Mar. 12-14, 2010 • 7:37/7:07 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 Central, DirecTV

THIS WEEK: Riding an NCAA-best seven-game winning streak, the fifth-ranked Fighting Sioux will host Minnesota in the best-of-three opening round of the WCHA playoffs.

The puck drops at 7:37 p.m. on Friday and 7:07 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday (if necessary). The winner advances to the Red Baron WCHA Final Five March 18-20 in St. Paul.

MEDIA INFORMATION: 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.

This weekend's games will be broadcast live on the Fighting Sioux Sports Network, with Pat Sweeney calling the action. The games will also be carried on Fox College Sports Central and DirecTV 617.

Video webcasts of this weekend's games can be purchased at www.FightingSioux.com, where FREE audio and live stats are also available.

TICKET INFORMATION: This weekend's series is completely sold out.

GAME PROMOTIONS: All fans on Friday will receive a FREE Playoff Towel (see image at right). Sioux fans are also encouraged to wear white this weekend in an effort to white out Ralph Engelstad Arena.

ABOUT UM: The Gophers are opening the WCHA playoffs on the road for just the third time in 11 years. They have won their last two road series with wins at Minnesota State in 2008 and Colorado College in 2000 ... The Gophers closed the regular season with a split against Wisconsin, losing 3-2 last Friday and winning 6-1 on Sunday to finish 17-17-2 overall and 12-14-2 in the WCHA ... Minnesota's 6-1 win on Sunday was its largest margin of victory and most goals scored against Wisconsin since an 8-1 win on Feb. 15, 2003 ... The Gophers were 5-for-8 on the power-play against the Badgers on Sunday, marking their most power-play goals in a game since Dec. 1, 2006 when they were also 5-for-8 against Minnesota State. Minnesota had been 2-for-36 over its previous eight games before Sunday's outburst ... Over his last seven starts, G Alex Kangas has a 2.16 goals against average and .926 save percentage ... Minnesota is 15-1-0 this season when holding opponents to two goals or fewer and 2-16-2 when opponents score three goals or more.

UM COACHING STAFF: Head coach Don Lucia (Notre Dame '81) is in his 11 year at UM and is 273-143-47 (.641). He is 552-298-76 (.637) in 23 seasons as a collegiate head coach.

Lucia is assisted by John Hill (Alaska Anchorage '88) and Grant Potulny (UM '04).

THE ALL-TIME SERIES: UND trails the all-time series 125-131-14 (.489) but is 67-53-8 (.555) all-time against the Gophers on home ice.

The two teams split their regular season series with this year (1-1-2), with each team gaining a win and a tie at home.

The Sioux opened the WCHA schedule with a 4-0 win and a 3-3 tie against UM Oct. 16-17 in Grand Forks. The Gophers tied 3-3 and won 5-1 when the two teams hooked up again Jan. 15-16 in Minneapolis. The Saturday loss was UND's first in the last eight against Minnesota.

This weekend's series series will mark the first time the two teams have met in the first round of the WCHA playoffs since 2001-02, when the Sioux were swept in two games at Mariucci Arena in Minneapolis.

UND is 6-0 all-time against the Gophers in playoff games in Grand Forks, the last meetings coming in 1986-87, when the Sioux claimed a pair of 5-3 wins.

The last time the two teams met in the WCHA playoffs was in the championship of the 2007 WCHA Final Five, which the Gophers won 3-2 in overtime. UND exacted its revenge the following week with a 3-2 overtime win of its own in the NCAA West Regional in Denver.

POLL POSITION: UND ranks fifth in the most recent USCHO PairWise Rankings.

UND also climbed two spots to No. 5 in both the USCHO.com/CBS College Sports poll and USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine polls, and is fourth in the Inside College Hockey Power Rankings.

Please refer to page three for complete national poll information.

UND'S LAST ACTION: The Sioux concluded the regular season with a home sweep of Michigan Tech last weekend, winning 5-1 on Friday and 3-2 on Saturday.

