Feature: Questions facing the Gopher program...beyond finding a coach (The Athletic)

“Selfishly, we feel like we have the best hockey job in the country.”

University of Minnesota athletic director Mark Coyle was frank during Tuesday’s press conference announcing head coach Don Lucia would be stepping down after 19 years. As questions turned to who would be Lucia’s successor — the third permanent head coach since 1985 — Coyle mentioned he wants someone who understands what the program means to the state.

“We’re very proud of what we’ve accomplished and our incredible tradition,” he said. “I look forward to having conversations with the right people and making sure we find the best fit for our student-athletes and our program.”

However, a new head coach is not the only question facing the Gopher program. Whoever gets the job will have some work to do in 2018-19 after a season that ended with a 19-17-2 record, four consecutive road losses to Penn State and the perfect storm of outcomes to knock the team out of the NCAA Tournament.

Here’s a look at some of the other questions facing Minnesota in 2018-19.

Click here to read the rest!

Game Story: Penn State holds on, knocks Gophers out of Big Ten Conference Tournament (Zone Coverage)

The Gophers, having likely done enough over the first 34 games to earn an at-large bid when the 16 team field is announced on March 18, will enter the NCAA Tournament on a four-game losing streak, all to the Nittany Lions and all at Pegula Arena.

The latest loss came Saturday when Penn State came out ahead 6-5 in a game which saw Minnesota (19-17-2) explode for four goals in the second period and four lead changes.

Evan Barratt scored twice Saturday, including the game-winning goal with 8:35 remaining in regulation.

“We were a little sluggish in the first and then after that I thought we played hard and fought right until the end. It’s just disappointing we didn’t get that final goal,” Minnesota head coach Don Lucia told reporters after Saturday’s game. “The guys had a great push in the second and third period and showed a lot of who they are coming back from 3-1 on the road.”

Combined with Friday’s 5-3 victory, Penn State won the best-of-three quarterfinal series 2-0 and will advance to next week’s Big Ten semifinal.

Click here to read the rest!

Pregame Blog: Minnesota-Wisconsin Saturday Line Combinations, TV, Radio & More

#14 Wisconsin (9-7-2, 3-3-1-0 Big Ten) at #7 Minnesota (10-6-1, 4-4-1-1 Big Ten)

Date: Saturday December 2nd
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: Everyone

Last night's game recap: Gopher pair hit milestones in win over Wisconsin


In the midst of a nine-game pointless streak, Scott Reedy was telling himself to stick to the basics. It paid off Friday night. The freshman forward broke through with three points, including his third goal of the season.

"I got to play my game. As long as I'm getting chances, I know points will come," he said.

Pregame Blog: Minnesota-Michigan State Friday line combinations, TV Schedule & More

Michigan State (4-2-0, 0-0-0-0 Big Ten) at #5 Minnesota (5-3-0, 1-1-0-0 Big Ten)

Date: November 3, 2017
Time: 7:00 pm CT
Place: 3M Arena at Mariucci in Minneapolis, MN
TV: Fox Sports North/Fox Sports Detroit Plus
Stream: BTN2Go/Fox Sports Go
Radio: 1130 KTLK-AM (Wally Shaver and Frank Mazzocco)
Nate is covering for tonight: Zone Coverage and The Athletic

Pregame Listening: That Gopher Hockey Puckast Episode 6

Greetings once again from snowy Minneapolis, where fall, we hardly knew you.

Game Story: Gopher Hockey Freshmen Return; Lead Minnesota Over #9 Clarkson (Zone Coverage)

MINNEAPOLIS- As a rule, Minnesota men’s hockey freshmen cannot talk to the press during the month of October.

They can, however, let their sticks do the talking.

There is no rule against freshmen contributing on the ice, which was the case Friday for the Gophers in a late October home victory over a top-10 opponent. Freshmen forwards Scott Reedy and Casey Mittelstadt played major roles in No. 7 Minnesota’s 3-1 win over No. 9 Clarkson as both returned from missing time with injuries.

Reedy broke open a scoreless game in the second period with his second career goal. Mittelstadt, meanwhile, assisted on the play. He finished with two assists for his first official multi-point game.

