No. 9 Clarkson (4-1-1 overall, 0-0-0 ECAC) vs. No. 7 Minnesota (3-3-0 overall, 1-1-0 B1G)
Date: Friday, Oct. 27, 2017
Location: Mariucci Arena | Minneapolis, Minn.
Puck Drop: 7:00 p.m. CT
TV: FOX Sports North PLUS
Stream: BTN2Go | FOX Sports GO
Radio: 1130 KTLK AM | 103.5 FM
Date: Saturday, Oct. 28, 2017
Location: Mariucci Arena | Minneapolis, Minn.
Puck Drop: 7:00 p.m. CT
TV: FOX Sports North PLUS
Stream: BTN2Go | FOX Sports GO
Radio: 1130 KTLK AM | 103.5 FM
INSIDE THE MATCHUP
Minnesota is a perfect 4-0 in the all-time series.
The two teams met last year in New York with the Gophers eeking out a 4-3 win in overtime. Leon Bristedt led the way in the contest with two goals.
The Gophers have been atrocious on special teams this season. They’ve converted less than 10 percent of their power play opportunities while having just a 69% penalty kill rate.
On the other side, Clarkson has been much better. They’ve killed 33 of 36 penalties, and their 18% power play conversion rate looks excellent next to the Gophers.
Most of Clarkson’s roster is made up of Canadians. And by most, it’s 17 guys on their roster.
They do have one MInnesotan, goalie Jake Kielly of Eden Prairie. Kielly has been dominant this season, posting a .958 save percentage and a 1.32 goals against average. Wow.
Thankfully, the Gophers are getting closer to being healthy. According to Nate Wells, Casey Mittelstadt is 50/50 this weekend, while Scott Reedy looks to be returning soon.
STORYLINE CENTRAL
Cap Carey with the Watertown Daily News has a good recap of Clarkson’s split last weekend. The loss marked Clarkson’s first of the season, but they rallied in the finale to coach Casey Jones’ 100th victory.
If you have a subscription to The Athletic (and you should), Nate Wells had a great feature on the renewal of the rivalry between North Dakota and the Gophers. It really doesn’t have anything to do with this series, but it’s a good read.
There’s not a ton of articles about Clarkson hockey, so here’s some highlights from Minnesota’s win you couldn’t see unless you live in North Dakota.
QUOTES
Don Lucia
On Clarkson:
“Clarkson is a good team, we saw them a year ago. We beat them overtime; they jumped out to a 3-0 lead. They’re 4-1-1 on the year. Beat Michigan, Penn State, Providence, tied at Western Michigan so they’ve played a good schedule. They’re building something and I think they’re a team that certainly has a good chance to make the NCAA tournament, this year.”
Jack Ramsey
On Clarkson:
“They have good goaltending. Like I said, I like to focus on our team, internally, mostly. If we prepare the right way and we come out with a good start on Friday night, I think we’re fine.”
Mike Szmatula
On the weekend series:
“We just want to make sure we get our game where it needs to be. Clarkson is a really good team, off to a really good start. We played them last year and they played us really tough so it’s going to be another great test, but we’re looking forward to it.”