Games 23-24
Friday, Jan. 18 • 7:35 p.m.
Saturday, Jan. 19 • 7:05 p.m.
Steve 'Coach' Cady Arena (3,019) • Oxford, Ohio

Miami RedHawks (9-9-4, 3-5-2-1 NCHC) vs. No. 4/5 Minnesota Duluth Bulldogs (12-6-2, 5-4-1-0 NCHC)
TV/Stream: NCHC.tv
Radio: 1490 AM-WKBV/Tune In Radio (Greg Waddell-pbp; Drew Davis-analyst)

MATCHUP
Miami begins a four-game home stand when it starts a weekend series with defending national champion Minnesota Duluth.
THE SERIES: Miami went 1-3 against Minnesota Duluth last year and UMD leads the all-time series 15-4-2.

PUCK POINTS
• Miami's freshman class has combined for 51 points (12g, 39a), ninth most in the country.

• Junior goaltender Ryan Larkin has started 86 of Miami's 95 games since his freshman season in 2016-17. He has allowed two goals or fewer in 11 of 17 starts this year.

• Gordie Green has notched 67 points (31g, 36a) in his last 78 games dating back to midway through his 2016-17 freshman campaign.

• All 26 of senior blue liner Grant Hutton's career goals have come since his sophomore year and his goal total is tied for the fifth most all-time among Miami defensemen.

• The RedHawks have allowed the first goal in six-straight games and held the lead just once in that span.

• Miami has been tied or within a goal at some point in the third period in all eight games of its current winless streak.

• Senior forward Josh Melnick missed both games at Western Michigan after missing only one game his first three seasons. He was riding a career-best seven-game point streak (3g, 5a) and became the 52nd Miami player to clear 100 career points on Jan. 5.

LAST WEEKEND
Miami dropped a pair of one-goal decisions at NCHC rival Western Michigan over the weekend. Friday saw Gordie Green net a pair of goals, with his first tying things up after 20 minutes and his second cutting a 3-1 deficit to 3-2 in the third. After WMU made it 4-2 later in the frame, Brian Hawkinson pulled MU within one again with roughly seven minutes to play, but that was as close as the Red & White would get the rest of the way. On Saturday, the RedHawks answered a couple of one-goal deficits as Derek Daschke left the score 1-1 after one period and Jonathan Gruden made the score 2-2 before the second intermission. The Broncos would score the lone goal in the third as the RedHawks suffered their first weekend series sweep of the season.

COACH BLASI
Enrico Blasi (Miami '94) is in his 20th season behind the RedHawk bench. He is a five-time CCHA Coach of the Year and was named National Coach of the Year in 2005-06. He is the RedHawks' all-time winningest coach with a 396-297-76 record at his alma mater, which he has taken to 10 NCAA Tournaments, including two Frozen Four berths, a National Championship game appearance, a trio of CCHA regular-season titles and two conference tournament titles.

ABOUT MINNESOTA DULUTH: The Bulldogs are 2-4-1 in their last seven after starting 10-2-1, though part of the slump coincided with losing some players who have since returned from the World Junior Championship. UMD is coming off a series split with first-place St. Cloud State. Parker Mackay has scored a team-high eight goals while Justin Richards leads UMD with 19 points. Scott Perunovich leads the Bulldogs' blue line with 18 points and their defense allows the seventh fewest goals per game (2.05), backstopped by goaltender Hunter Shepard (1.92 GAA, .916 SV%).

PLAYING CATCHUP: Miami has found itself chasing the game during its eight-game winless streak (0-4-4). MU has trailed at some point in all eight of those contests and surrendered the first goal seven times, including six-straight outings. The Red & White have led for just 28:52 out of a possible 500 minutes of hockey in this stretch. The RedHawks' last lead came on Jan. 4 when they took a 2-1 first period lead on Providence, a lead that lasted 9:23. 

TOUGH ROAD AHEAD: The remainder of Miami's schedule will certainly show whether the team can break its three-year absence from the NCAA Tournament as 10 of its last 14 games come against schools that are ranked in the top 13 of the PairWise. MU is 0-4-3 against teams in the PairWise top 13 this year, playing its last six contests against teams fitting that criteria. Miami's remaining slate includes four games against No. 4 Minnesota Duluth, road series at No. 3 St. Cloud State and No. 2 Denver along with a home set against No. 9 Western Michigan. The RedHawks are 8-34-8 against PairWise top-13 schools since 2015-16 after going 9-9 against them in their last NCAA appearance in 2014-15.

