University of Minnesota Athletics
Friday, October 2
Houghton, MI
6:00 PM
University of Minnesota
at
Michigan Tech
Photo by: Matt Krohn
'U' Opens 106th Season at Michigan Tech Oct. 2-3
10/1/2026 11:00:00 AM | Men's Hockey
First trip to Houghton since 2012
MINNEAPOLIS - The return of Minnesota men's hockey is here as the No. 14/18 Golden Gophers are set to begin the 2026-27 campaign during a two-game series at No. 19/20 Michigan Tech Oct. 2-3. Puck drop for the season opener is scheduled for 6 p.m. (CT) from the historic John MacInnes Student Ice Arena Friday night before closing Saturday evening at 5 p.m. (CT).
The program's 106th year of competition will begin away from campus with a true road test for the first time since 2019. Fans can tune into the action from Houghton, Mich., all weekend through the Gopher Radio Network 103.5 FM / AM-1130 KTLK.
LAST TIME ON THE ICE
Minnesota closed its 2025-26 season with a 6-2 loss to No. 10 Penn State in the quarterfinals of the 2026 Big Ten Tournament at Pegula Ice Arena last March. The Nittany Lions scored twice in each period and held a four-goal advantage until Javon Moore broke up the shutout with an unassisted goal late in the second period. Jacob Rombach added the first goal of his collegiate career with 4:54 remaining in regulation.
SEASON-OPENING SUCCESS
The Maroon and Gold have consistently found success when beginning a campaign, holding a 66-37-2 all-time record in the first game of the year, including six-straight, season-opening victories. Minnesota secured a 6-3 win over Michigan Tech at home to begin 2025-26 thanks to a four-goal third period and a multi-goal effort from Brodie Ziemer. The Gophers have even more success in their home openers, behind a record of 71-31-3, which contains a 23-8-2 mark in opening contests at 3M Arena at Mariucci.
TAKING DOWN THE TOP 10
A year ago, the Gophers picked up six of their 11 total victories against teams ranked in the top 10, including a home sweep of No. 8/7 Wisconsin at home to close the month of January. This season, head coach Brett Larson will get a chance to face one of the nation's toughest schedules in his first year at the helm of the Maroon and Gold. The Gophers are set to play 20 games versus teams that were ranked in the top five at some point last season and 28 of 34 games against teams ranked or receiving votes in the 2026-27 preseason polls, including 16 games versus the top six. While coaching St. Cloud State, Larson and the Huskies played 57 games against top-five-ranked opponents, picking up 24 wins.
BACK TO B1G STANDARDS
Across 13 years of hockey in the Big Ten Conference, Minnesota has been the gold standard, winning a league-leading seven regular-season titles. The Gophers secured a share of the championship in 2024-25 for their 30th overall title in program history and their third title in a four-year stretch. Michigan State is the only other team to win multiple championships, having won each of the last three years, while every Big Ten school except Michigan has claimed at least one title.
PRESEASON B1G RECOGNITION
Three members of the Minnesota men's hockey team were named to 2026-27 Preseason All-Big Ten Conference Teams in forward Brodie Ziemer (first team), goaltender Luca Di Pasquo (second team), and defenseman Evan Murr (second team). As a team, the Gophers were picked to finish fourth as voted upon by the league's head coaches.
LARSON TAKES CHARGE
Brett Larson took over as the leader of the Maroon and Gold when he was hired as the 13th full-time coach in program history on March 24, 2026. He brings 16 years of collegiate coaching experience to campus, having recently served as the head coach at St. Cloud State for the last eight seasons. He guided the Huskies to four NCAA tournament appearances, two NCHC championships and the program's first-ever national championship game appearance in 2021. He left SCSU with 153 career wins, the fourth-most victories in program history, and was the 2019 NCHC Coach of the Year.
LIFTING THE STANLEY CUP
The end of the 2025-26 National Hockey League season again featured the Maroon and Gold as Mike Reilly and the Carolina Hurricanes lifted the Stanley Cup. It marked the fifth-straight season where a former Gopher won an NHL title and had his named engraved onto the greatest trophy in sports, a feat that no other NCAA program has accomplished during the 21st century. Reilly became the 15th player or coach representing Minnesota to win the Stanley Cup, following Erik Johnson (Colorado Avalanche-2022), Phil Kessel (Vegas Golden Knights-2023), and Kyle Okposo (Florida Panthers-2024), and Nate Schmidt (Florida Panthers-2025) in the recent stretch of champions.
