshman forward Matt Miller (6-3-9), sophomore forward Jack Randl (4-5-9), sophomore forward Joey Abate (1-7-8), senior forward Martin Sundberg (5-2-7), sophomore forward Ryan Brushett (0-6-6), sophomore defenseman Brandon Scanlin (1-9-10), and junior defenseman Jason Smallidge (1-7-8).

By that same measure, eight North Dakota players make the list: sophomore forward Shane Pinto (8-11-19), senior forward Jordan Kawaguchi (5-13-18), senior defenseman Matt Kiersted (3-13-16), senior forward Grant Mismash (8-7-15), freshman forward Riese Gaber (8-4-12), senior forward Collin Adams (6-10-16), junior forward Mark Senden (1-8-9), and freshman defenseman Jake Sanderson (1-4-5 in nine games).

Jordan Kawaguchi was the only NCHC player to notch at least one point in each of his team’s games in the Omaha pod. Shane Pinto has already generated 100 shot attempts this season and leads the entire league in scoring, one point ahead of Kawaguchi, Duluth’s Nick Swaney (6-12-18), and St. Cloud State’s Veeti Miettinen (9-9-18). Both Kawaguchi (6th in the nation in scoring) and Pinto (4th) should be considered candidates for the Hobey Baker Memorial Award along with teammate Matt Kiersted, whose 16 points rank third among defensemen.

It is abundantly clear that North Dakota will have the puck a lot this season, and the numbers bear that out. After sixteen games, the Fighting Hawks are fourth in the nation in shots on goal allowed/game (24.7) and are in the top ten in two key puck possession statistics:

Corsi (% of shots taken vs. opponent): 55.0% (9th)
Fenwick (% of unblocked shots taken vs. opponent): 56.2% (7th)

By comparison, the Mavs are 29th in Corsi (49.2%) and 26th in Fenwick (49.9%), averaging 28.7 shots on goal per game (North Dakota is averaging 29.9/game) while allowing 31.1 shots on goal against/contest. Remarkably, Omaha is outscoring opponents 49-32 despite being outshot 435-402 on the season (North Dakota is outshooting opponents 479-395).

One key area to watch in this contest is the face-off dot. The Fighting Hawks are leading the nation in faceoff win percentage at 56.2 percent, while the Mavericks are 15th in the country at 52.2%. To this point of the season, 51 men’s Division I college hockey teams have played at least one game.

Leading the way in the faceoff circle for North Dakota have been Shane Pinto (62.7%), Jasper Weatherby (54.2%), Collin Adams (56.6%), and Mark Senden (48.3%). Omaha will counter with Nolan Sullivan (60.8%), Chayse Primeau (51.6%), Noah Prokop (56.9%), and Joey Abate (43.6%). Pinto and Sullivan are the top two faceoff men in the NCHC.

The Fighting Hawks are scoring on 12.3 percent of their shots on goal, a remarkable statistic good for 6th in the country. The Mavs are right behind in eighth place, lighting the lamp on 12.2 percent of their shots on goal.

North Dakota’s puck possession game and sharpshooting have led to 59 goals scored by eighteen different players in sixteen games (3.69 goals scored/game); 59 goals is the high-water mark in the NCHC this season. Omaha’s 49 goals have been scored by sixteen different players.

Here are the three closest teams in terms of offensive production:

St. Cloud State: 54 goals scored in 17 games (3.18 goals scored/game)
Western Michigan: 50 goals scored in 18 games (2.78)
Omaha: 49 goals scored in 14 games (3.50)

No other league team has scored more than 43 goals this season.

UND’s offensive prowess is matched by their stingy defense, as the Fighting Hawks have only allowed 31 goals in sixteen games (1.94 goals allowed/game), the lowest total in the NCHC. Omaha has allowed 32 goals in 14 games (2.29 goals allowed/game), with Minnesota Duluth close behind (33 in 15; 2.20).

UND’s scoring margin of 59-31 is certainly impressive, but a look inside the numbers reveals that the Fighting Hawks outscored Colorado College, Western Michigan, and Miami 36-9 in eight games (8-0-0) and played relatively even (23 goals for, 22 goals against) in its other eight matchups (four games against Denver and two each vs. Duluth and St. Cloud State), going 4-3-1 in those contests.

Amazingly, Western Michigan has already allowed 70 goals through eighteen games, an average of 3.89 goals allowed/game. North Dakota scored 14 of those goals in its two pod contests against the Broncos.

Through fourteen games, Omaha has blocked 208 shots as a team, led by Nate Koepke (35), Jason Smallidge (29), and Kirby Proctor (15).

North Dakota has blocked 209 shots in its sixteen games, with Matt Kiersted (31), Jacob Bernard-Docker (26), and Ethan Frisch (15 in eleven games) leading the way. Gabe Bast contributed 16 blocks in his twelve games but is expected to be out of the lineup again this weekend.

Special teams will be a huge battle this weekend, with both squads boasting terrific power play and penalty kill units.

Omaha has scored eleven power play goals this season and has successfully killed 47 of 50 opponent man advantage opportunities (94.0%, the best penalty kill in the country). To their credit, the Mavs have scored two shorthanded goals, but they have also allowed four to their opponents. This brings their net special teams margin to +6.

North Dakota has scored seventeen power play goals this season and has successfully killed 60 of 68 opponent man advantage opportunities, including 41 of its last 42 to bring its season-long average to 88.2% (tenth-best in the nation). The Fighting Hawks have also scored two shorthanded goals while not allowing any, for a net special teams margin of +11.

