Friday's Games

North Dakota 4, Michigan Tech 2
North Dakota jumped out to a 2-0 lead and never looked back in a win over Michigan Tech at MacInnes Student Ice Arena. Goals by Jason Gregoire and Evan Trupp put UND up two before John Kvisto got Tech on the board with a power play marker at 14:18 of the second period. Chris VandeVelde re-established the two goal lead four minutes later and UND made it 4-1 13 minutes into the third on a tally by Danny Kristo. UND outshot Michigan Tech 41-23 and Brad Eidsness made 21 saves in the win.

Wisconsin 4, Minnesota 2
Two second period goals for Wisconsin were the difference as the Badgers defeated Minnesota at the Kohl Center. Blake Geoffrion scored two goals, including his first just 24 seconds into the game. His second, midway through the second was the game winner. Patrick White scored with 11 minutes remaining in the third to make it 3-2, but Ben Street's second of the season with 1:52 left was the insurance UW needed. Brett Bennett was impressive, stopping 16 shots -- many of them spectacular -- in the win. Alex Kangas made 28 saves for the Gophers.

Minnesota Duluth 4, Colorado College 3
The Bulldogs scored a pair of third period goals to rally from a 3-2 deficit after two in a win over the Tigers at World Arena. Travis Oleksuk scored his first goal of the season midway through the third to tie the game before Kyle Schmidt gave UMD the lead for good 4:59 later. This came after CC had rallied from a 2-0 hole early to grab the one goal lead after 40 minutes. Brady Lamb and Mike Seidel gave the 'Dogs a 2-0 lead in the first period. Mike Testwuide got the Tigers on the board late in the first and Kris Fredheim and William Rapuzzi scored second period goals to put CC out in front. The Tigers outshot UMD 33-21 on the night, as Kenny Reiter stopped 30 shots to earn the win. Rob Bordson had two assists for the Bulldogs -- his ninth and tenth of the season -- and now leads the league in that category.

Denver 3, Alaska-Anchorage 2
Rhett Rakhshani scored two goals for the Pioneers in a win over the Seawolves at Sullivan Arena. Sean Wiles gave UAA a 1-0 lead early in the second but Jesse Martin scored less than a minute later to tie the game for Denver. Rakhshani's first of the game came with just over four minutes to play in the second, and he followed it up with the eventual game winner 3:51 into period three. Luka Vidmar scored an empty net goal with 36 seconds remaining to pull UAA back within one but it could not find the equalizer. Anchorage native Adam Murray stopped 22 shots in his first homecoming game to earn the win for DU.

Border Battle highlights weekend match-ups

An almost full weekend of conference action, highlighted by the always exciting Minnesota-Wisconsin rivalry.

Predictions
LAST WEEKEND: 6-3-1
THIS SEASON: 28-14-5

Minnesota at Wisconsin
The announcement that Minnesota forward Jay Barriball will miss the rest of the season was a devastating one for the Gophers. As mentioned in the story below, Barriball was far and away the Gophers' active career leading scorer. He was a critical cog on Minnesota's top-line as well as on the power play. It's not as though the Gophers don't have the talent to help fill the hole -- they do. It's just not very experienced. One candidate to help pick up the slack is sophomore Taylor Matson, who himself missed much of last season with a knee injury. In high school, he was a top-end offensive player. He will likely see his ice time increase as a result of this injury. Of course, if Tony Lucia can continue even near his level of play right now, Minnesota could be OK. To win this weekend, the Gophers will have to do better on the power play. Yeah, they broke out of their scoreless slump with the man advantage last weekend against Alaska-Anchorage. But they only scored one power play goal against a penalty kill which isn't that good. Wisconsin has gotten stellar goaltending from both Brett Bennett and Scott Gudmandson, and they have very talented defensemen. Look for these games to be low scoring -- the first team to three goals will have a tremendous chance at winning the game.
PREDICTION: Wisconsin sweep

North Dakota at Michigan Tech
The Fighting Sioux had the weekend off after their long trip to Anchorage. They follow it up with a long bus trip to Houghton. UND hasn't been led by a single super star this season. Defenseman Chay Genoway has four goals this season -- but no other North Dakota player is among the league's top 15 in scoring. Brad Eidsness has a 1.78 goals against average and has been fantastic through the first month. Surprisingly, Michigan Tech has two players among the top 15 in scoring, as Brett Olson and Malcolm Gwilliam have both shown flashes this season. The key will come in net for Tech. Kevin Genoe started last Friday and allowed one goal in a win. He allowed three goals on Saturday in a loss. If the Huskies can keep teams at two or less, they will win a few games. Any more than three and Tech probably doesn't have the firepower to win many games.
PREDICTION: North Dakota sweep

