2022–23 North Dakota Fighting Hawks men's ice hockey season

The 2022–23 North Dakota Fighting Hawks men's ice hockey season was the 82nd season of play for the program and 10th in the NCHC. The Fighting Hawks represented the University of North Dakota in the 2022–23 NCAA Division I men's ice hockey season were coached by Brad Berry in his 8th season and played their home games at Ralph Engelstad Arena.

2022–23 North Dakota Fighting Hawks
men's ice hockey season
ConferenceT–5th NCHC
Home iceRalph Engelstad Arena
Rankings
USCHO#17
USA Today#18
Record
Overall18–15–6
Conference10–10–6
Home10–7–2
Road8–6–4
Neutral0–2–0
Coaches and captains
Head coachBrad Berry
Assistant coachesDane Jackson
Karl Goehring
Jason Ulmer
Captain(s)Mark Senden
Alternate captain(s)Judd Caulfield
Ethan Frisch
Gavin Hain
Riese Gaber
North Dakota Fighting Hawks men's ice hockey seasons
« 2021–22 2023–24 »

Season

edit
 
2022-23 Season Uniforms

Though the team lost its top prospect to the professional ranks, an impressive[citation needed] recruiting class and the return of most of last season's players had many[who?] believing that North Dakota would compete for a national championship in 2023. The Hawks began the year at #4 in both polls and started the year in good standings, easily handling Holy Cross. The following week would be an early test for UND as they played host to another prospective championship contender in Quinnipiac. A problem cropped up that would stick with the team for most of the season: poor goaltending. Drew DeRidder allowed 3 goals on just 7 shots in the first and, after North Dakota took a lead in the third, Jakob Hellsten surrendered a tying goal to only earn a tie. Playing the entire game the following night, Hellsten let 5 get past him on 21 shots. Suddenly, coach Berry had a quandary on his hands as Hellsten's performance was bad enough to end their attempted goaltending rotation but DeRidder was only marginally better.

The inconsistency in goal caused the team to slowly slide down the polls until falling off entirely by Thanksgiving. The Hawks were able to score, averaging over 3 goals per game, but the offense was concentrated with three players: Jackson Blake, Riese Gaber and Chris Jandric. Collectively they accounted for nearly a third of the team's goals and points. North Dakota's offense did produce more than they had the year before, however, the subpar play in goal cancelled out any offense improvement and the lack of depth scoring also proved to be problematic.

The defense held their own, allowing and average of less than 25 against per game but neither goaltender was able to take advantage. The team tried twice more to use Hellsten as the starter but he couldn't hold the job and the Hawks had to stick with DeRidder. Near the end of the season, however, DeRidder seemed to finally find his groove and began producing good efforts night after night. By going 4–0–2 over the final three weeks, including taking a weekend from St. Cloud State, the Fighting Hawks found themselves just outside the playoff picture.

Entering the postseason, it was just possible, if unlikely, for North Dakota to earn an at-large bid without a conference championship. Those faint hopes were nearly extinguished when the UND offense could only muster a single goal against Omaha despite getting 41 shots on goal. The team rallied in the rematch to set up a deciding third game to keep their season alive. The Hawks got down twice in the game but scored the final 4 goals to run away with a win and advance to the semifinal.[1]

Entering championship weekend, North Dakota had risen up to 18 in the PairWise rankings. While it was an impressive feat after a rocky season,[according to whom?] it meant that it was mathematically impossible for UND to earn an at-large bid. Any bonus they got from making the final would be lost by losing the championship game. With the Hawks knowing that they had to win it all to make the tournament, they fought hard against St. Cloud State, who had already punched their ticket. The defense did its job by stifling the Huskies' attack, allowing just 15 shots against in regulation. Their offense gave the Hawks two separate 1-goal leads but they were unable to hold onto either and the two teams finished the first 60 minutes tied at 2-all. St. Cloud cranked up the pressure in overtime, trying to get the winning goal straight away. DeRidder stopped 6 shots in the first 5 minutes but he was unable to prevent the 6th and Zach Okabe's marker ended the Hawks' season.[2]

