Category: Men’s Hockey

#4/#6 North Dakota (12-4-0) hosts unranked Omaha (6-8-0) at Ralph Engelstad Arena this weekend to close out the first half of the season.

Just five weeks ago, the Fighting Hawks traveled down I-29 to square off with the Mavericks and pulled off a road sweep by final scores of 7-2 and 4-1.

It might not be that easy this time around.

UND will be without the services of two stellar freshmen – forward Cole Reschny (2-16-18) and defenseman Keaton Verhoeff (4-7-11). The pair – teammates with the Victoria Royals of the WHL for each of the past two seasons – flew out to Ontario this morning to join Hockey Canada’s World Junior Championship camp.

In the sweep at Omaha in early November, Reschny scored Saturday night’s game-winning goal and added four assists on the weekend; he was named the NCHC Forward of the Week. Verhoeff also notched an assist and registered three shots on goal while logging nearly nineteen minutes of ice time in the opener and over twenty minutes in the rematch; Verhoeff finished with a plus-3 rating.

Reschny was a first-round draft pick (#18 overall) of the Calgary Flames in the 2025 NHL Entry Draft; Verhoeff is widely expected to go in the top five in next year’s draft (June 26th and 27th, 2026).

After an up-and-down October (4-3-0), North Dakota lost only once during the month of November, a 4-2 home setback at the hands of the Arizona State Sun Devils. UND’s surge can be traced back to a Halloween night comeback at home against #5 Minnesota Duluth, which featured an extra-attacker goal with just 71 seconds remaining in the hockey game. Despite losing on a fluky goal during the 3-on-3 overtime session, the Fighting Hawks surged into November, outscoring opponents 30-14 while posting a record of 6-1-0.

The Green and White followed that up with an impressive road sweep at St. Cloud State (4-3, 4-2) to open December and – at 5th in the NCAA Percentage Index (NPI) – have a chance to all-but-lock up a national tourney bid with good results this weekend.

UND is nine years removed from its eighth national championship but has made the national tournament in just four of the past eight seasons. That track record – and some early playoff exits – led to a coaching change, and Dane Jackson is now leading the charge.

In the NCHC preseason poll, UND was picked to finish in third place (behind Western Michigan and Denver), while the Mavericks were tabbed to end up in seventh (ahead of only St. Cloud State and Miami). With the addition of St. Thomas to the NCHC (and a new schedule format) beginning in 2026-2027, the Fighting Hawks and Mavericks will no longer be guaranteed four regular-season games each year.

Omaha head coach Mike Gabinet is now in his ninth season behind the bench, and he has only led the Mavericks to two NCAA tournament appearances – once in the COVID-shortened 2020-2021 season and once two years ago. Both of those playoff bids came to an abrupt end at the hands of the Minnesota Golden Gophers, who dispatched Omaha 7-2 in the 2021 West Regional semifinal (Loveland, Colorado) and edged the Mavericks 3-2 in the 2024 Midwest Regional semifinal (Sioux Falls, South Dakota).

Last season, Omaha finished in the top half of the NCHC but was done in by a less-than-stellar non-conference record of 4-6-0, including home losses to Augustana (twice), Lindenwood, and UMass-Lowell and a road sweep at the hands of Minnesota State.

The NCHC has been the premier hockey conference since its inception, and particularly over the past twelve seasons. The nine teams in the league have gone 587-302-80 (.647) in non-conference action since the start of the 2014-15 season and sent fifteen 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, Denver in 2022 and 2024, and Denver and Western Michigan in 2025 over that nine-year stretch (there was no national tournament in 2020). Conference members North Dakota (2016), Denver (2017, 2022, 2024), Minnesota Duluth (2018, 2019), and Western Michigan (2025) have won seven of the last nine national titles.

So far this season, the NCHC has won nearly seventy percent of its non-conference games (47-21-1) and has four teams (#4 North Dakota, #5 Minnesota Duluth, #6 Denver, and #7 Western Michigan) positioned in the top ten in the latest rankings, with #19 Colorado College also appearing in the poll.

Miami, Arizona State, and St. Cloud State are receiving votes; Omaha is not.

With similar success in the second half of the season, the league could easily send four or even five teams to this year’s NCAA tournament in March. UND is 6-2 in non-conference action in the 2025-26 season, with an early January home series vs. Mercyhurst (0-15-1, 63rd of 63 teams in the NPI) the only interleague games remaining on the regular season schedule.

Last season, the Fighting Hawks and Mavericks ended the regular season by splitting a pair of games at Ralph Engelstad Arena. The following weekend – with the season on the line for both teams – UND swept a pair of games at Omaha by identical 3-2 scores. North Dakota’s season would end six days later at the hands of eventual national champion Western Michigan at the last-ever NCHC Frozen Faceoff in St. Paul, Minnesota, a 4-2 defeat that would cost former head coach Brad Berry his job.

On the final weekend of the 2022-2023 regular season, North Dakota swept Omaha (5-4 OT, 2-1). The Fighting Hawks dropped Game One of the playoff series in Omaha by a final score of 2-1 before winning two straight (3-1, 5-2) and advancing to the NCHC Frozen Faceoff in St. Paul, Minnesota.

On January 12th and 13th, 2024, UND took four of six league points in a home series against Omaha, falling 5-4 in overtime on Friday night before rebounding for a 3-1 regulation win in Saturday’s rematch. The disappointing thing about the series opener is that North Dakota led 3-1 after the first period. The Mavericks won the middle frame decisively, however, outscoring the homestanding Hawks 3-1. Both teams scored twice with the man advantage. Omaha scored just 34 seconds into the 3-on-3 overtime session to grab the extra league point.

Saturday’s finale was a bit more of a defensive struggle, with Omaha tying the game at one goal apiece just 49 seconds into the third period. UND’s Dylan James scored the game-winner three minutes later, and former Maverick Cameron Berg iced the game with an empty-net goal in the final thirty seconds. North Dakota outshot Omaha 30-23 on Saturday night and 69-47 on the weekend.

Turning our attention to this weekend…

A half-point per game or better is my benchmark for solid offensive production, and Mike Gabinet’s squad has just seven lineup regulars who meet that threshold: sophomore forward Maxime Pellerin (6-3-9), freshman forward Luke Woodworth (3-7-10), freshman forward Marcus Nguyen (3-5-8), sophomore forward Sean Tschigerl (3-6-9), sophomore forward Brett Hyland (2-5-7), senior defenseman Griffin Ludtke (0-9-9), and junior defenseman Aidan de la Gorgendiere (2-5-7).

Freshman forward Jeremy Loranger has notched three assists in his first six collegiate games, but he has not played since November 1st against Colorado College.

As mentioned above, North Dakota will be without two key offensive producers – Cole Reschny and Keaton Verhoeff – this weekend, but Dane Jackson is certain to have eight players in the lineup this weekend who have met same offensive threshold: senior forward Ben Strinden (9-8-17), freshman forward Will Zellers (10-5-15), sophomore forward Mac Swanson (4-9-13), senior forward Dylan James (8-3-11), freshman forward Ollie Josephson (3-7-10), sophomore forward Cade Littler (4-4-8), junior defenseman Abram Wiebe (2-9-11), and junior defenseman Jake Livanavage (3-10-13).

Livanavage scored a key shorthanded goal last Saturday night at St. Cloud State to break a 2-2 tie with 7:04 remaining in the third period and added an empty-netter exactly seven minutes later to ice the victory.

North Dakota senior forward Ben Strinden was white hot heading into the UND/SCSU series, with eight goals and five assists over the past eight games. Strinden was held off the scoresheet at the Herb Brooks Center.

Two other UND forwards – senior Ellis Rickwood (1-7-8 in 11 games) and Josh Zakreski (1-2-3 in six games played) have been dealing with injury; Rickwood has participated in practice this week and is probable to return to the lineup this weekend; Zakreski was having a promising start to his rookie campaign but suffered a lower body injury early last month in practice, had surgery, and is expected to be out long-term.
One key area to watch this weekend is the face-off circle. Through sixteen games, the Fighting Hawks have won 51.8% of faceoffs, good for 17th in the country. Through their fourteen games, the Mavericks are 54thin the nation (46.9%).

UND will certainly miss Cole Reschny this weekend; the freshman phenom has won 145 of his262 draws this season (55.3%). If portal transfer Ellis Rickwood (who played the past three years at Clarkson) can return to the lineup against the Mavericks, that would be a tremendous help. Rickwood has won 119 of 190 (62.6%). North Dakota freshman Ollie Josephson (115 of 230, 50%) has been steady.

For the Mavericks, no one has been all that effective, with freshman Luke Woodworth (64 of 126, 50.8%), sophomore Sean Tschigerl (71 of 160, 44.4%), and senior Tyler Rollwagen (78 of 169, 46.2%) sharing the load.

Not only will North Dakota start with the puck more often than not in this series, they will also hold on to it. In the early part of the 2025-2025 campaign, the Fighting Hawks have far outpaced the Mavericks in two key puck possession statistics:

North Dakota: 14th in both Corsi (54.0%) and Fenwick (53.9%)

Omaha: 48th in both Corsi (46.6%) Fenwick (46.3%)

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

To this point in the season, the Green and White have had far the better of the specialty teams play. North Dakota is a combined +7, with eighteen power play goals scored (18 for 60, 30.0%, 4th) and eleven power play goals allowed (45 of 56, 80.4%, 32nd). UND has both scored and allowed four shorthanded goals through the first fourteen games of the season.

Mike Gabinet’s squad is at a minus-4, with ten power play goals scored (10 for 45, 22.2%, 22nd in the country) and fifteen power play goals allowed (38 of 53, 71.7%, 60th). Omaha has also scored one shorthanded goal while not allowing one to opponents.

On Friday, November 7th in Omaha, the Fighting Hawks went 4-for-8 with the man advantage and held the Mavericks to just one power play goal on four chances.

One night later, the Mavs held the advantage by going 1-for-3 on the power play and holding North Dakota scoreless on two opportunities.

Through sixteen games, the Green and White have blocked 200 shots (12.5 per game), led by Bennett Zmolek with 23 and Jake Livanavage with 22. Zmolek has been out of the lineup each of the past two weekends; Zmolek’s 23 blocks have come in just twelve games.

Omaha has blocked 135 shots in its fourteen games (9.6/game), with Jacob Guevin (20), Marc Ljoie (16), and Marcus Broberg (12) leading the charge.

North Dakota’s defensive corps has provided plenty of production from the back end, already notching eleven goals and adding 34 assists in 111 combined games (0.41 points per game). On this front, Dane Jackson will certainly miss Keaton Verhoeff, the freshman leads all UND blueliners with four goals, and his eleven points are tied for second.

In his absence, the Fighting Hawks will rely on two juniors – Jake Livanavage (3-10-13) and Abram Wiebe (2-9-11).

Verhoeff is widely expected to go in the top three of the 2026 NHL Entry Draft, while Livanavage (4-24-28) and Wiebe (4-20-24) were two of UND’s top four point-getters a season ago.

Sophomore defenseman EJ Emery – a first round pick of the New York Rangers in the 2024 NHL Entry Draft – notched the first two goals of his collegiate career in a 5-2 win against Minnesota back in October.

Not to be outdone, Omaha’s blueliners have scored ten goals and 23 assists in 94 combined games (0.52 points/game), led by senior Griffin Ludtke (0-9-9), junior Aidan de la Gorgendiere (2-5-7), and sophomore Marc Lajoie (4-2-6).

Not only have North Dakota’s defensemen been producing offensively, first-year head coach Dane Jackson has also put together an impressive mix of defenders he can trust in any situation. As a unit, UND’s defensemen have allowed a total of just 386 shots on goal this season in fourteen games (24.1/game, 3rd-best in the country), while Omaha has allowed 474 (33.9, 55th).

The Mavericks are allowing 3.50 goals per game this season (51st in the nation), while North Dakota is allowing just 2.44 (13th). On the offensive side, UND is scoring 3.81 goals per game (5th), while Omaha has managed just 2.79 goals per game (38th).

Sometimes it is difficult to dissect numbers like those above, so here it is in plain terms: in sixteen games, UND has outscored opponents 61-39. In its fourteen games, Omaha has been outscored 39-49.

Fighting Hawks’ graduate netminder Gibson Homer (4-4-0, 2.78 goals-against average, .882 save percentage) started each of the first four games of the season and then split the next four weekends with freshman Jan Spunar (8-0-0, 1.75 GAA, .929 SV%, one shutout) before giving way to Spunar entirely over the past two weekends (home-and-home with Bemidji State and at St. Cloud State). I would expect Spunar to get the start in Friday’s opener against Omaha.

After this weekend, UND will be off until January 2nd and 3rd vs. Mercyhurst. North Dakota will resume NCHC play at Colorado College the following weekend.

Omaha will travel to face Augustana next weekend and Cornell in early January before hosting St. Cloud State on January 9th and 10th.

In the second half of the season, both teams have fourteen conference games remaining. Through eight league games, North Dakota (6-1-0-1, 19 points) sits in second place in the NCHC, two points behind Denver. At 3-5-0-0 and with nine points, Omaha is in sixth place.

