Men's Ice Hockey | December 08, 2016

THIS WEEK
Western Michigan (7-4-3, 3-4-1-1 NCHC) wraps up National Collegiate Hockey Conference play for the 2016 portion of its season with a pair of games at No. 8/9 North Dakota on Friday and Saturday. Friday's game is set for an 8:37 p.m. ET start and can be seen live on NCHC.tv. Saturday's game will start at  8:07 p.m. and will be broadcast on Fox College Sports channel and simulcast on NCHC.tv. Both games can be heard live on the Bronco Radio Network.

LAST WEEKEND
The Broncos hosted No. 17 St. Cloud State  and came away with two points after a 3-0 loss and a 5-5 tie and shootout win.

On Friday WMU was shutout for the second time this season. Mikey Eyssimont scored a goal just 48 seconds into the game and freshman goalie Zach Driscoll made 26 saves to keep Western Michigan off the board.

In Saturday's 5-5 thriller the Broncos got off to a 2-0 lead in the first period on goals by Sheldon Dries and Matheson Iacopelli. The lead quickly turned into 3-2 deficit after three straight power play goals by the Huskies. The teams traded goals until Will Borgen gave SCSU a 5-4 lead with nine seconds left in the second period. Mike McKee netted the game-tying goal with 5:19 left in the third period. Neither team took advantage of the overtime and three-on-three overtime. WMU goalie Collin Olson made a save and forced a miss, while Wade Allison tallied in the second round of the shootout to give the Broncos the extra point.

AT A GLANCE: THE NORTH DAKOTA FIGHTING HAWKS // 8-5-3, 2-3-1-1 NCHC
- THE SERIES: North Dakota leads the all-time series 15-1-0. Western Michigan's lone win came in Grand Forks on March 8, 2014. The Fighting Hawks took all four games last season.

- SCOUTING THE FIGHTING HAWKS:  No. 8/9 North Dakota has spent every week of the regular season in the nation's top 15, including three weeks at No. 1. UND hit a rough patch early, going 0-4-2 in a six-game winless streak. The Fighting Hawks are now 3-1-1 since then with a sweep over St. Cloud State and a win over Boston College at New York's Madison Square Garden last Saturday.

Sophomore forward Shane Gersich has already doubled the 11 points he had all of last season and leads the team with 22 on 11 goals and 11 assists. Freshman Tyson Jost is second on the team with 17 points on seven goals and 10 assists. Sophomore Brock Boeser has 16 points on seven goals and nine assists but has missed the past three game due to injury. Junior Tucker Poolman is the top scoring threat from the blue line with 14 points on four goals and 10 assists. Sophomore Hayden Shaw is the only other Fighting Hawk defenseman with a goal this season.

Junior Cam Johnson has started and played in every game this season with a 8-5-3 record, three shutouts, a 2.24 goals against average and a .907 save percentage. In NCHC play his numbers improve to a 1.83 goals against average and a .936 save percentage. No other UND goalie has played a minute in net.

The North Dakota power play ranks 24th in the nation at 18.1 percent (13-for-72). Gersich leads the team with four power play tallies, while sophomore Rhett Gardner has scored three of his four goals on the season with the man advantage. UND has struggled on the power play, ranking 46th at 79.7 percent (59-of-74).

TOTAL ECLIPSE
Just 14 games into the 2016-17 season four different Broncos have eclipsed their season point totals from the 2015-16. Matheson Iacopelli leads the team with 17 points on 13 goals and four assists after totaling just seven points last season. Senior defenseman Taylor Fleming already has 13 points on 13 assists after finishing last season with just six total. Fellow defenseman Scott Moldenhauer has vastly surpasses his point total of three from last season. The junior has a career-high nine on three goals and six assists. Sophomore Jade McMullen has three points this season with three goals in 13 games, surpassing the two points he scored in 15 games last season.

LAWSON ICE ARENA DREAMING
Western Michigan is away from Lawson Ice Arena until Jan. 13, when the Broncos return to take on Denver in a weekend series. Until then WMU's next four games are away with the pair at North Dakota and then a trip to the Great Lakes Invitational on Dec. 29 and 30. At the GLI, WMU plays its first neutral site games of the season. The Broncos take on rivals Michigan State at 7 p.m. on Dec. 29 and then either Michigan or Michigan Tech the following day. Western Michigan is 2-3-1 on the road this season.

JOIN THE STAMPEDE
Bronco Hockey is making an appearance in the 2016 Great Lakes Invitational on Thursday, December 29 at Joe Louis Arena in Detroit. This will be the last GLI at the Joe and we're having a pre-game Stampede Tailgate in the Olympia Club.

The Stampede Tailgate will feature a tailgate-style food buffet (until 6 p.m.), two drink tickets (beer or wine), unlimited non-alcoholic beverages, and fun activities for Broncos of all ages including indoor tailgate games and photo stations. Music will be provided by DJ Armando.

Admission is limited to the first 400 Bronco fans who register. For more information and to register visit www.mywmu.com/GLI