After coming from behind to win in its first two rounds of tournament play, Minnesota’s role was reversed in the Big Ten Championship game against Wisconsin, where they fended off a comeback from the rival Badgers to win the title — for the first time since 2015.

Clawing its way back from trailing 4-1 at second intermission, Wisconsin scored two quick third-period goals, halving Minnesota’s lead to 5-3. But just as in their quarter and semifinal games, the Gophers kept their cool, even when Badger forward Cole Caufield scored one more to cut Minnesota’s lead to just one goal with two minutes left in play.

An empty-net goal by Blake McLaughlin sealed the deal for Minnesota to win it, with a final score of 6-4 over the Badgers.

Playing in his first postseason for Minnesota, defenseman Mike Koster kicked off their second-period scoring run just 1:47 into the middle frame. Unfazed by a goal from Caufield, Minnesota tallied three more goals from Brannon McManus, Scott Reedy and Jaxon Nelson.

In the opening period, Minnesota had a chance on the power play early after killing off a penalty called on Sampo Ranta. In the last seconds of that kill, Caufield was called for high-sticking, which sent Minnesota to its own power play after a brief 4-on-4.

Just after the power play expired, McLaughlin scored the first goal of the game with assists from Scott Reedy and Jackson LaCombe.

Gophers head coach Bob Motzko said postgame that he couldn’t be more proud of his team for their performance in the tournament.

“Couldn’t be more proud of our guys. I mean, I’m tellin’ ya, three games in three nights, you know, they don’t do that in the National Hockey League. … we couldn’t have played any better the entire weekend,” Motzko said. “We ran out of a little gas in the third, those were a couple mental mistakes but overall, I think we came in here and earned that championship.”

Gophers bounce back with shutout Friday

Rebounding from the ego hit of last weekend’s losses to Wisconsin, the Gophers men’s hockey team executed where it needed to and kept Notre Dame at bay for a 3-0 shutout victory.

Captain Sammy Walker showed up big on the scoresheet Friday night, netting the first goal of the night and passing off the puck to Blake McLaughlin to give him the empty net goal in the final seconds of the third period.

Walker said scoring that first goal after the offensive struggles the team had last week was nice, but was also an important leg up over Notre Dame.

“It always feels good to score a goal, but to get an early goal against this team, I think, is huge,” he said.

His first goal was scored on the powerplay, and goalie Jack LaFontaine picked up a secondary assist along with defenseman Jackson LaCombe.

A defensive breakdown from Notre Dame made the Gophers’ second goal of the night possible. Two Irish players collided at the faceoff dots in their own zone, freeing up Brannon McManus, whose shot from up high was tipped in by Sampo Ranta.

In the second period, Jaxon Nelson was called for his second major penalty and game misconduct in two games, this time for contact to the head on Notre Dame’s Solag Bakich after clipping him with his shoulder in open ice.

While he felt the penalty should not have been a major because Nelson connected to Bakich’s shoulder first, Gophers’ head coach Bob Motzko said Nelson needed to be more aware of his tall frame on the ice.

“Nelly’s just a big kid, I mean he’s 6’5”. They were hockey plays, he was never targeting any player in either hit. … He has to be aware of his size, especially in open ice like that,” Motzko said.

Overall, Motzko was pleased with how his team played, calling the win one of their most complete games of the season.

Gophers tally second shutout Saturday, win again 3-0

Saturday night’s 3-0 win over Notre Dame brought the Gophers their eighth sweep this season and was the first time since 2011 Minnesota left their opponent scoreless in back-to-back games.

The energy in the game was slow to start but reached a boiling point in the final minute with a scuffle breaking out between players after a hit by Notre Dame’s Ryder Rolston on Walker in front of the Minnesota bench.

Ranta scored his14th goal of the season in the third period with assists from Scott Reedy and McManus. The trio crisscrossed past Notre Dame’s defense to settle the final score at 3-0.

Minnesota jumped to a quick two-goal lead in the second after a quiet opening period. The team’s lead – along with McLaughlin’s streak of scoring in Notre Dame’s building – could have been extended by one more, but an offsides review called back the goal.

Two goals that counted were cashed in by McManus and Nathan Burke. Ranta assisted on McManus’ goal, passing between his legs while his back was turned to his linemate.

Can we talk about that Sampo Ranta pass though???? pic.twitter.com/EdacSShHw2

— Minnesota Men’s Hockey (@GopherHockey) February 13, 2021

Burke scored unassisted after a turnover by Notre Dame left him unguarded in front. The goal was the third Burke has scored this season.

In a post-game interview, Motzko said LaFontaine was at his best in net.

“We’ve seen Jack on top of his game for the better part of almost a year and a half now… He just looks so calm too… nothing was rattled,” Motzko said. “That’s when you know a goalie is dialed in – nothing looks hard, everything looked easy for him.”

