Gophers, those rodents endemic to North America, are known for digging holes, an annoying habit if you own the land on which they reside.
Gophers, those hockey players endemic to 3M Arena at Mariucci, are increasingly being known for digging holes, an annoying habit if you happen to coach the team.
“Let’s stop getting down early,” Gophers men’s hockey coach Bob Motzko said Wednesday, intercepting a question in mid-sentence about early deficits. “Nine games now we’ve given up the first goal. We’ve kind of gotta get kicked [to respond].”
The Gophers have played 16 games this season and are 7-1-1 when giving up the first goal, 13-2-1 overall, ranked No. 4 in both major polls. But falling behind is flirting with disaster.
“Obviously, we’d like to get the first goal,” said junior forward Brody Lamb, whose team plays host to No. 6 Michigan on Friday and Saturday. “We don’t want to always come from behind. So, we’ve got to work on that, coming out strong. It’s just staying in the game, no matter what happens.”
Last week’s series against Alaska (4-7-3) showed both ends of what can happen when the Gophers give up the first goal. In the opener, the Nanooks scored 7:52 into the first period, turned the game over to goalie Nicholas Grabko (36 saves) and emerged with a 1-1 tie. A night later, the Gophers trailed 1-0 11:15 into the game and 2-1 after two periods before scoring four goals in the third for a 5-2 win.
“Different guys pick up the rope and start pulling at times,” Motzko said. “And that is what’s been fun about this group. If we find ourselves down, someone finds a way to get us through.”
To their credit, the Gophers have been a resilient bunch. However, there’s a lesson to be learned from games like Nov. 16 at Bemidji State. The Beavers scored 21 seconds into the game, kept Minnesota off the scoreboard until 2:12 remained, got 38 saves from goalie Mattias Sholl and emerged with a 3-1 upset. Falling behind like that in the one-and-done NCAA tournament could be disastrous for any team.
