Friday Gameday: Battling Tigers and a Bug

DDC wrote in his last column that the UND men's hockey team hasn't faced much in terms of adversity so far this season.

While that was meant in terms of adversaries on the ice, the Green and White could have more than just the Colorado College Tigers to battle Friday and Saturday at the Ralph Engelstad Arena.

UND is also battling the injury bug.

With freshman Chris Wilkie already out of the lineup last Saturday night due to injury, the Green and White saw Hobey Baker candidate Drake Caggiula leave the game after finishing a check. Caggiula is doubtful this weekend, said UND head coach Brad Berry at the team's weekly presser. Bad, right?

Well, it gets worse.

Fellow Hobey Baker candidate and CBS linemate, sophomore Nick Schmaltz, sustained an injury during practice this week and could join Wilkie and Caggiula in the stands.

Wilkie aside, UND could be without two players who have racked up 57 points thus far this season and are tied for first in the NCAA in plus/minus. Really bad, right? Again, it gets worse as this doesn't appear to be the same Tigers squad that the Green and White swept back in October.

Besides UND and St. Cloud, can you name the NCHC team with the best record since December 1? You guessed it, Colorado College. During that eight-game span, the line of senior Hunter Fejes and juniors Luc Gerdes and Sam Rothstein have racked up a whopping 26 points, including a sweep against Miami and a win over the NCHC-leading Huskies.

How will it all shake out? DDC has his take in this week's "Who? What? How?" series preview.

Who?

Players to watch

Colorado College
Sr. F, Hunter Fejes

Colorado College

Sr. F, Hunter Fejes, 9 goals, 5 assists -- 14 points; Jr. F, Luc Gerdes, 4g, 9a -- 13 pts; Jr. F, Sam Rothstein, 5g, 7a -- 12 pts; So. D, Teemu Kivihalme, 3g, 9a -- 12 pts; Fr. F, Trey Bradley, 7g, 4a -- 11 pts; Fr. G, Jacob Nehama, 5-10-0, 3.37 goals against average, .905 save percentage.

UND

Sr. F, Drake Caggiula, 15 (T-8 in NCAA), 15a -- 30 pts (9th in NCAA) Likely out this weekend due to shoulder injury; So. F, Nick Schmaltz, 3g, 24a (3rd in NCAA) -- 27 pts; Fr. F, Brock Boeser, 15g (2nd in NCAA in rookie goals, T-8 in NCAA), 10a -- 25 pts (3rd in NCAA in rookie scoring); Jr. D, Troy Stecher, 5g, 14a -- 19 pts; So. D, Tucker Poolman, 3g, 11a -- 14 pts; So. G, Cam Johnson, 10-1-1 (T-1st in NCAA in win percentage), 1.28 GAA (1st in NCAA), .949 SV PCT (1st in NCAA).

What?

Standout Stats

The "CBS line" of Drake Caggiula (+28), Nick Schmaltz (+28) and Brock Boeser (+22) ranks T-1st, T-1st
and T-6th respectively in the NCAA in plus/minus rating.

UND So. G, Cam Johnson

In the past eight games, the Green and White leads the NCHC in both power play (28.1%) and penalty killing (96.9%).

Despite losing for the first time in his college career last Friday night, UND goalie Cam Johnson continues to lead the country in all three major statistical categories, .875 win percentage (T-1st), 1.28 goals againstaverage and .949 save percentage.

UND is allowing just 1.67 goals per game which is third in the NCAA.

Colorado College ranks near the bottom in the NCAA in both goals per game and goals against per game, ranking 55th out of 60 (2.05) and 52nd out of 60 (3.59) respectively. 

How?

How'd they get here?

No. 2 UND (19-3-2, 10-1-1 -- 30 pts, 2nd in NCHC) split at home against Nebraska Omaha, 4-3 OT and 5-1 last weekend.

