Dec. 18, 2010 • 7:07 pm CT • Ralph Engelstad Arena (11,634) • Grand Forks, N.D.
RADIO: 96.1 The Fox (KQHT-FM) • WEBCAST: FightingSioux.com
TV: Fighting Sioux Sports Network, Fox College Sports Atlantic, Midco Sports Network

THIS WEEK: The third-ranked Fighting Sioux (13-5-2, 11-3-0 WCHA) will conclude the first half of the season on Saturday with an exhibition game against the United States Under-18 Team at Ralph Engelstad Arena.

UND, alone in first place in the WCHA with 22 points, leads the nation in wins despite having faced the country's toughest schedule to date.

The Sioux have won four straight games and have just one loss (8-1-1) in the last 10 games. UND's current six-game unbeaten streak (5-0-1) is tied for the nation's longest with Yale.

MEDIA COVERAGE: All Fighting Sioux men's hockey games, home and away, can be heard on 96.1 FM (The Fox) and on stations across the Fighting Sioux Hockey Network. Veteran broadcaster Tim Hennessy is in his 30th season as the voice of the Fighting Sioux. He is joined during home games by color analyst Steve Olson.

This weekend's game will be broadcast live on the Fighting Sioux Sports Network, Fox College Sports Atlantic and Midco Sports Network. A live video webcast of Saturday's game can be purchased at FightingSioux.com, where FREE live stats are also available.

New this year, 'Inside Fighting Sioux Hockey' airs every Tuesday on the Fighting Sioux Sports Network and nationwide on Fox College Sports. Head coach Dave Hakstol also appears weekly on the Green Mill Coaches Show every Wednesday at 6:30 p.m. on the Fighting Sioux Radio Network.

TICKET INFORMATION: Single-game tickets remain available for Saturday night's game. Fans can order tickets by calling 1-800-745-3000, log on to ticketmaster.com or stop by the UND Ticket Office at the Ralph Engelstad Arena.

The UND/REA box office is open from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.

ABOUT TEAM USA: The Under-18 Team will play at the USHL's Fargo Force on Friday before heading to Grand Forks. Prior to that, the U-18's split a pair of games to USHL opponents last weekend, dropping a 3-2 decision to Cedar Rapids before rebounding with an 8-1 win over Chicago.

The U-18s are currently 1-6 in NCAA play, including an 0-5 mark against Division I opponents.

UND recruit J.T. Miller entered the week with a team-leading 16 assists through 25 games and ranks third on the team in scoring with 20 points. He is tied for the team lead with two shorthanded goals and ranks second on the team with 47 penalty minutes.

USA COACHING STAFF: USA head coach Ron Rolston is assisted by Chadd Cassidy, Joe Exter and Matt Curley.

UND'S LAST ACTION: The Sioux wrapped up the first half of the regular season with a sweep at Minnesota State last weekend, winning 4-3 on Friday and 4-2 on Sunday. Sunday's game was originally scheduled for Saturday night, until severe winter weather caused the first postponement in Sioux hockey history.

Senior Brad Malone (Miramichi, New Brunswick) matched his career high with three assists on Friday, while seniors Chay Genoway (Morden, Manitoba), Matt Frattin (Edmonton, Alberta), Jake Marto (Grand Forks, N.D.) and Evan Trupp (Anchorage, Alaska) each scored goals. The Sioux won despite trailing 2-0 seven minutes into the game and allowing a season-high 38 shots. Sophomore goalie Aaron Dell (Airdrie, Alberta) made a career-high 35 saves.

UND trailed again Sunday (2-1 after the first period) but scored three straight goals to complete the sweep. Malone, Trupp, Frattin and freshman Brock Nelson (Warroad, Minn.) each scored, while Dell stopped 19 shots, including all 17 he faced over the final two periods

RANK AND FILE: Following its sweep at Minnesota State, UND climbed to No. 3 in the USCHO.com poll and maintained its No. 5 ranking in the USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine polls, both of which were released on Monday.

The Sioux jumped one spot to No. 3 in this week's INCH Power Rankings.

