The Gophers scored 13 goals in one weekend......really!? It's been so long since Gopher fans have seen an offensive explosion that one might tend to get a little too giddy about this weekends result. Yes, Minnesota played much better as a team throughout the weekend, but I think The Poodle (Scott Owens) would agree Colorado College was terrible.
Coming into the series CC was holding opponents to 2 goals a game. Tiger goalie Joe Howe had given up 9 goals in 5 games. He allowed 10 goals on 41 shots in a little over 4 periods. Ouch!! The Wayzata native had problems with rebounds on Friday and after Zach Budish's goal 53 seconds in on Saturday, he looked frustrated with himself and the guys in front of him. Sadly for him it was only the beginning.
I'm sure the Gopher goalies can relate. If Kent Patterson doesn't stand on his head Friday night, we might be talking about a split. Minnesota again found themselves out of position, turned too many pucks over in the neutral zone and gave up far to many odd man rushes in the first 2 periods Friday. The Tigers just lacked the finishers.
A couple things became abundantly clear in this series. Minnesota's best d-pairing is Aaron Ness and Mark Alt and Taylor Matson is playing the best hockey of his career.
Ness came in with unreal expectations he could never live up to. Nothing in his skill set is elite, add the lack of size to the mix and you begin to wonder if he is a D-1 player. However, his confidence with the puck has grown immensely the past 5 games. He's skating the puck out of the zone, joining the rush, and creating opportunities for the forwards. Ness was +5 on the weekend with 3 assists. His stick work in his own zone was excellent.
Alt seems to be getting better every game. Unlike Ness, Alt possess skills that could become elite. He is starting to figure out how to use his size. Alt's skating stride is somewhat awkward, but he moves well for a kid who goes 6'3 and 195 lbs. What's most impressive is his poise. Rarely do you see #20 running around in his own zone and he's one of the few Gopher defensemen that can make the tape to tape first pass on the breakout. I doubt he will ever become the "superstar" Kevin Gorg thinks he will be, but we are beginning to see why he was pick 53rd overall by Carolina. Don't get used to him Gopher fans, got a feeling Mark won't be around past his sophomore season.
Lucia has to love that Taylor Matson is finally healthy. He has 4 goals and an assist in his last 4 games. Matson is a 2-way forward that gives an honest effort every shift. #9 posses the speed to be an offensive threat and back checks better than anyone on the team. Friday night the puck kept following him the whole game. Because it was a turnover fest Matson excelled. He owned the neutral zone and was one of the main reasons CC didn't score on 6 power play chances. Taylor didn't have his best game on Saturday, he scored a nice backhand goal, but struggled against CC's top line.
Matson's biggest contribution might be waking up Jake Hansen. Hansen along with Jared Larson were Matson's wingers both nights and were one of the Gopher's best lines. They forechecked hard and consistently created chances . It's great to see Jake play hard because it's obvious he belongs, but effort every night has never been his strong suit.
Overall, a real good weekend for Don Lucia and the Gophers. They scored first which they hadn't done since the UMass series. Lucia's line combinations seemed to be working well. The team seemed well prepared both nights. However, CC was soft and committed a lot of turnovers. Their top line of the Schwartz brothers and Tyler Johnson was tough on Saturday night, but they had little help. The Tiger defense was as bad as I've seen this year (remember I watch the Gophers every weekend) and Joe Howe just didn't have it this weekend. If I'm Lucia I take the four points and run. I have to figure out how to get my defensman to play smarter hockey, especially the upperclassman (Wehrs and Fairchild). The penalty kill showed some holes on Saturday after being very good on Friday, that will need to be cleaned up before a good Wisconsin team comes to Mariucci this weekend.
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