Season update: The Fighting Hawks, as they now are nicknamed, are one of the teams the Pioneers are looking up at in the rankings and the NCHC standings. NoDak brings a 12-2-2 mark in this weekend’s series and is 5-1 in the conference with only a 6-1 loss at St. Cloud State. NoDak’s other loss was at home to Wisconsin. Since then, it has won six of seven games and scored 25 goals in that stretch. The Hawks and the Pioneers have played three common opponents – Colorado College (both swept), Michigan State (both swept) and Wisconsin (DU won and tied).

Offense: Scoring has not been a problem for the Hawks, who have the NCHC’s No. 2 offense (3.67 goals per game). That’s slightly better than their overall mark of 3.44 per game. Senior forward Drake Caggiula and sophomore forward Nick Schmaltz each have 21 points to lead a lineup that’s a bit top-heavy in scoring. Caggiula has 11 goals and Schmaltz has 19 assists. Freshman Brock Boesser (the third member of the high-scoring line) has 16 points, including eight goals. Schmaltz leads the NCHC in scoring (11 points) and assists (nine). Boesser is tied for second in the league with eight points. Junior Troy Stecher, like Caggiula an assistant captain, leads the blue line with 13 points and senior forward Bryn Chyzyk has six goals. NoDak has scored 21 of its 55 goals in the first period, while it has allowed 14 of its 33 against in the second period (which is when DU has done its most damage). NoDak averages nearly 35 shots per game.

Defense: The Hawks allow slightly more than two goals per game overall, but that number is 2.67 in NCHC play, speaking to the conference’s relative strength. NoDak primarily relies on junior Matt Hrynkiw in net as he has a 9-2-1 record, 2.11 goals-against average and .911 save percentage. However, sophomore Cam Johnson has impressive numbers in his six appearances (3-0-1, 1.92, .921).

Special teams: NoDak’s power play has been about as effective as DU’s so far, hitting on nearly 19 percent of its opportunities in NCHC play but just 16.7 percent overall. Its penalty kill is OK (76 percent in NCHC, 79 percent overall. That is a bit problematic, however, because the Hawks lead the conference in penalties, taking 14 minutes worth per game.

Bottom line: DU’s strong penalty kill and goaltending will help a great deal in what should be a tough road series. If the Pioneers’ power play gets it going it could inflict a lot of damage because of the Hawks’ penalty penchant. Conversely, DU will have to be ready because NoDak comes out firing and enjoys a massive home-ice advantage.

@MagnessMayhem