Gophers men’s hockey vs. Penn State series preview: broadcast info, analysis

Friday (6 p.m.) and Saturday (3 p.m.) at 3M Arena at Mariucci

TV, radio: FS1 on Friday, BTN on Saturday; 103.5-FM both days

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Randy Johnson’s preview:

Opening bell: The Gophers (16-7-5, 9-5-4 Big Ten) are on a 7-2-1 stretch since Jan. 1 after gaining an overtime win and a tie at Wisconsin last week. Minnesota sits in third place in the Big Ten with 29 points, six behind the second-place Badgers, who have two games in hand. With their recent surge, the Gophers have moved up to No. 9 in the PairWise Ratings, and they have three remaining regular-season series for a chance to move from a No. 3 NCAA seeding position to a No. 2. ... Penn State (12-11-3, 4-9-3) swept Ohio State with a pair of 4-3 wins last weekend, ending a six-game conference skid.

Watch him: Gophers sophomore forward Brody Lamb ranks sixth on the team in scoring with 20 points on 11 goals and nine assists, and he’s been heating up recently. The former Dodge County standout scored the overtime winner at Wisconsin on Friday and has four goals and three assists since Jan. 1.

Pregame reading: Motzko fumes over ‘two horrendous calls’ that cost Gophers goals in tie at Wisconsin

Forecast: While Penn State might sit in sixth place in the Big Ten with 17 points, the Nittany Lions haven’t been pushovers for the Gophers. Minnesota split a December series in State College, winning the opener 4-1 but dropping the finale 6-3. Should the Gophers finish third in the conference, they likely would face Penn State in the best-of-three first round of the Big Ten tournament. Serving notice with a sweep this weekend would be good way for the Gophers to show they’re dialed-in for postseason play.

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