At the start of this season, North Dakota goaltender Zach Driscoll told USCHO.com about how playing pickleball has reminded him of the importance of pressing the reset button following a setback.
There haven’t been many of those lately for the graduate student netminder, or for his Fighting Hawks teammates. Driscoll has accounted for UND’s nine wins from its last 10 games, posting a .937 save percentage in that span.
“How he’s playing right now, it’s up there with the top guys that I’ve seen in our program,” said Karl Goehring, a former UND goaltender who led the program to a national championship in 2000. He now serves as an assistant under coach Brad Berry.
“(Driscoll) has found another level in his game, and it’s been fun to watch him elevate. He has had a fantastic collegiate career and has shown flashes of why he has been an elite goaltender, but for me, it’s his compete in this last little stretch. It’s his urgency on pucks and his ability to scramble and find saves where you feel like he might have been out of the play, but he finds his way back in.”
A Bemidji State transfer, Driscoll earned three consecutive NCHC goaltender of the week awards in February. He had helped UND out of a rut shortly after the holiday period, as the Fighting Hawks had lost four straight in January against Cornell and Western Michigan.
At the time, UND appeared to have work to do in order to earn a NCAA Tournament spot. Now, the Fighting Hawks (24-12-1) are a lock.
They’ll face Western Michigan again Friday in the NCHC Frozen Faceoff semifinals in St. Paul, Minnesota, after Driscoll led UND to a pair of home wins last weekend against Colorado College. He came up big late in both 2-1 victories, and particularly in Saturday’s third period when CC forced him into 15 saves.
Driscoll had started all but one UND game during the team’s current hot streak, as he was rested in the Fighting Hawks’ regular-season finale March 12 at Omaha. There was no rust when seventh-seeded CC came to Grand Forks, and UND needed him to stay in top form.
“He has brought such a presence down the stretch for our group, and it has been great for our guys that way,” Goehring said. “Late in games, and in the third, he has been leaned on at times, but has responded so well.
“After Christmas there, not just him but the whole team kind of went through a rough patch, and one of the neater responses I’ve seen to adversity from a player was how Zach handled it. It’s always tough, and you never know how a guy is going to respond in those situations, but he attacked it head-on, addressed a few things and went to work.
“There was nothing really huge (to change), but just understanding positionally where he needs to be to be his best,” Goehring continued. “It was just some minor things and getting back to work there, so it was neat to see that and how he brought that whole attitude to the group.”
Driscoll, a second-team all-conference pick, is expected to have a big say in however far UND gets this weekend in St. Paul, and through the rest of the Fighting Hawks’ postseason push. Staying bought into the team’s current mindset will help.
“This is a fun time of year, so it’s about embracing these games and embracing playing in these big moments,” Goehring said. “We want every player on our team to bring their best and to do their part, and not get over-focused on doing too much but knowing those keys that you need to play well, and Zach has really honed in on his game, and that’s such an important piece.
“Our hope is that we see who he is as he shows up. If he’s playing his game, we feel we have a great chance as a group.”
One more thing, and another, and another…
Apparently, six months go by fast when you’re trying to remember what counts as normal life.
This is my last NCHC column of the season, my 15th at USCHO. It doesn’t feel like it was half a year ago that I was putting together our conference season preview, but here we are.
It has been a different season at USCHO, having moved to one columnist per conference. That’s a shame in my view, and particularly for fans of NCHC teams. With every column she filed, Candace Horgan put in fantastic work, and I hope her contribution to this website is never forgotten.
I’d also like to share my gratitude for our readers, my friends and my family. Thanks also go to all of the NCHC coaches and players that I’ve had the pleasure to speak with this season, and to my editor, Matt Mackinder, for putting up with me. (Editor’s Note: It’s all good!)
Additionally, to outgoing NCHC commissioner Josh Fenton, the conference could not have started off life under a better leader, and you will be sorely missed. I wish nothing but the best to you with the Summit League and all your future endeavors.
I won’t be in St. Paul for the Frozen Faceoff, but my to-do list isn’t complete. For my day job, I’m covering Dakota College at Bottineau’s men’s and women’s hockey teams’ runs at the ACHA Division 2 national tournament, and I recently wrapped up Paralympic sled hockey coverage. Team USA’s coaching staff is from the city whose weekly newspaper I work for, so I have been busy staying on top of what happened in Beijing. Here’s to returning to a regular sleep schedule.
I’ll have a few more pieces coming out for USCHO.com in the coming days, so it’s not quite time for me to put a bow on this season just yet. I hope you follow along. Thanks again, everyone,
