University of Minnesota Athletics
Friday, February 16
South Bend, Ind.
6:30 PM
University of Minnesota
18-8-5, 11-6-4
1
at
6
Notre Dame
15-14-2, 9-10-2
1
2
3
F
Minnesota
0
1
0
1
Notre Dame
1
4
1
6
Team Stats
MIN
UND
Shots
32
28
PPG
0
1
SHG
0
0
Penalties
3
3
Penalty Mins
6
6
Faceoffs Won
23
27
Game Leaders
Skaters
+/-
-2
Goals
1
Sh
3
A
0
+/-
-1
Goals
0
Sh
4
A
1
+/-
-1
Goals
0
Sh
2
A
1
+/-
-3
Goals
0
Sh
5
A
0
Players Mentioned
Goaltender
/ Men's Hockey
Forward
/ Men's Hockey
Forward
/ Men's Hockey
Goaltender
/ Men's HockeyForward
/ Men's HockeyForward
/ Men's Hockey
Forward
/ Men's Hockey
Forward
/ Men's HockeyForward
/ Men's HockeyDefense
/ Men's Hockey
Photo by: Brad Rempel
Gophers Drop Series Opener at Notre Dame
2/16/2024 8:45:00 PM | Men's Hockey
Five-game unbeaten streak ends on the road
SOUTH BEND, Ind. - Coming off consecutive shutouts, the No. 8/7 Minnesota men's hockey team was unable to sustain the defensive momentum in a 6-1 loss at Notre Dame Friday night inside Compton Family Ice Arena.
The Golden Gophers (18-8-5 overall, 11-6-4 B1G) saw their five-game unbeaten streak snapped, allowing three goals during a 10-minute span of the second period, as the Fighting Irish (15-14-2 overall, 9-10-2 B1G) won in front of a sold-out crowd.
Less than a minute into the contest, Minnesota netminder Justen Close calmly stopped a 2-on-1 chance and the visitors used the save to start its own attack. Jaxon Nelson made a push and fired from the right circle before Jimmy Clark put two quality shots on frame the next shift. Rhett Pitlick then stole a pass from the Irish at his defensive blue line and sped in alone on goal, but his shot was turned away as the Gophers sustained pressure. The Maroon and Gold nearly capitalized on a scramble in the crease with a loose rebound behind the Notre Dame goalie. After the chance was pushed away, the Irish took advantage of a turnover and broke Close's shutout streak at the 11:27 mark for a 1-0 edge that they carried into the locker room through 20 minutes.
The margin doubled 90 seconds after the puck was dropped for the second stanza as Notre Dame fired a cross-ice pass to a player left alone at the side of the net. It was the first two-goal deficit faced by the Gophers since Jan. 7, a span of 12 games, before Minnesota went to its first power play, looking to close the gap. The home side killed off the man advantage and 20 seconds later, used a redirect from the slot to stretch the lead to 3-0 and tacked on the third goal of the period with 8:42 remaining in the stanza.
The Gophers turned to goaltender Nathan Airey for his B1G debut, and the freshman got right into the action making a pad save. That gave the Maroon and Gold a much-needed boost and led to a chance for Cal Thomas to jump into the play. The sophomore fed Aaron Huglen a perfect pass in the crease where the Roseau, Minn., native beat the outstretched pad with a forehand to get Minnesota on the board with 3:07 to play in the second period. Bryce Brodzinski skated by an Irish defenseman and came close to cutting the margin in half, but Notre Dame made a stop and answered on the other end of the ice via an odd-man rush following another turnover, making it 5-1 as the clock reached 36.5 seconds.
A penalty was assessed to the Gophers as time expired in the middle frame, giving the Irish their first man advantage to begin the third period. The visitors erased the power play and promptly went to one of their own where Jimmy Snuggerud rang a one-timer off the crossbar. Back at even strength, Huglen came inches away from his second of the night. Notre Dame was gifted a late power play and capped the 6-1 win with a goal on the man advantage as Minnesota suffered its second regulation loss since the first week of January.
Noteworthy
Huglen scored for the second-straight game and tallied his ninth goal of the year, seventh of the last 14 outings, as the junior increased his point total to 15 ... Thomas registered his seventh assist and eighth point of the year with the primary assist on Huglen's goal and has three points over the past seven contests ... Brody Lamb picked up his 11th assist and 22nd point this season, recording his sixth point in his last eight games ... Airey finished the night by making 12 saves in his first taste of road play ... Close stopped the first four shots he faced Friday before his career-long shutout streak was snapped at 190:33 and the graduate student allowed more than one goal for the first time since Jan. 26 ... Brodzinski, a fifth-year senior, moved into third place in program history for career games played Friday, appearing in his 177th career contest ... Minnesota has now played in front of a sellout crowd in eight of nine arenas played this year.
