Bulldogs Sweep Despite Playing Like Tigers

CC With Recent Late Collaspes Almost Takes Out UMD After Trailing

UMD swept Colorado College last weekend taking care of business leading up to the playoffs. At the same time, the Bulldogs locked up no worse than second in the final conference standings. More to come on that later.

The weekend sweep over the Tigers was not without some anxious moments, and don’t try to say they weren’t anxious.

UMD took a commanding 3-0 lead in the second period only to find themselves in OT tied 3-3. They did their best CC Tigers impersonation, and it was a good one. But UMD broke out of character, the CC character, just in time to save the game with a JT Brown goal in OT.

This is time to solidify things before the playoffs, not channel that 4-0 lead blow debacle against Michigan Tech from a few weeks ago. That is why it was anxious times. All UMD faithful wanted to see if the Bulldogs were really bouncing back or on the slide. Things do look good heading towards the playoffs.

No Worse Than 2. UMD has secured at least second place in the conference, which is important as we have said for months now. First and second place get first round byes at the Final Five, assuming that they reach Saint Paul. Of the six teams that head to the Xcel, four need to win three games in three days to take the playoff championship. UMD is now set up to be one of the two that needs only two wins.

The Bulldogs could win the MacNaughton Cup, but it is a long shot. The Gophers are up by two points and have the tie-breaker so UMD needs three more points than the Gophers this weekend.

UMD MacNaughton scenarios: If the Bulldogs are going to win it outright they cannot lose and the Gophers cannot win. If the Gophers tie and lose, the Bulldogs must sweep and if the Gophers are swept UMD can get away with a win and a tie. The cup will undoubtedly travel to Mariucci, but either way, it is a short drive from Minneapolis to Saint Cloud if the cup is won by the Bulldogs.

Speaking of the Xcel. I will unabashedly say that it would be great to see UMD back in Saint Paul for the first round of the NCAA Tournament. There is nothing to fear, Saint Paul may be the toughest regional to win, so why not go for it.

Of course the Bulldogs have no say in where they go for the NCAA’s. They aren’t the school hosting the regional, Minnesota – Twin Cities is and they will be in the West Regional.

I will not profess to be a bracketology guru, in fact those articles and speculation are just interesting reading once a week. But in looking at the current PWR and eyeballing banding of teams, it looks if things were set today, the West Region might very have a seeding like this:

1. Michigan
2. Minnesota – Twin Cities
3. Michigan State
4. North Dakota

Whoa! That would be a “Super-Regional” for attendance if not for quality hockey. It would be like the stars aligned for a Bi6 Ten preview/NCHC showdown.

Saint Cloud Up Next. The Huskies are coming off of a split against the Huskies of Michigan Tech last weekend in Houghton.

SCSU is vulnerable, but dangerous at the same time especially at home. It will not be an easy weekend for the Bulldogs as they have not swept in Saint Cloud since November 12-13, 1999. Since that sweep, UMD is 5-14-1 at SCSU.

Tigers and Bulldogs at Duluth

CC's First Games at AMSOIL Mark Important Games


Captain Jack Connolly looks to get the
Bulldogs get back on track in Duluth.


Two more weekends left in conference play and UMD may have the most intriguing series since the New Year.

Colorado College was picked to be a contender for the top spot in the WCHA and the Bulldogs were a middle of the pack pick. Enter reality.

UMD is fighting to stay in the top two of the WCHA, but more importantly trying to find the winning groove that propelled them to 17 games unbeaten earlier in the season.

CC is still trying to find their place. Are the Tigers the team that got swept by Bemidji State or the team that won the Gold Pan from rival Denver?

Many college seasons come down to goaltending and that is especially true for the Tigers.

CC was picked to finish high mostly due to returning goaltending of Joe Howe. Based on Howe’s play this season, the Tigers have needed to create a new plan named Josh Thorimbert. But that wasn’t the answer either, so currently CC is on a rotation that appears to be play one goalie until he melts down, then switch.

So UMD isn’t sure who will be in nets for CC, but they do know that the Tigers have been prone to late game brain freeze this season. In their last four games, the Tigers are 1-3-0. They led in all three losses and have been outscored in those third periods 8-0. Truly the game isn’t over until that final buzzer sounds.

For UMD to gain momentum in the end of the season, they need to get back to finishing games off strong because the third periods this weekend could make or break the series for the Bulldogs.

