University of Minnesota Athletics
Friday, March 8
3M Arena at Mariucci
6:00 PM
University of Minnesota
21-9-5
5
vs
1
Penn State
15-17-3
1
2
3
F
Penn State
1
0
0
1
Minnesota
1
1
3
5
Team Stats
PSU
MIN
Shots
21
27
PPG
0
0
SHG
0
0
Penalties
2
2
Penalty Mins
4
4
Faceoffs Won
20
31
Game Leaders
Skaters
+/-
1
Goals
2
Sh
3
A
0
+/-
3
Goals
1
Sh
4
A
0
+/-
1
Goals
1
Sh
3
A
0
Players Mentioned
Goaltender
/ Men's HockeyForward
/ Men's Hockey
Forward
/ Men's Hockey
Forward
/ Men's Hockey
Defense
/ Men's Hockey
Forward
/ Men's Hockey
Forward
/ Men's HockeyForward
/ Men's HockeyDefense
/ Men's Hockey
Forward
/ Men's Hockey
Defense
/ Men's Hockey
Photo by: Brad Rempel
'U' Claims B1G Tournament Opener over Nittany Lions
3/8/2024 10:15:00 PM | Men's Hockey
Multi-point nights from Fish, Pitlick
MINNEAPOLIS - Eleven different players recorded a point as the No. 8 Minnesota men's hockey team won its Big Ten Conference Tournament opener against Penn State, 4-1, in the quarterfinals Friday night at 3M Arena at Mariucci.
The Golden Gophers (21-9-5 overall) scored the final four goals, including one into an empty net, to take down the Nittany Lions (15-17-3 overall) and have now won nine of their last 10 home games. Rhett Pitlick scored twice, while Carl Fish tied a career high with two assists.
Both teams had their legs moving and the action went up and down the ice to begin the postseason matchup. The visitors tested Minnesota netminder Justen Close with the first five shots of the game, but it was a Maroon and Gold one-timer from Fish five minutes into the contest that had to be turned away by PSU to keep it scoreless. As he did on the road against the Nittany Lions, a slapshot from Sam Rinzel opened the Gophers' scoring as he blasted a bar-down shot from the top of the right circle after a failed clearance at the 7:21 mark.
PSU thought it pulled even two minutes later, taking advantage of a 4-on-2 break, but the home side successfully challenged for offsides, negating the tying tally. Less than a minute after the goal was erased, the Nittany Lions found the equalizer via a back-door pass, making it a 1-1 game with 9:04 to play in the opening period. The Gophers drew a late power-play that was killed off in the final five minutes and the teams went back to the locker room tied.
A bulk of play to begin the second stanza took place in the neutral zone as neither side generated a shot on target for more than nine minutes. It was Minnesota's Connor Kurth that danced around two defenders and fired from close range 9:41 into the frame to record the first official shot on goal. With a shift in lines, the Maroon and Gold started to pick up the intensity and a strong forecheck led to the go-ahead goal. Jaxon Nelson chased down a Mason Nevers entry pass and fed Jimmy Snuggerud at the doorstep where the sophomore did not miss, giving the Gophers a 2-1 lead with 5:39 remaining in the second. That margin held until the end of the frame as Minnesota limited the visitors to just one shot during the period.
The Maroon and Gold wasted no time extending the advantage in the third period when Aaron Huglen tipped home a Fish one-timer 2:18 into the frame for a 3-1 edge. Brody Lamb started the play from behind the PSU net and pushed a pass to the point for Fish. The Nittany Lions picked up their pace and tilted the ice in their favor only to be denied by Close on nine shots over the next seven minutes. Pitlick erased the momentum and gave the Gophers a three-goal cushion as the junior backhanded a loose rebound from the slot after a Cal Thomas shot was stopped in the middle of the stanza.
Pitlick tacked on an insurance marker with 3:01 to play as he fired into an empty net from inside his own blue line and Minnesota skated to a 5-1 victory. Close secured his 60th all-time victory, making 20 total saves, including 11 in the final period.
Noteworthy
Pitlick increased his team lead in points up to 35 behind his fifth multi-goal effort and has six goals in five games against PSU this year ... Snuggerud buried his team-leading 20th goal this year, second over the last 12 games, and tallied his sixth game-winning goal ... He is now one of six in an elite group, joining Nick Bjugstad, Ryan Potulny, Thomas Vanek, Troy Riddle, and Erik Westrum as Gophers to score 20 or more goals in back-to-back seasons since 2000 and only Vanek and Snuggerud accomplished that mark to begin their collegiate careers ... Rinzel tallied his second goal of the season, both of which have come against the Nittany Lions, and ended a span of 19 games without a goal ... The freshman from Chanhassen, Minn., has a point in three of his last four outings, totaling 27 ... Huglen registered his 11th goal of 2023-24 and has eight goals across his last 14 contests ... Nelson, the reigning B1G First Star of the Week, extended his scoring streak to four games and has eight points during that span, reaching 26 total points ... Nevers also stretched his point streak to four games, picking up his 15th point this season and 12th helper ... Fish recorded his second and third assists this season, his first points since Oct. 27, and finished the night with the third multi-point game of his career to go with a team-best, plus-4 rating ... Luke Mittelstadt and Thomas registered assists on Pitlick's first goal and pushed their point totals to 15 and nine, respectively ... Close has held PSU to just one goal in the previous three meetings, while also recording his fourth assist of the season and sixth as a Gopher ... Minnesota is now 10-4 in the B1G Tournament under the direction of Head Coach Bob Motzko.
