In-State Matchup Awaits 'U' at Duluth Oct. 18-19

MINNEAPOLIS - The sixth-ranked Golden Gophers men's hockey team stays within state lines for a non-conference matchup against Minnesota Duluth Oct. 18-19 at AMSOIL Arena. The former WCHA rivals meet on the ice starting at 7 p.m. Friday night and 6 p.m. Saturday.

Live video coverage will be available for the entire series on FOX9+ with an audio broadcast on the Gopher Radio Network 103.5 FM/AM-1130 KTLK.

LAST TIME OUT
Minnesota got the 2024-25 season started in impressive fashion, picking up a dominating 7-1 victory over Air Force at the Ice Breaker Tournament in Las Vegas, Nev. Connor Kurth led the Gophers with a four-point performance, including the first collegiate hat trick of his career. Ryan Chesley added two goals, matching his total output from all of last season, while the Maroon and Gold had 11 different players reach the scoresheet. Minnesota dropped the event's championship, 2-1 in overtime against No. 15/16 Omaha Saturday night, despite a first-period goal from Mason Nevers, to cap the weekend.

WATCH THE PRIDE ON ICE
For the second-straight year, Minnesota and FOX9 have partnered for a local television broadcast deal that will air 16 home games and four road games during the 2024-25 campaign presented by Affinity Plus Federal Credit Union. This year's home broadcasts on FOX9 and FOX9+ will feature a 30-minute Pride on Ice pre-game show presented by M Health Fairview as well as a post-game show recapping the action presented by RBC Wealth Management. This is in addition to the six games picked by the Big Ten Network and one airing on FS1 during the year. Check the schedule page on GopherSports.com for all the latest information and viewing options for every contest. Other FOX affiliates around the area have added Gopher hockey to their coverage with select games available on KTTC (Rochester, Mason City, Austin, Albert Lea), KVRR (Fargo), KQDS (Duluth), and KCRG (Cedar Rapids).

SUCCESSFUL STARTS
The Maroon and Gold have consistently found success in beginning a campaign, holding a 65-37-2 all-time record in the first game of the year. That total includes a 32-18-2 mark away from home following last week's 7-1 win over Air Force. The Gophers have even more success in their home openers behind a record of 69-31-3, which contains a 21-8-2 mark in home openers at 3M Arena at Mariucci.

SEASON-OPENING STAR
Connor Kurth was named the B1G Second Star of the Week (Oct. 15) thanks to his career-best, four-point outing in the Gophers' season opener against Air Force at the 2024 Ice Breaker Tournament in Las Vegas, Nev. The forward scored a goal in all three periods versus the Falcons, including the Maroon and Gold's first two goals of the night. His second-stanza tally went down as the game-winning goal, his first game winner since Mar. 23, 2023, during Minnesota's NCAA Fargo Regional win over Canisius. Kurth tacked on an assist to cap the 7-1 victory and is one of three players in the country with a four-point outing this year. A native of Lindstrom, Minn., he posted seven goals in both his freshman and sophomore seasons and is nearly halfway there after the opening weekend. He closed the 2023-24 campaign with career bests in assists (14) and points (21), a 10-point increase from his rookie season. The Gophers are now 13-1-1 when Kurth scores a goal in his career.

WELCOME TO GOPHER HOCKEY
Three skaters reached the scoresheet in their Gopher hockey debut during the Ice Breaker Tournament last weekend. Matthew Wood was named the No. 2 star of the game Friday as he burst onto the scene with a three-assist effort. Freshman Beckett Hendrickson found the back of the net in the third period versus Air Force to make it a memorable debut with the Maroon and Gold, scoring his first collegiate goal. On Saturday, August Falloon was inserted into the lineup and picked up an assist on the Gophers' lone goal to secure his first point. Goaltender Liam Souliere made 16 saves in his first game as a graduate transfer for Minnesota against Omaha, while freshmen Leo Gruba, Erik Påhlsson, John Whipple, and Brodie Ziemer also made their college hockey debuts at the tournament.

BLUE LINE SCORING
After Ryan Chesley and Sam Rinzel finished the 2023-24 campaign with two goals each, the pair of blue liners combined for three goals on opening night alone as they showed their offensive upside. Chesley matched his career high for a single season in one night when he put away his second of the contest early in the third period against Air Force. It took until game number 15 for Rinzel to score his first collegiate goal a year ago, while he only had to wait until the middle of the second period this season to net his first. The Gophers' defensemen combined for only nine goals in 2023-24 after totaling 30 the previous season.

