Gophers, Beavers Meet in Non-Conference Series

MINNEAPOLIS - The in-state action starts Thursday at 3M Arena at Mariucci at 7 p.m. and closes at 6 p.m. Saturday inside Sanford Center in Bemidji, Minn.

Both games between the Golden Gophers and Beavers will be available live on FOX9+, while Thursday's home contest will also stream via B1G+. Audio coverage from the Gopher Radio Network 103.5 FM/AM-1130 KTLK is set for each contest.

LAST TIME OUT
Minnesota used come-from-behind efforts in both games of its Big Ten Conference series at Wisconsin last weekend to secure its fourth-consecutive sweep. Facing a 2-0 deficit Friday, Jimmy Snuggerud scored the tying goal late in the second period before adding the eventual game winner in the third period, set up by a brilliant pass from freshman Erik Påhlsson. After the Badgers held a 2-1 lead through two frames Saturday, it was the Maroon and Gold that rallied again for the comeback victory. Connor Kurth scored a power-play goal in the final six minutes of regulation and Brodie Ziemer's viral winner out of midair during the extra session gave the Gophers another 3-2 win. Nathan Airey made a career-high 28 saves in the series opener, while Liam Souliere stopped 31 shots in the finale as the goaltending duo extended the Gophers win streak to eight.

WATCH THE PRIDE ON ICE
Minnesota and FOX9 have partnered for a local television broadcast deal for the second-straight year 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 games available in Duluth (KQDS) and Fargo (KVRR) markets.

SUITCASE LIVING
The Gophers are in the midst of a stretch where five of six games are away from home following their trip to Madison for the Border Battle against the Badgers. Minnesota has won all four of its true road contests this season after sweeping both Minnesota Duluth and Wisconsin. The power play has clicked when on the road as the team has converted 5-of-12 chances for a 41.7 success rate on the man advantage.

SNUGGERUD STARS AGAIN
For the fifth time in his career, Jimmy Snuggerud was named a B1G Star of the Week, this time after leading the Gophers with multiple points in each game of a road sweep at Wisconsin. He scored twice in the come-from-behind win Friday, including the game winner in the third period, before adding two assists Saturday. He capped the weekend with a backhand saucer pass to Brodie Ziemer for the overtime winner, which was the 50th assist of his career. Snuggerud has multi-point efforts in three of four Big Ten outings this season and is now second on the team with 13 total points. He has 27 career multi-point games and is just three points shy of 100 as a Gopher, thanks to reaching the scoresheet in eight of 10 appearances this year. He posted 21 goals in each of his first two college hockey seasons and is one of just six Gophers to score 20 or more goals in back-to-back seasons since 2000.

CAPTAIN CHESLEY DOUBLES DOWN
It took a matter of just six games to start the 2024-25 campaign for junior Ryan Chesley to double his career goal output. The captain has now scored five times this year, the most of any defenseman in the nation, after recording two goals in each of his first two college seasons. A native of Mahtomedi, Minn., he scored twice on opening night versus Air Force (Oct. 11) before getting the game-tying goal in the first period against St. Thomas during back-to-back outings. Chesley tacked on the first shorthanded goal of his career at Wisconsin (Nov. 8), matching his total of eight points from a season ago, and is two points shy of reaching double figures for the second time in his tenure.

LAMB STARS THE POWER PLAY
Brody Lamb continues to find offensive success after setting career highs in goals (12), assists (15), and points (27) a year ago. The Byron, Minn., native has a point in all but two outings this season and registered a career-long, five-game point streak between Oct. 18 and Nov. 1. Thanks to a four-goal weekend against St. Thomas, including his first NCAA hat trick, Lamb was named the B1G Second Star of the Week (Oct. 29). All three goals of his natural hat trick Saturday were on the power play, and he has scored five of the Gophers' nine goals on the man advantage this year, tying for second in the NCAA for power-play goals.

