North Dakota head hockey coach Brad Berry announced the completion of the nonconference schedule on Wednesday, rounding out the entire 2022-23 slate after the conference portion was previously announced in April.
The schedule features three full series at home during nonconference play, two exhibition contests, one road series, a neutral-site showdown and a home-and-home battle over Thanksgiving.
The season begins on Oct. 1 with an exhibition battle against Manitoba from Ralph Engelstad Arena. The two programs have not met since Oct. 5, 2019, where they had played 14 of the previous 15 years.
For the second straight year, an Atlantic Hockey program comes to Grand Forks to open the regular season, as Holy Cross returns for a series on Oct. 7-8. UND is 4-0 all-time against the Crusaders, with two previous meetings coming in the NCAA Tournament.
Three consecutive weekends at home conclude with Quinnipiac on Oct. 14-15 from Grand Forks. The two teams split last season’s meeting in Hamden, Conn., with the Fighting Hawks rallying for a 3-1 win in the finale. This marks the first visit to the REA since 2006 for the Bobcats, but UND did notch a win in Fargo at the 2015 NCAA West Regional.
Traditional rivals mark the lone road series in nonconference play for UND, traveling to battle Minnesota on Oct. 21-22. NoDak enjoyed its last trip to 3M Arena at Mariucci, sweeping the Golden Gophers on the road for the first time since 2007.
A trip to the Sin City concludes October for the U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame Game against Arizona State on Oct. 29 from T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. This marks the first meeting between the programs and the second straight year with a destination game for UND.
Hockey is on the menu for Thanksgiving this season, with North Dakota and Bemidji State battling in a home-and-home series on Nov. 25-26. The two teams will meet in Bemidji in Friday’s opener before taking the trip on Highway 2 for Saturday’s meeting in Grand Forks. Both sides notched a road victory in last year’s series.
UND will close out 2022 with an exhibition showdown on Dec. 31 against the U.S. Under-18 Team at a special 4:07 p.m. time from the REA. This will be the fifth time in the last six seasons the two sides have met, with the Hawks holding a 4-1 record.
Nonconference play comes to an end with another new foe, Lindenwood, on Jan. 6-7 from Grand Forks. The Lions are playing their first season as a NCAA Division I program and are coached by former UND player Rick Zombo. The defenseman spent three seasons at North Dakota, appearing in 112 games and registering 63 points before a 12-year NHL career.
The full, 37-game slate can be seen here.
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(UND Athletics)
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