TUC Problems. Of the top 14 PWR, three have less than 10 wins against Teams Under Consideration (TUC) and UMD is one of the three. The Bulldogs are the highest ranked of the three at #5 and will not move up unless they win the few TUC games they have left. This weekend may be the last weekend before the Final Five that UMD plays a TUC team. UMD’s last opponent, SCSU, is the last team on the TUC list right now. Mores SCSU losses will drop them out of the TUC.

The TUC problem stems directly from the conference schedule that UMD has played. The WCHA is down this year and UMD only plays Michigan Tech, Mankato and Alaska – Anchorage four times, all teams that are not TUCs.

Match-up by the Numbers. Here is the UMD – CC StatPack:

Images via Wikipedia: Bulldogs, WCHA, Tigers

Picks by Fiskness. The past weekend in the WCHA made for some excellent games and some unexpected outcomes. The Seawolves got a big upset in Saint Cloud only to get whitewashed the following night. Another big surprise was the Badger's Saturday night win over the Denver Pioneers. The Pioneers had been a hot team getting a big Friday night win, however that momentum did not continue into Saturday.

Duluth's attention to detail on the penalty kill continues to be the Bulldog's kryptonite. If there is one thing that keeps the Bulldog's from having a deep run in the playoffs, it will be the poor penalty kill (Craig interjection: and likely their power play too!). Hopefully the players will get back to the basics: filling the lanes; moving their feet and blocking shots.

Colorado College at Minnesota – Duluth: The Bulldogs are coming off a disappointing 3 point weekend in Mankato after blowing a 2-point third period lead in Saturday's game and the Tigers split with UNO in Colorado Springs. The Tigers have been consistently inconsistent all season and I don't think that will change with a trip to AMSOIL Arena. If JT Brown was a lock to play this weekend I would pick UMD to sweep, but as his status is still unclear I will go with a split.

Wisconsin at Bemidji State: The Badgers go back on the road, a place that has not been kind to the them this season. The Beavers are coming off a disappointing road trip to Minneapolis where they were swept in two games. I am going with a split, but would not be surprised if Bemidji got a sweep at home.

North Dakota at Denver: This a big series for these two teams. A sweep by UND would put them a point ahead of Denver and a sweep by Denver could put them in a tie with the Gophers if they were to get swept this weekend. This should be two really good games that will result in a split series.

Saint Cloud State at Michigan Tech: These two Huskies teams are only separated by 1 point for 7th and 8th place in the conference standing making this a very important series for both teams. The Huskies of Saint Cloud had a disappointing loss on Friday night be bounced back Saturday with a 8 goal explosion. Tech managed to salvage 1 point in North Dakota with tie in Saturday night’s game. These two teams should be evenly matched and it should be a split series.

Minnesota – Twin Cities at Nebraska – Omaha: The Gopher's had a great weekend in Minneapolis defeating the Beavers and UNO split with the Tigers at CC. The red Mavericks have been a tough team to pick correct all season, but I think it is safe and correct to pick them for a split at home against the Gophers.

Alaska – Anchorage and Alaska (home and home): This home and home series is always a couple of good hockey games and I don't think the home ice will matter much in deciding the winner this year. The bigger question for the weekend matchup is if the Seawolves figured something out after getting a couple wins in recent weeks against the Bulldogs and Huskies or are they still the same old Seawolves that saw an "8" go on the scoreboard for the Huskies last Saturday. I think it is the later. The Nanooks have beaten some good teams this year and will come away with the Governor's Cup after sweeping the Seawolves.

Take The Good With The Bad

UMD Comes Up Short In a Weekend Without a Loss

The plan and execution were good, but in the end it hardly felt like a good weekend for the Bulldogs.


Grun beats MSU goalie Cook for the game winning goal Friday.

Friday night’s 4-2 win in Mankato was reminiscent of the 17 game unbeaten streak. Nothing was fancy about it. The Bulldogs fell behind early, took the lead by locking the play down in the second and third period and skated away with the win. Textbook UMD this season. That was without JT Brown on the trip and an ill Kenny Reiter who was superbly replaced by Aaron Crandall.

The good feelings didn’t last.

Saturday brought another familiar chance as Mankato took an early lead, UMD fought back to take the lead and lock down defensively in the second and third period. All except for a little 0:10 stint late in the third. MSU stormed out with two goals ten seconds apart to salvage a tie 4-4.