As mentioned above, UND is expected to once again be without the services of senior defenseman Gabe Bast, who was injured three weekends ago at Colorado College and has not returned to the lineup. Bast has appeared in 97 games in his North Dakota hockey career. On the plus side for UND, sophomore blueliner Ethan Frisch will make his return to the lineup in this series after missing the past three games. In the absence of Bast and Frisch, head coach Brad Berry went with a third D-pair of freshman Cooper Moore and senior Josh Rieger last weekend against the Tigers. Thankfully for the Fighting Hawks, both Moore and Reiger got extended playing time in the Omaha pod while freshmen Jake Sanderson and Tyler Kleven were off winning gold medals at the World Junior Championships. I expect Frisch to displace Rieger on the blueline against the Mavericks, as Cooper Moore has developed nicely over the first half of the season and deserves to see the ice.

When North Dakota is healthy on the back end, they enjoy a roster advantage against nearly every opponent, and that will be the case again this weekend. Omaha’s six most likely starters on defense have combined for seven goals and 23 assists in 74 combined games this season (0.41 points/game), while UND’s top six have scored eleven goals and added 28 assists in 73 games (0.53 points/game). All six UND blueliners expected in the lineup this weekend can defend, move the puck, and score, and Brad Berry has the luxury of trusting all of his defensemen in all situations, much like he had during North Dakota’s run to the national title in 2016 (with Gage Ausmus, Paul LaDue, Tucker Poolman, Hayden Shaw, Troy Stecher, Keaton Thompson, and Christian Wolanin manning the back end).

Remarkably, the Fighting Hawks’ d-corps has put up those numbers while also allowing just 1.94 goals per contest (5th in the country). By comparison, Omaha is allowing 2.29 goals per game (13th).

After this weekend, UND and Omaha are scheduled to play four more times; here is North Dakota’s remaining regular season schedule (subject to change, of course):

January 29 and 30: at Omaha
February 5 and 6: No games scheduled
February 12 and 13: vs. Denver
February 19 and 20: vs. Omaha
February 26: at Omaha
March 5: vs. Omaha

NCHC quarterfinals are scheduled at home venues on March 12-14, with the NCHC Frozen Faceoff the following weekend at Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, Minnesota. UND is hosting an NCAA Regional in Fargo, North Dakota on March 26 and 27 and would be automatically placed in that regional if they are selected for the national tournament.

Omaha Mavericks

Head Coach: Mike Gabinet (4th season at UNO, 49-62-11, .447)
National Rankings: #9/#9

This Season: 9-4-1 overall, 9-4-1 NCHC
Last Season: 14-17-5 overall, 8-13-3-0 NCHC (6th)

Team Offense: 3.50 goals scored/game – 15th of 51 teams
Team Defense: 2.29 goals allowed/game – 13th of 51 teams
Power Play: 20.4% (11 of 54) – 22nd of 51 teams
Penalty Kill: 94.0% (47 of 50) – 1st of 51 teams

Key Players: Junior F Chase Primeau (4-9-13), Junior F Taylor Ward (7-4-11), Junior F Tyler Weiss (4-7-11), Senior F Kevin Conley (5-5-10), Freshman F Matt Miller (6-3-9), Sophomore F Jack Randl (4-5-9), Sophomore F Joey Abate (1-7-8), Sophomore D Brandon Scanlin (1-9-10), Junior D Jason Smallidge (1-7-8), Sophomore G Isaiah Saville (7-4-1, 2.18 GAA, .928 SV%, 1 SO)

North Dakota Fighting Hawks

Head Coach: Brad Berry (6th season at UND, 128-60-24, .660)
National Rankings: #2/#3

This Season: 12-3-1 overall, 12-3-1 NCHC
Last Season: 26-5-4 overall, 17-4-3-2 NCHC (1st)

2020-2021 Season Statistics:

Team Offense: 3.69 goals scored/game – 10th of 51 teams
Team Defense: 1.94 goals allowed/game – 5th of 51 teams
Power Play: 24.6% (17 of 69) – 8th of 51 teams
Penalty Kill: 88.2% (60 of 68) – 10th of 51 teams

Key players: Senior F Jordan Kawaguchi (5-13-18), Sophomore F Shane Pinto (8-11-19), Senior F Grant Mismash (8-7-15), Freshman F Riese Gaber (8-4-12), Senior F Collin Adams (6-10-16), Junior F Mark Senden (1-8-9), Senior D Matt Kiersted (3-13-16), Sophomore D Ethan Frisch (2-3-5 in eleven games), Junior D Jacob Bernard-Docker (1-5-6), Freshman D Jake Sanderson (1-4-5 in nine games), Junior G Adam Scheel (11-2-1. 1.77 GAA, .928 SV%, 3 SO)

By The Numbers:

Last meeting: March 7, 2020 (Omaha, NE). One night after dropping a 4-1 decision to the Mavs, North Dakota rebounded with a resounding 5-0 triumph, highlighted by two power play goals and Colton Poolman’s shorthanded marker late in the first period. Jacob Bernard-Docker scored twice while netminder Peter Thome stopped all 17 shots he faced. Saturday’s game would be the last of the season for the Fighting Hawks, ending a fantastic campaign at 26-5-4.

Most memorable meeting: The game that UND fans will long remember is the outdoor game played at TD Ameritrade Park (Omaha, Nebraska) on February 9th, 2013. One day after winning a tight 2-1 contest indoors, North Dakota throttled UNO 5-2 on a sunny, melty afternoon. Mavericks netminder John Faulkner was pulled after allowing three goals on five shots in just ten minutes of game action. In my opinion, this hockey weekend solidified the notion that for UND hockey, it’s always a home game.

Last ten: North Dakota has won seven of the last ten contests between the schools, outscoring the Mavericks 35-26 over that stretch.

