After Minnesota’s comeback fell short against Michigan in the Big Ten Championship, head coach Bob Motzko said, “I sure hope so,” when asked whether or not the loss was the resetting type for his team.
With the loss in the conference title match, the Gophers dropped from No. 2/3 in the two college hockey polls to No. 5/6, a significant drop considering the loss was their first since Jan. 29.
However, Minnesota (24-12) is now focusing on the task ahead: their trek to a national title begins with the reigning national champions No. 10/9 Massachusetts (22-12-2) on Friday, March 25, at 5 p.m., in the NCAA Worcester Regional.
“[Massachusetts is] a good system team with a lot of skilled players,” senior Ben Brinkman said. “They are going to be a hard team to play against, so we got to get ready for them.”
Bobby Trivigno leads the Minutemen’s attack. The senior forward has 48 points (20 goals, 28 assists) in 36 games this season. Those 48 points put him at No. 4 in the nation.
The Gophers hold a strong record on the road this season at 11-5. Another key for Minnesota is scoring the game’s first goal as they have a 16-5 record when scoring first.
“It never gets old – this is a great time of year. They call it ‘March Madness’ for a reason,” Motzko said. “We’re a good road team, and we need to get on the road right now. We’ve been at home for too long. We’re going to be a fired-up group to get out of here.”
Minnesota and Massachusetts have never faced off against each other in the NCAA tournament action. However, the Gophers are 4-0-0 all-time against the Minutemen.
When the puck drops Friday evening, Minnesota will be the first team in college hockey to play in 39 NCAA tournaments.
The winner between the Gophers and Massachusetts will face off against the winner between Western Michigan and Northeastern on Sunday, March 27, at 3:00 p.m. or 5:00 p.m., competing for a trip to the Frozen Four.
“We’re just excited to get it going,” senior co-captain Sammy Walker said. “They are a great team, and one of my very good buddies [Garrett Wait] is on the team.”
