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Feb. 20—GRAND FORKS — UND has played 30 games this season.
The Fighting Hawks have posted the better analytics at even strength in 25 of them.
The five where they did not? Minnesota, Clarkson, Omaha, St. Cloud State and St. Cloud State.
The Huskies did something nobody else has been able to do against the Fighting Hawks this season, posting better analytics in back-to-back games.
UND found a way to win both games in the Herb Brooks National Hockey Center in December — thanks to a pretty Cole Reschny-to-Mac Swanson-to-Jake Livanavage shorthanded goal to win Saturday night's game late in the third period.
"I thought it was a great series," St. Cloud State coach Brett Larson said. "It was a series I had to remind the guys after the weekend that I thought we played pretty well. I mean, we got swept at home. That hurts. You never want that to happen. But I really thought we played two good hockey games. They're a very good hockey team and obviously made a couple of really good plays to finish it off."
Larson said he shared the analytics with the team after that weekend to try to keep them positive after going 1-6 in a seven-game stretch.
"We felt we played well enough," Larson said. "But obviously good teams find ways to win, even when the analytics don't go your way."
St. Cloud State and UND will meet again at 7:07 p.m. Friday and 6:07 p.m. Saturday in Ralph Engelstad Arena.
Both teams will look slightly different.
UND center Ellis Rickwood did not play in that December series in the Herb Brooks National Hockey Center. Neither did St. Cloud State standout rookie defenseman Tanner Henricks, who returned
from a freak injury
that occurred on Halloween.
"We think he's a difference-maker," Larson said of Henricks, who scored last weekend. "I think he has potential to be a top 'D' in college hockey and a big future in front of him. So, having him out for 20 games wasn't fun. But it's been a shot in the arm since he's gotten back."
St. Cloud State has only been swept once since that December series against UND and has climbed into the chase for home ice in the National Collegiate Hockey Conference quarterfinals. The Huskies are tied with Minnesota Duluth for the final spot, but these are St. Cloud State's final regular-season games. Minnesota Duluth has four left.
UND, meanwhile, has posted better even-strength analytics than its opponents in every game since Christmas break, while going 9-3 in that span. The Fighting Hawks have moved
within six points of winning their seventh Penrose Cup
as NCHC regular-season champions.
"It's just a great group of dudes," UND senior Dylan James said. "It's a lot easier to come to the rink when you're buddies with every single person and everyone meshes together. Practices are more fun. Obviously, we have a really skilled team. The coaching staff did a great job in the offseason putting that together. But I think it comes down to the dudes at the end of the day. That's how you win."
UND's biggest challenge will be slowing down St. Cloud State's prolific top line of Hobey Baker Award candidate Tyson Gross, Anaheim Ducks draft pick Austin Burnevik and Seattle Kraken draft pick Barrett Hall.
"Their top line is really good, so we've got to be careful with them," James said. "Other than that, we're just trying to be a little bit better every game."
St. Cloud State has been boosted by more secondary scoring lately, especially the line of freshman Noah Urness, freshman Nolan Roed and sophomore Gavyn Thoreson.
Urness played prep hockey at Roseau High.
"He's a great kid and he's fun to have in the locker room," Larson said. "He's just a typical Roseau guy. He loves playing hockey and loves being around the boys. No ego to the kid at all. Just a great kid. He brings an energy off the rink and he brings an energy on the rink. His speed is a weapon all the time."
While freshman Jan Špunar has taken the reins in net for UND, St. Cloud State is still rotating between Patriks Berzins and Yan Shostak, who won the United States Hockey League's Goaltender of the Year last season.
"Their power play is really good, their top line is really good and they have good goaltending," UND coach Dane Jackson said. "They play hard. Brett Larson's team is always well coached. They have a lot of good attention to detail in their defensive play. I thought it was a good series down there. I thought they were highly contested games. Maybe we made one more play than they did in the end.
"It's going to be another hard NCHC battle. I think you just focus mainly on trying to play your best game and doing a good job checking their top line."
UND SCSU
23-7 Rec 16-16
3 NPI 22
3.8 (4th) Off 3.1 (21st)
2.1 (3rd) Def 3.0 (33rd)
27.9 (6th) PP 25.4 (9th)
81.4 (26th) PK 76.1 (49th)
54.2 (6th) FO 53.3 (9th)
.908 (20th) SP .899 (32nd)
Note: National rank in parentheses. Categories are record, NPI ranking, offense (goals per game), defense (goals against per game), power play percentage, penalty kill percentage, faceoff percentage and team save percentage.
