Ralph Engelstad Arena (Grand Forks, ND) will be buzzing Saturday night, as #6 North Dakota hosts #13 Providence in an early test for both schools.
The “Face Off Classic” has been used since 1974 (men’s hockey) and 2008 (women’s hockey) to showcase and raise money for the U.S. Hockey Hall Of Fame in Evelyth, Minnesota.
North Dakota has participated in 13 Hall Of Fame Games over the past five decades, with mixed success…
In the early years of the Face Off Classic, games were played at the Eveleth Hippodrome. UND went 1-2 in those games.
Duluth has hosted the Green and White twice in the Hall Of Fame Game, with the visitors winning both contests.
UND has lost just one Hall Of Fame Game in Grand Forks, the October 5, 2001 tilt against Minnesota that opened the new Ralph Engelstad Arena. Since that game, North Dakota has won four straight Face Off Classics by a combined score of 17-5.
The other three Hall Of Fame Games in North Dakota hockey history were the three “destination games”: two in Las Vegas (2018 and 2022) and one in Nashville (2021). UND won the 2018 tilt (3-1 over Minnesota) but lost the other two.
Providence has never appeared in the U.S. Hockey Hall Of Fame Game.
Here is the complete list of UND’s Face Off Classic results:
2022 (Las Vegas): Arizona State 3 North Dakota 2
2021 (Nashville): Penn State 6 North Dakota 4
2019 (Grand Forks): North Dakota 3 Michigan Tech 1
2018 (Las Vegas): North Dakota 3 Minnesota 1
2016 (Grand Forks): North Dakota 5 RPI 2
2014 (Grand Forks): North Dakota 3 Air Force 2 (OT)
2010 (Duluth): North Dakota 5 Minnesota Duluth 0
2007 (Grand Forks): North Dakota 6 Michigan State 0
2003 (Duluth): North Dakota 3 Minnesota Duluth 2
2001 (Grand Forks): Minnesota 7 North Dakota 5
1992 (Eveleth): Minnesota Duluth 4 North Dakota 3
1988 (Eveleth): North Dakota 2 Minnesota Duluth 2
1978 (Eveleth): Minnesota 5 North Dakota 3
Turning our attention to this weekend, non-conference games are critical in determining the 16 teams for the NCAA tournament, and the Hall Of Fame Game is North Dakota’s first opportunity to bolster their resume. After tonight’s action against Providence (Hockey East), UND has ten non-conference games remaining this season:
October 18-19: at Minnesota State (CCHA)
October 25-26: vs. Boston University (Hockey East)
November 1-2: at Cornell (ECAC)
November 22-23: vs. Robert Morris (AHA)
November 29-30: at/vs. Bemidji State (CCHA)
The Fighting Hawks will not play a non-conference game over the final four months of the season, with only a January 4th exhibition game against Manitoba on the schedule.
Providence Team Profile
Head Coach: Nate Leaman (14th season at Providence, 259-163-62, .599)
Last Season: 18-13-4 (missed NCAA tournament), 8-8-6-2 Hockey East (4th)
Key Returning Players: Graduate F Nick Poisson (9-15-24), Sophomore F Tanner Adams (6-15-21), Sophomore F Hudson Malinoski (9-9-18), Senior D Guillaume Richard (3-15-18), Junior D Austen May (4-9-13), Junior G Philip Svedeback (18-13-4, 2.32 GAA, .900 SV%, 4 SO)
Potential Impact Additions: Graduate F Logan Will (transfer from Colorado College), Graduate F Ryan O’Reilly (transfer from Arizona State), Freshman F Trevor Connelly, Freshman F John Mustard, Freshman F Logan Sawyer, Graduate D Connor Kelley (transfer from Minnesota Duluth), Graduate D Carl Fish (transfer from Minnesota), Freshman D Tomas Machu (not yet cleared by the NCAA)
North Dakota Team Profile
Head Coach: Brad Berry (10th season at UND, 206-104-33, .649)
Last Season: 26-12-2 (NCAA tournament appearance), 14-4-1-5 NCHC (1st)
Key Returning Players: Junior F Owen McLaughlin (13-26-39), Senior F Cameron Berg (20-17-37), Junior F Dylan James (9-10-19), Senior F Jackson Kunz (9-10-19), Sophomore F Jayden Perron (11-7-18), Graduate F Louis Jamernik V (8-9-17), Sophomore D Jake Livanavage, Sophomore D Abram Wiebe (1-9-10), Sophomore G Hobie Hedquist (5-1-0, 2.51 GAA, .905 SV%)
Potential Impact Additions: Freshman F Sacha Boisvert, Freshman F Mac Swanson, Freshman F Cade Littler, Freshman D E.J. Emery, Freshman D Andrew Strathmann, Graduate G T.J. Semptimphelter (transfer from Arizona State)
By The Numbers
Last Meeting: October 25, 2014 (Grand Forks, ND). After UND throttled Providence 6-1 in Friday’s opener, the visitors pulled their goaltender late in Saturday’s finale and got the equalizer, knotting the score at two goals apiece. The game would go into the books as a tie, a result which proved to be enough to get the Friars into the NCAA tournament. Providence would go on a four-game run all the way to the national title, their first (and only) in program history. One season later, North Dakota won the program’s eighth national championship.
All-time: UND leads the all-time series with a record of 9-5-1 (.633), including a record of 6-2-1 (.722) in games played in Grand Forks. Prior to the October 2014 series mentioned above, the two teams had not met in 25 years.
Game News and Notes
Saturday’s game will be the first official game of the 2024-2025 season for both teams. After a six-year stretch of making the national tournament (2014-2019), the Friars have not been to the NCAAs. Providence won the national championship in 2015 and appeared in the Frozen Four in 2019. North Dakota dropped an exhibition contest to Augustana last weekend by a score of 4-1, while Providence defeated Union 4-1 in exhibition action.
The Prediction
Despite what we saw in last Saturday’s exhibition game, I have a feeling that this is a one-goal game either way. The edge goes to North Dakota playing in front of their fans, but keep a close eye on the special teams battle, as whichever side prevails there should win the game. UND 4-3.
Thank you for reading, and, as always, I welcome your comments and suggestions.