The University of Minnesota Duluth (UMD) men’s hockey team just beat, then tied, No. 10 Arizona State University over the weekend. Now they’re in for another tough test, heading to No. 17 North Dakota. It’s been a bit since the Bulldogs have gotten the best of the Fighting Hawks, January 21, 2023 to be exact. They met twice earlier this season, but fell 7-3 and 4-1 in November.

However, since then UMD has shored up a few things, such as their penalty kill, stopping the Sun Devils on six of eight power plays. One big advante for North Dakota stills owns this weekend, is their home atmosphere.

“It’s a bit different also with being on the road at the Ralph. But you know, for the most part, the preparation just comes focusing on ourselves,” UMD senior defenseman Owen Gallatin said.

“We’ve got to get off to a good start there, try and keep the crowd out of it because they really get energized off that. We’ve got to be good along the walls and we’ve got to win battles along the walls. We’ve got to win battles at the net fronts. That’s kind of the series, right? Every time you play them, you’re fighting for inches on the rink,” UMD head coach Scott Sandelin said.

Puck drop between UMD (11-15-2) and North Dakota (15-12-2) is Friday at 7 p.m., and Saturday at 6 p.m., at Ralph Engelstad Arena in Grand Forks.