The losing part of the tie Saturday night was the poor, maybe horrid, play of the penalty kill. After a 3 for 3 night Friday killing off penalties, the Bulldogs were 3 for 6 Saturday. Hard to find any games where that kind of penalty killing would yield a tie let alone a win.

When I think back to the weekend the word that naturally comes out is split. But it wasn’t a split, UMD took three points. In the end, the way the tie occurred so late and so suddenly that it feels like a loss. Maybe worse. It was a chance to really keep the heat on the Gophers for the WCHA Championship and lead Denver by three points for second place.

Now it is still UMTC, UMD and Denver in the top three spots each with two points more than the next and the feeling of “what’s next?” It is difficult to quantify this tie, but it is at the same level as the 3-2 loss at Anchorage and the 4-4 tie and 5-0 loss to Michigan Tech. They are comparable not because of the magnitude of the score, or heck, it wasn’t even a loss this past weekend, but it is the games left hanging that keep this UMD squad in a funk.

The Bulldogs left Mankato after showing some life even strength and the mettle to keep playing at a high caliber on the road this season (10-2-4). The next test will be to not lose any more games at home where UMD is 10-5-1.

Colorado College is Next. Right back to the somewhat Bulldog friendly confines of AMSOIL Arena to close out the regular season home schedule against the Tigers.

CC is tied up in a pretzel for 4th place with 27 points, the same as North Dakota and Nebraska – Omaha. Those three teams are currently the last teams with home-ice for the first round of the playoffs with Michigan Tech three points behind.

The tigers are the most surprising team of the season. Not for what they have done, but for their deficiencies most notably in net.

We picked CC as the pre-season WCHA Champions based of their returning netminder Joe Howe. Howe has played himself out of the main starter, but his replacement, Josh Thorimbert, hasn’t been stellar either. Which tender will UMD see? Let’s go with it doesn’t matter because they are both prone to bad games and UMD will shoot the lights out. We’ll see.

JT Practices. JT Brown who didn’t make the trip to Mankato due to injury was back at practice today. His availability for the weekend series is uncertain, but it is a good sign to see him back at practice.

Bulldogs Travel to Mankato for Maverick Rematch

UMD Looks to Shake Funk as Playoffs Near

Playing the 10th place team in the WCHA this late in the season shouldn’t cause this much angst for the second place Bulldogs.

The trip to Mankato sets the stage for the Bulldogs who are trying to build back to their early season form coming off their win against North Dakota last Saturday. UMD is currently 4-4-1 after going on a school record 17 game unbeaten streak.

Partnered with MSUM’s recent surge from the basement of the conference and the once seemingly easy series will prove to be another test. The Purple Mavericks are 5-2-0 in their last seven games including a sweep at Alaska – Anchorage last weekend, a place and foe that UMD split with the weekend prior.

The main reason for the recent divergent paths may very well be injuries.

MSUM was ravaged by injuries early in the season. At times the Mavs had trouble putting a full team on the ice having to jockey around players from position to position. Now they are getting into stride with players back and UMD is getting hit with some injuries.

Justin Crandall made the trip to Mankato and may be able to play this weekend while leading goal scorer JT Brown stayed back in Duluth with an upper body injury. If Crandall can’t play, UMD will suit 11 forwards and seven defensemen.

Into every season some adversity must enter. Timing may not be the best for UMD, but the weekend in Mankato presents a good chance to break out of their funk and get back on track for the playoffs.

By the Numbers. Broken record…UMD has the statistical advantage over their opponent, this time the Purple Mavs. Maybe the most concerning stat is the shorthanded goals. UMD is still trying to find consistency on power play. This weekend besides looking for goals on the PP, they need to be wary of MSUM taking to the offensive.

The UMD – MSUM StatPack:

Images via Wikipedia: Bulldogs, WCHA, Mavericks

Of note, UMD’s PP success last weekend (5/13) bolted their national ranking from 32nd to 17th.

Predictions by Fiskness. Last week's WCHA games didn't go as I had expected. In a week where it seemed every series could been a split there were three sweeps and the one sweep I did pick, I am glad that it didn't go as predicted (UMD – UND). With all 12 teams in conference play for the last time in the regular season this weekend, the importance of getting points will be amplified.

