GOPHERS MEN'S HOCKEY GAMEDAY
Gophers-Michigan State men's hockey preview: Minnesota 4-0 vs. Spartans entering Big Ten semifinal
Minnesota has outscored the Spartans 25-6, but Michigan State is coming off a strong first-round series against Notre Dame.
March 11, 2023 at 4:15AM
8 p.m. Saturday vs. Michigan State * BTN, 103.5-FM, 1130-AM
Big Ten tournament semifinals
Gophers update: Minnesota (25-8-1) won the Big Ten regular-season title by a record 19 points and had a bye last weekend while the rest of the conference played best-of-three, first-round series. The Gophers, No. 1 in the PairWise computer rankings, have won four consecutive games and seven of their past eight. They swept the season series against Michigan State by a combined 25-6 as the top line of Matthew Knies-Logan Cooley-Jimmy Snuggerud combined for 13 goals and 15 assists. Goalie Justen Close posted two shutouts against the Spartans and stopped 112 of the 118 shots he faced. … A victory would move the Gophers into the March 18 Big Ten championship game against the Ohio State-Michigan semifinal winner.
Michigan State update: The Spartans (18-17-2) advanced in the Big Ten tournament for the first time by beating Notre Dame in three games, falling 1-0 in the opener before winning by scores of 4-2 in the next two games. Goalie Dylan St. Cyr, a transfer from Notre Dame, made 37 saves in the series clincher in South Bend, Ind., and received help from his teammates, who blocked 22 shots. Forward Nicolas Muller had two goals and three assists against Notre Dame and leads the Spartans in scoring with nine goals and 25 assists. Senior Jagger Joshua is MSU's leading goal-scorer with 13.
Sophia Boman and Sophia Romine scored second-half goals as the Gophers advanced to the third round for only the third time in program history.
