It was the only choice. WCHA rivalries reign supreme.
Two of the most successful programs in college hockey. Two of the most passionate fanbases. Nearly fifty years of competition in the best conference that ever existed in college hockey. There was only one choice for the best rivalry in the sport: Minnesota vs North Dakota.
The history of bad blood between these two schools is genuinely endless. This is a bitter, bitter rivalry — which is obviously why it’s the best. That being said, there are certainly specific moments that ratcheted up the antagonism, perhaps beginning with the 1979 NCAA Championship.
The 1979 NCAA Championship was a watershed moment. Neal Broten scored the game-winning goal while falling down to secure Minnesota’s third national title in six years. Not really sure what North Dakota’s goaltender is doing here — Broten even noted that the goalie “made a mistake” — but the goal is iconic. North Dakota defeated Northern Michigan in 1980 for their third natty.
There’s a history of just absolutely ridiculous game-winning goals in this rivalry. Take this one from Gopher Blake Wheeler. In 2007, Minnesota and North Dakota were playing each other for the Broadmoor Trophy, and Wheeler was just trying to beat out the icing. Diving onto the ice, he got a stick on the puck. Somehow, the puck flipped up and past the arm of the Fighting Hawks goaltender to win the Gophers the trophy.
That might not even be the best part, though. A few weeks later, the two teams met yet again, this time with a trip to the Frozen Four on the line. North Dakota got the last laugh as Chris Porter wrapped the puck into the net in overtime. The Fighting Hawks would finish third.
However, undoubtedly the most ridiculous goal ever scored in this series goes to Gopher Justin Holl in the Frozen Four in 2014. The game was tied 1-1 with time winding down, and Minnesota successfully killed a North Dakota power play. With 9.6 seconds left, there was a faceoff in the Gophers’ zone, which they won. Racing up ice, Holl collected a teammate’s rebound and put it back on net, hoping that it might go in.
Miraculously it did. After video review, they confirmed that the puck had crossed with just 0.6 seconds remaining on the clock and Minnesota would be going to the NCAA Championship game. To add insult to injury, the remaining time meant that five devastated Fighting Hawks would need to line up to take the most pointless faceoff of all time. Union destroying Minnesota 7-4 in the final might have provided some solace there.
Honorable mention to Fighting Hawk Robbie Bina’s 170-foot goal, which you just have to see to believe.
There are also, of course, endless scrums, fights and general moments of nastiness in this series. None may be more infamous than Ben Blood sucker-punching a Gopher in the handshake line — he was later stripped of the ‘A’ for the incident — but there are plenty of others. This one was sparked by a brutal boarding by the Hawks at the end of the second period. A collision with the Gophers’ goaltender caused this melee. And this debacle was caused by a buildup of bad blood all game long. Honorable mention to Minnesota player Dave Spehar being deposited in the North Dakota bench similarly to how I imagine a cartoon character would have been.
The fracturing of the WHCA decimated this rivalry, but it hasn’t destroyed it. After not playing in 2024-25, the two teams renewed their rivalry this year and will play a regular series every season until 2029. It isn’t the same now, but it’s still there — and so is the loathing both schools feel for one another.