“They’re obviously important players. It’s important to get them back,” said sophomore Rem Pitlick, who scored a goal for Minnesota. “We have guys who stepped up and played well in their spots, but you go down two good players like that it’s always tough and to have them back was great.”

Read the rest of the story here.

Pregame Blog: Minnesota vs Clarkson lines, TV Schedule, Gopher expectations + More

#9 Clarkson (4-1-1, 0-0-0 ECAC) at #7 Minnesota (3-2-0, 1-1-0-0 Big Ten)

Date: October 27, 2017
Time: 7:00 pm CT
Place: 3M Arena at Mariucci in Minneapolis, MN
TV: Fox Sports North Plus (AVAILABLE in Twin Cities)
Stream: BTN2Go/Fox Sports Go
Radio: 1130 KTLK-AM (Wally Shaver and Frank Mazzocco)
Nate is covering for tonight: Zone Coverage

Pregame Reading/Listening: 
-Casey Mittelstadt/Scott Reedy updates; Justin Kloos NHL debut
-Gophers' return to North Dakota mixes old and new in college hockey's best rivalry (The Athletic)
-That Gopher Hockey Puckast Episode 5

Greetings from snowy Minnesota where we've gone from 90 degrees to snow in a span of five weeks.

Not having played the Gophers in Minneapolis since 1990 in the old building, Clarkson makes its first visit to Minnesota since the 2013 Ice Breaker. The Golden Gophers are 4-0-0 all-time against the Golden Knights, including a 4-3 comeback OT victory last year at Cheel Arena.

BLOG: Updates on Casey Mittelstadt and Scott Reedy; Justin Kloos makes NHL Debut

Casey Mittelstadt is "50/50" to play against Clarkson this weekend.

The freshman forward did skate Wednesday, dealing with an upper body injury. Mittelstadt, who has 2 goals and 2 assists in 5 games, was kept out of Saturday's 4-0 loss to North Dakota as a precaution after being cross-checked during Friday's 2-1 victory, according to Minnesota head coach Don Lucia.

"He'll skate (Thursday). I would say he's 50/50. We'll see where he's at come Friday night," Lucia said.

Lucia also said that Mittelstadt wanted to play. At this point of the season, however, the team would rather error on the side of caution.

Pregame Blog: Gophers without 3 top-9 forwards, Peyton Jones' Sportcenter save + More

#11 Penn State (2-1-0, 1-0-0-0 Big Ten) at #7 Minnesota (1-2-0, 0-1-0-0 Big Ten)

Date: October 15, 2017
Time: 3:00 pm CT
Place: 3M Arena at Mariucci in Minneapolis, MN
TV: Fox Sports North (Doug McLeod, Ben Clymer and Krissy Wendell-Pohl)
Stream: BTN2Go/Fox Sports Go
Radio: 1130 KTLK-AM (Wally Shaver and Frank Mazzocco)
Nate is covering for today: The Athletic

Among the many things Minnesota failed to do in Friday's 3-1 loss was test Penn State sophomore goaltender Peyton Jones.

"Not at all," junior forward Darian Romanko said. "We got zero shots in the first ten minutes and 16 on the game, I think (Note: It was 21). That's not good enough for Gopher hockey."

The slow start was Minnesota's second consecutive Friday night opening the game being outshot over the first ten minutes. The Gophers didn't have a shot stopped by Jones until the 12 minute mark. He was barely tested as the Nittany Lions forced Eric Schierhorn (making his record-breaking 79th straight start Sunday) to stop 2 breakaways during that stretch.

BLOG: A Look At 2017-18 New Men's Players Numbers & More

Three weeks from Friday the Minnesota men will be kicking off 2017-18 against Minnesota Duluth.

So long summer. Hello hockey.

The previews and features will be ramping up, both here and with other outlets, the closer it gets to the Ice Breaker. To kick things off, however, I wanted to start with something simple before diving into the deep end. Introduce the new Gopher players. Point out their names, their numbers, their size and maybe find out which junior teams were off in their measurements.

I say new players, not freshmen, because goaltender Mat Robson is officially a sophomore (and sitting out half a year). Connor Hurley, who enrolled this fall at Minnesota to begin classes, is a senior. The size and numbers are below for all except Hurley, who is not included due to sitting out the year as a transfer.

