Mariucci Arena
I wanted a way to just ramble on, whether anyone reads it or not doesn't matter.
If I mention a twitter handle, feel free to go follow them!
Gopher Hockey has become a part of my life and I'm not quite sure how. I've been watching the boys in my hometown play since the Pee Wee days and it turned out that some of my best friends in high school played hockey. I guess you could say my interest for hockey started when I was young, although I never played. So when I decided to come to the University of Minnesota, it was time to find a new team to follow.
I absolutely love the energy that Gopher Hockey brings to the campus, along with the other Division I Sports we have. I can never seem to get enough of it, I love reading articles about the team and about the players. I enjoy looking up stats on the team just for fun and watching the rankings on a weekly basis. Although I know my knowledge of hockey is no where near others, I like to use statistics to back up my thoughts.
This weekend the No. 1 ranked Golden Gopher Hockey team is playing the No. 12 ranked Wisconsin Badgers. No matter how many years go by, there will be a rivalry between the two schools and the two teams and it will always be deemed as a Border Battle. The energy is always hyped for these games and the players love it.
As of right now, Nate Condon (@Condo16) is the only Wisconsin native on Minnesota's roster. In fact, Condon is only the third non-Minnesotan to wear the C on his jersey. It definitely says something about this player's leadership skills both on and off the ice.
Kyle Rau (7), Nate Condon (16)
There are a few things to note about this weekend and the weekend series.
Nic Kerdiles, a sophomore forward who has been out with a shoulder injury since January 4 will be returning to Wisconsin's lineup this weekend against the Gophers.
Skate With The Gophers is happening this Saturday, February 8 from 12-3. For more information on how to sign up and the day's events, please go to this link: Skate With The Gophers. This is a great opportunity to not only meet the players, but also skate with them and get their autographs!
Nate Condon has skated in 143 consecutive games for the Gophers, and in his four years with the University, he has only missed one game (the second game of his freshman season). Captain Condon is currently 36-58--94, a mere 6 points away from reaching the milestone of 100 career points.
Mikey Reilly (@mreilly93) leads all B1G Ten defensemen in points so far this season. Reilly is 8-14--22 and is currently on a streak of tallying assists. Mikey has tallied an assist in the last 5 games that the Gophers have played. He tallied two assists against Ohio State, St. Cloud State, and Minnesota Duluth. He also had an assist in each game against Michigan State this past weekend.
The Reilly Brothers
Semi-related to this weekend's series, but Mike Reilly is not the only Reilly on the Gopher Hockey team. He has two brothers also on the team, twins to be exact. Ryan (@rreilly08), Connor (@CReilly81), and Mikey all describe playing together on the same team at Minnesota as a dream come true. However this isn't the first time the three of them have played together. The Reilly brothers went to high school at Academy of Holy Angels where they all played together and they also played juniors together. They were a part of BCHL's Penticton Vees, where they played alongside Mario Lucia (@MLucia2293) during that time. Last weekend's series against Michigan State was the first time all three brothers played a series together. Very cool moment for them, however I'm still patiently waiting for my Reilly from Reilly and Reilly goal.
Connor Reilly (21), Ryan Reilly (9), Mikey Reilly (5)
Injuries are keeping two Gophers out of the lineup. Jake Parenteau (@jacobjames6) just returned to the lineup during the North Star College Cup after suffering a broken leg. Last weekend was the first full weekend series that he was able to play. Tom Serratore (@Serratore1489) and Michael Brodzinski (@Mbrodzinski20) are both out with lower body injuries. I saw Brodzinski at the last game and it looked like he had a brace around his knee and a slight limp. Hoping to see those two back in the lineup soon, although it is giving other players a chance to play. We'll see if R. Reilly is back in the lineup this weekend or if A.J. Michaelson will get the chance.
Seth Ambroz (@Ambroz17) has been known for his empty net goals this season and his horrible post-goal celebrations (VIDEO: Ambroz' Celly). He is tied with Cole Gunner of Air Force for first nationally with 4 empty-net goals. The last time the Gophers played the Badgers, Ambroz recored FOUR GOALS against them - including both game-winning goals. On Saturday (November 30) Ambroz recorded his fourth goal with just 26 seconds left to clinch the series win against the Badgers. Hoping to see another big weekend from the junior.
The Freshmen Class continues to produce goals for the Gophers. So far this season, 36 of the 95 goals that the Gophers have were scored by a freshman. They are ranked second with the most goals from a freshmen class in the NCAA. Boston College is ranked first with 37 goals from their freshmen.
Defense wins championships, right? Well if the football reference applies to hockey, then I'd say the Gophers are doing pretty well. The Gophers defensemen have scored 22 out of the 95 goals so far this season. They too are ranked second with the most goals from defensemen in the NCAA. Denver is ranked first with 23 goals from their defensemen.
Adam Wilcox has won two straight B1G Ten Weekly Honors. His shutout last Saturday against the Michigan State Spartans earned him the Second Star this week. Wilcox definitely is our "Iron Man" and he has played his role well in my opinion. I know coming into his freshman year people were concerned that he would be unable to fill Kent Patterson's shoes, or should I say skates. However, Wilcox has dominated in games and as of last year, earned the starting position.
The Streak of unbeaten games is the longest active streak in the nation, currently held by the Gophers at 14. In the streak, the Gophers are 10-0-4. The longest streak in the record books for Minnesota was during the 2006-07 season. The Gophers went unbeaten in 22 games and were 19-0-3 during that stretch.
Congratulations to Travis Boyd (@Tboyd93) who skated in his 100th career game this past Friday against the Michigan State Spartans.
Recently read a couple of good articles in case you're interested. I learned new things about both Hudson Fasching (@Hfasching22) and Vinni Lettieri (@19Lettieri95). The article about Hudson is a little dated, but it's a great story about how he has built his character and how much his success means to him and his family. The article about Vinni is a great look into his 'famous' family and it also talks about his good fashion sense.
I don't know if I'll keep writing about this or other topics, just wanted to try it out and see what happens!
Good luck to the Gopher Men's Hockey team against the Wisconsin Badgers this weekend! They play tonight, Thursday, at 7:30pm and tomorrow night at 8:00pm. Both games will be broadcasted on BTN (watch) and streamed on 1500 ESPN (listen).
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