University of Minnesota Athletics
Friday, October 16
Duluth, MN
7:00 PM
University of Minnesota
at
Minnesota Duluth
Photo by: Brady Paitrick
Gophers Battle No. 9 Bulldogs in Duluth
10/15/2026 11:00:00 AM | Men's Hockey
Road swing continues Oct. 16-17 at UMD
MINNEAPOLIS - After an early-season bye week, the Golden Gophers men's hockey team continues their four-game road stretch when they travel to Duluth, Minn., for a series against the ninth-ranked Bulldogs Oct. 16-17.
The series gets underway from AMSOIL Arena Friday night at 7 p.m. and concludes with a 6 p.m. start time Saturday evening. Fans in the Twin Cities can tune into FOX9+ to watch the action, while an audio broadcast of both contests can be heard on the Gopher Radio Network 103.5 FM / AM-1130 KTLK and iHeartRadio.
LAST TIME ON THE ICE
Minnesota dropped both games during its opening weekend of competition at No. 19/20 Michigan Tech on Oct. 3-4, falling 3-2 Saturday before a 3-1 setback Sunday at John MacInnes Student Ice Arena. It is the first time the Gophers started a season with a pair of losses in more than a decade and snapped a six-year streak of winning their first game of the year. After a nearly 24-hour delay to the season opener due to poor ice conditions, Tate Pritchard and Beckett Hendrickson scored in the second period to erase a pair of deficits, but the Huskies struck late to secure the win. On Sunday, Mason Moe tied the game with a third-period power-play goal, but Michigan Tech answered on the man advantage with 2:46 remaining before adding an empty-net tally to complete the sweep.
SEASON-OPENING SCORING TREND
During their season opener at Michigan Tech, a pair of Gophers found themselves in familiar territory by scoring in the first game of the year. Sophomore Tate Pritchard put away Minnesota's first goal of 2026-27 after he scored his first NCAA goal during his debut last season versus the Huskies. Junior Beckett Hendrickson took his early scoring prowess to another level as he now has a goal in every season opener of his three-year tenure.
CAPITALIZING WITH THE EXTRA MAN
Mason Moe put away the first power-play goal of his career in game two at Michigan Tech, scoring the team's first 5-on-4 goal of 2026-27, as it went 1-for-3 during the opening series. Minnesota's power play converted at a 26.5 percent clip last season, ranking sixth in the NCAA, thanks in large part to the efforts of returners Brodie Ziemer and LJ Mooney. The duo combined for 35 points on 15 goals and 20 assists, while two seniors that have since graduated, Brody Lamb and Luke Mittelstadt, each had 15 points. During a 15-game stretch from Nov. 15 to Feb. 6, the Gophers converted an incredible 22 power plays in 43 attempts (51.2 percent), including a four-goal outburst to finish a sweep of rival Wisconsin in January.
DEFENSE PROVIDING OFFENSE
The Gophers only scored three times against Michigan Tech, but it was their defensemen that helped drive play. Freshman Axel Löfgren picked up a helper in both games versus the Huskies to post a team-best two points. Fellow newcomers along the blue line, Evan Murr and Finn Loftus, each added a point with assists. The other assist during the opening series came from rookie forward Brooks Cullen as all five of the team's assists were contributed by newcomers to the lineup.
MURR LANDS USCS SPOT
Minnesota newcomer Evan Murr was one of six players named to the initial 2026 U.S. Collegiate Selects Team that will take part in the 2026 Spengler Cup this December at Eisstadion Davos in Davos, Switzerland. The USCS open play on Saturday, Dec. 26 against Frölunda HC of Sweden before facing host HC Davos on either Dec. 27 or Dec. 28. The USCS roster, which will feature 25 student-athletes from all six NCAA Division I conferences, will continue to be announced in the coming months.
RETURNED TO THE POLLS
The end of the 2025-26 season saw the Gophers unranked in the final national polls for the first time since 2018-19 after battling the toughest schedule in the country. The team entered last year No. 8/7 in the national rankings before falling out of the polls in late November. Behind a new coaching staff and revitalized roster, the Maroon and Gold began 2026-27 back in the polls, ranked No. 14 by USCHO.com and No. 18 by USA Hockey, but dropped down to No. 20 after the first week of competition.
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, and gets a chance to face his alma mater this weekend. 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.
PREMIER NHL PIPELINE
Thirty players with ties to the Gophers recently participated in NHL training camps, representing 20 different franchises, while 19 made the roster for opening night. The group is highlighted by six players that have spent more than a decade in the NHL. Minnesota's presence at the highest level remains unmatched across college hockey after 22 former players skated in the league last season, generating a program-record 194 goals, and increased the number of Gophers to reach the NHL to an NCAA-best 131.
AN INSIDE LOOK AT MINNESOTA DULUTH
The Bulldogs opened the year with a home sweep of Long Island, outscoring the Sharks by an 11-4 margin before going 0-1-1 on the road at Augustana last weekend, but remain ranked inside the top 10 of the national polls. The Vikings claimed a 4-3 win in overtime Friday before the teams played to a 1-1 draw on Saturday. UMD owns a perfect 18-for-18 penalty kill through four games, while its power play has converted 2-of-17 chances, both goals coming from Callum Arnott. Jayson Shaugabay leads the team with seven points, while Barrett Hall has a team-best three goals. Goaltenders Carl Axelsson and Ethan Dahlmeir have split the starts with Axelsson posting a 1-0-1 record behind an impressive 0.48 goals-against average and a .974 save percentage.
