Entering Friday's non-conference game against the University of Alaska, the University of North Dakota hockey changed their lines around to get more offense production out of their lineup. The new line combinations appeared to add a spark.
UND also started freshman goalie Hobie Hedquist after their starting goalie, Ludvig Persson, came down with an illness. Hedquist stopped 23 of 27 shots and recorded his first collegiate win.
Sophomore forward Owen McLaughlin is heating up; he notched his fourth game with three points this season. McLaughlin now is tied for second in points with junior forward Cameron Berg. Finally, McLaughlin has five multi-point games.
"I found out in our morning meetings that Luds (Ludvig Persson) was around the rink, and he ended up being too sick," Hedquist said. "Karl Goehring (KG) called me over and said that I'd be going in tonight."
UND didn't start out as quickly as they would've liked. The Hawks ended the first period down 1-0. UND took over in the second period, scoring five goals (Owen McLaughlin X2, Riese Gaber, Cameron Berg, and Louis Jamernik) and chased Nanooks goalie Pierce Charleson from the game. That was the most goals UND had scored in a single period since UND scored five goals in the third period on Oct. 12, 2019, vs. Canisius.
"First period, not how we have to play," UND head coach Brad Berry said. "I got to commend the way they played. We knew through video and watching how they play. They are an older team. Everybody's over 20 years old; they look like it. They play like men. They played a hard, heavy game early, and our puck management wasn't the greatest. We didn't give ourselves a chance consistently to play in their end of the rink. We did a better job of that in the second period of playing more direct and more simple."
On Friday night, UND's power play cashed in twice on six power play chances.
UND has gone 12 straight games without losing in regulation; their last regulation loss was on November 3, 2023, at Boston University.
Tonight, senior forward Riese Gaber broke a three-game scoreless streak when he scored two goals against the Nanooks. It was the first time since November 18, 2023, Gaber had scored two goals in a game. Gaber now has five multi-point games.
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