Podcast: That Gopher Hockey Puckcast Episode 16

On a nearly two hour long episode 16 of That Gopher Hockey Puckcast I got sent to Grand Forks.

The "world famous" Nate Wells sits down with Drew Cove and producer Tom Schreier to tell the story of his delayed trip back from New York City, where the Gophers defeated Michigan State. They break down the highs and lows of the weekend before turning focus to Minnesota hosting #1 Notre Dame. Plus: We answer your questions, including our Hobey Baker candidates and crowd atmosphere at Mariucci over the last couple seasons.

Those counting the number of times we name drop Eric Vegoe can directly download here.





As a reminder, if you subscribed to our old podcast, that feed will no longer work. You need to subscribe to the 'Cast In Gold feed wherever you listen to podcasts. Here it is on iTunes. While you're at it, please leave a review and give us five stars. It helps out the podcast.

Plugs and stuff

-Drew can be found on Twitter @covedrew and covers Minnesota men's hockey and football for the Minnesota Daily.

-Nate can be found here on this website and at The Athletic (as well as every other website if the various links here don't make clear). You can follow him on Twitter @gopherstate and like/subscribe to his Facebook page.

Facebok Live: Discussing Minnesota hockey's split Saturday (1/27/18)

Once again from the Mariucci Arena pressbox I went on Facebook Live to discuss the day that was in Minnesota hockey. I touched on key points in the Gopher men falling 4-1 to #1 Notre Dame along with some takeaways in the Gopher women's 2-0 shutout win over Minnesota State.



Remember you can like/subscribe to my Facebook page here.

Game Story: Undisciplined play costs Gophers against No. 1 Notre Dame

MINNEAPOLIS- After a hard-fought win Friday, undisciplined play cost No. 13 Minnesota a chance to sweep the top-ranked Fighting Irish at 3M Arena at Mariucci.

The Gophers put Notre Dame on the power play six times and paid dearly. Entering Saturday having been shut out in back-to-back games following a 16-game winning streak, the Fighting Irish scored three power-play goals en route to a 4-1 win and series split.

“We took some undisciplined penalties tonight. Against a good quality team like that you can’t,” Minnesota head coach Don Lucia said. “We got down 2-rip and you’re chasing. Against them that’s not the team you want to chase the scoreboard against.

“(Notre Dame has) got the record they do for a reason so we’ll continue the learning process. It was important for us to get a win this weekend.”

Brannon McManus scored the home team’s lone goal late in the second period to get the Gophers within a goal. Skating down the ice on an odd-man rush with Rem Pitlick, he made a move around a defender and buried the puck past goaltender Cale Morris.

“Any time you can go in with any sort of momentum it’s obviously big,” McManus said about his team entering the third period. “They’re the number one team in the country and they don’t take losing easily. It showed tonight.”

Click here to read the rest!

Game Story: Minnesota Sweeps Mavericks on Senior Day (Zone Coverage)

MINNEAPOLIS- In their final Ridder Arena regular season appearance, Minnesota’s senior class helped lead the Gophers to its 50th consecutive victory over Minnesota State.

Senior forward Cara Piazza scored the game’s opening goal and senior goaltender Sidney Peters made 32 saves in a 2-0 shutout win. Combined with an Ohio State loss, Saturday’s win moved Minnesota (19-8-2, 12-6-2-0 WCHA) up to second place in the WCHA.

The much-needed two-game sweep comes a week after the Gophers were swept by the Buckeyes in Columbus. Minnesota plays its final four regular-season games on the road against St. Cloud State and Wisconsin before likely returning to host a WCHA first-round playoff series at the end of the month.

“It’s hard to win in our league and so to be able to get on the horse so to speak and find our winning ways is big going into the last four games of the regular season,” said Minnesota head coach Brad Frost.

The Gophers honored its four seniors — defender Sydney Baldwin, Piazza, Peters and forward Caitlin Reilly — prior to Minnesota’s 2017-18 home finale.

“I was tearing up even during the national anthem before the game started,” Peters said. “It was a pretty emotional day for me and the other three seniors just because we love this team so much.”

Click here to read the rest!

