Final Five Preview, Game 1

#5 Duluth vs. #4 North Dakota, Thursday, March 18, 2010, 7:07 p.m.

	Minnesota-Duluth	North Dakota
Record	22-16-1 (16-11-1 WCHA)	22-12-5 (15-10-3 WCHA)
Head-to-head (season)	1-3-0	3-1-0
Head-to-head (all-time)	70-128-8	128-70-8

The Bulldogs have not had great luck against the Sioux this year. They were outscored by the Sioux 16-8 in four meetings this season. However, that all changes going into the playoffs. In the past eight years, the Bulldogs have advanced to the Final Five five times, and have been there 12 of the 18 times since the tournament began. They are currently 7-5 all-time at the Final Five and hold a 2-0 mark over the Fighting Sioux (blanking them 3-0 last year and defeating them 2-1 in 2003), and are 2-1-1 against the Sioux on neutral ice. Last year, the Bulldogs were the first team to win the Broadmoor Trophy after having played in the play-in game, and are hoping for a repeat this year.

The Sioux are coming off of a 9-1 streak where they dispatched their opponents by an average score of 4-2. In those ten games the Sioux are scoring 4.4 goals per game while allowing only 1.6 goals per game. Their hot streak coincides with the emergence of Matt Frattin, who has score 9 goals and 12 points in his last nine games. Unfortunately for the Sioux, Frattin will not be in the lineup for the matchup on Thursday night after he handed a one game suspension by the WCHA for an illegal hit to the head on Minnesota's Kevin Wehrs. The Sioux have advanced to the Final Five each of the last eight years and last won the Broadmoor Trophy in 2006. They are 14-11 all-time at the Final Five.

This matchup is going to be an interesting one, to say the least. The Sioux have played extremely well down the stretch while the Bulldogs seemed to have stumbled. As many of you know, that doesn't mean a whole lot come playoff time. All it takes is the right combination to get hot (see the Bulldogs last year at this time) to take a team to the title. I think this game will be close, as I don't see UMD going down as easily as they did a month ago in Grand Forks. Also, I think Frattin not being in the lineup is going to make a big difference to the Sioux as they're losing their hottest goal scorer right now. This game could go either way, and I can't wait to see it tomorrow evening!