All-time: UND leads the all-time series 24-13-1 (.645), including a 12-6-0 (.667) record in games played in Omaha. North Dakota owns a record of 19-10-1 (.650) against the Mavericks since both teams joined the NCHC. The teams first met on November 19, 2010.

Game News and Notes

In 2015, both North Dakota and Omaha advanced to the Frozen Four but neither team made the championship game. UND fell to Boston University 5-3, while the Mavericks were upended 4-1 by eventual national champion Providence. Since joining the WCHA in 2011 (and later the NCHC), the Mavs have never reached the Twin Cities for the second weekend of the conference tournament despite having home ice in three of those eight years. UND senior forward Jordan Kawaguchi has ten points in thirteen career games against Omaha. The Mavericks have not made the national tournament since their run to the Frozen Four in 2015. Johnny Tychonick has scored one goal and added one assist in his eleven games with the Mavs. Tychonick was a member of the North Dakota men’s hockey team for the past two seasons. Incredibly, UND’s Collin Adams has scored six goals in only 25 shots on net. North Dakota’s Brad Berry is 15-7-0 (.682) in his head coaching career against Omaha. Since coming out flat in game one at Denver two weekends ago, UND has won three straight, outscoring opponents 14-2.

The Prediction

I am very interested to see just how the season series between these two squads plays out. With so many games in just a few short weeks – and with so much on the line, including NCAA tournament berths and the Penrose Cup – I expect every game to be tightly contested and have a playoff atmosphere despite limited fans. The last two series in Omaha have been splits, and I can’t deviate from that formula until I see both teams hit the ice tonight. The Mavericks are coming off of a huge victory against the Pios, and the first ten minutes will tell the tale. If North Dakota can weather the early storm and play large stretches of the weekend at 5-on-5, they’ve got a shot at putting some more distance between themselves and the Mavs. As it is, though, I see each side claiming one victory, and, with three of the remaining four head-to-head matchups taking place at Ralph Engelstad Arena, the Fighting Hawks should have the inside track to the Penrose Cup. Omaha 4-3, UND 3-1.

Broadcast Information

Friday’s opener (7:00 Central Time) will be broadcast live on CBS Sports Network, with Saturday’s rematch (6:00 Central Time) available on 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.

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!

With all of the ties, shootouts, late-game heroics, and overtime winners as well as the disparity in each team’s number of games played in the Omaha pod and over the first few weeks of the second half, it can be difficult to get a handle on who is ahead in the conference standings. The best way I have found is to look at the average number of points earned.

With that as our guide, here’s the NCHC leaderboard (three points for a regulation win, two points for an overtime or shootout win, and one point for an overtime or shootout loss)

1. North Dakota 2.17 (26 points in 12 games)
2. Omaha 1.90 (19 points in 10 games)
3. St. Cloud State 1.80 (27 points in 15 games)
4. Minnesota Duluth 1.62 (21 points in 13 games)
5. Denver 1.25 (15 points in 12 games)
6. Western Michigan 1.19 (19 points in 16 games)
7. Colorado College 1.17 (14 points in 12 games)
8. Miami 1.07 (15 points in 14 games)

#2 North Dakota (9-2-1) played all ten scheduled games in the Omaha pod, but it has not been smooth sailing to open the second half. UND has already had four games scratched against Omaha, with those games rescheduled for later this season. Not wanting two consecutive weekends off, the Fighting Hawks worked with the NCHC to squeeze in last weekend’s Sunday-Monday series in Colorado Springs. After sweeping the Tigers (3-0, 2-1), Brad Berry’s squad returned home to prepare for a Friday/Saturday series against 18th-ranked Pioneers, only to learn on Wednesday that this series would also be pushed back two days. Playing last weekend at altitude will certainly help the Green and White this time around, and the flexibility they have shown in adjusting to game times and days will benefit this team in the national tournament.

In the NCHC, it is clear that Denver/North Dakota is at the top of the league rivalries. The teams have played 33 times during the first seven seasons of the new conference, 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 twelve 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.)

Seven 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 now-defunct 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.

It is abundantly clear that the NCHC has been the premier hockey conference since its inception, and particularly over the past six seasons. The eight teams in the league have gone 326-158-63 (.654) in non-conference action since the start of the 2014-15 season and sent nine teams to the Frozen Four (UND and Omaha in 2015, UND and Denver in 2016, Denver and Duluth in 2017, Duluth in 2018, and Denver and Duluth in 2019) over that five-year stretch (there was no national tournament last season). Conference members North Dakota (2016), Denver (2017), and Minnesota Duluth (2018, 2019) have won the last four national titles.

In the 2019 NCAA tournament, league members Denver and St. Cloud State were both placed in the West Regional (Fargo, North Dakota) and were on track to face off in the regional final. The Pioneers (#6 in the country) held up their end of the bargain with a 2-0 victory over #9 Ohio State, but #19 American International shocked the college hockey world and dispatched the #1-ranked Huskies by a final score of 2-1. One night later, Denver blanked AIC 3-0 to advance to their third Frozen Four in four seasons. The Pios would eventually fall to #4 Massachusetts in overtime in the national semifinal.

In 2019-20, North Dakota’s Shane Pinto and Denver’s Bobby Brink were the two frontrunners for Rookie of the Year in the NCHC, with Pinto earning the honor at the end of the season and Brink nabbing a unanimous NCHC All-Rookie Team selection. Here’s how the two stat lines compared:

Bobby Brink (right wing): 11 goals and 13 assists in 24 games played (0.86 points/game)

Shane Pinto (center): 16 goals and 12 assists in 33 games played (0.85 points/game)

In the November 2019 series at altitude in Denver (1-1 tie, 4-1 UND victory), neither freshman figured in on the scoresheet. When the teams took the ice in Grand Forks for a pair of NCHC games in February 2020 (a North Dakota sweep), Shane Pinto scored the first goal of the weekend and Bobby Brink notched a “natural answer” by potting the very next goal by either team. Pinto broke the head-to-head tie with an assist on Matt Kiersted’s opening-period goal in Saturday’s rematch.

