The University of Minnesota Duluth will continue on its diet of National Collegiate Hockey Conference competition this Friday and Saturday (Jan. 25-26) when the Bulldogs and the University of Nebraska-Omaha square off in their lone two-game series of the 2018-19 regular season. The puck drops at 7:07 p.m. both nights at AMSOIL Arena (6,756) in downtown Duluth.

THE RECORDS: The defending NCAA champion Bulldogs are 14-6-2 overall and 7-4-1-0 in NCHC play (second place) while Omaha sports a 7-13-2  record in all games to go with a 3-8-1-1 NCHC mark (seventh place).

HOW THEY RANK: Here is how UMD and Omaha stacked up in the most recent USCHO.com and USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine polls as well as the PairWise rankings:
 

	USCHO.com	USA Today	PairWise
UMD	No. 5	No. 5	No. 4
UNO	NR	NR	No. 41

        
ON THE AIR: The two Bulldog-Maverick clashes this weekend will be carried on KDAL-Radio (610 AM and 103.9 FM) with Bruce Ciskie handling the play-by-play responsibilities and Bulldog hockey alumnus Kraig Karakas the color commentary.  The broadcast can also be heard at: kdal610.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. Zach Scheider 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 RIVALRY: UMD and Omaha will collide for the 32nd and 33rd times ever this weekend. The Bulldogs hold a 17-11-3 lead in the all-time series, which began on Dec. 5, 1997 at the Duluth Entertainment and Convention Center, and were an even 2-2 against the Mavericks one year ago. That included a series split (a 4-1 setback and 4-1 victory) in the 2017-18 regular season finales at AMSOIL Arena. UMD is 8-3-3 all-time versus Omaha in Duluth.

LAST WEEK: The Bulldogs turned back Miami twice -- and did so in a defensively dominating fashion -- following up a 4-0 NCHC triumph on Friday with another shut out (3-0) the following evening in Oxford, Ohio.  In the series opener, the Bulldogs got goals from four different players, including Nick Swaney (who also assisted on one goal) and a 23-save performance from Hunter Shepard. Sophomore center Justin Richards chipped in a pair of assists for UMD, which struck three times in a span of 89 seconds early in the second period.  On Saturday, Shepard made 17 stops en route to posting his fourth consecutive shutout over the RedHawks and keeping them off the board for just over 257 consecutive minutes. Swaney, Richards  (penalty shot) and sophomore defenseman Scott Perunovich (on the power play) accounted for UMD goals and the Bulldogs wound up outshooting Miami 39-17 on the night.  

Omaha and North Dakota traded 4-3 wins with the host Fighting Hawks prevailing on Friday before the Mavericks bounced back to take the series' finale. Junior forward  Zach Jordan and senior forward Fredrik Olofsson paced the Omaha scoring attack with three points each over the weekend.

DOUBLE TROUBLE: Junior netminder Hunter Shepard and sophomore right winger Nick Swaney were both cited by the NCHC for their exemplary performances in UMD's double takedowns of Miami last weekend.

Shepard, the NCHC Goaltender of the Week., turned in back-to-back shutouts, blanking the RedHawks 4-0 on Friday before backstopping the Bulldogs to a 3-0 triumph the following night. He closed out the weekend with 40 total saves (including 23 stops in the series' opener) and helped key a UMD penalty kill unit that blanked Miami on all nine of its power play opportunities over the two games.

Swaney scored once and helped set up another goal each night for a four-point series (tops among all Bulldogs) on his way to collaring the NCHC Offensive Player of the Week award. He was the lone league skater to collect a shorthanded goal over the weekend and gave UMD a 1-0 first period lead with his second shorty of the year on Friday. Overall, he put six shots on target and went a +2 during the sweep.

Shepard has now been cited as the league's Goaltender of the Week on nine occasions -- six times one year ago and three times in 2018-19 (Nov. 12, Dec. 3 and Jan. 21) while this marks the first NCHC Offensive Player of the Week honor for Swaney, who twice was named the league's Rookie of the Week last season.

A REAL BUZZ KILL: UMD continues to rank first in the nation in penalty kill efficiency at .929. The Bulldogs have given up just one power play goal in their last 11 games and the last 44 times they've been a man down. That lone score was registered by St. Cloud State on Jan. 12. Opponents are a mere 6-for-84 on the power play this season, with those six goals spread over six different games.

'TOP DOG: For the second straight week, sophomore center Justin Richards holds down the No. 1 spot on the Bulldog scoring charts with 22 points on eight goals and 14 assists. Richards, who has taken shifts in all 66 games since joining the UMD program one year ago, is currently riding a career-high six-game scoring streak, having accumulated eight points (four goals and four assists) during that stretch.