UND trailed 1-0 after the first period in both games and 2-1 after the second period on Saturday. Saturday's 3-2 comeback win was the team's first when trailing after two periods since Oct. 18, 2008 at Minnesota State.

Senior F Darcy Zajac (Winnipeg, Manitoba) had two goals and an assist in Friday's win, the first three-point game of his career and his first two-goal game since his freshman year.

Sophomore F Jason Gregoire (Winnipeg, Manitoba) had a pair of goals on Saturday and finished the weekend with three goals and an assist.

UND registered 48 shots on Friday and 44 on Saturday. The Sioux outshot the Huskies 38-6 over the final two periods on Friday and 31-18 over the last two periods on Saturday.

PLAYOFF PRIMER: UND will host the first round of the WCHA playoffs for the eighth straight year, the longest current streak of any WCHA team.

The last time the Sioux ventured on the road to open the playoffs was 2001-02 (at Minnesota), the first year of the new Ralph Engelstad Arena.

Under head coach Dave Hakstol, now in his sixth year at UND, the Sioux have gone 25-12 in the playoffs (WCHA and NCAA), eight more wins than any other WCHA team. That includes a 16-7 record in the WCHA playoffs, a victory total that also tops every WCHA team.

The Sioux are 16-3 (.842) in the playoffs at the new Ralph Engelstad Arena, including a 14-3 record in the WCHA playoffs and a pair of wins in the 2006 NCAA West Regional.

TOURNEY WATCH: The Sioux are looking to extend their string of seven straight NCAA tournament appearances, the third-longest active streak in the NCAA behind only Michigan (19) and New Hampshire (nine).

THE DEFENSE DOESN'T REST: The Sioux are the top defensive team in the team WCHA and rank third nationally, allowing only 2.14 goals per game.

Only Miami (1.72) and Cornell (2.07) have allowed fewer goals per game than the Sioux.

UND has allowed two or fewer goals in every game during the team's current seven-game winning streak.

EIDS OF MARCH: A key cog in UND's defensive play of late has been sophomore G Brad Eidsness (Chestermere, Alberta), who owns a 1.57 goals against average and a .940 save percentage during UND's current seven-game winning streak.

In his previous four games, Eidsness had posted an .880 save percentage.

Eidsness ranks second in the WCHA and 11th in the NCAA in goals against average (2.16) and is one win away from joining Karl Goehring (1997-01) as the only goalies in Sioux history to win 20 games in each of their first two seasons.

Eidsness won his 43rd career game last Saturday to tie Chris Dickson (1987-91) for 10th all-time at UND.

Please see page six for a complete breakdown of where Eidsness ranks on UND's all-time goaltending charts.

DEFENSE MECHANISM: Junior D Derrick LaPoint (Eau Claire, Wis.), who will play in his 100th career game on Friday, boasts a team-leading +11 during UND's current seven-game winning streak. He also has a goal and four assists during that stretch.

In 36 games this season, LaPoint leads all Sioux defensemen with 17 points and 15 assists, career highs in both.
LaPoint has played in every game this season after seeing his sophomore season ended by an injury last Feb. 14.

FAMOUS DAVE: Last Saturday's win was head coach Dave Hakstol's 150th at UND, moving him past Rube Bjorkman (1968-78) as the third-winningest coach in Sioux history.

Only Gino Gasparini (392 wins, 1978-94) and Dean Blais (262, 1994-04) have won more games at UND than Hakstol, the 2008-09 WCHA Coach of the Year

Hakstol is a five-time finalist for the Spencer Penrose Award and was the 2008-09 WCHA Coach of the Year.

SECOND-HALF SURGE: In Hakstol's six years as head coach, UND has posted a .686 winning percentage (92-38-15) in games played after Christmas (including playoffs), compared to a .569 mark (49-36-9) prior to Christmas.

In each of the last five seasons, UND has dramatically increased its winning percentage following the holiday break.