Coach Motzko's Comments
"We were in the dentist's chair for the first period and a half until the Novocain wore off, then we started to play," Minnesota head coach Bob Motzko said. "And then it came. Once we started to get pucks deep, we had a good look to us in the second period and we got back on top of it."
Next Up: Home vs. Penn State (Mar. 9)
The Gophers look to advance to the B1G Semifinals in game two of the best-of-three series against Penn State when they meet Saturday afternoon at 3:30 p.m. inside 3M Arena at Mariucci. Fans can watch the game live on FS2 and streaming on the Fox Sports app, or listen to the broadcast via the Gopher Radio Network 1130 KTLK-AM/103.5 FM.
The Golden Gophers (21-9-5 overall) scored the final four goals, including one into an empty net, to take down the Nittany Lions (15-17-3 overall) and have now won nine of their last 10 home games. Rhett Pitlick scored twice, while Carl Fish tied a career high with two assists.
Both teams had their legs moving and the action went up and down the ice to begin the postseason matchup. The visitors tested Minnesota netminder Justen Close with the first five shots of the game, but it was a Maroon and Gold one-timer from Fish five minutes into the contest that had to be turned away by PSU to keep it scoreless. As he did on the road against the Nittany Lions, a slapshot from Sam Rinzel opened the Gophers' scoring as he blasted a bar-down shot from the top of the right circle after a failed clearance at the 7:21 mark.
PSU thought it pulled even two minutes later, taking advantage of a 4-on-2 break, but the home side successfully challenged for offsides, negating the tying tally. Less than a minute after the goal was erased, the Nittany Lions found the equalizer via a back-door pass, making it a 1-1 game with 9:04 to play in the opening period. The Gophers drew a late power-play that was killed off in the final five minutes and the teams went back to the locker room tied.
A bulk of play to begin the second stanza took place in the neutral zone as neither side generated a shot on target for more than nine minutes. It was Minnesota's Connor Kurth that danced around two defenders and fired from close range 9:41 into the frame to record the first official shot on goal. With a shift in lines, the Maroon and Gold started to pick up the intensity and a strong forecheck led to the go-ahead goal. Jaxon Nelson chased down a Mason Nevers entry pass and fed Jimmy Snuggerud at the doorstep where the sophomore did not miss, giving the Gophers a 2-1 lead with 5:39 remaining in the second. That margin held until the end of the frame as Minnesota limited the visitors to just one shot during the period.
The Maroon and Gold wasted no time extending the advantage in the third period when Aaron Huglen tipped home a Fish one-timer 2:18 into the frame for a 3-1 edge. Brody Lamb started the play from behind the PSU net and pushed a pass to the point for Fish. The Nittany Lions picked up their pace and tilted the ice in their favor only to be denied by Close on nine shots over the next seven minutes. Pitlick erased the momentum and gave the Gophers a three-goal cushion as the junior backhanded a loose rebound from the slot after a Cal Thomas shot was stopped in the middle of the stanza.
Pitlick tacked on an insurance marker with 3:01 to play as he fired into an empty net from inside his own blue line and Minnesota skated to a 5-1 victory. Close secured his 60th all-time victory, making 20 total saves, including 11 in the final period.
Noteworthy
Pitlick increased his team lead in points up to 35 behind his fifth multi-goal effort and has six goals in five games against PSU this year ... Snuggerud buried his team-leading 20th goal this year, second over the last 12 games, and tallied his sixth game-winning goal ... He is now one of six in an elite group, joining Nick Bjugstad, Ryan Potulny, Thomas Vanek, Troy Riddle, and Erik Westrum as Gophers to score 20 or more goals in back-to-back seasons since 2000 and only Vanek and Snuggerud accomplished that mark to begin their collegiate careers ... Rinzel tallied his second goal of the season, both of which have come against the Nittany Lions, and ended a span of 19 games without a goal ... The freshman from Chanhassen, Minn., has a point in three of his last four outings, totaling 27 ... Huglen registered his 11th goal of 2023-24 and has eight goals across his last 14 contests ... Nelson, the reigning B1G First Star of the Week, extended his scoring streak to four games and has eight points during that span, reaching 26 total points ... Nevers also stretched his point streak to four games, picking up his 15th point this season and 12th helper ... Fish recorded his second and third assists this season, his first points since Oct. 27, and finished the night with the third multi-point game of his career to go with a team-best, plus-4 rating ... Luke Mittelstadt and Thomas registered assists on Pitlick's first goal and pushed their point totals to 15 and nine, respectively ... Close has held PSU to just one goal in the previous three meetings, while also recording his fourth assist of the season and sixth as a Gopher ... Minnesota is now 10-4 in the B1G Tournament under the direction of Head Coach Bob Motzko.
Coach Motzko's Comments
"We were in the dentist's chair for the first period and a half until the Novocain wore off, then we started to play," Minnesota head coach Bob Motzko said. "And then it came. Once we started to get pucks deep, we had a good look to us in the second period and we got back on top of it."
Next Up: Home vs. Penn State (Mar. 9)
The Gophers look to advance to the B1G Semifinals in game two of the best-of-three series against Penn State when they meet Saturday afternoon at 3:30 p.m. inside 3M Arena at Mariucci. Fans can watch the game live on FS2 and streaming on the Fox Sports app, or listen to the broadcast via the Gopher Radio Network 1130 KTLK-AM/103.5 FM.
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