University of Minnesota Athletics
Big Ten Tournament Central
3/15/2016 12:00:00 AM | Men's Hockey
| 2016 Big Ten Ice Hockey Tournament | |||||||||||
| Location | Xcel Energy Center | St. Paul, Minn. | ||||||||||
| Dates | March 17-19, 2016 | ||||||||||
| Tournament Links | Tickets | Bracket | Big Ten Hub | ||||||||||
| Television | Big Ten Network (All Games) | ||||||||||
| BTN2Go Stream | Quarterfinal 1 | Quarterfinal 2 | Semifinal 1 | Semifinal 2 | Championship | ||||||||||
| Live Stats | | | | | | ||||||||||
| Game 36 | Semifinal 2: Gophers vs. Ohio State | ||||||||||
| Date | Friday, March 18, 2016 | ||||||||||
| Puck Drop | 7:30 p.m. CT | ||||||||||
| Television | Big Ten Network | ||||||||||
| Stream | BTN2Go | ||||||||||
| Radio | 1500 ESPN, Gopher Radio Network | ||||||||||
| Game Links | Gopher Hockey Live | | ||||||||||
| Game 37 | Championship Game: Minnesota vs. Michigan | ||||||||||
| Date | Saturday, March 19, 2016 | ||||||||||
| Puck Drop | 7:00 p.m. CT | ||||||||||
| Television | Big Ten Network | ||||||||||
| Stream | BTN2Go | ||||||||||
| Radio | 1500 ESPN, Gopher Radio Network | ||||||||||
| Game Links | Gopher Hockey Live | | ||||||||||
| Game Notes | MINN | MICH | PSU | OSU | MSU | WIS | Big Ten | ||||||||||
| Social Media | @GopherHockey | Facebook | Instagram | ||||||||||
MINNEAPOLIS (GopherSports.com) -- The three-time defending Big Ten regular-season champion and defending Big Ten Tournament champion Gopher Hockey program returns to action this weekend with the 2016 Big Ten Ice Hockey Tournament at Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul. No. 20 Minnesota, the top seed in the tournament, earned a first-round bye and will open the weekend on Friday, March 18 at 7:30 p.m. CT in semifinal action against the winner of Thursday's quarterfinal game between Ohio State and Michigan State. The Big Ten championship game will be played at 7 p.m. on Saturday, March 19.
Gophers Capture Historic Fifth-Straight Championship
The Maroon & Gold enter the Big Ten Tournament as the top seed after locking up their third-straight Big Ten regular-season championship and fifth-straight overall regular-season championship (Minnesota won the MacNaughton Cup as WCHA regular-season champions in 2011-12 and 2012-13). Not only are five-straight titles a school record, the mark matches an NCAA record for consecutive titles (Boston University won five-straight regular-season championships from 1994-98). This year's Big Ten regular-season title stands as the 17th regular-season conference crown in program history for the Gophers.
Schierhorn Earns B1G Goalie of the Year, First Team All-Big Ten, All-Freshman Honors
In the middle of a stellar rookie season, Minnesota netminder Eric Schierhorn hauled in some major accolades earlier this week after being named the Big Ten Goaltender or the Year as well as a First Team All-Big Ten and Big Ten All-Freshman Team honoree. Schierhorn is the second Gopher in three years of conference play to earn Big Ten Goaltender of the Year, joining Adam Wilcox in 2014. The freshman leads the Big Ten with 19 wins (14 in Big Ten play) and a 2.67 goals against average after starting all 35 games for the Maroon & Gold. Schierhorn's 19 wins rank first among NCAA freshmen and stand tied for eighth among all NCAA goaltenders while his three shutouts are tied for first in the Big Ten.
Three Juniors Pick up Second Team All-Big Ten Honors
In addition to Schierhorn's accolades, Minnesota juniors Justin Kloos, Hudson Fasching and Michael Brodzinski were named to the Second Team All-Big Ten team. Kloos and Brodzinski picked up their first career conference merits while Fasching adds to a mantle that already includes Big Ten All-Freshman Team and All-Big Ten Honorable Mention honors from 2013-14.
