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.
What is the Renfrew-Marriuci trophy? It's the annual traveling trophy awarded to the winner of the Michigan-Minnesota season series. The namesakes are coaches Al Renfrew (Michigan) and John Mariucci (Minnesota).
Initially created in 1993 along with the College Hockey Showcase, the trophy remains contested with the teams in the same conference playing four times per year instead of once annually Thanksgiving weekend.
Michigan is 2-0-1 against the Gophers in 2017-18 with Saturday's game remaining. The Wolverines last held the trophy in 2010 by winning 3-1 in the final College Hockey Showcase.
Minnesota does currently hold a 2-0 lead in the other season series played for hardware, Minnesota and Michigan State's Marriuci-Bessone trophy.
McManus breaks goalless drought
Freshman Brannon McManus broke through Friday with his first goal in 12 games. The Newport Beach, California native crashed the net and was in the right place at the right time to bury a Tyler Sheehy rebound to cut Michigan's lead to one goal. (Sheehy, as an aside, is two points from 100 in his Gopher career. He'd be the 84th Minnesota player to reach the century mark.)"Coach always tells us to go to the net. I was fortunate enough to bury it home," McManus said.
McManus, whose last goal also came against Michigan in early November when the two teams played in Ann Arbor, wasn't the only Gopher freshman to break a drought. Scott Reedy's goal in the closing seconds of Minnesota's third power play snapped an 0-29 stretch dating back to December 2nd. The Gophers had gone over six games without a power play goal.
Minnesota currently is 54th out of 60 Division 1 men's hockey teams with a 13.08% success rate (14 of 107) on the power play.
Big Ten Standings
It's not hyperbole to say this has been Minnesota's worst stretch of conference games in Big Ten history. The Gophers have gone 1-7-1 in its last nine conference games and sit tied for fifth with Wisconsin. (Having two teams picked to finish first and third, respectively three points away from the cellar does say a lot about the conference's strength.) Michigan's win Friday put the Wolverines one point ahead of both teams and into fourth place.If the season ended today, the Gophers would be on the road for the first round of the Big Ten conference tournament.
More important for Minnesota, Ohio State sits eight points ahead of the Gophers in third place. The gap between the two teams in conference play continues to grow.
Line Combinations:
Minnesota head coach Don Lucia didn't tinker much tonight. For the most part the lineup remains the same from Friday's loss.Sam Rossini's return into the lineup Saturday in place of fellow freshman defenseman Clayton Phillips marks the only change among forward or defensemen. Phillips sits for the first time since joining the Gophers last month. Rossini, meanwhile, plays after sitting two consecutive games.
Eric Schierhorn is listed first among Minnesota's goaltenders. Lucia wouldn't commit last night to playing Schierhorn, who stopped 8 of 9 shots faced in the final two periods, but it would continue the goaltender platoon. Last night's starter, Mat Robson, stopped 6 of 9 shots in one period of play.
Michigan is going with the same lineup as Friday.
University of Minnesota Golden Gophers
Forwards
Brent Gates Jr. (#10) - Mike Szmatula (#9) - Tyler Nanne (#29)
Leon Bristedt (#18) - Tyler Sheehy (#22) - Brannon McManus (#7)
Rem Pitlick (#15) - Casey Mittelstadt (#21) - Scott Reedy (#19)
Ryan Norman (#23) - Darian Romanko (#26) - Jack Ramsey (#16)
Defense
Ryan Lindgren (#5) - Jack Sadek (#2)
Steve Johnson (#4) - Jack Glover (#3)
Sam Rossini (#28) - Ryan Zuhlsdorf (#20)
Goaltenders
Eric Schierhorn (#37)
Mat Robson (#40)
Brock Kautz (#1)
University of Michigan Wolverines
Forwards
Dexter Dancs (#90) - Cooper Marody (#20) - Tony Calderone (#17)
Brendan Warren (#11) - Jake Slaker (#13) - Josh Norris (#9)
James Sanchez (#61) - Adam Winborg (#18) - Dakota Raabe (#12)
Michael Pastujov (#21) - Nick Pastujov (#91) - Jack Becker (#8)
Defense
Quinn Hughes (#43) - Joseph Cecconi (#33)
Sam Piazza (#6) - Luke Martin (#2)
Griffin Luce (#5) - Nicholas Boka (#74)
Goaltenders
Hayden Lavigne (#30)
Jack LaFontaine (#45)
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