Minnesota Duluth at Colorado College
Perhaps the most entertaining series of the weekend will take place in Colorado Springs where the Tigers will look to avenge last season's playoff losses to the Bulldogs. UMD's Jack Connolly, Justin Fontaine and Rob Bordson -- all linemates -- are 1-2-3 in the WCHA in scoring after the season's first month. CC's Joe Howe has been one of the league's better goaltenders so far. Special teams will be the difference this weekend. Both teams possess explosive power play units -- with CC ranking first in the league at over 32 percent and UMD third at almost 24 percent. The Tigers have the better penalty kill and the better goaltender, plus they're at home, so they would appear to have the edge. If Brady Hjelle can show more consistency in net, this one's a toss-up.
PREDICTION: Split

Denver at Alaska-Anchorage
The Pioneers are the league's other team trying to recover from an injury to one of their leaders -- although Marc Cheverie will miss only a few weeks. That is important however. Last weekend against Minnesota State, Adam Murray was a clear downgrade from Cheverie in terms of play. That wasn't necessarily the case entering the season, at least in the minds of the coaching staff. DU coach George Gwozdecky entertained the idea of splitting the playing time between Murray and Cheverie. Now he has no choice. Murray was awful in his only road start of the season at Ohio State. Denver has the ability to score a lot of goals and they might need it this weekend. UAA has better top end scorers than Minnesota State does, although they aren't nearly as deep. If DU can neutralize Tommy Grant and Josh Lunden, they shouldn't have any problems.
PREDICTION: Denver sweep

Minnesota State and St. Cloud State are off this weekend. The Mavericks will host Colorado College next weekend while the Huskies will travel to Grand Forks to take on North Dakota.

Minnesota's Barriball to miss rest of season

Minnesota senior forward Jay Barriball will miss the rest of the season following knee surgery, according to the University of Minnesota. The surgery will take place Friday.

Barriball, who scored his 100th career point in Friday's Gopher win over Alaska-Anchorage, has 39 goals and 63 assists in 124 career games. His 102 points is 43 more points than any other current player on the roster.

"There's no question it's a blow," Minnesota head coach Don Lucia said. "When you look at what you project as being one of your top offensive players, it's a big blow."

Barriball is one of the Gophers offensive leaders both 5-on-5 and on the power play. In five games this season, the Prior Lake, Minn. native has two goals and two assists.

"It's a big loss for our team," said linemate Jordan Schroeder. "He's a leader. He puts points on the board. But it happens, that's hockey."

Because the injury occurred so early in the season, Barriball will be eligible for a medical redshirt, meaning he will likely play again next season.

Minnesota takes the ice this weekend against Wisconsin at the Kohl Center.

Injuries will keep Cheverie, Leddy out for at least a month

Friday night was a rough one for both Denver goaltender Marc Cheverie and Minnesota defenseman Nick Leddy. Both sustained injuries which will keep them out at least a month, likely more.

Cheverie's injury -- a large cut to his left leg -- occurred at the start of the third period against Minnesota State. MSU sophomore forward Justin Jokinen was hauled down by a DU defenseman and Jokinen slid into Cheverie skates first. Cheverie grimaced in pain then fell to the ice and lay on his stomach next to the right post. Blood was visible on the ice. The cut required 35 stitches to close but did not hit an artery. According to numerous sources, the injury could have been much worse for both Denver and for Cheverie.

Check out Mike Chambers' blog for more reaction on the injury from DU players.

The loss of Leddy is a big one for the Gophers, who lose a bit of their depth along the blue line. The freshman first round pick of the Minnesota Wild, broke his jaw on a big hit by Alaska-Anchorage's Jade Portwood in the first period (see photo below).

Leddy, a freshman from Eden Prairie, Minn., was Minnesota's Mr. Hockey Award winner earlier this season after leading the Eagles to the Class AA state championship. The Wild selected him 16th overall in June's NHL Entry Draft. He's played in all five games so far this season for Minnesota but had yet to score a point.

Saturday's Games

Wisconsin successfully gains its revenge against New Hampshire:

Wisconsin 6, New Hampshire 1
The Badgers gained a sweep over the Wildcats with a win over UNH at the Kohl Center. UW was led by Jordy Murray's two goals and Brendan Smith's three assists. After a scoreless first period, Wisconsin scored three goals in the second and three more in the third to gain the victory. Scott Gudmandson made 21 saves for the Badgers.

