University of Minnesota Athletics
Friday, January 27
7:00 PM
University of Minnesota
19-7-1, 13-3-1
8
vs
0
Michigan State
13-12-2, 7-8-2
1
2
3
F
Michigan St.
0
0
0
0
Minnesota
2
3
3
8
Team Stats
MSU
MIN
Shots
21
33
PPG
0
2
SHG
0
0
Penalties
5
3
Penalty Mins
10
6
Faceoffs Won
37
29
Game Leaders
+/-
3
Goals
1
Sh
3
A
2
+/-
3
Goals
1
Sh
2
A
2
+/-
3
Goals
1
Sh
2
A
2
+/-
3
Goals
1
Sh
2
A
1
Players Mentioned
Goaltender
/ Men's HockeyForward
/ Men's Hockey
Defense
/ Men's HockeyForward
/ Men's Hockey
Defense
/ Men's Hockey
Forward
/ Men's HockeyDefense
/ Men's Hockey
Forward
/ Men's Hockey
Defense
/ Men's Hockey
Forward
/ Men's Hockey
Forward
/ Men's HockeyForward
/ Men's Hockey
Photo by: Eric Miller
Eight Gophers Score in Rout of MSU
1/27/2023 10:45:00 PM | Men's Hockey
Blue line totals eight points Friday
MINNEAPOLIS - The high-octane offense was on full display for No. 2 Golden Gophers men's hockey, getting goals from eight different players during an 8-0 rout of No. 15 Michigan State Friday night from 3M Arena at Mariucci. Twelve different players recorded a point for Minnesota, including goals from four freshmen.
The Gophers (19-7-1 overall, 13-3-1 B1G) utilized their defense corps as the group accounted for eight points and took down the Spartans (13-12-2 overall, 7-8-2 B1G) for the 12th-straight meeting. It was the first time since Feb. 26, 2022, against Wisconsin that the Maroon and Gold put up eight goals on an opponent as four goals came during a nine-minute stretch between the second and third periods. Logan Cooley, Mike Koster and Jimmy Snuggerud each had three points to pace the attack, while Brock Faber and Ryan Johnson also recorded multi-point performances from the blue line. Garrett Pinoniemi capped the night, scoring the first goal of his collegiate career late in the third period.
The sellout crowd barely had a chance to take their seats before they were singing the Rouser for the first time as it only took nine seconds for the Gophers to get on the board. Faber found a streaking Cooley up the middle of the ice and the freshman put the home side up 1-0. In order to maintain the one-goal edge, Justen Close made a pair of close-range saves in the middle of the period as the Spartans pushed back following a Minnesota turnover.
The margin doubled at the 16:47 mark of the frame when Snuggerud took a Johnson saucer pass at the top of the circle and ripped a shot off the left post and into the back of the net. The Gophers carried the two-goal cushion into the first intermission and Close was sharp again beginning the second stanza to keep MSU at bay. That allowed the offense to take over as the Maroon and Gold dominated possession in the offensive zone. Connor Kurth stayed locked in on a rebound in front of the net and chipped in his fifth goal as the lead stretched to 3-0.
Minnesota's offense continued to fire away at the Spartans and added two more goals in the final five minutes of the second period. Matthew Knies joined his linemates with goals as he finished off a Snuggerud pass before Koster pushed the lead to 5-0. Koster fired a quick shot off a juicy rebound from the left circle and forced MSU to make a goaltending change between periods.
An early power play in the final frame allowed the Gophers to tack on another tally as Jackson LaCombe hammered a one-timer past the new netminder. Aaron Huglen matched the number on his sweater scoring Minnesota's seventh of the night, using his speed to stretch the ice after picking up a feed from Rhett Pitlick and sent in a shot just under the crossbar. Playing in his 21st game of the season, Pinoniemi was finally able to light the lamp, tipping in a Koster shot from the point to put an exclamation point on the 8-0 victory.
Close secured his fifth shutout, which ranks second in the NCAA, and his second against the Spartans this year, as he erased all 21 shots that made it to his crease. The senior picked up the 30th victory of his career coming in just 42 starts. The Gophers finished the night 2-for-4 on the power play and are 11-for-36 over the previous nine games, while holding MSU to 0-for-2 on the man advantage.
Noteworthy
Koster scored his second goal of the year, first since opening weekend (Oct. 2), and finished with a career-best three points ... Huglen has goals in back-to-back games for the first time in his career ... Faber increased his career-best point total to 19 behind his two-assist night, while LaCombe put away his seventh goal and now has 90 career points ... Johnson tallied his third multi-point effort of 2022-23 and has double-digit assists for the third-straight year ... Cooley buried his 13th goal of the season as he has points in 20 of 26 collegiate games played, while his three-point night was the fourth of his young career ... Snuggerud's goal was his 14th this season and tied his father, Dave (1985-86), for goals during their freshmen campaigns with the Gophers ... The Chaska, Minn., native posted his B1G-leading 12th multi-point effort ... Knies extended his team lead in goals as the sophomore tacked on his 16th ... Minnesota scored at least six goals in a game for the sixth time this year ... The fastest goal to start a game in program history came on Jan. 13, 1968, when Bill Klatt scored five seconds into the action against Michigan ... Friday's attendance of 10,220 is the sixth home sellout of the season for Minnesota and fourth-straight.