Colorado College (5-17-0, 3-9 -- 9 pts, 7th in NCHC) was idle last weekend, but earned a split at St. Cloud two weeks ago, falling 2-1 on Friday and winning 5-2 on Saturday.

The Green and White swept the Tigers 5-2, 2-0 on October 30-31 in Colorado Springs.

The Pick 

Lack of scoring depth has been a bit of a problem so far this season for UND. Outside of the CBS line, the rest of the forwards in Green and White have notched just 36 goals in 24 games. With the injuries mounting, UND will need scoring depth.

Brock Boeser could be the only remaining member of the top line and while the freshman is in the midst of a seven-game goal scoring streak, frankly put, he can't do it alone.

With the forward grouping potentially depleted, a heavy onus is set on UND's blue liners. This is where DDC thinks the weekend will be made.

With injuries mounting, UND will rely on a talented blue line group, lead by
junior Troy Stecher, who is fourth on the team in points with 19 (5g, 14a).
(Photo credit: The Gazette in Colorado Springs)

The Green and White D corps paces the third-best defense in the NCAA in terms of goals allowed at 1.67 per game and has notched 66 points this season. Couple that with Cam Johnson, who is leading the country in every major goaltending stat, UND has the ability to lock teams down.

Fejes, Gerdes and Rothstein will be of a major concern for the Green and White, but the defense will carry the load this weekend.

UND SWEEPS, 3-1, 4-3

There you have it. Come back later to see if DDC's call is right. Thanks for reading.

Roses and Thorns: Bouncing Back for a Split

NCHC Standings:
1) SCSU, 10-3-1-1 -- 32 points; 2) UND, 10-2-0 -- 30 pts;
3) DU, 6-4-2 -- 20 pts; 4) UMD, 5-6-3-1 -- 19 pts:
5) UNO, 5-6-1 -- 16 pts; 6) WMU, 4-7-1-1 -- 14 pts;
7) Miami, 2-8-2-2 -- 10 pts; 8) CC, 3-9-0 -- 9 pts.

Simply put, the UND men's hockey team hasn't faced much adversity up to this point of the season.

Coming into this past weekend's series with Nebraska Omaha, the Green and White were 18-2-2 and were rolling with a 8-game unbeaten streak, having not lost a game at home in over two months.

That all changed on Friday night when Mavericks forward Austin Ortega potted his NCAA-best 7th game-winning goal in overtime, giving UNO a 4-3 win in front of a shocked Ralph Engelstad Arena crowd.

Faced with the possibility of being swept at home against a National Collegiate Hockey Conference rival, UND responded on Saturday night as it has done 18 out of the last 19 times following a loss since 2013, with a dominant 5-1 win and an important NCHC split.

Here's what stood out to DDC in his weekly Roses and Thorns series recap with Nebraska Omaha.

Roses

No. 1 -- Coltyn Sanderson

After being a healthy scratch on Friday night, Sanderson potted his first-career goal in his 26th game with UND on Saturday night that turned out to be the game winner. DDC has been hard on the Saskatchewan native this season as the senior has fought to be in the lineup on a night-to-night basis, but credit Sanderson's hard work in his UND career for a special moment. It's a tough proposition for a senior to often find himself not in the lineup often, but Sanderson's character has never been in question for the Green and White. Truly a lunch pail type player, it was fun seeing No. 26 finally find the back of the net. Props to you, Coltyn. You deserve it.

UND swarms Coltyn Sanderson (center) after the senior notched his first-career
goal on Saturday night in a 5-1 win. (Photo credit: Grand Forks Herald)

No. 2 -- Special Teams

Despite giving up a power play goal for the first time in 30 chances down a man with UNO's only goal on Saturday night, UND's penalty kill was once again sterling this weekend against a potent offensive attack. The Green and White killed off 8-of-9 UNO power plays this weekend. UND also had a tremendous weekend when on the power play, notching two goals with the extra man in each game in the series, going 4-for-8 with the extra man. In the past eight games, the Green and White leads the NCHC in both power play (28.1%) and penalty killing (96.9%). This is a very important development for UND as both units has struggled at times during the season.

