The No. 15/16 Colorado College Tigers hit the homestretch of the 2023-24 regular season against the No. 2-ranked North Dakota Fighting Hawks, Feb. 16-17, at Ed Robson Arena. Friday's game is scheduled to begin at 7 p.m. (MT), while the puck drops at 6 p.m. (MT) on Saturday. Live streaming and live stats links can be found at CCTigers.com.

How To Listen / Watch
Both games this weekend will be broadcast live in the Colorado Springs area and Southern Colorado on KRDO NewsRadio 105.5 FM / 95.5 FM / 1240 AM with the 'Voice of the Tigers' Ken Landau and streamed on NCHC.tv. Friday's contest will be televised live on SOCO CW with Josh Howe and Kyle Huson.

Last Time Out
The Tigers split a pair of games with No. 16/15 St. Cloud State, Feb, 2-3, at Robson Arnea ... On Firday, Verner Miettinen scored with 12.7 seconds remaining in overtime to give SCSU a 2-1 victory. The Tigers had a couple of golden chances to win late in the contest. St. Cloud State took a pair of penalties in the final 40 seconds of the third period to give CC a 5-on-3 opportunity for the final 20 seconds of regulation and first 1:04 of overtime. SCSU goalie Dominic Basse made two saves during the two-man advantage, Noah Laba missed high on a breakaway with 1:40 remaining and Bret Link cranked a shot off the crossbar just before Meittinen took a pass from Adam Ingram and beat Tiger goalie Kaidan Mbereko from the slot. Kyler Kupka gave the Huskies an early 1-0 lead just 3:21 into the game. Stanley Cooley put the puck in the net with a rebound shot late in the second period, but the goal was disallowed for goaltender interference following a St. Cloud State challenge and official review. Logan Will, Evan Werner and Link had good looks early in the third period, then Zaccharya Wisdom finally broke through and evened the game with a power-play goal at the 8:32 mark of the third. Wisdom's original shot in front of the net was saved by Basse (44 saves), but Wisdom stuck with it and scored on a backhand rebound for his sixth tally of the season. Mbereko finished with 22 saves ... On Saturday, Tommy Middleton collected a career-high three points with two goals and an assist to lead CC to a 5-3 victory. With the victory, CC moved into sole possession of third place in the NCHC with a 10-6 league record (16-9-1 overall) and has the most conference wins in one season since joining the league in 2013. Noah Laba collected a goal and an assist for the Tigers, who beat SCSU at home for the first time since Feb. 22, 2013, snapping an 18-game winless streak on home ice against the Huskies. Middleton opened the scoring with a one-timer from the high slot at the 15:28 mark of the first period, then had a hand in giving the Tigers a 2-0 lead at the 4:06 mark of the second period. He collected the puck in the CC end to start a 2-on-1 and fed Stanley Cooley perfectly for Cooley's fourth goal of the campaign in his 100th career game. The Huskies cut the lead in half with a power-play goal at the 6:48 mark of the middle frame. Zach Okabe sent a pass across the crease to Mason Salquist, who beat Mbereko (22 saves) from the bottom of the right circle. The teams combined for five goals in the third period, with Gleb Veremyev putting the Tigers ahead 3-1 at the 7:37 mark. Laba then notched his seventh game-winning goal at 11:35 of the third with a power-play tally. Kupka closed the gap to 4-2 with 5:39 remaining with a power-play goal, but Middleton scored his second of the contest with an empty-netter at the 16:11 mark.

Still in the National Polls  
Colorado College remains in both Division I national polls this week. The Tigers are No. 15 in the USCHO.com poll and No. 16 in the USA Hockey / The Rink Live poll.  

Best Start in 16 Years  
Colorado College's 16-9-1 record and 16 wins after 26 games are the best since the 2007-08 season (started 18-7-1). The Tigers are tied for 13th in the country with 16 victories. Meanwhile, Feb. 3 is the earliest date CC has reached 16 victories since the '07-08 campaign (Jan. 12, 2008).  

Mbereko Named Richter Award Semifinalist
Colorado College goaltender Kaidan Mbereko has been named a semifinalist for the Mike Richter Award, given annually to the top goaltender in men's NCAA Division I hockey since 2014. Mbereko is the lone NCHC goalie and sophomore to make the list of 10 semifinalists. Three finalists will be announced in early March and the winner will be announced in April during the NCAA Frozen Four in St. Paul, Minn.

The Coaches
Kris Mayotte is in his third season at the helm of the Tigers. He came to Colorado College after serving two years as an assistant coach at the University of Michigan. Mayotte was an assistant coach for Providence College when the Friars won the NCAA Division I title in 2015. In addition, he has won a pair of gold medals and a bronze in four stints as an assistant coach with Team USA at the World Junior Championships … Brad Berry is in his ninth season as head coach at North Dakota. Berry was an assistant coach at UND for nine seasons before taking over the helm in May 2015. He became the first person in the history of NCAA Division I men's hockey to lead his team to a national title in his first year as head coach.

