University of North Dakota Professional Athletes

Fighting Hawks in the NHL: Oct. 18–24

The University of North Dakota sent two very different storylines into the NHL spotlight this week — one a comeback worth celebrating, the other a public unraveling worth watching.

Sanderson's Return Electrifies Ottawa

After missing eight games with a lower-body injury suffered just 4:29 into the season opener against Toronto, Jake Sanderson made his return look easy. The Senators defenseman logged a 3-point night (1G, 2A, +1) in Ottawa's 7-4 rout of the Rangers on Saturday, Oct. 24 — the kind of performance that instantly quiets any concern about rust.

Sanderson's comeback was actually staged in phases. He debuted his return Wednesday, Oct. 21 against the Panthers, picking up two assists and a +1 rating in a 5-1 Ottawa win. Thursday's rematch with the Sharks went sideways for the whole team (a 6-2 loss, with Sanderson finishing -4), but Saturday erased those memories fast.

Fellow Senators alumni also had strong weeks. Tyler Kleven posted a combined +5 across three games, including a +2 in the Rangers blowout. Shane Pinto chipped in with a goal and a +1 in that same game, and had previously scored in the Panthers win on a characteristic odd-bounce partial breakaway. Ottawa's blue line, anchored by Sanderson and Kleven, looks formidable when healthy.

Boeser Calls Out the Canucks — By Name (Sort Of)

Meanwhile, across the country, Brock Boeser was done being diplomatic.

Following a 5-2 loss to the Detroit Red Wings on Friday — a game in which Boeser finished -2 — the Thief River Falls, MN native went scorched-earth in his postgame comments. "I don't know where the disconnect is. I don't know if guys just aren't listening, if our structure isn't working, or what it is. It's embarrassing," Boeser said, per Heavy Sports.

The outburst followed Vancouver's no-shot second period against Detroit, which Boeser called out specifically on Sportsnet. With the Canucks now sitting at nine straight losses after winning two of their first three games, the frustration is understandable — but the public nature of the criticism raised eyebrows leaguewide. Trade speculation has already begun circling the winger, with multiple potential destinations surfacing in rumor columns.

The irony? In the Oct. 21 loss to Carolina, Boeser posted an assist and a -2 — while his former UND teammate Jackson Blake put up three assists and went +4 in the same game for the winning side. Blake followed that with a goal on Friday against the Oilers and another assist Saturday against the Blues, making it a quietly productive week for the Hurricane.

Elsewhere in the Fighting Hawks Universe

Nick Schmaltz had a hot-and-cold stretch with Utah — a goal and an assist in Tuesday's win over Pittsburgh, bookended by rough outings against the Oilers (-3) and Kraken (-2). Brock Nelson went -1 in Colorado's 6-3 win over Tampa on Saturday after a quiet midweek. The Avalanche's record has been uneven, and Nelson's line hasn't found consistent traction yet.

The week belonged to Sanderson — but Boeser gave UND fans plenty to talk about for entirely different reasons.

The University of North Dakota has always had a pipeline to the NHL, but right now the Senators' locker room might as well be a Fighting Hawks reunion. Shane Pinto and Tyler Kleven are both central figures in Ottawa's hot start — and Pinto, in particular, is making a habit of winning games in the most dramatic fashion possible.

Pinto: The Shootout Assassin

Pinto delivered shootout-winning goals in back-to-back weeks during the Oct. 11–17 window, and they couldn't have come against more different backdrops. On Saturday, Oct. 11, he buried the decisive attempt to lift Ottawa past Nashville 3-2, capping a Senators rally after Drake Batherson tied it with 2:23 left in regulation. Then, on Thursday, Oct. 15, Pinto did it again — this time beating Semyon Varlamov against his hometown New York Islanders to seal a 2-1 win. Ottawa overcame two disallowed goals in that one, making Pinto's composure in the shootout all the more valuable.

He wasn't just living in overtime heroics, either. On Monday, Oct. 12, Pinto struck just nine seconds into the second period against New Jersey — winning the faceoff, getting a feed from Claude Giroux, and burying it — as the Senators rolled to a 4-1 win over the Devils. Ottawa sat at 6-2-0 after that stretch, one of the better records in the Eastern Conference.

