UND hockey past and future: Judd Caulfield thriving in San Diego — and more

Feb. 24—GRAND FORKS — Judd Caulfield participated in UND hockey's pro camp this fall.

"That helped a lot getting ready for the season," Caulfield said. "I came in, had a good camp at the start and was able to carry some momentum."

Caulfield, who played at Grand Forks Central and UND, scored a goal in the first game of the season for the San Diego Gulls in the American Hockey League. He scored again in the second game.

The 6-foot-3, 207-pound winger is in the midst of his best pro season yet.

He has 14 goals and 28 points in 49 games for the Gulls, the top affiliate of the NHL's Anaheim Ducks. Caulfield is tied for second on the team in goals and fourth in points.

"I'm definitely feeling a lot more comfortable in the league, being my third full season," Caulfield said. "It's a bit of an adjustment at first — a different pace and playing older players again. There are shutdown 'D' that have been in the league for six-to-eight years. Playing against those types of players, it's definitely tough. I'm re-finding my game, using my physicality. I've been more physical this year. I've been able to protect pucks and hold onto pucks more this year, not getting knocked off as easily."

Caulfield has eight points in his last nine games.

The Gulls are 23-16-6-4 and currently in position to make the Calder Cup Playoffs.

"The team this year is awesome," Caulfield said. "We have a lot of guys back from last year. We had a close group last year. This year, we're building on those bonds. It's been working out for us."

Caulfield, 24, signed a one-year contract with San Diego in the summer. This is his third year playing for the Gulls.

"It's been great out here," Caulfield said. "It's nice, because you can get away from the rink a little bit, walk along the beach and enjoy nice weather out here. It's always nice to get away and get a mental reset. It's so easy to do out here."

Caulfield is teammates with Tim Washe, who captained Western Michigan to an NCAA national championship last year. He said they've already discussed their excitement for this weekend's series between their alma maters.

"We'll definitely be following along," Caulfield said. "We were saying we might have to put a little bet on it. We both love following along with the college guys. It's great to see how UND has been doing this year. It's going to be exciting to see what happens this weekend and the rest of the playoffs."

*Former East Grand Forks standout Colton Poolman has three points and a plus-4 rating in the last four games for the Glasgow Clan of the top United Kingdom-based league. Poolman is an alternate captain for Glasgow.

*Winger Austin Poganski scored in back-to-back games for the Tucson Roadrunners in the AHL. Poganski, the team captain, has 34 points in 47 games. He's the third-leading scorer on the team.

*Winger Riese Gaber has four points in his last five games for the Charlotte Checkers in the AHL.

*Former Grand Forks Central defenseman Paul LaDue scored his fifth goal of the season for Rögle BK in Sweden's top league on Saturday. LaDue has 16 points in 40 games.

*Goaltender Cam Johnson started on three consecutive nights this weekend for the Florida Everblades in the ECHL. Johnson stopped 61 of 65 (.938 save percentage) in those games. He has a .912 save percentage this season.

*Defenseman Matt Kiersted was called up from the AHL's Iowa Wild to the NHL's Minnesota Wild on Tuesday. Kiersted has played four games with Minnesota this season.

*Two former UND players earned call-ups from the ECHL to the AHL: goalie T.J. Semptimphelter (Milwaukee Admirals) and forward Cameron Berg (Bridgeport Islanders). Semptimphelter earned his first start Saturday night against AHL-leading Grand Rapids. He stopped 26 of 30 shots.

*Semptimphelter signed a one-year contract extension with Milwaukee for the 2026-27 season.

*Four UND commits played in the Western Hockey League Prospects Game last Wednesday — forward Andrew O'Neill of Fargo, forward Cooper Williams, defenseman Ethan MacKenzie and defenseman Brayden Klimpke. Williams, who plays for the Saskatoon Blades, was a standout in the game, making two beautiful feeds to set up goals. All four players are eligible for the 2026 NHL Draft. Only MacKenzie is expected to come to UND in the fall.

*Defenseman commit Beck Thoreson returned to the ice Feb. 13 after suffering a longterm injury in November. Thoreson, of Moorhead, plays for the U.S. Under-17 Team.

*Forward commit Ashton Schultz has five points in four games since he was traded from the Chicago Steel to the Sioux City Musketeers in the United States Hockey League.

A judge in Washington DC has sentenced Australian man Peter Williams to 87 months in prison for selling sensitive information to a Russian broker.

Steinbach's performance tied him for second place in Division I for double-doubles this season. The 6-foot-11 German shot 9-of-13 from the field and 6-of-7 from the foul line. Wesley Yates III added 19 points and seven assists for Washington (14-14, 6-11 Big Ten), which took the lead for good with a pair of free throws just 2:58 into the game.

This victory marked Washington's first-ever win at Rutgers. The Scarlet Knights (11-17, 4-13) were led by Lino Mark with 18 points and Darren Buchanan Jr. with 17 points. Washington will host Wisconsin on Saturday, while Rutgers visits Maryland on Sunday.

Woolworths shareholders will receive an interim dividend of 45 cents per shares, up from the same time a year ago.