Departures

edit
Player Position Nationality Cause
Brendan Budy Forward   Canada Transferred to Rensselaer
Ashton Calder Forward   United States Graduate transfer to Penn State
Zach Driscoll Goaltender   United States Graduation (signed with Toledo Walleye)
Harrison Feeney Goaltender   United States Graduation (signed with Bollnäs IS)
Brady Ferner Forward   United States Graduation (retired)
Connor Ford Forward   United States Graduation (signed with Henderson Silver Knights)
Jake Sanderson Defenseman   United States Signed professional contract (Ottawa Senators)

Recruiting

edit
Player Position Nationality Age Notes
Jackson Blake Forward   United States 19 Fargo, ND; selected 109th overall in 2021
Drew DeRidder Goaltender   United States 22 Fenton, MI; graduate transfer from Michigan State
Ty Farmer Defenseman   United States 24 O'Fallon, MO; graduate transfer from Massachusetts
Dylan James Forward   Canada 18 Calgary, AB; selected 40th overall in 2022
Owen McLaughlin Forward   United States 19 Spring City, PA; selected 206th overall in 2021
Ryan Sidorski Defenseman   United States 22 Williamsville, NY; graduate transfer from Union
Ben Strinden Forward   United States 20 Fargo, ND; selected 210th overall in 2022

Roster

edit

As of August 24, 2022.[3]

