Gophers Set for Spartan Showdown

MINNEAPOLIS -- The 100th season of Gopher Hockey continues this weekend with a two-game, Big Ten series between No. 4 Minnesota and Michigan State at 3M Arena at Mariucci. The action gets underway on Friday, Feb. 19 at 7:05 p.m. CT (TV: FOX Sports North Plus; Stream: BTN+/FOX Sports Go; Radio: 1130 KTLK-AM/103.5 FM) with the series finale set for Saturday, Feb. 20 at 5:05 p.m. CT (TV: FOX Sports North/FOX Sports Detroit; Stream: BTN+/FOX Sports Go; Radio: 1130 KTLK-AM/103.5 FM).

LAFFING ALL THE WAY
Hobey Baker Award and Mike Richter Award candidate Jack LaFontaine (15-5-0) was named the Big Ten First Star of the Week after becoming the first Gophers goaltender in the program's modern era to post back-to-back shutouts in a two-game road series, stopping all 52 shots he faced to win a pair of 3-0 games against the Irish. The senior, who added his second assist of the season on Friday's game winner, leads the nation with 15 wins and ranks second in the NCAA with five shutouts this year. The alternate captain ranks third in the nation with a goal against average of 1.56 and fourth in the nation with a save percentage of .943 (LaFontaine has played at least five more games than any goaltender ranked above him). The last Gophers goaltender to post two shutouts in a road series was Burt Joseph on Jan. 24-25, 1941 at Michigan Tech. Minnesota earned back-to-back shutouts for first time since Kent Patterson shut out Sacred Heart twice in Minneapolis on Oct. 7-8, 2011.

RANTA AMONG THE NATION'S TOP SCORERS
Sampo Ranta was named the Big Ten Third Star of the Week after a three-point performance in the Notre Dame series. The junior scored in both wins and added an assist on the game winner on Saturday as the forward set new single-season career highs for goals (14) and points (22) over the weekend. Ranta is currently tied for the team scoring lead this season while his 14 goals rank tied for second in the NCAA this year.

AGAINST THE SPARTANS
In a series that dates back to 1950, the Gophers hold a 122-50-16 all-time record against Michigan State and will look to reclaim the Mariucci-Bessone Trophy with a win this weekend after sweeping the Spartans earlier this season in East Lansing as part of Minnesota's 10-straight wins to open the 2020-21 campaign.

GOPHER HOCKEY NOTES & STATS
Minnesota has earned eight sweeps this season...Jackson LaCombe is tied for the Big Ten scoring lead among defensemen and has tallied a career-high 14 points and 11 assists this season...Blake McLaughlin's nine goals this year are a career high...Scott Reedy tallied two assists last Saturday and has a career-high 14 assists while he is two points shy of matching his career high...Sammy Walker's 11 goals this season are tied for his career high...Robbie Stucker will represent the University of Minnesota and the Big Ten Conference with the newly announced College Hockey for Diversity, Equity & Inclusion initiative...Jack LaFontaine, Scott Reedy and Brannon McManus have been nominated for the Senior CLASS Award.

ACADEMIC EXCELLENCE
The spring semester at the University of Minnesota is underway after the Gophers celebrated one of their best semesters in the (virtual) classroom during the fall. As a program, the Maroon & Gold set a new program record with a 3.35 cumulative grade point average as a team while men's hockey recorded a team term grade point average of 3.46 -- second in program history after last spring's 3.64. As a department, the University of Minnesota set a new school record with a 3.41 cumulative grade point average as the Gophers increased the statistic for the sixth-straight semester. Additionally, Cullen Munson, Mason Nevers, Sampo Ranta and Sam Rossini were named to the Dean's List for the fall semester.

GOPHERS HELP U.S. NATIONAL JUNIOR TEAM TO GOLD
Brock Faber, Ryan Johnson and Jackson LaCombe helped the U.S. National Junior Team earn a gold medal at the 2021 IIHF World Junior Championship in Edmonton on Tuesday night. USA Hockey has now earned 13 medals at the World Junior Championship while this year's performance stands as the fifth gold medal in U.S. history (2004, 2010, 2013, 2017, 2021). This year's Maroon & Gold trio join Jordan Schroeder (2010), Mike Reilly (2013) and Ryan Lindgren (2017) as University of Minnesota products to win gold at the event as players. Gopher Hockey, which tied for the most representatives of any NCAA program on this year's U.S. squad, has a proud history at the IIHF World Junior Championship with the University of Minnesota being represented at 42 of the 45 events dating back to the inaugural tournament in 1977.

