by Avash Kalra/Senior Writer (@AvashKalra)
While the ECAC, CCHA, Atlantic Hockey and Big Ten begin their conference tournaments this weekend, the NCHC closes out the regular season with one final weekend of play before its postseason begins next week.
Last weekend, North Dakota clinched the Penrose Cup as NCHC regular season champions for the fifth time in nine years under head coach Brad Berry, who has served at the helm for the Fighting Hawks during the entire NCHC era. Only once, however (2021), has North Dakota followed up the regular season title with a conference tournament title, so there’s plenty of motivation to maintain momentum against Omaha this weekend.
“We’re in a 1 seed right now,” Berry said, referencing his team’s position in the Pairwise. “And we want to stay there.”
There’s plenty more at stake this weekend, both in terms of the NCHC standings and regular season stat leaders.
What we know for sure: North Dakota will be the top seed in the NCHC playoffs and will host last-place Miami for a best-of-three quarterfinal series next weekend. Minnesota-Duluth — entering this weekend’s games against St. Cloud State looking to snap an eight-game winless streak — is also locked into its playoff position, as the No. 7 seed.
The rest of the positions are up for grabs:
Denver: The Pioneers currently hold the No. 2 seed and have clinched a home ice advantage for the quarterfinal series. Bu DU could finish anywhere from 2nd to 4th, with St. Cloud and Colorado College trailing by only two and four points, respectively. The Pioneers close out the regular season with a home-and-home series with CC. The in-state rivalry has been one-sided of late, with Denver winning 13 of the last 14 games between the teams. The only CC win in that stretch was a big one, though — a 1-0 win for the Tigers in the NCHC semifinals last March.
St. Cloud State: The Huskies were swept by Denver last weekend, outscored 13-4 over the two nights in aggregate. They travel to Duluth this weekend, sitting in the No. 3 seed position but just two points behind Denver. And just like Denver, St. Cloud — the defending NCHC tournament champion — can finish anywhere from 2nd to 4th. Even if Omaha (in 5th currently) catches St. Cloud in points, the Huskies hold the tiebreaker over the Mavericks. If St. Cloud moves…
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