No. 3 -- Troy Stecher

With the high profile CBS line stealing most of the headlines for UND this season, junior defenseman Troy Stecher might very well be the Green and White's best overall player. The B.C. native tallied a goal and an assist in both games of the series to nab NCHC defenseman of the week honors for the second time this season. Stecher was an offensive spark plug all weekend, consistently involving himself in the scoring zone and generating several chances both nights. The defenseman's goal on Friday was special as he drove hard to the net and potted a highlight reel goal while sliding to the ice after being hit. On the defensive end, Stecher blocked three shots on Friday and on Saturday helped lock down UNO's top line of Ortega, Jake Guentzel and Jake Randolph, a trio who tallied 9 points the night before, to just 1 in the series finale. It was a dominant weekend for Stecher who extended his career-high point streak to four.

No. 4 -- Brock Boeser

UND Fr. F, Brock Boeser

While his vaunted CBS linemates had a relatively quiet weekend, Boeser continued to excel. The freshman forward racked up a four-point weekend with a goal and an assist each night, en route to NCHC rookie of the week honors for the third time this season. Boeser struggled a bit early on Friday as the CBS line slowly regained chemistry after not playing together for a month, but potted an important game-tying goal late. On Saturday, Boeser showed off his typical self, ripping home a laser wrist shot to give UND a 3-1 lead to bury the Mavericks. The Burnsville, Minn. native is now tied for the team lead with 15 goals and is second nationally among rookies. He has scored in seven-straight games. The freshman continues to be all the Green and White could have hoped for.

Thorns

No. 1 -- Injuries

After a rocky start to the season on the injury front, UND had found a way to stay pretty healthy to this point in the season. In fact, the Green and White saw senior foward Colten St. Clair in the lineup for the first time this year, on Friday. However, the bug seems to have bitten again as freshman defenseman Christian Wolanin missed both games this weekend while freshman Chris Wilkie missed Saturday night's game. The biggest injury this weekend came to stalwart forward Drake Caggiula after finishing an open-ice check to UNO player led to an apparent shoulder injury. The extent of the injuries are unknown for all three, but Caggiula's clearly looms the largest. The senior has been dominant all season and UND will have a big spot to fill on the top line if he misses extended time.

Thanks for reading and stop back later this week and the Green and White prepares for a home series against the Colorado College Tigers.

Friday Gameday: Time to Set the Tone

The No. 1 UND men's hockey team is 18-2-2 coming into this weekend's National Collegiate Hockey Conference Series against No. 9 Nebraska Omaha.

The first half of season couldn't have gone any better for the Green and White as the vaunted CBS line of junior Drake Caggiula, freshman Brock Boeser and sophomore Nick Schmaltz and NCAA goaltending leader sophomore Cam Johnson tore up the schedule and the scoresheet.


While all that is certainly nothing to be negative about, the real stretch begins Friday and Saturday in Grand Forks versus the Mavericks. After finishing their non-conference schedule with a sterling 9-1-2 record, it's all NCHC games from here on out for the Green and White in what is lauded by many as the best conference in the NCAA.

It's time to set the tone and make that first half really mean something.

Here's what to watch for from the Ralph in this week's "Who? What? How?" series breakdown.

Who?

Players to watch

Nebraska Omaha

UNO Jr. F, Austin Ortega

Jr. F, Jake Guentzel, 10 goals, 17 assists (8th in NCAA) -- 27 points; Jr. F, Austin Ortega, 16g (3rd in NCAA), 8a -- 24 pts; Jr. F, Justin Parizek, 6g, 15a -- 21 pts; So. F, Jake Randolph, 8g, 9a --17 pts; Jr. G, Kirk Thompson, 4-3-1, 2.75 goals against average, .899 save percentage; Freshman goaltender, UNO's statistical goalie leader, won't travel to Grand Forks this weekend due to injury.

