Sophomore defenseman Ty Hanson of Hermantown scored three times and Minnesota Duluth used a dominant special-teams effort to pull away from Omaha 5-2 on Friday night at Amsoil Arena. The Bulldogs scored five of the final six goals.
Omaha struck early on a finish from Joel Plante at 5:58 of the first, but Duluth controlled the pace from there, outshooting the Mavericks 43-25 and tilting the game with sustained pressure in the final 40 minutes.
Hanson sparked the turnaround 1:58 into the second period, burying a setup from Max and Zam Plante to tie the game. Defenseman Joey Pierce pushed UMD in front at 4:12 off a feed from Zam Plante and Jayson Shaugabay, though Omaha briefly evened the contest at 4:33 on a rebound goal by Jacob Slipec.
The Bulldogs regained the lead for good at 8:43 when Callum Arnott finished a net-front chance created by Grayden Siepmann and Kyle Gaffney.
Hanson completed his hat trick in the third period, scoring on the power play 22 seconds into the frame and adding his third at 8:30 after a neutral-zone turnover forced by Zam Plante. Hanson became the first UMD player this season to record three goals in a game.
Goaltender Adam Gaján finished with 23 saves for the Bulldogs, while Omaha’s Simon Latkoczy stopped 38 shots. UMD went 1-for-3 on the power play and held the Mavericks scoreless on four opportunities.
North Dakota held its spot atop the National Collegiate Hockey Conference standings after Friday night’s games, but Minnesota Duluth continued to apply pressure as the race tightened heading into the second half of November.
The Fighting Hawks sit in first place with 13 points at 4-1-0 in league play and 8-3-0 overall. Minnesota Duluth, one of the country’s hottest teams at 11-2-0, also sits at 4-1-0 in NCHC action and is three points back heading into Saturday’s games.
Denver remains the only unbeaten team in conference play at 3-0-0, good for eight points and third place. The Pioneers are 7-3-1 overall.
Omaha and Western Michigan are tied for fourth with six points each at 2-3-0. The Mavericks are 4-5-0 overall. The Broncos stand at 6-5-0 after their uneven early schedule.
Arizona State and Colorado College — both at 1-3-1 in league play — sit just behind with five points apiece. The Sun Devils are 3-7-1 overall, while the Tigers remain above .500 at 6-4-1 despite their slow conference start.
St. Cloud State is eighth with four points at 1-3-0, and Miami rounds out the table with three points at 1-2-0. The RedHawks have been one of the league’s surprises outside of NCHC play, entering Saturday at 7-2-0 overall.
Most teams return to action Saturday night.
Minnesota Duluth’s imprint on the National Collegiate Hockey Conference stat sheet grew even wider this week, with the Bulldogs occupying top-tier positions in scoring, playmaking, defense and now goaltending as the season moves into mid-November.
UMD’s offense continues to run through sophomore forward Max Plante, who still leads the NCHC with 23 points through 13 games. Plante remains second in the league with 10 goals and ranks fourth in shots with 45, giving the Bulldogs one of college hockey’s most efficient high-volume scorers.
His older brother, Zam Plante, holds the NCHC lead in assists with 15 and ranks second in points with 22. Zam also sits eighth in league shot attempts (41) and remains the NCHC’s dominant faceoff center with 151 wins on 295 draws — the most in the conference.
Shaugabay continues to rise with 19 points, third in the NCHC, fueled by 14 assists. Shaugabay is also one of the league’s most efficient shooters, scoring on 24 percent of his attempts.
Hanson remains one of the league’s most productive defenders with 16 points, including six goals and 10 assists. He ranks fifth in the NCHC in shots (44) and is ninth in blocked shots with 18.
UMD’s scoring depth also shows prominently. Forward Scout Truman has five goals, while Arnott has nine points and ranks among the league’s shot leaders with 35. Arnott’s three power-play goals tie him for sixth in the conference.
Defensively, the Bulldogs’ structure continues to shine through high shot-blocking totals. Pierce ranks second in the NCHC with 25 blocked shots, and blue-liners Adam Kleber and Aaron Pionk are tied with 13 blocks apiece.
The Bulldogs’ statistical strength extends through the lineup. Gaffney ranks eighth in the NCHC in faceoffs (110 wins).
Between the pipes, Minnesota Duluth is now firmly represented among the league’s elite.
Gajan ranks third in the NCHC in goals-against average at 1.72, trailing only North Dakota’s Jan Špunar and Denver’s Quentin Miller. Gajan also ranks fourth in save percentage, stopping .925 of the shots he has faced, and is 11th in the conference in saves per game at 20.77. His season workload — 270 saves across nearly 13 full games — underscores both his consistency and durability.
Gajan has allowed just 22 goals in 765 minutes, anchoring a defensive group that ranks among the stingiest in the conference.
UMD also continues to rank near the top in special teams categories. Zam Plante’s five power-play goals tie him for third in the league, while Arnott’s three place him in the top tier of man-advantage scorers. – Howie