Denver netminder Magnus Chrona (16-6-4, 2.15 goals-against average, a save percentage of .920, and two shutouts last season) was also named to the All-Rookie team and was a finalist for the league’s Goalie of the Year award (which was won by Duluth senior Hunter Shepard).

After sputtering to records of 17-13-10 (.550) and 18-17-2 (.514) and missing the NCAA tournament in consecutive seasons, UND head coach Brad Berry got his team on the right track last year, winning the program’s third Penrose Cup as NCHC champions and collecting an overall record of 26-5-4 (.800).

Turning our attention to this weekend’s matchup, Denver sophomore goaltender Magnus Chrona started out the season playing every minute in net, but he has gone just 2-7-0 while giving up nearly three goals per game (2.96) and posting a pedestrian save percentage of .893. Graduate transfer Corbin Kaczperski (2-0-1, 1.76 GAA, .891 SV%) has filled in admirably; here are Kaczperski’s career numbers from his three seasons at Yale:

29-22-4, 2.53 GAA, .911 SV%, and three shutouts.

Junior netminder Adam Scheel (8-1-1. 1.82 GAA, .927 SV%, 2 SO) has made the majority of starts for North Dakota, with senior Peter Thome (1-1-0, 3.86 GAA, .833 SV%) appearing in two games. Scheel came on in relief in UND’s loss to St. Cloud State after Thome allowed four goals on 18 shots in 33 minutes of action. After allowing just one goal in a weekend sweep at Colorado College (the first time UND has ever accomplished that feat), I believe that it’s Adam Scheel’s crease for the foreseeable future.

Although North Dakota certainly misses (among others) forwards Westin Michaud (16-12-28), Cole Smith (11-7-18), and Dixon Bowen (6-4-10) and defenseman Colton Poolman (4-13-17) from last year’s squad, the team returned 68 percent of its goal scoring (92 of 135 goals) from a year ago. Offensively, forwards Jordan Kawaguchi (15-30-45, Hobey Hat Trick finalist), Shane Pinto (16-12-28), Collin Adams (12-16-28), Grant Mismash (8-12-20), Jasper Weatherby (10-8-18), Judd Caulfield (4-8-12), Harrison Blaisdell (2-10-12), Mark Senden (5-6-11), and Gavin Hain (2-8-10) will lead the way along with defensemen Matt Kiersted (6-23-29), Jacob Bernard-Docker (7-18-25), Gabe Bast (2-3-5), and Ethan Frisch (1-4-5).

By comparison, Denver returns 63 percent of its point production from last season, led by junior forward Cole Guttman (14-14-28), sophomore forward Bobby Brink (11-13-24 in 28 games played), junior forward Brett Stapley (5-25-30), senior forward Kohen Olischefski (9-11-20), junior forward Tyler Ward (10-9-19), senior defenseman Griffin Mendel (3-6-9), and junior defenseman Slava Demin (2-7-9). Additionally, grad transfers Steven Jandric (26-54-80 in 107 games over three seasons playing forward at Alaska Fairbanks) and Bo Hanson (11-36-47 in 102 games over three seasons playing defense at St. Lawrence) should chip in offensively.

A key issue that separated the two teams in the first half of the season is that North Dakota mostly avoided the early departure bug while Denver lost forward Emilio Pettersen (13-22-35, left two years early), defenseman Ian Mitchell (10-22-32, left one year early), and goaltender Devin Cooley (4-3-2, 2.08 GAA, .908 SV%, left one year early). Of particular concern for the Pios is that Mitchell’s absence means that they returned only seven goals and 24 total points on their blue line.

By comparison, North Dakota’s five returning defensemen (Gabe Bast, Jacob Bernard-Docker, Ethan Frisch, Matt Kiersted, and Josh Rieger scored 17 goals and added 48 assists for a total of 65 points last season.

I say UND mostly avoided the early-departure bug because while head coach Brad Berry did not see anyone leave his program early for the pro ranks, junior defenseman Jonny Tychonick transferred to Omaha. Tychonick, who put together a line of 4-7-11 in 24 games played last season, was looking for more playing time, and Maverick bench boss Mike Gabinet has certainly used the nimble blueliner in plenty of situations.

North Dakota went 7-2-1 in the pod, while Denver managed just three victories (3-6-1). In the pod, there was simply not as much time for practice, video work, and system adjustment, which meant that the teams with veteran leadership, depth, and good-to-excellent goaltending were in the best position to succeed.

Freshman forward Carter Savoie has been the brightest spot for Denver this season, tallying eight goals and five assists through his first twelve collegiate games. Savoie, a 5-foot-9 left winger who notched 84 goals and 88 assists over two seasons (112 games) with the Sherwood Park Crusaders (AJHL), is a threat to score from anywhere on the ice. The 18-year-old from St. Albert, Alberta was a 4th-round pick (100th overall) of the Edmonton Oilers in the 2020 NHL entry draft.

North Dakota also has a rookie forward with eight goals through his first twelve collegiate games. Freshman Riese Gaber, an undrafted right winger from Gilbert Plains, Manitoba (a six-hour drive from Grand Forks, ND), spent his past two seasons in the USHL, scoring 56 goals and adding 49 assists in 108 games with the Dubuque Fighting Saints.

Savoie and Gaber trail only Western Michigan senior forward Ethen Frank (ten goals in fifteen games) in the league goal-scoring race. Only one freshman has scored more than twelve goals in the history of the NCHC. North Dakota’s Brock Boeser notched 20 goals in 24 conference games in 2015-16, leading UND to its eighth national title.