UND

Sr. F, Drake Caggiula, 14g (T-6 in NCAA), 15a -- 29 pts (T-6 in NCAA); So. F, Nick Schmaltz, 3g, 23a (2nd in NCAA) -- 26 pts; Fr. F, Brock Boeser, 13g (2nd in NCAA in rookie goals), 8a -- 21 pts; Jr. D, Troy Stecher, 3g, 12a -- 15 pts; So. D, Tucker Poolman, 3g, 11a -- 14 pts; So. G, Cam Johnson, 9-0-1 (1st in NCAA in win percentage), 1.07 GAA (1st in NCAA), .957 SV PCT (1st in NCAA).

What?

Standout Stats

The "CBS line" of Drake Caggiula (+29), Nick Schmaltz (+29) and Brock Boeser (+22) ranks T-1st, T-1st
and T-3rd respectively in the NCAA in plus/minus rating. Schmaltz and Boeser return to the lineup this weekend after a bronze medal performance for the United States in this year's World Junior Championship tournament.

UND sophomore forward Nick Schmaltz returns to the lineup for the
Green and White after an 8 point, bronze medal performance in this year's WJC.
Freshman forward Brock Boeser re-joins the CBS line as well after the WJC.

UNO's Austin Ortega leads the country in game-winning goals with six. Caggiula is tied for fourth with four.

UND's Cam Johnson leads the country in all three major statistical categories, .950 win percentage, 1.07 goals against average and .957 save percentage.

UND is allowing just 1.59 goals per game which is second in the NCAA. Omaha sports the nation's 7th-best penalty kill at 87.5%

How?

How'd they get here?

No. 1 UND (18-2-2, 9-0-1 -- 27 pts, T-1 in NCHC) has won eight-straight games since falling 6-1 at St. Cloud on November 21. The Green and White won an exhibition game against the U.S. Under-18 team 4-1 last Saturday.

No. 9 Nebraska Omaha (14-5-1, 4-5-1 -- 13 pts, 5th in NCHC) got swept by Denver 3-0, 4-3 at home last weekend after previously winning six out of their last seven games.

The Pick

UND So. G, Cam Johnson
leads the NCAA in win
percentage, goals against
average and save percentage.

Schmaltz and Boeser return to their Green and White brethren after a successful bronze for the U.S. in the WJC, putting back together the CBS line that dazzled the college hockey world in the first half. Schmaltz had a terrific tournament, notching 2 goals and adding 6 assists with Boeser adding 1 goal and 2 assists. The duo played on the same line for much of the tournament and UND looks for the chemistry from the WJC and first half of their collegiate season to continue.

Opposing the CBS line, UNO have a dynamic scoring duo in Jake Guentzel and Austin Ortega. Guentzel's 17 assists are 8th in the NCAA and Ortega's 16 goals are third. Ortega has shown over his first two and half seasons that he is truly a clutch player, setting a NCAA record with 11 game-winning goals last season and leading the country with six thus far, this year.

Omaha is coming off a rather stunning weekend against Denver in which they got swept at home, 3-0, 4-3, so expect a fired up Mavericks squad in Grand Forks.

These two teams have had a run of incredibly high-octane and tight battles over the last couple of seasons, including overtime games in three out of four contests. UND went 2-1-1 in those games.

Both of these teams can light it up offensively with top line talent, but DDC thinks the real difference between these squads comes on the back end. UNO is without freshman goaltender Evan Weninger, the team's top netminder this season due to injury while UND's Cam Johnson continues a historic pace. The Green and White goalie leads the country in every major statistical category, allowing just one goal in his last five outings. Couple that with a dynamic defensive corps led by Troy Stecher and Paul LaDue, UND is as good as it comes on the 'D' end. This ultimately will make the difference this weekend.

