NCAA Hockey Season Preview: University of North Dakota

It's tough to characterize last season as anything but a disappointment for the University of North Dakota hockey team. The team brought back an impressive array of talent and started the season as the hands-down number one team in the country. But the Sioux got off to a disappointing start when they split their first eight series of the season. They made a nice run at the end of the season, but failed to win the regular season championship, the WCHA postseason tournament, and though they made the Frozen Four, they were embarrassed by Boston College in the semifinal for the third straight year.

This year's Sioux team will have a much different look, but should still once again contend with the best in the conference, and look to extend their streak of making four straight Frozen Four appearances.

Who is Gone?: After vowing to come back for one last shot at a national championship last season, forward T.J. Oshie and defenseman Taylor Chorney both made the move to the NHL over the summer. The Sioux also lost their starting goaltender, Jean-Phillippe Lamoureux to graduation. The Sioux also lost some leadership in defenseman Robbie Bina, and some role players in Rylan Kaip and Kyle Radke.

Who is New: Goalie Brad Eidsness will take over the reigns from Lamoureux and will likely start most of North Dakota's games. The Sioux add two great forwards in USHL player of the year Jason Gregoire, and David Toews, brother of the Chicago Blackhawks Jonathan Toews. Defenseman Ben Blood and forward Brett Hextall should help add some characteristic toughness to the Sioux lineup.

Forwards

Projected Forward Lines:

Ryan Duncan-Chris VandeVelde-Andrew Kozek
Jason Gregoire-Matt Watkins-Brad Malone
David Toews-Evan Trupp-Matt Frattin
Brad Miller-Darcy Zajac-Brett Hextall

Ryan Duncan returns for his senior year and should be one of the leaders for the Sioux offense. Duncan saw his numbers slip last year following up his Hobey Baker winning performance as a sophomore thanks to the departure of Jonathan Toews, and his numbers may slip a little this year without T.J. Oshie. Chris VandeVelde made a huge jump season, going from 9 points as a freshman to 32 as a sophomore. The Sioux have some holes to fill up the middle and Vandevelde is one of the players that will fill in. Andrew Kozek also made a jump in the second half of last season, and ended up finishing the year with 18 goals. Brad Malone was highly-touted as a freshman, but struggled in his first year. He has the potential to make a big jump in points. Gregoire has the potential to play on the first line, and could be a solid candidate for WCHA rookie of the year.

Defense

Projected Defensive Pairings

Joe Finley-Chay Genoway
Zach Jones-Derrick Lapoint
Jake Marto-Ben Blood

A step down from their defense last year, but replacing Chorney and Bina is next to impossible. Finley is a former first round NHL draft pick, but he has struggled with his skating ability. The Sioux are hoping he really steps in his senior season and carries the defense. Chay Genoway surprised a lot of people by becoming a dangerous offensive threat on the powerplay. Derrick Lapoint and Jake Marto were both adequate as freshmen last year, but the Sioux will really need them to step up this season.

Goalie

Brad Eidsness
Aaron Walski

North Dakota's success this season will likely rest on the performance of Brad Eidsness. He comes to North Dakota with excellent accolades and was drafted by the Buffalo Sabres, but there are no guarantees as to how he will perform in college hockey. Veteran back-up Aaron Walski is playing behind him, but likely isn't a long-term solution if Eidsness falters.

Overall

Even without Oshie, Chorney, and Lamoureux, this should still be a pretty good North Dakota team. Even if Eidsness struggles early in his career, the offense in front of him should be able to score enough goals to win hockey games for North Dakota. The biggest issue for North Dakota will be playing solid hockey thoughout the year. The past few years, they've developed a reputation for starting very slow, and then playing well in the second half of the season. This has led to some success in the NCAA tournament, but kept them out of the race for the WCHA regular season title. If their goaltending can live up to its potential this North Dakota team could contend for the WCHA championship, but will likely just be a step behind the two Colorado schools and Minnesota.