UND — F Josh Zakreski probable (lower), F David Klee probable (undisclosed), D Bennett Zmolek questionable (lower)
SCSU — F Jack Rogers probable (upper)
Tyson Gross might be the country's most underrated superstar. He's a 6-foot-3 center. He ranks sixth nationally in scoring with 39 points in 32 games. He wins 59.2% of his faceoffs. He's won 439 total draws this season — a whopping 57 more than anyone else in the country. Gross needs just one point to match Jami Krannila as St. Cloud State's highest scorer since the loaded 2018-19 team.
Gross plays on a prolific top line alongside Barrett Hall and sniper Austin Burnevik. He is undrafted, but is attracting interest as a free agent.
"He's gotten better each year," Larson said. "He's put in the work in the offseason. The biggest thing for him is he's kind of built slightly, and he's really put in a lot of work in the weight room. He's gotten stronger and more explosive. His skating the first couple of years would break down and it would limit his effectiveness out there. This year, he's stronger, more explosive, he's able to extend his shifts. He's able to play to a higher standard and a higher pace than he's been able to longer in the past."
UND freshman defenseman Sam Laurila is getting more comfortable and more effective each month. Perhaps no player on UND's roster has improved more from the preseason exhibition until now. He's showing some of the offensive abilities he developed last year in Fargo. Should we predict his first collegiate goal this weekend? Sure, let's go for it.
Recent St. Cloud State teams have struggled in Ralph Engelstad Arena. UND is 8-0-2 in the last 10 against the Huskies in the building. St. Cloud State's last win in The Ralph was Jan. 25, 2019. But five of those 10 games have gone to overtime. In all, six of the last 11 meetings between the teams needed the extra session. It should be a competitive series, but UND has an advantage at home.
Friday: UND 4, St. Cloud State 1
Saturday: UND 3, St. Cloud State 2, OT
Friday
TV: Midco Sports (GF Ch. 27/622 HD). Alex Heinert play-by-play, Jim Scanlan analyst, Taylor Budge and Erik Fabian at the desk.
Stream:
NCHChockey.com/tv.
Radio:
The Fox (96.1 FM).
Darrin Looker play-by-play, Mike LaMoine analyst.
Saturday
TV: Midco Sports (GF Ch. 27/622 HD). Alex Heinert play-by-play, Erik Fabian analyst, Taylor Budge and Monique Lamoureux-Morado at the desk.
Stream:
NCHChockey.com/tv.
Radio:
The Fox (96.1 FM).
Tim Hennessy or Darrin Looker play-by-play, Mike LaMoine analyst.
GFH:
Inside UND's effort to keep Bennett Zmolek healthy for the 'biggest games'
GFH:
Get to know UND senior forward Ellis Rickwood
GFH:
Josh Zakreski expected to return to the lineup
GFH:
What does UND need to do to win the Penrose Cup on Saturday?
SCL:
Former Roseau Rams making key contributions for St. Cloud State
SCL:
Husky D-men Cooper Wylie and Mason Reiners have been teammates for six years
The Athletic:
Brock Nelson's Olympic journey a special one for his family
Scoring
21 Ben Strinden (NSH), sr, f, 14-14—28
26 Dylan James (DET), sr, f, 17-9—26
29 Ellis Rickwood, sr, f, 7-19—26
17 Cole Reschny (CGY), fr, f, 4-22—26
4 Jake Livanavage, jr, d, 5-19—24
9 Will Zellers (BOS), fr, f, 14-9—23
7 Mac Swanson (PIT), so, f, 6-15—21
25 Abram Wiebe (CGY), jr, d, 4-17—21
18 Keaton Verhoeff (2026), fr, d, 6-12—18
15 Jack Kernan, fr, f, 7-5—12
8 Ollie Josephson (SEA), fr, f, 3-9—12
20 Cade Littler (CGY), so, f, 4-7—11
27 Anthony Menghini, jr, f, 5-5—10
19 Cody Croal, so, f, 6-3—9
14 Tyler Young, sr, f, 3-5—8
13 Sam Laurila (NYI), fr, d, 0-8—8
6 E.J. Emery (NYR), so, d, 3-3—6
22 David Klee (SJS), fr, f, 2-3—5
16 Andrew Strathmann (CBJ), so, d, 1-3—4
2 Bennett Zmolek, sr, d, 1-2—3
24 Josh Zakreski, fr, f, 1-2—3
3 Jayden Jubenvill, so, d, 0-2—2