The week closed on a down note: Ottawa dropped a 3-1 decision to Philadelphia on Saturday, Oct. 17, with Pinto posting a minus-2. But three clutch contributions over the prior week more than established his credentials as Ottawa's money player in tight moments.

Kleven: A Quiet Anchor With One Loud Moment

Kleven's week was defined by steadiness — and one emphatic exception. On Monday against the Devils, the UND blueliner chipped in a goal and finished plus-2, showing he can contribute offensively when the opportunity presents itself. He was plus-1 in the shootout win over the Islanders on Thursday before a rough final game against Philly, where he matched Pinto's minus-2.

Still, Kleven's role as a reliable defensive presence alongside Pinto gives UND fans two legitimate reasons to track the Senators' line score every night.

Other Hawks Worth Watching

Beyond Ottawa, a few other UND alumni had noteworthy moments. Jackson Blake continued to produce for the Carolina Hurricanes, tallying a goal and an assist in a 5-2 win over Chicago on Saturday, Oct. 11, and adding another assist in a win over Washington on Tuesday. Brock Nelson scored a goal for Colorado on Thursday against Dallas and added an assist in a 5-2 win over Pittsburgh on Saturday. Nick Schmaltz was sharp for Utah, posting three assists across two games (Oct. 14 and Oct. 16). Brock Boeser, meanwhile, notched a goal against the Islanders on Tuesday and two assists across other contests, and entered Canucks franchise history by recording his 80th career power-play goal.

The headline act, though, remains in Ottawa. Pinto and Kleven have UND alumni front and center on one of the NHL's early-season surprise packages — and the Fighting Hawks faithful have every reason to keep a close eye on the Senators' playoff push.

The Sanderson Shadow

Jake Sanderson can't catch a break — literally. The University of North Dakota product and Ottawa Senators defenseman was reinjured less than five minutes into the team's regular season opener in Toronto, exiting and not returning, in an eerie repeat of what happened in his only preseason appearance. The Senators subsequently confirmed he would miss at least two games, leaving the status of one of the league's most dynamic young blueliners shrouded in uncertainty just as the season gets underway.

Sanderson's absence is more than a roster headache — it's a storyline. Ottawa entered 2026-27 determined to shake off a slow start from the prior season, and losing their top defensive asset before the opening buzzer had even faded is a brutal blow to those ambitions. The uncertainty around his return timeline only deepens the concern.

Still, the Senators haven't folded. Teammate and fellow UND alum Tyler Kleven has stepped into an expanded role, while Shane Pinto chipped in an assist in Ottawa's 3-2 win over Nashville on Saturday. Captain Thomas Chabot, speaking after that victory over Toronto earlier in the week, credited a "next man up" mentality — and backed it up by scoring his first goal as captain in the process. The Senators are surviving, but the question of when Sanderson returns looms over every game.

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The Rest of the Fighting Hawks

Sanderson isn't the only UND alum dealing with injury news. Jacob Bernard-Docker, now with Detroit, was listed among four Red Wings sidelined in what's become a genuine injury crisis for the club through the first two games of the season. Detroit has been forced into significant lineup reshuffling, and Bernard-Docker's absence adds another UND name to the league's early walking wounded list.

On the brighter end of the ledger, Jackson Blake is making his presence felt in Carolina. The Hurricanes winger posted a goal, an assist, and a plus-2 rating in Saturday's dominant 5-2 win over Chicago — the kind of performance that signals Blake is ready to carve out real NHL minutes. Brock Nelson also found the net for Colorado in a 6-3 loss to Toronto, a silver lining in an otherwise rough outing for the Avalanche. Nick Schmaltz scored for Utah in a 4-1 win over Buffalo, continuing to look comfortable in his first season with the Mammoth. And Brock Boeser added an assist for Vancouver, though it wasn't enough as the Canucks fell 4-1 to New Jersey.

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The Bigger Picture

UND's NHL footprint remains impressively wide — 20 active alumni across the league — but the week's defining story is injury, not production. Sanderson's health will dictate how much of his considerable ceiling the Senators can tap into this season. For a program that has long been a factory for NHL-ready defensemen, watching two of its most prominent products — Sanderson and Bernard-Docker — sidelined in the same week is a jarring early-season development. The Fighting Hawks faithful will be watching the injury wire as closely as the box scores.