THE MATCHUP This weekend, the No. 3 Western Michigan Broncos visit Duluth for the first time since January 24th of 2021. The Bulldogs used 5-1 and 4-1 victories over the Broncos to sweep the series in Duluth one year ago. The Broncos enter Duluth fresh off a sweep of No. 13 North Dakota in Kalamazoo this past weekend.
LAST TIME OUT The Bulldogs split their road series with No. 16 Omaha this past weekend in Nebraska. UMD rolled to a 5-1 win on Friday evening thanks to goals from five different scorers. Bulldogs leading scorer Blake Biondi tallied a goal and two assists, while Noah Cates, Luke Loheit, and Dominc James all secured two points each in the win. On Saturday night, the Mavericks responded with a 5-1 victory of their own.
SPECIAL TEAMS WERE KEY During UMD's two-game series with Omaha this past weekend, the teams combined for a total of six power-play/short handed goals. On the weekend, the Bulldogs tallied two power-play goals and a short handed goal, while the Mavericks registered three power-play markers.
WATCH FOR FRANK Broncos 5th-year forward Ethan Frank leads both the NCHC and NCAA in goals with 17 on the season. Frank also ranks fourth in the nation in power-play goals with seven.
BIONDI STEPS UP During UMD's 5-1 win at Omaha on Friday evening, sophomore forward Blake Biondi tallied a goal and two assists. Biondi leads the Bulldogs in both goals and points with a team-high ten goals and 18 points in 24 games this season.
DON'T FORGET WORRAD Currently tied for eighth in the nation in points, Western Michigan forward Drew Worrad has posted five goals and 22 assists for 27 points in just 21 games this season.
TOUGH TO SCORE The Bulldogs and Broncos sit second and third in the conference in goals against per game. Western is giving up just 2.19 goals per game, while UMD sits with an equally impressive average of just 2.21 goals per game.
FANTI VS BUSSI The probable goaltender matchup this weekend will feature two of the nation's top goalies. Fanti ranks first in the the conference and sixth in the nation in goals against average at 1.68 goals per game. WMU's Brandon Bussi sits in fourth in the country in wins with 16 on the year. During Western's 2-0 victory over North Dakota this past Saturday, Bussi made 24 saves for his third shutout of the season.
PATT EARNS NOMINATION Minnesota Duluth senior goaltender Ben Patt was named one of 11 nominees for the 2022 Hockey Humanitarian Award. Patt garnered a nomination for his work in promoting Movember, a foundation that raises money and brings awareness to men's mental health and suicide prevention, prostate cancer and testicular cancer. During his time in Duluth, Patt has been a constant advocate for the issues surrounding men's health and the Movember movement. This past November, Patt helped the team raise over $11,000 towards the Movember campaign. In addition to the impressive money raised, Patt won the NCHC's Best Movember Mustache for the second straight season.
POWER-PLAY IMPROVEMENT UMD entered last weekend's matchup with the worst power-play percentage in the NCHC. The Bulldogs left Omaha with two power-play goals in ten attempts for a percentage of 20%.
EARLIER THIS SEASON The Bulldogs and Broncos split their first series this season in Kalamazoo in early November. Western Michigan took Friday night's meeting 4-3, while the Bulldogs responded with a 3-0 victory in game two. Two goals from Tanner Laderoute, including a short handed marker, helped UMD to the important road victory at Lawson Ice Arena.
FANTI VS RICHTER UMD junior goaltender Ryan Fanti was named to the Mike Richter Watchlist late last week. The Richter Award is given to the nations top goaltender for that season.
DEFENSIVE SCORING Western Michigan junior defenseman Ronnie Attard ranks fourth in the conference in defensive scoring with 21 points in 21 games this season. Attard ranks second is goals among defenseman with seven, while also ranking top 10 in the conference in plus/minus with a +15 rating on the year.
NEAR THE TOP Western Michigan enters the weekend in a tie for second place in the NCHC standings with 24 points. The Bulldogs currently sit in third position with 21 points.
TOP 10 MATCHUP This weekend's meeting will be another top 10 showdown between the Bulldogs and Broncos. When the two sides met back in November, UMD held a No. 4 ranking, while the Broncos sat at No. 10 in the USCHO National Poll.
PAIRWISE POINTS FOR GRABS Both UMD and WMU sit top ten in the country's pairwise rankings.
PUCK CONTROL WMU center Drew Worrad ranks 12th in the nation in faceoff wins with 269 wins.
STAYING OUT OF THE BOX Both the Bulldogs and Broncos rank among the best discipline teams in the country. UMD sits at 38th in the nation in penalty minutes per game at 10.38, while Western Michigan ranks 39th in total penalty minutes per game with 10.33.
HERTER RETURNS TO AMSOIL Former Minnesota Duluth Associate Head Coach Jason Herter returns to AMSOIL this weekend. Herter was named to WMU's coaching staff this past August. Herter was part of both of UMD's national championships in 2018 and 2019. Herter serves as Western Michigan's Associate Head Coach.