Facebook Live: Notre Dame at Minnesota 1/27/18 Postgame

From the Mariucci Arena press box I went on Facebook Live to discuss Casey Mittelstadt's OT winning goal, Mat Robson's 25 save performance that matched Cale Morris, Minnesota's standing in the Big Ten and nationally, beating the #1 team in the nation for the second time this month and much more.

Game Story: Mittelstadt magic gives No. 13 Minnesota OT win over No. 1 Notre Dame (Zone Coverage)

MINNEAPOLIS- There was nothing pretty about the goal Casey Mittelstadt scored other than it giving Minnesota its second shutout victory over a No. 1 ranked team this month.

Known for his highlight-reel plays that are replayed on television and internet, the freshman forward made one for himself Friday. Mittelstadt, just as he imagined himself as a kid growing up in Eden Prairie, scored his first-ever collegiate overtime winning goal.

Mittelstadt crashed the net in front of Fighting Irish goaltender Cale Morris. Being at the right place, he tapped in a Rem Pitlick shot that Morris could not quite control and sent the 3M at Mariucci crowd into celebration 3:35 into OT in a 1-0 win.

“That’s a pretty special moment,” he said. “Being a Gopher is something that I’ve always dreamed of. Now that I’m actually here I get to make plays out here and wear the jersey and it’s pretty special.”

The victory gives No. 13 Minnesota (16-12-1, 7-9-1-1 Big Ten) a three-game winning streak and breathing room in the Pairwise rankings, which mimic the criteria used to select the NCAA Tournament field. The team also earned three much-needed points in the Big Ten conference standings. One point separates third and sixth place in the Big Ten with the Gophers, Wisconsin and Penn State all tied for fourth with 23 points.

Click here to read the rest!

BLOG: Leftover New York City "Super Saturday" Thoughts

All Photos: Nathan Wells

I ended up with enough extra thoughts about last weekend's "Super Saturday" to fill a blog.

New York, I love you (for college hockey)...
-Let's start with this: I'm a fan of more college hockey in New York City.

-There's something special about seeing and covering a game at Madison Square Gardern. It starts outside, getting out of Penn Station below the building or walking up and seeing the 10 story circular building. You feel the history inside the World's Most Famous Arena. Muhammad Ali fought there. Patrick Ewing played there. Decades of Rangers have skated on the ice.

Inside the building feels new thanks to a recent renovation. You can tell it's a renovation, however, with some of the odd paths and ways to get around. (Ice/court level is on the fifth level.) I got completely lost leaving the building the first time.

BLOG: RIP North Star College Cup, 1 year later

This weekend should be the fifth annual North Star College Cup. It's not. Sadly, no one will be playing for Paul Bunyan's Pimp Chalice at Xcel Energy Center.

Photo: Nathan Wells

The event, Minnesota's version of the Beanpot or GLI, came to an end by mutual agreement as teams would rather have home games against in-state schools than tournament bragging rights.

(No really. UMD head coach Scott Sandelin joked after winning last year's NSCC that they'd throw the trophy in the fire as kindling wood.)

Honestly? It's too bad. Even with all of its flaws, the North Star College Cup helped show off the growing greatness of Minnesota college hockey throughout the state.

Game Story: Brent Gates Jr. makes it in New York, leading Gophers to Madison Square Garden win (Zone Coverage)

NEW YORK CITY- Start spreading the news. Minnesota is leaving New York, New York Saturday with a season sweep over Michigan State.

The Gophers went to Madison Square Garden as part of the third annual Big Ten “Super Saturday” hockey-hoops doubleheader. While the men’s basketball team fell 67-49 to Ohio State earlier in the day, the men’s hockey team bounced back to skate away with a 2-1 win over the Spartans.

“It was a great experience for our players and our staff to come out here and play at such a historic venue, but as we told our players it’s only fun when you win,” Minnesota head coach Don Lucia said. “We had to grind out a win tonight. It wasn’t easy. I kept talking to our players that sometimes when you don’t have your legs or your hands that you need to find a backup game and find a way to win.”

Minnesota (15-12-1, 6-9-1-1 Big Ten) junior forward Brent Gates Jr. proved he can make it both here in New York and anywhere, scoring the game-winning goal with 3:29 remaining in regulation. The Grand Rapids, Michigan native, who grew up going to Spartans games, continued a hot weekend that began with two assists in East Lansing Thursday.

