Preview: What should UND expect from Bentley?
· Yahoo Sports
Oct. 16—GRAND FORKS — Bentley ranked 57th nationally in goals allowed per game the year before coach Andy Jones arrived.
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In his first season, 2023-24, the Falcons finished fifth nationally.
In all three seasons under Jones, Bentley has ranked in the top 10 in fewest goals allowed per game. Only one other team in the nation has ranked in the top 10 defensively for each of the last three seasons — Quinnipiac.
"They're extremely well-coached," said Grand Forks Central grad Tucker Hodgson, who played at Bentley from 2021-25. "They compete hard. I believe they take a lot of pride in their D-zone. They play a really structured game."
Under Jones, Bentley has quickly become a power in Atlantic Hockey.
Hodgson said he believes the Falcons can remain an annual contender because Bentley has strong recruiting pitches.
"You get an outstanding education," Hodgson said. "Guys get really good, high-paying jobs out of college. It's continually ranked as one of the better universities in the country."
Bentley is located in Waltham, Mass., just outside of Boston.
"You're 20 minutes to downtown," Hodgson said. "We'd always go out in Boston. There are so many other schools in the area. It's an awesome city for a young person to live in."
Bentley also has nice facilities. Bentley Arena is only eight years old, and it's so nice that the French World Cup team chose it as its home base this summer. The French superstars dressed in the hockey locker room.
"It's awesome, as an alum, seeing the program build on what we did," said Hodgson, who will be in Grand Forks for the series. "I think they'll continue to do so in the future."
UND is expecting Bentley's defensive style to be a challenge.
"I think they're a really disciplined team, a really structured team," UND associate head coach Matt Smaby said. "We're expecting a tough challenge in regards to what we're going to see, how they're going to play. I think it's going to stress test us in different ways that we haven't seen yet, which is good."
Bentley is the second-oldest team in college hockey, only behind Army (average age 22 years, eight months). UND is the seventh-youngest (21 years, one month).
"You can't replace that experience," Smaby said.
The Fighting Hawks (2-0) are likely to shuffle some lines for the series opener.
UND didn't get much production outside of its top line during last weekend's sweep of Bemidji State. Will Zellers factored in six of UND's seven goals.
UND freshman Ashton Schultz is a candidate to make his collegiate debut.
"When you think about a team at the end of the season, they're playing a mature game," Smaby said. "For us, as a group, that's where we have to keep growing. You can look at micro things like puck play and some little things. When you start to clean those areas up consistently, the game is going to be easier for us and look more complete."
Bentley hasn't typically played outside the East, but that's going to change under Jones.
Last season, the Falcons played nonconference games at Colorado College and Denver.
This season, it's Grand Forks. The Falcons arrived on Wednesday, flying from Boston to Chicago to Fargo.
"It's important to get the brand out there — win, lose or draw," Jones said. "We're ready to compete any night. We'll always go somewhere of significance every year and see how we do. It's a good measuring stick for us."
Jones said the Falcons need to play with urgency and competitiveness this weekend. They split last weekend, beating Vermont 3-0 and losing to Northeastern 5-1.
"We need to get to the net and plant our flag there," Jones said. "We'll see if we can have an attacking mentality as well."
UND: None known
Bentley: F Michael Mesic questionable, F Jacob Sagadin questionable
Swedin has had plenty of success in North Dakota. He played for Minot in the North American Hockey League for two seasons (2023-25), posting save percentages of .930 and .940. The 5-foot-10 netminder continued that success as a freshman at Bentley, going 14-7-4 with a .917. Swedin posted a 30-save shutout of Vermont to start this season. Swedin has an impressive pedigree, too. He played for Sweden at the IIHF World Under-18 Championship.
While Swedin will almost certainly get at least one start this weekend, it's not a sure bet that he'll play two. Nicholas Bevilacqua started a game last weekend and rookie Easton Rye led the Ontario Hockey League in wins last season (38).
Northeastern broke through offensively last week against Bentley in two ways — point shots with screens and by being on top of the crease. Croal is one of UND's best at going to the top of the paint. He scored 10 goals during an impressive sophomore campaign last season.
Bentley can frustrate opponents. The Falcons make generating chances difficult. They back it up with excellent goaltending. If shots don't fall early, UND has to stay the course. Bentley's key is scoring early and playing with the lead.
Friday: UND 4, Bentley 2
Saturday: UND 2, Bentley 1
TV: Midco Sports (GF Ch. 27/622 HD). Alex Heinert play-by-play, Jim Scanlan analyst, Taylor Budge and Erik Fabian at the desk.
Radio: The Fox (96.1 FM). Tim Hennessy play-by-play, Mike LaMoine analyst.
Stream: NCHC TV.
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