PREVIEW: Ferris State Hockey Hosts Bemidji State To Open Homestand This Weekend

The captain of Ferris State's 2012 Frozen Four Team will represent his country at the 23rd Winter Olympics in Seoul, South Korea next month, as the Marysville, Michigan native will don the red, white and blue for the United States of America. Billins was an integral part of the 2012-13 American Hockey League Calder Cup Championship team with the Grand Rapids Griffins, tallying 10 goals and 27 assists in 76 regular season games, adding two goals and 12 assists in 24 playoff games for 14 playoff points. As a Bulldog, Billins finished with 17 goals and 50 assists for 67 points in 149 games played from 2008 to 2012. Billins has also played overseas in the KHL with CSKA Moskva, and most recently with Linkoping HC in the SHL, where he has 16 points in 31 games this season. Billins becomes the second former Bulldog hockey player to represent the USA at the Olympics (Jason Blake) and the fifth overall to compete at the Olympics. Chris Kunitz, a four-time Stanley Cup Champion won gold with team Canada in 2014. Bob Nardella (Italy, 1998, 2006), Norm Krumpschmid (Austria, 1998) were the other Ferris State hockey Olympians.

Killins Makes Triumphant Return Home

Junior defenseman Ryker Killins had tons of family and friends in the stands last February when the Dawgs visited Sault Ste. Marie, where Killins earned an assist on a Gerald Mayhew goal on his first shift of the weekend. Unfortunatley for Killins, he was injured on just his third shift of the night and missed the rest of the weekend. This year, with 27 family members and friends looking on, Killins picked up two goals and an assist, scoring once each night at Lake Superior State. Killins leads Ferris State's defensive corps in scoring on six goals and nine assists for 15 points. Killins had three goals and six career assists comint into the 2017-18 season, and has established career-highs in all of the above. Is third on the team in point-scoring this season, has a career high +3 rating and 56 shots on goal this year.

Alums Make Big Splashes #Gerrytime Gets Top 10

Ferris State has sent several players to the professional ranks of late, and some of the recent ones have had great success. Gerald Mayhew (2017 Graduate) hit #7 on the Sportscenter Top 10 last week by scoring from the left post on a shot with his stick between his legs underneath the right side of the crossbar on a magnificent goal

with the Iowa Wild in the American Hockey League. Tampa Bay's Chris Kunitz continues along with the Lightning and remains the only player in NHL History to be a four-time Stanley Cup Champion, an Olympic Gold Medalist, an NHL All-Star, play in 1,000 or more games, and finish as a plus player in every season of his career (+7 with Tampa Bay this season). In the ECHL, 2014 graduate Garrett Thompson is one of the highest scoring players at 16 goals and 20 assists for 36 points in 36 games for the Fort Wayne Komets.

The Beavers make the long trek to Big Rapids following a trip and tie at the Ralph Englestad Arena, where they tied then #7 North Dakota 2-2 and are 6-1-1 in their last eight games. While senior goaltender Michael Bitzer struggled early, it's bad news for the rest of the WCHA: He's found himself. He has a scorching .927 save percentage since December the 8th to lead the entire WCHA, including a pair of shutouts. While he did get blitzed for five goals at home against North Dakota, he came back with 29 saves on the road at the home of the Fighting Hawks in Grand Forks to force a tie, as the Beavers only got off 20 shots. Kyle Baurman continues a strong senior campaign, leading the Beavers in points at nine goals and 17 assists for 26 points, closely followed by the six and 17 by Gerry Fitzgerald. The big fella, Jay Dickman (6-6, 230) has 11 goals and seven assists, and has scored a pair of hat tricks this season to lead the team in goals. Defensively, look out for the WCHA's most mind-numbing pair to play against in Justin Baudry and Zach Whitecloud. The suffocating defensive pair have 12 points each, though Whitecloud is the bigger offensive threat and right-shot defenseman. Whitecloud's size, skating ability and puck movement has brough several NHL scouts into the Sanford Center this season. Bitzer has played 1,383 minutes, while Jack Burgart has less than a full game of TOI this season in goal, so figure it'll be Bitzer in goal unless things unravel. In the national statistical rankings, the Beavers rank in the top eight in the country in both power play (8th) and penalty kill (3rd). Characteristically, the Beavers bring it defensively. They rank 13th in the country in team defense, and have began to score goals at a clip unknown in program history (21st nationally in team offense).

All-Time History vs. Bemidji State

The Bulldogs hold a 15-9-3 all-time edge over the Beavers in 29 prior contest, as they meet for the 30th and 31st times in program history. The Bulldogs tied and lost at the Sanford Center back in mid-October. Five of their last ten games have gone into overtime, including a stretch of three in a row at one point. The Bulldogs are 10-5-4 against the Beavers since the two joined the WCHA. Ferris State swept the Beavers in back-to-back first round WCHA Playoff series to reach the WCHA Final Five in 2013-14 (Home) and 2014-15 (Road). Both clinching games went to multiple overtimes (2 in 2013-14, 3 in 2014-15), adding to the drama of the all-time series.

Ahead for Ferris State

Ferris State stays in town the next weekend to lock horns with the Michigan Tech Huskies on the 26th and 27th. The Bulldogs have two lengthy February road trips, on Feb. 2-3 at Alaska (Fairbanks), whom the Bulldog swept in Big Rapids earlier this year. Following a bye week, Ferris State plays their final road regular season games at Minnesota State in the third week of February. The Bulldogs wrap up the regular season with a senior-weekend series with the Lake Superior State Lakers at Ewigleben Ice Arena on Feb. 23-24, their first home games in a month and final of the regular season.