Mike Guentzel nearing two decades of forging NHL defensemen

Northern Minnesota’s Mesabi Range was not on anyone’s radar during negotiations determining the demarcation between the United States and Canada. The land could just have easily ended up as part of Ontario instead of Minnesota, but the arrowhead was allocated to the USA and ended up producing over 3 billion tons of iron ore. That stroke of fortune sparked a mining boom and families took root as Minnesotans in Duluth, Grand Rapids, Hibbing, Two Harbors, Eveleth, Virginia, Colerain, and Marble.

Many of these Minnesotans endured their Iron Range winters by playing hockey, and for one hockey player from Marble, it sparked the opportunity to wear the ‘M’ playing college hockey at the University of Minnesota.

“I’m a Northern Minnesota kid who graduated in 1981 from high school and there were two Division I programs in Minnesota,” said Mike Guentzel. “I’d never seen a Gopher game, but I wanted to play for the Gophers.”

Fellow Iron Ranger Alex Goligoski of the Dallas Stars benefited from Guentzel’s training from 2004-2007. (MHM Photo / Jonny Watkins)

Guentzel was a three-sport athlete who made his mark at Greenway-Coleraine High School playing quarterback for the football team, as a first-team all-state defenseman for the hockey team, and on three baseball teams that finished third in the state tournament. The Iron Range’s second-leading scorer in 1981 was selected in the seventh round by the New York Rangers in the NHL Draft and then headed to Minneapolis to play for Brad Buetow that fall.

The adjustment to college hockey wasn’t an easy one for Guentzel, who scored 43 high-school goals, as he didn’t see the ice for the first 20 games of his freshman season.

“It was everybody from my high school coach, to my parents, to the coaching staff, to whoever else. It was their fault I wasn’t playing,” Guentzel said. “And realistically after a while, I realized it was my fault. I’m not prepared for this. I’m not ready for this. I have to make adjustments in my game.”

The freshman learned that season the benefit of finding a ‘B’ game and attached himself to roles less glamorous than quarterbacking the power play. Focusing on defending, penalty killing, shot blocking, and complementing his defensive partner’s game became his emphasis and allowed him to develop from there.

Guentzel persevered through the crucible of his first season, eventually captained the Gophers in 1984-85, and graduated with his degree in business and human relations. He had brief professional stints in the IHL with the Salt Lake City Golden Eagles and in the AHL with the New Haven Night Hawks, but knew he wanted to coach more than play professional hockey.

Guentzel spent six seasons coaching in the USHL and landed back at Minnesota as an assistant with head coach Doug Woog and coaching Mike Crowley in 1994. Starting the next season the Gophers went on a run of 12 consecutive NCAA appearances, and each team featured puck moving defensemen who could skate, flash stick skill, and get involved in the rush.

Minnesota Land of 50,000 Hockey Players

Last winter, Minnesota USA Hockey Registrations hit 55,450 with over 7,000 bantams actively playing association hockey. Recruiting season starts earlier every year as college coaches work to identify the 100 Minnesota players from each age group that will eventually earn spots on a Division I hockey roster.

Guentzel certainly has a good idea about what it takes, his three sons all earned opportunities to play Division I hockey. Ryan Guentzel was a forward for Notre Dame, Gabe Guentzel a defensemen at Colorado College and Jake Guentzel played forward for Nebraska-Omaha. He also knows what it takes because the University of Minnesota has had nine players represent them in the NHL this season. The nine Gopher defensemen (Paul Martin SJS, Nate Schmidt WSH, Alex Goligoski DAL, Seth Helgeson NJD, Erik Johnson COL, Nick Leddy NYI, Aaron Ness WSH, Mike Reilly MIN, and Brady Skjei NYR) is the most among all NCAA hockey programs this season.

“Our youth coaches put kids who have good ability on the back end,” Guentzel said. “Historically I think we’ve done a better job in our state of developing elite skating, puck-moving defensmen, than we have goal scoring true bona fide forwards. We’ve always embraced a style of puck movers, mobile defense, active defense on the rush. It kind of goes hand in hand with the way we want to play.”