Below is a year-by-year comparison of UND's pre and post-Christmas records:

Year Before After
2004-05 13-7-2 (.636) 12-8-3 (.587)
2005-06 12-7-1 (.625) 17-9-0 (.654)
2006-07 7-10-1 (.417) 17-4-4 (.760)
2007-08 8-6-1 (.567) 20-5-3 (.768)
2008-09 9-8-1 (.528) 15-7-3 (.660)
2009-10 9-6-3 (.583) 11-5-2 (.667)

UND has gone 7-1-0 this season in February and March.

FINE AND VANDY: Senior F Chris VandeVelde (Moorhead, Minn.) enters the playoffs with 14 points (6g, 8a) in his last nine games and is tied for 61st on UND's all-time scoring list:

VandeVelde leads the team with 33 points, two away from matching the career-high 35 he notched last year. He also has a career-high 20 assists.

THE COUNT OF HOCKEY KRISTO: Freshman F Danny Kristo (Eden Prairie, Minn.) is riding a career-best seven-game scoring streak, with five goals and five assists during that time.

Kristo's team-leading eight power-play goals rank first nationally among freshmen, and he leads all WCHA rookies in points (30), points per game (0.88), goals (13) and power-play points (18).

He is bidding to become the first Sioux to win the WCHA rookie scoring race since Brady Murray in 2003-04.

Kristo's eight PPG tie him with Zach Parise (2002-04) for 10th-most by a Sioux freshman:

NO AVERAGE JOE: Freshman D Joe Gleason (Edina, Minn.) posted a team-leading +14 plus/minus rating during the regular season, second only to Wisconsin's John Ramage (+14) among WCHA freshmen.

Gleason is aiming to become the second straight rookie defenseman to lead the Sioux in plus/minus after Ben Blood (So., Plymouth, Minn.) did it last season (+11).

Gleason has eight assists in 36 games.

KILL OR BE KILLED: UND boasts the second-ranked penalty killing unit in the WCHA at 87.0 percent. Denver leads the WCHA and NCAA at 88.0 percent.

UND's mark of 87.0 percent is challenging the team record of 87.2 percent, set in 2003-04.

SIOUX-PER MARIO: Sophomore F Mario Lamoureux (Grand Forks) scored the game-winning goal in the regular season finale last Saturday against Michigan Tech, his sixth goal of the season and second game-winner.

The Sioux are now 8-0-0 all-time when Lamoureux scores a goal. One-third of his career goals (three out of nine) are game-winners.

This season Lamoureux has achieved career highs in games (35), goals (six), assists (five), points (11), GWG (two), plus/minus (+6) and penalty minutes (85).

NON-CONFERENCE CALL: The Sioux finished their non-conference schedule with a 5-1-2 record, with the lone loss coming Jan. 22 at No. 9 Cornell.

UND's five non-conference wins included a season-opening sweep of Merrimack and victories over Ohio State, Niagara and Cornell.

ROAD WARRIOR: In two road appearances this season, both starts, freshman G Aaron Dell (Airdrie, Alberta) has stopped 30 of 31 shots (.968 SV%) and boasts a tidy 0.51 goals against average.

However, after allowing two goals on 11 shots in one period on Jan. 29 against Denver, Dell is now 0-2-1 with a 3.69 goals against average and an .815 save percentage in three home appearances (two starts).

Overall, Dell is 1-3-1 with a 1.81 goals against average and an .897 save percentage.

EIDS WIDE SHUT: When Cornell scored its lone goal with 10 seconds remaining in the third period on Jan. 23, it marked the fifth time in his career that sophomore G Brad Eidsness (Chestermere, Alberta) has lost a shutout bid with less than nine minutes left in regulation. It was the second time he has lost a shutout bid in the game's final two minutes:

Date Opponent Time Rem. Final
1/07/08 at Colorado College 1:27 3-1
1/10/09 Minnesota 7:50 6-1
2/20/09 at Alaska Anchorage 8:43 ot 2-1
1/03/10 vs. Niagara 8:56 3-1
1/23/10 at Cornell 0:10 3-1

Earlier this season, Eidsness had a starting streak of 38 games come to an end, the third-longest in UND history:
Eidsness has been pulled from a game just once (Nov. 14 vs. SCSU) in 75 career games.

