Team North Dakota is once again the champion of the National Invitational Tournament.

North Dakota beat Minnesota Juniors 7-3 in the championship game Sunday afternoon at Plymouth Ice Center in Plymouth, Minn.

It marked North Dakota's third title in five years. It finished runner-up in the other two.

Prior to 2021, North Dakota had never won the event.

The NIT is an annual event where prep hockey players showcase themselves in front of junior hockey scouts and college hockey coaches. It features prep players who don't join United States Hockey League or North American Hockey League teams at the end of their high school seasons.

Eight teams participated in the 2025 tournament — two from Minnesota, two from Michigan, two from Wisconsin, one from Colorado and one from North Dakota.

North Dakota went 4-0.

"It's an unbelievable opportunity for our kids," Team North Dakota head coach Chad Dahlen said. "North Dakota gets left on the back burner as far as people wanting to come and scout. This is an opportunity for our kids every year to be seen. That’s what this showcase does.

"It’s not only about winning, but when you win, more people want to come see you. Fortunately, we’ve been lucky enough to keep winning. Scouts and coaches notice."

North Dakota opened with a 4-2 win over Michigan U18s on Thursday. North Dakota beat Minnesota Seniors 7-4 on Friday.

Then, North Dakota beat Wisconsin U18 in a wild game to reach the final. North Dakota trailed 5-0, but rallied for a 9-8 shootout win. North Dakota scored twice after pulling its goaltender to tie it late in the third period.

"One thing we’ve always had all these years is that our teams don’t quit," Dahlen said. "They never stop. We knew we could score. All these guys on our team can score. It was trying to keep emotions in check and keep the boys going. I've never been a part of a game like that. We knew we could come back. We knew it was possible. We just needed to get some breaks."

West Fargo's Bryce Mattern, an Arizona State commit, led the tournament with 11 points in four games. Mackley Morelli of Minot tied for second in scoring with eight points.

Eight Grand Forks Central players were on the roster: forward Cooper Deziel (3-2—5), forward Mack Blue (2-1—3), forward Chay Quamme (1-0—1), forward Ryder Burris (3-1—4), forward Trey Clauson (1-1—2), defenseman Finn Lockwood (1-1—2), defenseman Wyatt Blake (1-0—1) and goaltender Westin Nielsen.

Three Red River players were on the team: forwards Rylan Bydal (1-3—4), Dallas Jackson (1-1—2) and Tyson Ulmer.

Grafton-Park River had one representative in forward James Larson (0-4—4).

Three West Fargo players competed in the event: Mattern, defenseman Alex Arneson and defenseman Noah Betker.

Five players from the West Region were on the team: Morelli, defenseman Aidan Diehl (Minot), goaltender Devon Keller (Minot), forward Andrew Brubakken (Bismarck Century) and defenseman Hayden Eckart (Bismarck Century).

Dahlen and former UND goaltender Jake Brandt served as coaches.

Grant Paranica of Grand Forks and Travis Rybchinski of Bottineau were the team's general managers.

"We played hard," Dahlen said. "Guys aren’t afraid to go into areas. We don't take our foot off the pedal. We take away time and space. We attack everywhere. We don’t sit back. We want teams to have to make plays to beat us."

CONGRATULATIONS !!!