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Welcome to
Minnesota Men's Club Hockey! Minnesota ends their season with a successful record of 16-7-3 on the season and finished 11th in the rankings for the ACHA Central Region. Minnesota wishes good luck to the University of St. Thomas on their road toward regional-bound success. *Information on the 2008-2009 season will be posted in late spring/early summer. please email Chris with questions: chap0258@umn.edu |
2008 WCCHA Conference Champions |
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Season Recap This past week, Minnesota officially ended their season at 16-7-3. However, the very successful record puts a bad taste in the mouth of each Minnesota player. With only the top ten in each region making the trip to the regional tournament in Chicago, Minnesota's hopes of going were shattered this past week after the final rankings posted "11th", only one spot shy of their season goal. A lot of speculation has been made on how the rankings are ultimately executed. All year Minnesota was ranked in the top ten, with the exception of the last ranking period where they were placed 13th. The reason behind the harsh drop was simple: their only games were a series loss to conference rival Mankato State. With that said, Minnesota battled back the following weekend in their conference tournament, going 3-0 and beating both St. Thomas and crushing Mankato State in the championship game. Not only was Minnesota crowned conference champs, but they went 3-1 on the season against regional-bound St. Thomas. In the end, Minnesota went 4-1 in the last ranking period, losing a Friday night game in Champaign, IL against University of IL, a game preceded by an 8.5 hour road trip. Minnesota out shot Illinois 70-30 on the weekend and properly annihilated them 5-1 on Saturday evening. In the end, St. Thomas' powerful squad deserves a shot at the regional tournament; however, Minnesota deserving less of a chance than St. Thomas might be grounds for argument, especially considering the 1-3 record St. Thomas relinquished to Minnesota. Other arguments could be made about Minnesota not making the regional tournament. One might consider the fact that Minnesota is the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities, rather than the University of Minnesota-Michigan, that is, in less cynical terms, any team from Michigan. Five teams from Michigan were placed in the top-ten for the final rankings. Disregarding the fact the the ACHA is based out of Michigan, one could properly analyze or form an argument against Central Michigan making the 8-spot in the top-ten. Ignoring the strength of their schedule, ignoring comparative scoring, ignoring their history, and even ignoring the origin of state, the preposterousness of any team with a 12-17 record (not to mention 2-14 in their last 16 games) making the top-ten is mind boggling. The ranking criterion must drastically change. All in all, one must not overlook the success that Minnesota had this season. The season started out with an unheard of 8-0 record, a DI upset, seven combined shut-outs, and a chemistry that will most certainly carry into the 2008-2009 season. Most importantly, the winning record is accompanied by the individual pride that makes up the front of the jersey: Minnesota. Minnesota is the "state of hockey", and this club will get another chance to shine. Minnesota is proud to have the University of St. Thomas represent the WCCHA and wishes them luck in defeating Michigan State. WCCHA Conference Tournament
Game Recaps This past weekend proved very successful for Minnesota as they were crowned WCCHA Conference Champions on Sunday morning. Coming back from an unfortunate sweep to Mankato, Minnesota knew the importance of the conference title for the next and last ranking period. Minnesota dropped to 4th seed in the conference with the losses to Mankato last weekend. No longer in control of a buy, Minnesota needed to play in the first round against 5th seed Michigan Tech on Friday evening in St. Cloud. A loss would knock Minnesota out of the conference tournament and any chance for the regional tournament in Chicago at the end of February. This must win game, for both teams, proved advantageous to the 3-0 Minnesota victor, giving them the opportunity to avenge St. Thomas on Saturday night and to send Michigan Tech back to Houghton. On Saturday night Minnesota played St. Thomas in the semi-final matchup in St. Cloud. The energy between the two teams was apparent even before the drop of the puck, but what ensued after the first drop was a fast-paced game on an olympic sheet of ice. Minnesota, however, prevailed in the end with the success of a rare early lead in the game. While St. Thomas is currently ranked 10th in the ACHA Central Region, Minnesota can keep there head above water going into the championship game on Sunday morning, against what better opponent than Mankato State. Minnesota beats St. Thomas 4-0 and goes 3-1 against them on the season. Coffee beans and jumping jacks got Minnesota ready to go for an early championship puck-drop. Three wins and a conference title would help Minnesota's chances for a regional-bound month of February. The theme of the weekend, unlike their history, proved to be early leads