Omaha Team Profile

Head Coach: Mike Gabinet (9th season at UNO, 141-139-19, .503)

National Rankings: #NR/NR
NPI Ranking: 32nd
KRACH: 148.5 (21st)

This Season: 6-8-0 overall, 3-5-0-0 NCHC (6th)
Last Season: 18-17-1 overall (missed NCAA tournament), 13-8-2-1 NCHC (4th)

Team Offense: 2.79 goals scored/game – 38th of 63 teams
Team Defense: 3.50 goals allowed/game – 51st of 63 teams

Power Play: 22.2% (10 of 45)– 38th of 63 teams
Penalty Kill: 71.7% (38 of 53)– 60th of 63 teams

Key Players: Sophomore F Maxime Pellerin (6-3-9), Freshman F Luke Woodworth (3-7-10), Freshman F Marcus Nguyen (3-5-8), Sophomore F Sean Tschigerl (3-6-9), Senior F Tyler Rollwagen (3-2-5), Senior D Griffin Ludtke (0-9-9), Junior D Aidan de la Gorgendiere (2-5-7), Sophomore D Marc Lajoie (4-2-6), Senior D Jacob Guevin (2-2-4), Senior G Simon Latkoczy (4-7-0, 3.57 GAA, .894 SV%)

North Dakota Team Profile

Head Coach: Dane Jackson (1st season at North Dakota, 12-4-0, .750)

National Rankings: #4/#6
NPI Ranking: 5th
KRACH: 454.8 (5th)

This Season: 12-4-0 overall, 6-1-0-1 NCHC (2nd)
Last Season: 21-15-2 overall (missed NCAA tournament), 11-8-4-1 NCHC (5th)

2025-26 Season Statistics:

Team Offense: 3.81 goals scored/game – 5th of 63 teams
Team Defense: 2.44 goals allowed/game – 13th of 63 teams

Power Play: 30.0% (18 of 60) – 4th of 63 teams
Penalty Kill: 80.4% (45 of 56) – 32nd of 63 teams

Key Players: Senior F Ben Strinden (9-8-17), Freshman F Will Zellers (10-5-15), Senior F Dylan James (8-3-11), Sophomore F Mac Swanson (4-9-13), Freshman F Ollie Josephson (3-7-10), Junior D Jake Livanavage (3-10-13), Junior D Abram Wiebe (2-9-11), G Jan Spunar (8-0-0, 1.75 GAA, .929 SV%, 1 SO)

By The Numbers

Last Meeting: November 8, 2025 (Omaha, NE). One night after putting on a power play clinic (four goals on eight attempts) and winning 7-2, it was a much closer affair, with the hosts trailing just 2-1 after two periods of play. Despite outshooting UND 11-5 in the final frame, the Mavericks could not find the equalizer and instead gave up two goals just ninety seconds apart over the final five minutes of the hockey game. Gibson Homer stopped 34 of 35 shots for his best performance of the season.

Last Meeting in Grand Forks: March 8, 2025. It was an odd game to close the home portion of the North Dakota hockey season, as two late goals (19:25 of the first period and 19:40 of the second period) were too much for UND to overcome. As is so often the case in this rivalry, the Fighting Hawks outshot the visitors 37-26 and led in expected goals (3.1-2.8) but fell behind 4-0 and could not recover. Wisconsin transfer Sam Stange had two goals, two assists, and two penalty minutes for Omaha.

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 six of the past ten tilts between the teams, including three of the four games played last season and a road sweep at Omaha last month. UND has outscored the Mavericks 32-29 over the past ten games.

All-Time: UND leads the all-time series 41-23-2 (.636), including a record of 20-11-1 (.641) in Grand Forks. The teams first met on November 19, 2010.

Game News and Notes

Over the past four weekends of game action, Omaha is just 2-6-0 while scoring just fifteen goals and allowing thirty; the Mavericks have scored more than two goals exactly once in that stretch. Eleven seasons ago, both North Dakota and Omaha advanced to the NCAA 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. In team history, the Mavericks have made the national tournament five times (2006, 2011, 2015, 2021, 2024), with a Frozen Four appearance under head coach Dean Blais in 2015. In 32 of the past 39 contests in this series, the winning team is the one which scores the first goal. This season, North Dakota is 9-2-0 (.818) when scoring first; Omaha, 4-4-0 (.500). UND’s Dylan James has nine goals and twelve points in his eighteen career games against the Mavericks.

On A Personal Note

Ralph Engelstad Arena is hosting “Hockey Fights Cancer” weekend during this series, and this is especially meaningful to me as an 1177-day cancer survivor. No one fights alone.

The Prediction

The underlying metrics all seem to favor North Dakota. If UND was at full strength (injury-free and with the services of Cole Reschny and Keaton Verhoeff), these would be fairly easy picks to make. As it is, though, there will be some adjustments on Friday night, with new players in the lineup filling new and expanded roles. This will be problematic for the Fighting Hawks, and goaltending will need to be excellent until some of the other areas come into focus. It has been an excellent first half, but I’ve got a sneaking suspicion that North Dakota will drop the opener in this one before rebounding for a series split and an overall record of 13-5-0 heading into the holiday break. Omaha 3-2, UND 5-1.

Broadcast Information

Both games this weekend will be broadcast live on Midco Sports and will also be available online 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. Puck drop is set for 7:07 p.m. Central Time on Friday night and 6:07 p.m. Central Time on Saturday night.

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 thoughts, comments, and suggestions.

#5 North Dakota (10-4-0) travels to Central Minnesota to face a familiar foe this weekend – the unranked Huskies (7-7-0) of St. Cloud State. SCSU has played well to this point in the season but has been done in by a 1-5 record in one-goal games and an 0-3 record in overtime.

UND will play only four games in December – this series and a pair of home games against Omaha (6-8-0) on December 12th and 13th. Omaha, which lost a pair of home games to North Dakota in early November, is off this weekend.

Before we take a look at what fans can expect from the Huskies and Hawks this weekend, let’s take a trip down memory lane..

Three 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.

In the 2023-24 campaign, 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.

Last season was even better for the Green and White, with North Dakota taking ten of twelve points from the Huskies, beginning with a 2-0 regulation win and a 4-3 overtime win on home ice in mid-December.

In St. Cloud, UND managed a shootout win and a 6-2 regulation win. In the series finale, SCSU probably deserved a better fate but were undone by goaltending, as the Fighting Hawks scored five goals on netminder James Gray, who made just eighteen saves. The Huskies scored an extra attacker goal with over six minutes remaining in the hockey game but gave up an empty netter just 29 seconds later.

Twelve 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 (fifth season at the Division I level), and Augustana (third season at the Division I level).

Next season, St. Thomas will leave the CCHA to become the tenth member of the National Collegiate Hockey Conference (NCHC).

The NCHC has been the premier hockey conference since its inception, and particularly over the past ten seasons. The nine teams in the league have gone 571-293-86 (.644) in non-conference action since the start of the 2014-15 season and sent fifteen 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, Denver in 2022 and 2024, and Denver and Western Michigan in 2025 over that nine-year stretch (there was no national tournament in 2020). Conference members North Dakota (2016), Denver (2017, 2022, 2024), Minnesota Duluth (2018, 2019), and Western Michigan (2025) have won seven of the last nine national titles.

So far this season, the NCHC has won nearly seventy percent of its non-conference games (47-21-1) and has four teams (#4 Minnesota Duluth, #5 North Dakota, #6 Denver, and #7 Western Michigan) positioned in the top ten in the latest rankings, with #19 Miami and #20 Colorado College also appearing in the poll.

Arizona State and St. Cloud State are receiving votes; Omaha is not.

With similar success in the second half of the season, the league could easily send four or even five teams to this year’s NCAA tournament in March.

So far this season, UND and SCSU have faced two common opponents, St. Thomas and Minnesota Duluth:

St. Cloud lost two games vs. St. Thomas (3-4 at home, 1-3 on the road) and lost two games at Duluth (0-4, 2-3 OT).

North Dakota took both games of a home-and-home series with St. Thomas back in October and performed well (3-4 OT, 5-1) against #4 Minnesota Duluth at home over Halloween weekend; those results are buoying its current NCAA Percentage Index ranking (7th). Fans may remember that the NPI has replaced the PairWise as the system used to determine the 16-team field for the national tournament.

Turning our attention to this weekend’s matchup…

A half-point per game or better is my benchmark for solid offensive production, and Brett Larson’s squad has seven lineup regulars who have achieved that level of success, including three – junior forward Tyler Gross (6-12-18), sophomore forward Austin Burnevik (11-6-17), and junior forward Barrett Hall (6-10-16) averaging over a point per game. Other solid offensive contributors include senior forward Adam Ingram (0-8-8), freshman forward Nolan Roed (2-6-8), freshman forward Noah Urness (3-4-7), and senior defenseman Cooper Wylie (1-7-8).

North Dakota is certain to have nine players in the lineup this weekend who have met same offensive threshold: senior forward Ben Strinden (9-8-17), freshman forward Will Zellers (9-4-13), sophomore forward Mac Swanson (4-7-11), freshman forward Cole Reschny (2-13-15), senior forward Dylan James (7-3-10), freshman forward Ollie Josephson (3-6-9), junior defenseman Abram Wiebe (2-8-10), freshman defenseman Keaton Verhoeff (4-6-10), and junior defenseman Jake Livanavage (1-9-10).

North Dakota senior forward Ben Strinden has been white hot over the past eight games, with eight goals and five assists.

Two other UND forwards – senior Ellis Rickwood (1-7-8 in 11 games) and Josh Zakreski (1-2-3 in six games played) have been dealing with injury; Rickwood skated during pregame warmups last Saturday but is unlikely to return to the lineup this weekend; Zakreski was having a promising start to his rookie campaign but suffered a lower body injury early last month in practice, had surgery, and is expected to be out long-term.

Offensively, UND outpaces SCSU by a slim margin. To this point of the season, North Dakota has scored 53 goals in fourteen games (3.79 goals per game, 8th in the country), while St. Cloud State has managed 47 in the same number of games (3.36, 17th).

The Fighting Hawks are fifth in the nation in shooting percentage at 12.3%. SCSU clocks in at 10.5%, good for 22nd in the country. Both teams do an adequate job of getting the puck to the net, with UND averaging 30.8 shots on goal per game (23rd) and the Huskiese even better at 32.0 shots on goal per contest (15th).

The difference is on the defensive side.

Through fourteen games, the Green and White have blocked 179 shots (12.8 per game), led by Bennett Zmolek with 23 and Jake Livanavage with 19. Zmolek was out of the lineup last weekend against Bemidji State. Zmolek’s 23 blocks have come in just twelve games; the graduate defenseman missed last weekend’s action against Bemidji State and is not expected back for this series.

St. Cloud State has blocked 154 shots in its fourteen games (11.0/game), with seniors Mason Reiners (25) and Hudson Smolinski (18) leading the way.

North Dakota’s defensive corps has provided plenty of production from the back end, already notching nine goals and adding 31 assists in 98 combined games (0.41 points per game).

The nine St. Cloud State State blueliners to play this season have scored nine goals and added 25 assists in 98 conbined games (0.35 points/game). Aside from senior Cooper Wylie (1-7-8) and graduate Josh Zinger (1-5-6), no SCSU defenseman has collected more than five points.

Zinger spent his first two seasons at Northern Michigan, posting a combined line of 6-30-36 in 72 NCAA games. Since joining Brett Larson’s squad in the fall of 2024, he has five goals and nine assists in 47 games played.

For the Fighting Hawks, it’s been two juniors – Jake Livanavage (1-9-10) and Abram Wiebe (2-8-10) – and a freshman (Keaton Verhoeff, with four goals and six assists).

Verhoeff is widely expected to go in the top three of the 2026 NHL Entry Draft, while Livanavage (4-24-28) and Wiebe (4-20-24) were two of UND’s top four point-getters a season ago.

Sophomore defenseman EJ Emery – a first round pick of the New York Rangers in the 2024 NHL Entry Draft – notched the first two goals of his collegiate career in a 5-2 win against Minnesota back in October.

Not only have North Dakota’s defensemen been producing offensively, first-year head coach Dane Jackson has also put together an impressive mix of defenders he can trust in any situation. As a unit, UND’s defensemen have allowed a total of just 326 shots on goal this season in fourteen games (23.3/game, 3rd-best in the country), while St. Cloud State has allowed 420 (30.0, 32nd).

St. Cloud State is allowing 2.71 goals per game this season (24th in the nation), while North Dakota is allowing just 2.43 (12th).

The Fighting Hawks would be ill-advised to get into a specialty teams battle with the Huskies, as SCSU is already a +9 to this point in the season, with TWENTY power play goals scored (20 of 64, 31.3%, 2nd in the country), thirteen power play goals allowed (37 of 50, 74.0%, 54th), two shorthanded goals scored, and zero shorthanded goals allowed.

North Dakota is a respectable +6, with sixteen power play goals scored (16 of 56, 28.6%, 5th), ten power play goals allowed (38 of 48, 79.2%, 35th), and a net zero in shorthanded goals (three scored, three alllowed).

On the goaltending side of things, St. Cloud State has seen two goaltenders split time roughly evenly, with sophomore Patriks Berzins playing much better than freshman Yan Shostak over the first half of the season:

Berzins: 4-2-0, 2.04 goals-against average, .939 save percentage

Shostak: 3-5-0, 3.12 goals-against average, .888 save percentage

Shostak does have the only shutout for the Huskies this season, a 21-save performance against Vermont back on October 18th.

Berzins played for the Maine Black Bears last season, appearing in two games and earning one victory before transferring to St. Cloud.

For North Dakota, it’s been the younger netminder with the better of the results. Freshman Jan Spunar was splitting time with graduate transfer Gibson Homer to start this season, but Spunar earned both starts – and both two victories – last weekend in a home-and-home series with Bemidji State. Here’s how the two stack up over the first two months of the season:

Spunar: 6-0-0, 1.50 goals-against average, .934 save percentage, one shutout

Homer: 4-4-0, 2.78 goals-against average, .882 save percentage

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

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

North Dakota: 11th in Corsi (55.5%) and 11th in Fenwick (55.4%)
St. Cloud State: 27th in Corsi (50.5%) and 29th in Fenwick (50.2%)

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.

After this weekend, UND will host Omaha to close out the first half of the season, and St. Cloud State will host Denver. Both teams will open 2026 with non-conference games; North Dakota will play a non-conference series against winless Mercyhurst (0-14-1) at Ralph Engelstad Arena, while SCSU will participate in the Cactus Cup in Palm Springs, California. The Huskies will battle the Yale Bulldogs on January 2nd before facing either the Minnesota State Mavericks or the UMass Lowell RiverHawks the following day.