While Paul Martin didn’t start getting recruiting letters until his sophomore year of high school, most elite talents these days are getting recruited and committing as bantam hockey players. Guentzel likes to get as many looks at these young players in competitive situations as he can, whether it’s USA Hockey Festivals or State Bantam Championships to see how players defend, and take pressure against a forecheck. Gopher assistant coach Grant Potulny is also on the road a lot ‘fox scoping’ players for the staff, looking for agility in their foot speed, how they turn, and stick skill.

Washington Capitals D Nate Schmidt blossomed under Guentzel between 2010 and 2013. (Minnesota Wild / Bruce Kluckhohn)

“For whatever reason Minnesota develops a lot of defensemen, so you have a big pool,” Potulny said. “Now you get a chance to work some of the guys at the top of that pool and Mike does a really good job with them.”

Guentzel had his eye on Nate Schmidt during his sophomore season at St. Cloud Cathedral, and Guentzel was the main recruiter for Schmidt.

“I wasn’t the biggest U of M fan growing up, I can say that now, my family had season tickets to Husky games…” Schmidt said. “But one of the coolest things he did was he slid a piece of paper across from me after we got done talking about what his plan was for me. The piece of paper had all the guys names on that he had ever coached, whether they were playing or not, wherever they were. Here are all the guys that have made it, here are the guys that are playing pro at some level, and here’s the guys that didn’t make it, but are out doing other things.”

That moment was huge for Nate deciding his future, but like most recruits, he had no idea exactly what he was in for.

Steel Sharpens Steel

While iron ore is the raw resource extracted from Iron Range, it is brittle until forged into steel. And it isn’t steel until after it’s mixed with cooked coal, limestone and blasted with temperatures up to 1600 degrees. Defensemen don’t get blasted with quite the same temperatures at the University of Minnesota, but the pressure of playing the blue line at Mariucci Arena is still intense.

“We allow our defensemen to be very active from an offensive standpoint, that’s the expectation,” Gophers head coach Don Lucia said. “And Coach Guentzel, I don’t think there’s a better coach as far as developing the defensemen than what he does. He’s very demanding, he pushes the guys, whether it’s video or practice–he’s very honest and blunt with them. I think they respect that. He pushes them to be the best they can be.”

Guentzel knows that every time players jump a level it’s a step, and no one can tell how many games it will take for players to adjust to the speed, quickness, and strength. He just knows it will take time–especially in the modern game putting more emphasis into structure, defense and goaltending than ever before.

Current Gopher Jake Bischoff says his position coach is huge on the details that might go unnoticed, but making sure to shoulder check on retrievals to find your wingers, and taking quick strides after getting the puck to see your options are big points of emphasis.

“Every little detail in practice he’s on you about it, and if you don’t do it, you’ll hear from him,” Bischoff said. “I think then when it comes to game time, it’s automatic, you do all that kind of stuff. It definitely makes it easier out there.”

And practice isn’t the only place Guentzel lets his players know how they’re doing.

“Video Sessions… I remember those quite well actually,” said Schmidt.

Guentzel tutored the Minnesota Wild’s Mike Reilly from 2013-2015. (MHM Photo / Jeff Wegge)

Mike Reilly said the defensemen gather for position video review weekly for about half-hour to 45-minutes, just after practice early on in the week. Reilly specifically remembers coming into the session after what he felt was a pretty good weekend and then popping up on the screen five or six plays, the most out of any other d-man for miscues.

“He came in, just wanted more of me, and demanded more, Reilly said. That’s how he is and how he goes about his business. He’s really good communication-wise, he’ll let you know if you’re playing well or not. He’s not going to go around the corner to try to BS something about you, why you wouldn’t be playing. He’s going to tell you straight up.”

Research and Facilities

After World War II, the high grade ore in Minnesota was nearly gone and it looked like lean times ahead for the Iron Range. However, University of Minnesota professor Edward Davis had been researching a way to make taconite pellets out of waste rock. His research rejuvenated mining in Minnesota and gave the economy another boost through the 50s, 60s, and 70s.