OLIMB MOVES INTO M CLUB HALL OF FAME
This weekend, former Gopher Larry Olimb will be one of 10 inductees into the Minnesota M Club Hall of Fame Class of 2026 during a ceremony at Huntington Bank Stadium on Friday, Oct. 2. He wore the Maroon and Gold from 1989-92 and saved his best season for last, scoring 80 points in 44 games, which led him to be named a 1992 Hobey Baker finalist. Olimb was also named an All-WCHA First Team selection and second team All-American that season. Playing in 182 career games, he still holds the title of all-time assists leader (159) and ranks fifth in all-time scoring (218). After college, the Warroad, Minn., native was drafted by the Minnesota North Stars and played professional hockey until 1995.
AN INSIDE LOOK AT MICHIGAN TECH
The Huskies open the 2026-27 season with high expectations as the preseason favorite to win the CCHA by both the conference coaches and the media. MTU had three players land on the Preseason Coaches' All-CCHA Team in forwards Max Koskipirtti and Isaac Gordon, who collected 35 and 29 points last season, respectively, along with former Gopher goaltender Owen Bartoszkiewicz. The senior posted a 23-12-2 record with a 2.52 goals-against average and a .913 save percentage in 2025-26. Under the direction of first-year head coach Bill Muckalt a season ago, the Huskies put together a 20-plus-win campaign and reached the CCHA semifinals.
HISTORY WITH THE HUSKIES
Minnesota holds a 175-79-15 (.678) all-time record against former WCHA foe Michigan Tech following a series split between the two teams to begin the 2025-26 season inside 3M Arena at Mariucci last October. This year, the teams will battle in the opening series at John MacInnes Student Ice Arena in Houghton, Mich., a venue the Gophers have not visited since Oct. 19-20, 2012, when they played to a split. The Maroon and Gold have won nine of the last 12 meetings overall and are 67-47-9 (.581) in games at MTU. The Gophers' 175 victories over the Huskies are the second-most against any opponent in program history, trailing only their 190 wins over Wisconsin. Michigan Tech is also one of seven NCAA programs Minnesota has defeated more than 100 times.
The program's 106th year of competition will begin away from campus with a true road test for the first time since 2019. Fans can tune into the action from Houghton, Mich., all weekend through the Gopher Radio Network 103.5 FM / AM-1130 KTLK.
LAST TIME ON THE ICE
Minnesota closed its 2025-26 season with a 6-2 loss to No. 10 Penn State in the quarterfinals of the 2026 Big Ten Tournament at Pegula Ice Arena last March. The Nittany Lions scored twice in each period and held a four-goal advantage until Javon Moore broke up the shutout with an unassisted goal late in the second period. Jacob Rombach added the first goal of his collegiate career with 4:54 remaining in regulation.
SEASON-OPENING SUCCESS
The Maroon and Gold have consistently found success when beginning a campaign, holding a 66-37-2 all-time record in the first game of the year, including six-straight, season-opening victories. Minnesota secured a 6-3 win over Michigan Tech at home to begin 2025-26 thanks to a four-goal third period and a multi-goal effort from Brodie Ziemer. The Gophers have even more success in their home openers, behind a record of 71-31-3, which contains a 23-8-2 mark in opening contests at 3M Arena at Mariucci.
TAKING DOWN THE TOP 10
A year ago, the Gophers picked up six of their 11 total victories against teams ranked in the top 10, including a home sweep of No. 8/7 Wisconsin at home to close the month of January. This season, head coach Brett Larson will get a chance to face one of the nation's toughest schedules in his first year at the helm of the Maroon and Gold. The Gophers are set to play 20 games versus teams that were ranked in the top five at some point last season and 28 of 34 games against teams ranked or receiving votes in the 2026-27 preseason polls, including 16 games versus the top six. While coaching St. Cloud State, Larson and the Huskies played 57 games against top-five-ranked opponents, picking up 24 wins.
