FACEOFF After a season-opening series split, the University of Minnesota Duluth men's hockey program will reignite hostilities with a former conference rival, matching up with Wisconsin for the first time since the teams left the Western Collegiate Hockey Association following the 2013 season. The Bulldogs and Badgers will face off at 7 p.m. both Friday and Saturday night at the Kohl Center in Madison.

LAST TIME OUT After dropping Friday night's season opener 3-2 to UMass Lowell, then-No. 1 UMD rebounded by playing a complete game, shutting down the River Hawks defensively in a 2-1 victory. Hunter Shepard stopped 22-of-23 pucks, while Justin Richards scored his first career short-handed goal, and Nick Swaney added the game-winner midway through the third before the defense took over. Special teams made the difference, as the Bulldogs held Lowell to an 0-for-8 night on the power play.

BULLDOGS IN THE POLLS UMD slipped two spots to No. 3 in the latest U.S. College Hockey Online (USCHO.com) Division I Men's Poll released Monday. The Bulldogs also shifted to No. 2 in the USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine Coaches Poll. National Collegiate Hockey Conference (NCHC) rival Denver topped both major national polls, receiving 38-of-51 first-place votes from the USCHO and 28-of-34 from the Coaches. UMD held on to three from the media and two from coaches. Five teams from the NCHC rank in this week's poll; along with the Bulldogs and Pioneers, the league is represented by No. 11 St. Cloud State, No. 14 Western Michigan, and No. 18 North Dakota. UMD faces a ranked time for the first time this season in No. 17 Wisconsin this weekend.

AGAINST THE COMPETITION Former league rivals in the historic WCHA, UMD and Wisconsin will meet for the 168th time in program history when the puck drops in Madison on Friday night. The Badgers lead 91-61-15 in the all-time series, including back-to-back victories, sweeping the Bulldogs from the WCHA Tournament on March 15-16, 2013 at the Kohl Center in their last meeting. With a six-year drought since their last meeting, UMD has no skaters with previous experience against Wisconsin. Head coach Scott Sandelin is 10-19-7 against the Badgers.

BALANCED ATTACK UMD spread the offense around with four players scoring goals and nine different skaters contributing points over the weekend. Junior defenseman Scott Perunovich scored a goal and added two assists on the weekend, while sophomore  winger Noah Cates had a goal and an assist. Kobe Roth and Nick Swaney each totaled 11 shots on goal against UMass Lowell.

NCAA SUPERLATIVES UMD is one of just 12 teams to remain perfect on the penalty kill over the weekend, holding the River Hawks scoreless on nine chances with the man advantage. Conversely, the Bulldogs scored on the power play and while short-handed in the series. Allowing just 2.0 goals per game, UMD ranks no. 14 in scoring defense this season.

Averaging 1.00 assist per game, Scott Perunovich ranks no. 24 nationally. Hunter Shepard's 2.01 goals against average ranks no. 26.

A LEAGUE OF THEIR OWN Among the NCHC's leaders, Perunovich finds himself tied for no. 12 overall in scoring with his three points (one goal, two assists) and no. 3 among defensemen ... Louie Roehl's five blocked shots last weekend rank no. 4 in the conference, and first among players with only two games played ... as a team, UMD ranks third in the NCHC averaging 36.0 shots on goal per game.

ICE CHIPS While the team's been known for its late season runs in recent years, UMD has gone 21-10-7 in October over the past five seasons ... the Bulldogs returned 68.9 percent (241/350 points) of their scoring from a season ago, including 90 goals (67.7 percent) and 156 assists (71.8 percent) ... in Hunter Shepard alone, UMD returned 98.7 percent of its goalie minutes from a season ago ... the Bulldogs seek history in 2019-20 as the first team to produce three-straight NCAA Championships since Michigan did so in 1951-53 ...  the last two back-to-back champions (Denver 2004-05 and Minnesota 2002-03) were each eliminated by UMD in the postseason (the Pioneers in the 2006 WCHA Tournament first round and Minnesota in the 2004 NCAA Regional Tournament final).

OWN THE NORTH While the Bulldogs stumbled in their first outing on Fox Sports North last Friday night, the team will look to continue success on the network with six more chances this season, including this weekend's series with Wisconsin. (Both games will be broadcast on FSN+). UMD has finished 11-5-0 on FSN over the last three seasons.

LEADING THE PACK UMD stood atop the NCHC Preseason Poll released Wednesday, Sept. 19, receiving 23 of 28 first-place votes and 218 points overall, 40 more than second-place Denver (178) and 62 more than third-place Western Michigan (156), teams which received two and three first-place votes respectively. North Dakota (143) and St. Cloud State (138) round out the top five.

BEST OF THE BEST Four Bulldogs landed on the seven-man Preseason All-NCHC Team. Hunter Shepard was the lone unanimous selection as the goaltender on all 27 ballots, joined by junior forwards Justin Richards and Nick Swaney, and junior defenseman Scott Perunovich. Each member of the quartet had previously earned NCHC All-Conference designation in the postseason.

SHEP, NO, CAPTAIN SHEP! The reigning team MVP and one of his strongest defenders will lead the Bulldogs this season as senior goaltender Hunter Shepard and senior defender Nick Wolff were selected team captains. Wolff served as an Alternate Captain in 2018-19, setting a new career high in points on the blue line as he scored five goals to go with 13 assists in UMD's historic season. Shepard becomes the first Bulldog goalie since Rick Heinz in 1976-77 to serve as a team captain.

'A' FOR EFFORT Junior forward Justin Richards donned the 'A' to serve as an alternate captain for the UMD for the team's exhibition opener with Alberta, answering questions to who else would receive captaincy duties for the Bulldogs this season. The Columbus, Ohio native has skated in 86 games in his UMD career, scoring 32 points last season.