The Minnesota hockey program has relied on boosts for their program as well. The move across the street from old Mariucci Arena to new Mariucci Arena in 1993 expanded the seating capacity from 7,000 to 10,000. The move also put the Pride on Ice on a 200’ x 100’ Olympic Ice sheet. The ‘big ice’ has drawn the ire of more than one NHL scout because its extra size compared to the 85’ wide NHL rink changes the evaluation process.

“In my opinion you have the puck more on your stick, you can make more decisions, you have a better chance to skate, you have a better chance to be more involved in the offense, and you have to learn to take away time and space on a [bigger] rink,” Guentzel said.

Even with the extra time and space, it takes some players a while to realize the difference and when they finally do it’s a game changer for them.

“I never really realized how much time I had until I was almost gone,” Schmidt said. Until about my junior year of Christmas I finally realized if you beat the first forechecker and get the net, the rink is so big it’s hard for the next layer to get to you. Now, if you do that on the smaller rinks, it actually draws the second guy away from his check. And if you can draw another guy away and make a play, that just opens up a lot more space for somebody else.”

The next boost for Gopher Hockey will be a renovation to their locker room, team areas, and training facilities at Mariucci Arena. The process starts April 11, nearly $5 million of donated funds will be invested into the effort, and the team’s strength and conditioning coach Cal Dietz is excited about all the new toys coming.

“We’ll have equipment coming from all over the world, scientific equipment, to make this the best facility that I’ve ever known,” Dietz said. “There won’t be another facility like it, and it will be 10 years ahead of anybody else who builds anything.”

Dietz is well respected by the coaching staff as a major factor in developing athletes and he utilizes data from blood tests, gyroscopes, accelerometers, magnetometer, and brain waves to help maximize performance. The data he gathers helps him develop the measurable athletic ability of the players and provides feedback to the coaching staff on the proper training load. Schmidt said that Dietz is so well respected in NHL circles that when the Washington Capitals training staff learned he was going to be working out with Dietz over the summer, they said it’d be okay if he didn’t use the program they gave him.

“College hockey is a man’s game, everyone out here is big and strong, and so working with Cal is really nice,” Michael Brodzinski said. “We get two or three times a week in the weight room with him during the season, and I think it’s really paid off getting us faster and stronger.”

Mr. Gopher

Paul Martin honed his skills under Guentzel and won two national titles while a Gopher from 2000 to 2003. (Mandatory Credit: Sergei Belski-USA TODAY Sports)

While Guentzel takes a lot of pride in the program, he did step away for a three-year period from 2008 to 2011 spending a year as an assistant at Colorado College, a year as a head coach in the USHL for Des Moines, and then a year as an assistant at Nebraska-Omaha. At the time he told the Minneapolis Star Tribune, ”it was a time and place where maybe he should step away.“

Then in 2011, the two Iron Rangers came to an understanding.

“We’ve worked together a long time,” Lucia said. He’s kind of Mr. Gopher around here, and nobody has more passion and bleeds it more than he does. That was one of the things when I came, I wanted him to stay and with him coming back, just the confidence in him, and his ability and what he means to the program.

“Since Mike has been around with program, before me and with me, there’s been a whole lot of winning going on.”

The players are also grateful to have worked with a coach that just finished his 19th season at the University.

“He wants the program to do well as well as the players they bring in,” Martin said. “He teaches you the right way to carry yourself and how to play hard. He’ll yell at you, but at the same time then he’ll tell you what you need to work on and work with your game, he’ll stay after. He has high expectations, which he should when you come into that program it has a lot of history and tradition that you need to uphold.“

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Nate Schmidt’s play and enthusiasm are making him a favorite in Washington

What does a visiting NHL player do when he has a free night in St. Paul? He goes to Lake Calhoun, of course.

That’s what Washington Capitals defenseman Nate Schmidt did anyway the night before the Wild hosted the Caps at Xcel Energy Center on Thursday night.

The St. Cloud native, and Cathedral grad, who registered 72 points (12g, 62a) in 96 games with University of Minnesota from 2010-13, took advantage of the opportunity to head to a cousin’s home for a rare in-season gathering with his parents, brother and extended family members.