Bischoff Set For Century Mark
Junior defenseman Jake Bischoff will likely skate in his 100th career game on Friday. Bischoff, who matched his career high with two assists/points last Saturday, is having a breakout year for the Gophers with career highs for points (16), goals (five) and assists (11). The junior defenseman was named an All-Big Ten Honorable Mention and was also honored with Minnesota's Sportsmanship Award by the conference.
Captain Kloos Sets the Tone
Team captain Justin Kloos leads Minnesota with a career-high 40 points (15 goals, 25 assists) this season while the Second Team All-Big Ten honoree became the 82nd member of Minnesota's 100-Point Club two weeks ago. Kloos, who ranks fifth in the Big Ten in scoring, is tied with Gophers All-American Les Auge for 73rd all-time at Minnesota in scoring with 104 points (44 goals, 60 assists) in 114 career games.
Lucia Continues Remarkable Career
Now in his 17th season with the Gophers and 29th overall as a Division I head coach, Don Lucia enters the weekend with 693 career wins, ranking sixth all-time among Division I head coaches. Lucia's 414 career wins at Minnesota are a school record while the Grand Rapids, Minn., native led the Maroon & Gold to back-to-back national championships in 2002 and 2003. Lucia has been behind the bench for seven of Minnesota's 17 regular-season conference championships, most among Gopher Hockey head coaches.
Fasching Finds Timely Goals
Junior forward Hudson Fasching leads Minnesota with 20 goals this season (third in the Big Ten) and ranks second on the team in points with 38 (sixth in the league). The Second Team All-Big Ten honoree has career highs for points, goals and assists (18), while his propensity for game-winning goals this season has been extraordinary. Seven of Fasching's 20 goals this season have been game-winning tallies as the Buffalo Sabres prospect leads the Big Ten and sits tied for second nationally in deciding goals.
Overtimes Add Up for Gophers
Minnesota's run to a third-straight Big Ten championship was certainly assisted by the program's success in overtime games this year. The Gophers' four overtime victories in 2015-16 rank tied for third in program history behind six overtime wins in 1974-75 and five in 1993-94. While the Maroon & Gold have played in seven overtime games this season, they are nowhere near the school record of 16 in 2007-08 while Minnesota has had eight seasons with at least nine overtime games in school history.
Brodzinski's Hat Trick Headlines Breakout Year
Second Team All-Big Ten Michael Brodzinski is having a banner year on the blue line for the Maroon & Gold with career bests for points (20), goals (eight) and assists (12) while the junior ranks tied for third in scoring among Big Ten defenseman. Brodzinski tallied the first-ever hat trick by a Big Ten defenseman in a 9-2 win against Wisconsin on Jan. 23.
Gophers Look to Repeat at B1G Tournament
Minnesota will compete for its second-straight Big Ten Tournament title and its first on the ice at Xcel Energy Center this weekend after capturing last year's conference tournament crown at Joe Louis Arena in Detroit. The Maroon & Gold opened last year's tournament with a 3-0 semifinal win against Ohio State and capped the event with a 4-2 victory against Michigan in the championship game. Kyle Rau, Travis Boyd, Mike Reilly and Adam Wilcox were named to the All-Tournament Team while Wilcox was named Most Outstanding Player of the tournament.
Bouncing Back
Last Saturday's rally over the Badgers for a 4-1 win marked just the second time this year the Gophers have won when trailing after the first period.
Bristedt Named Big Ten Second Star
Gophers sophomore forward Leon Bristedt was named the Big Ten Second Star of the Week after posting four points (three goals, one assist) in the Wisconsin series. For the fourth time in his career, Bristedt put up a career-high three points (two goals, one assist) in a game last Saturday. The sophomore scored his first career shorthanded goal to spark a four-goal rally for the Gophers before assisting on a power-play goal later in the game. His empty-net goal capped the night and gave Bristedt his second career multi-goal game. Bristedt has nearly doubled his freshman point totals in his second year with the team, posting career highs for points (35), goals (19 after five last year) and assists (16).
Seeler Sets Up Scores
In his first season on the ice with Minnesota, junior defenseman Nick Seeler has a career-high 10 assists while his 10 points match his career-high (2013-14 with UNO).
Turning the Page
After starting the season with losing records in the months of October (2-3-0) and November (2-4-0), the Gophers rattled off winning records for three-straight months in December (3-1-0), January (6-4-0) and February (4-2-0) while the team can jump above the .500 mark this weekend for the month of March (2-2-0). Minnesota posted a 4-7-0 record in the opening two months of the season but has gone 15-9-0 in the four months since then.
