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Mar. 14—OMAHA, Neb. — It started with Mike Schmaltz.
He was a wide receiver at Bismarck-St. Mary's High School. UND and North Dakota State both recruited him.
UND coach Roger Thomas won the battle. Schmaltz became part of Thomas' first recruiting class at UND.
It started a domino effect that's still being felt on campus nearly 40 years later.
First, it was Schmaltz's younger brother's Marc and Monte. They often visited Mike during his freshman season.
"We kind of fell in love with the place," Marc said.
Marc, an outside linebacker, followed a year later. Monte, a strong safety, followed two years later.
Two decades later, Mike's sons, Jordan and Nick, followed in a different sport — hockey.
They were both NHL first-round picks. Jordan was a two-time all-National Collegiate Hockey Conference pick. Nick was the first-line center on UND's 2016 NCAA national championship team.
In 2021, it was Marc's son, Jake's, turn.
Jake is now a senior alternate captain and the final days are ticking away on the second generation of Schmaltz athletes at UND.
"It's pretty cool to fulfill that dream of mine to come here," Jake said. "My parents raised me to come to North Dakota. That's what they were all about and that's everything I became about."
Mike and Marc moved to Madison, Wis., after graduating from UND.
Mike and his wife, Lisa, had three kids — Jordan, Nick and Kylie. Jake is the only child of Marc and Kelly.
The family had season tickets to Badger hockey games in Section 226 of the Kohl Center. Mike and Marc trained Badger hockey players during the week and the family cheered for them — except one weekend a year.
"When North Dakota came, we would go in full North Dakota gear," Marc said. "Jordan and Nick had Panzer jerseys."
Jake had his favorites, too.
He loved watching the Ryan Duncan-Jonathan Toews-T.J. Oshie line.
"I loved Andrew MacWilliam, too," Jake said. "He was a fun player to watch. All those teams, when they came to Madison, they were fun to watch."
They grew up playing both hockey and football just like their fathers (who quit hockey when Bismarck St. Mary's eliminated the sport).
Jake was a quarterback. Jordan and Nick were running backs.
But all of them chose hockey.
Jordan, the oldest, was getting recruited by college teams at the age of 13 and 14. He briefly committed to Wisconsin when he was 14, which surprised some family members. But it didn't last long. He de-committed from the Badgers and landed with North Dakota.
"Yeah, I was committed to Wisconsin at one point," Jordan said, "but I was never going there. North Dakota has been instilled in us since Day 1."
Nick's commitment soon followed.
Jordan helped bring UND to the 2014 NCAA Frozen Four as a sophomore.
He opted to return to school for his junior year and play with Nick for one season. They reached the NCAA Frozen Four again, then Jordan signed with the St. Louis Blues.
"To get to see them play together was something really cool," Jake said. "It definitely inspired me to want to come here and kind of create my own experiences."
As a child, Jake visited his cousins at UND.
"Marc would drop him off at our place on 20th and University," Jordan said. "Little Jake was 10 or 12 years old and he got a taste of the culture. It's embedded in him. He learned through osmosis what this is all about.
"He learned what Sioux hockey is all about, because he was in the thick of it. If we were going to the Pepper, he was coming to the Pepper. If we went to the Blue Moose, he was coming to Blue Moose. If we went to the rink, he was coming to the rink."
A few years later when UND coach Brad Berry offered Jake, he committed on the spot.
"He didn't have to think about it," Marc said. "It was almost like a snap reaction. He could have gotten 50,000 offers from other places. He wouldn't have gone there. He would have gone to the University of North Dakota. He's all-in. He's been a Sioux for life."
Jake's path has been different than Jordan and Nick.
He's been used as a defensive, shutdown forward for much of his career. He's tallied 20 goals and 62 points in 144 career games.
While Nick played two years and Jordan three before heading to the NHL, Jake spent all four seasons in Grand Forks. He served as an alternate captain as a senior and will earn his degree this spring.
Last weekend, Jordan texted Jake to tell him to soak up Senior Night — something the older cousins never experienced.
"When you're sitting on the bench before the Saturday game," Jordan told Jake, "look at that student section. Take a look at the whole crowd. The building is full. Sadly, you're never going to see this again, fella."
Jake, who won two Penrose Cups as NCHC champions in his four years, said his college experience has been exactly what he dreamed.
"It's been the best," Jake said. "It's everything I ever wanted. I heard about it a bunch. It's been everything and more of what I thought it was going to be."
Once this season ends, that's it for this generation of the Schmaltz family. There are only four of them — Jordan, Nick, Jake and Kylie, who played volleyball at Kentucky.
"Hopefully, one day our kids will be good enough to play hockey at the University of North Dakota," Jordan said. "It's the end of an era. . . for now."
