The University of Minnesota Duluth will close the books on the 2019-20 regular season this Friday and Saturday (March 6-7) when the Bulldogs host St. Cloud State University in a two-game National Collegiate Hockey Conference series. The puck drops at 7:07 p.m. both nights at AMSOIL Arena (6,756) in downtown Duluth.

THE RECORDS: The two-time defending NCAA champion Bulldogs are 20-10-2 overall and 15-5-2-0 in NCHC play (second place) while St. Cloud State sports an even 13-13-6 record in all outings and a 10-10-2-1 league mark (fifth place).

HOW THEY RANK: Here is how UMD and St. Cloud State stacked up in the most recent USCH0.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 (t)
SCSU	RV	RV	No. 22

ON THE AIR: The two UMD-St. Cloud State clashes this weekend will be carried on KDAL-Radio (610 AM and 103.9 FM) with Bruce Ciskie handling the play-by-play responsibilities. The broadcast can also be heard at: kdal610.com.

Both ends of this weekend's series will also be televised -- Friday on Fox Sports North and Saturday on My 9 (locally), Fox 9+ (Twin Cites metro area) and KTTC-TV (Rochester, Minn.-La Crosse, Wis.). Zach Schneider, former UMD standout forward Judd Medak and Tom Hansen (rinkside) will serve as the on-air talent both nights. The two telecasts are available on-line at: nchc.tv/umd.

THE RIVALRY: UMD and St. Cloud State have met on 133 previous occasions in a rivalry which stretches back to the 1946-47 season. The Huskies hold a 72-52-9 lead in the all-time series and are 69-48-8 versus the Bulldogs since joining the NCAA Division I ranks in 1987-88.

• Earlier this year (Jan. 17-18), the Bulldogs were taken down twice by their long-time rivals after coming into the weekend armed with their longest winning streak (six games since last spring). The Huskies prevailed 2-1 in the series' opener and then completed the sweep less than 24 hours later by scoring twice in the final 1:35 of play and besting the Bulldogs 2-0. Junior left winger Kobe Roth accounted for UMD's lone goal on the weekend, striking on the power play midway through the first period in Game One.

LAST WEEKEND: UMD registered its seventh series sweep of the 2019-20 season by following up a 4-2 NCHC triumph over Colorado College Friday with a convincing 6-2 win the following evening in Colorado Springs, Colo. Junior defenseman Scott Perunovich and sophomore right winger Cole Koepke each scored once and helped set up another goal on Friday while sophomore center Justin Richards added a pair of assists. In the rematch, Richards broke a scoreless tie 14:22 in the first period and UMD never looked back, striking for four, second-period goals taking a 5-0 lead into the second intermission. The Bulldogs got goals from six different players, including sophomore center Noah Cates, who also was credited with two assists. UMD outshot the Tigers 44-28 on the night and 83-50 on the weekend.

A SENIOR MOMENT: Saturday's regular season home finale with St. Cloud State has been designated as the Bulldogs' annual Senior Night and UMD will recognize its four seniors -- defensemen Jarod Hilderman and Nick Wolff, forward Jade Miller,and goaltender Hunter Shepard -- during a special pre-game ceremony. During this quartet's time at UMD, the Bulldogs have captured two NCAA national championships, appeared in three NCAA Frozen Four title games, claimed two NCHC Frozen Faceoff playoff crowns and rolled up a 102-44-14 record.

MAN OF THE WEEK: For his spirited play in last weekend's twin takedowns of Colorado College, junior Scott Perunovich was chosen the NCHC Defenseman of the Week. Perunovich topped all league blueliners in scoring over the weekend with one goal and the three assists while going a +4. He has now earned the NCHC Defenseman of the Week award a league-best five times in 2019-20 (with the others coming on Oct. 28, Nov. 18, Nov. 25 and Feb. 2) and has secured some kind of NCHC weekly honor on 11 different occasions over the course of his career.

MAN OF THE MONTH: Scott Perunovich's stellar performance in February resulted in a NCHC of the Month honor for the two-time All-American junior defenseman. During that 29-day stretch, Perunovich racked up 10 points on two goals and a league-high eight assists in seven outings while going a +7 blocking 17 shots. He twice was voted the NCHC Defenseman of the Week in February, attaining that distinction following the first and last weekends of the month.