No. S/P/C Player Class Pos Height Weight DoB Hometown Previous team NHL rights
1   Kaleb Johnson Freshman (RS) G 5' 9" (1.75 m) 182 lb (83 kg) 2001-01-07 Grand Forks, North Dakota Minnesota Wilderness (NAHL)
2   Ryan Sidorski Graduate D 6' 2" (1.88 m) 215 lb (98 kg) 1999-10-02 Williamsville, New York Union (ECAC)
3   Ty Farmer Graduate D 5' 8" (1.73 m) 183 lb (83 kg) 1998-01-06 O'Fallon, Missouri UMass (HEA)
4   Cooper Moore Junior D 6' 2" (1.88 m) 188 lb (85 kg) 2001-02-16 Riverside, Connecticut Chilliwack (BCHL) DET, 128th overall 2019
5   Dane Montgomery Sophomore F 5' 9" (1.75 m) 169 lb (77 kg) 2002-01-07 Grand Forks, North Dakota Waterloo (USHL)
6   Brent Johnson Sophomore D 5' 9" (1.75 m) 174 lb (79 kg) 2003-03-20 Frisco, Texas Sioux Falls (USHL) WSH, 80th overall 2021
7   Chris Jandric Graduate D 5' 9" (1.75 m) 180 lb (82 kg) 1998-10-03 Prince George, British Columbia Alaska (WCHA)
8   Jake Schmaltz Sophomore F 6' 2" (1.88 m) 186 lb (84 kg) 2001-04-24 McFarland, Wisconsin Green Bay (USHL) BOS, 192nd overall 2019
9   Jackson Blake Freshman F 5' 9" (1.75 m) 165 lb (75 kg) 2003-08-03 Eden Prairie, Minnesota Chicago (USHL) CAR, 109th overall 2021
10   Gavin Hain (A) Graduate F 6' 0" (1.83 m) 193 lb (88 kg) 2000-04-03 Grand Rapids, Minnesota NTDP (USHL) PHI, 174th overall 2018
11   Griffin Ness Junior F 5' 9" (1.75 m) 170 lb (77 kg) 1999-12-10 Wayzata, Minnesota Waterloo (USHL)
13   Carson Albrecht Senior F 5' 8" (1.73 m) 188 lb (85 kg) 1998-05-23 Martensville, Saskatchewan Melfort (SJHL)
15   Ethan Frisch (A) Senior D 5' 10" (1.78 m) 192 lb (87 kg) 2000-10-29 Moorhead, Minnesota Fargo (USHL)
17   Riese Gaber (A) Junior F 5' 7" (1.7 m) 163 lb (74 kg) 1999-10-10 Gilbert Plains, Manitoba Dubuque (USHL)
18   Matteo Costantini Sophomore F 6' 1" (1.85 m) 190 lb (86 kg) 2002-08-16 St. Catharines, Ontario Sioux City (USHL) BUF, 131st overall 2020
19   Mark Senden (C) Graduate F 5' 8" (1.73 m) 201 lb (91 kg) 1998-01-22 Medina, Minnesota Fargo (USHL)
20   Nick Portz Sophomore F 5' 9" (1.75 m) 174 lb (79 kg) 2000-05-15 St. Cloud, Minnesota Muskegon (USHL)
21   Ben Strinden Freshman F 6' 1" (1.85 m) 196 lb (89 kg) 2002-06-04 Fargo, North Dakota Muskegon (USHL) NSH, 210th overall 2022
22   Owen McLaughlin Freshman F 6' 0" (1.83 m) 156 lb (71 kg) 2003-03-25 Spring City, Pennsylvania Sioux City (USHL)
24   Luke Bast Sophomore D 5' 8" (1.73 m) 178 lb (81 kg) 2000-11-20 Red Deer, Alberta Waterloo (USHL)
25   Tyler Kleven Junior D 6' 4" (1.93 m) 213 lb (97 kg) 2002-01-10 Fargo, North Dakota NTDP (USHL) OTT, 44th overall 2020
26   Dylan James Freshman F 6' 0" (1.83 m) 180 lb (82 kg) 2003-10-12 Calgary, Alberta Sioux City (USHL) DET, 40th overall 2022
27   Louis Jamernik V Junior F 5' 9" (1.75 m) 203 lb (92 kg) 2000-02-22 Calgary, Alberta Okotoks (AJHL)
28   Judd Caulfield (A) Senior F 6' 3" (1.91 m) 212 lb (96 kg) 2001-03-19 Grand Forks, North Dakota NTDP (USHL) PIT, 145th overall 2019
29   Jackson Kunz Sophomore F 6' 3" (1.91 m) 228 lb (103 kg) 2002-08-13 Grand Forks, North Dakota Green Bay (USHL) VAN, 113th overall 2020
32   Jakob Hellsten Sophomore G 5' 10" (1.78 m) 190 lb (86 kg) 2000-02-02 Ljusdal, Sweden Halmstad (Hockeyettan)
34   Drew DeRidder Graduate G 5' 9" (1.75 m) 178 lb (81 kg) 2000-05-01 Fenton, Michigan Michigan State (Big Ten)

Standings

edit
Conference record Overall record
GP W L T OTW OTL SW PTS GF GA GP W L T GF GA
#6 Denver 24 19 5 0 2 1 0 56 94 53 40 30 10 0 150 86
#11 Western Michigan 24 15 8 1 2 0 0 44 86 60 39 23 15 1 148 102
#20 Omaha 24 13 9 2 2 2 1 42 71 64 37 19 15 3 109 97
#5 St. Cloud State * 24 12 9 3 2 1 3 41 85 68 41 25 13 3 133 95
Minnesota Duluth 24 10 14 0 1 4 0 33 65 81 37 16 20 1 95 114
#17 North Dakota 24 10 10 4 3 0 2 33 75 70 39 18 15 6 127 110
Colorado College 24 6 15 3 0 2 2 25 37 60 38 13 22 3 79 99
Miami 24 3 18 3 0 2 0 14 39 96 36 8 24 4 73 137
Championship: March 18, 2023
† indicates conference regular season champion (Penrose Cup)
* indicates conference tournament champion (Frozen Faceoff Championship Trophy)
Rankings: USCHO.com Top 20 Poll

