Back from its first bye weekend of the 2014-15 season, the University of Minnesota Duluth will resume its National Collegiate Hockey Conference schedule this Friday and Saturday (Dec. 5-6) when the Bulldogs host Colorado College in a two-game set. The puck drops at 7:07 p.m. both nights at AMSOIL Arena (6,756 capacity) in downtown Duluth.

Complete Release
Scott Sandelin's Weekly Press Conference

THE RECORDS: UMD is 9-5-0 overall and 5-3-0-0 in the NCHC (third place) while Colorado College, which has generated just one win in its last nine outings (1-8-0), owns a 3-8-0 record in all games to go with an 0-5-0-0 NCHC mark (eighth place).

HOW THEY RANK: Here is how UMD and Colorado College stacked up in the latest USCHO.com and USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine polls:

    USCHO.com    USA Today    
UMD    No. 8    No. 9    
CC       NR       NR    

ON THE AIR: The two Bulldog-Tiger clashes will be carried on 94X (94.1/104.3 FM) with Bruce Ciskie on the call. The broadcast can also be heard on KQ 105.5 FM in Grand Rapids/Hibbing; KQ 106.7 FM in Ely/Virginia; Red Zone Sports Radio 1350 AM in Pine City; and KKIN-AM 930 in Atkin as part of the Bulldog Radio Network and at: 94xrocks.com.

My9 (KBJR DT 6.2/KRII DT 11.9) will televise the game Friday and FOX Sports North Plus the following evening. Tom Hansen and former UMD standout forward Judd Medak will serve as the on-air talent for both telecasts, which are also available at: www.nchc.tv/umd.

THE COACH: The runnerup for the 2010-11 Spencer Penrose Award (American Hockey Coaches Association NCAA Division I Coach of the Year) and recipient of that honor in 2003-04, Scott Sandelin is in his 15th season behind the UMD bench where he has compiled a 256-250-67 overall record -- including a 134-90-30 mark (for a .587 winning percentage) since the 2008-08 opener. Besides capturing the school's first NCAA championship four years ago, his Bulldogs have won 22 or more games in four of the last six seasons while advancing to four NCAA tournaments (2004, 2009, 2011 and 2012), two Frozen Fours (2004 and 2011) and seven of 11 Western Collegiate Hockey Association Final Five playoff events between 2002-13. He has also helped produce a pair of Hobey Baker Memorial Award winners (Jack Connolly in 2011-12 and Junior Lessard in 2003-04), six NCAA All-Americans and 17 different All-WCHA selections. In addition, Sandelin has seen 16 of his UMD pupils go on to do time in the National Hockey League and one take part in the Winter Olympic Games (Justin Faulk for Team USA in last winter). During the course of the 2011-12 season, the Bulldogs set a team record by going unbeaten in 17 straight games and were ranked first in both major weekly polls (USCHO.com and USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine for a program-best nine consecutive weeks. In March 2009, UMD became the first play-in game participant to ever claim the Final Five title and, later that spring, strung together a school-record six-game postseason winning streak before it fell to Miami University 2-1 in the NCAA West Regional final. Nine years ago, Sandelin, 50, turned UMD into a NCAA Frozen Four participant for the first time in nearly a generation, marshaling his troops to their most victories (they were 28-13-4 overall) and highest WCHA finish (second place on a 19-7-2 mark) since 1992-93. For his efforts, the Hibbing, Minn., native was chosen the WCHA Coach of the Year as well as the national coach of the year by both insidecollegehockey.com and uscho.com. In 2002-03, Sandelin's charges went 22-15-5 overall and captured fifth place in the WCHA with a 14-10-4 mark while experiencing the greatest one-season turnaround of any league member that winter. One year earlier, he guided UMD to a 13-24-1 record in all games -- nearly doubling the number of victories from the previous season (7-28-4). Sandelin officially signed on with the Bulldogs on March 31, 2000 following six years of assistant coaching deployment at North Dakota (which won two NCAA titles during his tenure). Prior to that, Sandelin spent the 1993-94 season head coaching the Junior Elite Hockey League's Fargo-Moorhead Junior Kings after working in that same capacity (and doubling as general manager) the previous winter with the Fargo-Moorhead Express of the American Hockey Association. He capped off his four-year playing career at North Dakota in 1985-86 by being named one of 10 finalists for the Hobey Baker Memorial Award. An All-American second team selection and All-WCHA first team pick as a senior, Sandelin went on to play professionally for seven years, which included National Hockey League stints with the Montreal Canadiens (1986-88), Philadelphia Flyers (1990-91) and Minnesota North Stars (1991-92). Sandelin, one of just two active NCHC coaches to do time in the NHL (Denver's Jim Montgomery is the other), was the Montreal Canadiens' second-round pick in the 1982 NHL draft (40th choice overall). He served as Team USA's head coach at the 2005 International Ice Hockey Federation World Junior Championships, directing that club to a fourth-place finish, and was an assistant coach for the U.S. entry at that same event in 2011-12.

