Grant_Erickson
Member
- Joined
- Aug 27, 2013
- Messages
- 53
- Reaction score
- 0
- Points
- 6
It looked like the Gophers were set to mount an incredible comeback in South Bend on Friday night. Late in the game, Minnesota netted two goals to pull even with Notre Dame. Unfortunately for the Maroon and Gold, the Irish bounced right back, scoring the go-ahead goal with just under two minutes remaining in the game. Notre Dame went on to take the first game of the weekend series, 4-3.
Tough Loss
Trailing 3-1 after two periods, the score remained the same for much of the third period. After a major penalty on the Irish late in the game, Minnesota found life thanks to a pair of powerplay goals to tie the game with just over three minutes left. After a defensive breakdown, the Irish capitalized to retake the lead.
“You battle back to give yourself an opportunity to get yourself back in the game and the guys did a great job of that, scoring two goals,” said Don Lucia. “Then, to me, an inexcusable play by a defenseman to jump up into the play.”
Despite the disappointing loss, Minnesota found signs of encouraging play late in the game.
“I think we came back strong in the end,” said Leon Bristedt. “I think it’s good that we proved our powerplay can score goals. I think that’s what we’re going to bring to next game.”
Strong Start
The Gophers have started the year with somewhat of a disjointed schedule. Last week, Minnesota had a bye, but showed no signs of rust early against the Irish.
“I was pleased with our first period,” said Lucia. “With not playing the weekend before, I thought we played with good energy.”
Despite the good first period, Minnesota stumbled in the second, giving up three goals.
“It was a fast-paced period,” said Lucia of the first. “There wasn’t many stoppages at all. We played the way we wanted to play. We’re not good enough to have a bad period.”
Line Clicking
The Gophers generated just one 5-on-5 goal on Friday but saw production from the line of Leon Bristedt, Tommy Novak, and Hudson Fasching. Bristedt and Fasching scored all three Minnesota goals against the Irish.
“I think the key is hard work,” said Bristedt of his line. “We have different components, different players who can bring different things to the game.”
If the Gophers want to improve on the loss, they’ll need scoring from other lines.
“Right now, we’re getting offense from two players and that’s Fasching and Bristedt,” said Lucia. “We’ve got to have other guys join, especially the veterans.”
On The Road
If you follow GH on Twitter, you likely saw that we were at Friday’s game. Since Travis and I are traveling to Columbus to cover the football game tomorrow, we thought we’d cover the hockey game, too. Despite the loss, it was a great experience. If you’ve never been to Notre Dame, it’s an old, beautiful campus and for sure worth a visit.
I’d never seen Compton Family Ice Arena before but was blown away. It’s not huge – seating about 5,000 – but it’s a great place to watch college hockey. I’ve only been to a few Gopher hockey away games, but Notre Dame’s arena was easily the best (outside of Mariucci, of course). If you ever get a chance to watch the Gophers play in South Bend, and maybe catch an Irish football game, I’d highly suggest it. Amazing campus, friendly fans, and competitive hockey; what more could you ask for?
Three Stars
3 – Leon Bristedt tallied two of Minnesota’s goals.
2 – Notre Dame’s Jake Evans had three assists on the night.
1 – Maple Grove native Jake Gross scored two goals including the game winner.
What’s Next
The Gophers will try for the split tomorrow evening at 5:40 CT and can be seen on NBC Sports Network. If Minnesota wants to come away with one win on the weekend, they’ll need to clean up their mistakes from Friday.
“We’ll break down the video and show them some of the mistakes,” said Lucia. “Good teams will make you pay for your mistakes.”
Tough Loss
Trailing 3-1 after two periods, the score remained the same for much of the third period. After a major penalty on the Irish late in the game, Minnesota found life thanks to a pair of powerplay goals to tie the game with just over three minutes left. After a defensive breakdown, the Irish capitalized to retake the lead.
“You battle back to give yourself an opportunity to get yourself back in the game and the guys did a great job of that, scoring two goals,” said Don Lucia. “Then, to me, an inexcusable play by a defenseman to jump up into the play.”
Despite the disappointing loss, Minnesota found signs of encouraging play late in the game.
“I think we came back strong in the end,” said Leon Bristedt. “I think it’s good that we proved our powerplay can score goals. I think that’s what we’re going to bring to next game.”
Strong Start
The Gophers have started the year with somewhat of a disjointed schedule. Last week, Minnesota had a bye, but showed no signs of rust early against the Irish.
“I was pleased with our first period,” said Lucia. “With not playing the weekend before, I thought we played with good energy.”
Despite the good first period, Minnesota stumbled in the second, giving up three goals.
“It was a fast-paced period,” said Lucia of the first. “There wasn’t many stoppages at all. We played the way we wanted to play. We’re not good enough to have a bad period.”
Line Clicking
The Gophers generated just one 5-on-5 goal on Friday but saw production from the line of Leon Bristedt, Tommy Novak, and Hudson Fasching. Bristedt and Fasching scored all three Minnesota goals against the Irish.
“I think the key is hard work,” said Bristedt of his line. “We have different components, different players who can bring different things to the game.”
If the Gophers want to improve on the loss, they’ll need scoring from other lines.
“Right now, we’re getting offense from two players and that’s Fasching and Bristedt,” said Lucia. “We’ve got to have other guys join, especially the veterans.”
On The Road
If you follow GH on Twitter, you likely saw that we were at Friday’s game. Since Travis and I are traveling to Columbus to cover the football game tomorrow, we thought we’d cover the hockey game, too. Despite the loss, it was a great experience. If you’ve never been to Notre Dame, it’s an old, beautiful campus and for sure worth a visit.
I’d never seen Compton Family Ice Arena before but was blown away. It’s not huge – seating about 5,000 – but it’s a great place to watch college hockey. I’ve only been to a few Gopher hockey away games, but Notre Dame’s arena was easily the best (outside of Mariucci, of course). If you ever get a chance to watch the Gophers play in South Bend, and maybe catch an Irish football game, I’d highly suggest it. Amazing campus, friendly fans, and competitive hockey; what more could you ask for?
Three Stars
3 – Leon Bristedt tallied two of Minnesota’s goals.
2 – Notre Dame’s Jake Evans had three assists on the night.
1 – Maple Grove native Jake Gross scored two goals including the game winner.
What’s Next
The Gophers will try for the split tomorrow evening at 5:40 CT and can be seen on NBC Sports Network. If Minnesota wants to come away with one win on the weekend, they’ll need to clean up their mistakes from Friday.
“We’ll break down the video and show them some of the mistakes,” said Lucia. “Good teams will make you pay for your mistakes.”
