University of Minnesota Athletics
Thursday, February 26
Ann Arbor, MI
5:30 PM
University of Minnesota
11-19-2, 7-13-1
4
at
2
Michigan
25-7-1, 16-6-1
1
2
3
F
Minnesota
0
1
3
4
Michigan
1
0
1
2
Team Stats
MIN
U-M
Shots
15
39
PPG
1
1
SHG
0
0
Penalties
1
2
Penalty Mins
2
4
Faceoffs Won
31
31
Game Leaders
+/-
2
Goals
2
Sh
4
A
1
+/-
3
Goals
0
Sh
0
A
2
+/-
0
Goals
1
Sh
1
A
0
Players Mentioned
Goaltender
/ Men's Hockey
Forward
/ Men's HockeyForward
/ Men's HockeyDefense
/ Men's Hockey
Forward
/ Men's Hockey
Forward
/ Men's Hockey
Defense
/ Men's HockeyForward
/ Men's Hockey
Photo by: Matt Krohn
Ziemer's Three Points Stun No. 2 Wolverines
2/26/2026 9:00:00 PM | Men's Hockey
'U' secures sixth top-10 win this season
ANN ARBOR, Mich. - Brodie Ziemer's three-point performance sparked the Minnesota men's hockey team to a road upset at No. 2 Michigan Thursday night from Yost Ice Arena. The sophomore scored twice, including one into an empty net, and added an assist in the 4-2 win.
LJ Mooney posted a goal and an assist, while Luke Mittelstadt collected a pair of helpers to pace the Golden Gophers' (11-19-2 overall, 7-13-1 B1G, 25 points) victory over the Wolverines (25-7-1 overall, 16-6-1 B1G, 46 points). Netminder Luca Di Pasquo made 37 saves, while Minnesota blocked 30 shots to stun the conference leaders.
The first chances of the night belonged to the home side as it was a choppy start with plenty of stoppages. Michigan went to an early power play and scored in the closing seconds of the man advantage on a tip in front for a 1-0 edge at 7:53. The Maroon and Gold had a brilliant opportunity to pull even in the middle of the frame as Erik Påhlsson intercepted a failed clearance and circled around the goal, but his centering pass was off the mark. The Gophers were only able to generate two shots on target in the period and went back to the locker room, trailing by one.
In the first 30 seconds of the second stanza, Tate Pritchard's pass sprung Beckett Hendrickson past the Wolverines' defense before the sophomore's attempt sailed wide. On the next shift, it was the quick blocker of Di Pasquo at the other end of the ice that denied a scoring chance for the home team.
The Gophers were finally able to build a forecheck from their fourth line and put pressure on Michigan, leading to their first crack skating 5-on-4 at the 4:33 mark. The power play expired without a goal, but momentum continued with the visitors.
Using a long stretch pass from Mooney, Ziemer took off along the boards and caught the puck in stride. He snapped a shot past the goalie from the left circle and evened the score, 1-1, with 11:59 to play in the frame. Mason Moe nearly put Minnesota in front as his bid from close range had to be kicked aside as the second period remained tilted towards the Maroon and Gold.
At a critical moment late in the frame, John Whipple dropped down to block a 3-on-2 opportunity by the home side and the score remained 1-1. Di Pasquo needed to deliver another sliding save as Michigan was able to push back in the final minute before the period ended all square, 1-1.
The start of the final frame was all Gophers as they put away two goals on two shots in the first four minutes of the period, breaking the deadlock and taking a 3-1 lead. After Ziemer batted a Wolverine pass out of the zone, he was pulled to the ice and the visitors went back to a man advantage at 1:18. This time the power play would not be denied and Mooney buried a cross-ice feed from Luke Mittelstadt off the inside of the post and Minnesota moved in front, 2-1, 2:37 into the period. The margin quickly doubled just 78 seconds later as Tanner Ludtke snuck a shot between the goalie's pads following a Javon Moore pass and the Maroon and Gold took a two-goal advantage.
Michigan got one goal back with 11:17 to play in regulation as it threw everything it had at the Gophers, while turning up the physicality. Di Pasquo and the Minnesota defense did all it could to hold off the attacking Wolverines by blocking shots and getting timely saves. The home team pulled its goalie with 2:20 to play only to see the Maroon and Gold generate a rush where Mooney hit the post.
