GRAND FORKS -- Colten St. Clair was in Ralph Engelstad Arena the night UND's Matt Frattin leveled Minnesota's Kevin Wehrs in the northeast corner.
St. Clair was on an official recruiting visit.
He had already committed to UND, but made the trip to Grand Forks to watch the North Dakota-Minnesota rivalry in person.
"I loved seeing the rivalry and how much passion there was between the Grand Forks community, the players and the coaches," St. Clair said. "It was fun to be around."
But St. Clair never got to experience the rivalry in The Ralph for himself.
He's one of just six four-year players -- at North Dakota or Minnesota -- who never had the rivalry scheduled at home during their college careers.
The others are UND's Drake Caggiula, Bryn Chyzyk, Coltyn Sanderson, Gage Ausmus and Matt Hrynkiw.
Their careers coincided with the breakup of the old Western Collegiate Hockey Association. Minnesota moved to the Big 10, UND to the National Collegiate Hockey Conference.
The programs did not play in the regular season in the first three years after conference realignment (2013-16). They only met in Minneapolis the year before (2012-13) and the year after (2016-17).
"We definitely talked about it and we were bummed about it at the time," said Chyzyk, who is now UND's general manager. "I remember thinking how badly we wished we had them at home. You had heard all the stories from the other guys about what the crowd is like when the Gophers come to town."
St. Clair, Caggiula, Chyzyk and Sanderson were rookies in 2012-13, the final year UND and Minnesota were in the same conference. They only played in Mariucci Arena that season, and Chyzyk and Sanderson were scratched and left home.
"We begged Hak (coach Dave Hakstol) to let us go," Sanderson said. "He said he would check with the administration."
The answer was no.
Chyzyk and Sanderson watched from their Walsh Hall dorm room. When Minnesota tied the series finale with a late goal, Sanderson threw his Gatorade bottle.
"There may have been a broken television," Chyzyk said.
St. Clair made that trip as a freshman.
"You hear people talk about the Minnesota-Sioux rivalry," he said. "I was happy we got to play them, but it would have been better in The Ralph. That would have been cool. But I guess Mariucci was like half a home game, anyway."
That group played Minnesota in the 2014 Frozen Four in Philadelphia.
UND and Minnesota did not play at all in 2014-15 or 2015-16 -- the only time in program history the rivals went consecutive years without playing. UND won the NCHC both seasons and the NCAA national championship in 2016.
"We got to go to the Kohl Center and we hosted Wisconsin my senior year," Sanderson said. "We always had Denver and Duluth. But the Gophers, for me looking back at it, was a missed opportunity, unfortunately, because of realignment. We never got to experience what UND alumni talk about all the time, which is UND-Gophers (in Grand Forks)."
Ausmus and Hrynkiw were freshmen in 2013-14. UND played at Minnesota during their senior seasons.
They never got a home game, though.
Ausmus, who went to East Grand Forks Senior High, never attended a UND-Minnesota game in The Ralph until November 2021.
"Growing up here, you see all these rivalries and you want to be a part of them so bad," Ausmus said. "You want to play in one of those. We were not happy about it. We were definitely aware of it."
UND and Minnesota will play at 7:07 p.m. Friday and 6:07 p.m. Saturday night in Ralph Engelstad Arena.
They're also scheduled to play the next three seasons. They'll be in Minneapolis on Oct. 23-24, 2026. They'll play in Grand Forks in 2027-28 and in Minneapolis in 2028-29. Those dates have yet to be set.
Only five players on UND's roster have suited up in a UND-Minnesota game -- Dylan James, Ben Strinden, Bennett Zmolek, Jake Livanavage and Abram Wiebe.
The other 22 are about to get their first experience.
What messages do the former players have for them?
"Take it personally, because it is," St. Clair said. "It's Ohio State-Michigan. It's the same thing. Don't overthink it, but there's a little more incentive when you're playing the Gophers."
Chyzyk said: "Embrace the opportunity. I think every UND hockey alum is tuned into this weekend. Not everyone can follow every single weekend of the hockey team, but I know they'll be watching or checking box scores this weekend."
Ausmus said, "Treat it like a playoff game. Don't let emotions get the best of you. Keep them even-keeled. Keep a clear head. But at the same time, this isn't a normal game. It's not a normal October college hockey game. I like to compare it to the Ohio State-Michigan football rivalry."
Sanderson said the players may never experience higher emotions than this weekend, unless it's in the NCAA tournament or Frozen Four.
"It's a really good experience for them to understand how much passion there is, and to know what they're playing for," Sanderson said. "It's super important for a young group to see the buy-in from the city, the state and around the country for UND hockey. It's going to hit them in the face.
"There are going to be ups and downs this weekend and they're going to have to learn to roll with it. I think that's a great opportunity for a young team."