NO REST FOR THE WEARY: The Sioux have faced the toughest schedule in the nation to date, according to the latest KRACH ratings:

1. North Dakota, 236.0
2. Bemidji State, 231.2
3. Denver, 204.8
4. Michigan Tech, 203.9
5. Alaska Anchorage, 194.2
6. Minnesota Duluth, 187.7
7. Boston College, 180.2
8. Wisconsin, 172.3
9. Vermont, 171.0
10. Minnesota, 166.9

UND faced a top-13 team in seven of the first eight weekends of the season, including a stretch of six straight weekends at one point.

UND's first-half schedule included (ranking at time of matchup) No. 2 Minnesota Duluth (home), No. 4 Nebraska Omaha (road), No. 11 Notre Dame (home), No. 12 Alaska (neutral), No. 12 Denver (home), No. 12 Maine (road) and No. 13 Wisconsin (road).

ALONE AT THE TOP: At 11-3-0 in WCHA play, UND sits in first place at the Christmas break for the first time under seventh-year head coach Dave Hakstol.

UND's 11 WCHA wins, 22 points and .786 winning percentage are also new highs under Hakstol:

First Half in the WCHA
Year W-L-T Pct. Pts.
2004-05 9-6-1 .594 19
2005-06 6-6-0 .500 12
2006-07 5-8-1 .393 11
2007-08 6-6-0 .500 12
2008-09 6-5-1 .542 13
2009-10 6-6-2 .500 14
2010-11 11-3-0 .786 22

UND's .700 overall winning percentage during the first half was the most under Hakstol and the team's 13 first-half overall wins matched the 13 he won during the first half of the 2004-05 season:

First Half Overall
Year W-L-T Pct.
2004-05 13-7-2 .636
2005-06 12-7-1 .625
2006-07 7-10-1 .417
2007-08 8-6-1 .567
2008-09 9-8-1 .528
2009-10 9-6-3 .583
2010-11 13-5-2 .700

UND's 13 overall victories lead the nation.

ROAD WARRIORS: UND finished the first half with a 7-1-0 WCHA road record, with that lone loss coming with less than one second remaining in regulation at Nebraska Omaha (Nov. 20).

UND is 7-3-1 overall on the road.

Last season the Sioux were 8-7-1 on the road.

LEADERS OF THE PACK: At the halfway point of the conference season, UND is tied for the WCHA lead in scoring defense (2.21 goals against per game), leads the league in penalty killing (87.3 percent) and ranks second in scoring offense (3.43 goals per game).

STAY GOLD, PONY BOY: Senior center Brad "Pony" Malone (Miramichi, New Brunswick) nabbed the first weekly WCHA honor of his career on Tuesday when he was named WCHA Offensive Player of the Week.

Malone matched his career high with three assists in Friday's 4-3 win at Minnesota State, then scored the game-winning goal in Saturday's 4-2 series clincher. Malone was also a +4 in the series and won 56.8 percent of his faceoffs.

In 19 games this season, Malone has five goals and 11 assists for 16 points. He has eight points (3g, 5a) over his last four games, including a pair of three-point performances.

He had just one three-point game in the first 133 games of his career.

FRATT PARTY: Senior forward Matt Frattin (Edmonton, Alberta) had a goal in each game at MSU week and leads the NCAA with 17 goals:

Frattin also extended his goal-scoring streak to five games (second such streak this season) and his point streak to a career-long six games.

He also now tallied 27 goals in his last 32 games dating back to Feb. 13. Frattin, whose 19 points in WCHA games ties him for the league lead, finished the first half with 15 points (9g, 6a) in his last eight games.

THE 'PONY EXPRESS' DELIVERS: The line of Malone, Frattin and Evan Trupp (Sr., Anchorage, Alaska), dubbed 'The Pony Express,' has delivered 18 points (9g, 9a) over the last four games while UND has been without top-line wingers Jason Gregoire (Jr., Winnipeg, Manitoba) and Brett Hextall (Jr., Manhattan Beach, Calif.).

DUDE, WE'VE GOT A DELL: Sophomore goalie Aaron Dell (Airdrie, Alberta) enters the Christmas break leading the WCHA with a 1.94 goals against average during league games.

He also leads the WCHA in overall wins (12), WCHA wins (10) and WCHA winning percentage (.833).

Last weekend at MSU, Dell posted a .979 save percentage during the second and third periods by stopping 46 of 47 Maverick shots.

