For the University of North Dakota, they have one of the richest hockey traditions in the world winning seven NCAA Division I championships and producing numerous NHL superstars like Jonathon Toews and TJ Oshie just to name a few.

Four members of the Okotoks Oilers have called North Dakota home in their collegiate careers including Brad Eidsness, Derek Rodwell and Corban Knight, but for Rhett Gardner he has the chance to become a National Champion Saturday night.

He notched the empty goal in North Dakota's 4-2 Frozen Four Semi-Final with the Denver Pioneers Thursday and says that tilt had a little bit of everything for the Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan native.

"We kind of took over the game at the end of the 1st period there and kind of took it at the start of the 2nd," he says.  "Then we kind of came out of the third trying to protect the lead instead of keep dictating the play and it definitely was wasn't our best period of the year and they tied it up pretty quick on some mistakes we made then our top line got it done and we just battled it out to the end and found a way to win."

The Hawks scored the winner less than a minute left in the third on a goal by Chicago Blackhawks prospect Nick Schmaltz before Gardner would be called upon to take a couple of big face-offs in the defensive zone with the Denver net empty and he came up big winning the draw with a few seconds left and just clearing the puck enough for the fourth and final goal for North Dakota.

Gardner says it was a task he was up to the challenge for.

"It was crazy," he says. "That draw we definitely had play off that so I knew it was a big one to win and got it back and Stetcher (Troy) made a good play just protecting it on the wall and it just popped loose to me and I just trying to get it out I thought they had three guys on the wall so I was just trying to get it out to the middle and just slowly trickled in so it was good see and there was definitely a lot of excitement the building was electric."

Gardner and the Fighting Hawks will face the number one ranked team in the NCAA the Quinnipac Bobcats at the Amalie Arena in Tampa, Florida. The home of the NHL's Lightning and Gardner says it's going to be a big atmosphere like a Stanley Cup Final.

"Quinnipiac is a really hard working and structured team which is kind of like us. Attention to detail is going to be huge and just don't give them any chances, they have a good power play they're running at about 27 percent so we'll have to stay out of the box and if we do get into some penalty trouble we'll just have to bear down and get big and block a lot shots and just out work them for 60 minutes."

It was bitter sweet for Gardner, on one hand he's off to the biggest game of his hockey career in just his Freshman season but he also had to get there by beating a close friend and former Oiler teammate in Tariq Hammond and says it was an emotional handshake at centre after the game's conclusion.

"I owe a lot of this to him (Hammond) and how much he helped me in my rookie year in Okotoks. He got me through a lot of ups and downs as a new guy so it was tough to see him on the otherside of things but that's the way hockey goes sometimes. He wished me all the best Saturday and was being a good friend."

You can catch the NCAA Championship Game live on TSN 2 Saturday night at 6 p.m.