GRAND FORKS — Since Dane Jackson was hired as UND’s head coach in late March, and Bryn Chyzyk as general manager in April, the Fighting Hawks have been in a sprint to finish the 2025-26 roster.

The new regime, along with retained assistant Dillon Simpson, has made seven new additions to the roster and has three or four to go.

While the 2025-26 roster has been the focus, they’ve also been working on future recruiting.

The staff landed its first in-the-pipeline commit last week in Cooper Williams, a center for the Western Hockey League’s Saskatoon Blades.

Williams is UND’s second overall commit from Canadian major juniors. Forward Josh Zakreski of the WHL’s Portland Winterhawks committed under former coach Brad Berry.

Due to an NCAA rules change last November, Canadian major junior players are allowed to retain their college eligibility for the first time in decades.

Williams is a bit of a unique Canadian Hockey League-NCAA commitment.

Most players committing out of the three major junior leagues — the WHL, Ontario Hockey League and Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League — have been older, and are entering college this season.

According to

Chris Heisenberg’s recruiting database,

Williams is the second-youngest CHL player — and the youngest from the WHL — to commit to an NCAA program so far.

Only Miami commit Maxim Dube, who plays in the QMJHL, is younger.

What type of prospect is Williams? What should fans expect?

That can be hard to measure with CHL players because there are no past examples of how they produce in the NCAA to use as a comparison.

Instead, I looked at how many players have tallied 50-plus points in the WHL during their U17 season. Williams tallied 57 this season.

In the last 15 seasons, 27 players have done it.

The most notable part? Nearly all of them have been picked in the top two rounds of the NHL Draft — or will be.

So far, 19 of them have gone through their drafts. Fourteen were taken in the first round, four in the second round and one in the third. Notably, that third-rounder was Tampa Bay Lightning first-line center and two-time Stanley Cup champion Brayden Point.

Eight have not gone through their drafts.

Two are projected to go No. 1 overall in upcoming drafts — 2026-eligible Gavin McKenna and 2027-eligible Landon DuPont.

Three are draft-eligible in June and are all ranked inside TSN’s Bob McKenzie’s top 30 — Ben Kindel (No. 25), Cole Reschny (No. 29) and Cameron Schmidt (No. 30).

The other three are 2025-eligible Jordan Gavin, a potential late-round pick, 2026-eligible Ryan Lin, a potential first-rounder, and Williams.

Williams hasn’t been a part of much NHL Draft speculation to this point, but his numbers indicate that might change this year.

Williams will head back to the Blades for the 2025-26 season. He’ll come to UND in 2026 or 2027.

If he lands in the same sphere as his U17 peers in the WHL, 2026 seems more likely.

Since 2010
100 — Connor Bedard (Round 1, Pick 1)
97 — Gavin McKenna (2026, expected No. 1 overall)
69 — Andrew Cristall (Rd. 2, Pick 40)
69 — Tanner Howe (Rd. 2, Pick 46)
63 — Zach Benson (Rd. 1, Pick 13)
62 — Sam Reinhart (Rd. 1, Pick 2)
60 — *Landon DuPont (2027, expected No. 1 overall)
60 — Ben Kindel (2025, Central Scouting No. 21)
59 — Brayden Yager (Rd. 1, Pick 14)
59 — Dylan Guenther (Rd. 1, Pick 9)
59 — Cole Reschny (2025, Central Scouting No. 24)
58 — Cameron Schmidt (2025, Central Scouting No. 43)
58 — Riley Heidt (Rd. 2, Pick 64)
58 — Nick Merkley (Rd. 1, Pick 30)
57 — Cooper Williams (2026)
57 — Brayden Point (Rd. 3, Pick 79)
57 — Kailer Yamamoto (Rd. 1, Pick 22)
56 — Nolan Patrick (Rd. 1, Pick 2)
55 — Berkly Catton (Rd. 1, Pick 8)
55 — Ryder Ritchie (Rd. 2, Pick 45)
54 — Matt Barzal (Rd. 1, Pick 16)
54 — Peyton Krebs (Rd. 1, Pick 17)
54 — Sam Steel (Rd. 1, Pick 30)
54 — Jordan Gavin (2025)
53 — Cole Sillinger (Rd. 1, Pick 12)
53 — Dylan Cozens (Rd. 1, Pick 7)
53 — *Ryan Lin (2026)
*DuPont and Lin are defensemen

Former UND star Jackson Blake is producing for the Carolina Hurricanes, who are playing the Florida Panthers in the Eastern Conference Final.

Blake is tied as the top rookie scorer in the Stanley Cup Playoffs with five points in 10 games.

Teammate Logan Stankoven, who qualifies as a rookie, also has five points in 10 playoff games.

Blake is one of three UND players left in the Stanley Cup Playoffs. Tyson Jost, who played 39 games with Carolina this season, is on the roster but hasn’t suited up yet in the playoffs.

Troy Stecher and the Edmonton Oilers are taking on the Dallas Stars in the Western Conference Final.

Matt Kiersted played in two games with Florida this season, but is currently with American Hockey League affiliate Charlotte. Kiersted and the Checkers are one win away from the Eastern Conference Final.