HISTORY WITH THE BULLDOGS
Minnesota owns a 138-87-19 (.605) record in the all-time series versus the in-state Bulldogs. The road team has swept each of the last two series with UMD claiming 3-0 and 4-1 victories inside 3M Arena at Mariucci last October after the Gophers picked up wins by a 7-5 and 5-1 scoreline in Duluth during their last trip north in 2024. Minnesota is just 3-6-1 over the last 10 meetings against the Bulldogs but are unbeaten (2-0-1) in the last three matchups at AMSOIL Arena.
The series gets underway from AMSOIL Arena Friday night at 7 p.m. and concludes with a 6 p.m. start time Saturday evening. Fans in the Twin Cities can tune into FOX9+ to watch the action, while an audio broadcast of both contests can be heard on the Gopher Radio Network 103.5 FM / AM-1130 KTLK and iHeartRadio.
LAST TIME ON THE ICE
Minnesota dropped both games during its opening weekend of competition at No. 19/20 Michigan Tech on Oct. 3-4, falling 3-2 Saturday before a 3-1 setback Sunday at John MacInnes Student Ice Arena. It is the first time the Gophers started a season with a pair of losses in more than a decade and snapped a six-year streak of winning their first game of the year. After a nearly 24-hour delay to the season opener due to poor ice conditions, Tate Pritchard and Beckett Hendrickson scored in the second period to erase a pair of deficits, but the Huskies struck late to secure the win. On Sunday, Mason Moe tied the game with a third-period power-play goal, but Michigan Tech answered on the man advantage with 2:46 remaining before adding an empty-net tally to complete the sweep.
SEASON-OPENING SCORING TREND
During their season opener at Michigan Tech, a pair of Gophers found themselves in familiar territory by scoring in the first game of the year. Sophomore Tate Pritchard put away Minnesota's first goal of 2026-27 after he scored his first NCAA goal during his debut last season versus the Huskies. Junior Beckett Hendrickson took his early scoring prowess to another level as he now has a goal in every season opener of his three-year tenure.
CAPITALIZING WITH THE EXTRA MAN
Mason Moe put away the first power-play goal of his career in game two at Michigan Tech, scoring the team's first 5-on-4 goal of 2026-27, as it went 1-for-3 during the opening series. Minnesota's power play converted at a 26.5 percent clip last season, ranking sixth in the NCAA, thanks in large part to the efforts of returners Brodie Ziemer and LJ Mooney. The duo combined for 35 points on 15 goals and 20 assists, while two seniors that have since graduated, Brody Lamb and Luke Mittelstadt, each had 15 points. During a 15-game stretch from Nov. 15 to Feb. 6, the Gophers converted an incredible 22 power plays in 43 attempts (51.2 percent), including a four-goal outburst to finish a sweep of rival Wisconsin in January.
DEFENSE PROVIDING OFFENSE
The Gophers only scored three times against Michigan Tech, but it was their defensemen that helped drive play. Freshman Axel Löfgren picked up a helper in both games versus the Huskies to post a team-best two points. Fellow newcomers along the blue line, Evan Murr and Finn Loftus, each added a point with assists. The other assist during the opening series came from rookie forward Brooks Cullen as all five of the team's assists were contributed by newcomers to the lineup.
MURR LANDS USCS SPOT
Minnesota newcomer Evan Murr was one of six players named to the initial 2026 U.S. Collegiate Selects Team that will take part in the 2026 Spengler Cup this December at Eisstadion Davos in Davos, Switzerland. The USCS open play on Saturday, Dec. 26 against Frölunda HC of Sweden before facing host HC Davos on either Dec. 27 or Dec. 28. The USCS roster, which will feature 25 student-athletes from all six NCAA Division I conferences, will continue to be announced in the coming months.
RETURNED TO THE POLLS
The end of the 2025-26 season saw the Gophers unranked in the final national polls for the first time since 2018-19 after battling the toughest schedule in the country. The team entered last year No. 8/7 in the national rankings before falling out of the polls in late November. Behind a new coaching staff and revitalized roster, the Maroon and Gold began 2026-27 back in the polls, ranked No. 14 by USCHO.com and No. 18 by USA Hockey, but dropped down to No. 20 after the first week of competition.
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, and gets a chance to face his alma mater this weekend. 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.
PREMIER NHL PIPELINE
Thirty players with ties to the Gophers recently participated in NHL training camps, representing 20 different franchises, while 19 made the roster for opening night. The group is highlighted by six players that have spent more than a decade in the NHL. Minnesota's presence at the highest level remains unmatched across college hockey after 22 former players skated in the league last season, generating a program-record 194 goals, and increased the number of Gophers to reach the NHL to an NCAA-best 131.
AN INSIDE LOOK AT MINNESOTA DULUTH
The Bulldogs opened the year with a home sweep of Long Island, outscoring the Sharks by an 11-4 margin before going 0-1-1 on the road at Augustana last weekend, but remain ranked inside the top 10 of the national polls. The Vikings claimed a 4-3 win in overtime Friday before the teams played to a 1-1 draw on Saturday. UMD owns a perfect 18-for-18 penalty kill through four games, while its power play has converted 2-of-17 chances, both goals coming from Callum Arnott. Jayson Shaugabay leads the team with seven points, while Barrett Hall has a team-best three goals. Goaltenders Carl Axelsson and Ethan Dahlmeir have split the starts with Axelsson posting a 1-0-1 record behind an impressive 0.48 goals-against average and a .974 save percentage.
HISTORY WITH THE BULLDOGS
Minnesota owns a 138-87-19 (.605) record in the all-time series versus the in-state Bulldogs. The road team has swept each of the last two series with UMD claiming 3-0 and 4-1 victories inside 3M Arena at Mariucci last October after the Gophers picked up wins by a 7-5 and 5-1 scoreline in Duluth during their last trip north in 2024. Minnesota is just 3-6-1 over the last 10 meetings against the Bulldogs but are unbeaten (2-0-1) in the last three matchups at AMSOIL Arena.
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