SHOTS GETTING FIRED: More rubber has been getting to the Miami net since the first month of the calendar switched to November, although Ryan Larkin and Jordan Uhelski have proven equal to the task of being the last line of defense. MU has been outshot in 12 of its last 13 games, giving up at least 30 shots on goal 12 times after outshooting its foes in eight of its first nine outings when it was ninth nationally in shots on goal allowed per game (23.33).

STUCK ON NINE: For whatever reason, Miami has found itself struggling once it's hit nine wins the last few seasons, something that has continued since the RedHawks moved to 9-5 with a Nov. 17 win at Colorado College.

	Record at 9th W	Record after	Final Record
2016-17	9-11-6	0-9-1	9-20-7
2017-18	9-8-2	3-12-3	12-20-5
2018-19	9-5	0-4-4	N/A

OFFENSIVE BLUE LINE: Miami's defense has been an area of strength and that has gone beyond keeping the puck out of its net. The RedHawks' blue line has posted 48 points this season (11g, 37a). That group is led by Derek Daschke's 16 points (4g, 12a) and Grant Hutton's 13 (4g, 9a).

FRESH FACES LEADING THE WAY: With eight freshmen on the roster, the oportunity was going to be there for new players to make an impact and that's what has happened. The RedHawks' freshman class has combined for 51 points (12g, 39a), which is the ninth most nationally. Derek Daschke paces the newcomers with 16 points along with a robust +13 rating.

HE'S SEEN A LOT: Junior goaltender Ryan Larkin has been kept busy over his time in Oxford. Larkin's started 86 of the RedHawks' 95 games since his 2016-17 freshman campaign. The Clarkston, Mich., native debuted with a strong .910 save percentage as a freshman and made 30 or more saves 12 times that year. In his career, Larkin has 27 games where he has recorded at least 30 stops. He already owns two of Miami's top eight seasons in total saves with 905 as a freshman (third) and 863 in 2017-18 (eighth). His 2,230 career saves rank fifth in school history, 14 shy of Steve McKichan for fourth.

CATCHING FIRE: Senior forward Josh Melnick has perked up offensively since a slow start. After notching just two points in the first six games of the year, Melnick has notched 17 of his team-best 19 points in the next 14 contests. He became the 52nd player in school history to reach 100 career points on Jan. 5. He was riding a career-best seven-game point streak before missing the past two games due to injury. His next point will tie him with Pat Leahy and Mitch Ganzak for 50th in program history with 101 career points.

GOING GREEN: Junior forward Gordie Green enjoyed a breakout sophomore campaign and hopes to build on that after leading the RedHawks with 33 points on 15 goals and 18 assists a year ago. Green's status as a go-to scorer started midway through his freshman campaign as he adjusted to the college level. In his last 78 games dating back to December of 2016, Green has 67 points on 31 goals and 36 assists and his 18 points (9g, 9a) this year rank second on the team.

HUTTON FOR GOALS: Senior defenseman Grant Hutton provided Miami with a boom on defense thanks to his return. A year ago, Hutton led all NCAA defensemen with 13 goals, a total that was one off Miami's overall team lead. All 26 of Hutton's goals have come since his sophomore season and his career total is tied with Louie Belpedio for fifth all-time among Miami blue liners. Hutton has 13 points on four goals and nine assists this season. His next goal will tie him with Andy Greene and Joe Cook for third most in school history among defensemen.

CAUSING HAVOC: One player who has shown a knack for creating scoring chances with the potential to lengthen the Miami attack is junior forward Karch Bachman. Despite only scoring nine goals in his first two seasons, the Florida Panthers' 2015 draft pick has finished third in shots on goal in each of his first two campaigns with his 97 shots leading all Miami forwards in 2017-18. Bachman has scored seven goals, including three game-winners, this season and leads the team lead with 81 shots on goal.

CHANGE OF VENUE: Among the newcomers to Miami this year are a pair of fifth-year transfers in defenseman River Rymsha (Dartmouth) and goaltender Jordan Uhelski (Alabama Huntsville). The duo are believed to be only the second and third postgraduate transfers in Miami hockey's history as they add another layer of experience to the roster. Uhelski was Alabama Huntsville's starting goaltender his last two years, logging 52 combined starts in 2016-17 and 2017-18. Rymsha played a career-high 28 games at Dartmouth last year and logged 69 games in four years with the Big Green. Uhelski holds a 2.35 goals against average and .914 save percentage in six games and Rymsha has six points (3g, 3a) in 21 games.

A LOOK INSIDE THE BROTHERHOOD: A partnership with the NCHC and Miami hockey's equipment provider, STX, has led to the creation of The Season (Miami Hockey). This six-episode documentary series promises to take fans inside the RedHawks' preparation for the 2018-19 season. The first episode aired on Oct. 4 and fans can check out all six episodes on TheSeason2018.com.