• UND commit Keaton Jundt of West Fargo has signed with Calgary Hitmen of the WHL. Jundt was a Fargo Force draft pick in the USHL.
• Jake Livanavage, back at home in Arizona, skated with former UND star Jonathan Toews on Monday. Toews is looking to sign an NHL deal for next season. Livanavage is returning to UND for his junior season.
• Ralph Engelstad Arena hosted a camp with top young prospects last weekend. R.J. Thompson, a 2010-born forward, was one of the notable players at the camp. Thompson is eligible to commit on Aug. 1, 2026.
• Incoming UND freshman defenseman Sam Laurila was named the team MVP of the Fargo Force this season.
• Chris Jandric is tied as the leading defenseman scorer in the ECHL’s Kelly Cup Playoffs. Jandric plays for Trois-Rivières, which holds a 2-0 series lead on three-time champion Cam Johnson and the Florida Everblades.
• St. Thomas announced it will open Lee and Penny Anderson Arena on Oct. 24 against Providence.
• Michigan State commit Tyson Jugnauth, the WHL’s Defenseman of the Year, will sign with the Seattle Kraken rather than attend college. To fill that roster void, the Spartans picked up Ferris State transfer Travis Shoudy, who was originally scheduled to go to Colorado College. Shoudy’s brother, Tiernan, is a senior at Michigan State.

Carlsbad, Calif. – Oklahoma State wrapped up its season with a 15^th place showing at the NCAA Division I Women’s Golf Championship at Omni La Costa Resort & Spa.
 
The Cowgirls finished with the event with the sixth-lowest 72-hole team score in program history at 1,180 (+28) but were unable to secure one of the eight spots in Tuesday’s match play quarterfinals.
 
Grace Kilcrease led the way at 3-over par, tying for 30^th place on the individual leaderboard while putting herself in the conversation for All-American honors. Sophomore Marta Silchenko wasn’t far behind, tying for 40^th in a field of 160 golfers at 6-over.
 
Ellie Bushnell finished strong with a 75 to grab a share of 54^th place at 10-over par.
 
The two first year’s, Summer Lee and Lucy Darr –- subbing in for Tarapath Panya — shot 77 and 80 respectively in Monday’s final round.
 
For all-around coverage of Oklahoma State women’s golf, visit okstate.com or follow @Cowgirlgolf on social media.
 
Team Leaderboard:
1. Stanford (-27) — 293-278-270-284
2. Oregon (-6) — 288-289-285-284
3. Northwestern (+2) — 291-285-280-298
4. Florida State (+3) — 295-284-288-288
5. Southern California (+4) — 292-287-285-292
6. Arkansas (+6) — 297-290-280-291
7. Texas (+8) — 288-293-288-291
8. Virginia (+15) — 294-293-289-291
CUT LINE
9. Arizona State (+16) — 288-294-293-293
10. South Carolina (+17) — 297-286-289-297
10. LSU (+17) — 293-297-290-289
12. UCLA (+19) — 295-294-293-289
13. Tennessee (+21) — 291-297-288-297
14. Mississippi State (+26) — 294-286-302-296
15. Oklahoma State (+28) — 284-297-297-302
 
Individual Leaderboard:
T30. Grace Kilcrease (+3) — 69-71-75-76
T40. Marta Silchenko (+6) — 71-76-73-74
T54. Ellie Bushnell (+10) — 71-78-74-75
T63. Summer Lee (+12) — 73-75-75-77
169. Tarapath Panya (N/A) — 74-75-82-SUB
172. Lucy Darr (N/A) — SUB-SUB-SUB-80
 

COLLEGE PARK, MD — The Women’s Collegiate Gymnastics Association (WCGA) announced at the end of April that former University of Maryland Head Coach Bob ‘Duke’ Nelligan has been inducted into the WCGA Hall of Fame.

Nelligan led Maryland Gymnastics for 31 years, from 1979 to 2009, building a legacy defined by passion, leadership, and excellence. Under his guidance, the program qualified for the NCAA Southeast Region Championships 14 times and recorded 494 wins — the fourth-most in Maryland Gymnastics history.

Throughout his storied career, Nelligan earned numerous accolades, including Southeast Regional Head Coach of the Year and EAGL Conference Head Coach of the Year.

Following his retirement in 2009, his son Brett Nelligan took over as head coach, continuing the family legacy and guiding the program forward with the same spirit and dedication.

Coach Nelligan’s impact on the sport continues to inspire generations of gymnasts, coaches, and fans. His Hall of Fame induction is a testament to his remarkable career and enduring legacy.

 

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — Former Alabama head coach Nick Saban spent time with the media on Tuesday ahead of his annual Nick’s Kids Golf Tournament. Saban was on hand to highlight his foundation’s work in the community and raise money for future projects, but he did spend time clarifying his role in shaping the future of college athletics.

The seven-time national champion has occasionally been mischaracterized as “anti-NIL” as he’s called for guardrails to ensure the sports sustainability.

“I’m not anti-NIL,” Saban said. “I’m all for the players making money. I don’t think we have a sustainable system right now. I think a lot of people would agree with that, in terms of the future of college athletics, period. Not just the future of college football. How can we sustain the 20 other non-revenue sports that create lots of opportunities for people in the future?”

Saban elaborated and restated his stance on President Trump’s announcement that he will serve as a co-chair for a College Sports Commission that could serve to influence the direction of college athletics.

“I know there’s been a lot of stuff out there about some commission or whatever. I don’t think we need a commission. I’ve said that before. I think we need — we know what the issues are, we just have to have people who are willing to move those and solve those and create some solutions for some of those issues. I’m all for being a consultant to anybody who would think that my experience would be beneficial to helping create some of those solutions.

“I know President Trump is very interested in athletics. He’s very interested in college athletics. He’s very interested in maintaining the idea that people go to college to create value for the future in terms of how they develop as people, students, graduation rate as well as having a balanced, competitive playing field. If I can be a consultant to anyone who might be able to help the future of college athletics, I would be more than happy to do that.”