Gopher men’s hockey opens eight-game homestand with 1-1 draw vs. Alaska

MINNEAPOLIS – The No. 3/4 Minnesota men’s hockey team erased an early deficit and skated to a 1-1 tie with Alaska at 3M Arena at Mariucci Friday night.

The Golden Gophers (12-2-1 overall, 6-0-0 B1G) got a goal from Beckett Hendrickson late in the second period to pull even with the Nanooks (4-6-3 overall) during a 65-minute battle. Neither team could break the deadlock in regulation or overtime, and it was the visitors that scored once in a shootout.

The home side got off to a fast start creating offensive chances in front of the Alaska net where the visiting netminder delivered a flurry of saves. The stops at one end helped the Nanooks strike first as their centering feed deflected off a Minnesota stick and into the net at the 7:52 mark for a 1-0 lead. A power play late in the frame for the Maroon and Gold went by without testing the target and the Gophers headed back to the locker room trailing by a goal, despite a 12-4 edge in shots on goal.

Thanks to a 100-foot breakout pass from Ryan Chesley, Minnesota nearly pulled even but a rebound attempt from Aaron Huglen was kicked aside less than two minutes into the second stanza. It was the home goaltender, Nathan Airey, that had to stay sharp on the next shift, making two pad saves to maintain the one-goal deficit. A rush up the ice in the middle of the frame from Brodie Ziemer led to a chance that rang off the post as the freshman cut to the top of the circle before releasing his shot.

The Gophers finally broke through with 5:15 remaining in the period as Huglen pushed the pace in the neutral zone and flipped the puck ahead to Brody Lamb along the right wing. The junior used his speed to skate around an Alaska defender and fired a pass across the goal crease to the waiting stick of Beckett Hendrickson, who buried the tying goal into an open net. The rest of the period was relentless pressure from the home side, leading to quality chances and a standing ovation from the crowd before skating to a 1-1 tie at intermission.

Momentum stayed with the Maroon and Gold beginning the final frame and generated its second chance at a 5-on-4. Jimmy Clark’s rebound bid was snagged out of the air by the Nanooks’ goalie and the power play was erased with 12 minutes to play in regulation. The Gophers spent close to three minutes pinning Alaska in its own zone in what felt like another man advantage, only to be stopped again as neither side was able to find the go-ahead tally before the clock hit zeroes.

For the third time in 2024-25, Minnesota headed into overtime and controlled the puck for close to the whole five minutes. Chesley hit the post twice during the extra session before the game officially ended in a 1-1 tie. The Nanooks scored once in three shootout attempts, while stopping all three Gophers’ shots to win the shootout.

Noteworthy
Held without a goal since opening night versus Air Force, Hendrickson snapped his streak and found the back of the net for the second time this season, recording his third point … Lamb returned from an injury and immediately made an impact with the primary assist on the lone Minnesota goal … It was his sixth helper and 15th point of the campaign … Huglen continues to score in the first game of a series as the senior has a point in six of seven Friday appearances this year, totaling eight points … Airey finished with 19 saves, including 10 in the third period, and ended a game with fewer than 20 saves for just the second time during the year, but stretched his unbeaten record for the season to 8-0-1 … The Gophers completed a game without a penalty for the first time since last season versus Boston University at the NCAA Sioux Falls Regional final on March 30 … Friday marked the fourth time this season the Maroon and Gold have been held to one goal and are 1-2-1 in those contests … The Gophers gave up the opening tally for the fourth time in their last five outings but are 3-1-1 record in those contests … Minnesota has dropped each of its past eight shootouts dating back to February of 2020.

Coach Motzko’s Comments
“There were a lot of good things, the only thing bad was we didn’t score another goal; that was it,” Minnesota head coach Bob Motzko said. “We’ve been in a handful of these games where we have to manufacture a goal. We missed the net a handful of times when our guys were paying the price to get there. You have to make the other goalie work sometimes and we let him off the hook a little bit.”

Next Up: Home vs. Alaska (Nov. 30)
The Gophers and Nanooks close the non-conference series at 5 p.m. Saturday evening

Courtesy: University of Minnesota Sports Information