and Minnesota did just that Sunday morning against a high powered Mankato offense. With some very nice goals coming from all three lines and the d-core, Minnesota pulled away from Mankato with a 6-3 victory, giving them the title of WCCHA Conference Champions. A regional-bound February is no longer out of reach for Minnesota as they travel to Champaign, IL this weekend and attempt a 5-0 record for the last ranking period. Mankato State Game Recaps With the spring semester underway and the first spring semester tryout concluded, Minnesota felt a lot of confidence with the four new additions to their roster. Craig Mielke, Chris Anderson, Eric Ledin, and Pete Hansen were all added to Minnesota's roster, greatly improving their depth on paper. However, sometimes an improved squad can be discredited by the improved of another. Friday night was a hard fought battle between Mankato and Minnesota, but only to end in a 5-4 victory for the Mavericks. Mankato also appeared to have acquired some new talent as their overall performance on the weekend shined. Minnesota's coach Craig Chapman admitted saying that, "They have the best first line we have faced all year... and that is what killed us." Saturday night proved to be a less offensive performance on both ends, as both goalies, especially Minnesota's Jacob Shully, stood ground throughout the game. A very defensive game and a lack luster Minnesota offense results in a 3-0 Mankato win Saturday night. With only one series on this next ranking period, Minnesota hopes to remain in contention for the regional tournament. St. Cloud Game Recaps Minnesota struggled to pull off a sweep this past weekend as they faced their solid rival from St. Cloud. With a several bounces going their way, St. Cloud defeated Minnesota 6-2 on Friday night. Minnesota struggled to come back from their late deficit, giving up four goals in the final minutes of the game. Minnesota again had an answer for its opponent on the second night of the series, as they had yet to be swept this year. Ahead for the majority of the game, Minnesota missed a wide open night wrap-around and gave up a buzzer-beater in the third period to go into overtime. Minnesota chose not to fold, however, as the better cards were in their hands for most of the game. Minnesota faced their sixth overtime period but added another tally to the win column. They win 3-2 and go 3-0-3 on the season for overtime periods. St. Louis Game Recaps Minnesota traveled to Wenztville, MO on Friday to end the month of November against the #3 ranked DI powerhouse, Lindenwood University. This weekend would be the only two games Minnesota faces DI opponents all season. Minnesota arrived in Lindenwood's rink as the obvious underdog, hoping to come away with a strong battle. Goalie Brandon Isakson saw the net Friday night and faced many shots, and in the process exhibited another stellar performance. The final shot total read 35-25 in favor of the home team, Lindenwood. With their best first period performance all year and despite four favorable penalty calls for Lindenwood (and four power play goals), and despite Lindenwood's website reading a 4-0 lead after the first period accompanied by an overall domination of the game, Minnesota went into the first intermission with a respectable 4-1 deficit. Throughout the remainder of the game, Minnesota proved that they could skate with their highly ranked opponent, giving up one breakaway opportunity and several odd-man-rush chances that could have made the game quite interesting. With that said, Minnesota only let in three more goals including a last minute game ending goal, but also added two to its total resulting in a 7-3 loss. Unfortunately, Minnesota let in five power play goals that made a large difference in the ending result. Minnesota was satisfied with their performance and hoped to gather that momentum into their other DI opponent on Saturday. The puck dropped at 4:30 pm in St. Louis on Saturday evening as Minnesota battled against its next DI opponent, the University of St. Louis. For the entire game, both teams displayed an evenly matched performance. With a short bench and missing four of their top players, Minnesota persevered and displayed a tough grind throughout the weekend and well into the later half of this game. Down 3-2 late in the third period, sophomore Matthew Hochbrunn buried a game tying slap shot from the slot giving Minnesota the opportunity to win the game in the 4-on-4 overtime. Minnesota was confident going into the third period as their speed, olympic-size home rink and many 4-on-4 scrimmages would result an advantageous game-winner one minute into overtime. After a 45-second swarm in St. Louis' zone, defenseman Jordan Gador sniped a far-side wrist shot over St. Louis' goaltender giving Minnesota a victory and a series split against two solid DI teams. Final score reads 4-3 and Minnesota has reason to celebrate. University of Kansas Series
