No. 17 North Dakota fights back in 3-1 win over No. 6 Denver

February 16, 2025

KVRR Staff,

DENVER (UND ATHLETICS)– No. 17 North Dakota showed its swagger on Saturday night at Magness Arena, taking down No. 6 Denver, 3-1, to earn a series split.

UND (15-12-2, 10-7-1), who was missing over 30 percent of its scoring entering the night due to injury and illness, rallied to down DU (21-8-1, 10-7-1 NCHC) and move back into fourth place in the NCHC standings with 31 points. The Fighting Hawks also rose to a tie for 18th in the Pairwise Rankings with the win.

Graduate student goaltender T.J. Semptimphelterput on a show between the pipes, finishing with 34 saves on 35 shots against to improve to 12-8-2 this season.

The Hawks got one goal in each period, as Ben Strinden (6), Cameron Berg (9) and Dylan James (11) each found the back of the net. The visitors also got a goal each way, with Strinden scoring at even strength, Berg potting a power play tally and James notching his third shorthanded tally of the year.

After a tough opening 20 minutes last night, it was North Dakota who dictated the pace in the first period on Saturday. The Fighting Hawks finished the frame with a 13-7 shot advantage and grabbed a 1-0 lead when Strinden crashed the net and muscled the puck into the net to send the visitors to the locker room with the advantage.

Special teams took over in the middle frame, with each team capitalizing on the man advantage. DU pulled the score level early in the second period on a 5-on-3 power play goal, but UND responded on its own PP when Berg wired home his ninth of the season to give the Hawks a 2-1 lead after two.

Early in the third, James showed off his speed once again, capitalizing on a turnover and sniping a shot over the goaltender’s shoulder for the shorthanded goal and a 3-1 NoDak lead just 60 seconds into the final stanza.

Denver pushed hard in the final 19 minutes of the game, but Semptimphelter and the rest of the Fighting Hawks held firm to close out the 3-1 win.

North Dakota will return home to battle Minnesota Duluth for a series beginning on Friday night at 7:07 p.m. from Ralph Engelstad Arena.

Postgame Notes

UND was unable to fill out a lineup, as six players were sidelined due to injury or illness
Forward Sacha Boisvert missed the first game of his career on Saturday
Dane Montgomery also did not play after leaving Friday’s contest with an injury
Jackson Kunz missed his second straight game with an illness
Jayden Perron did not travel to Denver and missed this weekend’s series with an injury
Cameron Berg notched his 100th career point with a power play goal in the second period
Dylan James scored his team-leading 11th goal of the season and his third shorthanded tally of the year
UND moves into fourth place in the NCHC standings with 31 points
The Hawks also jump into a tie for 18th in the Pairwise Rankings
UND improved to 5-4-2 this season following a loss and 3-1-1 since 2025
NoDak is also 7-1-1 in the last nine games played on Saturday
The Hawks went 1-for-3 on the power play while DU was 1-for-5
Faceoffs were 38-35 Denver, with Carter Wilkie pacing UND at 13-8

How It Happened

First Period
11:57 | UND – Ben Strinden (6) from Mac Swanson(14) and Jayden Jubenvill (3)

Second Period
04:19 | DU – Carter King (14, PP) from Zeev Buium (27) and Aidan Thompson (21)
14:21 | UND – Cameron Berg (9, PP) from Jake Livanavage (19) and Owen McLaughlin (14)

Third Period
01:00 | UND – Dylan James (11, SH)