COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – Sophomore forward Jackson Blake and senior forward Riese Gaber were two of the six players selected to the Preseason All-NCHC Team, selected by the media, the league announced on Monday.
North Dakota and Denver paced the league with two players on the team, while St. Cloud State and Colorado College rounded out the six-man squad.
Blake was the NCHC's Rookie of the Year last season, also picking up Second-Team All-NCHC and NCHC All-Rookie Team accolades. The two-time NCHC Rookie of the Month led UND with 42 points last season, which ranked fifth in the NCHC and second among freshmen, while playing in all 39 games. In conference play, the Carolina Hurricanes draft pick's 29 points tied for second among all skaters. Blake scored 16 goals as a freshman last year, including 10 in NCHC play, while dishing out 26 assists overall. The Eden Prairie, Minn., native was also the leading vote-getter on the preseason team, earning 25 out of a possible 27 votes.
Gaber joined Blake on the All-NCHC Second Team last season, tallying 37 points while playing in all 39 games. His 20 goals led UND and ranked seventh in the NCHC. Named North Dakota's captain for 2023-24, Gaber enters the year with 95 career points, tying for the most among active NCHC players. In conference play only, his 23 points and 13 goals both ranked in the top 10 in the NCHC a season ago. This is his second selection to the preseason team, earning the nod in 2022-23.
Media members voted for three forwards, two defensemen and one goaltender on their ballot with each vote worth one point. The top three vote-getters at forward, top two defensemen and highest vote-getting goaltender made up the preseason all-conference team. A total of 27 ballots were submitted by media members covering each team, as well as select national college hockey media.
On Tuesday afternoon, the 2023-24 NCHC Preseason Poll will be revealed. It will first be counted down on the NCHC's Twitter account, @TheNCHC, beginning at 3:00 p.m. ET.
NCHC Media Day then takes place the following day on Wednesday, Sept. 13 at Xcel Energy Center in Saint Paul, Minn., the home of the NCHC Frozen Faceoff. Fans will be able to take part in 2023 NCHC Media Day by asking questions for student-athletes during 'Twitter Takeovers' in the morning, streaming the State of the Conference address for free on NCHC.tv and more.
2023-24 NCHC PRESEASON ALL-CONFERENCE TEAM (out of 27 ballots)
F – Jackson Blake, North Dakota – 25 votes
F – Massimo Rizzo, Denver – 24 votes
F – Riese Gaber, North Dakota – 17 votes
D – Jack Peart, St. Cloud State – 23 votes
D – Sean Behrens, Denver – 19 votes
G – Kaidan Mbereko, Colorado College – 23 votes
For more information on North Dakota hockey, follow on social media @UNDmhockey or visit FightingHawks.com.