AWARD SZN Shepard received the prestigious Keith "Huffer" Christiansen Award as the Bulldogs' Most Valuable Player last season. He set a program record with his 1.76 goals against average and nearly matched his own program high with seven shutouts on the season. Additionally, Noah Cates received the Jerry Chumola Rookie of the Year Award, Parker Mackay received the Goldie Wolfe Award (Most Inspirational Player), and rising junior forward Justin Richards earned the Mike Sertich Award as the Most Improver Player. Rising senior forward Jade Miller added the Pat Francisco Community Service Award to his career accolades.

SERVING HIS COUNTRY UMD head coach Scott Sandelin will serve as the head coach of the U.S. Junior National Team at the 202 International Ice Hockey Federation World Junior Championship Dec. 26, 2019 - Jan. 5, 2020. Sandelin has been a part of three previous U.S. National Junior Team coaching staffs, including as head coach in 2005 and as an assistant coach in both 2012 and for last year's silver medal-winning club.

BULLDOGS IN THE LIMELIGHT The defending NCHC Frozen Faceoff Champions have been selected for a pair of showcase games on CBS Sports Network beginning later this season. UMD will host North Dakota on Friday, Jan. 24 at AMSOIL Arena before a national TV audience, while the Bulldogs will travel to Western Michigan on Friday, Feb. 20 for another national broadcast. Additionally, the NCHC Frozen Faceoff semifinals and championship game will air live on CBS Sports Network. UMD is 27-7-1 on national TV broadcasts in the last three seasons.

THE PUCK STOPS HERE Hunter Shepard raked in the accolades for his statistical achievements last season, receiving All-American honors from the AHCA in addition to being a top-5 semifinalist for the Mike Richter Award. During the NCHC, he earned the Goaltender of the Year award in addition to landing on the All-NCHC First Team. 

In the postseason, he represented UMD as the Most Outstanding Player in the NCHC Frozen Faceoff and landed on both the NCAA Midwest Regional and Frozen Four All-Tournament teams.

PATENTLY OFFENSIVE In addition to attaining Second Team All-American status from the AHCA (his second consecutive year to receive top national honors), Scott Perunovich earned All-NCHC First Team honors last season while the league tabbed him as its best Offensive Defenseman for the second-straight season. Perunovich earned a spot on the NCAA Midwest Regional All-Tournament Team during the postseason. Despite playing on the blue line, Perunovich ranked third on the UMD scoring charts in 2018-19.

GETTING DEFENSIVE Rising junior forward Justin Richards book-ended Perunovich's award last season  as the NCHC's Best Defensive Forward in additional to notching an All-NCHC Second Team selection. He finished with 32 points, the second-highest output of any Bulldog, scoring 21 more points than his rookie output.

A ROOK' TO REMEMBER Rising sophomore Noah Cates   earned the distinction of top overall vote-getter on the NCHC All-Rookie Team, leading Bulldog newcomers in goals (9), assists (14), and points (23).

MORE HARDWARE Rounding out the returners to receive All-Conference honors, Nick Swaney represented UMD as an All-NCHC Honorable Mention. In addition to his four game-winners, Swaney totaled 15 scores on the year and 25 points. He came through in the clutch for the Bulldogs, tallying a nationwide-best three overtime goals.

HIT THE BOOKS Not just impressive on the ice, UMD saw nine student athletes land on the NCHC Academic All-Conference Team a year ago, including returners Matt Anderson, Koby Bender, Jade Miller, Ben Patt, Justin Richards, and Nick Swaney. Matt and Mikey Anderson each attained NCHC Distinguished Scholar Athlete honors.

ROSTER BREAKDOWN Along with a four-member senior class, the Bulldogs return eight juniors who know nothing but winning championships in their careers. The 12 upper classmen break down as six defensemen, five forwards, and one goaltender. Eight return for a sophomore go-around with UMD,  two blue-liners, five forwards, and one goalie. The five first-year Bulldogs are goalie Ryan Fanti and forwards Luke Loheit, Brady Meyer, Quinn Olson, and Brandon Puricelli.

WHERE THEY'RE FROM Exactly 60 percent of the UMD roster hails from the Land of 10,000 Lakes with 15-of-25 student athletes growing up in Minnesota. Five cross the border from Canada, including two from Ontario and two from Alberta. The remaining five  Bulldogs include one each from the states of California, Iowa, Missouri, North Dakota, and Ohio.

FEELING A DRAFT Incoming freshman Quinn Olson became the 112th all-time Bulldog to be selected in the NHL Entry Draft in 2019, selected by the Boston Bruins in the third round with the no. 92 overall pick. He joins Noah Cates (Philadelphia), Cole Koepke (Tampa Bay) Luke Loheit (Ottawa), Scott Perunovich (St. Louis), Dylan Samberg (Winnipeg), and Nick Swaney (Minnesota) among current Bulldogs.

A HEALTHY LOOK Last summer, 12 current Bulldogs had the chance to flash their skills at NHL Development camps. UMD sent three student athletes to both the Bruins (Quinn Olson, Justin Richards, Nick Wolff) and Flyers (Matt Anderson, Jackson Cates, Noah Cates) camps, while the Minnesota Wild took a look at both Louie Roehl and Nick Swaney. Rounding out the group were Cole Koepke in Tampa Bay, Luke Loheit in Ottawa, Scott Perunovich in St. Louis, and Dylan Samberg in Winnipeg.

PARTING IS SUCH SWEET SORROW In addition to graduating three seniors - Billy Exell, Peter Krieger, and Parker Mackay, UMD saw two underclassmen move on to the professional ranks as Mikey Anderson signed with the Los Angeles Kings and Riley Tufte with the Dallas Stars.

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