University of Minnesota Athletics
Friday, November 23
3M Arena at Mariucci
7:00 PM
University of Minnesota
vs
Michigan State University
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Gophers Return to B1G Action Against Spartans
11/21/2018 12:29:00 PM | Men's Hockey
MINNEAPOLIS -- The Gopher Hockey program returns to Big Ten play this weekend with a two-game series against Michigan State at 3M Arena at Mariucci. The conference series opens on Friday, Nov. 23 with the finale set for Saturday, Nov. 24 -- both games are set for 7 p.m. CT puck drops.
Fantastic Freshmen
Minnesota's All-Freshmen Line of Nathan Burke, Sammy Walker and Blake McLaughlin scored all three goals in Saturday's 3-0 win over St. Lawrence and contributed six of the Gophers' nine points in the win. Burke (two goals including the game winner for his first two collegiate points), Walker (one goal, one assist) and McLaughlin (two assists) all recorded their first multi-point games with the Gophers in the win. The freshmen class has 17 points on the year, finding itself tied with the senior class for Minnesota's top scoring group, while the rookies lead the team with eight goals on the year.
Schierhorn Nears School Record
Senior goaltender Eric Schierhorn (1-2-0) picked up his first win of the season on Saturday with a 12-save shutout -- his 12th career shutout as the two-time Big Ten Goaltender of the Year claimed sole possession of third all-time at Minnesota (only Adam Wilcox and Kellen Briggs have more with 13 each). With a 56-43-4 career record, Schierhorn ranks tied for sixth in school history in wins and sixth in saves at 2,579 while his .906 save percentage would rank tied for fourth all-time. Schierhorn enters this weekend's series with a 9-1-1 career record against Michigan State (1.72 GAA, .919 save percentage).
Against Michigan State
Minnesota enters this weekend's Big Ten series with a 117-45-16 all-time series against Michigan State after sweeping four regular-season games over the Spartans last season. The Gophers are currently riding an eight-game unbeaten streak against Michigan State (7-1-0) with the last matchup coming at Madison Square Garden and the Maroon & Gold claiming a 2-1 win on Jan. 20, 2018. Tyler Sheehy leads all active Gophers with 11 points (five goals, six assists) in 12 career games against the Spartans.
Putting the Puck on Net
The Golden Gophers have now outshot their opponents in three-straight games although Minnesota is 1-3-0 on the season when doing so with last Saturday's victory against St. Lawrence being the lone positive exception. The Maroon & Gold have posted their three highest shot totals of the season over the last three games (33, 40, 31).
Novak Hits Century Mark
Senior forward Tommy Novak skated in his 100th career game on Saturday night, tallying an assist in the win over St. Lawrence. Novak, who has 70 career points (14 goals, 56 assists), is the sixth active member of the Gophers to reach the 100-game mark (Gates, Sheehy, Romanko, Schierhorn, Ramsey). Senior defenseman Jack Sadek will likely be the next Gopher to join the group, having played in 96 career games.
Gates Gets It Done
Brent Gates Jr. tallied three assists (a single-game career best for the senior) last Friday, his second career game with three points. Now a senior captain for the Maroon & Gold, Gates tallied the game-winner in the last meeting with Michigan State, a 2-1 win at Madison Square Garden last January.
Welcome Back, Bob!
After 13 years leading in-state rival St. Cloud State, Bob Motzko was named the head coach of the University of Minnesota on March 27, 2018. A native of Austin, Minn., Motzko built a 276-192-49 record as head coach of the Huskies (279-197-50 overall record) following a four-year stint as assistant coach at Minnesota that saw the Maroon & Gold claim back-to-back national championships in 2002 and 2003. Motzko has coached 17 All-Americans in his coaching career including Hobey Baker Award winners Jordan Leopold and Drew LeBlanc. In addition to his collegiate coaching, Motzko led the U.S. National Junior Team to back-to-back medals at the IIHF World Junior Championship -- capturing a gold medal in 2017 and a bronze medal in 2018.
Big Ten Preseason Information
Tyler Sheehy and Rem Pitlick represented the Maroon & Gold on the Big Ten Preseason Watch List while the Gophers were predicted to finish fourth in a competitive Big Ten during the 2018-19 campaign. The Big Ten's three Frozen Four participants last year landed poll rankings ahead of the Maroon & Gold with Ohio State projected to finish first, Michigan to finish second and Notre Dame to finish third. Behind the Gophers are Penn State in fifth, Wisconsin in sixth and Michigan State in seventh.
Minnesota Announces Captains for 2018-19
Four senior forwards will serve as leads for the University of Minnesota during the 2018-19 campaign with Tyler Sheehy and Brent Gates Jr. acting as captains for the Maroon & Gold while Jack Ramsey and Darian Romanko will act as assistant captains. Sheehy returns after serving as team captain as a junior last year while Gates, Ramsey and Romanko will wear letters for the first time as seniors. The four skaters continue a long tradition of Gopher Hockey captains dating back to the program's first season of play in 1921-22 when Chet Bros led the Maroon & Gold. Counting the new additions, 170 Gophers have worn a letter at the University of Minnesota in the program's 97-year history.