“Ordered some sushi and it was really fun,” Schmidt said. “It’s good to see some of them again.”

But on Thursday night Schmidt was back at work for his Capital City employer.

The homecoming was a successful one for Schmidt and fellow Minnesota-tied Caps players Matt Niskanen, T.J. Oshie and Taylor Chorney as the league’s best team edged the Wild 4-3 behind Alex Ovechkin’s 14th career hat trick.

Although he didn’t register a point in the game, Schmidt came out of the gate with a little extra jump in his step and for good reason.

“You get back to playing in front of friends and family, people that supported you throughout your career so far, I think is great,” Schmidt said as defensive partner John Carlson lobbed tape balls at him over the media surrounding him. “I was just feeling it, I guess.”

Minnesota dropped its seventh in a row and has now lost 12 of its last 13. Schmidt, who is no stranger to many in the Wild dressing room, including former teammates Erik Haula and Mike Reilly, said the home team’s effort was certainly there on Thursday.

“There’s a lot of things going on with them, and it’s tough given their stretch here, but they were flying,” Schmidt said. “I just think that we were pretty relentless in the offensive zone and that’s tough when our guys get going.”

With the win, the Capitals become the first team in the NHL to reach the 40-win plateau and currently have an eight-point lead over Chicago in the chase for the President’s Trophy.

“We have a lot of good character guys off the ice, that really helps us on the ice,” Schmidt said. “We have a team with a lot of skill and when we play fast, play our game, we can play a lot of different styles and it’s kind of helping us move forward and be one of the teams in the league to beat right now.”

Schmidt, in his first full season in Washington after two years bouncing between the AHL’s Hershey Bears and the big club, is both benefiting from and contributing to the Capitals’ rise. Ovechkin, for one, was adamant about one notable quality Schmidt brings to the Caps.

“His energy level is unbelievable,” Ovechkin said. “We just think he’s energy and he gives us energy.”

In 68 NHL games over the past two seasons, Schmidt tallied 10 points on three goals and seven assists and was a plus-2 plus/minus rating. In 48 games this season, Schmidt has already eclipsed that, racking up two goals and 10 assists from the Washington blue line and is a plus-13.

“I think it just comes down to great teammates, great guys in the locker room which really help me out,” Schmidt said. “And then playing with (defensive partner) John Carlson really helps. He’s been kind of the rock back there for a long time on our D and I think that he’s really helped me along.”

Schmidt also pointed to Washington coach Barry Trotz’s role in his development.

“He really highlighted what he wanted from me at the beginning of the year and to be able to follow that path through the first couple weeks of the season, which was a little difficult,” Schmidt said. “But we really kind of got down to it.”

Trotz said Schmidt has taken full advantage of the opportunity presented to him, particularly in his tenure behind the Caps’ bench.

“He’s done a really good job of transforming himself into a National Hockey League player and it started, I think, with the conditioning,” Trotz said. “I think that was a little bit of an issue from what I heard before I got here. He picked that up and it’s not a problem now at all and he’s a dynamic skater.”

Schmidt underwent a similar transformation in college after appearing in just 13 games for Minnesota as a freshman. He patiently bided his time and committed himself in the offseason before a breakout sophomore season. He scored three goals but his 38 assists were good for third overall in the nation as he anchored the blueline for a Gopher team that made it to the Frozen Four in 2012.

He signed with Washington as a free-agent in the spring of 2013 after after a junior season at Minnesota in which he registered 32 points (nine goals, 23 assists) and was named to the All-WCHA First Team and AHCA West Second-Team All-American.  Schmidt helped lead the Gophers to their second consecutive MacNaughton Cup as Western Collegiate Hockey Association (WCHA) regular-season champions, topping all WCHA defensemen in scoring along the way.

Schmidt said he signed with the Capitals because of the familiarity he developed with the team and and the good relationships he had with a couple of its scouts after participating in Washington’s summer developmental camp.

“They said, ’Hey, if you continue to progress, and there’s nothing guaranteed in this game, this is where we project you to be in a couple years,’” Schmidt said. “Lo and behold, they were right.”