St. Cloud State 3, Michigan Tech 1
SCSU got goals from Tony Mosey and Nick Oslund in the first period in a win over Michigan Tech at MacInnes Student Ice Arena -- salvaging a split on the weekend. Malcolm Gwilliam made it a one goal game in the second period but Brian Volpei reestablished the two goal St. Cloud lead early in the third. Dan Dunn stopped 17 shots in the win.

Minnesota Duluth 4, Clarkson 2
Rob Bordson had a goal and two assists as the Bulldogs finished a sweep of the Golden Knights at the DECC. Brandon DeFazio gave Clarkson its first lead of the weekend just 20 seconds into the game, but the Knights couldn't hang on. Bordson tied the game midway through the first and the 'Dogs added goals by Brady Lamb and Mike Connolly in the second. Lamb also had an assist. Brady Hjelle made 20 saves for UMD.

Denver 4, Minnesota State 4 (OT)
Tyler Pitlick had two goals and Ben Youds for had three assists for MSU as the Mavericks battled the Pioneers to a tie at Magness Arena. Drew Shore, Tyler Ruegsegger and Anthony Maiani scored three straight goals for DU to give it a 3-2 lead midway through the second period before Pitlick scored his second of the night to tie it at three late in the frame. Kael Mouillierat gave the Mavericks a lead again midway through the third but Kyle Ostrow tied it with his fourth goal of the season almost five minutes later. Kevin Murdock made 40 saves for MSU and Adam Murray, filling in for Marc Cheverie, stopped 30 shots.

Friday's Games

Photo courtesy of Star Tribune

Minnesota finally cranks up its offensive attack:

Minnesota 5, Alaska-Anchorage 1
The Gophers fell behind early but rallied with five unanswered goals, including a pair of short-handed tallies by Tony Lucia in a win over the Seawolves at Mariucci Arena. Zach Budish also scored his first collegiate goal and defensemen Aaron Ness and Kevin Wehrs added tallied for the Gophers. Nick Haddad had a power play goal for UAA. Alex Kangas made 22 saves to earn his first victory of the season. Minnesota went 0-for-5 on the power play, dropping to 0-for-25 on the season. The Gophers have scored three short-handed goals however.

Michigan Tech 3, St. Cloud State 1
Brett Olson's short-handed goal 5:48 into the third period was the game winner for Tech in a victory over St. Cloud State at MacInnes Student Ice Arena. Tied 1-1 after two on second period goals by John Kivisto and Garrett Roe, Olson's fourth of the season was assisted by Ricky Doriott. Alex MacLeod added an empty netter with seven seconds remaining to make it 3-1. Kevin Genoe stopped 26 shots to improve to 1-1 this season.

Denver 4, Minnesota State 3
The Pioneers rallied from a pair of second period deficits and overcame the loss of goalie Marc Cheverie, injured early in the third period in a win over the Mavericks at Magness Arena. The two teams traded goals early in the second period, scoring four goals in less than five minutes to open the second. Rylan Galiardi's goal 32 seconds into the second ended Cheverie's shutout streak at 223:51, breaking Denver's school record previously held by Peter Mannino. Tied 2-2 early in the third however, Cheverie took a skate to the leg and was wheeled off the ice on a stretcher. DU responded shortly after, scoring a pair of goals 2:30 apart, including the game winner by Matt Glasser at 7:20. Eriah Hayes made it 4-3 with 8:01 to play, but MSU could get no closer. Jesse Martin scored two goals for DU and Adam Murray made seven saves in the third to earn his first career win.

Wisconsin 4, New Hampshire 1
The Badgers scored two goals in each the second and third periods to beat the Wildcats at the Kohl Center. John Ramage and John Mitchell gave UW a 2-0 lead midway through the second before UNH pulled back within one on a short-handed goal by Peter LeBlanc. Third period goals by Jake Gardiner and Derek Stepan closed scoring. Ten different Badgers scored points and Brett Bennett saw only 13 UNH shots -- stopping 12 -- in his second win this season.

Minnesota Duluth 4, Clarkson 1
Jack Connolly had two goals and Justin Fontaine had two assists as the Bulldogs rolled to a win over the Golden Knights at the DECC. Mike Connolly opened scoring 5:53 into the second before Jack Connolly made it 2-0 42 seconds later. Jack added his second of the night later in the period. Drew Akins added an empty netter late in the contest to cap scoring. Kenny Reiter made 16 saves in his first win of the season.