Prior to this past Friday night,  the last time someone other than sophomore Scott Perunovich topped the Bulldogs in points entering a weekend was on Nov. 9, 2017.

BONUS HOCKEY HAS BEEN JUST THAT: UMD is now unbeaten in the last 22 games that have gone into overtime, going 10-0-12, since falling 2-1 to host North Dakota on Feb. 19, 2016. Just three current Bulldogs -- Parker Mackay, Cole Koepke and Nick Swaney -- have an overtime goal as a collegian. Mackay has two, striking in the 2017-18 season opener against Minnesota and in the 2018 NCAA West Regional semifinals versus Minnesota State. Keopke did his in a 4-3 triumph at Denver on Nov. 17, 2018 and Swaney his damage in UMD's 4-3 overtime takedown of Minnesota State-Mankato in the 2018 Desert Hockey Classic semifinals.

PUCK HUNTER: Hunter Shepard, the NCHC Goaltender of the Month for  November, currently sits fourth among NCAA puckstoppers in goals against average wins (1.74) and wins (14) and second in shut outs (4). He's now made 61 consecutive starts (an ironman run that began on Oct. 21, 2017), which is 15 starts shy of the Bulldog record set by current Bulldog volunteer goalie coach Brant Nicklin between Oct. 12, 1996 and March 15, 1998.

Shepard, a 2017-18 All-NCHC second team selection and Mike Richter Award semifinalist (most outstanding NCAA goaltender), has also posted four shutputs this year giving him 12 for his career -- a UMD program record.

FLEXING SOME SOPHOMORE MUSCLE: UMD possesses the fourth-highest scoring sophomore class in the country (90 points on 30 goals and 60 assists) and that group has accounted for 50.5 percent of the Bulldogs' entire point production thus far and 44.8 percent of their goals.
LEAD ... AND SUCCEED: Going back to Feb. 17, 2018, the Bulldogs have reeled off 17 straight victories when they've been up at the first intermission.

OH, BROTHER: Last Friday marked the third time this season the rookie brother tandem of Jackson and Noah Cates both struck for goals in the same game.

BACK ON THE HOMEFRONT: Omaha has paid 12 lifetime visits to AMSOIL Arena, where it has mustered a .373 winning percentage. Here is how UMD's seven NCHC adversaries have fared overall at that downtown Duluth facility since it opened for business on Dec. 30, 2010:

Team                     GP    W-L-T   Pct.
Denver                  10     7-1-2    .800
St. Cloud State      18    9-7-2    .555
North Dakota         13    7-6-0    .538
Western Michigan  14    6-7-1   .464
Nebraska Omaha   12   3-6-3    .373
Colorado College    10   1-8-1    .150
Miami                      12   1-10-1   .125

NAILED IT: In the 3-0 takedown of Miami this past Saturday,  sophomore center Justin Richards became the first Bulldog to successfully convert a penalty shot since Travis Oleksuk did so back on Oct. 15, 2010 against Providence College in Duluth.

WE'LL SECOND THAT: The Bulldogs have outscored the opposition 31-13 in the second period this season. UMD's +18 second-period goal differential is the second-best among NCAA I schools while their goals per game average (1.41) ranks third nationally. In addition, 46.3 percent of the Bulldogs' goal scoring has taken place in the second period, a figure that only two other NCAA I clubs can top.

GREAT SCOTT!: Since the start of the 2017-18 season,  only one other NCAA defenseman has generated a higher scoring output than Scott Perunovich. The sophomore All-American has been credited with 56 points (14 goals and 42 assists) during the past two seasons to take a backseat only to Northern Michigan University junior -- and Duluth native -- Phil Beaulieu (15 goals and 48 assists for 63 points).
Last Friday in Oxford, Perunovich snapped a four-game poinlest skid (the longest of his career) with an assist and then helped set up another goal the following evening.  He currently shares the NCHC lead in defensemen scoring (with St Cloud State's Scott Ahcan) with 20 points and is second in assists (17) .

THE EARLY GOAL GETS THE WIN: The Bulldogs are 12-1-0 when they've drawn first blood this season and have won 17 of the last 18 games in which they have gotten on the scoreboard first (going back to March 9, 2018. Their one loss in that situation was inflicted by St. Cloud State on Jan. 12, 2018).

CLAP FOR THE WOLFFMAN: Junior assistant team captain Nick Wolff, who has taken shifts in a team-high 95 straight games, is a +11 on the year -- the  seventh best mark among NCHC blueliners at the moment. Wolff also is the NCHC leader in both overall penalties (16) and penalty minutes (62) and ranks ninth in blocked shots (38).