Recap This past weekend Minnesota hosted the competitive University of Kansas Jayhawks hockey club at Mariucci Arena in Minneapolis. This weekend ultimately proved dire to both clubs, as the next ACHA rankings post are to follow. Kansas would be coming off a strong 6-0-1 record in addition to their series upset against DI Central Oklahoma. Neither Friday or Saturday proved disappointing or successful to either clubs as both games ended in a dead heat. Penalties plagued Minnesota Friday night in addition to the missed power play opportunities Saturday night as the final result ended in two ties on the weekend. Minnesota cannot be entirely upset toward the results, but a definite change needs to be made for their DI opponents ahead. Once again, goalies played phenomenal. Minnesota notches a 2-1-3 record following the first ranking period. Michigan Tech Series Recap This past Friday morning, Minnesota departed for the upper peninsula to battle against Michigan Tech for a conference series in Houghton, MI. Any road trip plays to the travelers disadvantage, but Minnesota underestimated their forthcoming matchup this weekend. The small, "The Dee" arena in Houghton, played to Tech's game as the advantageous small size of the rink accompanied the bigger Tech team. For the first time, Minnesota faces an entirely physical minded team. Once again, goalie Brandon Isakson plays exceptional in a gritty Friday night performance by both squads. Tech scored the go-ahead goal three times as Minnesota answers three times and never maintains a lead. Minnesota shows signs of being the better team on numerous scoring chances, but no player succeeds in a game winner. Neither team prevails in OT as the final score reads 3-3. Although hockey is determined by the final score at the end of a three-period game, Minnesota needs to re-examine the overall benefits of winning each period, specifically the first, and not always the last. Once again, the first period and (in this case) the second period were controlled by the hands of the opponent. There were moments at the end of the second period in Saturday night's game that proved Minnesota to be the better team, but it was not until the last period that Minnesota shined. Losing 2-0 in the third period, Minnesota tightened their skates a little more, knowing that a weekend in Michigan resulting in one tie and one loss was unacceptable. Scoring four goals in the third period proved enough to be victorious against the physical Michigan Tech. With four minutes on the board, freshman Jeewoo Park from Korea scored the game winning goal with an end-to-end beautified finish. Goalie Jacob Shully stood on his head during the final minutes of the game to hold the lead and to give Minnesota another win on the season. Minnesota avoids a loss this weekend and goes 4-1-1 in the conference and 10-2-1 overall. Not even halfway through the season and Minnesota ties their overall win record from last year. University of St. Thomas
Series Recap Game one of the series was Thursday night at the Minnesota Wild's practice rink, Parade Arena. Minnesota's last meeting with St. Thomas resulted in a dramatic overtime win in the St. Cloud Showcase tournament. Both teams battled hard throughout as the game proved to have the same dramatic tone as the last. With a stellar performance from goaltender Brandon Isakson, Minnesota stayed one step ahead of St. Thomas going into the third period. That extra step proved victorious at the end with 16 seconds on the clock, as St. Thomas' nemesis Chris Chapman bats a floating puck out of mid-air, and bangs away another astonishing thriller against St. Thomas. Minnesota wins 3-2 and goes 3-0 in the conference. With amazing victories and season highs come inevitable downfalls, and unfortunately Minnesota's downfall painted a grim picture Friday night. The recurring theme for Minnesota has been a sleepy first period and a better second half of the game. With that said, after the sluggish first period there were hopes for a counter attack; however, Minnesota was just no match for St. Thomas' driving force Friday night. St. Thomas scored goal number one on their first shift, which was a perfect reflection for the ensuing minutes of the game. After the second period, Minnesota got caught in St. Thomas' snowball of goals and tread up hill for the rest of the game. Minnesota was no match for St. Thomas' goal scoring clinic Friday night as they lose an uncharacteristic score of 7-0. The positive result is a 3-1 conference record and a 2-1 record against the solid University of St. Thomas. University of Iowa Series
Recap Minnesota traveled to Iowa City, IA this past weekend to face the University of Iowa Hawkeyes in a two-game series at Iowa's rink in the mall. The referees were not in Minnesota's favor this past weekend, as penalties became a common theme on the weekend. Once again Minnesota is lead by quality play from goaltender Jacob Shully and a dominating second half of the game. They win 5-2 Friday night. Saturday night was a reality check for Minnesota. Going into the game 8-0 and just one weekend before the ACHA's ensuing rankings, Minnesota could have used a win with the Halloween weekend off. However, lackluster play in the first period and spending the majority of the game in the penalty box kept Minnesota from winning this game. Although they dominated in the second half of the game, Minnesota needs to find a way to look better in the opening minutes. Minnesota goes 8-1 on the season. Northern Michigan Series Recap With two weekends left in the unveiling of the ACHA rankings, Minnesota knows how important a goose egg