Continue reading...
He was a wide receiver at Bismarck-St. Mary's High School. UND and North Dakota State both recruited him.
UND coach Roger Thomas won the battle. Schmaltz became part of Thomas' first recruiting class at UND.
It started a domino effect that's still being felt on campus nearly 40 years later.
First, it was Schmaltz's younger brother's Marc and Monte. They often visited Mike during his freshman season.
"We kind of fell in love with the place," Marc said.
Marc, an outside linebacker, followed a year later. Monte, a strong safety, followed two years later.
Two decades later, Mike's sons, Jordan and Nick, followed in a different sport — hockey.
They were both NHL first-round picks. Jordan was a two-time all-National Collegiate Hockey Conference pick. Nick was the first-line center on UND's 2016 NCAA national championship team.
In 2021, it was Marc's son, Jake's, turn.
Jake is now a senior alternate captain and the final days are ticking away on the second generation of Schmaltz athletes at UND.
"It's pretty cool to fulfill that dream of mine to come here," Jake said. "My parents raised me to come to North Dakota. That's what they were all about and that's everything I became about."
Mike and Marc moved to Madison, Wis., after graduating from UND.
Mike and his wife, Lisa, had three kids — Jordan, Nick and Kylie. Jake is the only child of Marc and Kelly.
The family had season tickets to Badger hockey games in Section 226 of the Kohl Center. Mike and Marc trained Badger hockey players during the week and the family cheered for them — except one weekend a year.
"When North Dakota came, we would go in full North Dakota gear," Marc said. "Jordan and Nick had Panzer jerseys."
Jake had his favorites, too.
He loved watching the Ryan Duncan-Jonathan Toews-T.J. Oshie line.
"I loved Andrew MacWilliam, too," Jake said. "He was a fun player to watch. All those teams, when they came to Madison, they were fun to watch."
They grew up playing both hockey and football just like their fathers (who quit hockey when Bismarck St. Mary's eliminated the sport).
Jake was a quarterback. Jordan and Nick were running backs.
But all of them chose hockey.
Jordan, the oldest, was getting recruited by college teams at the age of 13 and 14. He briefly committed to Wisconsin when he was 14, which surprised some family members. But it didn't last long. He de-committed from the Badgers and landed with North Dakota.
"Yeah, I was committed to Wisconsin at one point," Jordan said, "but I was never going there. North Dakota has been instilled in us since Day 1."
Nick's commitment soon followed.
Jordan helped bring UND to the 2014 NCAA Frozen Four as a sophomore.
He opted to return to school for his junior year and play with Nick for one season. They reached the NCAA Frozen Four again, then Jordan signed with the St. Louis Blues.
"To get to see them play together was something really cool," Jake said. "It definitely inspired me to want to come here and kind of create my own experiences."
As a child, Jake visited his cousins at UND.
"Marc would drop him off at our place on 20th and University," Jordan said. "Little Jake was 10 or 12 years old and he got a taste of the culture. It's embedded in him. He learned through osmosis what this is all about.
"He learned what Sioux hockey is all about, because he was in the thick of it. If we were going to the Pepper, he was coming to the Pepper. If we went to the Blue Moose, he was coming to Blue Moose. If we went to the rink, he was coming to the rink."
A few years later when UND coach Brad Berry offered Jake, he committed on the spot.
"He didn't have to think about it," Marc said. "It was almost like a snap reaction. He could have gotten 50,000 offers from other places. He wouldn't have gone there. He would have gone to the University of North Dakota. He's all-in. He's been a Sioux for life."
Jake's path has been different than Jordan and Nick.
He's been used as a defensive, shutdown forward for much of his career. He's tallied 20 goals and 62 points in 144 career games.
While Nick played two years and Jordan three before heading to the NHL, Jake spent all four seasons in Grand Forks. He served as an alternate captain as a senior and will earn his degree this spring.
Last weekend, Jordan texted Jake to tell him to soak up Senior Night — something the older cousins never experienced.
"When you're sitting on the bench before the Saturday game," Jordan told Jake, "look at that student section. Take a look at the whole crowd. The building is full. Sadly, you're never going to see this again, fella."
Jake, who won two Penrose Cups as NCHC champions in his four years, said his college experience has been exactly what he dreamed.
"It's been the best," Jake said. "It's everything I ever wanted. I heard about it a bunch. It's been everything and more of what I thought it was going to be."
Once this season ends, that's it for this generation of the Schmaltz family. There are only four of them — Jordan, Nick, Jake and Kylie, who played volleyball at Kentucky.
"Hopefully, one day our kids will be good enough to play hockey at the University of North Dakota," Jordan said. "It's the end of an era. . . for now."
Continue reading...