BLINK AND YOU'LL MISS IT: Sophomore F Jason Gregoire's (Winnipeg, Manitoba) goal 39 seconds into UND's season opener was the second-fastest UND goal on record to open a season (UND's box score records are incomplete prior to the 1966-67 season).
The fastest Sioux goal to open a season is six seconds, scored by Lee Davidson on Oct. 13, 1989 against Alabama-Huntsville. That goal is also the fastest Sioux goal to open any period.

PROVING THEIR MEDAL: The Fighting Sioux hockey family was well represented during the 2010 Winter Olympics, which concluded Sunday in Vancouver.

Former Sioux All-American and Chicago Blackhawks captain Jonathan Toews (2005-07) led Canada to a 3-2 gold medal victory over the United States, scoring the game's first goal and tying for the tournament lead in points and +/-. He also led all players in assists on his way to Best Forward and All-Tournament honors. Toews became the third former Sioux to win men's hockey Olympic gold, joining Dave Christian (1980, USA) and Ed Belfour (2002, Canada).

Additionally, former Sioux defenseman Brad Pascall (1988-92), a teammate of UND head coach Dave Hakstol while with the Sioux, served as Hockey Canada's Senior Director of National Men's Teams.

Another former Sioux, two-time Hobey Baker finalist Zach Parise (2002-04) earned the silver medal with Team USA and joined Toews on the All-Tournament Team. Parise, who sent the gold medal game to overtime by scoring the tying goal with 24.4 seconds left, tied for the team lead in goals and points and was the subject of a Sports Illustrated feature article during the Games.

UND Men's Hockey Olympians
1952 (Oslo, Norway): John Noah (USA)
1956 (Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy): Gordon Christian (USA), Dan McKinnon (USA), Ken Purpur (USA)
1964 (Innsbruck, Austria): Tom Yurkovich (USA), Bill Reichart (USA), Don Ross (USA)
1968 (Grenoble, France): Don Ross (USA)
1972 (Sapporo, Japan): Mike Curran (USA)
1980 (Lake Placid, N.Y.): Dave Christian (USA)*, Kevin Maxwell (Canada)
1984 (Sarajevo, Yugoslavia): Dave Donnelly (Canada), James Patrick (Canada), Dave Tippett (Canada)
1988 (Calgary, Alberta): Bob Joyce (Canada), Gord Sherven (Canada)1992 (Albertville, France): Dean Blais (Coach, USA), Dave Tippett (Canada)
1994 (Lillehammer, Norway): Greg Johnson (Canada)
2002 (Salt Lake City, Utah): Ed Belfour (Canada)*
2006 (Torino, Italy): Jason Blake (USA)
2010 (Vancouver, British Columbia): Zach Parise (USA), Jonathan Toews (Canada)

Additionally, UND's Monique and Jocelyne Lamoureux, brother of Sioux sophomore F Mario Lamoureux (Grand Forks), won the silver medal in Vancouver with the United States women's hockey team.

HONOR ROLL: Five Fighting Sioux were named WCHA Scholar Athlete Award recipients in Februrary: senior forwards Chris VandeVelde (Moorhead, Minn.) and Darcy Zajac (Winnipeg, Manitoba), junior defensemen Derrick LaPoint (Eau Claire, Wis.) and Jake Marto (Grand Forks) and sophomore goalie Brad Eidsness (Chestermere, Alberta).

All five are first-time recipients of the award, which was established in 2005-06 by the WCHA and the Association member team Faculty Athletics Representatives.

To earn recognition, conference-member student-athletes must have completed at least one year of residency at their present institution prior to the current academic year and must also have a grade point average of at least 3.50 on a 4.0 scale for the previous two semesters or three quarters, or may qualify if his or her overall GPA is at least 3.50 for all terms at his or her present institution.