This weekend...

A quick look at this weekend's contests and some predictions:

LAST WEEKEND: 7-2-1
THIS SEASON: 22-11-4

Plenty of intriguing story lines already this season and it's still October.

St. Cloud State at Michigan Tech
Can Michigan Tech continue scoring goals? It scored five times on Saturday night, which should be more than enough most nights. Will Ryan Lasch finally get on track? The senior has just three points in six games, putting him on pace for about 20 this season.
PREDICTION: St. Cloud State sweep

Alaska-Anchorage at Minnesota
Can the Seawolves gain at least a point at Mariucci Arena for the fourth straight year? Once a Gopher doormat, UAA tied once in Minneapolis last season and gained a win in each of the two previous years. How many goals will Minnesota score this weekend? They've been shutout in three of four games so far this season and have yet to score on the power play (see post below).
PREDICTION: Split

Minnesota State at Denver
How long will Marc Cheverie's shutout streak last? His opponents' current drought stands at 183:19 -- over three games. Can the Mavericks find some consistency in net? Against UMD, it was freshman Kevin Murdock who played better. Last weekend it was sophomore Austin Lee. Both are on the trip this weekend.
PREDICTION: Denver sweep

New Hampshire at Wisconsin
Can the Badgers avenge last season's loss to UNH? At the beginning of the 2008-09 season, the Wildcats destroyed Wisconsin 5-1. Will Blake Kessel get the same reaction from Badger faithful that his brother Phil did? Blake's certainly producing like his older brother, leading Hockey East with 10 points so far this season.
PREDICTION: Split

Clarkson at Minnesota Duluth
Can the Justin Fontaine and Mike Connolly keep their scoring magic alive? The duo is 1-2 in the league in scoring so far. Can the Golden Knights get a win on the road? Clarkson is 0-2 in away games and is 3-0 in home games this season.
PREDICTION: Minnesota Duluth sweep

Gophers Lack 'Power' on the Power Play

The Gophers have not gotten off to the start they should have.

Yeah, they've played two of the nation's top teams in North Dakota and Denver. But one must remember: Minnesota should be one of the country's best too. They started the season ranked in the top 10 in both major polls and return an experienced team with plenty of upperclassmen.

One reason for the abysmal start has been Minnesota's power play -- or lack thereof.

It seems good teams are always finding ways to draw penalties. It's a sign that a team is controlling the puck, creating offensive chances and usually dominating the pace of the game -- more easily put, the team drawing penalties is the one that's controlling the momentum.

It's the great teams that draw those penalties, and then take advantage of them.

Minnesota isn't doing either.

In four games this season, the Gophers have been on 20 man-power advantages. That's the fewest number of power plays for any team in the league this season, six fewer than Michigan Tech.

Of those 20 power plays, Minnesota has yet to score a power play goal. Every other team in the league has scored at least four, and Colorado College, which leads the league in power play percentage, has scored 11.

The Gophers do have one thing going for them -- they have played disciplined this season, also allowing the fewest power plays against at 21. Unfortunately, Minnesota is killing at only at 71.4 percent clip -- ninth best in the league.

With Alaska-Anchorage in Minneapolis this weekend, the Gophers have a prime opportunity to get back on track, but it will need to start on the power play.

Saturday's Games

And Minnesota's home season is off to a rousing start...

Denver 3, Minnesota 0

Kyle Ostrow scored two goals for the Pioneers as Denver shutout Minnesota for the second consecutive night at Mariucci Arena. The back-to-back shutouts marked the first time since January of 1930 Minnesota has been blanked in back-to-back contests. Rhett Rakhshani also scored for Denver, his third goal of the weekend. Marc Cheverie made 30 saves for his second shutout win on the weekend and third straight overall, extending his scoreless streak to 183:19. Drew Shore added two assists. Kent Patterson made 23 saves for Minnesota, which has now been shutout in three of its first four games this season and has gone winless over its first four for the first time since 1999-2000.

Minnesota State 3, Wisconsin 2

Zach Harrison (above) scored the game winning goal and had two assists as the Mavericks defeated Wisconsin at the Verizon Wireless Center to salvage a series split. Blake Geoffrion opened scoring with the game's only first period goal at 13:02. MSU responded with two goals in the second by Adam Mueller and Eriah Hayes. Brendan Smith tied it for the Badgers at 5:28 of the third before UW lost Craig Smith and Ryan McDonagh to checking from behind penalties, putting the Mavericks on the power play for almost 10 minutes. Harrison's game winner came less than a minute into McDonagh's penalty. Austin Lee stopped 31 shots for MSU in the win.