Three Gopher Hockey Alums Join Staff
Coach Bob Motzko rounded out his coaching staff last month when he added three former University of Minnesota skaters to the Gophers coaching ranks. Ben Gordon returned to the Gophers for the second time after being named an assistant coach on Monday (Gordon previously served as Minnesota's director of operations during the 2016-17 season). Additionally, former Gophers Stu Bickel and Ryan Potulny joined the Maroon & Gold as undergraduate assistants for the 2018-19 season as they complete their degrees at the University of Minnesota. Previously, Garrett Raboin joined the Minnesota staff as an assistant coach after serving in the same capacity at St. Cloud State for the last six years while Andy Kent returns as the team's volunteer goaltending coach.
Gophers in the NHL Draft
Thirteen current Gophers have had their names called at the NHL Entry Draft including newcomers Robbie Stucker (2017, Columbus, Seventh Round, 210th), Sammy Walker (2017, Tampa Bay, Seventh Round, 200th), Blake McLaughlin (2018, Anaheim, Third Round, 79th) and Sampo Ranta (2018, Colorado, Third Round, 78th). Ranta and McLaughlin were selected with back-to-back picks in 2018 -- the sixth time in Gophers history that has happened. Ten NHL teams have prospects on the Gopher Hockey roster this year with Anaheim, Tampa Bay and Nashville each listing two draftees with Minnesota.
Mr. Hockey Goes to Minnesota
Incoming Gophers freshman Sammy Walker closed out his prep career by leading Edina High School to a third-place finish at the 2018 MSHSL Class AA State Tournament, earning all-tournament honors along with Star Tribune Metro Player of the Year accolades. Walker was also 34th recipient of the annual Mr. Hockey Award, given to the top senior high school boy's hockey player in the state of Minnesota. Of the 34 honorees in the award's history, 23 have gone on to play college hockey at the University of Minnesota.
Big Ten Announces Overtime Changes
The Big Ten Conference has announced changes to its overtime protocol and conference points system for the 2018-19 hockey season. Any regular-season conference game that remains tied after regulation will play the NCAA-mandated five-minute, 5-on-5 sudden-death overtime period. If the game remains tied, the two teams will then play a five-minute, 3-on-3 sudden-death overtime period. If the game is still tied following both overtime periods, then the game will move to a sudden-death shootout. Non-conference games other than certain in-season tournaments will conclude following the 5-on-5 overtime period. Postseason games will continue to feature 20-minute 5-on-5 overtime periods as in the past. Teams will be awarded three points in the conference standings for a win in regulation or the 5-on-5 overtime period. If the game is tied following the 5-on-5 overtime, both teams will receive one point, with a second point being awarded to the team that wins in either the 3-on-3 overtime period or the shootout.
Fantastic Freshmen
Minnesota's All-Freshmen Line of Nathan Burke, Sammy Walker and Blake McLaughlin scored all three goals in Saturday's 3-0 win over St. Lawrence and contributed six of the Gophers' nine points in the win. Burke (two goals including the game winner for his first two collegiate points), Walker (one goal, one assist) and McLaughlin (two assists) all recorded their first multi-point games with the Gophers in the win. The freshmen class has 17 points on the year, finding itself tied with the senior class for Minnesota's top scoring group, while the rookies lead the team with eight goals on the year.
Schierhorn Nears School Record
Senior goaltender Eric Schierhorn (1-2-0) picked up his first win of the season on Saturday with a 12-save shutout -- his 12th career shutout as the two-time Big Ten Goaltender of the Year claimed sole possession of third all-time at Minnesota (only Adam Wilcox and Kellen Briggs have more with 13 each). With a 56-43-4 career record, Schierhorn ranks tied for sixth in school history in wins and sixth in saves at 2,579 while his .906 save percentage would rank tied for fourth all-time. Schierhorn enters this weekend's series with a 9-1-1 career record against Michigan State (1.72 GAA, .919 save percentage).
Against Michigan State
Minnesota enters this weekend's Big Ten series with a 117-45-16 all-time series against Michigan State after sweeping four regular-season games over the Spartans last season. The Gophers are currently riding an eight-game unbeaten streak against Michigan State (7-1-0) with the last matchup coming at Madison Square Garden and the Maroon & Gold claiming a 2-1 win on Jan. 20, 2018. Tyler Sheehy leads all active Gophers with 11 points (five goals, six assists) in 12 career games against the Spartans.
Putting the Puck on Net
The Golden Gophers have now outshot their opponents in three-straight games although Minnesota is 1-3-0 on the season when doing so with last Saturday's victory against St. Lawrence being the lone positive exception. The Maroon & Gold have posted their three highest shot totals of the season over the last three games (33, 40, 31).
Novak Hits Century Mark
Senior forward Tommy Novak skated in his 100th career game on Saturday night, tallying an assist in the win over St. Lawrence. Novak, who has 70 career points (14 goals, 56 assists), is the sixth active member of the Gophers to reach the 100-game mark (Gates, Sheehy, Romanko, Schierhorn, Ramsey). Senior defenseman Jack Sadek will likely be the next Gopher to join the group, having played in 96 career games.