Gophers fall Friday in 4-1 loss

Costly mistakes in the third period allowed Wisconsin to quickly gain a three-goal lead on Minnesota, putting the Gophers in a hole they couldn’t dig themselves out of. Wisconsin took game one of the home series 4-1.

The goals tallied up quickly for the Badgers after a series of unfortunate events unfolded for Minnesota in the third period. First, a defensive breakdown allowed Wisconsin’s Cole Caufield to sail into the Gophers’ zone and get one past Minnesota goalie Jack LaFontaine to score.

Less than a minute later, Dylan Holloway seized a breakaway opportunity to put the Gophers down by two goals.

LaFontaine played solid in net despite the mistakes that led to the later goals, making 29 saves on 33 shots on goal from the Badgers.

Sammy Walker scored his 10th goal of the season to get Minnesota on the board in the second period, but said the team’s offense lacked intensity.

“I think we need to pressure them more in their own end, and really hound their D,” he said. “We didn’t really have that intensity of getting on them and force them to turn over pucks.”

Gophers stunned 8-1 Saturday

After the loss on Friday, the Gophers thought they needed to be more disciplined in their next game. The start to Saturday’s game was anything but disciplined.

Shortly after Wisconsin’s first goal, Jaxon Nelson laid a heavy hit on Tarek Baker and was called for a major penalty and a game misconduct. A scuffle following the hit also landed Wisconsin’s Dominick Mersch in the penalty box for cross-checking. Holloway converted in the extra power play to extend Wisconsin’s lead.

Sophomore Ben Meyers scored the lone goal for Minnesota before Wisconsin responded with a third goal from Ty Emberson before first intermission.

They scored three more goals in the second, and LaFontaine was swapped out of Minnesota’s net for Jared Moe after Ty Pelton-Byce made it 4-1 in the opening minute. Moe played for the remainder of the second period, making seven saves and allowing two goals.

Justin Close took over the net for Minnesota in the final period, and being able to support him on the ice was one of few good things from the game, Meyers said in a post-game interview.

Wisconsin put two more goals past Close in his time in net to make the final score a lopsided 8-1, and Minnesota’s first seven-goal loss since 1994.

Gophers’ head coach Bob Motzko said that he would need to sleep on the loss before making adjustments to respond in practice this week.

“I want to take 24 hours, watch the film, digest it and then get back to work,” he said. “My first reaction is that we’ve got to keep the ship even-keeled right now.”

cIn its first road game of the season, Minnesota had a standout first period that gave the team the upper hand over Michigan State en route to a 3-1 win.

Gophers’ goaltendender Jack LaFontaine started again in his fifth-straight appearance. LaFontaine allowed just one goal, scored by junior defenseman Cole Krygier with three minutes remaining in regulation.

Minnesota had the upper hand for most of the night, outshooting the Spartans 34-25 and dominating on special teams. Minnesota drew seven penalties on Michigan State and scored two power play goals, one by senior forward Scott Reedy in the second period and the first goal of the game from Ben Meyers with assists from Ryan Johnson and Mike Koster .

Sampo Ranta also scored in the first period to build off the early 1-0 lead. Fighting traffic in front of the net, Ranta received an assist from Robbie Stucker and was able to shovel the puck in while facing backwards.

No one is more dangerous in front of the net than Sampo Ranta. In this essay we will… pic.twitter.com/oHu0DIo7RZ

— Minnesota Men’s Hockey (@GopherHockey) December 4, 2020

“I thought it was a very, very good first road game. … Special teams and goaltending dictated the score of the game tonight, but I really liked how we played from start to finish,” Gophers’ head coach Bob Motzko said postgame.

Minnesota will face the Spartans again tomorrow night at 7 p.m., with the game available to watch or stream through the Big Ten Network.

In poll results announced Monday morning, the Gophers sit atop the ranks of the Big Ten, voted by the league’s coaches as the preseason favorite to win the conference.

In order, Minnesota was ranked first, with Michigan in second place, Ohio State and Notre Dame tied for third, Wisconsin fifth, Michigan State sixth and Penn State pulling up the rear in seventh place.

Four Gophers players also made their way onto preseason honors lists with captain Sammy Walker being named to the All-Big Ten Hockey First Team, senior forward Brannon McManus and sophomore defenseman Jackson LaCombe both making the All-Big Ten Hockey Second Team, and sophomore forward Ben Meyers earning an honorable mention nod.

Nominated as a team captain for a second straight year, Walker led the team in points last season, putting up 30 points in 37 games. In his 74 games with Minnesota, he has put up 21 goals and 35 assists for a career total of 56 points.

Heading into his senior season, McManus is the team’s current active-leading scorer with 62 points in 109 games. A Newport Beach, Calif., native, McManus will serve as an alternate team captain this season.

LaCombe led all Big Ten defensemen his freshman year with 61 blocks and was ranked second among defensemen for scoring with 13 points. Originally from Eden Prairie, Minn., LaCombe is in the running to make the U.S. Junior National Team to play in the IIHF World Junior Championship this winter.