St. Cloud State 4, Minnesota Duluth 2

The Huskies pulled away with three goals in the second period as St. Cloud State beat Minnesota Duluth at the National Hockey Center, taking three points in the weekend series. Ryan Lasch gave SCSU an early first period lead before Rob Bordson tied the game at one before the first intermission. St. Cloud scored the only goals in the second, as Drew LeBlanc scored his first of the season and Jared Festler and Tony Mosey tallied their second goals of the season. Drew Akins scored a goal early in the third for UMD, but the Bulldogs could pull no closer. Dan Dunn made 31 saves in the win for SCSU.

Colorado College 8, Michigan Tech 5

The Tigers rallied from two goal deficits twice in a shootout win over the Huskies at the World Arena. Tyler Johnson was the only CC player to score more than two goals, posting both tallies in the second period. Addison DeBoer scored the game's only first period goal to give CC a 1-0 lead after one. Tech then scored three goals in 2:14, as Malcolm Gwilliam goals sandwiched one by Anthony Schooley to give MTU a 3-1 lead at 8:36 of the second. Johnson pulled CC within one at 9:51 before Alex MacLeod gave Tech a 4-2 lead at 11:30. Johnson made it a one goal game after two and the Tigers outscored the Huskies 5-1 over the final 20 minutes to pull away. Gabe Guentzel had a goal and three assists and Bill Sweatt added three assists. Joe Howe allowed all five goals but was credited with the win after stopping 32 shots.

Alaska-Anchorage 2, North Dakota 1
Two second period goals broke a 0-0 tie as the Seawolves hung on for a victory over the Fighting Sioux, salvaging a split at Sullivan Arena. Kevin Clark and Kane Lafranchise scored goals six minutes apart in the second to give UAA a 2-0 lead after two. Bryce Christianson stopped 22 shots and appeared headed for a shutout until Darcy Zajac scored UND's lone goal of the night with 1:26 remaining in the game. Brad Eidsness stopped six shots in each period and 18 for the night.

Friday's Games

Some success for the road teams:

Minnesota Duluth 3, St. Cloud State 3 (OT)
Brady Lamb's goal with under five minutes to play in the second gave the Bulldogs a 3-2 lead but UMD couldn't hang on as Jared Festler tied the game 2:01 later and the teams skated to a tie at the National Hockey Center. Justin Fontaine scored a power play goal at 4:42 of the first to open scoring. Ben Hanowski scored his first of two goals on the night at 13:01 before Kyle Schmidt gave UMD a lead late in the first period. Hanowski tied the game 9:19 into the second before Lamb and Festler's tallies. Brady Hjelle made 41 saves for the Bulldogs. Mike Lee stopped 30 shots for SCSU.

Denver 3, Minnesota 0
Rhett Rakhshani scored two goals and Tyler Ruegsegger scored a goal and had an assist as the Pioneers dealt the Gophers their second consecutive Friday night shutout with a win at Mariucci Arena. Ruegsegger opened scoring early in the second and Rakhshani buried a one-timer eight minutes later to make it 2-0 after two. Rakhshani scored his second goal with an empty Minnesota net with under two seconds remaining. Matt Donovan had two assists and Marc Cheverie made 30 saves. Cheverie has now recorded two straight shutouts, as his scoreless streak stands at 123:19.

Wisconsin 6, Minnesota State 0
Continuing where they left off during last year's playoffs, the Badgers crushed the Mavericks at the Verizon Wireless Center. Wisconsin outshot MSU 40-19, scoring three goals in each the first and second periods to build a commanding lead after two. Six different players scored goals for UW, including Derek Stepan, Brendan Smith and Blake Geoffrion in the first, and Cody Goloubef, Podge Turnbull and Jordy Murray in the second. Ryan McDonagh, Craig Smith and Michael Davies each had two assists and Brett Bennett stopped 19 shots to earn his first shutout as a Badger in just his second start.

This weekend...

Sorry for the lateness of this post... It's still high school football season here in the Twin Cities, and I, as a coach, am preparing for the Section 4AAAA playoffs on Tuesday. I'm also a full-time student again, so until football season is over, posts may not be plentiful.

I did want to get on and post some thoughts on this weekend. There are some quality match-ups and a full slate of conference play, a rarity it seems now-a-days.

