BACK ON HOME 'SOIL The University of Minnesota Duluth men's hockey team returns home to take on Colorado College. This is the team's first game back at AMSOIL Arena since December 2nd. In their last home appearance, UMD beat Miami 3-1. The conference win featured goals from Blake Biondi, Ben Steeves, and Luke Loheit, with six other players picking up points as well.
MAKE-A-WISH GAME The UMD Student-Athlete Advisory Committee is hosting its annual Make-A-Wish event at this Friday's women's and men's hockey games. The SAAC will be collecting donations on Friday, as well as honoring Make-A-Wish Kid Grayson and his family.
#HOCKEYHITSBACK This Saturday, the Bulldogs are playing in honor of Sophie's Squad and it's #HockeyHitsBack campaign. Sophie's Squad was co-founded in 2021 by former UMD women's hockey captain Gabbie Hughes. The organization's mission is to improve the mental health of athletes from youth to college by raising awareness of mental health issues and removing the stigma associated with seeking help.
PLAYER OF THE MONTH Steeves was named the NCHC December Player of the Month this past week. He had seven goals through six games in the final month of the year, averaging 1.34 points per game. In December, Steeves led all NCHC players in points (8) and game-winning goals (2). His performance included two two-goal games (12/8 vs. Miami, 12/29 vs. Air Force).
POWER PLAY POWERHOUSE The Bulldogs have continuously impressed on the power play this season. Currently, they rank third in the nation in power play percentage (.303), behind Princeton and Michigan. They are also tied with Boston College for fourth in total power play goals (20). Only Arizona State, Michigan, and Denver have more. Steeves is third in the nation in individual power play goals (8). His most recent PPG came in UMD's most recent game, at the Kwik Trip Holiday Face-Off against Air Force.
NCHC OUTLOOK Eight games into conference play, the Bulldogs (9) are tied with Omaha for sixth in the NCHC. They are only one point behind CC (10). Denver (13) and next weekend's opponent, Western Michigan (14), are also within reach, if UMD pulls out a two-win weekend. The Bulldogs are one third of the way through NCHC regular season play this season, with 16 games ahead of them including this series.
GOALTENDING TANDEM Senior Zach Stejskal (.909) and Fifth Year Matthew Thiessen (.898) have largely split time between the pipes this season. Stejskal has backstopped UMD in four more games, 12 total. He sits at 49 career games played, meaning the 50-game mark is well within reach this weekend. Stejskal earned all six starts in December, after Thiessen had six the month before. He has one less career start than Stejskal (48). Thiessen split time in last Saturday's exhibition game with sophomore goaltender Zach Sandy. Sandy posted a .850 save percentage, with 17 saves against St. Thomas.
FRESHMEN FITTING IN From the jump, the Bulldog freshmen class has made their presence known on the ice and the stats sheets. Defenseman Aaron Pionk leads his classmates in assists and points (1-10-11). On the team, he's third in assists and fourth in points. Anthony Menghini is ahead in goals (4) and tied for fourth on the team. In the absence of two of the program's star centers, freshman Braden Fischer stepped in to take draws as fourth line center. He had a team-leading faceoff win percentage (.600) against Air Force, who ranked third nationally in face offs.
MORE MILESTONES With the win over Air Force, Scott Sandelin hit the 450-win mark. His career record as head coach extended to 450-377-100, all 927 games with UMD. Sophomore Steeves sits at 49 career points and is only seven points behind his freshman season total. With two games this weekend, Carter Loney and Owen Gallatin will hit the 100 collegiate games benchmark. Graduate transfer Connor McMenamin and Loheit have 148 games under their belts headed into the weekend as well.