Schedule and results

edit
Date Time Opponent# Rank# Site TV Decision Result Attendance Record
Exhibition
October 1 6:07 PM Manitoba* #4 Ralph Engelstad ArenaGrand Forks, North Dakota (Exhibition) Midco DeRidder W 5–1  11,568
Regular Season
October 7 7:07 PM Holy Cross* #3 Ralph Engelstad ArenaGrand Forks, North Dakota Midco DeRidder W 6–0  11,181 1–0–0
October 8 6:07 PM Holy Cross* #3 Ralph Engelstad ArenaGrand Forks, North Dakota Midco Hellsten W 4–1  11,376 2–0–0
October 14 7:07 PM #8 Quinnipiac* #3 Ralph Engelstad ArenaGrand Forks, North Dakota Midco Hellsten T 5–5 OT 10,875 2–0–1
October 15 6:07 PM #8 Quinnipiac* #3 Ralph Engelstad ArenaGrand Forks, North Dakota Midco Hellsten L 2–6  11,680 2–1–1
October 21 7:00 PM at #1 Minnesota* #7 3M Arena at MariucciMinneapolis, Minnesota (Rivalry) BSN+ DeRidder L 2–3 OT 10,418 2–2–1
October 22 7:00 PM at #1 Minnesota* #7 3M Arena at MariucciMinneapolis, Minnesota (Rivalry) BSN DeRidder W 5–4 OT 10,193 3–2–1
October 29 9:07 PM vs. Arizona State* #6 T-Mobile ArenaLas Vegas, Nevada (US Hockey Hall of Fame Game) Midco DeRidder L 2–3  15,503 3–3–1
November 4 7:07 PM at Omaha #10 Baxter ArenaOmaha, Nebraska Midco DeRidder W 4–1  6,543 4–3–1 (1–0–0)
November 5 7:07 PM at Omaha #10 Baxter ArenaOmaha, Nebraska Midco DeRidder T 3–3 SOL 6,314 4–3–2 (1–0–1)
November 11 7:07 PM #2 Denver #12 Ralph Engelstad ArenaGrand Forks, North Dakota (Rivalry) Midco DeRidder L 2–3  11,738 4–4–2 (1–1–1)
November 12 7:07 PM #2 Denver #12 Ralph Engelstad ArenaGrand Forks, North Dakota (Rivalry) Midco Hellsten L 3–6  11,852 4–5–2 (1–2–1)
November 18 7:07 PM Miami #19 Ralph Engelstad ArenaGrand Forks, North Dakota Midco Hellsten W 7–1  10,823 5–5–2 (2–2–1)
November 19 6:07 PM Miami #19 Ralph Engelstad ArenaGrand Forks, North Dakota Midco Hellsten L 3–4  10,815 5–6–2 (2–3–1)
November 25 7:37 PM at Bemidji State* Sanford CenterBemidji, Minnesota FloHockey Hellsten T 3–3 OT 3,712 5–6–3
November 26 6:07 PM Bemidji State* Ralph Engelstad ArenaGrand Forks, North Dakota Midco Hellsten W 4–2  11,470 6–6–3
December 2 7:30 PM at #3 St. Cloud State Herb Brooks National Hockey CenterSt. Cloud, Minnesota FOX 9+ Hellsten L 2–7  4,529 6–7–3 (2–4–3)
December 3 6:00 PM at #3 St. Cloud State Herb Brooks National Hockey CenterSt. Cloud, Minnesota FOX 9+ DeRidder L 3–6  5,017 6–8–3 (2–5–3)
December 9 6:05 PM at #17 Western Michigan Lawson ArenaKalamazoo, Michigan   DeRidder T 2–2 SOW 3,239 6–8–4 (2–5–4)
December 10 5:05 PM at #17 Western Michigan Lawson ArenaKalamazoo, Michigan   DeRidder W 3–0  3,498 7–8–4 (3–5–4)