BLOG: What is a verbal commit from a 13/14 year-old worth?

By the time yesterday's two young verbal commits play for the Gophers, if all goes to plan, none of the current players on the roster will be playing at the University of Minnesota.

And that's if all goes to plan. A half decade can be a lifetime when teenagers choose their college choice before choosing a high school. If history tells us anything, it's far easier for players taking the path that Chaz and Cruz Lucius did - committing at 13 and 14 - to go on another rather than stick with their original.

Without delving into the good, bad and ugly of recruiting itself (a subject for another day), or recruiting getting younger, I wanted to look at whether past early commitments by 13 and 14 year-olds panned out for players and teams. What is a verbal commitment worth? Do star players remain stars? How much do plans change?

The answer is complicated.

2017 NHL Draft: 3 players with Gopher ties chosen during Day 2

Three more players with Gopher ties were selected on Day 2 of the 2017 NHL Draft.

Minnesota incoming freshman forward Scott Reedy, along with verbal commits Clayton Phillips and Sammy Walker, heard their names called Saturday, a day after incoming freshman Casey Mittelstadt became the eighth University of Minnesota player to be chosen in the top-10.

With four picks Minnesota is tied for the most selections among both fellow Big Ten and Minnesota schools. The total doubles 2016's draft picks (Ryan Lindgren and Rem Pitlick).

BLOG: 4 Minnesota commits at NHL Scouting Combine

Less than a month before the 2017 NHL Draft, four future Minnesota players - forwards Casey Mittelstadt and Scott Reedy along with defensemen Nate Knoepke and Clayton Phillips
- are in Buffalo, NY to take part in this week's Scouting Combine.

All except Phillips signed Letters of Intent to play at Minnesota. He is expected to be on campus in 2018, a year later than the others.

The scouting combine, which began Monday and goes until Saturday (June 3, 2017), can be an opportunity for draft-eligible players to interview with all 31 NHL teams and undergo medical and physical testing.

BLOG: Chicago wins USHL Clark Cup, Penticton falls in RBC Cup to cap 2016-17 commit season

Thanks to the one who gives me the opportunity to do what I love. Couldn't have done this without you and dad❤️ CLARK CUP CHAMPS. pic.twitter.com/HQ6PWiCEIg

— Brannon McManus (@Bmcmanus7) May 24, 2017

The last of Minnesota's commits had his season end Tuesday.

(There remain a few in the pros. Phil Kessel and Pittsburgh play Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Finals tonight. Former Gopher defensemen Michael Brodzinski and Ben Marshall's AHL teams are in their league semis although both players only appeared in a handful of playoff games.)

Brannon McManus became Tuesday the first person committed to Minnesota to hoist the USHL Clark Cup since Nico Sacchetti in 2008 when Chicago defeated Sioux City 2-1 in overtime of winner-take-all Game 5.

A few days earlier Penticton, with Gopher commits Mat Robson (goalie) and Sam Rossini (defense), ended its season two wins short of taking home the RBC Cup, the highest prize in Canadian Junior A. The BCHL league champions lost 3-1 Saturday to eventual RBC Cup winner Cobourg.

BLOG: Gopher commits in playoffs + U-18 WJC Schedule

Yes, the college hockey season is over. Several Minnesota commits play on, however.

Watch the highlights from the U.S. Men's National U18 Team's win over Belarus today at #U18Worlds.

More coverage: https://t.co/MZCPbh2Pj0 pic.twitter.com/TmFCWBYhyk

— USA Hockey (@usahockey) April 13, 2017

Scott Reedy and Nate Knoepke earlier today kicked off the 2017 U-18 World Junior Championships in Poprad and Spišská Nová Ves, Slovakia with a 7-0 win over Belarus. Knoepke (Farmington, MN) finished Thursday with two assists. His first helped up set Reedy's (Prior Lake, MN) goal (happens at about the :25 mark in the above tweet).

2017 NHL Draft: Casey Mittelstadt 3rd in Central Scouting Final Rankings

Casey Mittelstadt keeps moving up Central Scouting's 2017 NHL Draft board.