In Friday's 4-3 win at MSU, Dell made a career-high 35 saves, including all 20 he faced in the second period.

GENOWAY ON HIS WAY: With a goal on Friday and an assist on Saturday, senior captain Chay Genoway (Morden, Manitoba) extended his scoring streak to six games and leads all WCHA defensemen with 14 points during league play.

Genoway's 107 career points lead all active NCAA DI defensemen and rank eight all-time among Sioux rearguards:

His 24 career goals also tie him for eight all-time among UND defensemen:

Genoway scored the game-winning goal on Nov. 26 against No. 11 Notre Dame, the seventh GWG of his career, one shy of Nick Fuher's (2001-05) school record for defensemen:

He has 17 points (4g, 13a) in 20 games this season, including 14 points (3g, 11a) over his last 12 games.

THE TWO JAKES: Due to the injuries to Gregoire and Hextall, senior defenseman Jake Marto (Grand Forks, N.D.) has played forward four each of UND's last four games.

Marto played four games at forward as a freshman in 2007-08.

BY INVITATION ONLY: Freshmen Derek Forbort (Duluth, Minn.) and Brock Nelson (Warroad, Minn.) were named to the to the United States National Junior Team preliminary roster by USA Hockey on Tuesday, Dec. 7.

Forbort and Nelson are among 29 players who will attend a pre-tournament camp beginning Dec. 17 in Troy, Rochester, Jamestown and Amherst, N.Y.

The camp will include exhibition games against Rensselaer's men's hockey team (Dec. 19), the Czech Republic (Dec. 21) and Norway (Dec. 23). The final U.S. National Junior Team 22-man roster will be announced prior to Team USA's final exhibition game against Norway.

The 2011 U.S. National Junior Team will compete at the International Ice Hockey Federation World Junior Championship, Dec. 26, 2010-Jan. 5, 2011, in Buffalo and Niagara, N.Y.

Forbort, one of 10 defensemen invited to the pre-tournament camp, helped lead the U.S. to a gold medal at the 2010 Under-18 World Championship. In 13 games this season with the Fighting Sioux, Forbort has amassed eight assists and a +2 plus/minus rating. He is UND's leading rookie scorer and is tied for second among WCHA rookie defensemen in assists. Forbort was selected 15th overall by Los Angeles in the 2010 NHL Entry Draft.

Nelson, a native of Warroad, Minn., is one of 17 forwards named to the preliminary roster. In 18 games this season, Nelson has one goal and four assists for five points. He was selected 30th overall by the New York Islanders in the 2010 NHL Entry Draft.

SIOUX-PER MARIO: The Sioux are 9-0-0 all-time when junior forward Mario Lamoureux (Grand Forks, N.D.) scores a goal.

EIDS WIDE SHUT: Junior goalie Brad Eidsness' (Chestermere, Alberta) enters the week with 86 career apperances between the pipes, tying him with Mike "Lefty" Curran (1965-68) for sixth all-time at UND. Toby Kvalevog (1993-97) is the program's all-time leader with 121 career games played:

Eidsness is also just one win from becoming only the seventh Sioux goalie to win 50 career games.

FEELING A DRAFT: UND 2010-11 roster includes 16 players who have been drafted by National Hockey League teams. The group includes goalie Brad Eidsness (Buffalo), defensemen Ben Blood (Ottawa), Derek Forbort (Los Angeles), Joe Gleason (Chicago) Derrick LaPoint (Florida) and Andrew MacWilliam (Toronto), and forwards Brett Bruneteau (Washington), Mike Cichy (Montreal), Matt Frattin (Toronto), Jason Gregoire (New York Islanders), Brett Hextall (Phoenix), Corban Knight (Florida), Danny Kristo (Montreal), Brad Malone (Colorado), Brock Nelson (New York Islanders) and Derek Rodwell (New Jersey).

A total of 26 Sioux have been drafted during the tenure of seventh-year head coach Dave Hakstol, including first-rounders Forbort (Los Angeles, 2010), Nelson (New York Islanders, 2010), Jonathan Toews (Chicago, 2006), T.J. Oshie (St. Louis, 2005), Brian Lee (Ottawa, 2005) and Joe Finley (Washington, 2005).

