Bulldog Insider

In this bonus episode, News Tribune reporter Matt Wellens caught up with former UMD forward Katerina Mrazova over Zoom to talk about what it was like to be a part of the team that got the Czech Republic to its first ever Olympics.  Last week was her fourth time skating in an Olympic qualifying tournament. And while she hasn't officially been named to Team Czech Republic yet, she said just having t...

Back from Olympic qualifying and back in the U.S., News Tribune hockey reporter Matt Wellens caught up with senior goaltender Emma Soderberg about being a part of the team that helped Sweden clinch a spot in the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing. While not officially making the Team Sweden's Olympic roster yet, Soderberg talks about how it's been a dream of hers to make an Olympic team. She also tal...

In Minnesota Duluth's first NCHC series, junior goaltender Ryan Fanti recorded a career-high 35 saves and came away with his first college shutout in Saturday's 3-0 win at Western Michigan. In this week's episode of the Bulldog Insider podcast, News Tribune hockey reporter Matt Wellens, caught up with Fanti to talk about what it's like to finally have a shutout in the books and what it means to ha...

With a bye weekend, UMD senior forward Tanner Laderoute and his teammates embraced the Halloween holiday. It is back to business for the Bulldogs this weekend as they'll travel to Western Michigan to begin NCHC play with games Friday and Saturday. For the UMD women's team, their next games aren't until November 19 and 20 at Bemidji State. In this week's episode of the Bulldog Insider podcast, News...

UMD hockey teams went 4-0 last weekend as the men's team swept Minnesota in a home-and-home series and the women's team swept St. Thomas in St. Paul. A rare quiet weekend awaits as no Bulldogs hockey teams will be in action. Maura Crowell has plenty to keep her busy beyond preparing for the next opponent. The Bulldog Insider Podcast catches up with UMD women's head coach, who became a parent durin...

After a busy weekend at Amsoil Arena with six college hockey games including the Ice Breaker Tournament, there will just be one UMD game in Duluth this weekend. But it's a game with a lot of interest and anticipation! The UMD men's team has a home-and-home series with the Minnesota Gophers. The Bulldogs play at Mariucci Arena in Minneapolis on Friday and turn around and host the Gophers at Amsoil...

It's a busy week at Amsoil Arena with the Minnesota Wild visiting on Tuesday, followed by six college hockey games in three days, including a triple header to start things off on Friday. The home of the Bulldogs is hosting a WCHA series with Wisconsin, as well as the 2021 Ice Breaker Tournament, which will include Michigan, Minnesota State and Providence. To preview the Ice Breaker, the Bulldog In...

It is opening week for the UMD men's hockey team as the Bulldogs visit Bemidji State Friday and host the Beavers on Saturday. The women's team will have their first home series of the season with the Minnesota Gophers visiting AMSOIL Arena Friday and Saturday. In this week's episode of the Bulldog Insider podcast, News Tribune hockey reporter Matt Wellens and My9's Kelly Hinseth discuss the men's...

Depending on when you listen to this, the UMD women's hockey team is about 36 hours away from the official start of their season. The Bulldogs open with a WCHA road trip to Minnesota State on Friday at 6:01 p.m. and Saturday at 3:01 p.m. in Mankato. In this week's episode of the Bulldog Insider podcast, News Tribune hockey reporter Matt Wellens and My9's Kelly Hinseth get a season preview from sen...

In a perfect world, neither of this week's guests would be here with us, but the NCAA has granted them a fifth season of college hockey because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Fifth-year seniors Louie Roehl and Anna Klein share what made them decide to come back this season and what it's like being much older than the freshmen class. We also take a walk down memory lane with a trivia game. The Bulldog I...

Duluth News Tribune sports reporter Matt Wellens moderates a discussion with Mick Hatten, Jess Myers and Brad Schlossman ( Grand Forks Herald ) of The Rink Live , Jordan McAlpine of The Gateway and Joe Paisley of Ice Time Hockey Southwest after the 2021 National Collegiate Hockey Conference Media Day at the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul. They discuss impact players, sleepers and all things NCHC....

A bonus edition of the Bulldog Insider Podcast with Mick Hatten of The Rink Live and the Husky Hockey Insider Podcast where in response to an Ask Wellens Anything question, we broke down our all-time All-NCHC teams, plus the best Bulldogs and Huskies to play in the NCHC since the league began in 2013. Hosted by News Tribune college hockey reporter Matt Wellens, new episodes of Bulldog Insider will...

