Report: Gophers, North Dakota plan hockey game in Las Vegas

Minnesota and North Dakota will play a hockey game in Las Vegas in October 2018, according to a report in the Grand Forks Herald.

According to the Herald's Brad Elliott Schlossman, "The contract for the game has not been signed yet, but officials at both schools have verbally agreed to play the game. Once it is signed, an announcement is expected. The schools have set aside Oct. 27, 2018, for the single game."

The game will be part of the annual U.S. Hall of Fame series, which will be hosted by North Dakota from 2016-18. One reasons the game can be scheduled, according to the Herald's report, is that it does not count against the team's 34-game regular season schedule limit.

The Minnesota-North Dakota series was one of the hottest rivalries in the Western Colleagiate Hockey Association, but the annual games ended when Minnesota moved to the Big Ten for men's hockey and North Dakota moved to the Northern Collegiate Hockey Conference. Last season was the first time since the mid-1940s that the teams didn't play.

The teams last met in April 2014, when the Gophers won 2-1 in the semifinals of the NCAA Frozen Four.

The Herald reports that the game will be played at the 7,800-seat Orleans Arena, which is part of a hotel-and-casino complex and used to be the home of a minor-league hockey team.

The full story from the Herald is here.