UND SWEEPS IN TWO TIGHT BATTLES, 4-2, 3-2 OT

There you have it. Check back after this weekend for how it all went down. Thanks for reading!

Roses and Thorns: Pulverizing the Pios

NCHC Standings:
1) UND, 7-1-0, 21 pts; 2) SCSU, 6-2-0, 18pts;
T-3) UMD,4-3-1, 13 pts; T-3) Omaha, 4-3-1, 13 pts;
5) DU, 3-2-1,10 pts; 6) Miami, 2-7-1, 7 pts;
T-7) CC, 2-6-0, 6 pts; T-7) WMU, 2-6-0, 6 pts.

So, DDC has been busy with a bunch of stuff of late and if you've missed the blog over the last couple of weekends, consider this an official apology.

Once piece of housekeeping before the recap. DDC wants to take a second to mention his Twitter and Blogosphere buddy, RWD (if you don't know who she is, follow Runnin' With the Dogs for all the best Minnesota Duluth hockey tidbits) and her awesome fundraiser for local food shelves all over the country. Check it out and help out a great cause and hashtag #FromTopShelfToFoodShelf all over social media. Sorry there wasn't a blog before this weekend, RWD. DDC hopes you'll take more if this helps at all!

On to the matters at hand.

Across the college hockey world, a prime cliche is used on a nightly basis of "playing a complete 60 minutes." Period by period, teams look to execute at their best level. A full weekend's effort would be considered a "complete 120 minutes."

The UND men's hockey team certainly lived up to this cliche this weekend.

The No. 4 Green and White battled the No. 9 Denver Pioneers in an important National Collegiate Hockey Conference series at the Ralph Engelstad Arena and while doing everything here to not sound trite, UND took DU to the woodshed.

Again, it the was the vaunted CBS line of Drake Caggiula, Brock Boeser and Nick Schmaltz leading the way. Boeser scored twice while Caggiula and Schmaltz both netted a goal en route to a 5-1 win on Friday night as the trio racked up six points. On Saturday night, UND got some serious secondary scoring as Austin Poganski potted a pair of goals, then the CBS buried the Pios late, as Caggiula and Boeser scored 27 seconds apart in the third period, pacing a 4-0 win and a pulverizing series sweep.

Here's what stood out from what was possibly the best 120 minutes of dominating hockey DDC has ever seen in his weekly (kind of, of late) Roses and Thorns series recap.

Roses

No. 1 -- CBS line

Duh. This line racked up 10 points this weekend (Caggiula, 2g, 2a; Boeser, 3g; Schmaltz, 1g, 2a) and was a whopping +15 for the series, but the impact wasn't just on the scoresheet against Denver. The trio's compete level really stood out on the defensive end all weekend as they shut down the Pioneers with a tenacious forecheck and backcheck. Schmaltz was an absolute horse, consistently stick checking DU players and leading offense the other way. This line is constantly facing the top groups of defenders and lines, but nothing is slowing this group down. The chemistry, the playmaking ability and the cold-blooded scoring punch has UND on a roll, right now. It's one thing for this line and team as a whole to be better then any particular team in regards to talent, which they have been all season, but it's a whole different to outwork them. UND fans are seeing both, right now and it's certainly been a treat.

No. 2 -- Austin Poganski

UND So. F, buries a short-handed tally with 0.6 left in the first period on Saturday.
Poganski netted three goals on the weekend. (Photo: Eric Hylden, GF Herald).

As much fun as it has been to watch the CBS line dominate teams over the course of this season, UND has lacked a bit of secondary scoring, of late. Well, sophomore Austin Poganski certainly had something to say about that, this weekend. The St. Cloud native netted three goals in the series, including both game-winning goals. Poganski was particularly good in front of the net, using his big frame to slam home two of his three. The other was probably his biggest one, on Saturday. UND dominated DU in the first period, outshooting the Pios 19-3, but the game was scoreless until Poganski stole the puck at the UND blue line, skated in alone and potted a short-handed goal with just 0.6 left in the period. Much like the CBS line's performance, Poganski's impact wasn't just in scoring as he drew a couple of penalties on Friday, using his heavy skating and hard effort and joined his teammates in the forechecking barrage. Great weekend for the sophomore.