A half-point per game or better is my benchmark for solid offensive production, and David Carle’s squad has seven players who meet that threshold: freshman forward Carter Savoie (8-5-13), junior forward Cole Guttman (4-6-10), junior forward Brett Stapley (4-3-7), freshman forward McKade Webster (3-4-7), senior forward Kohen Olischefski (3-3-6), sophomore forward Bobby Brink (0-3-3 in three games), and freshman defenseman Mike Benning (1-7-8).

By that same measure, nine North Dakota players make the list: sophomore forward Shane Pinto (5-10-15), senior forward Jordan Kawaguchi (3-11-14), senior defenseman Matt Kiersted (2-10-12), senior forward Grant Mismash (6-6-12), freshman forward Riese Gaber (8-2-10), senior forward Collin Adams (5-7-12), freshman defenseman Jake Sanderson (1-2-3 in five games), sophomore defenseman Ethan Frisch (2-3-5 in ten games), and junior forward Jasper Weatherby (3-3-6).

Kawaguchi was the only NCHC player to notch at least one point in each of his team’s games in the Omaha pod, although he was held scoreless on Monday evening and saw his eleven-game point streak come to an end. UND’s 44 goals this season have been scored by fifteen different players.

It is abundantly clear that North Dakota will have the puck a lot this season, and the numbers bear that out. After twelve games, the Fighting Hawks are fourth in the nation in shots on goal allowed/game (24.8) and are ninth in the country in two key puck possession statistics:

Corsi (% of shots taken vs. opponent): 54.3%
Fenwick (% of unblocked shots taken vs. opponent): 55.6%

By comparison, the Pioneers are 10th in both Corsi (54.2%) and Fenwick (54.7), averaging 30.0 shots on goal per game (North Dakota is averaging 29.3/game) while allowing 24.3 shots on goal against/contest.

One key area to watch in this contest is the face-off dot. The Fighting Hawks are second in the nation in faceoff win percentage at 56.4 percent, while Denver is 48th (44.5%) among the 51 men’s college hockey teams to have played at least one game this season.

Leading the way in the faceoff circle for North Dakota have been Shane Pinto (64.0%), Jasper Weatherby (53.9%), and Collin Adams (55.2%). Denver will counter with Jaakko Heikkinen (40.8%), Cole Guttman (54.4%), Brett Stapley (48.8%), and McKade Webster (39.6%).

In their first meeting in the pod, North Dakota won 37 of 48 faceoffs (77.1%), including an incredible 18-0 performance by Shane Pinto. In the pod rematch, the faceoff battle was a bit closer, with UND winning 37 of 61 draws (60.7%). Pinto also came back to earth, going 17-9 (65.4%).

The Fighting Hawks are scoring on 12.5 percent of their shots on goal, a remarkable statistic good for 5th in the country. By contrast, the Pioneers are only lighting the lamp on 8.9% of their shots on goal (29th).

UND’s scoring margin of 44-25 through twelve games looks impressive, but a look inside the numbers reveals that the Fighting Hawks outscored Western Michigan and Miami 22-7 in four victories and was relatively even (22 goals for, 18 goals against) in its other eight matchups (two each vs. Colorado College, Denver, Duluth, and St. Cloud State).

Through twelve games, Denver has blocked 137 shots as a team, led by Antti Tuomisto (16), Kohen Olischefski (13), Griffin Mendel (12), and Justin Lee (12).

North Dakota has blocked 148 shots, with Matt Kiersted (21), Jacob Bernard-Docker (19), and Gabe Bast (16) leading the way.

Through each team’s first twelve games, here is the specialty teams ledger:

Denver power play: 12 of 48, 25.0 percent
Denver penalty kill: 31 of 40, 77.5 percent

North Dakota power play: 14 of 50, 28.0 percent
North Dakota penalty kill: 42 of 50, 84.0 percent

North Dakota has scored two shorthanded goals this season, while the Pios have none to their credit. Neither team has allowed a shorthanded tally. The Pioneers have scored 12 of their 32 goals this season with the man advantage, while the Fighting Hawks have scored 14 of their 44 goals this season on the power play. Denver must generate more five-on-five chances in this series if the Pios hope to gain a split or better against North Dakota.

UND is scheduled to host the Pios at Ralph Engelstad Arena on February 5th and 6th in the final regular season meetings between the two teams. North Dakota is also scheduled to face Omaha six times and Colorado College twice in the second half of the season. Seven of UND’s final ten regular season games will be played at Ralph Engelstad Arena.

On the injury front, it remains to be seen whether junior forward Gavin Hain makes his return to the North Dakota lineup. Hain was injured in UND’s first game against Colorado College and did not suit up for the rematch.

Denver did not play last weekend because of a positive COVID-19 test within the team, and Sunday’s lineup chart suggests that bench boss David Carle is missing a few players. Most notably, freshman defenseman Mike Benning (1-7-8 in 11 games played) will not suit up in game one. No active Pioneers defenseman has more than three points, although I expect forward Antti Tuomisto (0-4-4) to play defense against UND. Of the seven players expected to patrol the blue line for the Pios, only Tuomisto is right-handed.