28 Dalton Andrew, so, f, 0-0—0
11 Ian Engel, fr, d, 0-0—0
35 Jan Špunar, fr, g, 0-0—0
31 Gibson Homer, sr, g, 0-0—0
1 Zach Sandy, sr, g, dnp
Goaltending
35 Jan Špunar, fr, 15-3, 1.76, .922
31 Gibson Homer, sr, 8-4, 2.49, .894
1 Zach Sandy, sr, dnp
Scoring
13 Tyson Gross, jr, f, 18-21—39
23 Austin Burnevik (ANA), so, f, 17-18—35
15 Barrett Hall (SEA), jr, f, 10-18—28
21 Max Smolinski, sr, d, 6-12—18
4 Finn Loftus, so, d, 4-12—16
28 Gavyn Thoreson, so, f, 8-7—15
10 Noah Urness, fr, f, 7-8—15
22 Nolan Roed (COL), fr, f, 3-12—15
26 Cooper Wylie, sr, d, 3-10—13
19 Verner Miettinen, jr, f, 4-7—11
11 Grant Ahcan, sr, f, 4-5—9
34 Adam Ingram (NSH), sr, f, 1-8—9
6 Mason Reiners, sr, d, 2-6—8
7 Jack Reimann, jr, f, 2-6—8
14 Josh Zinger, sr, d, 1-6—7
12 Ryan Rosborough, 5th, f, 2-4—6
5 Tanner Henricks (CBJ), fr, d, 2-3—5
25 Thor Byfuglien, so, d, 1-4—5
81 Daimon Gardner (VAN), jr, f, 1-2—3
17 Ethan AuCoin, sr, f, 1-2—3
3 Joseph Belisle, fr, d, 1-2—3
20 Jack Rogers, sr, f, 1-0—1
18 Aiden Welch, fr, f, 1-0—1
27 Kaleb Tiessen, jr, d, 0-0—0*
39 Patriks Berzins, so, g, 0-0—0
1 Yan Shostak, fr, g, 0-0—0
33 James Gray, sr, g, 0-0—0
Goaltending
39 Patriks Berzins, so, 10-6, 2.83, .910
1 Yan Shostak, fr, 6-10, 2.90, .899
33 James Gray, sr, 0-0, 3.53, .846
*Turned pro earlier this season
Continue reading...
The Fighting Hawks have posted the better analytics at even strength in 25 of them.
The five where they did not? Minnesota, Clarkson, Omaha, St. Cloud State and St. Cloud State.
The Huskies did something nobody else has been able to do against the Fighting Hawks this season, posting better analytics in back-to-back games.
UND found a way to win both games in the Herb Brooks National Hockey Center in December — thanks to a pretty Cole Reschny-to-Mac Swanson-to-Jake Livanavage shorthanded goal to win Saturday night's game late in the third period.
"I thought it was a great series," St. Cloud State coach Brett Larson said. "It was a series I had to remind the guys after the weekend that I thought we played pretty well. I mean, we got swept at home. That hurts. You never want that to happen. But I really thought we played two good hockey games. They're a very good hockey team and obviously made a couple of really good plays to finish it off."
Larson said he shared the analytics with the team after that weekend to try to keep them positive after going 1-6 in a seven-game stretch.
"We felt we played well enough," Larson said. "But obviously good teams find ways to win, even when the analytics don't go your way."
St. Cloud State and UND will meet again at 7:07 p.m. Friday and 6:07 p.m. Saturday in Ralph Engelstad Arena.
Both teams will look slightly different.
UND center Ellis Rickwood did not play in that December series in the Herb Brooks National Hockey Center. Neither did St. Cloud State standout rookie defenseman Tanner Henricks, who returned
from a freak injury
that occurred on Halloween.
"We think he's a difference-maker," Larson said of Henricks, who scored last weekend. "I think he has potential to be a top 'D' in college hockey and a big future in front of him. So, having him out for 20 games wasn't fun. But it's been a shot in the arm since he's gotten back."
St. Cloud State has only been swept once since that December series against UND and has climbed into the chase for home ice in the National Collegiate Hockey Conference quarterfinals. The Huskies are tied with Minnesota Duluth for the final spot, but these are St. Cloud State's final regular-season games. Minnesota Duluth has four left.
UND, meanwhile, has posted better even-strength analytics than its opponents in every game since Christmas break, while going 9-3 in that span. The Fighting Hawks have moved
within six points of winning their seventh Penrose Cup
as NCHC regular-season champions.
