After a week off from outside competition, the University of Minnesota Duluth men's hockey team will hit the road to Omaha, Neb. this weekend to play the University of Nebraska Omaha in Baxter Arena in a National College Hockey Conference showdown. The Friday-Saturday series that will have play-by-play available on KDAL both nights and My9 Sports Saturday, will get underway at 7:07 p.m. both nights.


DON'T SLEEP ON KNAPP: Freshman goaltender Klayton Knapp was named the NCHC's Rookie of the Month Tuesday after being the most impactful rookie in the league all month.

After a four win, one shutout month, the Waterville, Ohio native manned the pipes for the Bulldogs in a league-most 447:06 minutes over eight games. With a NCHC-high 196 saves, Knapp had a .929 saves percentage and 2.15 GAA, all while being one of just three netminders to land a shutout. Overall, Knapp who was named the NCHC Rookie of the Week twice in January, went 4-3-1 for UMD in the month.

In 10 games as the Bulldog netminding starter, Knapp has gone 5-4-1, including 5-3 since the last day of 2024.

JAMES IS A GAMER: Senior center Dominic James will skate in his 100th game as a Bulldog Friday night in Omaha, becoming the fourth current UMD player to reach the 100 career game mark.

MAXED (PLANTE) OUT: Despite a collegiate career that was slightly delayed by injury (10 games), and a World Junior gold medal (three games), freshman Max Plante has found his footing with the Bulldogs. Plante, who has notched at least a point in nine of the 11 games he has skated with UMD so far, has also posted multiple point games in half of his appearances -- five. In fact, three of Plante's last five games have included one goal, one assist efforts by the Hermantown, Minn. native. 

When Plante records multiple point games, UMD has scored at least three goals, and in his five games with a two points, the Bulldogs are averaging 3,8 goals a game and have won three of them -- all in the second half of the season. 

Currently, Plante ranks third in the NCHC with a 1.27 ppg average (and would be 10th if the NCAA recognized his stats). Despite missing 10 games to injury early in the season and three to U.S. Junior National Team duty, Plante has recorded 14 points (6g, 8a) in just 11 collegiate games. 

A SECOND SEASON: The Bulldogs have had a vastly different record since returning from the holiday break. Winners of four of their last five games (all against top-20 teams), UMD is 5-3-1 so far since defeating Bemidji State University on Dec. 31. 

The Bulldogs went 5-10-0 in their opening 15 games before the break.

FRESHMAN FRUITION: Halfway through the season, the Bulldog rookie class has been as good as advertised.

31 of UMD's 70 goals so far this season have been scored by its 11 rookies, and three of the Bulldogs top five goal scorers are freshman. 

Jayson Shaugabay has 18 points through 24 games -- UMD's third leading scorer -- and the native of Warroad, Minn. ranks in a tie for second with eight goals scored. Shaugabay is currently tied for the second most goals by a rookie in the NCHC.

Other Bulldog rookies in the top-6 are  Zam Plante (42 GP) 15 points (4g, 12a) and Max Plante (11 GP) 124points (6g, 8a).

Ty Hanson, a freshman defenseman, is sitting on nine points (3g, 6a), while both rookies Blake Bechen (4g, 4a) and Harper Bentz (2g, 6a) have eight points each.

PASSING POINTS BY PIONK: Sophomore defenseman Aaron Pionk, with 20 points, is currently UMD's second-highest scorer, and 18 of those points are assists. With 18 assists, Pionk has now surpassed his rookie year mark of 17 helpers over 37 games and has tied his overall sophomore campaign point total in 24 games this season.

Pionk is one of just two other defenseman since the 2020-21 season to record 18 or more assists. Current senior Owen Gallatin had 23 helpers last season as a junior, and Wyatt Kaiser posted 18 assists in 2022-23

Pionk currently ranks seventh in the NCHC and 16th in the NCAA with 0.75 assists per game.

THE SERIES: UMD leads the all-time series 29-18-4 all-time against the Mavericks, but UNO maintained a 1-3-1 edge last season. In a series that began  on Dec. 5, 1997 (4-3 Win) at the Duluth Entertainment Convention Center, the Bulldogs are 12-13 all-time in Omaha.

20 games have been decided by one goal or less, and UMD has a 10-6-4 record in those outings. Eight of those skates were overtime outings -- UMD is 2-2-4 overtime games with the Mavericks, including a 1-0 setback for the Bulldogs last season in extra time back on Dec. 2, 2023.