St. Cloud State Team Profile

Head Coach: Brett Larson (7th season at SCSU, 144-104-22, .574)

National Rankings: NR/NR
NPI Ranking: 14th
KRACH Rating: 188.4 (14th)

This Season: 11-13-0 overall, 2-2-0-2 NCHC (5th of 9 teams)
Last Season: 14-21-1 overall (missed NCAA tournament), 5-13-2-4 overall NCHC (8th)

2025-26 Season Statistics:

Team Offense: 3.36 goals scored/game – 17th of 63 teams
Team Defense: 2.71 goals allowed/game – 24th of 63 teams

Power Play: 31.3% (20 of 64) – 2nd of 63 teams
Penalty Kill: 74.0% (37 of 50) – 54th of 63 teams

Key players: Junior F Tyler Gross (6-12-18), Sophomore F Austin Burnevik (11-6-17), Junior F Barrett Hall (6-10-16), Senior F Adam Ingram (0-8-8), Freshman F Nolan Roed (2-6-8), Freshman F Noah Urness (3-4-7), Senior D Cooper Wylie (1-7-8), Senior D Max Smolinski (2-3-5), Graduate D Mason Reiners (2-3-5), Sophomore G Patrik Berzins (4-2-0, 2.04 GAA, .939 SV%)

North Dakota Team Profile

Head Coach: Dane Jackson (1st season at North Dakota, 10-4-0, .714)

National Rankings: #5/#6
NPI Ranking: 7th
KRACH: 344.3 (6th)

This Season: 10-4-0 overall, 4-1-0-1 NCHC (2nd)
Last Season: 21-15-2 overall (missed NCAA tournament), 11-8-4-1 NCHC (5th)

2025-26 Season Statistics:

Team Offense: 3.79 goals scored/game – 8th of 63 teams
Team Defense: 2.43 goals allowed/game – 12th of 63 teams

Power Play: 28.6% (16 of 56) – 5th of 63 teams
Penalty Kill: 79.2% (38 of 48) – 35th of 63 teams

Key Players: Senior F Ben Strinden (9-8-17), Freshman F Cole Reschny (2-13-15), Freshman F Will Zellers (9-4-13), Senior F Dylan James (7-3-10), Sophomore F Mac Swanson (4-7-11), Freshman F Ollie Josephson (3-6-9), Junior D Jake Livanavage (1-9-10), Junior D Abram Wiebe (2-8-10), Freshman D Keaton Verhoeff (4-6-10), Freshman G Jan Spunar (6-0-0, 1.50 GAA, .934 SV%, 1 SO)

By The Numbers

Last Meeting: February 1, 2025 (St. Cloud, MN). North Dakota took the series finale by a final score of 6-2. SCSU probably deserved a better fate but were undone by goaltending, as the Fighting Hawks scored five goals on netminder James Gray, who made just eighteen saves. The Huskies scored an extra attacker goal with over six minutes remaining in the hockey game but gave up an empty netter just 29 seconds later. In Friday’s opener, UND won in a shootout after the two teams skated to a 3-3 tie.

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, 83-49-19 (.613), including a slim edge (32-26-10,.544) 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 5-2-3 (.650) edge in the last ten games between the schools, with a scoring advantage of 34-28 in those contests. North Dakota has only lost once in the last nine games in this series, a 3-2 overtime defeat in the 2023 NCHC Frozen Faceoff (St. Paul, Minnesota). The Fighting Hawks have gone 2-0-2 in the last four games in St. Cloud, with two regulation victories (5-3 and 6-2), a shootout win, and a shootout loss.

Game News and Notes

St. Cloud State is a perfect 7-0 this season when leading after twenty minutes and 0-7 when trailing or tied. Following this season, the National Hockey Center will undergo extensive renovations, with the width of the ice surface reduced from 100 feet (Olympic ice) to just 94 feet (hybrid ice). Nearly all NCAA Division I teams – including North Dakota – now compete on NHL ice surfaces (85 feet wide). 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). 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 twelve seasons of the NCHC. The Huskies also won the last WCHA conference title in 2013.

The Prediction

There are four keys for North Dakota in this series: adjust to the wide sheet of ice, take an early lead, avoid needless penalties, and take advantage of roster depth. The first ten minutes of Friday’s opener will be critical for both sides, and the more this series can be played at even strength, the better for the Fighting Hawks. As has been the case recently, I expect at least one of these games to go to overtime, with the Green getting the better of the Red just three weeks before Christmas. 3-3 tie, UND 4-3.

Broadcast Information

Both games this weekend will be available via webcast at NCHC.tv. Puck drop is scheduled for 7:00 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 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 X-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 X-Twitter (@DBergerHockey) for more information and insight. Here’s to hockey!

#6 North Dakota (8-4-0, 4-1-0-1 NCHC) and unranked Bemidji State (9-5-2, 4-0-5-1 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.

Last season, North Dakota was ranked 14th in the country headed into a similar post-Thanksgiving weekend series with the Beavers. The Fighting Hawks dropped the first game by a final score of 2-1 before settling for a 3-3 tie on home ice. Those non-conference results ultimately doomed UND, which missed the playoffs for the second time in three seasons and moved on from ten-year head coach Brad Berry.

Bemidji State has played the 49th-toughest schedule in the country, with North Dakota’s early-season slate of games ranked as the 15th-toughest in the nation.

UND performed well (3-4 OT, 5-1) against #5 Minnesota Duluth four weeks ago, and those results are buoying its current NCAA Percentage Index ranking (10th). Fans may remember that the NPI has replaced the PairWise as the system used to determine the 16-team field for the national tournament.

By comarison, Bemidji State lost both games of a home-and-home series with the Bulldogs by final scores of 7-3 and 5-1.

Twelve 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 (fifth season at the Division I level), and Augustana (third season at the Division I level).

Next season, St. Thomas will leave the CCHA to become the tenth member of the National Collegiate Hockey Conference (NCHC).

The NCHC has been the premier hockey conference since its inception, and particularly over the past ten seasons. The nine teams in the league have gone 571-293-86 (.644) in non-conference action since the start of the 2014-15 season and sent fifteen 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, Denver in 2022 and 2024, and Denver and Western Michigan in 2025 over that nine-year stretch (there was no national tournament in 2020). Conference members North Dakota (2016), Denver (2017, 2022, 2024), Minnesota Duluth (2018, 2019), and Western Michigan (2025) have won seven of the last nine national titles.

So far this season, the NCHC has won nearly seventy percent of its non-conference games (39-18-1) and has four teams (#4 Denver, #5 Minnesota Duluth, #6 North Dakota, and #7 Western Michigan) positioned in the top ten in the latest rankings and the other five teams in the conference all receiving votes. With similar success in the second half of the season, the league could easily send four or even five teams to this year’s NCAA tournament in March.

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 basically played .500 hockey (77-76-14) since their most recent tournament run, with a third-place league finish in 2022 and a fifth-place finish a year later. Two seasons ago, BSU won the regular season title but lost to Michigan Tech in the CCHA tournament championship and failed to make the NCAA tournament. Last year, Tom Serratore’s squad sputtered to an overall record of 15-18-5, the fourth-worst season of his 25-year coaching career behind the Beaver bench.

UND is nine years removed from its eighth national championship but has made the national tournament in just four of the past eight seasons. That track record – and some early playoff exits – led to a coaching change, and Dane Jackson is now leading the charge.

As I mentioned earlier, North Dakota is in a good position to make the NCAA tournament but cannot afford a setback this weekend or against winless Mercyhurst (0-13-0) on January 2nd and 3rd, 2026.

Turning our attention to this weekend’s action…

A half point per game or better is my benchmark for solid offensive production, and BSU head coach Tom Serratore will have eight players in the lineup who meet that mark: senior forward Adam Flammang (6-14-20), junior forward Oliver Peer (10-9-19), junior forward Kasper Magnussen (6-10-16), freshman forward Max Namestikov (4-7-11), graduate forward Relly Funk (5-5-10), junior forward Connor McClennon (7-2-9), senior forward Kirklan Irey (0-8-8), and freshman defenseman Hudson Thornton (2-8-10).

North Dakota will have TWELVE players in the lineup this weekend who have met same offensive threshold: senior forward Ben Strinden (7-8-15), freshman forward Will Zellers (7-4-11), senior forward Ellis Rickwood (1-7-8), sophomore forward Mac Swanson (4-6-10), freshman forward Cole Reschny (2-9-11), senior forward Dylan James (6-3-9), freshman forward Ollie Josephson (2-4-6), sophomore forward Cody Croal (3-3-6), senior forward Tyler Young (1-1-2 in four games played), junior defenseman Abram Wiebe (2-7-9), freshman defenseman Keaton Verhoeff (4-4-8), and junior defenseman Jake Livanavage (1-8-9).

UND freshman forward Josh Zakreski (1-2-3 in six games played) was having a promising start to his rookie campaign, but he suffered a lower body injury three weeks ago in practice, had surgery, and is expected to be out long-term.

One key area to watch this weekend is the face-off circle. Through twelve games, the Fighting Hawks have won 52.8% of faceoffs, good for 12th in the country. Through their sixteen games, the Beavers are 38th in the nation (49.2%).

UND freshman phenom Cole Reschny has won 100 of his 174 draws (57.5%), while portal transfer Ellis Rickwood (who played the past three years at Clarkson) has won 62.6 percent (119 of 190). Arizona State will counter with junior Oliver Peer (135 of 257, 52.5%) and graduate Reilly Funk (161 of 331, 48.6%).

In the early part of the 2025-2025 campaign, the Fighting Hawks narrowly outpace the Beavers in two key puck possession statistics:

North Dakota: 11th in both Corsi (55.8%) and Fenwick (56.2%)

Bemidji State: 14th in both Corsi (53.2%) and Fenwick (54.3%)

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

To this point in the season, the Green and White have had slightly the better of the specialty teams play. North Dakota is a combined +2, with thirteen power play goals scored (13 for 50, 26.0%, 7th) and ten power play goals allowed (32 of 42, 76.2%, 46th). UND has scored two but allowed three shorthanded goals through the first twelve games of the season.

Tom Serratore’s squad is at a +1, with fourteen power play goals scored (14 for 60, 23.3%, 18th in the country) and thirteen power play goals allowed (50 of 63, 79.4%, 35th). BSU has both scored and allowed two shorthanded goals this season.

Through twelve games, the Green and White have blocked 149 shots (12.4 per game), led by Bennett Zmolek with 23 and Jake Livanavage with 15. Bemidji State has blocked 185 shots in its sixteen games (11.6/game), with senior Mitch Wolfe and freshman Hudson Thornton blocking 24 each.

North Dakota’s defensive corps has provided plenty of production from the back end, already notching nine goals and adding 27 assists in 85 combined games (0.42 points per game).

The nine Bemidji State blueliners to play this season have scored ten goals and added twenty assists in 111 conbined games (0.27 points/game). Aside from freshman Hudson Thornton (2-8-10 in sixteen games played), no Beaver defenseman has collected more than four points.

Senior Maxon Vig – son of Mitch Vig (UND 1994-98) has two goals and one assist in his first sixteen games this season.

For the Fighting Hawks, it’s been two juniors – Jake Livanavage (1-8-9) and Abram Wiebe (2-7-9) – and a freshman (Keaton Verhoeff, with four goals and four assists).

Verhoeff is widely expected to go in the top three of the 2026 NHL Entry Draft, while Livanavage (4-24-28) and Wiebe (4-20-24) were two of UND’s top four point-getters a season ago.

Sophomore defenseman EJ Emery – a first round pick of the New York Rangers in the 2024 NHL Entry Draft – notched the first two goals of his collegiate career last month in a 5-2 win against Minnesota.

Not only have North Dakota’s defensemen been producing offensively, first-year head coach Dane Jackson has also put together an impressive mix of defenders he can trust in any situation. As a unit, UND’s defensemen have allowed just 22.7 shots on goal per game (3rd in the country).

Fighting Hawks’ graduate netminder Gibson Homer (4-4-0, 2.78 goals-against average, .882 save percentage) started each of the first four games of the season but has split each of the past four weekends with freshman Jan Spunar (4-0-0, 1.26 GAA, .939 SV%, one shutout). I would expect Spunar to get the start in Friday’s opener, and, depending on results, the freshman may earn back-to-back starts for the first time in his collegiate career.

Bemidji State Team Profile

Head Coach: Tom Serratore (25th season at BSU, 412-383-106, .516)

National Rankings: NR/NR
NPI Ranking: 24th
KRACH Rating: 102.0 (36th)

This Season: 9-5-2 overall, 4-0-5-1 CCHA (1st)
Last Season: 15-18-5 overall (missed NCAA tournament), 7-11-7-1 CCHA (t-6th)

Team Offense: 3.50 goals scored/game – 16th of 63 teams
Team Defense: 2.56 goals allowed/game – 19th of 63 teams

Power Play: 23.3% (14 of 60) – 18th of 63 teams
Penalty Kill: 79.4% (50 of 63) – 35th of 63 teams

Key Players: : Senior F Adam Flammang (6-14-20), Junior F Oliver Peer (10-9-19), Junior F Kasper Magnussen (6-10-16), Freshman F Max Namestikov (4-7-11), Graduate F Relly Funk (5-5-10), Junior F Connor McClennon (7-2-9), Senior F Kirklan Irey (0-8-8), Freshman D Hudson Thornton (2-8-10), Senior D Mitch Wolfe (2-2-4), Junior G Raythan Robbins (5-1-2, 2.08 GAA, .909 SV%, 1 SO)

North Dakota Team Profile

Head Coach: Dane Jackson (1st season at North Dakota, 8-4-0, .667)

National Rankings: #6/#6
NPI Ranking: 10th
KRACH: 306.9 (9th)

This Season: 8-4-0 overall, 4-1-0-1 NCHC (2nd)
Last Season: 21-15-2 overall (missed NCAA tournament), 11-8-4-1 NCHC (5th)

2025-26 Season Statistics:

Team Offense: 3.83 goals scored/game – 8th of 63 teams

Team Defense: 2.50 goals allowed/game – 15th of 63 teams

Power Play: 26.0% (13 of 50) – 7th of 63 teams

Penalty Kill: 76.2% (32 of 42) – 46th of 63 teams

Key Players: Senior F Ben Strinden (7-8-15), Freshman F Cole Reschny (2-9-11), Freshman F Will Zellers (7-4-11), Senior F Dylan James (6-3-9), Sophomore F Mac Swanson (4-6-10), Freshman F Ollie Josephson (2-4-6), Senior F Ellis Rickwood (1-7-8), Junior D Jake Livanavage (1-8-9), Junior D Abram Wiebe (2-7-9), Freshman D Keaton Verhoeff (4-4-8), Freshman G Jan Spunar (4-0-0, 1.26 GAA, .929 SV%, 1 SO)

By The Numbers

Last Meeting: November 30, 2024 (Grand Forks, ND). Hobie Hedquist allowed three goals on eight shots in just over one period of play before giving way to T.J. Semptimphelter. North Dakota tied the game at 3-3 early in the second period, but neither team could light the lamp after that point.