THE RIVALRY: UMD and Colorado College have collided on 178 previous occasions in a rivalry which began on Jan. 4, 1961 at the old Duluth Curling Club. The Tigers hold a slim 86-84-8 lead in the all-time series, but are winless in 13 of their last 18 bouts with the Bulldogs (5-11-2). UMD went 2-1-1 against its former WCHA rivals one year ago. The two clubs made their respective NCHC debuts on Oct. 18-19 in Colorado Springs, Colo., where the Bulldogs throttled the Tigers 6-1 after falling 3-1 the previous evening. Later that season (Feb. 7-8), UMD skated away with five of six NCHC points in a weekend set with the Togers, winning in a shootout (1-0) following a 2-2 deadlock in the opener and then holding on for a 2-1 triumph the next night.

LAST WEEKEND: The Bulldogs have been idle since having their six-game winning streak snapped in a 4-1 setback at the University of Nebraska Omaha on Nov. 22. UMD prevailed 3-2 one night earlier, overcoming a 2-0 third-period deficit by striking three times in a span of 8:05 on goals from rookie right winger Karson Kuhlman, junior defenseman Andy Welinski, and junior center Cal Decowski (the game-winner with 2:35 to go in regulation).

Colorado College also had this past weekend off and last hit the ice on Nov. 23 when it fell 3-1 at crosstown rival Air Force. That came one night after the Tigers put the clamps on a seven-game losing skid with a 5-3 home besting of the University of Wisconsin.

NCHC FORECAST: In the 2014-15 NCHC Preseason Media Poll, UMD was projected for a fifth-place finish in the second-year circuit while North Dakota received top billing among the conference's eight schools with 181 points and 12 first-place votes. North Dakota was followed by Miami (167 pts.; nine first-place votes), defending NCHC regular season champion St. Cloud State (151 pts. and the remaining four first-place votes), Denver (117 pts.), UMD (112 pts.), the University of Nebraska-Omaha (73 pts.), Western Michigan University (67 pts.), and Colorado College (32 pts.).

AYE, AYE, CAPTAIN: For the second straight season, Adam Krause has been entrusted with the Bulldogs' captaincy duties (he shared that role with the since-graduated Joe Basaraba in 2013-14) while fellow senior right winger Justin Crandall and junior defenseman Andy Welinski are serving as assistant captains.

TRYING TO PUT THE "HOME" BACK IN HOME ICE ADVANTAGE: Since the start of the 2013-14 season, the Bulldogs are just 8-13-3 at AMSOIL Arena (3-3-0 this season), but an impressive 17-8-1 away from Duluth (6-2-0 in 2014-15). UMD, however, has posted victories in each of its last two home engagements, including a 2-1 win over then No. 1 ranked Minnesota on Nov. 15.

ONE TOUGH ROOKIE: Kasimer Kaskisuo was chosen the NCHC Rookie of the Month for November after going 6-1-0 with a 1.71 goals against average and a .933 saves percentage in seven appearances. During that stretch, he defeated all ranked opponents -- No. 10 Miami (once), No. 6 St. Cloud State (twice), No. 1 Minnesota (twice) and No. 13 Omaha (once) before dropping a 4-1 decision (that included an empty-net goal) to the Mavericks in his final outing of the month. In addition to backstopping the Bulldogs to six straight wins to commence November, Kaskisuo posted UMD's fourth-ever shutout against Minnesota and its second in Minneapolis since Feb. 23, 1973. He also allowed just seven even-strength goals in his seven starts (four of the goals that were scored on him came on the power play and another via a penalty shot). Kaskisuo, who has made 11 consecutive starts, will come into this weekend sporting both the NCHC's fifth best goals against average (2.09) and saves percentage (.924). The Vantaa, Finland, native is the sixth European to enlist his services with the Bulldogs and first non-North American to play for 15th-year head coach Scott Sandelin. The five previous Europeans include goalie Nicklas Axelsson (Sweden, 1993-95), winger Pasi Korhonen (Finland; 1999-2000), winger Sergei Petrov (Russia, 1993-97), defenseman Roman Sindelar (Czechoslovakia; 1984-86) and center Max Wikman (Sweden, 1995-97).