Playing less than 27 miles from his hometown of Livonia, Mich., Di Pasquo made a heads-up play behind his own goal and fired a puck around the boards where Ziemer collected it. The sophomore found the empty net from center ice in the final 90 seconds to seal the upset, 4-2.
Di Pasquo was a difference maker as the junior turned aside 37 shots, including 19 in the third period alone, backstopping the victory. He also collected his second assist of the year on Ziemer's final tally.
Noteworthy
As he has done all season, Ziemer is on an offensive tear and tacked on his league-leading 22nd goal of the year, ranking second in the NCAA, and 12th assist to remain above a point-per-game pace with 34 ... His eighth multi-point effort pushed his point streak to a career-best eight games, totaling 12 points in that stretch, and the Chaska, Minn., native has 18 goals over the last 20 appearances ... The sophomore has also dominated away from home, recording 10 of the Gophers' 25 goals in 11 Big Ten road tests ... Mooney extended his team-leading assist total to 21 and quickly returned to the scoresheet after missing the last two games with an injury before posting his seventh goal, fourth on the power play ... The freshman has 13 points across the past nine contests, posting 28 points overall, thanks to his eighth multi-point performance ... Ludtke secured his first 5-on-5 goal of the campaign behind his fifth tally and pushed his point total to 12 ... It was his first goal in 10 games since finding the back of the net versus the Wolverines on Jan. 16 and his first game-winning goal with the Maroon and Gold ... After going four outings without a point, Mittelstadt picked up two more helpers, increasing his total to 19 ... He also became the fourth Gopher to reach the 20-point mark this season, and hit that milestone for the third time in his four-year career ... Moore has points in three-straight outings after registering his 12th assist and 18th point overall ... Whipple was a force along the blue line and blocked a career-best eight shots as Minnesota closed the night with a season-high 30 ... Minnesota went 1-for-2 on the power play, while the Wolverines were 1-for-1 ... Thursday's win was the Gophers' sixth top-10 victory of 2025-26, three of which have been secured away from home, having defeated No. 8 North Dakota, No. 4 Denver, and now No. 2 Michigan.
Coach Motzko's Comments
"We've been in that situation I can't tell you how many times this year. We're in a game 1-1 and we needed to make the next play. We make it 2-1 and then we get 3-1. And so many nights if we could have done that, we'd have a different outcome," Minnesota head coach Bob Motzko said. "Tonight, we were able to figure it out, and guys made plays, they were selling out, because you're going to have to defend Michigan down the stretch when you have a lead in Yost. And our guy sold out and did a terrific job."
Next Up: Away at No. 2 Michigan (Feb. 27)
Minnesota plays its final regular-season road game of the 2025-26 campaign versus the second-ranked Wolverines Friday night live on Big Ten Network at 5 p.m. (CT) with audio coverage available via the Gopher Radio Network 103.5 FM/AM-1130 KTLK.
LJ Mooney posted a goal and an assist, while Luke Mittelstadt collected a pair of helpers to pace the Golden Gophers' (11-19-2 overall, 7-13-1 B1G, 25 points) victory over the Wolverines (25-7-1 overall, 16-6-1 B1G, 46 points). Netminder Luca Di Pasquo made 37 saves, while Minnesota blocked 30 shots to stun the conference leaders.
The first chances of the night belonged to the home side as it was a choppy start with plenty of stoppages. Michigan went to an early power play and scored in the closing seconds of the man advantage on a tip in front for a 1-0 edge at 7:53. The Maroon and Gold had a brilliant opportunity to pull even in the middle of the frame as Erik Påhlsson intercepted a failed clearance and circled around the goal, but his centering pass was off the mark. The Gophers were only able to generate two shots on target in the period and went back to the locker room, trailing by one.
In the first 30 seconds of the second stanza, Tate Pritchard's pass sprung Beckett Hendrickson past the Wolverines' defense before the sophomore's attempt sailed wide. On the next shift, it was the quick blocker of Di Pasquo at the other end of the ice that denied a scoring chance for the home team.
The Gophers were finally able to build a forecheck from their fourth line and put pressure on Michigan, leading to their first crack skating 5-on-4 at the 4:33 mark. The power play expired without a goal, but momentum continued with the visitors.
Using a long stretch pass from Mooney, Ziemer took off along the boards and caught the puck in stride. He snapped a shot past the goalie from the left circle and evened the score, 1-1, with 11:59 to play in the frame. Mason Moe nearly put Minnesota in front as his bid from close range had to be kicked aside as the second period remained tilted towards the Maroon and Gold.
