After picking up its second-straight sweep over an in-state foe, the No. 4 Minnesota men’s hockey team turns its attention to Big Ten Conference play. The Golden Gophers host No. 18 Penn State to begin league action inside 3M Arena at Mariucci Nov. 1-2.
Puck drop for both games is set for 7 p.m.
LAST TIME OUT
Minnesota secured its second-straight sweep over an in-state foe, this time over its closest opponent St. Thomas by a combined 13-3 score, last weekend. The Gophers picked up goals from seven sources, including the first collegiate hat trick from Brody Lamb as part of a four-goal weekend by the junior, and points via 13 different skaters. The blue line chipped in 12 points during the two games as both Ryan Chesley and Sam Rinzel put up four points behind multi-point efforts each night. Jimmy Snuggerud and Matthew Wood each distributed four assists to help the offense, while netminders Nathan Airey (20 saves Friday) and Liam Souliere (16 saves Saturday) backstopped the sweep of the Tommies.
WATCH THE PRIDE ON ICE
For the second-straight year, Minnesota and FOX9 have partnered for a local television broadcast deal that will air 16 home games and four road games during the 2024-25 campaign presented by Affinity Plus Federal Credit Union. This year’s home broadcasts on FOX9 and FOX9+ will feature a 30-minute Pride on Ice pre-game show presented by M Health Fairview as well as a post-game show recapping the action presented by RBC Wealth Management. This is in addition to the six games picked by the Big Ten Network and one airing on FS1 during the year. Check the schedule page on GopherSports.com for all the latest information and viewing options for every contest. Other FOX affiliates around the area have added Gopher hockey to their coverage with games available in Duluth (KQDS) and Fargo (KVRR) markets.
NEW NUMBER, SAME SAM THE STAR
While he may have changed from No. 5 to No. 2 during the offseason, the game of Sam Rinzel has remained unchanged following an All-B1G Second Team selection in 2023-24. After recording multi-point performances in both games against St. Thomas last weekend, the sophomore landed B1G First Star of the Week honors. That extended his career-long point streak to all six games this season, while his eight points are tied for second among NCAA defensemen. Rinzel’s four goals are part of a three-way tie for the top spot nationally, teammate Ryan Chesley one of the others in the tie, and he’s already doubled his goal total from his rookie campaign when he scored twice.
LAMB LIGHTS UP AS A STAR
Brody Lamb was a key factor in Minnesota’s offensive success in 2023-24 as he more than tripled his offensive output from his freshman campaign, setting career highs in goals (12), assists (15), and points (27). The Byron, Minn., native has continued that production into his junior year with a point in five of six outings and thanks to a four-goal weekend against the Tommies, including his first NCAA hat trick, was named the B1G Second Star of the Week. All three goals of his natural hat trick Saturday versus UST were on the power play and he has scored four of the Gophers’ five total goals on the man advantage this year. Lamb’s four power-play markers are tied for the NCAA lead, while he also tallied his fifth-career game-winning goal Saturday.
Lamb discusses Penn State:
FROM FOE TO FRIEND
Graduate transfer goaltender Liam Souliere is ready to enjoy a change of scenery as he joined the Gophers during the summer after playing four seasons as the starting netminder at B1G-foe Penn State. He made 16 saves in his first game for Minnesota against Omaha, a 2-1 overtime loss, before turning away 31 shots in a 5-1, road win at Minnesota Duluth that secured a series sweep. Before joining the Maroon and Gold, he ranked second all-time in wins (39), third in saves (2,067) and shutouts (3), fifth in goals-against average (2.95), and seventh in save percentage (.897) with the Nittany Lions. The Montréal, Québec, native was named to the NCAA Allentown Regional All-Tournament Team as a junior in 2022-23 after backstopping PSU to within an overtime goal of reaching the Frozen Four.
ALL OUT OFFENSE
In six games this season, the Gophers have picked up 33 total goals from 14 different players and 89 total points via 17 skaters, showcasing their offensive depth in 2024-25. The balanced scoring from Minnesota has helped the team lead the nation in scoring offense, while also holding the second-best scoring margin at plus-3.5. The Maroon and Gold have lit the lamp seven times in each of the three Friday outings, a goal total it never reached a season ago, and have scored five or more goals in all four victories during its current win streak.
BLUE LINE SCORING
With a combined 15 points from Sam Rinzel and Ryan Chesley, the Gophers are getting an offensive boost from their blue line in 2024-25. The skaters have both surpassed single-season career highs in goals through just six games, totaling four apiece. Minnesota’s defensemen are one goal shy of matching last season’s nine-goal production and the seven players to have dressed this year have totaled 22 points.