BACK TO B1G STANDARDS
Across 13 years of hockey in the Big Ten Conference, Minnesota has been the gold standard, winning a league-leading seven regular-season titles. The Gophers secured a share of the championship in 2024-25 for their 30th overall title in program history and their third title in a four-year stretch. Michigan State is the only other team to win multiple championships, having won each of the last three years, while every Big Ten school except Michigan has claimed at least one title.
PRESEASON B1G RECOGNITION
Three members of the Minnesota men's hockey team were named to 2026-27 Preseason All-Big Ten Conference Teams in forward Brodie Ziemer (first team), goaltender Luca Di Pasquo (second team), and defenseman Evan Murr (second team). As a team, the Gophers were picked to finish fourth as voted upon by the league's head coaches.
LARSON TAKES CHARGE
Brett Larson took over as the leader of the Maroon and Gold when he was hired as the 13th full-time coach in program history on March 24, 2026. He brings 16 years of collegiate coaching experience to campus, having recently served as the head coach at St. Cloud State for the last eight seasons. He guided the Huskies to four NCAA tournament appearances, two NCHC championships and the program's first-ever national championship game appearance in 2021. He left SCSU with 153 career wins, the fourth-most victories in program history, and was the 2019 NCHC Coach of the Year.
LIFTING THE STANLEY CUP
The end of the 2025-26 National Hockey League season again featured the Maroon and Gold as Mike Reilly and the Carolina Hurricanes lifted the Stanley Cup. It marked the fifth-straight season where a former Gopher won an NHL title and had his named engraved onto the greatest trophy in sports, a feat that no other NCAA program has accomplished during the 21st century. Reilly became the 15th player or coach representing Minnesota to win the Stanley Cup, following Erik Johnson (Colorado Avalanche-2022), Phil Kessel (Vegas Golden Knights-2023), and Kyle Okposo (Florida Panthers-2024), and Nate Schmidt (Florida Panthers-2025) in the recent stretch of champions.
OLIMB MOVES INTO M CLUB HALL OF FAME
This weekend, former Gopher Larry Olimb will be one of 10 inductees into the Minnesota M Club Hall of Fame Class of 2026 during a ceremony at Huntington Bank Stadium on Friday, Oct. 2. He wore the Maroon and Gold from 1989-92 and saved his best season for last, scoring 80 points in 44 games, which led him to be named a 1992 Hobey Baker finalist. Olimb was also named an All-WCHA First Team selection and second team All-American that season. Playing in 182 career games, he still holds the title of all-time assists leader (159) and ranks fifth in all-time scoring (218). After college, the Warroad, Minn., native was drafted by the Minnesota North Stars and played professional hockey until 1995.
AN INSIDE LOOK AT MICHIGAN TECH
The Huskies open the 2026-27 season with high expectations as the preseason favorite to win the CCHA by both the conference coaches and the media. MTU had three players land on the Preseason Coaches' All-CCHA Team in forwards Max Koskipirtti and Isaac Gordon, who collected 35 and 29 points last season, respectively, along with former Gopher goaltender Owen Bartoszkiewicz. The senior posted a 23-12-2 record with a 2.52 goals-against average and a .913 save percentage in 2025-26. Under the direction of first-year head coach Bill Muckalt a season ago, the Huskies put together a 20-plus-win campaign and reached the CCHA semifinals.
HISTORY WITH THE HUSKIES
Minnesota holds a 175-79-15 (.678) all-time record against former WCHA foe Michigan Tech following a series split between the two teams to begin the 2025-26 season inside 3M Arena at Mariucci last October. This year, the teams will battle in the opening series at John MacInnes Student Ice Arena in Houghton, Mich., a venue the Gophers have not visited since Oct. 19-20, 2012, when they played to a split. The Maroon and Gold have won nine of the last 12 meetings overall and are 67-47-9 (.581) in games at MTU. The Gophers' 175 victories over the Huskies are the second-most against any opponent in program history, trailing only their 190 wins over Wisconsin. Michigan Tech is also one of seven NCAA programs Minnesota has defeated more than 100 times.
Players Mentioned
Goaltender
/ Men's Hockey
Forward
/ Men's Hockey
Defense
/ Men's Hockey
Defense
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Forward
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