The University of Minnesota men’s hockey team had a turbulent 2025-2026 season.
The Gophers entered the season with a roster made up of mostly underclassmen and eighth-year head coach Bob Motzko. They ended the season with an 11-22-3 overall record and a new head coach, Brett Larson.
The team’s 11 wins were their fewest wins since the 1971-1972 season, when the Gophers finished 8-24. Despite how last season ended, the Gophers have a whole new schedule, a new head coach and some new players to look forward to. There will be plenty of changes in the upcoming season.
The Gophers have 35 games scheduled for the 2026-27 season, with their biggest opponents similar to seasons before. As many Gopher fans know, one of the University’s biggest rivals is the University of Wisconsin Badgers.
Since 1922, Minnesota has held a 190-25-105 record in the series.
Last season, both teams swept each other on home ice, with Wisconsin winning both games in Madison and Minnesota winning both games in Minneapolis. In the 2026-27 season, the teams will meet four times across two two-game series.
The Border Battle isn’t the only matchup for Gopher fans to look forward to. There is a much closer team that could prove to be a difficult opponent this upcoming season after an impressive 2025-26 season.
The University of Minnesota Duluth Bulldogs went 25-15-1 last season and swept the Gophers in a home series upset. Duluth head coach Scott Sandelin has been with the Bulldogs since the 2000-01 season and has been a vital component in the team’s development.
Since joining the team, Sandelin has led UMD to three National Collegiate Athletic Association championships, 11 NCAA tournament appearances and claimed three conference tournament titles.
UMD is not a team to overlook this season, and could be a tough early opponent for the Gophers, as they will be the second team Larson will face as Minnesota’s head coach.
However, it won’t be the first time Larson and Sandelin have met on the ice as competitors. Larson has 16 years of collegiate coaching experience, most recently with the St. Cloud State Huskies.
In his eight years with the Huskies, Larson led the team to four NCAA tournament appearances and two National Collegiate Hockey Conference championships. Larson played 47 games against Sandelin as head coach during his time with the Huskies, though the two weren’t always opponents.
Larson has a deep history with UMD. He was a defenseman for the Bulldogs from 1991-95 and even served as captain in his senior year, where he ended his career with 24 goals and 43 assists.
Before coaching at St. Cloud State, Larson had two stints with the Bulldogs from 2008-11 and then again from 2015-18. In his time with the Bulldogs, Larson worked as an assistant coach to Sandelin and helped lead the team to NCAA titles in both 2011 and 2018.
This history between the two coaches could lead to a very interesting series for the Gophers and the Bulldogs in the 2026-2027 season.
After leaving St. Cloud State to become head coach for the Gophers, Larson brought two transfers with him: sophomore defenseman Tanner Henricks and junior forward Austin Burnevik. Both players previously played for Larson with the Huskies.
Last season, Burnevik recorded 38 points on 20 goals and 18 assists, finishing second on the Huskies in scoring. Henricks appeared in 14 games as a freshman, totaling six points with three goals and three assists. He was unable to play the full season due to injury.
These two players aren’t the only new additions to the Gophers’ 2026-27 roster. The team has brought on seven new freshmen, the most notable of which is forward Wyatt Cullen.
Cullen played two seasons with the USA Hockey National Team Development Program, totaling 89 game appearances on the U17 and U18 teams. In the 2025-26 season, he was ranked seventh in scoring for the U18s with 34 points, averaging a team-best of 1 point per game.
Cullen was recently drafted 10th overall by the Nashville Predators during the 2026 NHL Draft. His older brother, Brooks Cullen, is also expected to join the team this season.
These changes to the team mean that the Gophers have an unpredictable season coming up. How quickly Larson’s system takes hold will unfold when Minnesota opens the season against Michigan Tech on Oct. 2.