Denver Pioneers

Head Coach: David Carle (3rd season at DU, 49-28-12, .618)
National Rankings: #18/#18

This Season: 4-7-1 overall, 4-7-1 NCHC
Last Season: 21-9-6 overall, 11-8-5-4 NCHC (3rd)

2020-2021 Season Statistics:

Team Offense: 2.67 goals scored/game – 30th of 51 teams
Team Defense: 2.75 goals allowed/game – 22nd of 51 teams
Power Play: 25.0% (12 of 48) – 10th of 51 teams
Penalty Kill: 77.5% (31 of 40) – 33rd of 51 teams

Key players: Freshman F Carter Savoie (8-5-13), Junior F Cole Guttman (4-6-10), Junior F Brett Stapley (4-3-7), Freshman F McKade Webster (3-4-7), Senior F Kohen Olischefski (3-3-6), Sophomore F Bobby Brink (0-3-3 in three games), Freshman D Mike Benning (1-7-8), Senior D Bo Hanson (0-3-3), Senior G Corbin Kaczperski (2-0-1, 1.76 GAA, .891 SV%)

North Dakota Fighting Hawks

Head Coach: Brad Berry (6th season at UND, 125-59-24, .659)
National Rankings: #2/#2

This Season: 9-2-1 overall, 9-2-1 NCHC
Last Season: 26-5-4 overall, 17-4-3-2 NCHC (1st)

2020-2021 Season Statistics:

Team Offense: 3.67 goals scored/game – 11th of 51 teams
Team Defense: 2.08 goals allowed/game – 7th of 51 teams
Power Play: 28.0% (14 of 50) – 4th of 51 teams
Penalty Kill: 84.0% (42 of 50) – 17th of 51 teams

Key players: Senior F Jordan Kawaguchi (3-11-14), Sophomore F Shane Pinto (5-10-15), Senior F Grant Mismash (6-6-12), Freshman F Riese Gaber (8-2-10), Senior F Collin Adams (5-7-12), Junior F Jasper Weatherby (3-3-6), Senior D Matt Kiersted (2-10-12), Sophomore D Ethan Frisch (2-3-5), Junior D Jacob Bernard-Docker (1-4-5), Freshman D Jake Sanderson (1-2-3 in five games), Junior G Adam Scheel (8-1-1. 1.82 GAA, .927 SV%, 2 SO)

By The Numbers

Last Meeting: Tuesday, December 8 (Omaha, NE). In their second pod matchup in five days, the Pioneers built an early 2-0 before UND clawed back to even the score late in the 2nd period. The two teams traded chances in the third before Denver’s Carter Savoie netted the game-winning power play goal with just over two minutes remaining in the contest. Each team scored two goals with the man advantage. In their first pod meeting (Friday, December 4th), the two teams needed an extra session, where frequent overtime hero Jordan Kawaguchi sent fans of the Green and White into a frenzy. UND outshot Denver 35-22, including a 14-5 advantage in the second period.

Last Meeting in Denver: November 16, 2019. One night after Colton Poolman scored during the 3-on-3 session to give the visitors the extra point, Cole Smith scored two goals in a 4-1 UND victory. Denver outshot North Dakota 28-22 but went scoreless on six power plays.

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: After going 0-3-1 over the last four games of the 2018-2019 season, North Dakota went 3-0-1 against the Pioneers last year, outscoring the Pios 12-4 in the process. A split in the Omaha pod leaves the teams at 4-4-2 over the last ten games. UND has scored a total of seventeen goals in the last five games after scoring only five combined goals in the five games before that. On a positive note, the Pioneers have only scored nineteen goals in the past ten. Three of the last ten meetings have gone into overtime.

All-time Series: UND leads the all-time series, 150-129-16 (.536), although Denver enjoys a 76-55-5 (.577) advantage in games played at altitude. The teams first met in 1950, with North Dakota prevailing 18-3 in Denver.

Game News and Notes

North Dakota has won six consecutive games, outscoring opponents 23-10 over that stretch. UND and DU were tabbed to finish one-two in the league in the 2020-2021 NCHC Preseason Media Poll. To this point in the season, the Pioneers are not holding up their end of the bargain. UND is one of just five Division I men’s college hockey teams that have yet to play a home game. Since seven of Michigan’s nine titles were earned by 1964, I consider Denver (eight titles) and North Dakota (eight titles) to be the top two men’s college hockey programs of all time.

The Prediction

I don’t think that either team can pick up more than four of the six possible points this weekend. North Dakota has an edge on the back end and in net, but either team can score at any time. I give the edge to the visitors in the opener, and I’m expecting an overtime contest in the rematch. UND 4-2, DU 4-3 (OT).

Broadcast Information

Sunday evening’s game will be broadcast live on Altitude and picked up locally by MidcoSN, while Monday’s rematch will be available nationally on CBS Sports Network. Both games will also be available online 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.

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!

With all of the ties, shootouts, late-game heroics, and overtime winners as well as the disparity in each team’s number of games played in the Omaha pod and over the first few weeks of the second half, it can be difficult to get a handle on who is ahead in the conference standings. The best way I have found is to look at the average number of points earned.

With that as our guide, here’s the NCHC leaderboard (three points for a regulation win, two points for an overtime or shootout win, and one point for an overtime or shootout loss)

1. St. Cloud State 2.08 (27 points in 13 games)
2. North Dakota 2.00 (20 points in 10 games)
3. Omaha 1.90 (19 points in 10 games)
4. Minnesota Duluth 1.62 (21 points in 13 games)
5. Colorado College 1.40 (14 points in 10 games)
6. Denver 1.25 (15 points in 12 games)
7. Miami 1.07 (15 points in 14 games)
8. Western Michigan 0.93 (13 points in 14 games)

#3 North Dakota (7-2-1) played all ten scheduled games in the Omaha pod, but it has not been smooth sailing to open the second half. UND has already had four games scratched against Omaha, with those games rescheduled for later this season. Not wanting two consecutive weekends off, the Fighting Hawks worked with the NCHC to squeeze in this unusual Sunday-Monday series in Colorado Springs in advance of its series at Denver on Friday and Saturday (January 15-16), but it remains to be seen whether the games against the Pioneers will go off without a hitch.