CONSISTENTLY CONSISTENT: The 2019-20 Bulldogs will finish the year with a .500 or above record in NCHC play for a seventh consecutive season (which is the entire existence of that conference).

CONSISTENTLY CONSISTENT II: UMD has clinched home ice for next weekend's NCHC playoff quarterfinals. That makes it five straight years of hosting a first-round conference playoff series for the Bulldogs, which is a program best.

CONSISTENTLY CONSISTENT III: While the Bulldogs still have a mathematical shot of claiming a share of the 2019-20 NCHC regular season title (two losses to Omaha by North Dakota this weekend and two UMD wins against St. Cloud State would get that done), they are guaranteed of finishing no lower than second place. UMD took runnerup honors in the league standings in two of the previous three seasons.

SURGING DOWN THE STRETCH: The Bulldogs are 7-1-0 since Jan. 31 while St. Cloud State has also lost only once (5-1-2) during that same time frame.

COLE'S ON A ROLL: Sophomore right winger Cole Koepke will carry a a career-high eight-game scoring streak into Friday's clash with St. Cloud State. That's the longest such run by a Bulldog since current junior center Justin Richards also marked in the points column in eight straight games from Dec. 28, 2018-Jan. 26, 2019.

• Since Nov. 30, 2019, no one in the NCHC has generated a higher scoring yield than Cole Koepke. who over that stretch has 11 goals and 12 assists in 19 games.

NO STRANGER IN THE NIGHT: No opponent has paid more lifetime visits to AMSOIL Arena than St. Cloud State (18), which shares that honor with Omaha. 

PUCK HUNTER: Senior All-American Hunter Shepard has made a NCAA-record 113 straight starts, an ironman streak that dates back to Oct. 21, 2017.

• The NCAA record for consecutive appearances by a goalie is 122 held by Dan Murphy of Clarkson (1994-98).

PUCK HUNTER II: Hunter Shepard, the 2018-19 NCHC Goaltender of the Year, has a school-record 17 shutouts to his collegiate credit (more than all but one active NCAA puckstopper), including a pair this season. The only two NCHC clubs Shepard has yet to blank are Omaha and St. Cloud State.

PUCK HUNTER III: This past November, Hunter Shepard became UMD's career leader in victories (the old mark was 60 wins, held by both Rick Kosti, 1983-85, and Taras Lendzyk, 1992-96). Shepard now sports a 74-37-5 lifetime record as a Bulldog and those 74 triumphs trail only one other current NCAA goaltenders (Penn State University's Peyton Jones with 76).

PUCK HUNTER IV: Hunter Shepard has been bestowed with the NCHC Goaltender of the Week award a league-high six times times this season (Feb. 10, Jan. 13, Jan. 6, Nov. 25, Nov. 1 and Oct. 28) and on 15 occasions as a collegian.

NO POWER SHORTAGE HERE: The Bulldogs currently rank seventh nationally -- and first in the NCHC -- in power play efficiency (.262) and are tied for fourth in power play goals (34). UMD has collected more of its total goals with the man advantage this season -- 32.7 percent -- than all but five NCAA I teams.

NO POWER SHORTAGE HERE II: The Bulldogs' 34 power play goals thus far have been generated by 10 different players, including sophomore center Jackson Cates and junior left winger Kobe Roth, who both have struck a team- and career-high five times with the man advantage. Those five goals tie them for third in the NCHC.

NO POWER SHORTAGE HERE IV: Going back to Dec. 4, 2015, UMD is 29-4-2 when scoring multiple times on the power play. Two of those losses occurred earlier this year -- on Oct. 18 at Wisconsin and on Feb. 21 at Western Michigan.

FOR THE RECORD: UMD has equaled a program record for NCHC wins with 15. The 2016-17 Bulldogs also achieved that total.

GREAT SCOTT: Two-time All-American junior Scott Perunovich currently occupies the No. 2 spot on the NCAA defensemen scoring charts with a UMD-leading (and career-best 39 points) while his 22 power play points and 33 assists rank first and second, respectively, among all NCAA skaters.

