GRAND FORKS, N.D. -- The University of North Dakota men's hockey team opened up the 2014-15 season with a 4-0 exhibition win over Manitoba on Sunday at Ralph Engelstad Arena.

North Dakota received goals from four different players, including three power-play goals as UND shut out the Bisons for the second straight season.

The hype was here, as North Dakota came in ranked No. 2 in both national polls. Some of the hype centered around the six incoming freshmen for UND this season. Four of the six cracked the lineup tonight, including 2014 first-round pick Nick Schmaltz, and he did not disappoint.

The Verona, Wis., native tallied two assists and had four shots in his debut.

“It was a great experience, it is a different environment than juniors,” said Schmaltz. “It was pretty cool to see all the fans out there and all the students supporting the team.”

One player who was happy to see No. 8 out there was his older brother, Jordan.

“It was fun,” said the elder Schmaltz. “He's a special player out there. You put the puck on his stick and he'll make a play.”

UND struggled in the early portion of the game, only registering one shot on goal in the first 10 minutes of the game. However, a late power-play goal by sophomore Luke Johnson got UND on the board and it never looked back.

“I thought we were a little rusty, especially in the first period with handling pucks,” said sophomore forward Wade Murphy. “Getting pucks deep and keeping things simple are the best way to get back into the game.”

Junior Jordan Schmaltz fired a power-play goal past Jensen in the second period to make it 2-0 UND after two periods. North Dakota finally scored an even-strength goal 7:15 into the third period when senior Brendan O'Donnell skated by the Manitoba defense and slipped the puck through Spriggs while being hooked down for the highlight-reel goal.

Thirty-four seconds later, Murphy found the back of the net on the power-play to give UND the 4-0 lead and its third power play goal of the night.

“It was nice to get the monkey off my back,” said Murphy, who failed to score in 19 games last season. “I am feeling more confident out there and I just have to keep going.”

UND outshot the Bisons 40-19 as junior goaltender Zane McIntyre and freshman Cam Johnson combined for the shutout.

North Dakota finished 3 for 6 on the power play while Manitoba finished 0 for 5, which included a 5-minute major.

North Dakota will open the regular season next weekend with a home-and-home non-conference series with Bemidji State and UND head coach Dave Hakstol understands the importance of the upcoming weekend.

“They're a very hard team to play against,” said Hakstol. “They always play with a ton of speed and pace. Energy is going to be critical, and we'll manage that this week. We will spend a lot of time working to improve our game as we go through the week.”

UND hosts the Beavers on Friday night at 7:37 before heading to Bemidji on Saturday.

Notes: Jordan Schmaltz, Nick Schmaltz and Drake Caggiula were named the game's three stars … Attendance was 10,205.