This will be UND’s last regular-season trip to World Arena, which is one of only a handful of Olympic ice sheets remaining in college hockey. The Tigers will move to an on-campus rink next season (Robson Arena), with an NHL ice surface and less than half of the number of seats.

North Dakota freshman defensemen Jake Sanderson and Tyler Kleven won gold with Team USA at the World Junior Championships and have been cleared to return to the UND lineup. Both blueliners played in three games before departing Omaha to play for their country.

After winning just twenty total games over his first three seasons behind the CC bench, head coach Mike Haviland won fifteen games (15-17-5) during the 2017-18 campaign and took Denver to three games in the first round of the National Collegiate Hockey Conference playoffs (2-0 W, 2-3 L, 1-6 L). Two seasons ago. Colorado College registered its most wins under Mike Haviland (17) and most since joining the NCHC. CC went 9-12-3-0 in league play and finished 6th in the league. Last year, however, the Tigers went just 11-20-3 overall and won only four games in the NCHC, finishing in last place.

Seven 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 now-defunct 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.

It is abundantly clear that the NCHC has been the premier hockey conference since its inception, and particularly over the past six seasons. The eight teams in the league have gone 326-158-63 (.654) in non-conference action since the start of the 2014-15 season and sent nine teams to the Frozen Four (UND and Omaha in 2015, UND and Denver in 2016, Denver and Duluth in 2017, Duluth in 2018, and Denver and Duluth in 2019) over that five-year stretch (there was no national tournament last season). Conference members North Dakota (2016), Denver (2017), and Minnesota Duluth (2018, 2019) have won the last four national titles.

After winning its second consecutive national title (and third in team history) in 2019, the Minnesota Duluth Bulldogs were picked to finish first in the NCHC and capture the program’s first-ever Penrose Cup last season. Things looked to be on schedule for UMD, as they took a 7-1-2 record into St. Cloud. The Huskies earned a home sweep over Duluth (2-1, 2-0) to send the Bulldogs home reeling. North Dakota, which held a three-point lead over Scott Sandelin’s crew before those games, took five of six points at Miami to extend its lead to eight points over Duluth and nine points over Denver. UND never looked back, securing the program’s third Penrose Cup (2015, 2016) with a conference record of 17-4-3-2.

After sputtering to records of 17-13-10 (.550) and 18-17-2 (.514) and missing the NCAA tournament in consecutive seasons, UND head coach Brad Berry got his team on the right track last year, winning the program’s third Penrose Cup as NCHC champions and collecting an overall record of 26-5-4 (.800).

Turning our attention to this weekend’s matchup, freshman netminder Dominic Basse (3-3-1, 2.75 GAA, .894 SV%) has been steady as Colorado College sorts out its goaltending situation. Sophomore Matt Vernon got the majority of the starts for CC last year (8-16-3, 3.43 GAA, .901 SV%), but the sophomore from Calgary, Alberta has struggled mightily in the early going, going winless in four appearances (0-2-1) with a goals-against average of 4.70 and a save percentage of just .846.

Junior netminder Adam Scheel (6-1-1. 2.13 GAA, .913 SV%, 1 SO) has made the majority of starts for North Dakota, with senior Peter Thome (1-1-0, 3.86 GAA, .833 SV%) appearing in two games. Scheel came on in relief in UND’s loss to St. Cloud State after Thome allowed four goals on 18 shots in 33 minutes of action. I would expect Scheel to get the start tonight against the Tigers.

A half-point per game or better is my benchmark for solid offensive production, and Mike Haviland’s squad has just four players who meet that threshold: sophomore forward Josiah Slavin (3-6-9), junior forward Grant Cruikshank (6-2-8), junior forward Ben Copeland (2-4-6), and freshman defenseman Jack Millar (2-4-6).

By that same measure, eleven North Dakota players make the list: sophomore forward Shane Pinto (5-8-13), senior forward Jordan Kawaguchi (3-10-13), senior defenseman Matt Kiersted (2-7-9), senior forward Grant Mismash (4-6-10), freshman forward Riese Gaber (7-2-9), senior forward Collin Adams (4-5-9), freshman defenseman Jake Sanderson (1-2-3 in three games), sophomore defenseman Ethan Frisch (2-3-5 in eight games), junior defenseman Jacob Bernard-Docker (1-4-5), junior forward Jasper Weatherby (3-3-6), and junior forward Mark Senden (1-4-5).

Kawaguchi was the only NCHC player to notch at least one point in each of his team’s games in the Omaha pod. UND’s 39 goals this season have been scored by fifteen different players.

It is abundantly clear that North Dakota will have the puck a lot this season, and the numbers bear that out. After ten games, the Fighting Hawks are third in the nation in shots on goal allowed/game (24.7) and are in the top ten in two key puck possession statistics:

Corsi (% of shots taken vs. opponent): 54.7% (9th)
Fenwick (% of unblocked shots taken vs. opponent): 56.5% (5th)

By comparison, the Tigers are 37th in Corsi (46.4%) and 35th in Fenwick (46.9), averaging 28.1 shots on goal per game (North Dakota is averaging 30.5/game) while allowing 27.6 shots on goal against/contest.

One key area to watch in this contest is the face-off dot. The Fighting Hawks are third in the nation in faceoff win percentage at 57.1 percent, while the Tigers are 38th in the nation at 46.7%. To this point of the season, 51 men’s Division I college hockey teams have played at least one game.

Leading the way in the faceoff circle for North Dakota have been Shane Pinto (65.2%), Jasper Weatherby (56.6%), Collin Adams (53.4%), and Mark Senden (47.3%). Colorado College will counter with Grant Cruikshank (56.1%), Logan Will (55.7%), Josiah Slavin (51.5%), Jackson Jutting (42.7%), and Troy Conzo (39.0%).

