OXFORD, Ohio (UND Athletics)– Riese Gaber potted three goals while 14 of the 17 skaters dressed for North Dakota tallied at least a point to help the Fighting Hawks polish off a weekend sweep over Miami, 8-0, on Saturday night from the Goggin Ice Center in Oxford, Ohio.
UND (12-11-4, 6-8-2 NCHC) scored early-and-often in the victory, eclipsing a season-high in goals in the win to tally the first road sweep of the season to climb in the NCHC standings.
Gaber was dynamic, striking for three goals and an assist to match his career-high for points in a game and record the first hat trick by a North Dakota player since Rhett Gardner on Nov. 2, 2018 against Wisconsin.
The junior was not alone in the offensive showcase, with Jackson Blake (1g, 2a), Mark Senden (3a), Ethan Frisch (2a) and Ty Farmer (2a) all recording multiple points in the win.
Drew DeRidder turned in another strong performance in net, turning aside all 23 shots fired his way for his third shutout of the season and fourth straight start with two-or-fewer goals allowed.
North Dakota jumped out to the start it wanted for the second straight night, grabbing a 1-0 lead just prior to the halfway point of the first period. Gaber came down the wall a snapped a puck past the stick-less Logan Neaton for his ninth tally on the man advantage this season and a 1-0 advantage for the visitors.
DeRidder, who only saw one shot through the game’s first 12 minutes, started to see some action as the stanza wore on, with the fifth year making seven stops in the final quarter of the first to help the Fighting Hawks skate to the locker room with a 1-0 lead after 20 minutes.
The middle frame saw NoDak get into penalty trouble early on, getting called for a trio of minors in the opening six minutes to give the RedHawks a chance to even the score. It was the visitors, however, who took advantage, as Senden forced a turnover along the wall and fed Judd Caulfield to finish off the 2-on-1 rush shorthanded to double the UND advantage, 2-0, early in the second.
The Fighting Hawks kept their foot on the pedal as the period wore on, extending the lead to 3-0 just past the midway point of the second. Gaber potted his second of the game on a great passing play from Louis Jamernik V and Blake to put the visitors in front by a trio of goals.
Blake and the offense weren’t done, as the freshman scored his first of the night and 12th of the season just 1:26 after the Gaber tally to increase the lead to 4-0 with another power play goal. NoDak wasn’t done with the man advantage, as Owen McLaughlin rifled a laser over the shoulder of Neaton for his first-career goal and third of the night for the nation’s top power play to give UND a 5-0 lead after 40 minutes.
The onslaught continued in the third, with Ben Strinden extending the lead to 6-0 early in the stanza before Dylan James kicked the extra point just 33 seconds later to increase the advantage to 7-0 to match the highest scoring output of the season for UND.
UND polished off the win in style, with Gaber completing the hat trick in the final minute to complete the sweep and grab the 8-0 victory.
North Dakota will enjoy a weekend off before returning to NCHC play against Denver at Magness Arena in two weeks.
Postgame Notes
- UND played the game with just five-dressed defenseman due to injuries and a suspension to Tyler Kleven
- Jake Schmaltz and Gavin Hain missed Saturday’s contest due to an injury
- Gaber now has 10 goals on the power play this season
- The hat trick by Gaber is the first by a UND player since Nov. 2, 2018 vs. Wisconsin
- McLaughlin scored his first-career goal in his 25th career game
- North Dakota has now won five straight games over Miami in Oxford and improves to 6-1-1 since 2018-19
- Jackson Blake notched his 12th goal of the season and his first three-point game of his career
- UND picks up its third sweep of the season and first away from Grand Forks since Feb. 18-19, 2022 at UMD
- The Hawks are now 11-1-1 when scoring at least four goals this season and 69-5-3 since 2018-19
- All four freshman scored for UND in the win
- UND improves to 13-2-0 since 2011-12 when playing with only 17 skaters in the lineup
- DeRidder has allowed three-or-fewer goals in his last seven starts
- The fifth year also picked up his third shutout of the season
- UND finished with a 38-23 shot advantage
- The Fighting Hawks won the faceoff battle, 32-30, with Mark Senden pacing UND with a 12-6 night
Riese Gaber comes down the wing and snaps a power play goal to give UND a 1-0 lead
How It Happened First Period 9:40 | UND –Judd Caulfield doubles the advantage on a 2-on-1 shorthanded goal from Mark Senden
Second Period 4:17 | UND –10:08 | UND – Gaber scores his second of the night on a tic-tac-toe passing play from the top line to make it 3-0
11:34 | UND – Jackson Blake gets on the board with a power play goal to extend the lead to 4-0
18:08 | UND – Owen McLaughlin scores his first goal of his career with a bullet on the power play to make it 5-0
Ben Strinden cashes in on a pretty passing play to extend the lead to 6-0 early in the third
Third Period 7:52 | UND –8:25 | UND – Dylan James makes it a freshman night with his first of the game on a rebound for a 7-0 lead
19:11 | UND – Gaber completed the hat trick with a power play snipe to polish off the 8-0 win
Game Recap: Men’s Hockey | 1/28/2023 8:48:00 PM | Alec Stocker Johnson, FightingHawks.com
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