UND Arrives at Anderson Arena Ahead of St. Thomas Series
UND arrived at Lee and Penny Anderson Arena for the first time on Thursday afternoon ahead of a Friday night NCHC series against St. Thomas, the Grand Forks Herald reported.
The visiting team moved gear into the one-year-old building and inspected the ice before Friday’s 7 p.m. matchup. UND played St. Thomas once last season in a nonconference game at Grand Casino Arena, which is the home of the Minnesota Wild, just 12 days before Anderson Arena officially opened.
Senior forward Kasper Magnussen is the lone player on the UND roster with prior experience inside the St. Paul venue, having visited last season while playing for Bemidji State.
“It’s a fresh, nice rink.”
“Magnussen said the biggest drawback is a small visiting dressing room,” senior forward Kasper Magnussen told the Grand Forks Herald.
The venue seats 4,000 fans for hockey and also hosts St. Thomas basketball games. Located off Cretin Avenue in St. Paul, the arena offers limited adjacent parking, though the McNeely Parking Ramp and Frey Parking Garage remain available without passes.
UND swept St. Thomas in a nonconference home-and-home series last season, winning 6-2 in Grand Forks and 5-2 at Grand Casino Arena. Despite those final margins, UND coach Dane Jackson said that the prior contests were closer than the scores indicated.
“I was really impressed with them last year,” Jackson told the Grand Forks Herald, highlighting an outstanding transition game that moved pucks quickly from defense to offense.
St. Thomas lost 12 of 16 forwards following last season, undergoing major roster turnover up front. However, returning sophomores Lucas Van Vliet and Nathan Pilling account for 56.5% of the team’s goals this season. Because St. Thomas holds the home-ice advantage, UND will play without the last line change.
UND enters the weekend holding a 4-0-1 record at Ralph Engelstad Arena while going 1-3 away from home. The team is giving up 1.2 goals per game at home compared to 4.25 per game on the road.
Former UND standouts T.J. Oshie and Taylor Chorney joined the team for dinner Thursday night in St. Paul to speak with current players about championship standards. Oshie won a Stanley Cup with the Washington Capitals, while Chorney was also on that roster before a trade.
Oshie is scheduled to skate “One More Shift” at Ralph Engelstad Arena on January 15 before a home game against St. Thomas.
Opening faceoff is set for 7 p.m. on both Friday and Saturday. The games will broadcast live on Midco Sports and stream on NCHC TV, with a delayed broadcast on Fox 9+ and radio coverage on The Fox (96.1 FM).