Top Returning UMD Players vs UNO

Owen Gallatin GP=10 G=1 A=5 P=6

Carter Loney GP=10 G=1 A=2 P=3

Dominic James GP=5 G=2 A=1 P=3

Aiden Dubinsky GP=7 G=0 A=3 P=3

Matthew Perkins GP=4 G=2 A=1 P=3

Last 10 Games, UMD vs UNO

(3-7-0)

Feb. 3, 2024 UMD 3, UNO 4

Feb. 2, 2023 UMD 1, UNO 5

Dec. 2, 2023 UMD 0, UNO 1 OT

Dec. 1, 2023 UMD 4, UNO 2

Jan. 14, 2023 UMD 1, UNO 6

Jan. 13, 2023 UMD 2, UNO 3

Nov. 12, 2022 UMD 3, UNO 2 OT

Nov. 11, 2022 UMD 2, UNO 3

Jan. 22, 2022 UMD 1, UNO 5

Jan. 21, 2022 UMD 5, UNO 1

In their last series in 2023-24, the Bulldogs and Mavericks met in Omaha, a sweep for UNO. In game one, the Mavericks scored two goals in the opening period, including a shorthanded tally for a lead it would never surrender. The Bulldogs lone goal by then Matthew Perkins came 17:15 into the first, but after a scoreless second frame, UNO added three goals in the third period, including an empty netter at 18:06 for the 5-1 final. The Mavericks outshot UMD 34-24 in the contest, and the Bulldogs were 0-of-4 on the power play while holding UNO scoreless in three attempts. 

In game two, the Mavericks again scored two goals in the first period to UMD's one, but again, UNO would never trail, eventually landing the 4-3 win, which included a empty net tally.  On night two, UMD outshot the Mavericks 39-29, but could not overcome UNO on the scoreboard. Perkins led all all UMD scorers with two goals in the series and an assist for three points.

EXTRA NOTES ON UMD-UNO: The two sides met in NCHC Quarterfinals in 2019. UMD won the series in back-to-back games by scores of 2-1 and 4-1.

--Since UMD and UNO joined the NCHC, the Bulldogs have a 17-12-4 record in conference play.

LAST TIME OUT: UMD split with the No. 5 University of Denver back on Jan. 24-25 at AMSOIL Arena. The Bulldogs took a 4-3 win Friday night, ignited by its perfect power play. The Bulldogs neve trailed and went 2-for-2 with an extra skater in a power play that needed less than a minute all night to score two goals against the nation's best power play team entering the weekend – the Pioneers.

UMD used that power play to open up the scoring on the night at 17:05 of the first period. Aaron Pionk, who has compiled 18 assists so far this season rang up his second goal with a wrister from the point that beat DU goaltender Freddie Halyklow stick side. Pionk's goal was a total Hermantown, Minn. effort – both Zam and Max Plante had the assists in the tally.

Denver equalized at 2:21 of the second period on an odd-man rush to make it a 1-1 game, but the Bulldogs jumped back on top almost 10 minutes later.

On the power play again, M. Plante one-timed a feed from Callum Arnott from slot to retake the 2-1 lead at 13:14. The snipe was Plante's fifth goal of the season, and fifth in six games, while Arnott's assist was his third-straight game with at least a point (1g, 2a over that span).

Not to be left out of the second period scoring, Kyle Betten's quick blast from the point earned him his first goal of the season 4:31 later, and extended UMD's grip on the lead to 3-1 after 40 minutes.

6:39 into the third period, the Bulldogs built on that lead when Anthony Menghini banged in a rebound from Dominic James to stretch UMD's advantage to 4-1. 

At 11:07 of the third, the Pioneers cut the deficit to 4-2 on a scrum goal that was challenged by Sandelin but withstood it. DU then pulled within a single goal 1:40 later on a power play goal and delayed penalty call that gave the Pioneers a 6–on-4 skater advantage that allowed Jack Devine to cash in.

But despite over three minutes with an empty Denver net and a Pioneer skater advantage, the Bulldogs, backstopped by rookie Klayton Knapp in net, held their ground. That included a late puck clearance of the goal line by senior blueliner Owen Gallatin, whose heroic swipe salvaged the UMD win.

Knapp made a career-high 42 saves for the Bulldogs, who were outshot by the Pioneers 45-30 in the contest. 

On Saturday night, the Pioneers held on to a 2-1 win, despite a goal from from Gallatin at 15:33 of the second to make it a one-goal game. UMD again kept DU out of the power play success column at 0-1. Both teams put up 30 shots on goal, and Knapp had 28 stops for the Bulldogs.

 

NOTES FROM THE DENVER SERIES: UMD is now 91-138-13 all-time against the Pioneers. The Bulldogs earned their first win against a DU side at home for the first time since Nov. 9, 2019.

--UMD kept the nation's best power play team to just one goal in five attempts on the weekend, while going 2-of-5 on its own attempts.

--The Bulldogs are 2-2 against Colorado teams so far this season after they went just 2-6-1 against teams from the state of Colorado last season.