Friday Morning Post

• The UND men take on USA Hockey's NTDP Under-18 team Saturday night in an exhibition tilt. Here are the game notes from each squad: North Dakota and Team USA
• The UND women, meanwhile, are on the road for the first time this season as they are in St. Cloud to take on the Huskies. Here are each school's game notes: North Dakota and St. Cloud State
• Brock Nelson picked up his first career NHL goal earlier this week, and one look at his family tree will show you that his hockey success shouldn't come as a surprise.
• Defenseman Brian Lee's (Tampa Bay-NHL) knee injury rehab is progressing nicely, though he still appears to be a few weeks out from returning to action.
• Darcy Zajac is expected to be out of the Albany Devil lineup for an extended period after suffering an upper body injury.
• Matt Greene is eligible to become an unrestricted free agent this coming summer, but the Los Angeles Kings are looking to re-sign their alternate captain.
• Zach Parise scored his fifth goal of the season last night in Minnesota's 3-1 victory over Minnesota-Duluth alum Justin Faulk and the Carolina Hurricanes. Parise and Faulk became friends and workout partners this past summer, and they hope to become teammates in February.
• NHL.com says North Dakota recruit Nick Schmaltz is following in his older brother Jordan's footsteps.
• It's been a bit of an up and down start to the season for Fargo (USHL) goalie Cam Johnson, but he's using his helmet artwork in an attempt to summon the Force.
• Much has been written and said regarding NCAA committed recruits shunning the college game in order to play major juniors. Here's a look at the issue from a Canadian prospective.
• And here is the latest edition of Through These Doors:

Sunday Afternoon Post

• The Edmonton Journal says that North Dakota senior Dillon Simpson has worked his way into becoming a solid Oiler prospect who possesses top-four NHL potential as a complete defenseman. 
• Sioux alums Zach Parise, Jonathan Toews, and TJ Oshie are among the Canadian and American Olympic hopefuls who will be attending Olympic orientation camps this week. Parise and Toews are all but locks to appear in their second consecutive Olympic tournament, while Oshie is a player who, with a strong NHL first half, could earn his way onto Team USA as a bottom six winger. This week's orientation camps will not include any on-ice activity for either nation as the cost of insuring the attendees' NHL contracts is too great.
• As part of its "30 in 30" series, NHL.com says Travis Zajac is the New Jersey Devils' X-Factor and that he must produce offensively for the Devils to achieve team success this season. His importance to the team became even more important when star winger Ilya Kovalchuk opted to return home to Russia to play in the KHL. 
• Former Sioux defenseman Aaron Schneekloth has opted to retire after twelve professional seasons. Schneekloth, the ECHL's Defenseman of the Year just two seasons ago, will remain with the ECHL's Colorado Eagles as an assistant coach. He spent the final seven seasons of his career with Colorado.
• According to a German sports website, former Sioux goaltender Jordan Parise is retiring after seven professional seasons. He spent last season with Valpellice of the Italian elite league, posting a 2.87 GAA and .906 save percentage.
• The Los Angeles Kings Rookie Camp starts next Wednesday (Sept 4) and Derek Forbort will be in attendance. While he is expected to spend this season with Manchester (AHL), Kings executive Mike O'Connell says he expects Forbort to play with bigger goals in mind.
• North Dakota goaltending commit Cam Johnson was interviewed during the Fargo Force (USHL) tryout camp this week. Here's the video of the brief interview:

Recruit Profile: Cam Johnson

Photo-USHL.com

Current Team:  Fargo Force (USHL)
Anticipated Arrival at UND: Fall 2014
Position: Goaltender
Birthday:  July 11th, 1994
Hometown:  Troy, MI
Height:  6'2"
Weight:  200
Catches: Left


Profiles & Press Clippings:

• USHL 2013-14 Profile/Stat Page
• Elite Prospects Profile/Stat Page
• Brad Schlossman Blog Commitment Post (June 2013)
• USHL Commitment Press Release (June 2013)
• USHL: Fargo Goalies Share Rivalry Over World Series (Oct 2012)

2013-14:

• Will play for the Fargo Force of the USHL

2012-13:

• Playing in 28 regular season games for the Fargo Force he went 14-8-6 while posting a 3.10 GAA and .908 Save %. In eight playoff games he went 4-3 with one shutout while producing a 2.40 GAA and .931 Save % as Fargo advanced to the Clark Cup Finals.

2011-12:

• In 25 games with the Little Caesar's Midget Major team he posted a 2.61 GAA with one shutout.

2010-11:

• Spearheaded Summit Plastics to the USA Hockey Tier 2 Under-16 national championship by stopping 84 of the 85 shots he faced during the tournament. In five games, he posted four shutouts to go along with a 0.25 GAA and .988 Save %.