TITLE TRIBUTE: The 2009-10 season marks the 10th anniversary of UND's 2000 NCAA championship team, the seventh and most recent men's hockey national championship.

The Fighting Sioux, coached by Dean Blais and captained by Peter Armbrust, went 31-8-5 in 1999-00 en route to the program's seventh national championship. That same season, UND also won the MacNaughton Cup as WCHA regular season champions and the Broadmoor Trophy as WCHA Final Five playoff champions.

Junior forward Jeff Panzer was named a Hobey Baker Finalist and was a first team All-American. Senior goalie Karl Goehring was also a first team All-American, while senior forward Lee Goren was named a second team All-American after leading the NCAA in goals. Goren was also named the MVP of the NCAA tournament and the WCHA Final Five.

Five players from the 2000 championship team went on to play in the National Hockey League: Ryan Bayda, Mike Commodore, Brad DeFauw, Goren and Travis Roche.

The 2000 team was honored during UND's Feb. 19-20 series against Minnesota Duluth, with 13 former players in attendance, as well as former assistant coach Jeff Bowen.

FAB FROSH: The Sioux roster includes 10 freshmen in 2009-10, UND's largest freshman class since 2005-06, when 13 rookies donned the Kelly Green and White.

That 2005-06 class included the likes of 2007 Hobey Baker Award winner Ryan Duncan and current NHLers Jonathan Toews (Chicago), T.J. Oshie (St. Louis) and Brian Lee (Ottawa).

In fact, 11 members of that 13-player 2005-06 freshman class, eight of whom graduated as seniors last season, are currently playing professional hockey.

GENOWAY, CICHY HONORED: A pair of Sioux were recognized when InsideCollegeHockey.com announced its 2009-10 preseason All-America and all-rookie teams.

Senior D Chay Genoway (Morden, Manitoba) was named to the INCH preseason All-America third team. Last season, Genoway was named a second-team All-American and the WCHA Defensive Player of the Year after collecting a career-high 32 points. He was also named an ESPN the Magazine Academic All-American and a WCHA Scholar-Athlete.

Freshman F Mike Cichy (New Hartford, Conn.) was named to INCH's preseason All-Rookie team. A seventh-round draft pick of the Montreal Canadiens in the 2009 NHL Entry Draft, Cichy led the Indiana Ice to a United States Hockey League championship and was named the league's playoff MVP with 25 points (including a USHL-record 16 assists) in 16 games. He totalled 76 points in 56 regular season games.

FROM SEA TO SHINING SEA: So much for the notion that hockey is a "regional" sport.

UND junior F Brad Malone (Miramichi, New Brunswick) is the first New Brunswick native to ever play for the Sioux while sophomore F Brett Hextall (Manhattan Beach, Calif.) is the first Californian to suit up for the Sioux.

Freshman Mike Cichy (New Hartford, Conn.) is just the second native of Connecticut to ever play for the Sioux and the first since Frank Morgan way back in 1951-52.

Below is a geographical breakdown of the entire 2009-10 Sioux roster:

• Minnesota (6): Ben Blood (Plymouth), Corey Fienhage (Apple Valley), Joe Gleason (Edina), Ryan Hill (Hermantown), Danny Kristo (Eden Prairie), Chris VandeVelde (Moorhead)
• Alberta (6): Aaron Dell (Airdrie), Brad Eidsness (Chestermere), Matt Frattin (Edmonton), Corban Knight (High River), Andrew MacWilliam (Calgary), Carter Rowney (Sexsmith)
• Manitoba (5): Brent Davidson (Morden), Chay Genoway (Morden), Jason Gregoire (Winnipeg), David Toews (Winnipeg), Darcy Zajac (Winnipeg)
• North Dakota (2): Mario Lamoureux (Grand Forks), Jake Marto (Grand Forks)
• Alaska (1): Evan Trupp (Anchorage)
• California (1): Brett Hextall (Manhattan Beach)
• Colorado (1): Tate Maris (Denver)
• Connecticut (1): Mike Cichy (New Hartford)
• Nebraska (1): Brett Bruneteau (Omaha)
• New Brunswick (1): Brad Malone (Miramichi)
• Wisconsin (1): Derrick LaPoint (Eau Claire)