December 31 4:07 PM USNTDP* Ralph Engelstad ArenaGrand Forks, North Dakota (Exhibition) Midco Johnson W 4–3 OT 11,034
January 6 7:07 PM Lindenwood* Ralph Engelstad ArenaGrand Forks, North Dakota Midco Hellsten W 4–3  10,354 8–8–4
January 7 6:07 PM Lindenwood* Ralph Engelstad ArenaGrand Forks, North Dakota Midco Hellsten W 4–2  11,616 9–8–4
January 13 7:07 PM #12 Western Michigan Ralph Engelstad ArenaGrand Forks, North Dakota Midco Hellsten L 0–4  11,022 9–9–4 (3–6–4)
January 14 6:07 PM #12 Western Michigan Ralph Engelstad ArenaGrand Forks, North Dakota Midco Johnson L 6–7  11,664 9–10–4 (3–7–4)
January 20 7:07 PM Minnesota Duluth Ralph Engelstad ArenaGrand Forks, North Dakota Midco DeRidder W 4–2  11,643 10–10–4 (4–7–4)
January 21 6:07 PM Minnesota Duluth Ralph Engelstad ArenaGrand Forks, North Dakota Midco DeRidder L 1–2  11,773 10–11–4 (4–8–4)
January 27 6:05 PM at Miami Steve Cady ArenaOxford, Ohio CBSSN DeRidder W 4–1  2,745 11–11–4 (5–8–4)
January 28 6:05 PM at Miami Steve Cady ArenaOxford, Ohio   DeRidder W 8–0  2,808 12–11–4 (6–8–4)
February 10 8:00 PM at #4 Denver Magness ArenaDenver, Colorado (Rivalry) CBSSN DeRidder L 3–5  5,979 12–12–4 (6–9–4)
February 11 11:00 PM at #4 Denver Magness ArenaDenver, Colorado (Rivalry)   DeRidder L 2–5  6,193 12–13–4 (6–10–4)
February 17 7:07 PM #6 St. Cloud State Ralph Engelstad ArenaGrand Forks, North Dakota CBSSN DeRidder W 4–3 OT 11,486 13–13–4 (7–10–4)
February 18 6:07 PM #6 St. Cloud State Ralph Engelstad ArenaGrand Forks, North Dakota Midco DeRidder T 2–2 SOL 11,751 13–13–5 (7–10–5)
February 24 8:30 PM at Colorado College Ed Robson ArenaColorado Springs, Colorado ATTRM DeRidder W 2–1 OT 3,481 14–13–5 (8–10–5)
February 25 7:00 PM at Colorado College Ed Robson ArenaColorado Springs, Colorado   DeRidder T 0–0 SOW 3,501 14–13–6 (8–10–6)
March 3 7:07 PM #14 Omaha Ralph Engelstad ArenaGrand Forks, North Dakota Midco DeRidder W 5–4 OT 11,728 15–13–6 (9–10–6)
March 4 6:07 PM #14 Omaha Ralph Engelstad ArenaGrand Forks, North Dakota Midco DeRidder W 2–1  11,731 16–13–6 (10–10–6)
NCHC Tournament
March 10 6:07 PM at #17 Omaha* Baxter ArenaOmaha, Nebraska (Quarterfinal Game 1) Midco DeRidder L 1–2  6,510 16–14–6
March 11 6:07 PM at #17 Omaha* Baxter ArenaOmaha, Nebraska (Quarterfinal Game 2) Midco DeRidder W 3–1  7,348 17–14–6
March 12 5:07 PM at #17 Omaha* Baxter ArenaOmaha, Nebraska (Quarterfinal Game 3) Midco DeRidder W 5–2  5,571 18–14–6
March 17 7:30 PM vs. #7 St. Cloud State* #17 Xcel Energy CenterSaint Paul, Minnesota (Semifinal) CBSSN DeRidder L 2–3  10,242 18–15–6
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from USCHO.com Poll. All times are in Central Time.
Source:[4]

