Tonight on NBCSN: Doubleheader action featuring No. 1 Quinnipiac and No. 6 North Dakota

Tonight’s doubleheader features a great, yet not well known, ECAC rivalry and thriller of a match-up in the WCHA.

No. 1 Quinnipiac Bobcats (22-4-4) vs. No. 13 Yale Bulldogs (13-9-3) – 7:30 p.m. ET

Quinnipiac may have taken the college hockey world by storm this season but they head into tonight’s game looking to keep their steamship of a season rolling right along. They’re the top team in the country and they’ve already locked up the ECAC’s regular season title. Coach Rand Pecknold’s team is a beast that can score plenty and stymie you defensively. To add to their Connecticut rivalry, they’ve already whooped on Yale in their barn this season.

Yale, meanwhile, wants to make sure they don’t drift too far out of second place. After getting swept by Union and suddenly scorching hot Rensselaer last weekend, the Bulldogs are tied for fifth with Dartmouth in the league. Paying back the Bobcats for their defeat earlier this season would help get them back on track.

NHL prospects to watch

Quinnipiac: Matthew Peca (SO – F- Tampa Bay – pictured), Jordan Samuels-Thomas (SR – F – Winnipeg), Kellen Jones (JR – F – EDM). Undrafted stars: Jeremy Langlois (SR – F; team points leader with 26), Eric Hartzell (SR – G; 1.46 GAA .935 SV%)

Yale:  Kenny Agostino (F – JR – Pittsburgh), Gus Young (D – JR – Colorado), Rob O’Gara (D – FR – Boston), Matthew Beattie (F – FR – Vancouver). Undrafted stars: Andrew Miller (SR – F; tied for team lead in goals with 12, 2^nd in points), Antoine Laganiere (SR – F; also tied with Miller and Agostino in goals, third on team in points), Jeff Malcolm (SR – G; 2.48 GAA .918 SV%)

No. 10 Denver Pioneers (15-9-5) vs. No. 6 University of North Dakota (16-8-6) – 10:05 p.m. ET

The race in the WCHA for the top spot is a tight one and both North Dakota and Denver are in striking distance. UND sits just three points back of St. Cloud State but they’re in fifth place. Meanwhile, DU is six points back in seventh place. It’s fitting that the final season of this iteration of the WCHA has turned into a wild one.

North Dakota heads into this game unbeaten in their last five games (3-0-2) and winners of three in a row. Denver, on the other hand, comes in grumpy after tying and losing to rival Colorado College last weekend and falling a bit further back in the conference race. With the season winding down and the boatload of talent on the ice between these teams, expect both to come out all guns blazing.

NHL prospects to watch

Denver: The Pioneers roll with seven NHL prospects highlighted by the team’s leading scorer, junior forward Nick Shore (Los Angeles). Sophomore defenseman Joey LaLeggia (Edmonton) is their top point-getter along the blue line. Others to watch: Zac Larraza (SO – F – Phoenix), Scott Mayfield (SO – D – NY Islanders), Paul Phillips (SR – D – Chicago), Josiah Didier (SO – D – Montreal), Sam Brittain (JR – G – Florida)

North Dakota:  They have 14 NHL-drafted players here. The best of the bunch are their top-four scorers in seniors Corban Knight (Florida) Danny Kristo (Montreal -pictured), freshman Rocco Grimaldi (Florida) and sophomore Mark MacMillan (Montreal). Freshman goalie Zane Gothberg (Boston) has impressed of late.

(Photos: ECAC Hockey, North Dakota sports)