He's a Stanley Cup champion, an NCAA national champion and a Hobey Baker Memorial Award finalist, Cloquet native Derek Plante closes out Season 3 of the podcast for us this week. Plante coached five seasons at UMD from 2010 to 2015, before going to work with the Blackhawks as a player development coach. The 2020-21 season was his first back at UMD.  He shares what it was like to be back behind the...

Fourth-line freshman wingers Luke Mylymok and Blake Biondi share what it was like to send Minnesota Duluth to the 2021 Frozen Four in Pittsburgh. Like a good fish story, Mylymok walks us through his game-winning goal against North Dakota in the NCAA regional finals in Fargo on March 27. He and Biondi share how they prepare mentally and physically for those high-pressure situations and what it's li...

The Bulldogs men's hockey program is making its fourth-straight Frozen Four appearance, but for goalies Zach Stejskal and Ryan Fanti this will be their first. The two goaltenders teamed up to defeat North Dakota in the five-overtime regional final last Saturday into Sunday. They take us through that record-setting game, the good, the bad, the mental, the physical, and all the in between. The Bulld...

The Minnesota Duluth men's hockey team is back in the NCAA tournament for a sixth consecutive time in 2020-21. The Bulldogs take on Michigan in the NCAA regional semifinals at 3 p.m. Friday in Fargo, North Dakota. The winner advances to play either North Dakota or American International in the regional championship on Saturday night.   There isn't a group of players in all of college hockey with m...

One made 30 saves while the other scored the game-winner, unassisted, in overtime. Junior goaltender Emma Soderberg and senior defenseman Ashton Bell walk us through Monday's 1-0 OT quarterfinal win over Colgate in the NCAA women's hockey tournament in Erie, Pennsylvania. The teammates also talk about what it's like to be in the Bulldogs' first Frozen Four in over a decade.  The Bulldog Insider is...

In his first two seasons, senior wing Koby Bender battled for ice time and a spot in the lineup. Now he's a critical member of the team and scoring goals on a line with Kobe Roth and Jackson Cates. Bender takes us through his college hockey journey and lessons he's learned through buying his time and earning his spot on the rink.  And because he's from Cloquet we hear what he thinks the best item...

This week we take a walk down memory lane with five of the six members of the UMD women's hockey 2020-21 senior class, which is coming off its final weekend of play this season at Amsoil Arena — a four-point weekend against Wisconsin that left the team two points shy of the WCHA title. We're talking favorite memories, best on and off ice moments, plans for next year, favorite Duluth spots and much...

The UMD women's hockey program wore its most recent special edition jersey last Saturday against Minnesota State and will do so again Friday against Wisconsin at Amsoil Arena in Round 1 of the WCHA Regular Season Championship.  It's a throwback inspired by what the men's team wore in the early 1950s.  Joining us to talk about jerseys of Bulldogs past, is UMD women's hockey associate head coach Lau...

Senior wing, assistant captain and leading scorer of the Bulldogs' men's hockey team Nick Swaney joins the podcast this week.   Swaney takes us back to his middle school and high school days when he had big dreams and goals to play the sport he loves at the college and pro levels. Now he is living out those dreams, being a two-time national champion and being drafted by the Minnesota Wild, and say...

UMD women's hockey juniors McKenzie Hewett and Gabbie Hughes joined us via Zoom this week shortly after getting news that this weekend's series with Minnesota State had been called off. The Mavericks have pushed pause for seven days because of positive COVID-19 test results. This is the third time this year the team has gotten this news on game week and the juniors say it doesn't get any easier to...

This week on the podcast we're joined via Zoom by a pair of freshmen from the UMD women's hockey team, which just got done dismantling St. Cloud State 4-1 and 6-0 at Amsoil Arena.  Clara Van Wieren and Nina Jobst-Smith have the challenge of being freshmen on a college hockey team during a pandemic but to them this is what they know. They haven't had the opportunity to realize what they are missing...

They grew up playing for Bruce Plante at Hermantown, now the junior forwards play for Bruce's son, Derek, at UMD. Cole Koepke and Jesse Jacques share their favorite Bruce Plante stories, what it's been like playing for Derek Plante so far this season and how the father-son duo differ in coaching style.  Koepke and Jacques also talk about the support and sometimes added pressure that comes from pla...

He spent three years at Cornell before using the NCAA's graduate transfer rule to come to UMD. S enior defenseman Matt Cairns takes us through his journey from Cornell to the Bulldogs, starting with what prompted the move.  He also shares how the hockey experience here and in the NCHC compares to Cornell and the ECAC. The Bulldog Insider is co-hosted by Duluth News Tribune sports reporter Matt Wel...