His goal came off of a bouncing pass by teammate Jack Ramsey that was able to be batted past Michigan State (9-16-1, 3-12-1-1 Big Ten) goaltender John Lethemon, who made 20 saves.

Click here to read the rest!

Pregame Blog: Minnesota vs. Michigan State Super Saturday Line Combinations & More

Greetings from Madison Square Garden!

I'm here for the Big Ten's Super Saturday where the Gophers (5-4 winners Thursday in the opening game) will face Michigan State (technically the home team) later tonight in the second game of a hockey-hoops doubleheader. Minnesota basketball already played, losing 67-49 to Ohio State.

That's right. On Hockey Day Minnesota, I was in New York covering my first college basketball game.

Records: #13/14 Minnesota (14-12-1, 5-9-1-1 Big Ten), Michigan State (9-15-1, 3-11-1-1 Big Ten)
Date: Saturday January 20th
Time: 7:00 pm CT
Location: Madison Square Garden in New York City, NY
TV: Big Ten Network
Radio: 1130 KTLK AM in Twin Cities
Stream: BTN2Go/Fox Sports Go/TSN Go
Nate is covering for tonight: Zone Coverage/The Athletic

That Gopher Hockey Puckcast Episode 15 (with Amy Moritz)

On episode 15 of That Gopher Hockey Puckcast we do talk Gopher hockey...eventually.

With Nate calling in from New York City, Drew, producer Tom Schreier and him spend the first 10-15 minutes on traveling, the Vikings and Minneapolis Miracle (which Nate covered in person).

They then turn attention to Minnesota being swept by Michigan and the resulting fallout. The players-only meeting, the lack of offense, lack of Big Ten success this season and lack of direction, among other topics. Where does the team go from here? They also preview the weekend's unique series against Michigan State and Minnesota's NCAA Tournament chances.

In between (33:00 mark) Amy Moritz of The Buffalo News comes on to give her perspective on the World Juniors, covering an outdoor game, Buffalo's fascination with Casey Mittelstadt and what it's like to write a book.

Game Story: Gophers hold players-only meeting after being swept (Zone Coverage)

MINNEAPOLIS- Minnesota needed two goals to come back against Michigan in the third period.

Instead, the Gophers finished with two shots.

Defeated, distraught and looking for answers, frustration boiled over Saturday. The mood inside the Minnesota locker room was quite different than six days earlier when the team emerged with a shutout win over the No. 1 team in the nation.

Michigan (10-10-2, 5-7-2-1 Big Ten) left 3M Arena at Mariucci with a 3-1 win and the first-ever Big Ten sweep over the Gophers by a visiting team. Early goals doomed the home team once again. The Wolverines scored twice in the opening 3:06, digging a hole too deep for Minnesota (13-12-1, 4-9-1-1 Big Ten).

Believing what they’re doing is not working and needing to get on the same page, Gopher players held a 15-minute meeting postgame once the coaches left.

“We addressed each other. We have to hold each other accountable and hold ourselves accountable,” said Minnesota captain Tyler Sheehy.

A night after the Gophers gave up a goal on the very first shift, Michigan’s Brendan Warren scored on the second. Josh Norris wasted no time on a Jake Slaker pass to beat Eric Schierhorn on the power play.

Click here to read the rest!

Pregame Blog: Minnesota-Michigan Saturday Line Combinations, Gophers Lose Trophy & More

Michigan (9-10-2, 4-7-2-1 Big Ten) at #9 Minnesota (13-11-1, 4-8-1-1 Big Ten)

Date: Saturday January 13th
Time: 7:00 pm CT
Location: 3M Arena at Mariucci in Minneapolis, MN
TV: Fox Sports North PLUS
Radio: 1130 KTLK AM in Twin Cities
Stream: BTN2Go/Fox Sports Go/TSN Go
Nate is covering for tonight: Zone Coverage/The Athletic

Last night's recap: Minnesota falls to Michigan (Zone Coverage)

Friday's loss ensures the Gophers will be handing off the Renfrew-Mariucci trophy for the first time since Michigan and Minnesota joined the Big Ten.

