North Dakota won its eighth NCAA men’s hockey championship in 2016, beating Quinnipiac in Tampa, Fla., to cap a 34-6-4 season. Since then, the Fighting Hawks haven’t been able to add to their total of 22 NCAA Frozen Four berths, suffering NCAA tournament losses in one overtime (Notre Dame), two overtimes (Boston University) and five overtimes (Minnesota Duluth).
Throw in three years of no NCAA bids and a 2020 season that ended early because of COVID-19, and the stretch of no Frozen Four appearances in seven years is lengthy by North Dakota’s lofty standards.
That might change when college hockey’s premier event visits St. Paul in April.
As the season hits its homestretch, North Dakota sits atop the NCHC standings and sports a 20-6-2 record. The Fighting Hawks have won four consecutive and six of seven, and they’re on a 16-4-1 stretch in which they haven’t lost in regulation. They’re also No. 3 in the PairWise Ratings, so they’re in the mix to be a No. 1 regional seed in the NCAA tournament.
Last weekend, North Dakota swept Miami (Ohio) on the road. Saturday’s 4-1 win gave coach Brad Berry his 200th career victory, and when players presented him with the game puck for the milestone, he had other things in mind.
“I told them: ‘I’ll hand this puck in right now. I’ll trade it for championships and banners,’” he said.
North Dakota’s resurgence from a 18-15-6 campaign and no NCAA berth last season to a title contender this year can be traced to Berry’s decision to heavily mine the transfer portal last spring to help replace 13 outgoing players. Of the Fighting Hawks’ 14 newcomers, seven are transfers.
That includes forward Cameron Berg, formerly of Nebraska Omaha, who is tied for second on the team with 29 points; and defenseman Garrett Pyke, formerly of Alaska, whose 19 assists are third. Throw in blue-liners Logan Britt (Sacred Heart), Keaton Pehrson (Michigan) and Bennett Zmolek (Minnesota State Mankato), and the Fighting Hawks are flush with experience.
