UMD Men’s Hockey Look to Tame the Broncos Before Winter Break

The Bulldogs have been dominant recently in their series against Western Michigan.

DULUTH, Minn. – 2018 is wrapping up quickly and that means the winter break is right around the corner for college hockey. For the UMD men’s team, they’ll spend this weekend away from Amsoil Arena as they travel to Western Michigan.

The last time these two teams met was the first round of the NCHC playoffs where UMD swept the Broncos without conceding a single goal. And the last time the series was played in Kalamazoo, the Bulldogs outscored WMU 14–1. But this time around, head coach Scott Sandelin is expecting a much better fight.

“They’re a healthier team. They’re playing with more confidence. Certainly when you get a goaltender that’s playing well, it helps your team. There’s no question. Just like if you don’t, it can hurt your team. Right now, they got things going the right way and it will be a real tough challenge here before the break to go in there and win hockey games,” Sandelin said.

What makes this road trip that much tougher is the fact that the Lawson Ice Arena is known as one of the toughest places to play in the entire NCHC.

“Their student section is really vicious. They like to chirp a lot of the players. Other than that, it’s a real fun building. It’s smaller so all the noise compacts to the rink. It’s cool,” defenseman Dylan Samberg said.

Puck drop for Friday’s game is set for just after six o’clock.