The University of Minnesota Duluth will put the finishing touches on the home portion of its 2014-15 regular season schedule this Friday and Saturday (Feb. 27-28) when the Bulldog play host to the University of Nebraska in a two-game National Collegiate Hockey Conference series. The puck drops at 7:07 p.m. on Friday and 6:07 p.m. the following night at AMSOIL Arena (6,756) in downtown Duluth.

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THE RECORDS: UMD is 19-12-1 overall and 11-8-1-0 in the NCHC (fifth place with 34 points) while Omaha comes into the weekend sporting a 17-10-3 record in all games to go with a 11-8-1-1 league mark (tied for third place with the University of Denver with 35 points).

HOW THEY RANK: Here is how the Bulldogs and Mavericks stacked up in the latest USCHO.com and USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine polls as well as the PairWise rankings:

       USCHO.com    USA Today    PairWise
UMD    No. 6    No. 6    No. 3
UNO    No. 8    No. 8    No. 8
    
ON THE AIR: The two UMD-Omaha bouts will be carried on 94X (94.1/104.3 FM) with Bruce Ciskie handling the play-by-play duties. 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.

Both ends of this weekend's series will also be televised -- Friday on My9 (KBJR DT 6.2/KRII DT 11.9) and Saturday on Fox Sports North. Veteran sports anchor Tom Hansen and former UMD standout forward Judd Medak will serve as the on-air talent both nights. The two telecasts are available on-line at: 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 266-257-68 overall record -- including a 144-97-31 mark since the 2008-09 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 Omaha will collide the 20th and 21st times ever this weekend. The Bulldogs hold an 12-7-0 lead in the all-time series, which began on Dec. 5, 1997 at the Duluth Entertainment and Convention Center, and are 6-2-0 against the Mavericks in Duluth. The two clubs traded victories earlier this season (Nov. 22-23) in Omaha with the Bulldogs taking the opener
3-2 (overcoming a 2-0 third-period deficit by striking three times in a span of 8:05 in the process) to extend their season-high winning streak to six games before dropping a 4-1 decision to the Mavericks the following night.

LAST WEEKEND: The Bulldogs split a two-game NCHC series at Miami, winning 3-1 on Friday behind a pair of third-period goals from juniors Tony Cameranesi and Willie Corrin and a 30-save performance from rookie goaltender Kasimir Kaskisuo and falling 4-3 in overtime in the rematch. The Bulldogs, who were outshot Saturday 49-22, took a 3-1 lead into the third period only to see the then No. 6 RedHawks score three unanswered goals, including Blake Coleman's game-clincher 3:58 into sudden death.

St. Cloud State did something no other team had done this season -- sweep Omaha -- as the Huskies followed up a 4-3 home triumph Friday with a 2-0 blanking 24 hours later.  In the opener, St. Cloud State scored twice within 16 seconds late in the third period to erase a 3-2 Omaha lead while on Saturday, Husky goaltender Charlie Lindgren made 21 saves en route to handing the Mavericks their first shutout loss of the year.

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.

A SENIOR MOMENT: Saturday will mark the final regular season home appearances for a quartet of Bulldog seniors -- Justin Crandall, Alex Fons, Derik Johnson and Adam Krause. As part of UMD's annual Senior Night festivities, that group will be formally recognized during a special pre-game ceremony that evening. Crandall, Johnson and Krause were all part of UMD's five-member freshmen class of 2011-12 while Fons joined the program a year later as a transfer.

DEJA VU: UMD has now hosted Omaha in its regular season home finales in four of the last five seasons.

AND THEN THERE WERE TWO: With Omaha getting derailed by St. Cloud State twice last weekend, UMD and North Dakota remain the lone two NCHC clubs that haven't been swept in any series -- league or non-conference -- this winter. Since joining the NCAA I ranks in 1961-62, the Bulldogs have completed an entire regular season without enduring a series sweep only once. That came in 2010-11 when UMD went on to capture its first-ever NCAA national championship

IT'S A SMALL WORLD: UMD junior defenseman Willie Corrin, who picked up his second career goal (and second in the past six games) in the Bulldogs' 3-1 takedown of Miami last Friday  is the nephew of Omaha head coach Dean Blais. During Blais's first six years of head coaching duty at North Dakota, one of his assistant coaches was current Bulldog bench boss Scott Sandelin.

POWER SURGE: After entering the St. Cloud State series two weekends ago having connected on just five of its previous 56 power play opportunities (8.9 percent), UMD has gone 6-for-12 with the man advantage in the four games since. The Bulldogs have scored 27 times on the power play this winter, a number bettered by only eight other NCAA outfits (and one NCHC club -- St. Cloud State with 29).

