Gophers looking for first period jump with Michigan coming to visit

One interesting fact about the generations-old on-ice rivalry between Minnesota and Michigan can be seen on the current, and historical, rosters of the Gophers and Wolverines, who meet this weekend for a pair at 3M Arena at Mariucci.

The current Michigan roster includes a half-dozen players from Minnesota, including standouts like Garrett Schifsky (Andover), William Whitelaw (Rosemount), Jackson Hallum (Eagan) and Josh Eernisse (Apple Valley). By contrast, there are no Michiganders on the current Minnesota roster, and in the century-plus history of Gophers hockey, only three Michigan natives, ever, have worn the maroon and gold. Still, the sight of those blue and gold sweaters gives many Gophers a little extra jump.

“It’s always a series we think about and prepare heavily for,” said Gophers junior forward Brody Lamb, who leads the team with 10 goals. “They’re a fast, skilled team. They love offense…So, we’ve got to focus on defense.”

While a full building and a raucous student section is common in Minneapolis for a key Big Ten series like this one, Michigan has shown over the past three years that it won’t be awed by the surroundings, especially in March. The Gophers’ final home games in the 2022, 2023 and 2024 seasons have been home playoff losses to the Wolverines, who have made three consecutive trips to the NCAA Frozen Four despite being the only Big Ten team that has never won a conference regular season title.

The Gophers (13-2-1) dropped one spot in the national rankings last week, from third to fourth, following a home tie and win versus Alaska. Michigan (10-3-1) held steady at No. 6 after a split with NCHC-leading Western Michigan.

For Minnesota, which is dealing with some health issues as the Gophers head into their final four games prior to the holiday break, there has been an odd propensity to have to play from behind this season. They have just one regulation loss after two months, but have surrendered the first goal in nine of their 16 games.

“Let’s stop getting down early,” Gophers coach Bob Motzko joked this week. “We kind of need to get kicked. We’ve been consistent all the way through what we have been doing. Different guys kind of pick up the rope and start pulling at times. That’s what’s fun about this group. When we find ourselves down, someone finds a way to get us through, and it seems like it’s someone different each time.”

With freshman forward Erik Pahlsson still out, and the Gophers expected to be missing veteran forward Mason Nevers this weekend as well, they will likely need different guys to pick up that imaginary rope and start pulling.

Friday’s game is a 7 p.m. CDT start with the Saturday rematch facing off at 5. The Friday game will be televised nationally by FS1, with Fox9+ and B1G+ showing Saturday’s contest.