Minnesota – Duluth at Minnesota State Mankato: The Bulldogs’ turnovers cost them the game on Friday. UMD rebounded Saturday with a win sparked by the 5 point night by Jack Connolly, but J.T. Brown left the game with an injury and is not expected to play this weekend against the purple Mavericks. The Mavericks have been finding ways to get at least a split in every series since Christmas and last weekend they swept the Seawolves in Anchorage. Mankato is playing a lot more confident and are a healthier squad. Recent streaks considered, Mankato should be able get a split against a now banged up Bulldogs.

Nebraska – Omaha at Colorado College: The red Mavericks are coming off a big three point weekend in the U.P. and look to stay in the top half of the WCHA standings. This team has been streaky since the New Year and their success lies firmly with goaltending. UNO will need to get two good games of goal tending in order to sneak away with points. The Tigers have not played well since the Christmas break, but maybe the return to Colorado Springs can energize the Tigers. These should be two good games resulting in a split.

Alaska – Anchorage at Saint Cloud State: The Seawolves season is one that started great and has gone downhill since mid October. The Huskies are trying to get in the top half of the WCHA and should be helped by playing the Seawolves this weekend. Huskies sweep the series in Saint Cloud.

Bemidji State at Minnesota – Twin Cities: The Beavers are a now the hardest team to figure out in the WCHA. The sweep last weekend for Bemidji at home against Colorado College was a surprise to most. The Beavers positive results recently can be linked to better goaltending. It would be expected the Beavers will put in a good effort this weekend while trying to get into the top half of the WCHA. The Gophers are coming off being swept last weekend at the hands of the Pioneers and are looking to keep the #1 spot in the WCHA and gain some cushion in the PWR. I think Dan Bakala will play well enough to get the Beavers a win and split the series.

Michigan Tech at North Dakota: One point separates these two teams in the standings marking the difference between home ice and traveling for the first round of the playoffs making this a giant series. The Huskies had a disappointing Winter Carnival weekend by only getting one point in a tie against UNO. Maybe the Saturday game where Tech was shut out was an anomaly. The North Dakota Men’s Hockey Team got a big win in Duluth and had nice come back, but still lost, Saturday night. If North Dakota can stay out of the penalty box maybe the ND mystic will be enough to overwhelm the Huskies. I don't think North Dakota will be able to do that for two games resulting in a series split.

Denver at Wisconsin: After losing to the Chargers of UAH in January the Pioneers now might be the best team in the WCHA. A healthy Sam Brittain might be what they needed to make a run for the MacNaughton Cup. The Badgers season is now spiraling downward as the goal scoring even at home in Madison has slowed. This weekend should be a tough one for the Badger's to get back on track. Denver will get the sweep and a tie for first in the WCHA after the weekend.

WCHA Race Getting Closer Every Weekend

Three Teams Currently In Line for Conference Title

Muddy the waters. Who’s on first? Insert a Yogi Berra-ism here that would confuse us all.

Tops in the WCHA, let alone college hockey, will be as interesting as ever this year.

UMD worked new magic to pull out a sweep winning Saturday by keeping a surging North Dakota team at bay just long enough to let the final horn sound. A win is a win, and yes UND, a loss is a loss. It is too late in the season to read so many UND people, media included, talk about how close their team was to a win. Three weekends left in the regular season, there are no moral victories.

That is why the Bulldog’s win is so important; it counts as a win and two points in the standings. During Friday’s UMD loss, media members around the league were looking at a five point Gopher lead in the conference after the night assuming the Gophers held their lead at Denver. They didn’t hold a lead Friday or Saturday, so we are looking at the Top three of the WCHA separated by three points.

Enter the newest chapter of the race to MacNaughton, or at least the coveted top two spots, the upcoming WCHA weekend. Week to week, this is an ever changing story of who will take the WCHA and how many teams from the conference will make the NCAA Tournament.

Up Next, MSUM. UMD travels to Mankato to take on the Purple Mavericks fresh off a trip to Anchorage. Similar situation to UMD’s last weekend, but the Bulldogs didn’t get a sweep at UAA like MSUM did. Yeah, crazy season.

UMD cannot let points go by the wayside any longer. The 4-4-1 record since the 17 unbeaten streak has to go North with a sweep this weekend. If not, there’s no telling where this Bulldogs team may end up in the wild WCHA.

Bulldogs Host the North Dakota Mens Hockey Team

UMD Looks to Stop Slump


Via Wikipedia: Bulldog


New weekend and a new focus or goal for UMD. With the WCHA Championship likely out of reach, the Bulldogs still have high stakes on their finish position. With a second place finish UMD is in line for a first round bye in the Final Five.

