FACEOFF After toppling the top-ranked team in the nation this past weekend, the No. 6-ranked University of Minnesota Duluth sets out on the road for the only time this month as the Bulldogs face off with Miami in National Collegiate Hockey Conference competition. The puck drops on the action both Friday and Saturday night just after 6 p.m. CT.

LAST TIME OUT UMD handed previously-unbeaten Denver its first defeat and claimed four points on the weekend, drawing the Pioneers 3-3 on Friday night before coming back with a 5-2 victory on Saturday at AMSOIL Arena. Scott Perunovich and Nick Swaney each had three assists on the weekend, Cole Koepke scored his first two goals of the season, and Noah Cates had a goal in each end of the two-game set. Hunter Shepard continued his starting streak between the pipes, becoming the first goalie to out-duel Denver's Magnus Chrona this season.

BULLDOGS IN THE POLLS UMD moved up one spot to sixth in each of the major national polls (U.S. College Hockey Online and USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine) this week after knocking Denver from the ranks of the unbeaten. The Pioneers slid one spot to No. 2 according to the USCHO, maintaining hold on 15-of-50 first-place votes. No. 1 Minnesota claimed poll position and 25-first place votes, while Cornell, Notre Dame, and UMass round out the top five. The remainder of the NCHC representation in the poll includes No. 9 North Dakota, No. 19 Omaha, and No. 20 Western Michigan, while St. Cloud State remains among the teams receiving votes outside the top 20.

ANOTHER ONE FOR THE MANTLE For that second-straight week that UMD competed, Hunter Shepard earned the title of NCHC Goalie of the Week, leading the conference in saves (59) and save percentage (.922) while back-stopping the Bulldogs for all but 30 seconds of the team's 125 minutes on the weekend. He faced 64 shots, also the most in the conference, while posting a 2.41 GAA. He now has earned 11 career NCHC weekly honors and two this season.

AGAINST THE COMPETITION UMD has dominated in the all-time series with Miami: Including winning six-straight entering the weekend, the Bulldogs are 19-4-2 all-time against the Redhawks, with Scott Sandelin at the helm for UMD of each game in the history of the two programs.

Noah Cates enjoyed significant success against Miami in his first collegiate go-around, scoring three goals and adding two assists in four games with the Redhawks. Scott Perunovich has six points (two goals, four assists) in seven career games with Miami, Dylan Samberg a goal and four assists in eight games,  Nick Swaney two goals and four assists in six, and Nick Wolff four goals and one assist in eight. Hunter Shepard has made eight starts against the Redhawks to the tune of a 1.38 ERA and .940 save percentage with 172 stops. He's also shut out Miami four times in his career.

NCAA SUPERLATIVES UMD's specialty teams continue to rank among the nation's best entering the weekend. The Bulldogs currently rank no. 12 in penalty killing percentage, stopping 89.7 percent of opponent power play chances, while the team also ranks no. 19 in power play, scoring 20.6 percent of the time they own the skater advantage.
Jackson Cates ranks seventh in the nation with his three power play goals already this season. 

A LEAGUE OF THEIR OWN UMD ranks third in the NCHC in penalty killing and fourth in power play percentage while also scoring the third-most power play goals in the league, currently with seven.

DECIDED IN TWO UMD remains unbeaten, 4-0-0, this season when leading after two periods, but the team's Nov. 8 tie against Denver marked the first time they had not fallen when trailing after two, now 0-3-1.

KEEPING IT 100 Senior forward Jade Miller skated in his 100th career game for UMD last Friday night, one of just two current Bulldogs (Nick Wolff, 131) to reach the century mark. Justin Richards should be the next skater to reach the mark with 93 career games, while Hunter Shepard also has 93 games between the pipes.

SHEPARDING IN HISTORY Already the NCAA leader in consecutive games started with 89-straight starts in goal for the UMD, Hunter Shepard also continues to charge towards more history. The national record for consecutive games played by a goalie is 102, set by Cornell's David McKee from 2004-06. Shepard's 89-straight starts also mark his consecutive games played, allowing him the chance to equal the mark later this season. With 17 career shutouts, the senior netminder also has an outside chance on reaching the record of 26 set by Ryan Miller at Michigan State from 1999-02. His 58 victories to his name also near the program record for goaltending wins of 60, set by Rick Kosti ('85).

MINNESOTA SPORTS AWARDS Sports Minneapolis, a division of Meet Minneapolis, announced last month that the 2018-19 UMD Bulldogs received a pair of nominations for the 2019 Minnesota Sports Awards. Head coach Scott Sandelin stands alongside Rocco Baldelli of the Minnesota Twins and Adrian heath of Minnesota United F.C. as a candidate for Coach of the Year, while former Bulldog captain Parker Mackay ('19) landed a nomination for the Men's Collegiate Athlete of the Year honor. The charity gala and award announcements will take place on Dec. 11 at the Renaissance Minneapolis Hotel, The Depot.

LEADING THE PACK UMD stood atop the NCHC Preseason Poll released 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.

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.

THE TEAM'S BEST 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. 

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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