Last Meeting in Bemidji: November 29. 2024. BSU scored late in period two and added a second tally nearly halfway through the final frame. North Dakota’s Sacha Boisvert netted an extra attacker goal at 16:27 but could not draw even despite putting seventeen shots on goal in the third period. For the game, UND outshot the Beavers 35-22.

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 32-21 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, 37-6-8 (.804), including a record of 26-3-5 (.838) in games played in Grand Forks. Four of BSU’s six wins over North Dakota have come in the past eleven years (October 2014, October 2018, October 2021, and Novembr 2024). Bemidji’s other victories over UND came in 1970 and 2011.

Game News and Notes

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. Sixteen of the past 22 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. Saturday’s rematch will be broadcast live on Midco Sports Network and also available via webcast at NCHC.tv. Puck drop is set for 7:37 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 thirteen years and have proudly raised over $43,000 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

Despite series history, this year’s North Dakota squad is built differently, with scoring depth, excellent goaltending, and a defensive corps capable of taking over games. Friday’s road test will be the tougher of the two, but I’ve got the Fighting Hawks earning two victories this weekend. UND 4-2, 5-1.

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!

#6 North Dakota (7-3-0 overall, 3-0-0-1 NCHC) hosts unranked Arizona State (3-6-1 overall, 1-2-1-0 NCHC) at Ralph Engelstad Arena this weekend. This key league series will mark just the fourth and fifth times that the two teams have ever met on the ice.

Here is a look back at the other three game in series history…

The Fighting Hawks traveled to Tempe in January 2025 for a weekend series and dropped the opener by a final score of 4-1. Saturday’s rematch was a back-and-forth affair highlighted by specialty teams goals, including a shorthanded goal and three power play markers. North Dakota got the better of it by scoring an extra attacker goal with just 28 seconds remaining in regulation and a 3-on-3 tally midway through overtime. UND outshot the Sun Devils 64-55 in the two games.

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. Former 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 the 2026 Hall Of Fame Game will be Michigan State.

North Dakota has righted the ship after an up-and-down to start the season:

St. Thomas (home and away): 6-2 win, 5-2 win

Minnesota (home): 5-2 win, 1-5 loss

Clarkson (away): 2-5 loss, 1-0 win

#3 Minnesota Duluth (home): 3-4 (OT) loss, 5-1 win

Omaha (away): 7-2 win, 4-1 win

Arizona State opened the season by dropping two home games to Penn State (3-5, 2-4). After hosting the Ice Breaker and winning two games (against Notre Dame and Alaska), the Sun Devils have gone just 1-4-1 over the past three weekends (at Augustana, at Miami, and vs. Colorado College).

Prior to last season, 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.

Last season – Arizona State’s first in the NCHC – the Sun Devils went 21-14 2 overall with a league mark of 12-4-3-5, good for second place. After dispatching the Minnesota Duluth Bulldogs in the first round of the conference playoffs, ASU met up with Denver in the NCHC Frozen Faceoff semifinals (St. Paul, Minnesota). The Pioneers would defeat the Sun Devils 4-2 to put an end to an otherwise successful season.

UND is nine years removed from its eighth national championship but has made the national tournament in just four of the past eight seasons. That track record – and some early playoff exits – led to a coaching change, and Dane Jackson is now leading the charge.

In the NCHC preseason poll, UND was picked to finish in third place (behind Western Michigan and Denver), while the Sun Devils were tabbed to end up in fourth.

The NCHC has been the premier hockey conference since its inception, and particularly over the past ten seasons. The nine teams in the league have gone 571-293-86 (.644) in non-conference action since the start of the 2014-15 season and sent fifteen 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, Denver in 2022 and 2024, and Denver and Western Michigan in 2025 over that nine-year stretch (there was no national tournament in 2020). Conference members North Dakota (2016), Denver (2017, 2022, 2024), Minnesota Duluth (2018, 2019), and Western Michigan (2025) have won seven of the last nine national titles.

So far this season, the NCHC has won nearly seventy percent of its non-conference games (39-18-1) and has four teams (#3 Minnesota Duluth, #4 Denver, #6 North Dakota, and #9 Western Michigan) positioned in the top ten in the latest rankings, with Colorado College at #17 and the other four teams in the conference all receiving votes. With similar success in the second half of the season, the league could easily send four or even five teams to this year’s NCAA tournament in March.

North Dakota has four non-conference games remaining on the schedule:

November 28-29: at/vs. Bemidji State (CCHA)

January 2-3: vs. Mercyhurst (Atlantic Hockey)

The Fighting Hawks will also play a second exhibition game – against the U.S. Under-18 Team – next Friday, November 21st. UND opened the season with a 7-0 exhibition victory over the University of Manitoba Bisons.

Turning our attention to this weekend’s action…

A half point per game or better is my benchmark for solid offensive production, and ASU head coach Greg Powers boasts just six players who have contributed at that level: junior forward Bennett Schimek (4-9-13), freshman forward Jack Beck (3-2-5 in four games), senior forward Cruz Lucius (8-4-12), sophomore forward Cullen Potter (1-5-6), junior forward Sean McGurn (2-4-6), and junior forward Kyle Smolen (1-4-5).

Bennett Schimek (Mendota Heights, Minnesota) played his first two seasons at Providence before transferring to Tempe prior to the 2024-2025 campaign. He put up a line of 15-22-37 in 35 games with the Sun Devils last year.

Cruz Lucius (Grant, Minnesota) scored 68 points in 70 games over two seasons with the Badgers (2022-2024) before making the jump to the NCHC. Lucius missed the first half of last year with a torn labrum but has scored ten goals and 22 points in his 29 games with the Sun Devils.

North Dakota will have ELEVEN players in the lineup this weekend who have met same offensive threshold: senior forward Ben Strinden (4-8-12), freshman forward Will Zellers (5-4-9), senior forward Ellis Rickwood (1-5-6), sophomore forward Mac Swanson (4-6-10), freshman forward Cole Reschny (2-8-10), senior forward Dylan James (6-2-8), freshman forward Ollie Josephson (2-4-6), sophomore forward Cody Croal (2-3-5), junior defenseman Abram Wiebe (2-6-8), freshman defenseman Keaton Verhoeff (4-2-6), and junior defenseman Jake Livanavage (1-7-8).

UND freshman forward Josh Zakreski (1-2-3 in six games played) was having a promising start to his rookie campaign, but he suffered a lower body injury two weeks ago in practice, had surgery, and is expected to be out long-term.

One key area to watch this weekend is the face-off circle. Through ten games, the Fighting Hawks have won 52.4% of faceoffs, good for 19th in the country. Through their ten games, the Sun Devils are 12th in the nation (53.5%).

UND freshman phenom Cole Reschny has won 81 of his 136 draws (59.6%), while portal transfer Ellis Rickwood (who played the past three years at Clarkson) has won 61.1 percent (107 of 175). Arizona State will counter with juniors Sean McGurn (94 of 152, 61.8%) and Logan Morrell (93 of 163, 57.1%).

In the early part of the 2025-2025 campaign, the Fighting Hawks have far outpaced the Sun Devils in two key puck possession statistics:

North Dakota: 13th in Corsi (54.2%) and 14th in Fenwick (53.8%)

Arizona State: 38th in Corsi (48.1%) and 37th in Fenwick (48.4%)

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

To this point in the season, the Green and White have had the better of the specialty teams play. North Dakota is a combined +4, with twelve power play goals scored (12 for 44, 27.3%, 11th) and eight power play goals allowed (31 of 39, 79.5%, 33rd). UND has both scored and allowed two shorthanded goals through the first ten games of the season.

Greg Powers’ squad is at a net zero, with twelve power play goals scored (12 for 56, 21.4%, 20th in the country) and eight power play goals allowed (34 of 42, 81.0%, 30th). ASU has not scored a shorthanded goal but has already given up FOUR to opponents.

Through ten games, the Green and White have blocked 120 shots, led by Bennett Zmolek with 20 and Jake Livanavage with 13. Arizona State has blocked an astounding 152 shots in its ten games, with Joel Kjellberg (23), Sam Court (20), and Justin Kipkie (18) leading the charge.

North Dakota’s defensive corps has provided plenty of production from the back end, already notching nine goals and adding 22 assists in 57 combined games (0.44 points per game).

Amazingly, the nine Arizona State blueliners to play this season have yet to score a goal in 66 combined games played, and they have collected just fifteen assists (0.23 points per game). Junior Anthony Dowd leads the way with four helpers, followed by freshman Justin Kipkie and sophomores Joel Kjellberg and Sam Court, who have three apiece.

For the Fighting Hawks, it’s been two juniors – Jake Livanavage (1-7-8) and Abram Wiebe (2-6-8) – and a freshman (Keaton Verhoeff, with four goals and two assists).

Verhoeff is widely expected to go in the top three of the 2026 NHL Entry Draft, while Livanavage (4-24-28) and Wiebe (4-20-24) were two of UND’s top four point-getters a season ago.

Sophomore defenseman EJ Emery – a first round pick of the New York Rangers in the 2024 NHL Entry Draft – notched the first two goals of his collegiate career last month in a 5-2 win against Minnesota.

Not only have North Dakota’s defensemen been producing offensively, first-year head coach Dane Jackson has also put together an impressive mix of defenders he can trust in any situation. As a unit, UND’s defensemen have allowed just 23.6 shots on goal per game (6th in the country).

Fighting Hawks’ graduate netminder Gibson Homer (4-3-0, 2.74 goals-against average, .890 save percentage) – who played his first three seasons at Arizona State – started each of the first four games of the season but has split each of the past three weekends with freshman Jan Spunar (3-0-0, 1.01 GAA, .951 SV%, one shutout). With 34 saves and only one goal allowed last Saturday night at Omaha, Gibson Homer delivered his finest performance of the season. I would expect each goaltender to start a game this weekend.

Here is a quick peek at how North Dakota and Arizona State stack up in various categories:

Goals per game: ASU 2.90 (34th of 63 teams); UND 3.90 (5th)

Goals allowed per game: ASU 3.60 (46th); UND 2.40 (17th)

Shooting percentage: ASU 8.9% (42nd); UND 14.2% (4th)

Save percentage: ASU .899 (34th); UND .898 (38th)

Shots on goal/game: ASU 32.7 (16th); UND 27.5 (45th)

Shots on goal allowed/game: ASU 35.5 (58th); UND 23.6 (6th)

The Sun Devils will host North Dakota on January 23rd and 24th, 2026.

Arizona State Team Profile

Head Coach: Greg Powers (11th season at ASU, 154-168-25, .480)

National Ranking: NR/NR
NPI Ranking: 44th
KRACH: 72.1 (42nd)

This Season: 3-6-1 overall, 1-2-1-0 NCHC (6th of 9 teams)
Last Season: 21-14-2 overall (missed NCAA tournament); 12-4-3-5 NCHC (2nd)

2025-26 Season Statistics:

Team Offense: 2.90 goals scored/game – 34th of 63 teams

Team Defense: 3.60 goals allowed/game – 46th of 64 teams

Power Play: 21.4% (12 of 56) – 20th of 63 teams

Penalty Kill: 81.0% (34 of 42) – 30th of 63 teams

Key Players: Junior F Bennett Schimek (4-9-13), Senior F Cruz Lucius (8-4-12), Sophomore F Cullen Potter (1-5-6), Junior F Sean McGurn (2-4-6), Freshman F Jack Beck (3-2-5 in four games), Junior F Kyle Smolen (1-4-5), Sophomore D Joel Kjellberg (0-3-3), Junior D Anthony Dowd (0-4-4), Senior G Connor Hasley (2-4-0, 3.09 GAA, .910 SV%)

North Dakota Team Profile

Head Coach: Dane Jackson (1st season at North Dakota, 7-3-0, .700)

National Rankings: #6/#6
NPI Ranking: 5th
KRACH: 513.5 (5th)

This Season: 7-3-0 overall, 3-0-0-1 NCHC (1st)
Last Season: 21-15-2 overall (missed NCAA tournament), 11-8-4-1 NCHC (5th)

2025-26 Season Statistics:

Team Offense: 3.90 goals scored/game – 5th of 63 teams

Team Defense: 2.40 goals allowed/game – 17th of 63 teams

Power Play: 27.3% (12 of 44) – 11th of 63 teams

Penalty Kill: 79.5% (31 of 39) – 33rd of 63 teams

Key Players: Senior F Ben Strinden (4-8-12), Freshman F Cole Reschny (2-8-10), Freshman F Will Zellers (5-4-9), Senior F Dylan James (6-2-8), Sophomore F Mac Swanson (4-6-10), Freshman F Ollie Josephson (2-4-6), Senior F Ellis Rickwood (1-5-6), Junior D Jake Livanavage (1-7-8), Junior D Abram Wiebe (2-6-8), Freshman D Keaton Verhoeff (4-2-6), Freshman G Jan Spunar (3-0-0, 1.01 GAA, .951 SV%, 1 SO)

Game News and Notes

Arizona State has been outscored 16-7 in third periods this season, while North Dakota has outscored opponents 16-8 in final frames. 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

Both games will be broadcast live on Midco Sports Network and will also be available via webcast at NCHC.tv. Friday’s opener will also be on TSN5 in Canada. All UND men’s hockey games, home and away, can be heard on stations across the Fighting Hawks Radio Network as well as through the iHeart Radio app. Puck drop is set for 7:07 p.m. Central Time on Friday night and 6:07 p.m. Central Time on Saturday night.