So the Bulldogs start again, at home against North Dakota. No small task for the Bulldogs as North Dakota has proved to be a challenging opponent for the Bulldogs over the last few years.

Last weekend it was stated here the series in Anchorage was a “do or die” series. A split wasn’t enough “do” and what died was most likely the Bulldogs’ MacNaughton Cup chances. All weekends from here to the playoffs are important for UMD. The Bulldogs are trying to get their season back on track going 3-3-1 since their 17 game unbeaten streak.

The Bulldogs are also looking to bolster their PairWise Ranking (PWR), currently #5, by taking on the #15 North Dakota hockey team.

Jack’s Back. After having his school record points streak broken, Jack has been on a little skid. Connolly made it on the score sheet again in each game last weekend with an assist in each game. What the team needs is to have the playmaker, multiple-point-per-game Jack back.

Jack is still an almost lock to be in the ten Hobey candidates, but his place in the Hat Trick (the final three) may be in jeopardy if his points totals don’t continue to increase. That is ultimately what national voters will be looking at, not the great plays he makes away from the puck that we who get to watch him regularly get to see.

Seniors Key to Successes. College hockey is used to players leaving early, it is now part of the game that every team has to deal with. One characteristic that makes a great team is the senior leadership that has stayed to play out their four years.

In the nation, UMD has the highest point producing senior class. In all, the senior Bulldogs have amassed 40 goals (38% of the team) and 83 assists (46%) for 183 points.

TUC Tanking. A major component of the PWR is results against teams under consideration (TUC). Recent weeks have seen UMD’s opponents falling out of the TUC thus damaging the Bulldog’s TUC. Teams in the TUC remaining on UMD’s regular season schedule are North Dakota this weekend, Colorado College and Saint Cloud State.

UMD and UND By The Numbers. Like in so many weeks this season, UMD has the statistical advantage. So again, can the Bulldogs us their talent to win the real games.

StatPack for the upcoming weekend:

Images via Wikipedia: Bulldogs, WCHA, North Dakota

Predictions by Fiskness. After a disappointing weekend in Anchorage UMD will need to play better to compete for the WCHA regular season title. It is likely that UMD is now competing for the 2nd through 5th place in the overall standings. The grind of the season appears to hitting UMD right as the season is winding down. An improvement in the special teams play and more contribution from the defense is needed for this team to be successful. Maybe this past weekend was the wakeup call that you have to go out there and give it your all because you have to score and can't depend on the top lines to do it all.

At quick glance at this week’s matchups in the WCHA. One could probably pick all splits and be safe, but I dig a little deeper and see what I find.

Colorado College at Bemidji State: The Tigers are coming off a win and tie against the in-state rival Pioneers and the Beavers are coming off a win and a tie in Omaha. The Tigers are currently in 3rd place in the WCHA and seem to be playing better hockey, but the Beavers will be able to keep the scoring low enough to earn the split.

Minnesota – Twin Cities at Denver: The Pioneers are desperate after a disappointing weekend against CC. They know the need for points right now and I expect Sam Brittain to see action after an impressive first game back, even if it was a loss. The Gophers should be rested and looking to expand on their 3 point lead in the WCHA regular season race. The Pioneers are good team with a fresh goalie and will get a win this weekend, but only one in a series split.

Nebraska – Omaha at Michigan Tech: This weekend marks the annual Winter Carnival in Houghton, Michigan. The Huskies are streaky and last weekend they earned a split to stay in the hunt for the top half of the WCHA. UNO hosted Bemidji and only got 1 point in a 1-1 tie. The red Mavericks might be the hardest team in the league to figure out this year. This series is a complete guess, I will say that MTU plays strong at home and gets 3 points and the Winter Carnival trophy.

Minnesota State – Mankato at Alaska – Anchorage: In the battle for the last place in the WCHA should be a good series. With only 4 points separating the two teams a sweep by the Seawolves will result in a tie for 11th place. The Seawolves ended their winless streak last Saturday with a big win over UMD. The Mavericks have been playing well recently, but the trips to Anchorage are always tough for teams. This one will be a split.