No. 3 -- Cam Johnson

It's easy for a goalie to get a bit overshadowed when the team in front of him is dominating all over the ice, but without the sophomore netminder, this weekend could have been much different for UND. Johnson wasn't overwhelmingly tested at any point in this series, but made key saves in both games to lead the Green and White to the sweep. Johnson has allowed just three goals in the last four games, all starts, after returning from an early-season injury last weekend in East Lansing. The Michigan native stopped 44 of 45 shots in the series, earning his first-career shutout on Saturday and is showing the ability to become UND's true No. 1 netminder.  Back-to-back NCHC goaltender of the weekend honors should be on tap for Johnson.

No. 4 -- Compete level

If DDC wasn't so lazy before the series to do a preview, he would have honestly picked a split for this weekend. It was a top 10 battle pitting two bitter and long-time rivals in an important conference series. Let's make one thing clear.... Denver is good. In fact, they are really good. However, UND was flat out better in every single phase this weekend and it started from the drop of the puck on Friday and didn't stop until the final buzzer on Saturday. Like previously mentioned, it's one thing to have more talent and play better than a team on a particular weekend, but it's another to outwork the other team. The Green and White won nearly every battle in all three zones, shutdown Denver with a sterling 10 for 10 penalty kill that actually outscored the Pios 1-0 for the series and scored back-breaking goals when needed. Head coach Brad Berry really had his team ready to play this weekend. That was a special level of play UND had in this series.

Thorns

No. 1 -- It's only December?!

Head coach Brad Barry after UND's 4-0 win on Saturday:
"I think tonight, we took another step as a team,"
Berry said."I talked to the guys after the game,
and we're not done. We're not done yet.
We have two games to go before Christmas.
We have a good thing going here."

This was a statement series for UND. If the college hockey world didn't know enough about the Green and White coming into this weekend, they certainly know them now. This wasn't a non-conference series against a pairwise-busting opponent. This destruction was against the No. 9 team in the country and bitter rival, Denver. DDC's only thorn this weekend is the fact that it's only December and as everyone knows, banners aren't hung for December sweeps, regardless how impressive. As unlikely as it may seem by the way this team is playing of late, there are going to be bumps in the road. However, when times to get tough, UND will be able to look back on this dominating series and know that they have the capability to dominate any team they face. What an impressive weekend. Consider this blogger blown away.

There's just one more series remaining for UND in 2015 as they travel to Duluth to take on the Bulldogs in another NCHC battle, this coming Friday and Saturday.

Roses and Thorns: A No Surprise Split

NCHC Standings:
T-1) UND, 5-1-0-0, 15 points; T-1) SCSU,
5-1-0-0, 15 pts; T-3) DU, 3-0-1, 10 pts; T-3)
UNO, 3-2-1, 10 pts; T-5) UMD, 2-3-1, 7 pts;
T-5) Miami, 2-5-1, 7 pts; 7) WMU, 2-4-0, 6 pts:
8) Colorado College, 0-6-0, 0 pts

Despite his homer pick of a UND sweep, the "no-sweep series" once again lived up to its billing and DDC is certainly not surprised.

North Dakota and St. Cloud State, the top two teams in the National Collegiate Hockey Conference, both earned a win over the weekend at the National Hockey Center in St. Cloud. UND, paced by a hat trick by senior Drake Caggiula won a 4-3 contest on Friday, but the Huskies earned the split with a 6-1 victory on Saturday.

All things considered, this wasn't a terrible result for either team as the rivals leave the series the same way they entered -- tied a top the NCHC.

Here's what stood out to DDC in his weekly Roses and Thorns series recap.