GREAT SCOTT II: Scott Perunovich has racked up more more penalty minutes (62) than any player in the NCHC thus far.

GREAT SCOTT III: Scott Perunovich, the two-time NCHC Offensive Defenseman of the Year, now holds down the No. 6 spot on UMD's all-time scoring list for blueliners:

Perunovich's 104 career points are the fourth most of any 2019-20 NCAA defenseman (Duluth native and Northern Michigan University senior Phil Beaulieu is first with 120) while his lifetime 0.92 points per game average is tops among the nation's active point men.

GREAT SCOTT IV: In UMD's Feb. 21 bout at Western Michigan, Perunovich became the 58th member of the UMD Century Club and the first Bulldog to crack the 100-point plateau since All-American winger Alex Iafallo did it in 2016-17. The last defenseman to reach that milestone was three-time All-American Norm Maciver back in 1984-85.

THE EARLY GOAL GETS THE WIN: The Bulldogs have won 42 of the last 45 games in which they have gotten on the scoreboard first. -- a run that dates back to March 6, 2018. Two of the setbacks in that situation were inflicted by St. Cloud State (on March 9, 2019 and Jan. 12, 2019) while the other came at Western Michigan on Feb. 21, 2020 (5-3). UMD is 16-1-0 when it has taken a 1-0 lead in 2019-20.

GET SHORTIE: Junior center Justin Richards is tied for the NCAA lead (with six other players) in shorthanded goals with three. That's the most shorties by a Bulldog since Mike Connolly struck four times while a man down in 2011-12 and two goals shy of the program record set by 1980 Olympic gold medalist John Harrington in both 1977-78 and 1978-79.

GET SHORTIE II: UMD tops the NCHC and is tied for second nationally in shorthanded goals with six. The last time a Bulldog team accumulated more shorties was in 2014-15 (seven).

GET SHORTIE III: Junior right winger Nick Swaney (three, including one this season and two in 2018-19), junior center Justin Richards (three, all in 2019-20) and sophomore right winger Cole Koepke (two, both in 2019-20) are the only three current Bulldogs with a shorthanded goal to their collegiate credit.

RACKING 'EM UP: Friday's matchup with St. Cloud State will be Scott Sandelin's 800th game as UMD's head coach.

BONUS HOCKEY HAS BEEN A BONUS: UMD is unbeaten in 27 of the last 28 games that have required overtime, going 13-1-14 since falling 2-1 to host North Dakota on Feb. 19, 2016. The lone setback (4-3) came at St. Cloud State on March 8, 2019. UMD is 0-0-2 in overtimes this season.

BONUS HOCKEY HAS BEEN A BONUS II: Just two 2019-20 Bulldogs -- junior right winger Nick Swaney and sophomore right winger Cole Koepke -- have scored an overtime goal as a collegian. Swaney has three (all coming in 2018-19, which tied him for the NCAA lead) while Koepke potted his overtime winner in a 4-3 victory at Denver on Nov. 17, 2018.

GIVING IT THEIR BEST SHOT: Junior right winger Nick Swaney (4.59) and sophomore right winger Cole Koepke (4.47) rank second and fourth, respectively, nationally in shots per game average. As a team, the Bulldogs come in at No. 7 (33.47) in that department.

TAKE IT TO THE BANK: Since falling 4-3 at Denver in the NCHC playoff opener on March 13, 2015, the Bulldogs are 92-2-3 when taking a lead into the third period. (They are 18-1-0 in that situation this season). The only two losses during that stretch came at the hands of Western Michigan in Kalamazoo, MIch. -- 3-2 on Dec. 7, 2018 and 5-3 on Feb. 21, 2020.

HUNGRY LIKE THE WOLFF: Senior defenseman Nick Wolff, who has taken part in more lifetime games (154) than all but four players in the country, had his streak of 127 consecutive appearances snapped when he sat out the Nov. 30 home clash against Minnesota State-Mankato with an upper body injury. That ironman run started on Nov. 19, 2016 in Omaha.