"It's just a great group of dudes," UND senior Dylan James said. "It's a lot easier to come to the rink when you're buddies with every single person and everyone meshes together. Practices are more fun. Obviously, we have a really skilled team. The coaching staff did a great job in the offseason putting that together. But I think it comes down to the dudes at the end of the day. That's how you win."
UND's biggest challenge will be slowing down St. Cloud State's prolific top line of Hobey Baker Award candidate Tyson Gross, Anaheim Ducks draft pick Austin Burnevik and Seattle Kraken draft pick Barrett Hall.
"Their top line is really good, so we've got to be careful with them," James said. "Other than that, we're just trying to be a little bit better every game."
St. Cloud State has been boosted by more secondary scoring lately, especially the line of freshman Noah Urness, freshman Nolan Roed and sophomore Gavyn Thoreson.
Urness played prep hockey at Roseau High.
"He's a great kid and he's fun to have in the locker room," Larson said. "He's just a typical Roseau guy. He loves playing hockey and loves being around the boys. No ego to the kid at all. Just a great kid. He brings an energy off the rink and he brings an energy on the rink. His speed is a weapon all the time."
While freshman Jan Špunar has taken the reins in net for UND, St. Cloud State is still rotating between Patriks Berzins and Yan Shostak, who won the United States Hockey League's Goaltender of the Year last season.
"Their power play is really good, their top line is really good and they have good goaltending," UND coach Dane Jackson said. "They play hard. Brett Larson's team is always well coached. They have a lot of good attention to detail in their defensive play. I thought it was a good series down there. I thought they were highly contested games. Maybe we made one more play than they did in the end.
"It's going to be another hard NCHC battle. I think you just focus mainly on trying to play your best game and doing a good job checking their top line."
UND SCSU
23-7 Rec 16-16
3 NPI 22
3.8 (4th) Off 3.1 (21st)
2.1 (3rd) Def 3.0 (33rd)
27.9 (6th) PP 25.4 (9th)
81.4 (26th) PK 76.1 (49th)
54.2 (6th) FO 53.3 (9th)
.908 (20th) SP .899 (32nd)
Note: National rank in parentheses. Categories are record, NPI ranking, offense (goals per game), defense (goals against per game), power play percentage, penalty kill percentage, faceoff percentage and team save percentage.
UND — F Josh Zakreski probable (lower), F David Klee probable (undisclosed), D Bennett Zmolek questionable (lower)
SCSU — F Jack Rogers probable (upper)
Tyson Gross might be the country's most underrated superstar. He's a 6-foot-3 center. He ranks sixth nationally in scoring with 39 points in 32 games. He wins 59.2% of his faceoffs. He's won 439 total draws this season — a whopping 57 more than anyone else in the country. Gross needs just one point to match Jami Krannila as St. Cloud State's highest scorer since the loaded 2018-19 team.
Gross plays on a prolific top line alongside Barrett Hall and sniper Austin Burnevik. He is undrafted, but is attracting interest as a free agent.
"He's gotten better each year," Larson said. "He's put in the work in the offseason. The biggest thing for him is he's kind of built slightly, and he's really put in a lot of work in the weight room. He's gotten stronger and more explosive. His skating the first couple of years would break down and it would limit his effectiveness out there. This year, he's stronger, more explosive, he's able to extend his shifts. He's able to play to a higher standard and a higher pace than he's been able to longer in the past."
UND freshman defenseman Sam Laurila is getting more comfortable and more effective each month. Perhaps no player on UND's roster has improved more from the preseason exhibition until now. He's showing some of the offensive abilities he developed last year in Fargo. Should we predict his first collegiate goal this weekend? Sure, let's go for it.
Recent St. Cloud State teams have struggled in Ralph Engelstad Arena. UND is 8-0-2 in the last 10 against the Huskies in the building. St. Cloud State's last win in The Ralph was Jan. 25, 2019. But five of those 10 games have gone to overtime. In all, six of the last 11 meetings between the teams needed the extra session. It should be a competitive series, but UND has an advantage at home.
Friday: UND 4, St. Cloud State 1
Saturday: UND 3, St. Cloud State 2, OT
Friday
TV: Midco Sports (GF Ch. 27/622 HD). Alex Heinert play-by-play, Jim Scanlan analyst, Taylor Budge and Erik Fabian at the desk.
Stream:
NCHChockey.com/tv.
Radio:
The Fox (96.1 FM).
Darrin Looker play-by-play, Mike LaMoine analyst.