SUPER SOPHS: UMD possesses the NCHC's highest- scoring sophomore class (it ranks third nationally) as its eight, second-year players have combined for 18 goals and 30 assists for 48 points.

WELCOME BACK: Senior right winger Adam Krause, who is UMD's ninth multi-year captain and first since 2008-09 (left winger Andrew Carroll), could return to the Bulldog lineup this weekend after being sidelined the past eight outings while nursing a wrist injury which he incurred against Denver on Oct. 25. Prior to being knocked out of commission, the 2013-14 NCHC Scholar-Athlete Team honoree had taken shifts in each of the previous 94 games -- the longest active ironman streak on the club at the time -- going back to his freshman year. In six games this season, Krause has collected one goal and two assists and is a +3.

NO WALK IN THE PARK: This weekend will mark UMD's first matchups of the year against an unranked opponent. Among the nation's 59 NCAA I institutions, the Bulldogs take a backseat only to Colorado College in strength of schedule.

TOP 'DOG: Despite being kept off the scoresheet in both ends of the Omaha series, sophomore center Dominic Toninato continues to reside among the NCHC leaders in a bevy of statistical categories including goals (second with nine -- two more than his entire rookie-year harvest), shooting percentage (second with a .265 mark), scoring (tied for sixth with 13 points -- two shy of his career best) and plus-minus rating (tied for 11th at +7). Toninato, the first NCHC Offensive Player of the Week honoree for 2014-15, also is tied for the league lead in penalties with 12, is second in penalty minutes with 25) and is one of just four league skaters to score shorthanded twice.

SHOOTOUT STATS: The Bulldogs have won both of their lifetime NCHC shootouts, defeating visiting Denver 2-1 in four rounds on Jan. 18, 2014 and Colorado College 1-0 in three rounds on Feb. 8, 2014 at AMSOIL Arena. Junior left winger Alex Iafallo is the lone current Bulldog to score in a league shootout and that  came at the expense of Denver. The following are NCHC shootout statistics for current Bulldogs (no 2014-15 UMD goaltender has ever been taken part in a shootout):
 
Player    Att.    Made    Missed    Pct.
Alex Iafallo    2    1    1    .500
Cal Decowski    1    0    1    .000
Kyle Osterberg    1    0    1    .000
Andy Welinski    1    0    1    .000

SOMETHING SPECIAL: The Bulldog specialty teams certainly have gotten a bit of a workout this season. UMD has the second most power play opportunities (74) of any NCAA I unit and has been shorthanded on 64 occasions (the 10th most in the country). The Bulldogs currently rank second in the nation in both power play goals (16), power play assists (31) and power play points (47) and are second in shorthanded goals (5 - North Dakota leads with eight). Eleven different Bulldogs have a power play goal to their 2014-15 credit, including junior left winger Austin Farley, sophomore left winger Alex Iafallo and junior defenseman Andy Welinski, who each have three. In addition, UMD has connected at a 21.6 percent clip (which ranks 10th nationally) but went 0-6 with the man advantage in its two-game set in Omaha.

GETTING A BIT DEFENSIVE: Junior Andy Welinski owns the best plus-minus rating (+12) of any NCHC combatant and ranks third nationally in that department. Among league defensemen, he ranks first in goals (five), third in points (nine), and sixth in blocked shots (22) and is one of two NCHC blueliners to collect a shorthanded goal this season. Collectively, UMD's eight-member back end corps has combined to rack up nine goals this year -- after mustering just five (all of which were produced by Welinski) during the 2013-14 season -- and 25 points.

BULLDOG BITS: Junior left winger Austin Farley, sophomore left winger Kyle Osterberg and sophomore defenseman Willie Raskob top the 2014-15 Bulldogs in home scoring with five points while rookie right winger Karson Kuhlman has scored a team-leading four of his five goals this season at AMSOIL Arena. Kuhlman will bring a four-game scoring streak (the longest run by any Bulldog at the moment) into Friday night's confrontation with Colorado College.

