University of Minnesota Athletics
MINNESOTA DEFEATS COLGATE 9-0 TO COMPLETE SERIES SWEEP
10/27/2001 12:00:00 AM | Athletics
Junior Jeff Taffe opened the game's scoring with his goal at 4:40 on the power play. On the point, Paul Martin passed to Grant Potulny to the right of the goal who then fed Taffe to beat CU goalie David Cann low on the left side. It was Taffe's fifth goal of the seaon. The Golden Gophers then made it 2-0 with a Matt Koalska shorthanded goal at 10:06. Senior assistant captain Johnny Pohl raced up the right side on a 2-on-1 rush and made a late pass across the goal mouth to Koalska who sent the puck past a sprawling Cann.
Grant Potulny picked up the first of his two goals of the game at 14:35 to make it 3-0. Martin's dump-in backhander from the high slot deflected right to Potulny who slapped the biscuit in the basket for his first goal of the young season. The second assist was granted to Pohl. Less than two minutes later, Potulny picked up his second lamplighter, this time on another 2-on-1 rush. Taffe passed across the slot to the streaking Grand Forks, N.D., native to push the Maroon and Gold to a 4-0 lead. Minnesota outshot Colgate 14-7 in the opening period.
It took until midway through the second period for the Golden Gophers to tally their fifth goal, but Keith Ballard made it memorable, scoring on another 2-on-1 break at 10:03. Koalska passed across the slot to the freshman defenseman who whiffed on his first shot attempt before knocking the puck in for his second goal of the season. Minnesota made it 6-0 on a Jordan Leopold< /a> wrist shot from the point that beat Cann through the five-hole. Nick Anthony tallied the single assist.
Gold Country closed out the scoring in the second period with Pat O'Leary's wrister from the right circle on asssits from Pohl and Judd Stevens.
The third period scoring opened with Koalska's second goal of the game at 4:17 with assists going to Pohl and Stevens. The barrage ended at 8:07 of the final stanza behind Barry Tallackson's second goal of the year with assists credited to Pohl and Koalska.
Pohl ended the night with career-highs in points and assists with his five helpers in the game. It was the first time since March 12-13, 1999 versus Alaska-Anchorage that Minnesota posted back-to-back shutouts. All four lines scored at least one point versus Colgate tonight. The Golden Gophers are now averaging 7.6 goals per game. Minnesota faces Michigan Tech Nov. 2-3 in Houghton, Mich., in Gold Country's first WCHA series of the season.
