Apr. 22—GRAND FORKS — Dane Jackson has been UND’s head coach for a little more than three weeks and Bryn Chyzyk has been the general manager for two.
One of their philosophies is starting to become apparent.
While UND still has several spots to fill up front for next season — especially at center — the Fighting Hawks are not panicking and rushing to fill spots just to fill spots.
The Fighting Hawks are being patient and targeted.
The transfer portal is not stocked with the same talent as the last few offseasons.
So, UND’s options are to grab someone to fill a spot, wait for potential future portal entrants, hold out for late de-commits or go after uncommitted players in the Canadian Hockey League.
UND appears to be waiting for the right fits.
Western Michigan won the NCAA national championship this season thanks, in part, to its offseason roster flexibility. Western Michigan’s leading scorer, Alex Bump, second-line center, Grant Slukynsky, and starting goaltender, Hampton Slukynsky, were all late-summer de-commits the past two summers.
Most top-end CHL players haven’t yet seriously entertained the NCAA option and aren’t expected to do so until their major junior seasons end. The playoffs are currently ongoing.
So far, UND’s two forward commits — Minnesota Duluth transfer Anthony Menghini and Des Moines Bucs center Jack Kernan — have fit Jackson’s vision.
They’re competitive, 200-foot players who have strong skating ability.
Menghini will be a junior. He is UND’s only junior forward right now. Kernan will join Will Zellers, David Klee and Josh Zakreski in the freshman forward class.
UND has six returning forwards in Dylan James, Ben Strinden, Mac Swanson, Cade Littler, Cody Croal and Dalton Andrew. So, the Fighting Hawks are at 10 in total.
They still need to add three or four.
They could go into their committed recruit ranks and bring in potential NHL draft picks Andrew O’Neill or Ashton Schultz if needed. But their development could be best served to play next year in junior hockey.
Either way, UND is searching for forwards right now, especially a top-six center.
UND’s defensive corps looks strong. The Fighting Hawks are at seven right now — Jake Livanavage, Abram Wiebe, Bennett Zmolek, E.J. Emery, Andrew Strathmann, Jayden Jubenvill and incoming freshman Sam Laurila.
That means one or two need to be added.
They could bring in commit Garrett Lindberg, an alternate captain for Team USA at the IIHF World Under-18 Championship. But the Moorhead product also could choose to follow the Laurila path and play a year of juniors.
There are still moving parts at the goaltender position.
Last year’s starter, T.J. Semptimphelter, has graduated and moved on to pro hockey. UND filled his spot by committing 6-foot-6 Gibson Homer out of the NCAA transfer portal.
Homer, who has a .924 save percentage through his first two seasons of college hockey at Arizona State, is the presumed starter for next season.
UND also knows it is losing its third goaltender, Kaleb Johnson, and his mid-season fill-in.
Johnson, a Grand Forks native, suffered a career-ending injury early last season. He’s scheduled to have a second hip surgery soon. The Fighting Hawks grabbed Aleksi Huson from the club team as a temporary practice goalie.
That leaves sophomore Hobie Hedquist as the only remaining goaltender from last season.
Hedquist could still enter the NCAA transfer portal and look for a starting option. The portal doesn’t close until May 13.
So, UND has one or two goaltender spots to fill, depending on whether Hedquist hits the portal.
The Fighting Hawks have one committed goaltender in Caleb Heil of the United States Hockey League’s Madison Capitols.
UND discussed options with Heil in recent weeks and gave him the choice of coming to campus this fall or returning to Madison to play a significant number of games. Heil has opted to return to Madison, polish his game and be ready for a bigger role in the fall of 2026.
There are a couple of goalie options in front of UND.
UND began recruiting Jan Spunar of the Dubuque Fighting Saints under former head coach Brad Berry and former goalie coach Karl Goehring. The new staff has continued to show interest in Spunar, who played in the Western Hockey League for Portland before joining Dubuque.
Spunar is a 6-foot-3 undrafted goaltender from Czechia. He posted a .907 for the Fighting Saints.
There’s also a local option in the transfer portal — Fargo Shanley graduate Zach Sandy, who spent two years at Minnesota Duluth. Sandy starred at both the prep (Fargo South-Shanley) and North American Hockey League (Minot) levels.
Sandy could search for a spot with more guaranteed playing time. But if he wants to come back to North Dakota, he’s a potential fit.
The other local goaltender in the portal, Noah Rupprecht of Thief River Falls, committed to Ferris State. Rupprecht previously played at Long Island University.
In the committed recruits world, UND has already made one change to its recruiting board.
Jackson opted to take Fargo Force forward Cole Bumgarner off UND’s committed list. Bumgarner committed to UND on Aug. 1, 2024, the first day he was eligible to receive college offers and commit.
UND’s new staff felt Bumgarner wasn’t a fit for the style the Fighting Hawks want to play under Jackson.
The Fighting Hawks have made progress with next year’s roster in adding Homer, Menghini and Kernan.
But more work remains.