University of Minnesota Athletics
Gophers Face Mavericks in Home-and-Home Series
12/2/2009 12:00:00 AM | Men's Hockey
Minnesota (5-8-1, 3-6-1) vs. Minnesota State (6-7-1, 4-7-1)
Date: Friday, Dec. 4 (at Minnesota), Saturday, Dec. 5 (at Minnesota State)
Time: 7 p.m.
Location: Mariucci Arena (10,000) - Fri. / Alltel Center (4,832) - Sat.
Series History: Minnesota leads 28-5-6
Radio: KYCR 1570 AM - Wally Shaver and Glen Sonmor
Television: Fox Sports North (both tape delay) - Frank Mazzocco and Doug Woog
Minnesota looks to carry the momentum from a win over seventh-ranked Michigan State into a home-and-home series with Minnesota State. This weekend's games are the first of four straight conference games to conclude the first half of the season. The matchups are the only meetings between the two in-state rivals this season.
Last Time Out
Kent Patterson made a career-high 37 saves and earned his first career win as the Gophers pulled out a 2-1 win over Michigan State on Saturday. Mike Carman scored the game-winning goal with 2:46 left, coming just 39 seconds after the Spartans had tied the game. Jordan Schroeder also scored for Minnesota, which outshot the Spartans 42-38. The Gophers lost at Michigan 6-0 the previous night for their fourth straight defeat.
Series History
Minnesota leads the all-time series 28-5-6 over the Mavericks and are 20-3-4 over the past 27 meetings, though Minnesota State won the past two encounters with a sweep of the Gophers on Jan. 30-31. The Mavericks posted a 6-2 win in Mankato to open the most recent series and followed with a 3-1 win at Mariucci Arena. It was Minnesota State's second win at Mariucci Arena with the other coming in overtime on Jan. 29, 2000. The teams have played seven one-goal games and two ties in the past 14 meetings.
About the Mavericks
Minnesota State is coming off a series sweep of Michigan Tech by 5-2 and 3-2 scores as the Mavericks have won three of their last four games. They split a series with Alaska Anchorage the previous weekend and also have a victory over Wisconsin and tie with Denver earlier this year. Minnesota State features seven seniors and five juniors on its roster. The Mavericks are 5-3 at home and 1-4-1 on the road this season. Minnesota State has also played seven one-goal games already this year, winning three. Senior Jerad Stewart leads the team with six goals and six assists for 12 points, while senior Zach Harrison has four goals and eight assists for 12 points. Junior Ben Youds has a team-high 10 assists. The Mavericks have 13 power play goals spread among eight different players. Sophomore Austin Lee has emerged as the Mavericks' top goaltender, posting a 2.54 goals against average and .913 save percentage in nine games played.
Strength of Schedule
Minnesota's eight opponents so far this season have a combined record of 67-41-8 for an impressive .612 winning percentage. Six of the eight teams are ranked in this week's national poll and three of them are among the nation's top four teams. The schedule does lighten up, however, as Minnesota's opponents over the next four weeks (including all three teams in the Dodge Holiday Classic) have a combined record of 21-46-10 for a .338 winning percentage.
Firing Squad
The Gophers put a season-high 42 shots on goal in the win over Michigan State. It marked their most shots in a game since putting 49 on net on March 6 in an overtime loss at Michigan Tech. Over the past seven games, Minnesota is averaging 31.0 shots on goal per game after putting 26.3 shots on goal per game over the first seven games of the season.
Freaky Fridays
The Gophers are 1-5 on Friday nights this season and just 2-9-2 in their last 13 Friday night games. Minnesota's Friday victories came earlier this season against Alaska Anchorage and in last year's WCHA Playoffs against St. Cloud State. The Gophers went on to sweep both series. This season, Minnesota has scored 10 goals in its six Friday night games, including one in the first period.
Saturday Night Special
While Fridays have been tough on the Gophers, they've posted a 3-2-1 record on Saturdays and a 7-5-1 mark over their past 13 Saturdays. This season, the Gophers have a .935 save percentage and 2.01 goals against average on Saturday compared to an .888 save percentage and 3.62 goals against average on Friday. They have outscored opponents 6-2 in the first period on Saturday nights.
Playing With Power
Minnesota was held to 0-for-8 on the power play during the weekend after scoring on the man-advantage in six of its previous seven games. The Gophers were 8-for-29 (27.6 percent) over that span. Minnesota had one power play chance against Michigan State, coming on a too many men on the ice penalty just 1:34 into the game.
Career Night
Sophomore goaltender Kent Patterson enjoyed the biggest night of his Gopher career at Michigan State with a career-high 37 saves in the 2-1 win. It marked Patterson's first career win in his fourth start and 11th game played. Michigan State's lone goal came on a fluke bounce off the back boards on the Spartans' 37th shot of the game. Six of Patterson's 11 games have been against ranked teams, including all four this season and all four starts.
Keying Victory
Senior forward Mike Carman scored the game-winning goal with 2:46 left in Saturday's win at Michigan State for his ninth career game-winner, which is the most of any current Gophers' player. The goal came just 39 seconds after the Spartans had tied the game. Carman's nine game-winners have come on 23 career goals.
Schroeder Selected
For the third straight year, Minnesota's Jordan Schroeder will have an opportunity to compete in the International Ice Hockey Federation World Junior Championships. He will participate in a pre-tournament camp in Grand Forks, N.D. from Dec. 17-19 and the final roster will be selected after Dec. 23. The tournament takes place Dec. 26-Jan. 5 in Saskatoon and Regina, Sask. Schroeder led the U.S. and ranked third in the tournament in scoring last year with 11 points and is already the all-time assists leader for the U.S. with 15 over the past two years. Schroeder was the only Minnesota player selected to the team. The Gophers had multiple players each of the past five years and have had a member of the squad in 32 of the 34 all-time tournaments.