Coach Motzko's Comments
"Everybody was going tonight offensively," Minnesota head coach Bob Motzko said. "It starts right off the bat by a great pass from Faber to Cooley. They read it and it started from there. (Michigan State) is having a good season too, this was just a night that went our way."
Next Up: Home vs. Michigan State (Jan. 28)
The Gophers cap a four-game homestand Saturday afternoon in the series finale against the Spartans in front of another sold-out crowd at 3M Arena at Mariucci. The game will be aired live on Bally Sports North Extra at 4 p.m. as part of 2023 Hockey Day Minnesota and on the airwaves of the Gopher Radio Network 103.5 FM/AM-1130 KTLK.
The Gophers (19-7-1 overall, 13-3-1 B1G) utilized their defense corps as the group accounted for eight points and took down the Spartans (13-12-2 overall, 7-8-2 B1G) for the 12th-straight meeting. It was the first time since Feb. 26, 2022, against Wisconsin that the Maroon and Gold put up eight goals on an opponent as four goals came during a nine-minute stretch between the second and third periods. Logan Cooley, Mike Koster and Jimmy Snuggerud each had three points to pace the attack, while Brock Faber and Ryan Johnson also recorded multi-point performances from the blue line. Garrett Pinoniemi capped the night, scoring the first goal of his collegiate career late in the third period.
The sellout crowd barely had a chance to take their seats before they were singing the Rouser for the first time as it only took nine seconds for the Gophers to get on the board. Faber found a streaking Cooley up the middle of the ice and the freshman put the home side up 1-0. In order to maintain the one-goal edge, Justen Close made a pair of close-range saves in the middle of the period as the Spartans pushed back following a Minnesota turnover.
The margin doubled at the 16:47 mark of the frame when Snuggerud took a Johnson saucer pass at the top of the circle and ripped a shot off the left post and into the back of the net. The Gophers carried the two-goal cushion into the first intermission and Close was sharp again beginning the second stanza to keep MSU at bay. That allowed the offense to take over as the Maroon and Gold dominated possession in the offensive zone. Connor Kurth stayed locked in on a rebound in front of the net and chipped in his fifth goal as the lead stretched to 3-0.
Minnesota's offense continued to fire away at the Spartans and added two more goals in the final five minutes of the second period. Matthew Knies joined his linemates with goals as he finished off a Snuggerud pass before Koster pushed the lead to 5-0. Koster fired a quick shot off a juicy rebound from the left circle and forced MSU to make a goaltending change between periods.
An early power play in the final frame allowed the Gophers to tack on another tally as Jackson LaCombe hammered a one-timer past the new netminder. Aaron Huglen matched the number on his sweater scoring Minnesota's seventh of the night, using his speed to stretch the ice after picking up a feed from Rhett Pitlick and sent in a shot just under the crossbar. Playing in his 21st game of the season, Pinoniemi was finally able to light the lamp, tipping in a Koster shot from the point to put an exclamation point on the 8-0 victory.
Close secured his fifth shutout, which ranks second in the NCAA, and his second against the Spartans this year, as he erased all 21 shots that made it to his crease. The senior picked up the 30th victory of his career coming in just 42 starts. The Gophers finished the night 2-for-4 on the power play and are 11-for-36 over the previous nine games, while holding MSU to 0-for-2 on the man advantage.
Noteworthy
Koster scored his second goal of the year, first since opening weekend (Oct. 2), and finished with a career-best three points ... Huglen has goals in back-to-back games for the first time in his career ... Faber increased his career-best point total to 19 behind his two-assist night, while LaCombe put away his seventh goal and now has 90 career points ... Johnson tallied his third multi-point effort of 2022-23 and has double-digit assists for the third-straight year ... Cooley buried his 13th goal of the season as he has points in 20 of 26 collegiate games played, while his three-point night was the fourth of his young career ... Snuggerud's goal was his 14th this season and tied his father, Dave (1985-86), for goals during their freshmen campaigns with the Gophers ... The Chaska, Minn., native posted his B1G-leading 12th multi-point effort ... Knies extended his team lead in goals as the sophomore tacked on his 16th ... Minnesota scored at least six goals in a game for the sixth time this year ... The fastest goal to start a game in program history came on Jan. 13, 1968, when Bill Klatt scored five seconds into the action against Michigan ... Friday's attendance of 10,220 is the sixth home sellout of the season for Minnesota and fourth-straight.
Coach Motzko's Comments
"Everybody was going tonight offensively," Minnesota head coach Bob Motzko said. "It starts right off the bat by a great pass from Faber to Cooley. They read it and it started from there. (Michigan State) is having a good season too, this was just a night that went our way."
Next Up: Home vs. Michigan State (Jan. 28)
The Gophers cap a four-game homestand Saturday afternoon in the series finale against the Spartans in front of another sold-out crowd at 3M Arena at Mariucci. The game will be aired live on Bally Sports North Extra at 4 p.m. as part of 2023 Hockey Day Minnesota and on the airwaves of the Gopher Radio Network 103.5 FM/AM-1130 KTLK.
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