Game Story: Minnesota falls to Michigan (Zone Coverage)

MINNEAPOLIS- Fourteen seconds into Friday’s game, the Gophers trailed Michigan.

Playing catch-up at home from the opening shot to the final minute, No. 9 Minnesota fell to the Wolverines 5-3 and extended a four-game conference losing streak. The Gophers are 1-7-1 in their last nine Big Ten conference games.

“We don’t want to start the game the first shift and get scored on,” said Brannon McManus, one of three Gopher freshmen forwards to score on Friday. “We have to start fast and obviously we didn’t. It set up behind a little bit.”

Minnesota (13-11-1, 4-8-1-1 Big Ten) did have a chance to tie the game with 41.4 seconds remaining on a power play. Setting up for an offensive zone faceoff, the Gophers — having already used their timeout on a failed offsides challenge — could not control the puck.

Michigan’s Brendan Warren took advantage to get the puck and easily scored on an empty net, turnovers and struggling defensemen bookending Minnesota’s night.

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Gopher Hockey Notebook: Potomak plans, Lindgren speech, Novak status & more

Heralded freshman forward Amy Potomak has enrolled at the University of Minnesota. Unfortunately for Gopher fans, they will have to a while longer to see #16 skate in a game.

Potomak will take classes and practice with fifth-ranked Minnesota while continuing to redshirt, The Gopher Hockey Blog has learned. This allows her to keep a full four years of playing eligibility and get an extra semester of school. The 18 year-old will be a redshirt freshman in 2018-19 provided she doesn't skate in a game.

Potomak missed the first semester as one of 28 players centralized in Calgary with the Canadian Olympic team. Cut from the team in November, the Aldergrove, British Columbia native took her time with Gophers head coach Brad Frost making a decision. In the interim, she skated with teammate Lindsay Agnew on Canada's National Women's Development Team in the Nations Cup.

A side effect of the decision is that she will spend a semester with the team without older sister Sarah. The older Potomak, also cut from the Canadian Olympic team, will continue to redshirt by spending the semester in her native Canada.

Sarah will be a redshirt junior next season.

BLOG: A proposal to name the Big Ten conference tournament trophy

Note: While this isn't exactly Gopher-related, it doesn't fit in any other outlets and is Big Ten-related. 

This weekend when the Gophers host Michigan a new face will be behind the Wolverines bench. Mel Pearson took over this season for Red Berenson, who guided Michigan for 33 years. In that time he finished with 848 wins - the fourth-most all-time in Division 1 men's hockey - a record 22 straight NCAA Tournament appearances, national championships in 1996 and 1998, and turned around a Wolverines program decades past its glory days into a national contender. Seven of Michigan's nine national championships came during a time when Minnesota regularly made Rose Bowls.

Prior to facing Notre Dame last weekend, Michigan held a ceremony to officially dedicate Yost Ice Arena as "Red Berenson Rink." It got me thinking of a perfect way the Big Ten could honor the 78 year-old.

Name the Big Ten conference tournament trophy after Berenson.

Game Story: Shorthanded goal leads Gophers over Huskies (Zone Coverage)

MINNEAPOLIS- Once again, Minnesota held off a Huskies third period comeback at Ridder Arena.

Cara Piazza’s shorthanded breakaway goal with 16.9 seconds remaining in the second period ended up being enough for the Gophers in a 2-1 victory over its in-state neighbor. Junior Julia Tylke scored for St. Cloud State (5-15-2, 3-11-2-0 WCHA), which fell one goal short against Minnesota (16-5-2, 10-4-2-0 WCHA) for the second straight game between the two teams.

“That was a huge momentum thing for us to get up by two. We were pushing hard in the second period. Nothing was going in,” said Gophers head coach Brad Frost about Piazza’s goal. “Then all of the sudden to catch a break and a real nice shot on a breakaway.”

While both teams are WCHA members, Tuesday’s contest was officially a nonconference affair.

Each had holes in the schedule following North Dakota dropping women’s hockey in March. The Gophers and Huskies already played a two-game series earlier in the season in Minneapolis with the two teams set for another next month in St. Cloud. Despite losing all three, St. Cloud State was more competitive as the games went along.