Gates Gets It Done
Brent Gates Jr. tallied three assists (a single-game career best for the senior) last Friday, his second career game with three points. Now a senior captain for the Maroon & Gold, Gates tallied the game-winner in the last meeting with Michigan State, a 2-1 win at Madison Square Garden last January.
Welcome Back, Bob!
After 13 years leading in-state rival St. Cloud State, Bob Motzko was named the head coach of the University of Minnesota on March 27, 2018. A native of Austin, Minn., Motzko built a 276-192-49 record as head coach of the Huskies (279-197-50 overall record) following a four-year stint as assistant coach at Minnesota that saw the Maroon & Gold claim back-to-back national championships in 2002 and 2003. Motzko has coached 17 All-Americans in his coaching career including Hobey Baker Award winners Jordan Leopold and Drew LeBlanc. In addition to his collegiate coaching, Motzko led the U.S. National Junior Team to back-to-back medals at the IIHF World Junior Championship -- capturing a gold medal in 2017 and a bronze medal in 2018.
Big Ten Preseason Information
Tyler Sheehy and Rem Pitlick represented the Maroon & Gold on the Big Ten Preseason Watch List while the Gophers were predicted to finish fourth in a competitive Big Ten during the 2018-19 campaign. The Big Ten's three Frozen Four participants last year landed poll rankings ahead of the Maroon & Gold with Ohio State projected to finish first, Michigan to finish second and Notre Dame to finish third. Behind the Gophers are Penn State in fifth, Wisconsin in sixth and Michigan State in seventh.
Minnesota Announces Captains for 2018-19
Four senior forwards will serve as leads for the University of Minnesota during the 2018-19 campaign with Tyler Sheehy and Brent Gates Jr. acting as captains for the Maroon & Gold while Jack Ramsey and Darian Romanko will act as assistant captains. Sheehy returns after serving as team captain as a junior last year while Gates, Ramsey and Romanko will wear letters for the first time as seniors. The four skaters continue a long tradition of Gopher Hockey captains dating back to the program's first season of play in 1921-22 when Chet Bros led the Maroon & Gold. Counting the new additions, 170 Gophers have worn a letter at the University of Minnesota in the program's 97-year history.
Three Gopher Hockey Alums Join Staff
Coach Bob Motzko rounded out his coaching staff last month when he added three former University of Minnesota skaters to the Gophers coaching ranks. Ben Gordon returned to the Gophers for the second time after being named an assistant coach on Monday (Gordon previously served as Minnesota's director of operations during the 2016-17 season). Additionally, former Gophers Stu Bickel and Ryan Potulny joined the Maroon & Gold as undergraduate assistants for the 2018-19 season as they complete their degrees at the University of Minnesota. Previously, Garrett Raboin joined the Minnesota staff as an assistant coach after serving in the same capacity at St. Cloud State for the last six years while Andy Kent returns as the team's volunteer goaltending coach.
Gophers in the NHL Draft
Thirteen current Gophers have had their names called at the NHL Entry Draft including newcomers Robbie Stucker (2017, Columbus, Seventh Round, 210th), Sammy Walker (2017, Tampa Bay, Seventh Round, 200th), Blake McLaughlin (2018, Anaheim, Third Round, 79th) and Sampo Ranta (2018, Colorado, Third Round, 78th). Ranta and McLaughlin were selected with back-to-back picks in 2018 -- the sixth time in Gophers history that has happened. Ten NHL teams have prospects on the Gopher Hockey roster this year with Anaheim, Tampa Bay and Nashville each listing two draftees with Minnesota.
Mr. Hockey Goes to Minnesota
Incoming Gophers freshman Sammy Walker closed out his prep career by leading Edina High School to a third-place finish at the 2018 MSHSL Class AA State Tournament, earning all-tournament honors along with Star Tribune Metro Player of the Year accolades. Walker was also 34th recipient of the annual Mr. Hockey Award, given to the top senior high school boy's hockey player in the state of Minnesota. Of the 34 honorees in the award's history, 23 have gone on to play college hockey at the University of Minnesota.
Big Ten Announces Overtime Changes
The Big Ten Conference has announced changes to its overtime protocol and conference points system for the 2018-19 hockey season. Any regular-season conference game that remains tied after regulation will play the NCAA-mandated five-minute, 5-on-5 sudden-death overtime period. If the game remains tied, the two teams will then play a five-minute, 3-on-3 sudden-death overtime period. If the game is still tied following both overtime periods, then the game will move to a sudden-death shootout. Non-conference games other than certain in-season tournaments will conclude following the 5-on-5 overtime period. Postseason games will continue to feature 20-minute 5-on-5 overtime periods as in the past. Teams will be awarded three points in the conference standings for a win in regulation or the 5-on-5 overtime period. If the game is tied following the 5-on-5 overtime, both teams will receive one point, with a second point being awarded to the team that wins in either the 3-on-3 overtime period or the shootout.
2025-26 Non-Conference Schedule
Monday, August 11
Herb Brooks Statue
Wednesday, August 06
Meet the Newcomers: Teddy Townsend
Friday, July 18
Meet The Newcomers: Jacob Rombach
Friday, July 11