Meyers is returning to the Gophers as an alternate captain after a stellar first season, where he played in all 37 games and led all team freshmen with 26 points. The Delano, Minn. native was named Men’s Rookie of the Year for the whole University athletics department and was also a finalist for the Big Ten Freshman of The Year last season.

Minnesota will drop the puck on its 100th season on Nov. 19 against Penn State.

At long last, the schedules for Big Ten hockey have finally been released. Well, half of the season, anyway.

Who's ready for some Golden Gopher hockey?

: https://t.co/Mu5T06M4av pic.twitter.com/CKYjQCWCNd

— Minnesota Men’s Hockey (@GopherHockey) November 5, 2020

The Big Ten will announce plans for the second half of the season as well as dates for the Big Ten Tournament at a later date, likely to monitor the possible spread of COVID-19 and react accordingly to avoid any coronavirus-related disruptions like those impacting the Big Ten football schedule.

Minnesota will kick off its 100th season with a double header against Penn State on Nov. 19-20. The schedule does not yet include specific start times or information on where fans will be able to watch the games, but the announcement is still exciting for the players.

Other games announced include Ohio State, Michigan State and Michigan in the weeks following the season-opener against Penn State.

Forward Sammy Walker said that the anticipation for this season was unlike any other year.

“It’s great to finally have a date to circle on the calendar after waiting so long to hear about the season…I don’t think any of us have ever had so much anticipation going into a season as we have for this one. We’re ready to go,” Walker said in a press release.

In a note posted to Twitter Monday afternoon, Gophers wide receiver Demitrius Douglas announced that even with the Big Ten season being back on, he would not be returning to play for Minnesota.

Citing his upcoming graduation in December and the initial cancellation of the season, Douglas said he had reflected and prayed on what his right next step was.

don't know where i'm going, but i'm on my way! luv always pic.twitter.com/X68jZX8r64

— Demetrius Douglas (@demetriius_d) October 5, 2020

“And [I] decided that I would begin the transition to the next phase of my life’s journey. While the circumstances and plans for the Big Ten season have recently changed, my priorities and plan for the future have not,” he said on Twitter.

Douglas also thanked his family, friends and the coaching staff for their love and support in the announcement.

Wildfires are something that many Minnesotans have little experience with, but for two Gophers’ student-athletes, the fires ravaging Oregon this summer hit close to home.

Katie Duong, a native of Portland and a midfielder on the soccer team, said this summer was worse than any other fire season she’d experienced in the past. Most years, the smoke that fills Portland’s air is what moves north from fires in California. Oregon typically doesn’t have long wildfire seasons the way California does, but a combination of drought, lightning and unusually high winds fueled fires that burned over a million acres and entire towns.

Portland and most of the coast was spared from the worst of the flames, but the smoke and ash from those fires polluted the air, with words like “hazardous” used by the Environmental Protection Agency to describe the unhealthy air. While Duong herself wasn’t home when the impact fully hit Portland, she said worrying for her family on top of starting school and athletics was a lot to juggle, and she was thankful that the worst of the smoke was clearing.

Duong said she feels the worsening fires in recent years were a symptom of climate change. For her, the solution to climate change is more based in collective action on the issue, and politicizing the issue or making it a matter of opinion is frustrating.

“I think climate change, obviously on a bigger scale, is something that to fix it we would need laws or the entire country working towards fixing … Just the past couple of years, it’s been kind of sad to see all of the places right next to me in Oregon and around the country get destroyed by these wildfires,” she said.

Climate change is also something that Maya Kaperick, a pole vaulter with the women’s track and field team, feels strongly about. Her hometown of Eugene is surrounded by national forests and more centrally located in the state, about 120 miles down the coast from Portland.

Knowing her family was safe aside from the poor air quality made it less stressful for her personally, but the news of what was going on in her home state was still a concern on a larger “climate level.”

“Because it wasn’t directly in our area — I knew my family was safe and things were going to be okay — I think it was more impactful to hear stories about people who are an hour north or south of us and who have nothing now,” Kaperick said. “So, to me, I think it was that I wanted to help, and I couldn’t really do that.”

As fires continue to raze towns and threaten larger urban areas in the future, Kaperick is also worried about rebuilding in fire-prone areas, which would cause an “endless cycle” of burning and rebuilding similar to what currently exists in areas of California.

That cycle has caused further problems. The New York Times reported that California, and other states affected by wildfires, must raise the price of regulated insurance prices to maintain a market for insurance companies or end up with areas of land that are uninsurable because those companies refuse to insure entire areas of at-risk land.

“This isn’t just climate change; it’s kind of a systemic issue of both bureaucracy and kind of government influence, which doesn’t necessarily help the people trying to survive,” Kaperick said.

Kaperick also mentioned that there are many charities and fundraisers for people impacted by the fires, and a compiled list of GoFundMe fundraisers can be found here.