HISTORY WITH THE BULLDOGS
The Gophers hold an all-time record of 136-85-19 (.606) in the series against Minnesota Duluth in a rivalry that dates back to 1952, including a mark of 54-45-9 in games away from home. UMD has controlled the series of late winning 12 of the last 16 meetings since 2014, going 12-2-2 in that stretch. Under Coach Motzko, the team is just 2-4-2 versus the Bulldogs and have been held winless at AMSOIL Arena in four trips. Minnesota picked up a 5-1, Friday-night victory over UMD to start a home-and-home series last November in front of the second-largest crowd (10,739) in 3M Arena at Mariucci history. Cal Thomas scored his first collegiate goal that night before Bryce Brodzinski added his 50th career tally into an empty net to seal the win. The two teams skated to a 3-3 tie the next night in Duluth with the home Bulldogs winning the shootout.

INSIDE LOOK AT MINNESOTA DULUTH
The Bulldogs are returning home after a road split at UMass-Lowell where they recorded a 4-2 win Friday before falling 4-1 Saturday and are still receiving votes in both national polls. Jayson Shaugabay is the lone UMD player to record multiple goals this season with two and is tied for the team's scoring lead with Dominic James as each player has three points. Goaltenders Adam Gajan (1-1-0) and Zach Sandy (0-1-0) have split time in the goal for the Bulldogs and posted goals-against averages of 3.00 and 3.77, respectively. UMD is 1-for-11 in three games on the power play, but allowed opponents to score a shorthanded goal, while also allowing two goals via the man advantage.

STARTING IN SECOND
Following its back-to-back Big Ten Conference regular season titles in 2021-22 and 2022-23, Minnesota finished in third place in the league standings a year ago. With a league-leading six B1G titles already under their belt, the Gophers are looking to get back to the top of the conference this season and were picked to place second in the preseason poll as voted upon by the B1G's seven head coaches. Defending champion Michigan State holds the top honor after claiming its first-ever regular season and tournament titles last season.

B1G PRESEASON HONORS TO FOUR
Four players representing the Maroon and Gold were recognized by the league's head coaches and named to one of the Preseason All-B1G Teams for 2024-25. Jimmy Snuggerud was a unanimous selection to the All-B1G First Team where he was joined by Sam Rinzel. Mike Koster and newcomer Matthew Wood earned spots on the All-B1G Second Team.

DRAFTED THE SWEET 16
The Gophers have more NHL draft picks on their roster than any other NCAA hockey program in 2024-25. Minnesota's 16 players are the most for the team since 2011-12 when it had 17. From that roster more than a decade ago, four players (Nick Bjugstad, Travis Boyd, Erik Haula, Justin Holl) are still playing in the NHL. This year's roster features four first-round selections in Matthew Wood (15th overall), Oliver Moore (19th overall), Jimmy Snuggerud (23rd overall), and Sam Rinzel (25th overall). Minnesota has had the most all-time draft selections (242) by any NCAA men's hockey program after adding three over the summer. At least one Gopher has been drafted in 50 of the last 51 NHL Entry Drafts dating back to 1974, with 2001 being the only exception.

INTERNATIONAL FLAVOR
Minnesota's lineup has a more international flavor than years past as the team has four players from outside the country in 2024-25. The last time that many international players were on the Gophers' roster in a single season was 1951-52. Two of the team's goaltenders are from Canada in Nathan Airey (Cochrane, Alberta) and Liam Souliere (Montréal, Québec), while fellow Canadian Matthew Wood joins the group as a native of Nanaimo, British Columbia. For the first time since 2018, a Swedish-born player will don the Maroon and Gold as Erik Påhlsson begins his collegiate career. Leon Bristedt was the most recent Swedish skater for the Gophers, as he played 144 games between 2014-18.

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Players Mentioned

Nathan Airey

Bryce Brodzinski

Ryan Chesley

August Falloon

Leo Gruba

Beckett Hendrickson

Mike Koster

Connor Kurth

Oliver Moore

Mason Nevers

Sam Rinzel

Jimmy Snuggerud

Liam Souliere

Cal Thomas

John Whipple

Matthew Wood

Brodie Ziemer