Minnesota Looks to Continue College Hockey Showcase Success

Minnesota takes part in the 15th annual College Hockey Showcase, putting an eight-game tournament unbeaten streak on the line. The Gophers will play at defending national champion Michigan State on Friday and travel to Michigan on Saturday. Minnesota is 4-0 in non-conference games this year and has won 13 straight non-WCHA games. Friday’s game will be televised locally in East Lansing on Comcast and broadcast on WCCO 830 AM. Saturday’s game will be shown live on the Big Ten Network (Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota and Michigan only) and broadcast on KTNF 950 AM and KUOM 100.7 FM and 107.5 FM.

The Series vs. Michigan State
Minnesota leads the all-time series 100-41-9 in a series that dates to 1951. The Gophers are 3-0-2 in the last five meetings with the Spartans, including a 5-4 victory in last year’s College Hockey Showcase. Alex Goligoski scored the game-winning goal with 8:40 left after Michigan State tied the game with a pair of goals 36 seconds apart earlier in the third period. The Gophers have only been shutout by the Spartans once, coming in a 4-0 decision on Feb. 2, 1957.

The Series vs. Michigan
One of the most-played non-conference rivalries in college hockey, Minnesota owns a 127-114-4 advantage with the Wolverines since the teams first played in 1923. The Gophers beat Michigan 4-3 earlier this season in the IceBreaker Invitational title game in St. Paul for their sixth straight win in the series. In fact, Minnesota has won eight of the last 10 meetings with Michigan’s last win coming Dec. 1, 2002 in a 3-1 victory at Mariucci Arena. This season marks the first time the two teams are playing twice in the same regular season since 1991-92. Minnesota took last year’s College Hockey Showcase encounter with the Wolverines 8-2 by scoring three shorthanded goals on three Michigan power plays. Mike Carman had two of the shorthanded scores and the Gophers owned a 52-24 advantage in shots and scored five times in the third period. 

Last Time Out
Minnesota split a series with Alaska Anchorage, winning 3-0 on Friday before having its three-game winning streak snapped in a 4-2 loss on Saturday. In the opening game of the series, David Fischer scored a first period goal that stood as the lead until the Gophers added a pair of third-period goals following some nifty passing. Kyle Okposo tallied the first score and Blake Wheeler scored later in the third period for the 3-0 advantage. Jeff Frazee had 24 saves in goal. On Saturday, Minnesota built a 2-1 lead after two periods behind goals from Jay Barriball and Okposo. The Seawolves came back with three goals in less than four minutes in the third period to rally for the win. Minnesota held a 32-25 advantage in shots.

About the Spartans
The defending national champions dropped their season opener 6-0 to North Dakota, but reeled off eight straight wins before being swept at home by top-ranked Miami last weekend. Tim Kennedy ranks fourth in the country in goals per game and 11th in points per game with 10 goals and five assists for 15 points. Kennedy also shares the national lead with seven power play goals and has an NCAA-best four game-winning goals. The Spartans rank ninth nationally in scoring at 3.36 goals per game and third on the power play with a 26.2 percent success rate.

About the Wolverines
Riding the nation’s longest winning streak at 10 straight games, Michigan has not lost since its 4-3 setback to Minnesota in the IceBreaker Invitational title game. The Wolverines are the highest-scoring team in the country at 4.33 goals per game. Michigan is off to an 8-0 start in league play and has scored at least three goals in every game. Kevin Porter ranks second nationally in goals per game with 13 goals and five assists for 18 points. He also ranks third in the country with six power play goals. Porter and fellow senior Chad Kolarik have a combined 270 points scored in 267 career games at Michigan.

Starting Strong
The first period has been Minnesota’ best period this season as the Gophers have outshot opponents 128-82, holding foes to an average of just 6.83 shots per first period. The Gophers have outshot their opponents in the first period of eight straight games and own an 11-8 scoring margin in the first frame. Minnesota has scored first in nine of its 12 games, including five straight. The Gophers have not allowed an opponent to score in the first nine minutes of a game this season.

Third Period Perils
Minnesota has outshot its eight WCHA opponents 82-67 in the third period, but the Gophers have been outscored 11-3. Last week’s game with Alaska Anchorage marked just the 15th time in 203 games the Gophers have lost when leading after two periods under coach Don Lucia. Minnesota was 26-2-2 in such situations last year with its last third period loss also coming to Alaska Anchorage when the Seawolves rallied for a 2-1 overtime win in last year’s WCHA playoffs.

Shutdown “D”
Minnesota earned its first shutout since Jeff Frazee blanked Wisconsin on Jan. 13, 2007. It was the fourth career shutout for the junior goaltender, who also shutout Alaska Anchorage last season. The Seawolves entered the weekend ranked 11th in the nation in scoring offense, but had just 24 shots on goal in the shutout.

Nail-Biters
Nine of Minnesota’s 12 games have been decided by two goals or less, including five one-goal contests. The Gophers are 4-1 this year in one-goal games and 2-2 with two-goal margins. Minnesota was successful in one-goal games last year as well with a 13-5 record, including a 5-4 win over Michigan State.

Out of This League
The Gophers enter the weekend having won 13 straight games against non-WCHA opponents. In Don Lucia’s eight-plus seasons as head coach, the Gophers have compiled a staggering 63-14-7 (.792) record in games against teams from outside the WCHA, including the postseason. Minnesota went 9-1 against non-WCHA opponents last season with its only loss coming in the season opener against Maine. The Gophers  boast a 52-7-7 record against non-conference foes since the 2001-02 season.

CCHA Dominance
Minnesota has had plenty of success in recent years against the other major western hockey conference, the Central Collegiate Hockey Association. Including their wins earlier this year over Michigan and Ohio State, the Gophers are 17-1-2 in their last 20 games against the rival league with the only loss coming in the 2005-06 season opener to Alaska. The Gophers also tied Alaska the following night and played a tie at Michigan State later that season. Minnesota went 5-0 against the CCHA last year, sweeping Ohio State and also beating Michigan, Michigan State and Ferris State. The Gophers are 8-0-2 in their last 10 games against the CCHA.

Multiple Heroes
Minnesota has had seven different players score the team’s seven game-winning goals this season. In fact, two of the team’s top scorers, Blake Wheeler (five goals) and Ben Gordon (three goals) are not among the group.

Ranked Again
Minnesota is ranked 15th in this week’s national polls, marking the 99th consecutive poll in which the Gophers have been among the nation’s top 15 teams. Minnesota was 12th last week and has been in the top 10 for 61 of the past 65 polls. This week’s ranking is the lowest for the Gophers since they were ranked 15th on Dec. 29, 2003. Minnesota went on a hot streak from that point, going 9-1-2 over the next six weeks to surge to fourth in the polls.

Showcase Success
Minnesota owns the best record of any team in the College Hockey Showcase at 16-9-3, including a 7-0-1 mark over the past four years. The only blemish during that span was a 2-2 tie at Michigan State in 2005. Michigan is 15-12-1, while Michigan State is 13-12-3 and Wisconsin is 8-19-1 in the 14-year history of the event. The showcase features teams that have combined to win 23 of the 60 all-time NCAA championships, including four of the last six. The four teams have combined for over 5,000 victories and are all among the top seven schools in number of NCAA tournament appearances.

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