THEIR BEST YET: Seven out of a possible 17 Bulldog veterans have established career bests for points this winter. That includes sophomore left winger Alex Iafallo, who has a team-leading 25 points on the year:
 

Name	Year	Points	Previous High
Alex Iafallo	So.	27	22 (2013-14)
Dominic Toninato	So.	22	15 (2013-14)
Adam Krause	Sr.	17	13 (2013-14)
Cal Decowski	Jr.	15	6 (2013-14)
Carson Soucy	So.	11	6 (2013-14)
Austyn Young	Jr.	5	2 (2013-14)
Willie Raskob	So.	13	12 (2013-14)

In addition, senior defenseman Derik Johnson  is one point away from equaling his career-high in that department (5 points in 2011-12).

HOME ICE IS NICE:  The Bulldogs are unbeaten in eight of their last 10 home assignments mustering a 7-2-1 record at AMSOIL Arena since Nov. 1. Junior center Tony Cameranesi tops UMD in home scoring with 12 points on four goals and eight assists while senior right winger Adam Krause is next (11 points in 11 games).

WELCOME BACK: After being sidelined for the past five games with an upper body injury, sophomore center Dominic Toninato is expected to return to the Bulldog lineup this Friday night. Prior to being shelved on Feb. 7, the former Duluth East High School start had occupied the top spot on the UMD scoring charts with a career-high 22 points. His 14 overall goals this winter are also a personal best and rank seventh among all NCHC combatants while his shooting percentage (.206) is bettered by only three other league skaters. Tonintato, a two-time NCHC Offensive Player of the Week honoree in 2014-15, is also tied for first in the NCHC in road goals (10) and is one of six league combatants with two shorthanded goals to his 2014-15 credit.  Of Toninato's 22 points, just eight have been registered against NCHC competition (four goals and four assists).

SHOOTOUT STATS: UMD is 2-1 lifetime in NCHC shootouts (all of which have been contested at AMSOIL Arena) and sophomore left winger Alex Iafallo is the lone current Bulldog to score in a the post-overtime event  (he's done it twice). The following are all-time NCHC shootout statistics for current Bulldogs:
 

Player	Att.	Made	Missed	Pct.
Alex Iafallo	3	2	1	.333
Kyle Osterberg	2	0	2	.000
Cal Decowski	1	0	1	.000
Austin Farley	1	0	1	.000
Andy Welinski	1	0	1	.000

 

Player	Att.	Saves	Pct.
Kasimir Kaskisuo	3	1	.333

ALL ALONE: Kasimir Kaskisuo, the Hockey Commissioners' Association Rookie of the Month, and North Dakota junior Zane McIntyre are the only two NCHC netminders who have played in every minute of their team's conference outings thus far. Among the nation's first-year goalies, Kaskisuo is second in victories (16 -- two less than the leader St. Lawrence University's Kyle Hayton), third in starts (28), fifth in saves (668) and winning percentage (.611 off a 16-10-1 record) and sixth in goals against average (2.32). Kaskisuo, whose 15 victories this season are the most by a Bulldog since Kenny Reiter went 23-9-6 as a senior in 2011-12, accumulated a career-high 45 saves in last Saturday's 4-3 overtime setback to Miami. The last Bulldog to turn aside more shots was Aaron Crandall on Jan. 11, 2014 (52 in a 3-1 road triumph over Omaha). The Vantaa, Finland, native and former Minnesota Wilderness (North American Hockey League) puckstopper is the sixth European to enlist his services with the Bulldogs and the first non-North American to play for 15th-year head coach Scott Sandelin.

NO WALK IN THE PARK: Only nine (St. Cloud State on Feb. 13-14, Northern Michigan University on Feb. 6-7, Bemidji State University on Jan. 23, Western Michigan on Jan. 16-17 and Colorado College on Dec. 5-6) of UMD's 32 games thus far have been against unranked opponents. The Bulldogs, who continue to lead the nation in strength of schedule, are 14-9-0 against nationally-ranked clubs this winter (3-2-0 vs. No. 1s) and 5-3-1 versus the rest.

GETTING THE SHORT END: The seven shorthanded goals UMD has amassed this year are third only to North Dakota's nine and the University of Massachusetts' eight among NCAA clubs and are three more than its entire 2013-14 output. The school single-season record for shorties is 12 set by the 1992-93 Bulldogs. That club was captained by current UMD assistant coach Derek Plante (who scored four times that year while his team was a man down).  Four Bulldogs have bagged their first collegiate shorthanded goals this season -- senior right winger Justin Crandall, junior defensemen Willie  Corrin and Andy Welinski, junior center Tony Cameranesi and freshmen right winger Karson Kuhlman. UMD has also generated more shorthanded goals at home tin 2014-15 (five) than any other team in the nation.