HISTORY WITH THE NITTANY LIONS
Minnesota holds a 29-18-1 (.615) record in the all-time series against Penn State that dates back to the first meeting in 2014, the year the Big Ten Conference was founded for men’s hockey. The Gophers have won eight of the last nine meetings versus the Nittany Lions, including each of the last five matchups inside 3M Arena at Mariucci, following a best-of-three series sweep in the 2024 Big Ten Conference Quarterfinals. Last season, Minnesota used a pair of shutouts by Justen Close in the season series as the netminder limited Penn State behind a 1.51 goals-against average and a .957 save percentage in six starts. Aaron Huglen, Jimmy Snuggerud, and Luke Mittelstadt each had five points in the series, combining for six goals and nine assists.
INSIDE LOOK AT PENN STATE
Through five games, the Nittany Lions are one of five NCAA teams to have not allowed a single power-play goal as the team has killed off all 23 opposing chances on the man advantage. Not only is it stopping power plays, but Penn State is also scoring at the other end, tying for the top spot in the country by scoring three times shorthanded. That has helped the team earn the nation’s 10th-best scoring defense as it is holding opponents to just 1.8 goals per game, leading to wins in four of five outings this season. Sophomore Aiden Fink continues his impressive offensive numbers from a season ago and paces the Nittany Lions with nine points in 2024-25. Danny Dzhaniyev and Reese Laubach have each scored three goals to lead the team, while UConn transfer goaltender Arsenii Sergeev has played every minute this season with a 1.79 goals-against average and a .928 save percentage.
WOODY, YOUR FAVORITE DEPUTY
No stranger to putting up points in college hockey, junior transfer Matthew Wood has kept that trend going since donning the Maroon and Gold uniform. He burst onto the scene opening night behind a three-assist effort versus Air Force (Oct. 11) and registered multi-point performances in each of his last four appearances, all victories for the Gophers. The product of Nanaimo, B.C., scored his first goal at Minnesota Duluth (Oct. 18), starting a three-game, goal-scoring streak. Wood joins linemate Connor Kurth with a team-leading 12 points, which sits third in the country, while his nine total assists are also third among all NCAA skaters.
KURTH STARS IN SEASON OPENER
Connor Kurth was named the B1G Second Star of the Week (Oct. 15) thanks to his career-best, four-point outing in the Gophers’ season opener against Air Force in Las Vegas. The forward scored a goal in all three periods versus the Falcons and remains one of six skaters in the country with a four-point outing this year, and the lone player from the Big Ten Conference to hit that mark. His six goals are tied for the most in the NCAA this year and is just one shy of reaching his single-season high of seven set in each of his first two collegiate campaigns. The nation’s plus-minus leader at plus-13, Kurth tied his career-long, goal-scoring streak when he found the back of the net for the third-consecutive outing Saturday at Xcel Energy Center against St. Thomas.
POWERING UP
After being held without a power-play goal during the 2024 Ice Breaker Tournament, the Gophers scored on the man advantage in both outings at Minnesota Duluth (Oct. 18-19) before tacking on three power-play tallies versus St. Thomas at Xcel Energy Center last Saturday. Brody Lamb scored the first of the year for Minnesota less than five minutes into Friday’s outing at UMD before Jimmy Clark tacked on one in the third period Saturday against the Bulldogs. Despite failing to convert any of three chances on the man advantage in their home opener against the Tommies, the Gophers responded in a big way with three power-play goals, all coming off the stick of Lamb, on Saturday as they went 3-for-7. That pushed the team’s success rate to 23.8 percent, ranking 19th in the country.
COMFORTS OF HOME
Only once in the 31-year history of 3M Arena at Mariucci has Minnesota not posted a winning record inside its home building and that happened in 2010-11 when the team was 9-10-3. Since that year, the Gophers own a 174-69-16 record (.703) and have won double-digit home games each of the last 13 years. That includes a mark of 14-6-1 from last season, aided by the Maroon and Gold winning eight-straight games from Jan. 8 and Mar. 1, the longest home win streak since 2017. Under Coach Motzko’s guidance, the Gophers hold a 77-39-6 (.656) record on home ice, including a 44-17-1 (.718) mark across the previous four years. That stretch of quality play is aided by Minnesota dominating Big Ten foes, going 28-10-1 (.731) in conference outings inside 3M Arena at Mariucci since the start of 2021.
(info and stock photo courtesy of Gopher Sports)
