The Michigan hockey team split its final road series of the year last weekend at Wisconsin and now return home to play its final series of the regular season against a reeling Minnesota squad. Michigan enters the weekend with a 25-6-1 record; meanwhile, it’s been a down year for the Golden Gophers, who enter the weekend 10-19-2.
Michigan and Minnesota have already met this season, back in the middle of January in Minneapolis. The Wolverines swept the first series — winning 5-1 in the first game (while
getting an incredible 52 shots on goal) and winning game two by a narrower 3-2 margin in overtime.
Since the last time we saw Minnesota, the Golden Gophers have gone 2-5-1, including a tie and a loss in their latest series against Notre Dame.
We took a look at Minnesota before these two teams played in their last series, but just to remind the folks at home who some of the key players are, the top Gopher this year has been Buffalo Sabres prospect Brodie Ziemer, who is tied for second in the Big Ten in goals with 20. He’s been particularly effective on the power play, scoring 11 such goals this year. Brody Lamb is another member of the top line and has also been one of the more productive players in the Big Ten this year with 30 points.
Freshman forward L.J. Mooney and senior defenseman Luke Mittlestadt will also be names to watch, as they lead Minnesota in assists with 20 and 17, respectively.
In net, the Golden Gophers have primarily used Luca Di Pasquo this year, while Nathan Airey has gotten the occasional spot start. Neither of them have been particularly effective, but the Minnesota defense hasn’t done them many favors either. Di Pasquo enters the weekend with a .913 save percentage and 3.03 goals against average, while Airey is sporting a .889 save percentage and 3.31 goals against average.
As for the Wolverines, they enter the weekend sitting at No. 1 in the Big Ten standings with 46 points, while Michigan State is just behind them with 45. Michigan will hope to pad its lead with two wins this weekend, since the Spartans do have one final series next weekend against Minnesota after playing Ohio State this weekend. Minnesota is well outside the race for the conference crown with just 22 points on the year.
While it likely won’t be the final time at Yost for Michigan this season with the Big Ten Tournament looming, Michigan will be honoring its seniors this Friday night. As a reminder, the series is set to start on Thursday night instead of Friday. Here’s a quick look at the weekend’s full schedule and game information:
Game 1
When: Thursday, Feb. 26, 6:30 p.m. ET
Where: Yost Ice Arena, Ann Arbor, MI
How to Watch: Big Ten Network
How to Listen: Varsity Podcast Network
Game 2 (Senior Night)
When: Friday, Feb. 27, 6 p.m. ET
Where: Yost Ice Arena, Ann Arbor, MI
How to Watch: Big Ten Network
How to Listen: Varsity Podcast Network
