GRAND FORKS — Jan Špunar got Saturday night off after breaking a school record — one previously shared by Ed Belfour — by winning his first nine starts.
Gibson Homer took UND into Christmas break in a fitting way.
The goaltender, who hadn’t played in nearly a month, stopped 29 of 30 Omaha shots. Forward Anthony Menghini, who hadn’t scored in a month, buried a wrist shot off the rush. Ellis Rickwood, who hadn’t scored in two months, dangled his way to a highlight-reel, game-winning goal.
UND beat Omaha 3-1 on Saturday night in Ralph Engelstad Arena to complete a two-game sweep and jump into first place in the National Collegiate Hockey Conference.
The Fighting Hawks (14-4) have won six in a row and 10 of 11.
“We have a really cool feeling in that locker room right now, where a lot of guys believe in each other,” first-year head coach Dane Jackson said.
Homer’s performance was emblematic of how this UND team is winning: It’s someone different almost every night.
UND does not have anyone in the top 30 nationally in points. But its depth has been problematic for opponents and it has allowed the Fighting Hawks to navigate player absences.
On Saturday, the Fighting Hawks played without star freshmen Cole Reschny and Keaton Verhoeff, who are with the Canadian World Junior Team. They played without defenseman Andrew Strathmann, who was suspended for a fight in Friday’s series opener, and Josh Zakreski, who is dealing with a longterm injury.
It didn’t matter.
“We have a lot of really good North Dakota hockey players who have an identity and a selflessness to play to our culture and our identity,” Jackson said. “We play hard, we compete for each other and we’re selfless. We’re far from perfect. We have a lot to grow. But our staff believes in core foundations of championship hockey teams — and we have some of those good qualities.”
UND’s Anthony Menghini scores in the second period against Omaha on Dec. 13, 2025, in Ralph Engelstad Arena.
Eric Hylden / Grand Forks Herald
It was a tumultuous summer for UND, which made a coaching change in March and lost 15 players off last year’s roster, including the top two scorers, who both transferred to other schools.
Once Jackson, general manager Bryn Chyzyk, associate head coach Matt Smaby and assistant Dillon Simpson finished assembling the roster, the players sensed it could be a good year.
“Even in the workouts, seeing everyone click together, it just seemed like a big bonded group,” UND captain Bennett Zmolek said. “Everyone is hanging out, even outside the rink. Pretty early, I could tell we might have something special.”
Homer, who transferred from Arizona State, agreed.
“It is, for sure, a special group,” Homer said. “When the whole team is reporting in July and buys into the process right away, you know it’s going to be a special group.”
UND’s E.J. Emery clears Brett Hyland out of the crease in the second period on Dec. 13, 2025, in Ralph Engelstad Arena.
Eric Hylden / Grand Forks Herald
It hasn’t gone totally as planned for Homer.
He started the season as UND’s No. 1 goaltender, but ceded to Špunar, the freshman from Czechia who is 9-0 with a .934 save percentage.
“When you have two guys that are playing well, it’s a good problem to have,” Homer said.
The coaching staff agreed it was time to go back to Homer for the series finale against the Mavericks. He made his first start since Nov. 15.
“A huge part is how he’s handled this whole stretch — his professionalism, being a good teammate, his positive attitude, how he works and prepares,” Jackson said. “We’ve seen in practice that he’s really good. Obviously, Jan has played unbelievable, but as a staff, we talked about the depth we wanted in all situations.
“It would have been easy to put Jan back in, but we felt strong that Gibby could do the job. We wanted to keep him sharp before the break and have two guys in the second half who can be playing and feeling good about themselves. It wasn’t an easy decision. We didn’t make it lightly.”
UND goalie Gibson Homer is upended by Omaha’s Cameron Mitchell in the second period on Dec. 13, 2025, in Ralph Engelstad Arena.
Eric Hylden / Grand Forks Herald
Homer turned in one of his best outings of the season against a team he’s owned. He is 2-0 against the Mavericks with a .969 save percentage this season.
His best saves came in the final moments as Omaha pulled goalie Dawson Cowan (28 saves) for an extra attacker and pushed for a tying goal. He denied Omaha forward Trevor Wong on a point-blank chance.
“Those are the moments you live for as a player — close game, one-goal game,” Homer said. “If you just do what you need to do, then you get rewarded with a win and a lot of happy guys in the locker room.”
Cody Croal iced the game with an empty-netter as the Fighting Hawks moved to 4-0 against the Mavericks this season.
UND continued to be efficient in closing out games. Excluding empty-net goals, the Fighting Hawks are 6-1 in one-goal finishes.
“It’s nice to see the guys being comfortable with being uncomfortable,” Jackson said. “In tough spots, we don’t seem to get nervous. We kind of have a belief in how we have to play, what we have to do, that guys will step up and do the job.”
UND players celebrate with goalie Gibson Homer after defeating Omaha 3-1 Saturday at the Ralph Engelstad Arena.
Eric Hylden / Grand Forks Herald
UND moved one point ahead of Denver in the NCHC standings with 10 games down and 14 to go.
“I think we’re in a good spot,” Zmolek said. “I think we keep growing each and every day, which is the biggest thing, because obviously our goal is playing in April. I’m really enjoying playing with all the guys. It seems like we’re really clicking right now.”
UND will return from Christmas break on Dec. 26 and start preparing for its final nonconference series — a Jan. 2-3 set against Mercyhurst.
“We have a lot of room for growth,” Jackson said. “Obviously, we’ve got to get better if we want to try to vie for a national championship. We’ve got to continue to get better. But we’ve had a growth mindset.”
UND’s Jack Kernan checks Omaha’s Jacob Guevin to the boards in the first period Saturday at the Ralph Engelstad Arena.
Eric Hylden / Grand Forks Herald