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

Fans should expect Arizona State’s best effort as the Sun Devils visit the Ralph for the first time. ASU has some speed and top and skill not unlike what the Bulldogs put on display at REA two weeks ago. I forsee plenty of scoring opportunities for both sides this weekend, with North Dakota’s forward depth and experience on the blue line playing a major factor in securing two victories. UND 3-2, 5-2.

As always, thank you for reading. I welcome your thoughts, comments, and suggestions.

#8 North Dakota (5-3-0 overall) travels down I-29 this weekend to face Omaha (4-2-0). This series will mark UND’s first conference road test and the league home opener for the Mavericks.

UND has been up-and-down to start the season, with a home-and-home sweep of St. Thomas (6-2, 5-2), a home split with unranked Minnesota (5-2, 1-5), a road split at Clarkson (2-5, 1-0), and a four-point home weekend against #7 Minnesota Duluth (3-4 OT, 5-1).

Omaha has won three straight games, including a pair of NCHC victories at #20 Colorado College last weekend. The Mavericks completed the road sweep at altitude by final scores of 3-2 and 5-4 despite being outshot 91-50 in the series.

UND is nine years removed from its eighth national championship but has made the national tournament in just four of the past eight seasons. That track record – and some early playoff exits – led to a coaching change, and Dane Jackson is now leading the charge.

In the NCHC preseason poll, UND was picked to finish in third place (behind Western Michigan and Denver), while the Mavericks were tabbed to end up in seventh (ahead of only St. Cloud State and Miami). With the addition of St. Thomas to the NCHC (and a new schedule format) beginning in 2026-2027, the Fighting Hawks and Mavericks will no longer be guaranteed four regular-season games each year.

Omaha head coach Mike Gabinet is now in his ninth season behind the bench, and he has only led the Mavericks to two NCAA tournament appearances – once in the COVID-shortened 2020-2021 season and once two years ago. Both of those playoff bids came to an abrupt end at the hands of the Minnesota Golden Gophers, who dispatched Omaha 7-2 in the 2021 West Regional semifinal (Loveland, Colorado) and edged the Mavericks 3-2 in the 2024 Midwest Regional semifinal (Sioux Falls, South Dakota).

Last season, Omaha finished in the top half of the NCHC but was done in by a less-than-stellar non-conference record of 4-6-0, including home losses to Augustana (twice), Lindenwood, and UMass-Lowell and a road sweep at the hands of Minnesota State.

The NCHC has been the premier hockey conference since its inception, and particularly over the past ten seasons. The nine teams in the league have gone 571-292-86 (.647) in non-conference action since the start of the 2014-15 season and sent fifteen 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, Denver in 2022 and 2024, and Denver and Western Michigan in 2025 over that nine-year stretch (there was no national tournament in 2020). Conference members North Dakota (2016), Denver (2017, 2022, 2024), Minnesota Duluth (2018, 2019), and Western Michigan (2025) have won seven of the last nine national titles.

So far this season, the NCHC has won nearly seventy percent of its non-conference games (39-17-1) and has four teams (#4 Western Michigan, #7 Minnesota Duluth, #8 North Dakota, and #9 Denver) positioned in the top ten in the latest rankings, with the other five teams in the conference all receiving votes. With similar success in the second half of the season, the league could easily send four or even five teams to this year’s NCAA tournament in March.

North Dakota has four non-conference games remaining on the schedule:

November 28-29: at/vs. Bemidji State (CCHA)

January 2-3: vs. Mercyhurst (Atlantic Hockey)

The Fighting Hawks will also play a second exhibition game – against the U.S. Under-18 Team – on November 21st. UND opened the season with a 7-0 exhibition victory over the University of Manitoba Bisons.

Last season, the Fighting Hawks and Mavericks ended the regular season by splitting a pair of games at Ralph Engelstad Arena. The following weekend – with the season on the line for both teams – UND swept a pair of games at Omaha by identical 3-2 scores. North Dakota’s season would end six days later at the hands of eventual national champion Western Michigan at the last-ever NCHC Frozen Faceoff in St. Paul, Minnesota, a 4-2 defeat that would cost former head coach Brad Berry his job.

On the final weekend of the 2022-2023 regular season, North Dakota swept Omaha (5-4 OT, 2-1). The Fighting Hawks dropped Game One of the playoff series in Omaha by a final score of 2-1 before winning two straight (3-1, 5-2) and advancing to the NCHC Frozen Faceoff in St. Paul, Minnesota.

On January 12th and 13th, 2024, UND took four of six league points in a home series against Omaha, falling 5-4 in overtime on Friday night before rebounding for a 3-1 regulation win in Saturday’s rematch. The disappointing thing about the series opener is that North Dakota led 3-1 after the first period. The Mavericks won the middle frame decisively, however, outscoring the homestanding Hawks 3-1. Both teams scored twice with the man advantage. Omaha scored just 34 seconds into the 3-on-3 overtime session to grab the extra league point.

Saturday’s finale was a bit more of a defensive struggle, with Omaha tying the game at one goal apiece just 49 seconds into the third period. UND’s Dylan James scored the game-winner three minutes later, and former Maverick Cameron Berg iced the game with an empty-net goal in the final thirty seconds. North Dakota outshot Omaha 30-23 on Saturday night and 69-47 on the weekend.

Turning our attention to this weekend…

A half-point per game or better is my benchmark for solid offensive production, and Mike Gabinet’s squad has eleven players who meet that threshold: sophomore forward Maxime Pellerin (5-3-8), freshman forward Luke Woodworth (3-4-7), freshman forward Marcus Nguyen (3-3-6), sophomore forward Sean Tschigerl (2-3-5), sophomore forward Brett Hyland (1-2-3), sophomore forward Trevor Wong (0-3-3), senior forward Tyler Rollwagen (3-0-3), freshman forward Jeremy Loranger (0-3-3), sophomore forward Chase LaPinta (0-1-1 in two games), senior defenseman Griffin Ludtke (0-7-7), and junior defenseman Aidan de la Gorgendiere (2-4-6).

North Dakota will also have eleven players in the lineup this weekend who have met that threshold: senior forward Ben Strinden (2-7-9), freshman forward Will Zellers (3-3-6), senior forward Ellis Rickwood (1-5-6), sophomore forward Mac Swanson (3-3-6), freshman forward Cole Reschny (1-4-5), senior forward Dylan James (3-2-5), freshman forward Ollie Josephson (2-3-5), sophomore forward Cade Littler (1-2-3), junior defenseman Abram Wiebe (2-4-6), freshman defenseman Keaton Verhoeff (4-1-5), and junior defenseman Jake Livanavage (1-3-4).

Ben Strinden was awarded the NCHC Forward of the Week after scoring the game-tying goal with 71 seconds remaining last Friday night and notching four assists in Saturday’s 5-1 victory.

Ollie Josephson was awarded the NCHC Rookie of the Week after tallying a goal and an assist each night in last weekend’s home series against Duluth.

UND freshman forward Josh Zakreski (1-2-3 in six games played) was having a promising start to his rookie campaign, but he suffered a lower body injury last week in practice, had surgery, and is expected to be out long-term.

One key area to watch this weekend is the face-off circle. Through eight games, the Fighting Hawks have won 53.3% of faceoffs, good for 13th in the country. Through their six games, the Mavericks are 52nd in the nation (46.6%).

UND freshman phenom Cole Reschny has won 64 of his 105 draws (61.0%), while portal transfer Ellis Rickwood (who played the past three years at Clarkson) has won 62.6 percent (92 of 147). For the Mavericks, no one has been all that effective, with freshman Luke Woodworth (39 of 80, 48.8%), sophomore Sean Tschigerl (37 of 78, 47.4%), and senior Tyler Rollwagen (32 of 64, 50.0%) sharing the load.

Not only will North Dakota start with the puck more often than not in this series, they will also hold on to it. In the early part of the 2025-2025 campaign, the Fighting Hawks have far outpaced the Mavericks in two key puck possession statistics:

North Dakota: 11th in both Corsi (56.7%) and Fenwick (56.1%)

Omaha: 58th in Corsi (42.8%) and 54th in Fenwick (43.1%)

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

To this point in the season, the Green and White have had the better of the specialty teams play. North Dakota is a combined +2, with eight power play goals scored (8 for 34, 23.5%, 21st) and six power play goals allowed (26 of 32, 81.3%, 26th). UND has scored and allowed two shorthanded goals through the first eight games of the season.

Mike Gabinet’s squad is at a net zero, with six power play goals scored (6 for 22, 27.3%, 13th in the country) and seven power play goals allowed (18 of 25, 72.0%, 51st). Omaha has also scored one shorthanded goal while not allowing one to opponents.

Through eight games, the Green and White have blocked 101 shots (12.6 per game), led by Bennett Zmolek with 18. Omaha has blocked 65 shots in its six games (10.8/game), with Marc Ljoie (9), Jacob Guevin (8), and Marcus Broberg (8) leading the charge.

North Dakota’s defensive corps has provided plenty of production from the back end, already notching nine goals and adding fourteen assists in 57 combined games (0.40 points per game).

Not to be outdone, Omaha’s blueliners have scored five goals and fifteen assists in 39 combined games (0.51 points/game), led by senior Griffin Ludtke (0-7-7) and junior Aidan de la Gorgendiere (2-4-6). No other Maverick blueliner has more than two points this season.

For the Fighting Hawks, it’s been two juniors – Jake Livanavage (1-3-4) and Abram Wiebe (2-4-6) – and a freshman (Keaton Verhoeff, with four goals and an assist).

Verhoeff is widely expected to go in the top three of the 2026 NHL Entry Draft, while Livanavage (4-24-28) and Wiebe (4-20-24) were two of UND’s top four point-getters a season ago.

Sophomore defenseman EJ Emery – a first round pick of the New York Rangers in the 2024 NHL Entry Draft – notched the first two goals of his collegiate career three weeks ago in a 5-2 win against Minnesota.

Not only have North Dakota’s defensemen been producing offensively, first-year head coach Dane Jackson has also put together an impressive mix of defenders he can trust in any situation. As a unit, UND’s defensemen have allowed just 22.1 shots on goal per game (4th in the country).

Fighting Hawks’ graduate netminder Gibson Homer (3-3-0, 3.03 goals-against average, .870 save percentage) started each of the first four games of the season but has split each of the past two weekends with freshman Jan Spunar (2-0-0, 0.50 GAA, .973 SV%, one shutout). I would expect Spunar to get the start in Friday’s opener against Omaha.

After this weekend, UND will host the unranked Arizona State Sun Devils (3-5-0) at Ralph Engelstad Arena on November 14th and 15th.

Here is a quick peek at how North Dakota and Omaha stack up in various categories:

Goals per game: Omaha 4.00 (7th of 63 teams); UND 3.50 (17th)

Goals allowed per game: Omaha 3.17 (41st); UND 2.63 (21st)

Shooting percentage: Omaha 14.7% (3rd); UND 12.5% (12th)

Save percentage: Omaha .916 (19th); UND .881 (51st)

Shots on goal/game: Omaha 27.2 (46th); UND 28.0 (38th)

Shots on goal allowed/game: Omaha 37.8 (59th); UND 22.1 (4th)

Power play efficiency: Omaha 27.3% (13th); UND 23.5% (21st)

Penalty kill efficiency: Omaha 72.0% (51st); UND 81.3% (26th)

Faceoff win percentage: Omaha 46.6% (52nd); UND 53.3% (13th)

Corsi: Omaha 42.8% (58th); UND 56.7% (11th)

Fenwick: Omaha 43.1% (54th); UND 56.1% (11th)

Omaha Team Profile

Head Coach: Mike Gabinet (9th season at UNO, 139-133-19, .510)

National Rankings: #NR/NR

This Season: 4-2-0 overall, 2-0-0-0 NCHC (1st)
Last Season: 18-17-1 overall (missed NCAA tournament), 13-8-2-1 NCHC (4th)

Team Offense: 4.00 goals scored/game – 7th of 63 teams
Team Defense: 3.17 goals allowed/game – 41st of 63 teams

Power Play: 27.3% (6 of 22)– 13th of 63 teams
Penalty Kill: 72.0% (18 of 25)– 51st of 63 teams

Key Players: Sophomore F Maxime Pellerin (5-3-8), Freshman F Luke Woodworth (3-4-7), Freshman F Marcus Nguyen (3-3-6), Sophomore F Sean Tschigerl (2-3-5), Senior F Tyler Rollwagen (3-0-3), Senior D Griffin Ludtke (0-7-7), Junior D Aidan de la Gorgendiere (2-4-6), Senior G Simon Latkoczy (3-2-0, 2.82 GAA, .925 SV%)

North Dakota Team Profile

Head Coach: Dane Jackson (1st season at North Dakota, 5-3-0, .625)

National Rankings: #8/#8

This Season: 5-3-0 overall, 1-0-0-1 NCHC (2nd)
Last Season: 21-15-2 overall (missed NCAA tournament), 11-8-4-1 NCHC (5th)

2025-26 Season Statistics:

Team Offense: 3.50 goals scored/game – 17th of 63 teams

Team Defense: 2.63 goals allowed/game – 21st of 63 teams

Power Play: 23.5% (8 of 34) – 21st of 63 teams

Penalty Kill: 81.3% (26 of 32) – 26th of 63 teams

Key Players: Senior F Dylan James (3-2-5), Senior F Ellis Rickwood (1-5-6), Sophomore F Mac Swanson (3-3-6), Senior F Ben Strinden (2-7-9), Freshman F Ollie Josephson (2-3-5), Freshman F Cole Reschny (1-4-5), Freshman F Will Zellers (3-3-6), Junior D Jake Livanavage (1-3-4), Junior D Abram Wiebe (2-4-6), Freshman D Keaton Verhoeff (4-1-5), Freshman G Jan Spunar (2-0-0, 0.50 GAA, .973 SV%, 1 SO)

By The Numbers

Last Meeting: March 15th, 2025 (Omaha, Nebraska). For the second night in a row, the visiting Hawks narrowly edged their hosts by a final score of 3-2. On this night, it was a furious third-period comeback after Omaha had built a 2-0 lead. North Dakota defenseman Jayden Jubenvill netted the game-winner with just 96 seconds remaining in the hockey game to propel the Green and White to the NCHC Frozen Faceoff. UND scored its three goals on just five shots in the final frame.

