GRAND FORKS, N.D. – Fifth year forward Gavin Hain struck for a pair of goals while sophomore goaltender Jakob Hellsten stopped 19-of-20 shots to help No. 3 North Dakota tally a 4-1 victory and weekend sweep over Holy Cross on Saturday night from Ralph Engelstad Arena.
Hain, who plays with Louis Jamernik V and Mark Senden on the "Identity Line," turned into an offensive juggernaut, with the group combining for four points on the night and 11 on the weekend to secure the third straight opening weekend sweep for UND (2-0).
Ethan Frisch and Carson Albrecht added their first goals of the season while Brent Johnson notched a pair of assists for his first multi-point game of his career.
Hellsten, appearing in his first game since Mar. 4, 2022 at Omaha, was solid in his first start of the season with 19 saves. He carried a shutout into the final minutes, but the Crusaders (0-2) broke through when a centering pass deflected off a NoDak defender and past the goaltender to snap the scoreless streak at over 117 minutes.
After striking for a tetrad of goals in the opening period on Friday night, UND jumped in front by a pair after 20 minutes on goals from Hain and Frisch in the final three minutes of the stanza.
Hain struck again late in the middle frame when he bounced on a loose puck in the crease before Albrecht added a fourth on another scramble near the paint just over a minute later to put the hosts up, 4-0 after 40 minutes.
Holy Cross fired 10 of the 13 shots in the final period towards Hellsten, but could only breakthrough once to give the Fighting Hawks the 4-1 victory.
North Dakota remains at home against top-10 foe Quinnipiac next weekend at Ralph Engelstad Arena at 7:07 p.m. on Friday and 6:07 p.m. on Saturday.
Postgame Notes
· Gavin Hain now has six goals in his last six games, dating back to last season
· UND finished with a 24-20 shot advantage
· Holy Cross went 0-for-4 on the power play, registering only one shot while UND was 1-for-5 with four shots
· Brent Johnson's two assists was the first multi-point game of his career
· Chris Jandric finished with four assists on the weekend
· Owen McLaughlin tallied his first-collegiate point with an assist on Frisch's goal
· NoDak went 37-17 in dot, with Jake Schmaltz going 14-5 and Matteo Costantini finishing 10-2
· UND improves to 6-0-0 all-time against Holy Cross and 5-0-0 at home
· The Hawks are 60-4-2 when scoring at least four goals since 2018-19
· Hain, Frisch and Johnson were named the game's three stars
How It Happened
First Period
17:22 | UND – Gavin Hain jumps on a loose puck in the crease and backhands it past Louden Hogg for the 1-0 lead
19:43 | UND – Ethan Frisch fires a one-timer on the power play to double the advantage with just 17 seconds left
Second Period
16:19 | UND – Hain scores his second with another backhand tally on a rebound in the crease
17:50 | UND – Carson Albrecht muscles a puck through the Holy Cross defender and Hogg to make it 4-0 UND
Third Period
17:17 | HC – Charlie Spence breaks the shutout bid after his centering pass deflects into the net off a UND defender
For more information on North Dakota hockey, visit FightingHawks.com or follow on social media @UNDmhockey.
