The Miami RedHawks hit the road for their first NCHC road series of the season this upcoming weekend against Minnesota Duluth.
The RedHawks (Receiving Votes) enter the weekend at 6-2-0 overall and 1-1-0 in NCHC play, ranking 31st in the NPI. The Bulldogs (No. 6) enter at 6-2-2 overall and 1-1-0 in conference play, ranking ninth in the NPI.
“We’re playing the No. 6 team in the country. They could very easily be the No. 1 team in the country,” said Miami head coach Anthony Noreen. “I think if you asked most people on the media side coming into this season, based on the season they had last year and the returners they have this year, it probably would have been most people’s consensus pick. And for good reason.”
Miami is 6-0-0 when scoring first and 0-2-0 when an opponent scores first, making it important for the RedHawks to get off to a strong start in a tough Duluth environment.
The RedHawks are 2-19-3 all-time at UMD and haven’t won there since February 25, 2023, the final year of the Chris Bergeron era. UMD is 37-7-5 all-time against Miami.
Matteo Giampa leads the RedHawks with nine points (2 goals, 7 assists), while Ilia Morozov leads the team in goals with five. Cal Huston leads all freshmen in ice time and ranks second on the team behind Vlasilav Lukashevich, averaging 21:10 per game. He is also tied for the team lead among defensemen with four points (2 goals, 2 assists).
Now, let’s look at some overall statistics. Below are the head-to-head numbers from the Miami game notes. Notably, the RedHawks and Bulldogs have similar numbers in most departments. Miami draws more penalties while allowing nearly the same number of goals per game.
UMD’s penalty kill is elite, with a 92.6% success rate, the main outlier between the two.
UMD has definitely had the tougher schedule, and its ninth-place NPI ranking reflects that. The Bulldogs split a series with Colorado College, swept a solid CCHA program in Bemidji State, and went toe-to-toe with Augustana and Minnesota, whom they mollywhopped 7-1 in one of the games.
Bulldogs to Watch
Zam Plante (F): With Max Plante out, the top line of Barrett Hall – Plante – Harper Bentz, along with the second line of Luke Bibby – Jayson Shaugabay – Hunter Anderson are the two main groups to watch.
Plante is averaging 22:57 of ice time per game and putting up a point per game, with 10 points (5 goals, 5 assists). You cannot pinch up defensively on him because he will burn you on the breakout. He leads the Bulldogs in shots on goal with 45, 10 more than the next player.
Ty Hanson (D): The NCHC Defenseman of October leads UMD in average ice time by a wide margin, averaging a whopping 25:27 per game. He also leads the team in points with 14 (8 goals, 6 assists), averaging 1.40 points per game. Hanson leads the team in CHN Chip Rating (15.7) and currently sits atop the CHN Hobey Baker Award rankings.
Carl Axelsson (G): The freshman goaltender owns a 5-1-2 record, a 1.11 GAA, and a .948 SV%. He is yet another tough netminder Miami will face, just like seemingly every NCHC goaltender.
Noreen on Axelsson. “The good news is we’ve got an elite goaltender, too. We’re never going to look at him and be like, “Oh my God, they have this unbelievable goaltender.” We know what we’ve got as well (Matteo Drobac).”
“They also defend very well out in front of their goaltenders. They’ve got a lot of returners who do a good job of limiting other teams’ opportunities.”
Recent UMD line-chart:
RedHawks To Watch
Ilia Morozov (C): Morozov leads Miami with five goals and has yet to record an assist. Three of his goals have come on the power play. He also leads the team in faceoff wins with 95. The RedHawks need to see him shoot more during five-on-five play.
Vladislav Lukashevich (D): Lukashevich returned from injury last weekend and averaged 21:52 of ice time across the two games. He is incredibly important and the backbone of the defensive corps and will play a massive role as he gets back up to speed.
Matteo Drobac (G): Expect Drobac to start both nights at UMD. He enters the weekend with a 5-2-0 record, a 1.72 GAA, and a .916 save percentage. The only way I’d see Drobac not playing would be on Saturday if the RedHawks are lit up on Friday.
Injury Updates
Max Plante (F): UMD’s best player remains out.
David Deputy (F): Day-to-day after going down in the third period Saturday against St. Thomas.
Ryder Thompson (D): Day-to-day after blocking a heavy shot late in the third period Friday against St. Thomas.
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