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: Each side has won five of the last ten contests, with North Dakota winning three of the four games played last season. Omaha has outscored North Dakota 33-30 over the past ten games.

All-Time: UND leads the all-time series 39-23-2 (.625), including a record of 20-11-1 (.641) in Omaha. The teams first met on November 19, 2010.

Game News and Notes

Eleven seasons ago, both North Dakota and Omaha advanced to the NCAA 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. In team history, the Mavericks have made the national tournament five times (2006, 2011, 2015, 2021, 2024), with a Frozen Four appearance under head coach Dean Blais in 2015. North Dakota’s Brad Berry is 28-17-1 (.620) in his head coaching career against Omaha. In 30 of the past 37 contests in this series, the winning team is the one which scores the first goal. This season, North Dakota is 3-1-0 (.750) when scoring first; Omaha, 2-1-0 (.667). UND’s Dylan James has six goals and nine points in his sixteen career games against the Mavericks.

The Prediction

Despite Omaha’s sweep at Colorado College last weekend, the underlying metrics seem to favor North Dakota. UND’s third-period comeback against Duluth last Friday night – coupled with a workmanlike 5-1 victory in the rematch – has Dane Jackson’s squad trending in the right direction. The Fighting Hawks are deeper on the blueline and more talented up front, and that bodes well for the Green and White. Expect one close contest in this one, but I’ve got North Dakota emerging from the weekend with two league wins. UND 3-2, 5-3.

Broadcast Information

Both games this weekend will be available online 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. Puck drop is set for 7:00 p.m. Central Time each night.

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 thoughts, comments, and suggestions.

In just seven days, UND has moved from facing a bitter rival to squaring off against an unfamiliar opponent.

In the spirit of last week’s trip down memory lane, here’s a glance at all seven hockey games played between UND and the Clarkson Golden Knights…

March 19th and 20th, 1982 (Grand Forks, ND): North Dakota hosts the Golden Knights in the quarterfinals of the NCAA tournament. At that time, matchups were two games, total goals. UND beat Clarkson by five goals (5-1, 2-1) to advance to the Frozen Four. With victories over Northeastern (6-2) and Wisconsin (5-2), the Fighting Sioux earned the fourth national championship in program history.

November 6th and 7th, 1998 (Grand Forks, ND): The Green and White swept Clarkson by final scores of 6-2 and 5-1. This edition of North Dakota hockey (32-6-2 overall) was a favorite to win the national championship but fell one game short of the Frozen Four, losing 3-1 to Boston College.

October 29th and 30th, 1999 (Potsdam, NY): In the only two games ever played between the teams in New York, North Dakota won 4-1 and 6-5. At one point in the rematch, the Fighting Sioux led 5-2. This UND team would go on to win the program’s seventh national title just four months later.

January 7th, 2012 (Winnipeg, MAN): In its first-ever destination game, North Dakota came back to defeat Clarkson 3-1 behind two goals from Carter Rowney. UND’s original opponent – the Dean Blais-led Omaha Mavericks – had to cancel due to a scheduling challenge.

Thus far this season, unranked Clarkson (1-3-0) has lost at Canisius by a score of 3-1, split at #5 Penn State (6-4, 2-5), and dropped a road game at RIT (6-2).

#8 North Dakota is off to a promising start, with a home-and-home sweep of St. Thomas (6-2, 5-2) and a home split with #12 Minnesota (5-2, 1-5). UND is nine years removed from its eighth national championship but has made the national tournament in just four of the past eight seasons. That track record – and some early playoff exits – led to a coaching change, and Dane Jackson is now leading the charge.

Clarkson has been competing at the Division I level for over a century, but two head coaches (and their corresponding periods of success) stand out:

The Len Ceglarski era (1958-1972): Four NCAA tournament appearances, four Frozen Four berths, and three national runner-up finishes (1962, 1966, and 1970). In those three most successful seasons, Ceglarski had a combined head coaching record of 70-14-1 (.829).

The Mark Morris era (1988-2002): Nine NCAA tournament appearances in ten seasons and a Frozen Four berth in 1991. Morris was let go after missing three consecutive national tourneys (2000-02) and starting off the 2002-03 season with three straight defeats.

Since 1999, the Golden Knights have only advanced to the NCAA tourney five times, with a 1-4 record in those games.

Their lone national tournament victory in the past 25 seasons came over St. Cloud State in the 2008 East Regional semifinal. The 2020 tournament was cancelled.

North Dakota has been relevant in every decade, with head coaches Bob May, Barry Thorndycraft, John “Gino” Gasparini, Dean Blais, and Brad Berry all lifting college hockey’s most coveted trophy.

Non-conference games are critical in determining the sixteen teams for the NCAA tournament, and this weekend is North Dakota’s next opportunity to bolster their resume. After these two games against Clarkson (a member of the ECAC), UND will have four non-conference games remaining on the schedule:

November 28-29: at/vs. Bemidji State (CCHA)
January 2-3: vs. Mercyhurst (Atlantic Hockey)

The Fighting Hawks will also play a second exhibition game – against the U.S. Under-18 Team – on November 21st. UND opened the season with a 7-0 exhibition victory over the University of Manitoba Bisons.

In interconference games so far this season, the Big Ten (24-8-3, .729) and the NCHC (28-13-1, .679) have been leading the charge, with the ECAC (11-15-3, .431) lagging behind. The only NCHC/ECAC matchup so far this season has been RPI vs. Miami, with the RedHawks of the NCHC sweeping their ECAC hosts (5-3, 5-0).

One key area to watch this weekend is the face-off circle. Through four games, the Fighting Hawks have won 51.5% of faceoffs, good for 20th in the country. Clarkson has won just 48.6% (36th). UND freshman phenom Cole Reschny has won 35 of his 54 draws (64.8%), while portal transfer Ellis Rickwood (who played the past three years at Clarkson) has won 60 percent (42 of 70). For the Golden Knights, freshman Connyr Hellyer (25 of 46, 54.3%) has been the most effective, although fellow rookie Mael St-denis (22 of 47, 46.8%) and graduate student Ryan Bottrill (19 of 49, 38.8%) have seen more action in the dot.

To this point in the season, North Dakota has had the better of the specialty teams play. The Green and White have been a combined +2, with five power play goals scored (5 for 17, 29.4%, 4th in the country) and three power play goals allowed (15 of 18, 83.3%, 22nd). Clarkson is a minus-four, with ZERO power play goals scored on fourteen man-advantage opportunities (0.0%, 52nd in the country), and four power play goals allowed (16 for 20, 80.0%, 29th). Both teams have scored and allowed one shorthanded goal through the first four games of the season.

North Dakota’s defensive corps has provided plenty of production from the back end, already notching six goals and adding eight assists in 29 combined games (0.48 points per game).

Clarkson’s blueliners have scored two goals and added five assists in 26 combined games (0.27 points/game), led by senior Tristan Sarsland and freshman Bryce Sookro, who each have two assists in four games played.

For the Fighting Hawks, it’s been two juniors – Jake Livanavage (1-2-3) and Abram Wiebe (1-2-3) – and a freshman (Keaton Verhoeff, with two goals and an assist).

Verhoeff is widely expected to go in the top three of the 2026 NHL Entry Draft, while Livanavage (4-24-28) and Wiebe (4-20-24) were two of UND’s top four point-getters a season ago.

Sophomore defenseman EJ Emery – a first round pick of the New York Rangers in the 2024 NHL Entry Draft – notched the first two goals of his collegiate career last Friday night in a 5-2 win against Minnesota.

Not only have North Dakota’s defensemen been producing offensively, first-year head coach Dane Jackson has also put together an impressive mix of defenders he can trust in any situation.

Last season, Clarkson advanced to the ECAC playoff championship game but could not secure an NCAA tournament bid, falling to Cornell by a final score of 3-1 despite outshooting the Big Red 31-24.

Clarkson Team Profile

Head Coach: J.F. Houle (2nd season at Clarkson, 25-13-3, .616)
National Rankings: NR/NR

This Season: 1-3-0 overall, 0-0-0-0 ECAC
Last Season: 24-12-3 overall, 13-5-2-2 ECAC (2nd of 12 teams)

2025-26 Season Statistics:

Team Offense: 2.75 goals scored/game – 35th of 57 teams
Team Defense: 4.50 goals allowed/game – 51st of 57 teams

Power Play: 0.0% (0 of 14) – 52nd of 57 teams
Penalty Kill: 80.0% (16 of 20) – 29th of 57 teams

Key Players: Graduate F Ryan Bottrill (0-4-4), Freshman F Adrian Misaljevic (2-1-3), Senior F Erik Bargholtz (2-1-3), Junior F Talon Sigurdson (1-1-2), Freshman D Bryce Sookro (0-2-2), Senior D Tristan Sarsland (0-2-2), Sophomore G Shane Soderwall (1-2-0, 3.73 GAA, .892 SV%)

North Dakota Team Profile

Head Coach: Dane Jackson (1st season at North Dakota)
National Rankings: #8/#8

This Season: 3-1-0 overall, 0-0-0-0 NCHC
Last Season: 21-15-2 overall (missed NCAA tournament), 11-8-4-1 NCHC (5th)

2025-26 Season Statistics:

Team Offense: 4.25 goals scored/game – 4th of 57 teams
Team Defense: 2.75 goals allowed/game – 24th of 57 teams

Power Play: 29.4% (5 of 17) – 7th of 57 teams
Penalty Kill: 83.3% (15 of 18) – 22nd of 57 teams

Key Players: Senior F Dylan James (3-2-5), Senior F Ellis Rickwood (1-5-6), Sophomore F Mac Swanson (2-1-3), Senior F Ben Strinden (0-3-3), Sophomore F Cade Littler (1-2-3), Freshman F Cole Reschny (1-2-3), Freshman F Will Zellers (1-2-3), Freshman F Josh Zakreski (1-2-3), Junior D Jake Livanavage (1-2-3), Junior D Abram Wiebe (1-2-3), Freshman D Keaton Verhoeff (2-1-3), Senior G Gibson Homer (3-1-0, 2.52 GAA, .885 SV%)

By The Numbers

Last Meeting: January 7th, 2012 (Winnipeg, MAN). In the first-ever “destination game”, North Dakota rallied back from a 1-0 first-period deficit thanks to a pair of goals by Carter Rowney in the middle frame. UND would add a Mark Macmillan insurance goal with 62 seconds remaining before the Golden Knights could pull netminder Paul Karpowich for an extra attacker. Fans of the Green and White may remember this team – led by Brock Nelson, Danny Kristo, Corban Knight, Ben Blood, Dillon Simpson, Aaron Dell, and captain Mario Lamoureux – as the group that pulled off a furious comeback against the Minnesota Golden Gophers in the WCHA Final Five “Timeout Game” at Xcel Energy Center two months later.

Last Meeting in Potsdam: October 30th, 1999. North Dakota built a 5-2 lead and held on for a 6-5 victory. One night earlier, UND defeated Clarkson 4-1. This UND team would go on to win the program’s seventh national title just four months later.

Most Important Meeting: March 19th and 20th, 1982 (Grand Forks, ND). North Dakota hosted the Golden Knights in the quarterfinals of the NCAA tournament. At that time, matchups were two games, total goals. UND beat Clarkson by five goals (5-1, 2-1) to advance to the Frozen Four. With victories over Northeastern (6-2) and Wisconsin (5-2), the Fighting Sioux earned the program’s fourth national championship.

All-Time Series: North Dakota is a perfect 7-0-0 against Clarkson in program history. The teams first met in 1982.

Game News and Notes

Through the first four games of the season, twelve different UND players have scored a goal. North Dakota senior forward Tyler Young, who has yet to suit up in an official game for the Fighting Hawks, notched an assist in two games against Clarkson while playing for Merrimack. Young spent his first three seasons with the Warriors before transferring to UND. Fellow senior Ellis Rickwood (1-5-6 in four games with North Dakota) spent his first three seasons at Clarkson, putting up a line of 10-25-35 in 39 games with the Golden Knights last year. Cheel Arena (Potsdam, NY) has an official seating capacity of 3000 with room for up to 800 more if fans choose to stand. Clarkson will make a return trip to Grand Forks for a two-game series during the 2026-2027 season.

Broadcast Information

Both games will be broadcast live on ESPN+ and also available in Canada on TSN+. All UND men’s hockey games (home and away) can be heard on 96.1 FM and on stations across the UND Sports Network (as well as through the iHeart Radio app). Puck drop is set for 6:00 p.m. Central Time each night.