Saturday
TV: Midco Sports (GF Ch. 27/622 HD). Alex Heinert play-by-play, Erik Fabian analyst, Taylor Budge and Monique Lamoureux-Morado at the desk.
Stream:
NCHChockey.com/tv.
Radio:
The Fox (96.1 FM).
Tim Hennessy or Darrin Looker play-by-play, Mike LaMoine analyst.
GFH:
Inside UND's effort to keep Bennett Zmolek healthy for the 'biggest games'
GFH:
Get to know UND senior forward Ellis Rickwood
GFH:
Josh Zakreski expected to return to the lineup
GFH:
What does UND need to do to win the Penrose Cup on Saturday?
SCL:
Former Roseau Rams making key contributions for St. Cloud State
SCL:
Husky D-men Cooper Wylie and Mason Reiners have been teammates for six years
The Athletic:
Brock Nelson's Olympic journey a special one for his family
Scoring
21 Ben Strinden (NSH), sr, f, 14-14—28
26 Dylan James (DET), sr, f, 17-9—26
29 Ellis Rickwood, sr, f, 7-19—26
17 Cole Reschny (CGY), fr, f, 4-22—26
4 Jake Livanavage, jr, d, 5-19—24
9 Will Zellers (BOS), fr, f, 14-9—23
7 Mac Swanson (PIT), so, f, 6-15—21
25 Abram Wiebe (CGY), jr, d, 4-17—21
18 Keaton Verhoeff (2026), fr, d, 6-12—18
15 Jack Kernan, fr, f, 7-5—12
8 Ollie Josephson (SEA), fr, f, 3-9—12
20 Cade Littler (CGY), so, f, 4-7—11
27 Anthony Menghini, jr, f, 5-5—10
19 Cody Croal, so, f, 6-3—9
14 Tyler Young, sr, f, 3-5—8
13 Sam Laurila (NYI), fr, d, 0-8—8
6 E.J. Emery (NYR), so, d, 3-3—6
22 David Klee (SJS), fr, f, 2-3—5
16 Andrew Strathmann (CBJ), so, d, 1-3—4
2 Bennett Zmolek, sr, d, 1-2—3
24 Josh Zakreski, fr, f, 1-2—3
3 Jayden Jubenvill, so, d, 0-2—2
28 Dalton Andrew, so, f, 0-0—0
11 Ian Engel, fr, d, 0-0—0
35 Jan Špunar, fr, g, 0-0—0
31 Gibson Homer, sr, g, 0-0—0
1 Zach Sandy, sr, g, dnp
Goaltending
35 Jan Špunar, fr, 15-3, 1.76, .922
31 Gibson Homer, sr, 8-4, 2.49, .894
1 Zach Sandy, sr, dnp
Scoring
13 Tyson Gross, jr, f, 18-21—39
23 Austin Burnevik (ANA), so, f, 17-18—35
15 Barrett Hall (SEA), jr, f, 10-18—28
21 Max Smolinski, sr, d, 6-12—18
4 Finn Loftus, so, d, 4-12—16
28 Gavyn Thoreson, so, f, 8-7—15
10 Noah Urness, fr, f, 7-8—15
22 Nolan Roed (COL), fr, f, 3-12—15
26 Cooper Wylie, sr, d, 3-10—13
19 Verner Miettinen, jr, f, 4-7—11
11 Grant Ahcan, sr, f, 4-5—9
34 Adam Ingram (NSH), sr, f, 1-8—9
6 Mason Reiners, sr, d, 2-6—8
7 Jack Reimann, jr, f, 2-6—8
14 Josh Zinger, sr, d, 1-6—7
12 Ryan Rosborough, 5th, f, 2-4—6
5 Tanner Henricks (CBJ), fr, d, 2-3—5
25 Thor Byfuglien, so, d, 1-4—5
81 Daimon Gardner (VAN), jr, f, 1-2—3
17 Ethan AuCoin, sr, f, 1-2—3
3 Joseph Belisle, fr, d, 1-2—3
20 Jack Rogers, sr, f, 1-0—1
18 Aiden Welch, fr, f, 1-0—1
27 Kaleb Tiessen, jr, d, 0-0—0*
39 Patriks Berzins, so, g, 0-0—0
1 Yan Shostak, fr, g, 0-0—0
33 James Gray, sr, g, 0-0—0
Goaltending
39 Patriks Berzins, so, 10-6, 2.83, .910
1 Yan Shostak, fr, 6-10, 2.90, .899
33 James Gray, sr, 0-0, 3.53, .846
*Turned pro earlier this season
Continue reading...