looks on the right side of their record. With that, Minnesota went into this past weekend 5-0, facing their opponent Northern Michigan at Mariucci Arena in Minneapolis. Although dominating throughout the game, Minnesota kept the scoreboard close well into the third period, leading 3-1. With solid goaltending by Northern Michigan and a forceful forecheck by Minnesota's offense, a shooting gallery appeared in the third period, as Minnesota knotted three goals and a 6-1 victory. Saturday night proved to be a bit more sluggish for Minnesota. With an array of multiple chances to score throughout the game, Minnesota could not seem to pull away from their opponent. Northern Michigan kept buzzing well into the third period as Minnesota soon realized the importance of a victory. Ahead 4-1 into the third, NM came back with two unanswered goals and some impressive counter attacks. Minnesota looked tired, but came away with a victory in the final seconds of the game. Minnesota wins 4-3 and goes 7-0 on the season. Minnesota travels south this weekend to Iowa as they face University of Iowa in an important determinate for the ACHA DII central rankings. St. Olaf Series Recap This past weekend Minnesota rallied
against St. Olaf outscoring their St. Cloud State Showcase
Recap Friday night MMCH kicked off their season with game one of this year’s St. Cloud Showcase Tournament in St. Cloud, MN. Minnesota matched up for the first time against the University of Nebraska. After a hard-fought 1-1 tie ending the first period, Minnesota regained its composure in the locker room. The snowball started rolling at the 19:00th minute of the second period, when Minnesota scored seven straight goals throughout the last two periods of play. Chris Chapman decided to pull a hat trick out of his breezers as he racked a 5-point game in addition to his line totaling six of the nine goals; two coming from veteran Joe Moll. Although he did not see many shots, rookie goalie Jacob Shully played solid. Minnesota wins its season opener 9-3. Saturday seemed to foreshadow this season’s toughest conference match-up as Minnesota faced University of St. Thomas. Minnesota rookie goalie Brandon Isakson played outstanding as he saw many shots throughout the game. Into the third period, Minnesota held a two goal lead until St. Thomas scored two unanswered goals to retain a 4-3 lead into the pressing minutes of the game. Penalties hindered Minnesota’s chance to regain its lead throughout the third period. But with 1:30 left on the clock, veteran Chris Chapman steals a breakaway chance on a 5-on-3 short handed opportunity and finds mesh. The following 5-on-3 kill would keep the entire arena on the edge of their seat as Isakson armored his net with force. OT ensues and Minnesota wastes no time for a GW as sophomore forward Matthew Hochbrunn, or “Mouse”, buries a chance in the first minute of OT. Minnesota wins in style, 5-4. Championship Sunday hinged on one ideal: defense. The match-up was between Minnesota and St. Cloud, another tough competitor in Minnesota’s conference schedule. Both goaltenders played on top of their heads, but only one had the goalie God’s hovering over him throughout the entire game. Minnesota goalie Jacob Shully stopped everything in his path, and when he could not do that, the red metal frame behind him did. With outstanding teamwork on both sides, Minnesota prevails in the end. Again, waiting until the last minute of play, Minnesota buries its second stylistic GW, this time by veteran Charlie Butterworth and company. Minnesota wins the championship 1-0 and starts the year with a 3-0 record. Tryouts, Roster Posted Thank you to all those who tried out for the team this year. Rosters have been posted, and we are looking forward to a great year! 2007-2008 Senior
Spotlight: #6 Joe Cummings, Captain
Senior captain Joe Cummings brings a lot of excitement and energy to the D-core for the University of Minnesota's upcoming 07'-08' season. Not only does Joe bring excitement and energy to those who pair up with him on the blue line, but the entire maroon and gold bench benefits from his roaming electricity. This fearless and sound defenseman knows how to play physical and to lay everything out on the ice... literally, as he has consecutively owned the stamp for more blocked shots than any other player in the history of the team. Coming off a few minor injuries during the 06'-07' season, Joe C says he excited about a winning season as he finishes his last eligible year as a club hockey member for the University of Minnesota: "This feels like our year. We have come a long way and sense some talented newcomers this season. Our talent level has increased ten-fold since my first year." With a new look and the hopes for some fan-based hype, the University of Minnesota looks forward to be lead by Joe Cummings for the 07'-08' season. The team has used some new advertising methods to attract its target market, hoping that the largely populated school of Minnesotan bread hockey players will finally fall into their favor. Cummings and the club will play their first games in a showcase tournament in St. Cloud at the end of September. Good luck to the 2007-2008' University of Minnesota Men's Club Hockey team!
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