Coach Motzko's Comments
"We have to get back on top of our game," Minnesota head coach Bob Motzko said. "We'll have some things to point out on film and they've got to come ready to play tomorrow."
Next Up: Away at Notre Dame (Feb. 17)
The Gophers play their final road game of the regular season Saturday live on Peacock at 5 p.m. (CT) or fans can tune into the Gopher Radio Network 1130 KTLK-AM/103.5 FM for a free audio broadcast.
The Golden Gophers (18-8-5 overall, 11-6-4 B1G) saw their five-game unbeaten streak snapped, allowing three goals during a 10-minute span of the second period, as the Fighting Irish (15-14-2 overall, 9-10-2 B1G) won in front of a sold-out crowd.
Less than a minute into the contest, Minnesota netminder Justen Close calmly stopped a 2-on-1 chance and the visitors used the save to start its own attack. Jaxon Nelson made a push and fired from the right circle before Jimmy Clark put two quality shots on frame the next shift. Rhett Pitlick then stole a pass from the Irish at his defensive blue line and sped in alone on goal, but his shot was turned away as the Gophers sustained pressure. The Maroon and Gold nearly capitalized on a scramble in the crease with a loose rebound behind the Notre Dame goalie. After the chance was pushed away, the Irish took advantage of a turnover and broke Close's shutout streak at the 11:27 mark for a 1-0 edge that they carried into the locker room through 20 minutes.
The margin doubled 90 seconds after the puck was dropped for the second stanza as Notre Dame fired a cross-ice pass to a player left alone at the side of the net. It was the first two-goal deficit faced by the Gophers since Jan. 7, a span of 12 games, before Minnesota went to its first power play, looking to close the gap. The home side killed off the man advantage and 20 seconds later, used a redirect from the slot to stretch the lead to 3-0 and tacked on the third goal of the period with 8:42 remaining in the stanza.
The Gophers turned to goaltender Nathan Airey for his B1G debut, and the freshman got right into the action making a pad save. That gave the Maroon and Gold a much-needed boost and led to a chance for Cal Thomas to jump into the play. The sophomore fed Aaron Huglen a perfect pass in the crease where the Roseau, Minn., native beat the outstretched pad with a forehand to get Minnesota on the board with 3:07 to play in the second period. Bryce Brodzinski skated by an Irish defenseman and came close to cutting the margin in half, but Notre Dame made a stop and answered on the other end of the ice via an odd-man rush following another turnover, making it 5-1 as the clock reached 36.5 seconds.
A penalty was assessed to the Gophers as time expired in the middle frame, giving the Irish their first man advantage to begin the third period. The visitors erased the power play and promptly went to one of their own where Jimmy Snuggerud rang a one-timer off the crossbar. Back at even strength, Huglen came inches away from his second of the night. Notre Dame was gifted a late power play and capped the 6-1 win with a goal on the man advantage as Minnesota suffered its second regulation loss since the first week of January.
Noteworthy
Huglen scored for the second-straight game and tallied his ninth goal of the year, seventh of the last 14 outings, as the junior increased his point total to 15 ... Thomas registered his seventh assist and eighth point of the year with the primary assist on Huglen's goal and has three points over the past seven contests ... Brody Lamb picked up his 11th assist and 22nd point this season, recording his sixth point in his last eight games ... Airey finished the night by making 12 saves in his first taste of road play ... Close stopped the first four shots he faced Friday before his career-long shutout streak was snapped at 190:33 and the graduate student allowed more than one goal for the first time since Jan. 26 ... Brodzinski, a fifth-year senior, moved into third place in program history for career games played Friday, appearing in his 177th career contest ... Minnesota has now played in front of a sellout crowd in eight of nine arenas played this year.
Coach Motzko's Comments
"We have to get back on top of our game," Minnesota head coach Bob Motzko said. "We'll have some things to point out on film and they've got to come ready to play tomorrow."
Next Up: Away at Notre Dame (Feb. 17)
The Gophers play their final road game of the regular season Saturday live on Peacock at 5 p.m. (CT) or fans can tune into the Gopher Radio Network 1130 KTLK-AM/103.5 FM for a free audio broadcast.
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