Roses

No. 1 -- Drake Caggiula

The senior forward paced the vaunted CBS line along side Nick Schmaltz and Brock Boeser this weekend, notching his first-career hat trick on Friday night. Caggiula was a force in the opening game of the series, scoring his third goal, the eventual game winner, just 28 seconds into the third period as UND held on for the victory. The CBS line was dominant on Friday, tallying 7 points, led by Caggiula. As it has all season, as the CBS line goes, so goes the Green and White.

No. 2 -- Rhett Gardner

UND Fr. F, Rhett Gardner

Nursing a 4-3 lead with just five seconds left in the game, UND lined up for a decisive faceoff in their defensive zone. St. Cloud had dominated the dots all game and this was by far the biggest one of the night. Gardner stepped in, won a clean draw and UND held on for the win. The closing play wasn't the only mark that the freshman made in Friday's game as he netted another goal-front goal, his fourth of the season and added an assist. Outside of the CBS line, Gardner might be the Green and White's most consistent player of late. His heavy frame and offensive skill has had Moose Jaw, Sask., native on the ice a lot in the last handful of games for UND. A friend noted that Gardner is developing much like another familiar 22 for UND, Brad Malone. For fans of the Green and White, this would be a welcomed development. Gardner keeps impressing.

No. 3 -- Charlie Lindgren 

The St. Cloud State goaltender came into this weekend's series sporting numbers that had him among the top of the NCAA goalie stats and Lindgren certainly impressed. Despite allowing four goals on Friday, Lindgren made several big saves to keep it close. On Saturday, the Husky netminder was dominant, stopping 28 of 29 UND shots, including 16 in the third, to earn SCSU the split. With the game 4-1 in the third, UND peppered Lindgren as the Green and White pressed to get back in the game and Lindgren shut the door. Props to the first non-UND rose on the season.

Thorns

No. 1 -- UND's Penalty Kill

This is becoming a bit of a trend for UND as the PK struggled, allowing 3 goals on 10 chances on the weekend. St. Cloud has a dynamic bunch of scoring forwards and they move the puck incredibly well on the power play and that hurt the Green and White, particularly on Saturday as the Huskies scored twice with the extra man. UND's lack of discipline has put this unit on the ice a lot this season and North Dakota has yet to find a consistent group of penalty killers. With the game tightening at 3-1 late in the second period, Trevor Olson took a silly, five minute interference penalty and SCSU cashed in and essentially sealed the game. This unit must find some consistency. A paltry 77.4% success rate on the PK just won't cut it.

No. 2 -- Concerns in Net

UND Jr. G, Matt Hyrnkiw

Following an injury to starting goaltender Cam Johnson, just two plus games into the season, Matt Hyrnkiw was pressed into duty and did well, losing just one game in his first nine starts. However, Hrynkiw seemed to fight the puck this weekend against a SCSU squad that has the most scoring touch UND has played against this season, leaving several juicy rebounds to St. Cloud sticks on Friday. That continued a bit on Saturday and the junior was pulled in the second period with UND down 3-0. Johnson relieved Hyrnkiw and didn't do much to assure anything going forward for the Green and White as he too allowed three goals. Not all the blame can be placed on Hyrnkiw for either result as he made several big saves on Friday with St. Cloud pressing late, but the rebound control has been somewhat of a problem all season. UND had the luxury over the past two seasons of a goaltender in Zane McIntryre that had the ability to steal games if the Green and White were struggling. Neither Hrynkiw nor Johnson have proven this ability so far this season. While both are certainly serviceable, UND will need to find more consistent play if they have hopes of hanging banner No. 8 in the rafters of the REA. Freshman Matej Tomek is still on the shelf with nagging injuries, but will get his shot in net once healthy as neither Hrynkiw or Johnson have truly taken the reigns.

So there you have it. Come back later this week as UND prepares to travel to East Lansing, Mich., for a non-conference, turkey day weekend series with Michigan State.