University of Minnesota Duluth rookie Hunter Miska and sophomore Neal Pionk were both cited by the National Collegiate Hockey Conference for their stellar play in the Bulldogs' two-game series home series with the University of Nebraska Omaha this past weekend.

Miska, a native of Stacy, Minn., was chosen the NCHC Goaltender of the Week after limiting the Mavericks, who were averaging a league-high 3.36 goals per night coming into the series, to just two scores (one of which came on the power play) the entire weekend. He registered his fifth shut out of the season (equaling a program record) with a 27-save, 5-0 takedown of Omaha on Saturday after making 23 stops in a 2-2 overtime tie the previous night. For the weekend, Miska stopped 50 of 52 shots (for a .962 saves percentage) while holding the Mavericks scoreless for the final 83:18 of play. On Friday, the reigning NCHC Rookie of the Month also rejected the only shootout attempt he faced as the Bulldogs picked up the extra NCHC point with a shootout win.
 
Pionk, a native of Hermantown, Minn., led all league blueliners in scoring over the weekend with three points en route to collaring the NCHC Defenseman of the Week Award. In the series' opener with Omaha, he was credited with one assist  and then figured in on two of UMD's five goals the following night. Pionk capped off Saturday's 5-0 triumph with his personal-best sixth goal of the year with 2:29 to go in the third period after helping setting up the Bulldogs' first goal of the night. He closed out the series a +3, put seven shots on goal and blocked seven shots.

Poink has received the NCHC Defenseman of the Week award three times this season (Oct. 10 and Dec. 12 were the two others) and some kind of league weekly citation on six occasions since joining the Bulldogs (he was the Defenseman of the Week on Oct. 26, 2015 and Rookie of the Week on March 7, 2016).