Mavericks vs. Minnesota - What You Need To Know

The No. 12 Omaha hockey team will take on No. 2 Minnesota in the first round of the NCAA West Regional on Saturday, March 27 at 9 p.m. CT.  It’s been a while since these two schools have met, so let’s look at what you need to know about this matchup.

THE HISTORY

The two teams first met in the 2003 Mutual of Omaha Stampede, back when head coach Mike Gabinet was a senior defenseman for the Mavericks.

All-time, Minnesota has a 4-3-0 edge in the series which included six games during the Mavericks’ tenure in the WCHA from 2010-13.  Not only did the two schools split the conference action, 3-3-0, the road team had the better record with the Mavericks going 3-1-0 in Minneapolis and the Golden Gophers posting a 2-0-0 record in Omaha.

The two teams have not met since the formation of the NCHC and the Big Ten hockey conference in 2013-14.

THIS SEASON

The Mavericks are 14-10-1 overall this season and finished fourth in the NCHC with a record of 14-9-1-4-0 (1).  It was their highest conference finish since 2014-15.  The Mavericks lost to Denver in the NCHC Frozen Faceoff Quarterfinals.

Minnesota is 23-6-0 overall and finished second in the Big Ten with a mark of 16-6-0-0-0 (0).  The Gophers would go on to win the league’s playoff championship with a 6-4 victory over regular season champ Wisconsin.

THE PLAYERS

The Mavericks hail from nine different states, four Canadian provinces and one European country.  The state of Minnesota has supplied nine of them, the most of any one state.  The Mavericks also have three players drafted by NHL teams – Isaiah Saville (Vegas), Jonny Tychonick (Ottawa) and Tyler Weiss (Colorado).

There was once a time when every Golden Gopher hailed from Minnesota.  While that is not true anymore, the Land of 10,000 Lakes still supplies a vast majority of UM’s players – 20 of 28 this season.  And the Gophers are highly regarded with 14 drafted by NHL teams, the most of any team in the NCAA.

POST-SEASON HONORS

When it came time for the NCHC to hand out its post-season hardware, junior Chayse Primeau had earned a spot on the All-NCHC Second Team.  In addition, sophomore Isaiah Saville and defenseman Brandon Scanlin had picked up All-NCHC Honorable Mention.  In addition, Primeau was the runner up for the NCHC’s Sportsmanship Award, and Mike Gabinet was the runner up for NCHC Coach of the Year.

Senior goaltender Jack LaFontaine was named the Big Ten Goaltender of the Year and was one of three Gophers named to the All-Big Ten team, a list that included Sampo Ranta and Jackson Lacombe.  Rookie Brock Faber was named to the Big Ten All-Rookie Team and was one of five Gophers named All-Big Ten Honorable Mention.

CONNECTIONS

Hockey is a small world and connections between teams abound.  There are two notable ones in this series.  Defenseman Nate Knoepke played his freshman year at UM in 2017-18 before transferring to Omaha.

In addition, former Maverick head coach Dean Blais was a standout forward for the Gophers in the early 1970’s.  He would coach the Mavericks from 2009-2017.

Dean Blais (at left) during his playing days at Minnesota; (at right) Blais on the bench with then-associate head coach Mike Gabinet during the 2016-17 season.  (Left photo courtesy of @VintageMNHockey)

NCAA WEST REGIONAL

The No. 12 Mavericks will face No. 2 Minnesota in the first round of the NCAA West Regional on Saturday, March 27 at 9 p.m. CT.  The game will air live on ESPNU.