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

UND should come out of this series with two victories, but it won’t be easy. I expect a much closer game on Saturday night after the Green and White fill the net with pucks in Friday’s opener. Even on the road, North Dakota has too many advantages to drop a game here. UND 6-1, 4-2.

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!

Quite simply, North Dakota vs. Minnesota is a hockey rivalry unlike any other.

Before we dig into this weekend’s matchup, let’s take a trip down memory lane and hear from fans on both sides of the rivalry.

#8 North Dakota (2-0-0) is nine years removed from its eighth national championship but has made the national tournament in just four of the past eight seasons. That track record – and some early playoff exits – led to a coaching change, and Dane Jackson is now leading the charge.

#13 Minnesota (1-2-1) has advanced to the NCAAs in each of the past five seasons but is stuck on five national titles, the most recent in 2002 and 2003.

More to the point…

The Golden Gophers played from 1947-1973 without a title (26 seasons).

Head coach Herb Brooks led Minnesota to three NCAA championships in a six year stretch (1974, 1976, and 1979).

The Golden Gophers then played from 1979-2001 without a title (22 seasons).

Head coach Don Lucia won back-to-back titles in 2002 and 2003.

This year will mark the 23rd anniversary of Minnesota’s most recent NCAA crown.

North Dakota has been relevant in every decade, with head coaches Bob May, Barry Thorndycraft, John “Gino” Gasparini, Dean Blais, and Brad Berry all lifting college hockey’s most coveted trophy.

Here is a closer look at the thirteen combined national titles won by these two storied programs.

Despite only nine tournament victories since Minnesota’s last title (UND has 22 in that same span), Gophers’ head coach Don Lucia was inexplicably given a two-year extension that was supposed to keep him behind the bench through the 2018-19 campaign. After the Gophers sputtered to a 19-17-2 record eight seasons ago. Lucia was replaced by former St. Cloud State bench boss Bob Motzko.

Motzko, who guided St. Cloud State to the national tournament eight times in his thirteen seasons behind the SCSU bench, only managed an overall NCAA tourney record of 5-8 and one Frozen Four appearance with the Huskies. With the Gophers, his tournament results have been better but ultimately just as disappointing, with a record of 7-5, two Frozen Fours, and an overtime loss to Quinnipiac in the 2023 national title game.

This weekend’s matchup will mark the first of four consecutive seasons in which these two bitter rivals will compete. Minnesota will host North Dakota on October 23rd and 24th, 2026. The 2026-27 (Grand Forks) and 2027-28 (Minneapolis) games have not been scheduled yet.

Non-conference games are critical in determining the sixteen teams for the NCAA tournament, and this weekend is North Dakota’s next opportunity to bolster their resume. After these two games against Minnesota (a member of the Big Ten), UND will have six non-conference games remaining on the schedule:

October 24-25: at Clarkson (ECAC)
November 28-29: at/vs. Bemidji State (CCHA)
January 2-3: vs. Mercyhurst (Atlantic Hockey)

The Fighting Hawks will also play a second exhibition game – against the U.S. Under-18 Team – on November 21st. UND opened the season with a 7-0 exhibition victory over the University of Manitoba Bisons.

Minnesota can no longer lay claim to having a roster made up exclusively of the State of Hockey’s “Pride On Ice”, with two players hailing from Alberta (freshman defenseman Finn McLaughlin is from Canmore and junior netminder Nathan Airey is from Cochrane). Sophomore forward Erik Pahlsson is from Sweden, and three other U.S. states are also represented: Michigan (Luca Di Pasquo), New Jersey (John Whipple), and Pennsylvania (LJ Mooney).

UND boasts two North Dakotans on its roster along with six players from Minnesota.

Last weekend, North Dakota swept St. Thomas (6-2 at home; 5-2 on the road). Minnesota managed just a loss and a tie at home against #9 Boston College. The previous weekend, the Golden Gophers split at home against unranked Michigan Tech.

One key area to watch this weekend is the face-off circle. Through two games, the Fighting Hawks have won 51.3% of faceoffs, while Minnesota clocks in at just 49.4%. Freshman phenom Cole Reschny has won 23 of his 30 draws (76.7%), while portal transfer Ellis Rickwood (who played the past three years at Clarkson) has won 57.1 percent (16 of 28). For the Gophers, portal transfer Tanner Ludtke (who spent the last two seasons at Omaha) has been the most efficient, winning 40 of 72 (55.6%).

To this point in the season, North Dakota has had the better of the specialty teams play. The Green and White have been a combined +2, with four power play goals scored (4 for 6, 66.7%, best in the country) and two power play goals allowed (7 of 9, 77.8%). Minnesota has scored just once on eight man advantage opportunities (12.5%, 40th) and allowed two power play goals on six chances (66.7%) for a minus-1. Neither team has scored or allowed a shorthanded goal to this point of the season.

In this rivalry, both teams have historically had plenty of firepower up front, with scoring from the back end often proving to be the difference. This weekend, the two groups of defensemen are a study in contrast, with Minnesota’s blueliners managing just eight assists in 29 games played (0.28 points per game) while North Dakota’s defensive corps have scored three goals and added seven assists for ten points in just fourteen games played (0.71 points per game).

Leading the way for Minnesota from the back end are senior Luke Mittelstadt (0-4-4) and sophomore Leo Gruba (0-2-2).

For the Fighting Hawks, it’s been two juniors – Jake Livanavage (1-2-3) and Abram Wiebe (1-1-2) – and a freshman (Keaton Verhoeff, with a goal and an assist).

Verhoeff is widely expected to go in the top three of the 2026 NHL Entry Draft, while Livanavage (4-24-28) and Wiebe (4-20-24) were two of UND’s top four point-getters a season ago.

Not only have North Dakota’s defensemen been producing offensively, first-year head coach Dane Jackson has also put together an impressive mix of defenders he can trust in any situation.

Over the next three weekends, the Gophers are running through the rivalry gauntlet, with upcoming games against Minnesota Duluth (home, October 24 and 25) and Wisconsin (road, October 30 and November 1) on the docket.

Minnesota Team Profile

Head Coach: Bob Motzko (8th season at Minnesota, 162-84-22, .646)
National Rankings: #13/#14

This Season: 1-2-1 overall, 0-0-0-0 Big Ten
Last Season: 25-11-4 (West Regional semifinalist), 14-3-1-6 Big Ten (2nd of 7 teams)

2025-26 Season Statistics:

Team Offense: 3.00 goals scored/game – 29th of 57 teams
Team Defense: 3.30 goals allowed/game – 33rd of 57 teams

Power Play: 12.5% (1 of 8) – 40th of 57 teams
Penalty Kill: 66.7% (4 of 6) – 49th of 57 teams

Key Players: Sophomore F Brodie Ziemer (3-1-4), Senior F Brody Lamb (3-1-4), Junior F Jimmy Clark (0-3-3), Freshman F LJ Mooney (1-2-3), Sophomore F Beckett Hendrickson (1-2-3), Sophomore F Erik Pahlsson (2-0-2), Senior D Luke Mittelstadt (0-4-4), Sophomore D Leo Gruba (0-2-2), Junior G Nathan Airey (1-1-1, 2.29 GAA, .924 SV%)

North Dakota Team Profile

Head Coach: Dane Jackson (1st season at North Dakota)
National Rankings: #8/#8

This Season: 2-0-0 overall, 0-0-0-0 NCHC
Last Season: 21-15-2 overall (missed NCAA tournament), 11-8-4-1 NCHC (5th)

2025-26 Season Statistics:

Team Offense: 5.50 goals scored/game – 2nd of 57 teams
Team Defense: 2.00 goals allowed/game – 11th of 57 teams

Power Play: 66.7% (4 of 6) – 1st of 57 teams
Penalty Kill: 77.8% (7 of 9) – 39th of 57 teams

Key Players: Senior F Dylan James (1-1-2), Sophomore F Mac Swanson (1-1-2), Senior F Ben Strinden (0-0-2), Sophomore F Cade Littler (1-2-3), Freshman F Cole Reschny (1-2-2), Freshman F Will Zellers (1-1-2), Freshman F Josh Zakreski (1-2-3), Junior D Jake Livanavage (1-2-3), Junior D Abram Wiebe (1-1-2), Freshman D Keaton Verhoeff (1-1-2), Senior G Gibson Homer (2-0-0, 2.00 GAA, .923 SV%)

By The Numbers

Last Meeting: October 21, 2023 (Grand Forks, ND). One night after the Gophers blanked their hosts by a final score of 4-0, it was the home team’s turn for victory. Over the first two periods of play, UND outshot Minnesota 24-12 but could manage only a Jayden Perron goal early in the second period. Less than one minute into the final frame, North Dakota’s Jake Livanavage doubled the lead on a goal that proved necessary, as Jakon Nelson later cut the lead in half on his second tally of the season. Minnesota would pull Justen Close with just over a minute remaining but could not find the equalizer.

A Recent Memory: October 22, 2022 (Minneapolis, MN). Near the end of a furious first period that saw the home team put fifteen pucks on net, the scoreboard still showed two zeroes. North Dakota defenseman Tyler Kleven crushed a Gopher, resulting in a five-minute major for contact to the head and a game misconduct. Minnesota’s Matthew Knies scored a power play goal just 48 seconds into the second period, and when Rhett pitlick doubled the lead just eight minutes later, it appeared that the rout was on. Except… Pitlick decided to launch his stick into the crowd. And was assessed a ten-minute misconduct. Between that moment and the end of the second period, the Gophers took 21 more minutes in penalties (to North Dakota’s two), and UND scored three power play goals (along with an even-strength tally by captain Mark Senden). Connor Kurth would get the home team back within one with just 34 seconds remaining in the middle frame. Minnesota freshman forward Jimmy Snuggerud brought his team even early in the third, but Senden capped the night with a game-winning goal just under halfway through the 3-on-3 overtime session. One night earlier, the Gophers came back to win on a late extra-attacker goal at 18:36 of the third period and an overtime winner just 21 seconds into the fourth frame.

What Happens In Vegas: October 27, 2018 (Las Vegas, NV). The “Duel in the Desert” left #5 Minnesota feeling high and dry as #17 North Dakota played the Gophers even through a scoreless opening period before outshooting their guests 25-12 over the final forty minutes of play. UND’s Colton Poolman scored two goals for the Fighting Hawks, while fellow blueliner Hayden Shaw assisted on all three goals in a 3-1 North Dakota victory. Attendance was recorded as 412 Gopher fans and 7000 fans of the Green and White.

Most Important Meeting: March 24, 1979 (Detroit, MI). North Dakota and Minnesota met to decide the national championship, and the Gophers prevailed, 4-3. Neal Broten scored the game-winning goal for the U of M, and Steve Janaszak was named the Most Outstanding Player of the tournament.

All-Time Series: Minnesota leads the all-time series by a six-game margin, 143-137-16 (.510), although North Dakota holds a 74-58-8 (.557) advantage in games played in Grand Forks. The teams first met in 1948.

Last Ten: North Dakota has gone 7-3-0 in the last ten meetings between the schools, outscoring Minnesota 32-25 in those games.

Game News and Notes

Eleven different UND players scored a goal in last weekend’s two-game sweep (6-2, 5-2) over St. Thomas. Since the B1G Hockey Conference was formed following the 2012-2013 season, teams in the NCHC have combined for seven national titles (UND 2016, DU 2017, UMD 2018 and 2019, DU 2022 and 2024, WMU 2025). The B1G? Zero. North Dakota’s 2019 Thanksgiving visit to Minneapolis ended in a sweep for the Fighting Hawks (9-3, 3-2), the first since January 2007. In an effort to alleviate parking concerns, Minnesota fans are asked to park at 3M Arena At Mariucci and walk to the games. 8 > 5.

Broadcast Information

Both games will be broadcast live on Midco Sports Network and are also available via webcast at NCHC.tv. All UND men’s hockey games (home and away) can be heard on 96.1 FM and on stations across the UND Sports Network (as well as through the iHeart Radio app). Puck drop is set for 7:07 p.m. on Friday night and at 6:07 p.m. on Saturday night.

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 are still finding their identity and building toward league play, the second half of the season, and the playoffs. North Dakota will want to roll four lines and use roster depth to their advantage in this series. I’m looking at a few key factors: faceoffs, goaltending, and the ability to score in bunches. In a rivalry matchup like this, it is easy for teams to feed off of the crowd, go over the edge, and take needless penalties. Either one of these teams could ride the wave of momentum to victory, and whichever team does a better job of staying out of the penalty box has the advantage. I know it feels like a cop-out to call a split, but it’s too early in the season for one team to have that much of an edge. Minnesota 4-3, UND 5-2.

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!

Ralph Engelstad Arena (Grand Forks, ND) will be buzzing on Friday night, as #10 North Dakota hosts #19 St. Thomas in an early test for both schools. This will mark the first-ever matchup between future league rivals.

In a rare home-and-home series with a day off in between, the Tommies will turn around and host UND on Sunday evening at Grand Casino Arena (formerly Xcel Energy Center, the ex-X if you will). The series finale in St. Paul – just six miles east of the campus of St. Thomas – will mark the last time that these two teams will square off in non-conference action (unless, of course, they meet in the national tournament).

That last statement is true because the Tommies are set to become the tenth member of the NCHC beginning with the 2026-2027 season.

Non-conference games are critical in determining the sixteen teams for the NCAA tournament, and this weekend is North Dakota’s first opportunity to bolster their resume. After these two games against St. Thomas (currently a member of the CCHA), UND will have eight non-conference games remaining on the schedule:

October 17-18: vs. Minnesota (Big Ten)
October 24-25: at Clarkson (ECAC)

November 28-29: at/vs. Bemidji State (CCHA)

January 2-3: vs. Mercyhurst (Atlantic Hockey)

The Fighting Hawks will also play a second exhibition game – against the U.S. Under-18 Team – on November 21st. UND opened the season with a 7-0 exhibition victory over the University of Manitoba Bisons.