• Not only have all five of Willie Raskob's points (one goal and four assists) this year come at home, they've all been registered on the power play as well.

• The 3-2 triumph at Omaha on Nov. 21 marked the first time the Bulldogs overcame a second-intermission deficit to win since Nov. 10, 2010 when they erased a 2-1 Michigan Tech advantage by scoring four goals in the final 20 minutes to upend the Huskies 5-3 at the Duluth Entertainment and Convention Center. UMD was 0-43-3 in that situation prior to the Omaha series.

• The five shorthanded goals UMD has generated this year are currently second only to North Dakota's eight among NCAA schools and are one more than its entire 2013-14 output. The school single-season record for shorties is 12 set by the 1992-93 Bulldogs, who were captained by current UMD assistant coach Derek Plante (who scored four times that year while his team was a man down).

• Dominic Toninato, who has collected 10 of his team-leading 13 points away from AMSOIL Arena this season, is part of the 10th father-son combination to skate for the Bulldogs (his dad, Jim Toninato, was a UMD forward between 1982-86). Senior defenseman Derik Johnson, the oldest 2014-15 Bulldog (he'll celebrate his 25th birthday this February) who sports the team's best career plus-minus rating (+12), is the son of Jim Johnson, another UMD hockey alumnus (1981-85) and now an assistant coach with the NHL's San Jose Sharks.

• Going back to a 5-4 home loss to Minnesota on Oct. 15, 2011, the Bulldogs are unbeaten in the 46 of the 47 games that they've struck for more than three goals (41-1-5). The sole setback during that stretch was inflicted by Minnesota State-Mankato earlier this season (5-4 in overtime on Oct. 17).

• UMD is 5-1-0 when junior center Cal Decowski has marked in the points column this year.

• The Bulldogs have been victorious in just two of their last 14 games that have gone into overtime, going 2-4-8 with the two victories coming at the expense of St. Cloud State on Nov. 7, 2014 (3-2) and Minnesota State University-Mankato (5-4 in the opening round of the North Star College Cup in St. Paul on Jan. 24, 2014). Sophomore left winger Alex Iafallo and junior center Cal Decowski are the only two active Bulldogs with an overtime goal to their collegiate credit

• Sophomore Carson Soucy, who currently ranks 13th in scoring among NCHC defensemen (a career-high two goals and four assists), is mired in a six-game pointless drought.

• The Bulldogs have outscored the opposition 17-7 in the third period in its 14 outings to date.

• Both junior center Tony Cameranesi and junior defenseman Andy Welinski have taken part in all 88 games since joining the UMD program two years ago.

• UMD's most recent home assignment -- a 2-1 takedown of Minnesota on Nov. 15 -- was played before the largest crowd in AMSOIL Arena history (7,424). The previous record was 7,009 set on Feb. 22, 2014 against North Dakota.

 • The Bulldogs have drawn first blood in 20 of their 25 victories the last two seasons (and are 6-2-0 when when they've done so in 2014-15). On the other hand, they've won just five times (5-15-2) when the opposition has taken a 1-0 lead during that same stretch.

• Alex Iafallo, who trails only Dominic Toninato on the 2014-15 UMD scoring charts (11 points), is tied for sixth in the NCHC in assists (a Bulldog-best nine).

• UMD's 44 goals thus far are bettered by only one other NCHC club -- North Dakota with 48

• Of the eight NCHC head coaches, only one (Miami's Enrico Blasi with 16 seasons) has been behind the bench at his current school longer than Scott Sandelin (15 years).

• For the first time in 48 years, the UMD roster is devoid of any player who skated (as a Bulldog) at the Duluth Entertainment and Convention Center. The $80-million, 6,756-seat AMSOIL Arena officially opened its doors for business and became the Bulldogs home on Dec. 30, 2010.

• UMD is one of three NCHC schools with two shutouts this season (Miami and Denver are the two others).

• The 10 shots Austin Farley put on target against Denver earlier this season (Oct. 24) were the most by a Bulldog in a regulation game in over two years (J.T. Brown also had 10 vs. Colorado College on Feb. 25, 2012).

UP NEXT: The Bulldogs will close the books on 2014 with a pair of road clashes against former WCHA rival Michigan Tech on Dec. 12-13.