Apr. 3—GRAND FORKS — UND defenseman E.J. Emery sat in the front row Thursday during a press conference to introduce Dane Jackson as the UND hockey program's 17th head coach.
He listened carefully as Jackson explained his vision for the future.
"I thought it was awesome to see Jax talk about the future of the program and hear his thoughts," Emery said.
Where does Emery see that future?
"Winning national championships," he said. "There's a lot of good to come from this program. I'm excited to see what the future holds."
Emery also said he's not considering leaving.
"I'm 100 percent in," Emery said.
That's good news for UND's defensive corps, which figures to be the anchor for the 2025-26 team.
Jake Livanavage, a first-team all-National Collegiate Hockey Conference pick, and junior Bennett Zmolek, also have committed to returning next season.
"It's going to be awesome," Emery said. "We're going to have a really strong D-corps. I'm really excited to see what we're able to bring. We have a lot of high-end guys who are going to make a big impact. The team is going to rely a lot on us. I'm excited to be a part of that."
Emery, the youngest defenseman in the NCHC last season, played 31 games, averaging 19:28 of ice time. Only one freshman in the NCHC averaged more — St. Cloud State's Colin Ralph.
Emery tallied one assist and registered a plus-3 rating.
"I think there's a lot of growth that the players and program are going to have," Emery said. "I think it's going to be a great year next year."
Emery said he will attend the New York Rangers' summer development camp. But other than that, he plans to spend most of his summer in Grand Forks.
"I'm going to be here for most of it," Emery said. "I'm going to be here in June. I'm just trying to work hard. I'm going to go to the development camp. From there, I'll just come back and my main focus is helping this team win a national championship."