St. Thomas features several names familiar to fans of the Green and White…

Junior defenseman Mason Poolman is the son of North Dakota athletic trainer Mark Poolman. In his first two seasons with the Tommies, Poolman has appeared in 62 games, with six goals and thirteen assists.

Freshman defenseman Bauer Berry is the son of former UND head coach Brad Berry. Berry was a seventh-round draft pick of the Edmonton Oilers in the 2024 NHL Entry Draft.

On the bench, Karl Goehring is now an assistant coach with the Tommies. And behind the scenes, Lee Goren, the Most Outstanding Player on UND’s 2000 championship team, is working with hockey operations.

One more familiar face? The head coach of the St. Thomas Tommies is none other than Rico Blasi, who was behind the Miami RedHawks bench for twenty seasons (1999-2019). Blasi is now in his fifth season with St. Thomas, sputtering to a combined record of 29-75-5 (.289) over his first three campaigns in St. Paul before posting a mark of 19-14-5 (.566) last season.

After four seasons in limbo at the Division I level, St. Thomas is now eligible for NCAA post-season play.

In last Saturday’s 7-0 exhibition victory over Manitoba, the Fighting Hawks displayed tenacity, grit, and a desire to get to the net with urgency and a purpose. The power play breakout was also new and improved, and, given North Dakota’s overall skill and team speed, fans should expect plenty of man advantage opportunities this season.

St. Thomas Team Profile

Head Coach: Enrico Blasi (5th season at St. Thomas, 49-89-10, .365)
Last Season: 19-14-5 overall (missed NCAA tournament), 12-8-2-4 CCHA (3rd)

Key Returning Players (2024-2025 season statistics): Senior F Lucas Wahlin (17-24-41), Senior F Jake Braccini (9-10-19), Sophomore F Casy Laylin (4-7-11), Senior F Luc Laylin (4-6-10), Junior D Chase Cheslock (1-13-14), Junior D Mason Poolman (4-7-11)

Potential Impact Additions: Freshman F Nathan Pilling, Junior F Charlie Schoen, Graduate F Alex Gaffney, Freshman F Lucas Van Vliet, Junior D Nick Williams, Freshman D Bauer Berry, G Carson Musser

North Dakota Team Profile

Head Coach: Dane Jackson (1st season at North Dakota)
Last Season: 21-15-2 overall (missed NCAA tournament), 11-8-4-1 NCHC (5th)

Key Returning Players (2024-2025 season statistics): Senior F Dylan James (14-8-22), Sophomore F Mac Swanson (2-16-18), Senior F Ben Strinden (8-8-16), Sophomore F Cade Littler (7-2-9), Junior D Jake Livanavage (4-24-28), Junior D Abram Wiebe (4-20-24), Graduate D Bennett Zmolek (0-8-8 in 2023-2024)

Potential Impact Additions: Freshman F Cole Reschny, Freshman F Will Zellers, Senior F Ellis Rickwood, Freshman F David Klee, Junior F Anthony Menghini, Freshman F Jack Kernan, Freshman D Keaton Verhoeff, Freshman D Sam Laurila, Senior G Homer Gibson

Game News and Notes

UND graduate defenseman Bennett Zmolek faced STU four times in two seasons at Minnesota State, notching one goal and adding three assists. Saturday’s game will be the first official game of the 2025-2026 season for North Dakota, while St. Thomas posted a 4-3 opening night road victory over the St. Cloud State University Huskies. That game was tied 3-3 before SCSU’s Daimon Gardner was assessed a five-minute major and a game misconduct for contact to the head with just 5:57 remaining in the hockey game. The Tommies scored a power play goal 62 seconds later and held on despite SCSU skating for nearly a minute with an extra attacker. In the victory, STU won just 30 of 71 faceoffs (42.3%).

The Prediction

Despite what we saw in last Saturday’s exhibition game, I have a feeling that both of these games will be closer. The edge goes to North Dakota due to veteran goaltending and a stout defensive corps. but special teams could play a factor. I’ve got new bench boss Dane Jackson picking up his first two official victories of the season. UND 5-2, 4-1.

Broadcast Information

Friday’s opener will be broadcast live on Midco Sports and also available online at NCHC.tv. Sunday’s rematch will be carried exclusively on CCHA.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. Puck drop is set for 7:07 p.m. Central Time on Friday and 5:07 p.m. Central on Sunday.

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 thoughts, comments, and suggestions.

#17 North Dakota (21-14-2 overall, 11-8-4-1 NCHC) squares off against #3 Western Michigan (28-7-1 overall, 15-1-4-4 NCHC) in the semifinals of the last-ever NCHC Frozen Faceoff, and UND must get past the Broncos AND win the championship game (against either #6 Denver or #11 Arizona State) on Saturday night to earn an NCAA tournament bid and extend its season.

Earlier this month, the Broncos clinched the program’s first-ever Penrose Cup as NCHC regular season champions; WMU and Denver will make the NCAAs regardless of results this weekend.

Three weeks ago, UND earned a split at Kalamazoo, losing 6-4 on Friday night before rebounding for a 4-3 overtime victory in the rematch.

The Fighting Hawks hosted WMU two months ago, and while the home squad had a chance in Friday’s opener, it was all Broncos in the rematch. UND drew a penalty late in regulation in game one, but an interference call just 24 seconds later negated the advantage. Early in the extra frame, Western Michigan scored a power play tally to earn the 3-2 victory. On Saturday night, the game was probably closer than the 5-1 final score, but WMU continually frustrated North Dakota in all three zones.

In the NCHC preseason poll, UND was picked to finish in second place (behind Denver), while the Broncos ended up in sixth place (ahead of Duluth, Arizona State, and Miami). Finishing in first and second place in the NCHC, Western Michigan and the Sun Devils were the two biggest surprises in the conference. DU finished in third place, while the Fighting Hawks ended up in fifth.

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 532-275-85 (.644) 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 safe; as mentioned above, both Arizona State (15th) and North Dakota (17th) will need to win two games this weekend to extend their season.

Two seasons ago, UND managed to take five of six league points on the road at Kalamazoo (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 a HIGHER rate this season (4.06 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: 2.08 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 (15-2-0, 2.00 goals-against average, .924 save percentage, one shutout) or freshman Hampton Slukynsky (13-5-1, 2.03 GAA, .919 SV%, 1 SO) between the pipes. After alternative for much of the season, Slukynsky has started the last six consecutive games.

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.

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 23-6-1, Pat Ferschweiler has already led 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 Alex Bump (20-23-43), sophomore forward Grant Slukysnky (8-25-33), sophomore forward Owen Michaels (14-15-29), senior forward Liam Valente (12-16-28), freshman forward Zach Nehring (13-14-27), graduate forward Tim Washe (14-18-32), freshman forward Iiro Hakkarainen (11-14-25), senior forward Matteo Costantini (8-14-22), junior defenseman Samuel Sjolund (3-24-27), and freshman defenseman Joona Vaisanen (4-18-22).

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 will have a few more players to work with while fielding a lineup this weekend:

Freshman defenseman E.J. Emery (19:33 per game) played four Saturdays ago after serving a one-game league suspension for fighting; since that time, he has been dealing with a lower-body injury and did not suit up at Western Michigan or in any of the four games against Omaha. Emery traveled with the team and is considered day-to-day.

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

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.

UND has lost a combined 116 games due to injury this season, with thirteen of 24 skaters missing at least one game.

This weekend, North Dakota will have seven players in the lineup at a half-point per game or better. Cameron Berg leads the way in scoring average with his 21 points in 25 games. Other consistent contributors include junior forward Owen McLaughlin (5-23-28), junior forward Dylan James (14-8-22), freshman forward Sacha Boisvert (16-14-30), sophomore forward Jayden Perron (10-9-19), sophomore defenseman Jake Livanavage (4-24-28), and sophomore defenseman Abram Wiebe (4-20-24).

Here is a quick peek at how North Dakota and Omaha stack up in various categories:

Goals per game: WMU 4.06 (1st of 64 teams); UND 3.19 (17th)

Goals allowed per game: WMU 2.08 (6th); UND 2.89 (31st)

Shooting percentage: WMU 11.6% (5th); UND 11.2% (9th)

Save percentage: WMU .920 (10th); UND .898 (38th)

Shots on goal/game: WMU 35.1 (4th); UND 28.6 (37th)

Shots on goal allowed/game: WMU 25.9 (10th); UND 28.4 (24th)

Power play efficiency: WMU 25.5% (8th); UND 25.9% (6th)

Penalty kill efficiency: WMU 87.1% (4th); UND 76.6% (50th)

Faceoff win percentage: WMU 54.6% (3rd); UND 51.3% (20th)

Corsi: WMU 57.6% (2nd); UND 50.3% (27th)

Fenwick: WMU 58.3% (2nd); UND 50.4% (29th)

Western Michigan Broncos

Head Coach: Pat Ferschweiler (4th season at WMU, 98-50-4, .658)

National Rankings: #3/#3
Pairwise Ranking: 5th
KRACH Ranking: 439.6 (5th)

This Season: 28-7-1 overall, 15-1-4-4 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: 4.06 goals scored/game – 1st of 64 teams
Team Defense: 2.08 goals allowed/game – 6th of 64 teams

Power Play: 25.5% (25 of 98) – 8th of 64 teams
Penalty Kill: 87.1% (81 of 93) – 4th of 64 teams

Key Players: Sophomore F Alex Bump (20-23-43), Sophomore Forward Grant Slukysnky (8-25-33), Graduate F Tim Washe (14-18-32), Sophomore F Owen Michaels (14-15-29), Senior F Liam Valente (12-16-28), Freshman F Zach Nehring (13-14-27), Junior D Samuel Sjolund (3-24-27), Freshman D Joona Vaisanen (4-18-22), Freshman G Hampton Slukynsky (13-5-1, 2.03 GAA, .919 SV%, 1 SO)

North Dakota Team Profile

Head Coach: Brad Berry (10th season at UND, 227-118-35, .643)

National Rankings: #17/#17
Pairwise Ranking: 17th
KRACH: 193.2 (18th)

This Season: 21-14-2 overall, 11-8-4-1 NCHC (5th of 9 teams)
Last Season: 26-12-2 (NCAA Regional Semifinalist), 14-4-1-5 NCHC (1st)

2024-2025 Season Statistics:

Team Offense: 3.19 goals scored/game – 17th of 64 teams
Team Defense: 2.89 goals allowed/game – 31st of 64 teams

Power Play: 25.9% (26 of 102) – 6th of 64 teams
Penalty Kill: 76.6% (89 of 117) – 50th of 64 teams

Key Players: Freshman F Sacha Boisvert (16-14-30), Junior F Owen McLaughlin (5-23-28), Junior F Dylan James (14-8-22), Freshman F Mac Swanson (2-16-18), Sophomore F Jayden Perron (10-9-19 in 30 games), Senior F Jake Schmaltz (6-10-16), Senior F Cameron Berg (12-9-21 in 25 games), Sophomore D Jake Livanavage (4-24-28), Sophomore D Abram Wiebe (4-20-24), Junior D Caleb MacDonald (3-7-10), Graduate G T.J. Semptimphelter (18-10-2, 2.66 GAA, .908 SV%, 1 SO, 1 post-game scrap)

By The Numbers

Last Meeting: March 1, 2025 (Kalamazoo, MI). Western Michigan took a 3-2 lead in the third period thanks to two Ty Hendricks goals just two minutes apart. UND battled back and forced overtime on an extra-attacker tally by Sacha Boisvert with just 36 seconds remaining in the game, and the Fighting Hawks’ Jake Livanavage completed the comeback with a power play marker late in the five-minute overtime session. The Broncos outshot North Dakota 36-18 but were continually stymied by UND netminder T.J. Semptimphelter, who finished with 33 saves.

Last Meeting at the NCHC Frozen Faceoff: March 18, 2022 (St. Paul, MN). After Judd Caulfield gave UND an early 1-0 lead, the Broncos stampeded back with three straight goals. North Dakota’s Nick Portz drew the Green and White within one with just seven seconds remaining in the middle frame, but the Fighting Hawks managed just six third-period shots and surrendered an empty-net goal in a 4-2 loss. UND went 0-for-5 on the power play. North Dakota had won the four prior neutral-site games between the two teams.

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 31 of the 47 games (31-15-1, .670). 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: Western Michigan has a slight 5-4-1 (.550) advantage in the last ten meetings between the two teams, even though only four of those ten games were played in Kalamazoo. The combined score of the last ten contests? Broncos 33, Fighting Hawks 30.

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. UND senior forward Cameron Berg has four goals and nine points in his fourteen career games against WMU while junior forward Owen McLaughlin has ten points in his ten matchups against the Broncos. North Dakota freshman forward Sasha Boisvert was just named NCHC Rookie of the Year, joining Brock Boeser, Shane Pinto, and Jackson Blake as UND’s winners in the twelve-year history of the league.

The Prediction

This is as plainly as I can put it: Western Michigan is the best team North Dakota has faced this year. The Broncos have everything it takes to make a deep NCAA tournament run, and they don’t have a weakness. The Fighting Hawks will rely on two advantages tonight: a partisan crowd, and the reality that for this squad, there is no tomorrow. UND will need to get pucks deep, stay out of the penalty box, and get great goaltending to compete tonight. It’s close, but I think Brad Berry’s squad will get the job done and advance to the title game. UND 4-3.

Bonus Prediction

Arizona State will topple the Denver Pioneers, setting up an epic Frozen Faceoff championship between two teams who both need a victory to secure an NCAA tournament berth.

Broadcast Information

Puck drop is set for 7:37 p.m. Central Time on Friday night, with the game broadcast exclusively on CBS Sports Network. 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!