“Every year I’ve been playing we’ve been getting a lot better. I’ve gone from being on a team that lost 12-0 and now it’s a one-goal game. It’s a huge growth for the program,” said Tylke. “We’re for sure just right there to finish it off.”

Click here to read the rest!

Podcast: That Gopher Hockey Puckcast Episode 14 (with Declan Goff)

On episode 14 of That Gopher Hockey Puckcast, an old friend drops on by.

Nate, Drew and producer Tom are joined by St. Paul native Declan Goff of Minnesota Hockey Magazine and an podcast that will not be named in this space. They had a lot to catch up with this week. New players, multiple series and multiple subjects to discuss due to being off the last few weeks.

After bringing up Clayton Phillips' early arrival, much of the focus was on then-No. 10 Minnesota and then-No. 1 St. Cloud State's home-and-home split, which all three attended both legs. Declan gives his thoughts on both team's seasons. All discuss Mat Robson's play, Ryan Lindgren's effect after missing Saturday's game due to not having his equipment, Minnesota having quality wins at home, road woes, and the controversial St. Cloud State no-goal Sunday.

They also touch on Minnesota's sweep of Army and preview the Gophers' return to Big Ten play against Michigan. Plus: Declan Goff, the Duke of St. Cloud?

Those helping Drew get the show a Culver's sponsorship can directly download here.


As a reminder, if you subscribed to our old podcast, that feed will no longer work. You need to subscribe to the 'Cast In Gold feed wherever you listen to podcasts. Here it is on iTunes. While you're at it, please leave a review and give us five stars. It helps out the podcast.

Plugs and stuff

-Declan freelance writes for Minnesota Hockey Magazine and is an ESPN Radio correspondent for Minnesota Vikings games. He can be found on Twitter @dexstweets.

-Drew can be found on Twitter @covedrew and covers Minnesota men's hockey and football for the Minnesota Daily.

-Nate can be found here on this website and at The Athletic (as well as every other website if the various links here don't make clear). You can follow him on Twitter @gopherstate and like/subscribe to his Facebook page. His Mat Robson feature mentioned this week can be read here.

Game Story: Minnesota shuts out top-ranked St. Cloud State (Zone Coverage)

MINNEAPOLIS- A day after leaving St. Cloud with a loss and praise for the top-ranked Huskies, Minnesota rebounded Sunday with a 2-0 home shutout win in Minneapolis.

The Gophers defeated the No. 1 team in the USCHO poll for the first time since beating Boston College 8-1 on December 30, 2012.

Sophomore goaltender Mat Robson made 34 saves to earn his first career shutout and salvage a series split. He bested St. Cloud State David Hrenak in a goaltending battle where each seemed to one-up the other as both teams traded chances.

“Both goalies were outstanding today. That was a heck of a duel people were able to watch,” said SCSU head coach Bob Motzko, whose team’s nine-game unbeaten streak came to an end.

Darian Romanko’s early third period goal proved to be the difference when a potential St. Cloud State (13-3-3, 7-2-1-1 NCHC) tally by Mikey Eyssimont was waved off by the officials following a five minute delay with multiple reviews.

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Facebook Live: 1/6/18 Reaction from St. Cloud following Minnesota's 5-2 loss

My Facebook Live from St. Cloud following Minnesota's 5-2 loss Saturday night to the Huskies.



Remember you can like/subscribe to my Facebook page for videos as they appear along with content.

Game Story: Minnesota's road woes continue against St. Cloud State (Zone Coverage)

ST. CLOUD, Minn.- Missing equipment, missing players and missing opportunities against St. Cloud State, the road continues to plague Minnesota.

The Gophers fell to 1-8-1 in true road games this season, losing 5-2 to the top-ranked Huskies in St. Cloud and matching the number of games the team lost away from Mariucci Arena in 2016-17.

“Playing on the road you have to come out and really dominate the first ten minutes,” said Minnesota junior Brent Gates Jr., who finished with a goal and an assist. “If you come out and let the fans in the game — especially in an environment like this — the first 10 minutes, it’s going to be tough to battle back. You’re going to be chasing the game.”

Mikey Eyssimont twice scored Saturday for St. Cloud State (13-2-3, 7-2-1-0 NCHC) in the first two minutes of a period to help keep the Gophers at bay at Herb Brooks National Hockey Center.