Schierhorn Up for Mike Richter Award
Gophers rookie Eric Schierhorn has been named a nominee for this year's Mike Richter Award, which honors the top goaltender in college hockey. The freshman is one of three Big Ten goalies and one of just four NCAA freshmen up for the award. Schierhorn has started all 35 games of his freshman campaign with the Maroon & Gold.
Big Ten Bullet Points
Now in its third year as members of the Big Ten Conference, the Gophers have paced the league with a 40-14-6-0 record in 60 regular-season games since the start of the 2013-14 campaign. The Maroon & Gold also boast an impressive 24-4-2-0 mark in conference games on home ice. This year's 14 Big Ten wins by the Gophers ties Minnesota's conference record from 2013-14 -- the inaugural year of Big Ten Conference play.
Shorthanded Success
Minnesota's eight shorthanded goals this season are the most by the program since the Gophers combined for 14 shorthanded tallies during the 2001-02 season on the Maroon & Gold's national championship run. Junior captain Justin Kloos has four shorthanded goals on the year, ranking first in the Big Ten and tied for third nationally. Kloos' four shorthanded strikes are the most by a Gopher since Nate Condon had four (also in 2011-12) while the Minnesota single-season record stands at five (Peter Hankinson in 1989-90, Steve Griffith in 1982-83).
Four to Lead in 2015-16
The Gophers will see a new crop of leaders in the locker room this season with junior forward Justin Kloos serving as team captain while redshirt junior forward Connor Reilly, junior forward Hudson Fasching, and junior defenseman Jake Bischoff will act as alternate captains for the Maroon & Gold. Kloos, who returns as Minnesota's active leading scorer, replaces two-year team captain Kyle Rau while the cadre of alternate captains take over for Ben Marshall and Seth Ambroz. This year's group of leaders mark the 161st-164th players to serve as either captain or alternate captain for the Gophers in a tradition that dates back to the program's first year of play in 1921-22 when Chet Bros led the Maroon & Gold.
Gophers in the Draft
The University of Minnesota features 12 players whose rights have been drafted by NHL teams including four newcomers. Three freshmen were drafted in the 2015 NHL Entry Draft -- Brent Gates Jr. (Anaheim, third round, 80th overall), Tommy Novak (Nashville, third round, 85th overall), Jack Sadek (Minnesota, seventh round, 204th overall) -- while Jack Ramsey was selected in 2014 (Chicago, seventh round, 208th overall). The Minnesota Wild (Sadek, Nick Seeler) and the New York Islanders (Taylor Cammarata, Jake Bischoff) lead all NHL teams with two Gopher draftees each.
18 Gophers on NHL Rosters
Gopher Hockey has featured 18 NHL alums this season with Nick Bjugstad (Florida Panthers), Alex Goligoski (Dallas Stars), Erik Haula (Minnesota Wild), Seth Helgeson (New Jersey Devils), Erik Johnson (Colorado Avalanche), Phil Kessel (Pittsburgh Penguins), Nick Leddy (New York Islanders), Paul Martin (San Jose Sharks), Aaron Ness (Washington Capitals), Jim O'Brien (New Jersey Devils), Kyle Okposo (New York Islanders), Kyle Rau (Florida Panthers), Mike Reilly (Minnesota), Nate Schmidt (Washington Capitals), Jordan Schroeder (Minnesota Wild), Brady Skjei (New York Rangers), Thomas Vanek (Minnesota Wild) and Blake Wheeler (Winnipeg Jets) making the cut. Additionally, Darby Hendrickson continues to serve as an assistant coach with the Minnesota Wild and Paul Holmgren is the president of the Philadelphia Flyers.
Gophers Sign Five in Early Period
The newest crop of Golden Gophers signed their National Letters of Intent earlier this year with five Minnesota natives looking to join the ranks of the Maroon & Gold in the coming years. Defensemen Ryan Lindgren (Minneapolis, Minn.), Sam Rossini (Inver Grove Heights, Minn.) and Ryan Zuhlsdof (Edina, Minn.) as well as forwards Rem Pitlick (Plymouth, Minn.) and Garrett Wait (Edina, Minn.) all inked National Letters of Intent with Minnesota.