Scoring statistics

edit
Name Position Games Goals Assists Points PIM
Jackson Blake RW/C 39 16 26 42 16
Riese Gaber RW 39 20 17 37 31
Chris Jandric D 39 4 29 33 30
Judd Caulfield RW 39 10 9 19 12
Gavin Hain C 36 11 7 18 45
Tyler Kleven D 35 8 10 18 84
Ethan Frisch D 36 7 11 18 14
Mark Senden C 39 7 10 17 22
Dylan James LW 36 8 8 16 6
Owen McLaughlin C 37 2 13 15 10
Louis Jamernik RW 39 3 11 14 22
Cooper Moore D 31 3 10 13 34
Jake Schmaltz C/LW 34 5 7 12 2
Ty Farmer D 37 1 10 11 27
Ben Strinden C 22 3 6 9 14
Nick Portz F 27 2 7 9 4
Ryan Sidorski D 36 0 9 9 16
Griffin Ness F 27 5 1 6 12
Carson Albrecht RW 26 3 3 6 0
Brent Johnson D 13 1 5 6 6
Jackson Kunz C 24 5 0 5 10
Matteo Costantini C 25 2 1 3 4
Luke Bast D 13 1 2 3 10
Jakob Hellsten G 13 0 1 1 0
Drew DeRidder G 30 0 1 1 0
Kaleb Johnson G 1 0 0 0 0
Total 127 213 340 421

[5]

Goaltending statistics

edit
Name Games Minutes Wins Losses Ties Goals Against Saves Shut Outs SV % GAA
Drew DeRidder 30 1615:35 13 9 4 68 607 4 .899 2.53
Jakob Hellsten 13 684:05 5 5 2 31 217 0 .875 2.72
Kaleb Johnson 1 58:39 0 1 0 7 28 0 .800 7.16
Empty Net - 23:09 - - - 4 - - - -
Total 39 2381:28 18 15 6 110 852 4 .887 2.77

Rankings

edit
Poll Week
Pre 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 (Final)
USCHO.com 4 - 3 (1) 3 (2) 7 6 10 12 19 NR NR NR NR - NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR 17 17 - 17
USA Today 4 4 3 3 7 7 11 13 19 NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR 16 16 16 18

Note: USCHO did not release a poll in weeks 1, 13, or 26.[6]

Awards and honors

edit
Player Award Ref
Jackson Blake NCHC Rookie of the Year [7]
Ethan Frisch NCHC Scholar-Athlete of the Year [7]
Chris Jandric NCHC First Team [8]
Jackson Blake NCHC Second Team [8]
Riese Gaber
Jackson Blake NCHC Rookie Team [8]

Players drafted into the NHL

edit
Round Pick Player NHL team
3 94 Jayden Perron Carolina Hurricanes
4 98 Andrew Strathmann Columbus Blue Jackets
6 190 Michael Emerson Carolina Hurricanes
6 196 David Klee San Jose Sharks

† incoming freshman [9]

References

edit
  1. ^ "SUNDAY, MARCH 12, 2023". College Hockey Inc. Retrieved April 20, 2023.
  2. ^ "FRIDAY, MARCH 17, 2023". College Hockey Inc. Retrieved April 20, 2023.
  3. ^ "2022–23 Men's Hockey Roster".
  4. ^ "North Dakota 2021-22 Team Schedule". North Dakota Fighting Hawks. Retrieved September 10, 2022.
  5. ^ "Univ. of North Dakota 2022-2023 Skater Stats". Elite Prospects. Retrieved December 20, 2020.
  6. ^ "USCHO Division I Men's Poll". USCHO.com. Retrieved November 26, 2019.
  7. ^ a b "Western Michigan's Polin named NCHC player of year, Denver's Chrona top goalie, North Dakota's Blake best rookie for '22-23 campaign". USCHO. March 17, 2023. Retrieved March 18, 2023.
  8. ^ a b c "NCHC Reveals 2022-23 All-Conference Teams". NCHC. March 8, 2023. Retrieved March 14, 2023.
  9. ^ "NCAA player rankings, selections in 2023 NHL Draft". USCHO.com. Retrieved June 30, 2023.