NCHC Suspends Western Michigan's Adam Benák After Slash on UND's Cody Croal

NCHC Suspends Western Michigan’s Adam Benák After Slash on UND’s Cody Croal

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NCHC suspends Adam Benák for one game

The National Collegiate Hockey Conference has issued a one-game suspension to Western Michigan forward Adam Benák following a slashing incident during Saturday night’s game against the University of North Dakota.

The decision, reported by the Grand Forks Herald, follows a play in which Benák struck UND’s Cody Croal in the throat with his stick. The incident occurred as Croal was scoring an empty-net goal to finalize a 4-1 victory for UND at Ralph Engelstad Arena.

During the play, Benák swung his stick with one hand at Croal as the puck was released. The blade of the stick made contact with Croal’s throat, causing him to immediately fall to the ice behind the net.

The contact triggered a melee in the corner of the rink. While Croal eventually stood up and engaged with Benák, the officials on the ice, Jake Jackson and Sterling Egan, assessed Benák a five-minute major and a game misconduct.

NCHC commissioner Heather Weems and director of officiating Mike Schmitt attended the game and reviewed the footage as part of the league’s standard procedure for all major penalties.

Benák will be sidelined for Western Michigan’s upcoming home game against Colorado College on Friday night, though he is eligible to return for the series finale on Saturday.

A shift in league discipline

This is the NCHC's first suspension in two seasons. The rarity of such disciplinary action follows a 2022 NCAA rulebook change that moved toward reserving suspensions for “egregious” conduct, a shift prompted by coaching staff concerns regarding the frequency of penalties.

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The suspension will affect Western Michigan's offensive production. Benák, a fourth-round draft pick of the Minnesota Wild, was the national rookie of the month for October.

He currently leads Western Michigan in scoring with 15 points across nine games. His absence creates a void for a team looking to stabilize its top-line production.

Conflicting views on intent

While the league moved to suspend the player, the reaction from the UND bench suggested a distinction between reckless play and malice. UND coach Dane Jackson noted that while the play was poorly executed, he did not view Benák as a “dirty player.”

“It’s not a very smart play,” Jackson said. “To me, the game is over and it’s a reckless stick, but I don’t think it was malicious. . . he’s not a dirty player.” Dane Jackson

Jackson added that the contact appeared to be an attempt to sweep at the puck that simply resulted in injury. “The way it happened, it worked out bad and unfortunately Cody got hurt. I don’t think he’s a dirty player and was trying to do it. I think he was sweeping at the puck. I personally didn’t feel it was a malicious play.”

In contrast, UND forward Anthony Menghini expressed frustration with the timing of the contact. He characterized the incident as a “cheap shot” occurring after Croal had already successfully scored.

Croal, a junior assistant captain, led the game with two goals and three total points, marking his first three-point performance at the NCAA level. He was unable to participate in the postgame press conference because he was receiving medical treatment for soreness.

Following the game, UND forward Anthony Menghini awarded Croal the team’s “warrior helmet” as the player of the game, citing his reliability and work ethic.

“He’s just a workhorse,” Menghini said. “You see it every day in practice. He battles hard. He does all the little things right — team-first mentality, forecheck, backcheck, really solid, really reliable.”

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