There are different ways to measure a “slump” in sports. Gopher hockey coach Bob Motzko and his players spent part of their weekly press conference saying most of their recent play has been strong, but a few mistakes and bounces-of-pucks mean they only have two regulation wins in their last seven games.

Click the video box on this page to watch Gopher men’s hockey players Mike Koster and Rhett Pitlick, along with head coach Bob Motzko, discuss their upcoming weekend series at Ohio State

But, on the other hand, they’ve also only had two outright losses in their last ten games (4 wins, 1 OT win, 1 OT loss, 2 shootout losses, 2 losses).

Meanwhile this weekend’s opponent, Ohio State, has yet to earn a regulation win in any of their eight Big Ten conference games (0 wins, 7 losses, 1 shootout win).

Motzko and company know expecting an easy weekend from any Big Ten opponent – even one mired deeply in last place like the Buckeyes – is a dangerous approach.

The Gophers head to Columbus for the Friday / Saturday series with junior Rhett Pitlick riding a six-game goal-scoring streak (7 goals in 6 games), the longest same-season streak by a Gopher in recent memory.