MINOT, N.D. – While temperatures remain warm and summery outside, the action is sure to be heat up, as well, inside the Masya Arena this Saturday night as the Minot State men's hockey team hits the ice to start a new season.

The Beavers, ranked 3^rd in the ACHA in the national preseason poll, host the University of Regina Cougars this Saturday, September 27, at 7 p.m. in the first of three early-season exhibitions.

"It's an exciting time of year," Minot State's fifth-year head coach Wyatt Waselenchuk said. "I know there's a buzz in the air amongst our supporters, our fans, our team; I just couldn't be more excited. It's crazy."

Minot State hosts a Regina team that went 1-2-1, with a shootout loss, in preseason contests against Manitoba already this month, so the Cougars are a bit more seasoned already this season.

But a very veteran Beaver roster returns for 3^rd-ranked Minot State, a team that advanced to the national semifinals back in March and added just four newcomers.

Two of those newcomers will help replace four-year starter in goal, Jake Anthony, as freshmen Blake Sittler from Dodsland, Saskatchewan and Sheldon Biggley from Summerland, British Columbia are set to step in between the pipes, helping share the load with returning sophomore William Dyke.

Dyke had a phenomenal debut season for the Beavers, posting a 14-0-0-1 record as a freshman with his lone loss a 3-2 shootout setback to Maryville at the ACHA Showcase. Dyke also had two shutouts and a 1.51 goals against average.

The Beavers also add freshman forward Jaxon Grosdidier from Sioux Falls, South Dakota, and junior transfer Jeremy Dewar, a defenseman who played two seasons at NCAA Division III Anna Maria College.

"I think they'll bring a unique piece to the puzzle, and I think they're fitting in really, really well," Waselenchuk said of the team's newcomers.
Fitting in with a veteran team with high expectations.

Returning captain and fifth-year forward Jay Buchholz leads the way for Minot State. One of three returning captains from the 2022-23 ACHA National Championship team, he has 49 career goals and 80 assists in 130 games in a Minot State jersey.

He's joined by fellow seniors and assistant captains defensemen Logan Rands and Christan Kadolph. In 101 games for the Beavers, Rands has 20 goals and 31 assists, while Kadolph has 24 goals and 85 assists in 112 games.

New to the leadership group and ready for his third season on the ice for Minot State is junior forward Colby Joseph. Also an assistant captain this season, Joseph has netted 42 goals and added 23 assists in 76 games as a Beaver.

"Our last regulation loss was in early November and then we lost on March 17^th, so one side of the coin says, 'hey, that's, that's a pretty darn good season," Waselenchuk said.
"But at the end of the day, that tournament is – it's ruthless, it's tough to win four games in five or six days; it's not easy. You have to be prepared."

And that's the goal early in the season for Minot State, including this weekend as the Beavers hit the ice for Saturday's exhibition contest: Prepare each day for the ACHA National Tournament and a shot at national title No. 4.

"The process is something that we've talked about a lot this year, you don't win a national championship now, in September," Waselenchuk said. "It starts in practice; on Friday, Saturday night; and slowly building; it's a long climb to get to the top.

"I like where we're at right now, but we've got a long ways to go."