ZIEMER ENJOYING LIFE ON THE ROAD
Brodie Ziemer scored a highlight-reel goal in overtime that helped the Gophers to a come-from-behind win at Wisconsin (Nov. 9). It was the first game-winning goal of his short career and a night where he put up multiple points for the first time with the Gophers. The freshman has found his rhythm when Minnesota has been away from home as he sits tied for third on the team in road scoring. All five of his points have come on the road this year and he has a point in all four true road outings, including a goal in three of the four contests. Ziemer ranks fourth among B1G rookies in scoring

HISTORY WITH THE BEAVERS
Minnesota has found great success against Bemidji State in the all-time series, owning a 20-2-1 (.891) record since the two programs first met in 2000. The Gophers are 13-1-0 in games played at 3M Arena at Mariucci, including seven-straight wins, and come out on top in 13 of the 14 matchups overall. The last two times the Gophers and Beavers have battled were for an exhibition contest in each of the last two seasons. The most recent official meeting took place on Dec. 28, 2019, when the Gophers claimed a 5-2 win in the first game of the Mariucci Classic, highlighted as Coach Motzko's 300 all-time victory. Scott Reedy led the Maroon and Gold with a two-goal performance, while Jack LaFontaine made 28 saves in net.

INSIDE LOOK AT BEMIDJI STATE
The Beavers are coming off three-consecutive series splits, most recently at Augustana where they claimed a 4-3 win in overtime Friday before falling 5-1 Saturday. Jere Vaisanen paces BSU in scoring with six points, while tying with Carter Randklev for the goal-scoring lead with four. Only four players in the lineup for the Beavers have scored more than one goal this season as the offense ranks 44th nationally averaging 2.3 goals per game. Goaltender Mattias Sholl has started all nine games and leads the CCHA with two shutouts as he holds a 2.53 goals-against average and a .906 save percentage.

SHOWING OFF SPECIAL TEAMS
Minnesota is one of four NCAA programs this season to rank in the top 15 nationally in both power play and penalty kill percentage, while its nine goals on the man advantage lead the B1G and rank seventh in the NCAA. The Gophers have a power-play goal in six of 10 outings this year and a pair of multiple-goal efforts coming versus St. Thomas (Oct. 26) and Wisconsin (Nov. 9). The Maroon and Gold have erased 16 of the last 17 power-play chances by its opposition over the past seven games, including a stretch of 13-straight, as its penalty-kill rate sits at 87.0 percent (20-of-23), ranking 15th in the country.

COMFORTS OF HOME
Only once in the 31-year history of 3M Arena at Mariucci has Minnesota not posted a winning record inside its home building and that happened in 2010-11 when the team was 9-10-3. Since that year, the Gophers own a 176-69-16 record (.705) and have won double-digit home games each of the last 13 years. That includes a mark of 14-6-1 from last season, aided by the Maroon and Gold winning eight-straight games from Jan. 8 and Mar. 1, the longest home win streak since 2017. Under Coach Motzko's guidance, the Gophers hold a 79-39-6 (.661) record on home ice, including a 46-17-1 (.727) mark across the previous four years. That stretch of quality play is aided by Minnesota dominating Big Ten foes, going 30-10-1 (.744) in conference outings inside 3M Arena at Mariucci since the start of 2021.

FROM 'U' TO THE LEAGUE
Thirty-one former Gophers took part in National Hockey League training camps for the 2024-25 season, representing 21 different NHL organizations. Included in the group that spans more than 15 years of the program are 13 former captains and nine All-Americans. Minnesota had 26 former skaters in the NHL last season, increasing the all-time number of Gophers in the NHL to an NCAA-best 125. Brock Faber finished second in the 2024 Calder Memorial Trophy voting, the highest ever for a Gopher, while Logan Cooley was fifth, and both guys were named to the NHL's All-Rookie Team in 2023-24. In the final game of the season, Kyle Okposo joined Ben Clymer and Jordan Leopold as the only former Gophers to play in Game 7 of a Stanley Cup Final. Clymer's Tampa Bay Lightning defeated Leopold's Calgary Flames back in 2004. Okposo also made it three-straight seasons with a Gopher hoisting the Stanley Cup after his Florida Panthers won in June, a feat that had never been done in program history.

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Players Mentioned

Nathan Airey

Ryan Chesley

Connor Kurth

Brody Lamb

Jimmy Snuggerud

Liam Souliere

Brodie Ziemer