FEELING A DRAFT: UND 2009-10 roster includes 16 players who have been drafted by National Hockey League teams. The group includes goalie Brad Eidsness (Buffalo), defensemen Andrew MacWilliam (Toronto), Derrick LaPoint (Florida), Corey Fienhage (Buffalo), Joe Gleason (Chicago) and Ben Blood (Ottawa) and forwards Danny Kristo (Montreal), Mike Cichy (Montreal), Corban Knight (Florida), Brett Bruneteau (Washington), Jason Gregoire (New York Islanders), David Toews (New York Islanders), Brad Malone (Colorado), Brett Hextall (Phoenix) , Matt Frattin (Toronto) and Chris VandeVelde (Edmonton).

A total of 24 Sioux have been drafted during the tenure of sixth-year head coach Dave Hakstol, including first-rounders Jonathan Toews (Chicago, 2006), T.J. Oshie (St. Louis, 2005), Brian Lee (Ottawa, 2005) and Joe Finley (Washington, 2005).
WELCOME TO THE SHOW: Fourteen former Sioux have seen action in the NHL this season: Jason Blake (Anaheim/toronto), Brandon Bochenski (Tampa Bay), Taylor Chorney (Edmonton), Mike Commodore (Columbus), Matt Greene (Los Angeles), David Hale (Tampa Bay), Ryan Johnson (Vancouver), Brian Lee (Ottawa), T.J. Oshie (St. Louis), Zach Parise (New Jersey), Matt Smaby (Tampa Bay), Drew Stafford (Buffalo), Jonathan Toews (Chicago) and Travis Zajac (New Jersey).

Four of those players -- Commodore, Greene, Hale and Oshie -- were in Grand Forks Feb. 19-20 to watch UND's sweep of Minnesota Duluth.

Seventeen former Fighting Sioux played in the NHL last season, the most of any team in the WCHA and UND's most since sending 21 in 1993-94.

Additionally, four former Sioux can be found in the NHL coaching ranks, including Phoenix head coach Dave Tippett, Tampa Bay assistant coach Rick Wilson, Buffalo assistant coach James Patrick and Phoenix video coach Steve Peters.

ALL IN THE FAMILY: UND's 2009-10 roster features five players who have had family members previously play for the Fighting Sioux: defenseman Chay Genoway (Morden, Manitoba) and forwards Mario Lamoureux (Grand Forks), Brett Hextall (Manhattan Beach, Calif.), David Toews (Winnipeg, Manitoba) and Darcy Zajac (Winnipeg, Manitoba).

Genoway, Toews and Zajac each have older brothers who once played at UND, Lamoureux's father and brother played for the Sioux and Hextall has a great uncle who played for the Sioux.

Genoway's brother, Colby, was a forward at UND from 2002-05 and scored 81 points in 115 career games. He most recently played for the Manitoba Moose of the AHL.

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.

Lamoureux's 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 first year as UND's student-assistant coach while twin sisters Jocelyne and Monique are sophomore forwards on the Fighting Sioux women's hockey team and both recently won a silver medal with the U.S. Olympic team.

Toews' brother, Jonathan, was a forward at UND from 2005-07, scoring 85 points in 76 career games and earning All-America honors in 2007. He is now the captain of the Chicago Blackhawks and won a gold medal with Canada at the 2010 Olympics.

Zajac's brother, Travis, scored 96 points in 91 games from 2004-06 and currently plays for the New Jersey Devils.

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 Scott Koberinski (1985-89) each played for the Fighting Sioux.

Additionally, hockey operations manager 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.