At a critical moment late in the frame, John Whipple dropped down to block a 3-on-2 opportunity by the home side and the score remained 1-1. Di Pasquo needed to deliver another sliding save as Michigan was able to push back in the final minute before the period ended all square, 1-1.
The start of the final frame was all Gophers as they put away two goals on two shots in the first four minutes of the period, breaking the deadlock and taking a 3-1 lead. After Ziemer batted a Wolverine pass out of the zone, he was pulled to the ice and the visitors went back to a man advantage at 1:18. This time the power play would not be denied and Mooney buried a cross-ice feed from Luke Mittelstadt off the inside of the post and Minnesota moved in front, 2-1, 2:37 into the period. The margin quickly doubled just 78 seconds later as Tanner Ludtke snuck a shot between the goalie's pads following a Javon Moore pass and the Maroon and Gold took a two-goal advantage.
Michigan got one goal back with 11:17 to play in regulation as it threw everything it had at the Gophers, while turning up the physicality. Di Pasquo and the Minnesota defense did all it could to hold off the attacking Wolverines by blocking shots and getting timely saves. The home team pulled its goalie with 2:20 to play only to see the Maroon and Gold generate a rush where Mooney hit the post.
Playing less than 27 miles from his hometown of Livonia, Mich., Di Pasquo made a heads-up play behind his own goal and fired a puck around the boards where Ziemer collected it. The sophomore found the empty net from center ice in the final 90 seconds to seal the upset, 4-2.
Di Pasquo was a difference maker as the junior turned aside 37 shots, including 19 in the third period alone, backstopping the victory. He also collected his second assist of the year on Ziemer's final tally.
Noteworthy
As he has done all season, Ziemer is on an offensive tear and tacked on his league-leading 22nd goal of the year, ranking second in the NCAA, and 12th assist to remain above a point-per-game pace with 34 ... His eighth multi-point effort pushed his point streak to a career-best eight games, totaling 12 points in that stretch, and the Chaska, Minn., native has 18 goals over the last 20 appearances ... The sophomore has also dominated away from home, recording 10 of the Gophers' 25 goals in 11 Big Ten road tests ... Mooney extended his team-leading assist total to 21 and quickly returned to the scoresheet after missing the last two games with an injury before posting his seventh goal, fourth on the power play ... The freshman has 13 points across the past nine contests, posting 28 points overall, thanks to his eighth multi-point performance ... Ludtke secured his first 5-on-5 goal of the campaign behind his fifth tally and pushed his point total to 12 ... It was his first goal in 10 games since finding the back of the net versus the Wolverines on Jan. 16 and his first game-winning goal with the Maroon and Gold ... After going four outings without a point, Mittelstadt picked up two more helpers, increasing his total to 19 ... He also became the fourth Gopher to reach the 20-point mark this season, and hit that milestone for the third time in his four-year career ... Moore has points in three-straight outings after registering his 12th assist and 18th point overall ... Whipple was a force along the blue line and blocked a career-best eight shots as Minnesota closed the night with a season-high 30 ... Minnesota went 1-for-2 on the power play, while the Wolverines were 1-for-1 ... Thursday's win was the Gophers' sixth top-10 victory of 2025-26, three of which have been secured away from home, having defeated No. 8 North Dakota, No. 4 Denver, and now No. 2 Michigan.
Coach Motzko's Comments
"We've been in that situation I can't tell you how many times this year. We're in a game 1-1 and we needed to make the next play. We make it 2-1 and then we get 3-1. And so many nights if we could have done that, we'd have a different outcome," Minnesota head coach Bob Motzko said. "Tonight, we were able to figure it out, and guys made plays, they were selling out, because you're going to have to defend Michigan down the stretch when you have a lead in Yost. And our guy sold out and did a terrific job."
Next Up: Away at No. 2 Michigan (Feb. 27)
Minnesota plays its final regular-season road game of the 2025-26 campaign versus the second-ranked Wolverines Friday night live on Big Ten Network at 5 p.m. (CT) with audio coverage available via the Gopher Radio Network 103.5 FM/AM-1130 KTLK.
Highlights: Gophers 4, Michigan 2
Thursday, February 26
Highlights: Gophers 2, Notre Dame 3
Saturday, February 14
Highlights: Gophers 2, Notre Dame 2
Friday, February 13
Gopher Round Table: Men's Hockey
Thursday, February 12