Regional notebook: Ludvig Persson to start NCAA regional game

Mar. 28—MARYLAND HEIGHTS, Mo. — There is no ambiguity this week.

When UND head coach Brad Berry was asked Thursday whether starting goaltender Ludvig Persson would be available to play in the NCAA regional game against the University of Michigan at 7:30 p.m. Friday, Berry didn't have to wait for the question to be finished.

"He's in," Berry said emphatically. "He's starting tomorrow. He's all in."

After not playing the last two weeks because of an undisclosed ailment, Persson will return in Centene Community Ice Center.

Persson has practiced all week.

Last week, he was a full participant at the end of the week, but missed the first couple of days. Berry opted to start backup Hobie Hedquist in the National Collegiate Hockey Conference semifinals against Omaha. UND lost 6-3.

Persson has been an anchor for the Fighting Hawks this season after transferring from Miami University.

The senior has a 21-10-2 record with a 2.47 goals-against average and a .906 save percentage. He was named second-team all-NCHC.

Persson's last action came March 8-9 at Omaha.

Friday's regional game will be the first NCAA tournament experience for Persson.

The Fighting Hawks skated from 2-3 p.m. Thursday in Centene Community Ice Center.

The practice was closed to the public and media, but sources told the Herald everyone skated.

"The major thing you want to get is the feel of the rink," Berry said. "You're there on a limited time on the ice. You get through four or five drills and you want to be sharp. You want to make sure you bring your game the next day. I think it was more or less getting used to the venue we're in, getting acclimated to the environment and now we go play tomorrow. I thought our guys did a good job."

UND ended practice with its weekly team shootout competition.

The goaltenders had their best performance of the season. According to sources, only two players scored in Round 1: defenseman Jake Livanavage and forward Carson Albrecht. The goalies then shut them out in Rounds 2 and 3. The netminders were declared victorious.

Berry was asked at his press conference about the team's reaction to seeing the regional draw with three Michigan schools.

"I was sitting next to these guys and the two words were, 'Let's go,'" Berry said. "We've got 16 teams vying for a national championship right now. All of them are very good in their own right. Everybody's got the blank slate going right now. At North Dakota, we're battle-tested. We've been down this road before. It's nothing new to us.

"Every regional is going to be tough getting out of the regional, this one included. Our guys were excited. I was with them there during the Sunday selection show. They were very, very excited about embracing this regional."

Ticket prices have skyrocketed

on the secondary market because of the small venue at Centene Community Ice Center, which is planning to allow 3,100 fans to enter.

But that's not necessarily a bad thing, Western Michigan coach Pat Ferschweiler said.

"I think there's been a lot of negativity about the size of the venue, but we've also played the last couple years in a venue bigger that wasn't full," Ferschweiler said. "All four teams are used to playing in sold-out arenas. We're going to play in another sold-out arena. At least this building will be full and have the energy, and that's what these guys deserve this time of year."

The players are expecting a great atmosphere.

"It's probably the four best fan bases in the country, in my opinion, all stacked into one region," Western Michigan forward Luke Grainger said. "So we're expecting a really loud crowd. We're excited to play on the road in front of a lot of different people."

The Maryland Heights Regional will pit the NCHC against the Big Ten in both semifinal games.

The NCHC has been the country's dominant league since conference realignment in 2013-14, winning five of the last eight NCAA national championships.

The Big Ten is looking for its first as a conference. The last Big Ten team to win one was Michigan State in 2007. That title came in St. Louis.

The NCHC coaches say they think their league prepares them well for the national tournament.

"We believe it's the best conference in college hockey," Ferschweiler said. "Night in and night out, we know that we have to battle for all 24 games in that conference. It sharpens you for when you get to this level. We're excited about our conference. We're proud to play in it and we want to represent it well here."

Berry agreed.

"We allude to the NCHC being a gauntlet of eight teams," Berry said. "I thought our guys did a great job this year of winning the Penrose championship, which is behind us now. But they dialed in each and every weekend to seven unreal opponents. It was a grind. It goes not only to the skill we have but the mental fortitude and the resiliency from facing a little adversity from time to time.

"I also go to our nonconference schedule. I go playing Boston University in their rink, getting a win there, and playing Minnesota and splitting with them, and beating Wisconsin. At the end of the day, we've had a tough schedule and we went through a gauntlet of teams here and it's going to help us here in the regional."

Where: Centene Community Ice Center, Maryland Heights, Mo.

Friday's semifinals: Michigan State vs. Western Michigan, 4 p.m., UND vs. Michigan, 7:30 p.m.

Sunday's final: Semifinal winners, 5:30 p.m.

TV: ESPNU.

Stream: ESPN Plus.

Radio: The Fox (96.1 FM), UND games only.