UND wins fourth-straight game at AmsOil, downing Minnesota Duluth 4-2 in NCHC opener

Nov. 10—DULUTH, Minn. — Louis Jamernik V hasn't forgotten.

Any time UND plays Minnesota Duluth, he remembers the 2021 NCAA regional championship game, which the Fighting Hawks lost in five overtimes. It cost UND a trip to the NCAA Frozen Four and a shot at the program's ninth national championship.

"For me and my class, that five overtime game, that's still in the back of our minds," Jamernik said. "We don't ever forget those kind of things. So, it only adds to the fire."

It didn't have the stakes of a regional final, but UND beat Minnesota Duluth 4-2 on Friday in AmsOil Arena to open the National Collegiate Hockey Conference schedule.

Jamernik played a central role.

He made a key shot block in the first period, scored a goal later in the opening frame, set up linemate Jake Schmaltz for a pair of Grade-A chances in the second and led UND with five shots on goal.

"It's great to see," UND coach Brad Berry said. "He's a gamer. He competes hard every game, every shift. He's got opportunities this year. He's been snakebit a little bit, but hopefully, this is the start of more to come. I know he's well deserved on scoring that one."

Rookie forward Jayden Perron, defenseman Logan Britt and forward Cameron Berg also scored for the Fighting Hawks, who improved to 6-2-1 overall.

Minnesota Duluth (3-4-3) is now winless in five. This was the Bulldogs' first loss in AmsOil Arena this season.

"I thought our guys did a good job playing a road game," Berry said. "It wasn't the prettiest, but we found a way to win a game in a tough place to play."

UND controlled much of the game, outshooting the Bulldogs 37-22.

The Fighting Hawks caused problems for the Bulldog defenders and turned them into goals.

Midway through the first period, an Aiden Dubinsky turnover ended up on the stick of Berg, who fed Perron in the circle for his fourth goal of the season.

After Britt's point shot made it 2-0 at 11:06, UND converted another Bulldog turnover.

Jamernik intercepted an Owen Gallatin outlet pass to start a break. Jamernik fed Jackson Kunz, who gave it back to Jamernik in the slot. Goalie Matthew Thiessen (33 saves) stopped the shot and Kunz's follow up, but the puck fluttered between the dots, where Jamernik batted it out of midair.

"Just puck decisions, just the lack of execution, is killing us right now," Minnesota Duluth coach Scott Sandelin said.

Minnesota Duluth got back into the game, though.

Luke Loheit scored a power-play goal midway through the second period and Anthony Menghini made it a one-goal game with 5:16 to go when a Carson Albrecht shot block ended up on his tape on the back door.

But the Fighting Hawks closed it out by taking advantage of another turnover.

Berg picked off a Cole Spicer pass, skated in on a mini-breakaway and picked the corner of the net.

"It felt pretty nice, just knowing we beat a good team, especially in conference play," Berg said. "Every game is so crucial, especially in this conference, so it's a huge one."

UND is now 7-3-1 in the last 11 games against Minnesota Duluth. The Fighting Hawks have won four-straight in AmsOil Arena.

"I was really happy with it," Jamernik V said. "There were moments we got away from our game a little bit. As a whole, it's a huge thing to close out games, especially in the NCHC and especially if you want to go far in this league. That's something we struggled with a little bit last year. So, the consistency part of it, we can still get better and grow. But in terms of shutting it down, we did it the right way tonight."

Notes: UND defenseman Keaton Pehrson returned to the lineup after missing five games due to a lower-body injury. . . UND blocked 16 shots. It's the sixth time this season it has blocked at least 15 shots in a game.