North Dakota at Minnesota – Duluth: The Bulldogs went to Anchorage last weekend and a few players decided to they wanted to play, while others basically watched their teammates. A 3-3-1 stretch for most teams wouldn't mean a slump, but the way UMD has lost the games is more an issue. UND is rested after a week off and should be ready to go this weekend. UND matches up well against the Bulldogs and have played well in Duluth and at AMSOIL. This weekend might be the bottom for the Bulldogs as UND sweeps.

Bulldogs Land in Anchorage for Weekend

Bulldogs Looking to Get Back on Track

UMD has cut their teeth over the course of this season. They have proven that they are not rebuilding after a national championship. Still many writers and college hockey enthusiasts want to say that UMD’s recent “swoon” was going to happen…”see I told you so.”

In reality, every team that has been in the top 10 of the college hockey world this season has gone through a rough patch. Many of the same people thought Minnesota – Twin Cities, Boston University and Notre Dame were or are going to take over and run away as number one. They haven’t and neither is UMD.

It is not time to think about giving up on the Bulldogs as an elite team this season. But this weekend in Anchorage does present an opportunity for UMD to continue down a slippery slope more than raise their profile.

UMD should win the series this weekend against UAA. Anything less will be looked at nationally as disappointing, maybe even a failure. Just take a look at our StackPack comparison between the teams. This is a series where you hear those overused, and mostly meaningless, “trap game.” Lots to lose, not much to gain.

Here is what UMD is playing for:

• Getting their winning ways back after a hiccup,
• Solidifying one of the all important top two spot in the WCHA and
• Using the games in hand to catch up to UMTC in the WCHA standings for the home stretch.

What is scary about a series, this series, in Anchorage:

• Bulldogs power play and penalty kill have to get better (currently six games without a PP goal),
• UAA is playing for pride, they have nothing to lose and
• Trips to Alaska are always physically hard on the players.

We don’t want to say “do or die”, because it’s not. But we, and all Bulldogs fans, want to see how the team responds to the setbacks of the last couple weeks. So drink some coffee and get ready to listen to the Bulldogs in Alaska!

Predictions by Fiskness.  Here are my picks for the week, another important one in WCHA play. If things go right for either Denver or CC either one could find themselves in second place in the standings. Meanwhile UMD is hoping to bounce back with a sweep to get within one point of the first place Gophers who are off this weekend as well as North Dakota. After this weekend, all the top half teams of the WCHA will have played the same number of games.

Minnesota – Duluth at Alaska – Anchorage: Duluth let a victory slip from their hands on Friday only to follow it up with a JV effort on Saturday. The Bulldogs road record is great this year and a trip Alaska might be what the doctor ordered to get back to the level they were playing earlier this season. The Seawolves have not won since a road win in Colorado Springs on December 9 and they haven't had a home win since November 18. UMD will get the sweep as the Seawolves just do not have enough talent to keep pace with the Bulldogs.

Colorado College and Denver (home and home): The final weekend series of the season for this interstate rivalry. Denver has put together a nice little win streak for themselves beating the teams they should (Huntsville, Bemidji and Anchorage). The Tigers on the other hand have been splitting series. Both teams know the need for points and will end up with a split.

Michigan Tech at Minnesota State – Mankato: The Huskies came off an impressive three point weekend in Duluth and continue their road trip through Minnesota. The Mavericks of Mankato took points last weekend with a split in Bemidji. Can the Huskies ride the momentum and come away with more points on the road? I think a letdown is in the cards and Mankato gets the split.

Bemidji State at Nebraska – Omaha: The Beavers have given some good teams fits this season, but most of their tight series have been at home. Earlier this year when these teams played in Bemidji the Mavericks of Omaha took three points. The Mavericks are still trying to find consistency in net as they move towards the playoffs. I think the Beavers will have a tough weekend to find any points and may salvage a tie if they can keep the Mavs scoring down. UNO wins one game and ties the other with the Beavers.

Saint Cloud State at Wisconsin: The Huskies had a disappointing home and home against the Gophers last weekend getting swept in two low scoring, and low shots on goal for SCSU, games. The Badgers went to UND and fought hard, but got swept too. The pattern continued for the Badgers as they struggle on the road. A home series is just what they are looking for this weekend. However, the Huskies defense will play good enough to get a split this weekend in Madison.

UMD - UAA Statistic Comparison

If the games were played on paper, the Bulldogs would have this in the bag.  But we know that UMD ahs to travel to Anchorage and prove that they deserve their rankings.

The StatPack for the UMD - UAA weekend series:

Bulldog and WCHA via Wikipedia; Seawolves