So, without further delay, here are some thoughts and predictions on this weekend's games:

LAST WEEKEND: 5-4-3
THIS SEASON: 15-9-3

Denver at Minnesota
The Pioneers opened the season as the WCHA -- and the nation's -- No. 1 team. Now, the only '1' associated with DU is in H1N1. Yeah, the swine flu is everywhere it seems, and it has hit the Pioneers here early in the season. But Denver has also been hit with a rash of injuries, losing forwards Dustin Jackson and Joe Colborne. Colborne, out with a broken finger will return eventually, but Jackson is out for the year. And the H1N1? It's hit about 40 percent of the Pioneers roster. Perhaps its the reason for the Pioneers tepid start, splitting with a solid Vermont team and splitting with a not-so-solid Ohio State team. DU travels to Minnesota this weekend as the Gophers open their home schedule after taking a beating last weekend in Grand Forks. Yeah, the Gophers came away with one point. But that was not indicative of how well the Fighting Sioux played. A superman-like effort by Alex Kangas Friday night prevented that game from being 8-0. His reward? Sitting on the bench in favor of Kent Patterson Saturday. While I think Kangas will benefit in the long run if Minnesota head coach Don Lucia can find more opportunities to play Patterson, Kangas gives the Gophers a better chance to win on a nightly basis -- especially against the WCHA's big boys. It will be interesting to see if Lucia splits his goalies again this weekend.
PREDICTION: Split

Minnesota Duluth at St. Cloud State
Here's a bold prediction, especially early in the year: The Bulldogs will have the best power play in the nation this year. Yeah, it's early in the year. But with Justin Fontaine along with Mike and Jack Connolly and Dylan Olsen all on the ice at the same time, that will be too much firepower for most teams to handle. The trio of Fontaine, Connolly and Connolly is really all the Bulldogs have, and when UMD is forced to play long stretches of 5-on-5, they may be in some trouble. The 'Dogs are deadly on the power play. SCSU followed a sweep at Miami with a rather uninspiring 3-point weekend at home against Union last weekend. Through four games, Ryan Lasch's stat line matches that of defenseman Oliver Lauridsen's. That better change soon.
PREDICTION: Split

Wisconsin at Minnesota State
The Mavericks got whooped special teams wise last weekend at Duluth, and its the reason they came away with zero points. MSU jumped out to a 2-0 lead on Saturday night and blew it because they were undisciplined. On the bright side, freshman goaltender Kevin Murdock played about as well as he could have Saturday night, giving the Mavericks a chance to win in his first WCHA start. He'll get a chance to prove he belongs tonight against the Badgers. Goaltending last weekend was not a problem for the Badgers. Junior transfer Brett Bennett lost a 3-2 duel with Joe Howe Friday night and Scott Gudmandson allowed just one goal in a 1-1 tie Saturday. Wisconsin's gotta hope their lack of offense on the weekend isn't a sign of things to come. CC was expected to be offensively challenged -- the Badgers have some weapons who need to score.
PREDICTION: Split

Michigan Tech at Colorado College
Don't adjust your computer screens... that is Michigan Tech's Brett Olson among the league leaders in scoring after a couple weeks. What makes it more impressive is the fact the Huskies already had a bye week mixed in. Unfortunately, neither of the Tech goaltenders had a particularly impressive weekend two weeks ago in the Superior Classic. They better figure it out soon, because it's unlikely Olson will score 100 points this season. They may catch a break this weekend with the Tigers. They aren't as offensively gifted as they've been in years past. That doesn't mean they won't be competitive though, as it appears Joe Howe has nailed down the goaltending job early on. He spearheaded a three point weekend in Madison last weekend, gaining the Tigers a crucial three points on the road. If Howe can slow Olson this weekend, he could be on pace to get his first career shutout.
PREDICTION: Colorado College sweep

North Dakota at Alaska-Anchorage
Chay Genoway had as many goals last weekend as he did all of last season... and he's about as good as it gets on the blueline in the country. He was also, according to UND head coach Dave Hakstol, under the weather. Goaltender Brad Eidsness was also outstanding, shutting out the Gophers in game one while holding off the Gophers in game two to gain a tie. Alaska-Anchorage should have won twice last weekend, and got off to a good start against Rensselaer. But losing at home against Robert Morris is not a good sign, especially with the Sioux coming to town this weekend. Despite opening with three or four winnable home games (Michigan was the best team UAA has faced), UAA finds itself 2-2. Getting swept this weekend will do nothing to help with its confidence.
PREDICTION: North Dakota sweep

Check back this weekend for round-ups and thoughts on this weekends action.