HUNGRY LIKE THE WOLFF II: Nick Wolff is currently third in the NCHC in blocks with 67 while his blueline partner, junior Scott Perunovich, is fourth with 56.

STACKED IN THE MIDDLE: UMD possesses the nation's third-highest scoring junior class (135 points) and ninth-highest sophomore unit (103 points) while the senior and rookie groups (20 and 21 points, respectively) both rank 57th out of 60 NCAA schools.

HE KEEPS GOING, AND GOING AND ...: Junior center Justin Richards, the reigning NCHC Defensive Forward of the Year, has skated in all 118 outings since joining the UMD program two years ago while sophomore right winger Cole Koepke also has yet to miss a game as a Bulldog (74).

EVEN UP: The Bulldogs have registered 64 of their 104 goals in even-strength situations thus far. That figures out to be 61.5 percent, which ranks 58th among 60 NCAA clubs (Bowling Green at 57.1 percent and Princeton University at 54.4 percent maintain the bottom two spots).

A COUPLE OF GOOD LUCK CHARMS: Since Kobe Roth signed on with the Bulldogs in 2016-17, UMD is undefeated in 18 of the 21 games in which he has collected a goal (17-3-1). This season, the Bulldogs are 10-1-1 when Cole Koepke has scored.

SAVING THEIR BEST FOR LAST: The Bulldogs have outscored the opposition 46-27 in the third period so far in 2019-20. At home, that advantage is a sizzling 29-9. A total of 44.2 percent of UMD's overall goals have been produced in the final 20 minutes of regulation, a figure bettered by only two NCAA I clubs (Massachusetts at 45.3 percent and Ohio State at 47.7 percent) to date.

OH, BROTHER: The sophomore brother duo of forwards Jackson and Noah Cates (the top vote getter on the 2018-19 NCHC All-Rookie Team) struck for goals in the same game three times last season and have done it once thus far in 2019-20.

NOT SO SWEEP: UMD has been swept only seven times in its last 74 regular season series overall (going back to Feb. 19-20, 2016) -- three times to St. Cloud State twice to Denver and once (earlier this year) to both the University of Wisconsin and to Minnesota State.

MAKING HIS GOALS COUNT: Of Kobe Roth's 24 career goals, exactly one third (eight) have been game-winners and 11 have come on the power play.

NO WALK IN THE PARK: UMD ranked first nationally in regular season strength of schedule in 2018-19 and currently hold down the No. 2  spot this season. Here is how the Bulldogs have fared in that department since joining the NCHC:

Year           Rank
2019-20        2nd
2018-19        1st
2017-18        3rd
2016-17        1st
2015-16        2nd
2014-15        1st
2013-14        1st

HEY, WE KNOW THAT GUY: Brett Larson, who spent six seasons -- in two separate tours of duty -- serving as UMD assistant men's hockey coach, is in his second season at the helm of the St. Cloud State program. During Larson's tenure at UMD (2008-2011 and 2015-18), the Bulldogs rolled up a 142-79-30 overall record (for a .625 winning percentage), captured the school's only two NCAA national championships (2011 and 2018), made five NCAA Tournament appearances (2008, 2011, 2015, 2016 and 2017), and laid claim to one NCHC playoff title (2017) and another WCHA playoff crown (2009) while qualifying for the WCHA Final Five/NCHC Frozen Four tournament six times.

BULLDOG BLOODLINES: Brett Larson and Mike Sertich are the only two UMD hockey alums to face their alma mater as head coach. Larson has done it seven with St. Cloud State  while Sertich and his Michigan Tech Huskies squard off against the Bulldogs on 10 occasions during his three-year tenure in Houghton, Mich. The first of those came in Duluth on Nov. 10-11, 2000 (then-UMD rookie head coach Scott Sandelin collected his first collegiate victory on the second night of that WCHA series).

LIKE A PRO: Last month (Feb. 29), defenseman Mikey Anderson made his National Hockey League debut with the Los Angeles Kings and became the 61st former Bulldog to take a shift in the NHL. Some 25 of those UMD alums played under current head coach Scott Sandelin.

ON TAP: The Bulldogs will host a best-of-three first round NCHC playoff series starting on March 13.