ALL IN THE FAMILY: UND's 2009-10 roster features four players who have had family members previously play for the Fighting Sioux: defenseman Chay Genoway (Sr., Morden, Manitoba) and forwards Mario Lamoureux (Jr., Grand Forks, N.D.), Brett Hextall (Jr., Manhattan Beach, Calif.), Brock Nelson (Fr., Warroad, Minn.).

Genoway's brother, Colby, was a forward at UND from 2002-05 and scored 81 points in 115 career games. He played professionally in the Czech Republic and Finland last season.

Lamoureux's family ties to the program are extensive. His brother, Jean-Philippe, was a goalie at UND from 2004-08 and is the school's all-time co-leader in goals against average (2.14). His father, Pierre, was a goalie for the Sioux from 1979-82 and was a member of UND's 1982 NCAA championship team. Another brother, Pierre-Paul, is in his second year on UND's coaching staff as an assistant video coordinator, while twin sisters Jocelyne and Monique are sophomore forwards on the Fighting Sioux women's hockey team. Additionally, mother Linda was a swimmer at UND.

Hextall's great uncle, Dennis, was a forward at UND from 1964-66 and scored 101 career points in 63 career games. Hextall's hockey bloodlines extend to his father (Ron), grandfather (Bryan Jr.) and great grandfather (Bryan Sr.), each of whom enjoyed lengthy NHL careers. His father, Ron, is currently the assistant general manager of the Los Angeles Kings.
Nelson had two uncles and one great uncle don the Kelly Green and White. Uncle Dave Christian played at UND from 1977-79 and won Olympic gold with the United States' famed "Miracle on Ice" team in 1980 before going on to play in more than 1,000 career NHL games with Winnipeg, Washington, Boston, St. Louis and Chicago. Another uncle, Eddie Christian, played for the Sioux from 1980-84. Nelson's great uncle, Gordon "Ginny" Christian played at UND from 1947-50 and won Olympic silver with the United States in 1956.

FOREVER SIOUX: Every member of UND's coaching staff and support staff is a graduate of the University of North Dakota.

Head coach Dave Hakstol (1989-92), associate head coach Cary Eades (1978-82), assistant coach Dane Jackson (1988-92) and volunteer assistant Karl Goerhing (1998-2001) each played for the Fighting Sioux.
Additionally, director of hockey operations Pat Swanson (2002), athletic trainer and strength coach Mark Poolman (1992), team physician Dr. Greg Greek and media relations director Jayson Hajdu (2000) are also UND graduates.

PRO-FILES: Twelve former Sioux standouts have seen action in the National Hockey League in 2010-11: Jason Blake (Anaheim Ducks), Mike Commodore (Columbus Blue Jackets), Matt Greene (Los Angeles Kings), David Hale (Ottawa Senators), Brian Lee (Ottawa Senators), T.J. Oshie (St. Louis Blues), Zach Parise (New Jersey Devils), Chris Porter (St. Louis Blues), Matt Smaby (Tampa Bay Lightning), Drew Stafford (Buffalo Sabres), Jonathan Toews (Chicago Blackhawks), Travis Zajac (New Jersey Devils).

Toews captained the Blackhawks to a Stanley Cup championship last season, while also leading Canada to a gold medal at the 2010 Olympics in Vancouver, where he was named the tournament's top forward.

An additional five former Sioux are currently in the NHL coaching ranks: reigning Jack Adams Trophy winner Dave Tippett (head coach, Phoenix Coyotes), Brad Berry (assistant coach, Columbus Blue Jackets), James Patrick (assistant coach, Buffalo Sabres), Steve Peters (video coach, Phoenix Coyotes) and Rick Wilson (assistant coach, Minnesota Wild). A sixth coach, Edmonton Oilers head coach Tom Renney, graduated from UND but did not play for the Sioux.

Also of note:

Former Sioux defenseman, Brad Bombardir, is the director of player development for the Minnesota Wild.

Former Sioux assistant coach Don Boyd is the
Columbus Blue Jackets' assistant general manager.

Former Sioux forward Troy Murray is the radio color analyst for the Chicago Blackhawks.

Ron Hextall, father of current Sioux forward Brett Hextall, is the vice president/assistant general manager of the Los Angeles Kings.