CELEBRATING 100 SEASONS OF PRIDE ON ICE
The 2020-21 campaign marks the 100th season of play for the University of Minnesota, dating back to the 1921-22 season. Since that first season, the Gophers have hoisted five national championship trophies (1974, 1976, 1979, 2002, 2003), celebrated four Hobey Baker Award winners (Neal Broten in 1981, Robb Stauber in 1988, Brian Bonin in 1996, Jordan Leopold in 2002) and earned a total of 65 All-America honors. The Maroon & Gold have produced over a hundred NHL players with 11 alums having their names engraved on the Stanley Cup while other Pride on Ice products have been part of some of the most iconic international hockey events in history including U.S. Olympic gold medals in 1960 and 1980. Throughout the season, the University of Minnesota will honor the people, the moments and the memories that define "Pride on Ice".

GOPHERS ANNOUNCE CENTURY SEASON CAPTAINS
Junior Sammy Walker will return to the Gophers lineup as team captain in 2020-21 while senior Brannon McManus, senior Jack LaFontaine and sophomore Ben Meyers will serve as alternate captains for the Maroon & Gold. The three newcomers to the leadership group are the 173rd, 174th and 175th players in University of Minnesota history to wear letters, dating back to the first season of play in 1921-22 when Chet Bros led the Gophers.

BOB IS BACK AS BIG TEN COACH OF THE YEAR
Bob Motzko was named the 2020 Big Ten Coach of the Year and was a finalist for the Spencer Penrose Award (national coach of the year) in his second year leading the Gophers. The honor was Motzko's fifth career conference coaching honor after winning the accolade in the WCHA in 2006 and 2007 and in the NCHC in 2014 and 2018. While Motzko headlined Minnesota's postseason Big Ten honors, Ben Meyers, Jackson LaCombe and Jared Moe were all named to the Big Ten All-Freshman Team (Meyers was a finalist for Big Ten Freshman of the Year).

GOPHER HOCKEY SEASON NOTES
Fourteen members of the 2020-21 Gopher Hockey squad have been drafted by NHL teams including 2019 first round pick Ryan Johnson (31st overall to Buffalo)..senior Jack LaFontaine posted a .919 save percentage for the Gophers last year in his first season with the Maroon & Gold -- the statistic ranks seventh all-time in program history...the University of Minnesota will host the 2024 NCAA Frozen Four at Xcel Energy Center -- marking the ninth time the school has hosted the event and the fourth time the event was hosted at Xcel Energy Center...Todd Richards became the 11th Gopher Hockey alum to win the Stanley Cup after guiding the Tampa Bay Lightning to the 2020 title as an assistant coach...Gopher Hockey alum Dean Blais is among the inductees for the Class of 2020 to the U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame...the Big Ten Conference enters its eighth season sponsoring men's hockey in 2020-21 with Minnesota claiming more regular-season titles (four) than every other conference opponent combined (three). The Gophers won the first four league titles in Big Ten history as part of an NCAA record six-straight regular-season conference championships.

MARTIN JOINS 'U' COACHING STAFF
All-American alum and 14-year NHL veteran Paul Martin will serve as an undergraduate assistant for the Gophers this year while completing his degree. The defenseman, who helped Minnesota to back-to-back national championships, went on to play in over 800 NHL games with the New Jersey Devils, the Pittsburgh Penguins and the San Jose Sharks and led his teams to the Stanley Cup playoffs in each of his 14 seasons.

MINNESOTA TABBED PRESEASON BIG TEN FAVORITES
The Gophers enter the season as the favorite to win the Big Ten this year ahead of Michigan in second, Notre Dame and Ohio State tied for third, Wisconsin in fifth, Michigan State in sixth and Penn State in seventh, as selected by conference coaches. Additionally, Sammy Walker was named Preseason All-Big Ten First Team while Brannon McManus and Jackson LaCombe were named Preseason All-Big Ten Second Team. Ben Meyers received honorable mention on the list.

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Players Mentioned

Brock Faber

Ryan Johnson

Jackson LaCombe

Jack LaFontaine

Ryan Lindgren

Blake McLaughlin

Brannon McManus

Ben Meyers

Jared Moe

Cullen Munson

Mason Nevers

Sampo Ranta

Scott Reedy

Sam Rossini

Robbie Stucker

Sammy Walker