Mittelstadt is the third-highest North American skater in the final rankings released Tuesday by NHL Central Scouting. He moves up two spots from the mid-term rankings released in January. Mittelstadt earlier began the year with an "A" rating as a player expected to go in the first round.

Sitting behind two CHL forwards (Nolan Patrick and Nico Hischier) who are the popular picks to go #1 overall, the Eden Prairie, MN native is both the highest ranked American and player with college ties.

BLOG: Gopher commits Nate Knoepke and Scott Reedy to play in 2017 U-18 WJC

A pair of Minnesota commits will represent Team USA in the 2017 IIHF U-18 World Championships later this month.

Defenseman Nate Knoepke (Farmington, MN) and forward Scott Reedy (Prior Lake, MN) were among the 22 players named to the American roster. The tournament, which doubles as showcase for draft eligible players, runs from April 13-23 in Poprad and Spišská Nová Ves, Slovakia.

Knoepke and Reedy have each spent the past two seasons in the United States National Team Development Program, which annually makes up the vast majority of the roster. St. Cloud State freshman Ryan Poehling, a Lakeville native who accelerated his schooling to play college hockey, is the only player not from the USNTDP.

Both Knoepke and Reedy signed Letters of Intent during the early signing period to play at Minnesota next season.

Ryan Lindgren and 2017 incoming Gopher freshman Casey Mittelstadt represented Team USA in the 2016 U-18 World Championships. Lindgren captained the Americans to a third place finish.

What's Next? A Look At The 2017-18 Minnesota Men's Hockey Roster (Part 1)

Casey Mittelstadt makes it looks effortless #WhosNext pic.twitter.com/qdXeQ5dmLf

— USHL (@USHL) March 26, 2017

The movie never ends. The soap opera is told and unfolds. But the beat goes on, and so do we.

Tickets remain to be punched (or, since it's 2017, they are more likely to be scanned off of a smartphone) for this year's Frozen Four. With Minnesota's season over following yesterday's 3-2 upset loss to Notre Dame, attention turns away from the Northeast Regional and Chicago.

Instead, let's take a look to the 2017-18 season, which begins (and could end) in the Twin Cities. Minnesota sees plenty of turnover. A large senior class departs for the pros and real life. In their place, head coach Don Lucia brings in his best recruiting class on paper since 2010-11.

BLOG: Casey Mittelstadt named USHL Forward of the Week

Returning to the USHL with some unfinished business that will stay that way, it didn't take long for Eden Prairie senior and Minnesota commit Casey Mittelstadt to make an impact in his first weekend back with Green Bay Gamblers.

Mittelstadt was on Monday named the USHL Forward of the Week. The 2016 Minnesota Mr. Hockey scored a pair of goals Friday, finishing with three points. He added three more assists in wins against Cedar Rapids and Madison.

Yes he is... #GoGamblers. @CMittelstadt with 3 points tonight (2g, 1a) in the @USHL tonight pic.twitter.com/slL2EjBkIC

— Green Bay Gamblers (@GamblersHockey) March 18, 2017

2017 NHL Draft: Gopher commits Casey Mittelstadt, Scott Reedy in Bob McKenzie's Top 50

Few NHL draft rankings are as accurate as TSN analyst Bob McKenzie's rankings. Mostly, it has to do with the methodology.

See, McKenzie's rankings are not just his. They are based off discussions with a number of NHL scouts and paint a picture of where players are on various teams' draft boards.

In an unpredictable draft year like this one, it's no easy task.

Two Gopher commits - Casey Mittelstadt and Scott Reedy - are among the 80 players in Tuesday's mid-season rankings

Blog: Gopher commit Casey Mittelstadt ranked fifth in NHL Central Scouting

Led by Eden Prairie native Casey Mittelstadt, five University of Minnesota commits were named to NHL Central Scouting's Mid-Term Rankings.

Ranked fifth among North American skaters, Mittelstadt is the top player with college hockey ties. The 6’0”, 201 lbs forward was leading the USHL in scoring as a 17 year-old (he has since turned 18) when he left Green Bay to come back to Eden Prairie and try to win a Class AA championship. He will return to Green Bay after Eden Prairie's season ends.