The Fighting Hawks are scoring on 12.8 percent of their shots on goal, a remarkable statistic good for 5th in the country. By contrast, the Tigers are only lighting the lamp on 8.2% of their shots on goal (41st).

UND’s scoring margin of 39-24 through ten games looks impressive, but a look inside the numbers reveals that the Fighting Hawks outscored Western Michigan and Miami 22-7 in four victories and was exactly even (17 goals for, 17 goals against) in its other six matchups (two each vs. Denver, Duluth, and St. Cloud State).

Through ten games, Colorado College has blocked 152 shots as a team, led by Zach Berzolla (35), Hugo Blixt (15), and Connor Mayer.

North Dakota has blocked 130 shots, with Matt Kiersted (19), Jacob Bernard-Docker (18), and Gabe Bast (14) leading the way.

Special teams is a huge area of concern for the Tigers. CC has only scored three goals with the man advantage this season and has already allowed 11 power play goals to opponents for a net of minus-eight. By comparison, North Dakota is a plus-five (12 power play goals scored, 7 power play goals allowed).

On the injury front, Colorado College junior forward Grant Cruikshank will not be in the lineup on Sunday evening (appendicitis) and could miss Monday’s rematch as well. Cruikshank leads the Tigers in goals (six) and shots on goal (38); no other CC player has more than three tallies this season or 21 shots on goal this season.

Colorado College Tigers

Head Coach: Mike Haviland (7th season at CC, 66-141-22, .336)
National Rankings: NR/NR

This Season: 3-5-2 overall, 3-5-2 NCHC
Last Season: 11-20-3 overall, 4-17-3-1 NCHC (8th)

2020-2021 Season Statistics:

Team Offense: 2.30 goals scored/game – 38th of 51 teams
Team Defense: 3.30 goals allowed/game – 37th of 51 teams
Power Play: 10.3% (3 of 29) – 43rd of 51 teams
Penalty Kill: 65.6% (21 of 32) – 51st of 51 teams

Key players: Sophomore F Josiah Slavin (3-6-9), Junior F Grant Cruikshank (6-2-8), Junior F Ben Copeland (2-4-6), Freshman F Hunter McKown (2-2-4), Senior F Troy Conzo (1-3-4), Sophomore F Patrick Cozzi (1-3-4), Freshman D Jack Millar (2-4-6), Junior D Bryan Yoon (1-1-2), Freshman D Nicklas Andrews (1-1-2), Freshman G Dominic Basse (3-3-1, 2.75 GAA, .894 SV%)

North Dakota Fighting Hawks

Head Coach: Brad Berry (6th season at UND, 123-59-24, .655)
National Rankings: #3/#3

This Season: 7-2-1 overall, 7-2-1 NCHC
Last Season: 26-5-4 overall, 17-4-3-2 NCHC (1st)

2020-2021 Season Statistics:

Team Offense: 3.90 goals scored/game – 5th of 51 teams
Team Defense: 2.40 goals allowed/game – 13th of 51 teams
Power Play: 27.9% (12 of 43) – 5th of 51 teams
Penalty Kill: 82.9% (34 of 41) – 20th of 51 teams

Key players: Senior F Jordan Kawaguchi (3-10-13), Sophomore F Shane Pinto (5-8-13), Senior F Grant Mismash (4-6-10), Freshman F Riese Gaber (7-2-9), Senior F Collin Adams (4-5-9), Junior F Jasper Weatherby (3-3-6), Senior D Matt Kiersted (2-7-9), Sophomore D Ethan Frisch (2-3-5), Junior D Jacob Bernard-Docker (1-4-5), Freshman D Jake Sanderson (1-2-3 in three games), Junior G Adam Scheel (6-1-1. 2.13 GAA, .913 SV%, 1 SO)

By The Numbers

Last Meeting: February 1, 2020 (Grand Forks, ND). One night after a third-period power play goal held up for a 1-0 UND victory, North Dakota built a snowman with an 8-1 win, outshooting the Tigers 35-15 in the process. Seven different Fighting Hawks lit the lamp, including Jordan Kawaguchi, who had two goals and an assist.

Last Meeting in Colorado Springs: March 2, 2019 (Colorado Springs, CO). North Dakota built a 2-0 lead in the first period (Cole Smith, Matt Kiersted) and made it hold up in a 2-1 road victory. The Fighting Hawks outshot the Tigers 36-25. CC won Friday’s opener 3-1, with Westin Michaud assisting on the game winner. All four Friday goals were scored in the third period.

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, 162-84-11 (.652), although Colorado College holds a slim 60-55-4 (.521) advantage in games played in Colorado Springs. The teams first met in 1948.

Last Ten: North Dakota has seven wins in the last ten meetings between the teams, outscoring CC 33-21 over that span. UND had gone unbeaten in 14 straight (13-0-1) against the Tigers until four of the last six series between the schools ended in splits.

Game News and Notes

These two coaching staffs coached against each other at the AHL and NHL levels prior to the NCHC. 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). UND last swept at Robson Arena during the 2015-2016 season on their way to their eighth national title. In their careers against Colorado College, Jordan Kawaguchi has five goals and six assists in eleven games and Grant Mismash has four goals and two assists in six games.

The Prediction

UND is healthy, rested, and ready to finally get the second half underway. The wide sheet of ice is normally problematic for road teams, particularly on the first night of a weekend series. This year’s version of the Green and White has the skating ability, puck possession, and goaltending to mitigate any advantage the Tigers normally have. One of these games will be close, but North Dakota should collect all six points this weekend. UND 3-2, 5-1..

Broadcast Information

Sunday evening’s contest will be broadcast live on Midco Sports Network. Both games will also be available online 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.

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!