THEIR BEST YET: Three UMD veterans have established or equaled career collegiate bests for points this winter:

Player                  Yr.    Pts.    Previous High
Justin Richards    So.     22    9 (2017-18)
Kobe Roth            So.    10    9 (2017-18)
Koby Bender         Fr.      1    1 (2017-18)

... while a couple others are knocking on the door:

Player                Yr.    Pts.    Previous High
Parker Mackay    Sr.    17    19 (2017-18)
Nick Wolff            Jr.      9    13 (2017-18

LIFE OF RILEY: Riley Tufte, who skated in his 100th game with the Bulldogs last Friday evening in Oxford, is tied for UMD lead in career goals (he and senior team captain Paker Mackay each have 30) and tops the club in lifetime power play scores (10). Tufte is one of seven NHL draftees on the UMD 2018-19 roster and one of four first-round NHL draft picks in program history.

GET SHORTIE:  Sophomore right winger Nick Swaney's shorthanded goal last Friday at Miami was the second of his career. He has the Bulldogs' only other shorty of 2018-19 as well, striking against Notre Dame on Oct. 26, 2018. Swaney, sophomore defenseman Mikey Anderson (one) and senior right winger Parker Mackay (one) are the only other two Bulldogs with a man down goal to their collegiate credit.

FOR PETE'S SAKE: Senior Peter Krieger has racked up more collegiate points (77) than any other Bulldog, with 44 of those coming during his time with at UMD (2017-present) and the rest while he was a member of the University of Alaska-Fairbanks program (2014-16).

HIS BEST YET: Senior team captain Parker Mackay has collected nine goals on the season, equaling his career high,which he set one year ago.

POWER SURGE: UMD has struck on the power play at least once in 15 of its 22 games thus far and is connecting at 20.7 percent with the man advantage -- the 18th best average in the country and third best in the NCHC.

POWER SURGE II: The Bulldogs' 17 power play goals to date have been generated by eight different players, including junior left winger Riley Tufte and sophomore right winger Kobe Roth, who both have a team-leading four tallies.

POWER SURGE III: Going back to Dec. 4, 2015, UMD is 19-1-2 when scoring multiple times with the man advantage. That lone loss came earlier this year (Oct. 7) at Minnesota when UMD went 2-for-5 with the man advantage in a 7-4 setback.

GIVING IT THEIR BEST SHOT: The Bulldogs are averaging 35.14 shots per game to trail only Penn State (39.33 spg), the University of Michigan (37.04 spg) and the Ohio State University (35.67 spg) among NCAA I schools. UMD's shot differential (+12.41) is tops in the country while its 22.73 shots allowed per game average ranks third nationally behind North Dakota (21.70 spg) and Providence College (22.46 spg).

THREE'S A CHARM: UMD is 2-3-3 in eight lifetime 3-on-3 NCHC overtimes. The Bulldogs' last 3-on-3 overtime was contested against Miami on Feb. 24, 2017 in Duluth (where the RedHawks prevailed).

OH SHOOT(OUT)!: The Bulldogs are 4-4 all-time in NCHC shootouts, but only three Bulldog shooters -- sophomores Cole Koepke (0-for-1), Scott Perunovich (0-for-1) and Kobe Roth (0-for-1) -- have ever participated in that post-overtime event (and all did so this season). Junior goaltender Hunter Shepard has stopped two of the three shootout attempts he's faced (with all coming in 2018-19 as well).

VIEW FROM THE TOP: UMD has sat atop the USCHO.com Poll on four occasions this season and its three -week stay at the No. 1 position (Oct. 29-Nov. 12) was the program's longest since piecing together another three-week run between Jan. 30-Feb. 13, 2017. UMD has cracked every USCHO.com Top 20 Poll since March 7, 2016.

IT''S ALL ABOUT THE KIDS: Nearly 200 participants in the Mentor Duluth program will be the UMD's guests of honor this Saturday at AMSOIL Arena as part of the 20th annual Mentor Duluth Appreciation Night. Admittance to game is free to all mentors, mentees and children enrolled in the Mentor Duluth (Big Brothers/Bog Sisters) program. The event, which includes a post-game autograph session with the Bulldog players, is made possible through donations from alumni and friends of the UMD Sports Information Office.

The Bulldogs, incidentally, are an impressive 14-4-1 all-time on Mentor Duluth Appreciation Nights. That figures out to be a .816 winning percentage (compared with the .547 overall mark UMD has generated at home during that time).

UP NEXT: UMD will take its show on the road for two NCHC bouts with Colorado College on Feb. 1-2 before engaging in its final bye weekend of the 2018-19 regular season.