Previous Meetings
Colorado College and North Dakota have met 271 times with UND holding a 173-86-12 advantage in the series, including a 61-60-4 mark in Colorado Springs. This weekend will be the 39th and 40th games CC has played against UND with the Fighting Hawks ranked either No. 1 or No. 2 in the country. The Tigers snapped a 15-game winless streak against then-No. 1 ranked UND with a pair of 3-2 overtime victories in Grand Forks earlier this season. It marked the first sweep in Grand Forks for the Tigers since Nov. 26-27, 1993.

Laba and Mbereko Named Hobey Baker Nominees
Sophomores Noah Laba and Kaidan Mbereko are among 84 student-athletes nominated for the 2024 Hobey Baker Award. The Hobey Baker Award is presented annually to the collegiate hockey player who best demonstrates strength of character both on and off the ice, contributes to the integrity of his team and displays outstanding skills in all phases of the game. Consideration is given for scholastic achievement and sportsmanship. Colorado College has had two winners since the first Hobey Baker was awarded in 1981, Peter Sejna (2003) and Marty Sertich (2005).

Up Next
The Tigers play their final road series of the regular season against Omaha, Feb. 23-24, at Baxter Arena.

Three is the Number
The Tigers are 13-1 this season when scoring three or more goals. The only loss was a 4-3 defeat at the hands of Augustana. CC is 15-4-1 when it allows three goals or less.

Tiger Tales
Colorado College's 10-6 record after 16 conference games is the best since the 2011-12 season (10-6) ... The Tigers are 9-3 on the road, the best mark after 12 road games since the 2004-05 season (9-2-1) ... CC's five overtime victories are the most in a season since the 1979-80 campaign (6) ... The Tigers are third in the nation with a .552 faceoff winning percentage ... CC's six sweeps this season are the most since the 2007-08 season ... Logan Will is fourth in the NCHC with a .594 faceoff win percentage ... CC is third in the NCHC in blocked shots at 11.27 per game ... Noah Laba is second int he nation with seven game-winning goals, the most by a Tiger in one season since Brett Sterling had eight during the 2005-06 campaign ... Laba is tied for second in the NCHC and fifth in the nation with two shorthanded goals ... Laba is tied for sixth in the NCHC and 21st in the nation with 15 goals ... Jack Millar is tied for third in the NCHC with 41 blocks, while Connor Mayer is tied for 11th with 34 ... The Tigers had a season-high 45 shots on Feb. 2 vs. SCSU, the most in one game since attempting 49 vs. Miami on Feb. 18, 2022 ... Laba is the first Tiger to record at least 22 points in each of his first two seasons at CC since Jaden Schwartz (2010-11 and '11-12).

Youngsters Scoring  
Freshmen and sophomores have combined for 51 of the team's 78 goals and 116 of the 199 points. 30 of CC's last 44 goals, including 11 of the last 16, have been scored by freshmen or sophomores.  

Mbereko and Laba Earn Monthly NCHC Awards
Noah Laba and Kaidan Mbereko were named the NCHC Player and Goaltender of the Month, respectively, for January. Laba tied for the NCHC lead with seven goals and tied for fifth with 10 points. Three of his seven goals were game-winners, the most in the league. All three GWG came in overtime, including each game at #12 Western Michigan last weekend. Mbereko, meanwhile, led the NCHC with six wins and 234 saves in January. He finished second in the league with a .921 save percentage and tied for fourth with a 2.52 GAA. He was also named the NCHC Goaltender of the Month for December.

Three Future Tigers Sign National Letter of Intent
Three future Tigers recently signed a National Letter of Intent to attend and play hockey at Colorado College. The players are forwards Jordan Brisson (Chicago Steel – USHL),  Cooper Conway (Omaha Lancers - USHL) and Coy Pighin (Drumheller Dragons - AJHL). This group joins six players, forwards Owen Beckner and Gavin Lindberg, defensemen Philippe Blais-Savoie, Ryan Koering and Fisher Scott, and goaltender Carsen Musser, who previously signed an NLI with Colorado College.

16 Televised Games This Season
Colorado College is excited to announce a new partnership with SOCO CW, which will televise 14 games during the upcoming 2023-24 season. SOCO CW is available to viewers throughout Colorado Springs, Pueblo and Southern Colorado. CBS Sports Network will televise two games nationally, Jan. 19 vs. Miami and March 8 vs. Denver.

Tigers Picked Seventh in NCHC Preseason Poll
Colorado College was picked seventh in the 2023-24 NCHC Preseason Poll.

1.    Denver – 199 points (11 first-place votes)
2.    North Dakota – 175 (12)
3.    St. Cloud State – 155 (2)
4.    Western Michigan - 126 (2)
5.    Minnesota Duluth – 123 (1)
6.    Omaha - 113
7.    Colorado College – 89
8.    Miami - 28