Mavericks Visit No. 15/16 North Dakota
Feb 23, 2017 | Hockey
This Week
The Omaha hockey team returns to action following a bye week with a pair of games at No. 15/16 North Dakota. Friday's game begins at 7:37 p.m., and Saturday's game starts at 7:07 p.m. from Ralph Engelstad Arena in Grand Forks.
The Teams
Omaha is 15-12-5 this season and 8-10-2-0/0 in the NCHC, putting it in a tie with North Dakota for fifth place. The Mavericks last played on Feb. 10-11, splitting a series at home with Western Michigan. Omaha is 9-4-3 on the road this season, a record that includes one neutral-site win. The Mavericks are winless in their last four road games (0-3-1) and have lost five straight to UND. UNO trails the all-time series with the Fighting Hawks, 7-14-1, and is 4-5-1 all-time in Grand Forks. The Mavericks are 4-4-2 in their last 10 games.
North Dakota begins the week with a record of 15-13-3 overall and 8-11-1-1/0 in the NCHC. The Fighting Hawks were swept at Western Michigan last weekend, losing 4-2 and 3-2. UND is 8-7-2 at home this season and 3-7-0 in its last 10 games.
The Coaches
Dean Blais is in his eighth year as the head coach of the Mavericks, having led UNO to three 20-win campaigns in that time. The 1973 graduate of Minnesota has posted a record of 406-243-63 in his career as a head coach and has guided the Mavericks to a mark of 144-128-30. He earned his 400th career win at St. Cloud State on Dec. 9.
Blais is a two-time Spencer Penrose Memorial Award winner as the Division I coach of the year and a four-time winner of the WCHA's Coach of the Year Award. He spent 10 years as head coach at North Dakota where he led UND to national championships in 1997 and 2000. He is joined by associate head coach Mike Gabinet, a former UNO defenseman and a 2004 graduate, and assistant coach Leigh Mendelson, a 2015 Omaha graduate and former volunteer assistant coach for the team (2014-16).
Brad Berry is in his second season at North Dakota, having led the Fighting Hawks to a national championship in his first year behind the bench. The 2002 graduate of UND was an assistant under Blais for four years at his alma mater (2000-04). He is assisted by Dane Jackson and Matt Shaw.
Media
Both games can be heard live on 1180 The Zone 2. Dave Ahlers will handle the play by play while Terry Leahy provides analysis. Coverage begins 30 minutes before game time with the First National Bank Pre-Game Show. Live video can be found at NCHC.tv while live audio and stats can be found at OMavs.com.
Up Next
The Mavericks finish the regular season against current No. 1 Denver on Friday and Saturday, March 3-4, at Baxter Arena.