“That was as good as our team has played,” Huskies head coach Bob Motzko said. “We were on top of pucks and our defenseman were real solid.”

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Radio: WCCO Sports Sunday with Steve Thomson (December 31, 2017)

Apologies for forgetting to post it when it happened. Steve Thomson of WCCO had me on the radio last Sunday following Minnesota's sweep of Army to talk Gopher men's and women's hockey.

We discussed: Minnesota's performance against the Black Knights, Casey Mittelstadt's performance at the World Juniors, Mat Robson in goal and what he brings, the Gopher women's second half and much more.

You can listen below.

Direct: http://minnesota.cbslocal.com/audio/steve-thomson-and-eric-nelson/12-31-17-1-pm-sports-sunday/#.WlKWkD-E3EQ.blogger

iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/steve-thomson-and-eric-nelson/id403228796?mt=2

My segment starts around the 10 minute mark of the 1 pm hour.

BLOG: Tyler Nanne at forward, Mittelstadt/Lindgren status, playing MN teams & more

Before the blog begins, here's a reminder this weekend's series is Saturday/Sunday. Minnesota and St. Cloud State do not play tonight. This is due to Huskies head coach Bob Motzko also being the US World Juniors head coach and both teams having players in the tournament. 

Don't worry. I'll remind you again at the bottom. 

It wouldn't be another snap decision. According to head coach Don Lucia after Saturday's 3-1 win over Arrmy, the only way Tyler Nanne would be playing forward this weekend is if he spent the week practicing as a forward.

That's exactly what Nanne has been doing.

The sophomore defenseman has been practicing on the right wing in preparation for Minnesota's series against St. Cloud State. Known for his offense from the blue line, he had been a forward at Edina until his junior year of high school.

"We'll never know until the weekend, but wherever I end up come the weekend I'll play it and play hard," he said.

Game Story: Minnesota's Mat Robson gets first college win (Zone Coverage)

MINNEAPOLIS- Taking the long road to his home debut, Minnesota sophomore goaltender Mat Robson did not waste any time getting his first collegiate win.

Robson, who sat out a year and a half of college sandwiched around a stint in the BCHL, made 25 saves on Saturday as the Gophers defeated Army 4-1 to sweep the Black Knights at 3M Arena at Mariucci.

“I’m really happy for Mat Robson,” Gophers head coach Don Lucia said about his goaltender, ineligible the first semester and playing in his second game. “He made a lot of really great saves.”

Freshman defenseman Sam Rossini scored a third-period goal and added an assist for his first career multi-point game.

After Tyler Sheehy got Minnesota (12-9-1, 4-7-1-1 Big Ten) started for a second straight night, the Gophers took a 2-0 lead in the closing seconds of the first period. Rossini’s shot was tipped by sophomore Tyler Nanne, playing at forward instead of defense for the third time this season.

“We had a lot more time than yesterday and we also found the lanes,” said Rossini, who has 3 goals in 10 career games. “Teams are good at blocking shots and getting in lanes nowadays. As the season goes on and we practice more and more, I think we’re going to get better.”

Click here to read the rest!

Game Story: Minnesota opens second half with shutout win (Zone Coverage)

MINNEAPOLIS- Minnesota captain Tyler Sheehy wanted to prove to himself that him and his team could work harder than the service academy visiting 3M Arena at Mariucci.

At the end of the night he was happy. Having lost five of six to close out the first half, the Gophers returned home from the holiday break by outpossessing, outworking and opening with a 3-0 shutout win over Army.

Sheehy began the game with his sixth goal of the season. Fellow junior Eric Schierhorn stopped all 13 shots faced for his 11th career shutout.

“For the majority of the game tonight we were working pretty hard and getting pucks back, things like that and doing the little things that coaches really like us doing,” Sheehy said. “It ended up working out for us.”

Missing forward Casey Mittelstadt and defenseman Ryan Lindgren due to the World Juniors, Minnesota (11-9-1, 4-7-1-1 Big Ten) juggled some lines against the Black Knights from West Point. The defense spent all week in practice rotating defensive pairings so that everyone would be familiar with one another.

Click here to read the rest!