THAT'S A PLUS: Senior right winger Adam Krause, UMD's first two-time team captain since the 2008-09 season,  is tied for second among NCHC combatants in plus-minus rating (+18) while sophomore fowards Alex Iafallo and Dominic Toninato are tied for fourth (+16).  Krause has finished with a negative plus-minus rating in just two of his 24 games this season while rookie defenseman Nick McCormack has yet to do so as a collegian (10 outings thus far).

THE BIG 1-0-0: Junior Austin Farley is expected to skate in his 100th collegiate game this Friday. His roommate, senior defenseman Derik Johnson, reached the milestone last Saturday in Oxford, Ohio.

THIS DEFENSE NEVER RESTS: Minutes muncher Andy Welinski has generated the second-most goals (a career-high seven) and shots (81) of any NCHC defenseman thus far.  He and fellow junior Willie Corrin have both scored shorthanded once this season -- no other NCHC team has two pointmen who can make that claim.. Collectively, UMD's eight-member blue line corps has combined for 18 goals this year -- after mustering just five (all of which came off the stick of Welinski) during the entire 2013-14 season -- and 60 points.

THEIR BEST PERIOD, PERIOD: UMD has outscored the opposition 43-26 in the third period this season. Those 43 goals pace the NCHC and rank fourth nationally.

BULLDOG BITS:  Of Alex Iafallo's team-leading 25 points, 20 have been registered in Bulldog victories while 17 of Justin Crandall's 19 points have come at the expense of conference opponents. Those 17 league points are tops among all Bulldogs. Crandall will bring a team-best five-game scoring streak into this weekend's series with Omaha.

• Going back to a 5-4 loss to visiting Minnesota on Oct. 15, 2011, the Bulldogs are unbeaten in 51 of the 52 games they've struck for more than three goals (46-1-5). The sole setback during that stretch was inflicted by Minnesota State-Mankato earlier this year (5-4 in overtime on Oct. 17 in Duluth).

• UMD is 9-3 when holding the opposition scoreless on the power play this season.

• The Bulldogs' 19 overall victories (19-12-1) are three more than their entire 2014-15 total (16-6-4) while their 11 NCHC wins (11-8-1) are one more than they finished with last year (10-10-4)

• Last Saturday night marked UMD's first loss this season in the 14 games it has led at the second intermission (13-1-0).

•  Eight different Bulldogs have claimed NCHC Player of the Week honors so far in 2014-15 -- only North Dakota with nine, has more. UMD is the only program to have two goalies recognized this year (Kasimir Kaskisuo on Oct. 27 and Nov. 17 and Matt McNeely on Oct. 13).

• UMD has managed to win just three of its last 17 games that have gone beyond regulation, going 3-5-9. Those three victories came against Colorado College on Dec. 6, 2014, St. Cloud State on Nov. 7, 2014 and Minnesota State-Mankato (Jan. 24, 2014). Only three active Bulldogs -- Alex Iafallo,Kyle Osterberg and junior center Cal Decowski -- have an overtime goal to their collegiate credit (one each).

• Among NCHC newcomers, right winger Karson Kuhlman is third in shots on goal (66), fifth in goals (seven) and eighth in scoring (15 points), and remains the only league rookie with a shorthanded goal on his 2014-15 stat line. First-year center Jared Thomas, who was promoted from the fourth to first line five games ago in the absence of Dominic Toninato, has won the second most faceoffs (121) of any league novice.

• UMD continues to possess both the NCHC's second-highest scoring junior (94 points) and sophomore (89 pts.) classes.

• 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).

• The Bulldogs have drawn first blood in 27 of their 36 victories the last two seasons, going 27-8-2 in that situation -- 13-4-0 this winter). On the other hand, they are a mere 8-19-3 when the opposition has taken a 1-0 lead during that stretch (6-8-1 in 2014-15).

• Center Tony Cameranesi and defenseman Andy Welinski, who were both members of the WCHA All-Rookie Team in 2012-13, have taken a shift all 106 outings since joining the Bulldog program two years ago. Cameranesi has picked up at least one point in 15 of the past 19 games.

• Sophomore defenseman Carson Soucy, the only UMD product to ever be drafted by the Minnesota Wild (fifth round in 2013), has the best career plus-minus rating (+19) of any 2014-15 Bulldog.

UP NEXT: UMD will wrap up the 2014-15 regular season with two NCHC clashes at Western Michigan on March. 6-7.
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