The beneficiary of that accurate forecast is Trotz, who notes Schmidt is a favorite among his teammates.

“He brings an enormous amount of energy which I think is contagious,” Trotz said. “He always has a smile on his face. He can talk a million miles an hour but he enjoys what he does and I think that’s contagious.”

With the Capitals seemingly running away from the field, Schmidt was asked if the team’s motivation might slip at some point as the regular season drags on. But Schmidt said the team’s competitive nature won’t allow it.

“You want to see how high you can get,” Schmidt said. I think that’s what it really comes down to. What heights can you reach as a team? And just try and get there and try and surpass it. There really isn’t an end goal, I guess, in the regular season, there’s only one at the end of the year.”

Editor’s note: A previous version of this story listed Lake Elmo as the site of the Schmidt family gathering rather than Lake Calhoun.

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10) The Jason Pominville Trade – While there was a period of time where we all wondered if this was the best idea for the Wild, it has definitely worked out in the long run. Matt Hackett and Johan Larsson have barely made it out of the AHL this year for Buffalo – which is saying something because the Sabres have brought ‘bad’ to a new meaning– and Jason Pominville has been on fire. He’s got 14 goals and 3 assists this season. His play has been so good, he’s not only gotten himself back into the conversation for selection to the USA Olympic Team, he’s nearly become a lock to be selected in January – after not even big named to the preliminary roster.

9) Don Lucia- While I will be the first to admit Don is a tough nut to crack, I’m a converted man. Every year with a new group of talented young hockey players he turns his team into a contender. There is a lot of turnover in college hockey and Don has been outspoken about the NHL’s lack of rules when it comes to a player leaving early (and I agree with him). But mainly the reason I have become such a Lucia-natic is because of his commitment to Defending the Blue Line—a charity that raises money for children of deployed military members so that they can afford the high price of hockey. This year he not only signed up to run the Twin Cities marathon for DBTL, he went on a media tour and gladly lent his celebrity status to try and get the word out. For a guy who is as intensely private as Don; a guy who never seeks the spotlight I’m fairly certain that was a challenge. However, he did it with grace and I know that it helped quite a bit.

8) 2013 Hermantown Hawks state tourney run – Yeah, they lost to St. Thomas in the state finals but they gave them a run for their money losing 5-4 in a very controversial game. They played that game less than 24 hours after a double-overtime win over Breck. Hermantown played their tails off in their 4^th consecutive trip to the Class A State finals, and 3^rd consecutive year against St. Thomas Academy. It also happened to be their 3^rd consecutive year losing to St. Thomas Academy. We learned that sometimes it’s fun to root for the underdog and that not every story has a happy ending. But that is what makes the State Hockey Tournament so great.

7) Good bye Devin Setoguchi- Sorry Seto, you just never quite earned your way here in Minnesota. You were a distraction in a locker room that was otherwise filled with stand up guys. The trade gave the Wild some much needed cap space and a 2^nd round pick in 2014. You never quite lived up to the 2008-2009 form that you exhibited in San Jose, although you were close to that place last year. However, you did give us this great gem: [youtube id=”FhGtKzUa60o” width=”620″ height=”360″] vs. Montreal in 2012. Now you’ve got 5 goals in 25 games for Winnipeg.

6) Former Gopher Nate Schmidt – Best. Interview. Ever! It was never a canned cliché, Nate Schmidt only spoke from the heart. He almost always made you crack up and you never knew what was coming next. This was pretty much the same way he was on the ice. As an undrafted defenseman the 6-footer from St. Cloud is gutsy, unpredictable and has a rocket shot for a guy his size. He was integral to the Gophers successful seasons over the last two years and he spent just one game this year (so far) in the AHL before being called to the big show…Did I mention he was undrafted?

5) Olympic Hockey – I’m headed to Sochi in February for KARE-11 and I don’t think I’ve ever been more excited about an assignment than covering Olympic Hockey. While I do wish they still used college kids, because there is just something cool about a group unknown kids becoming cult heroes (see ex. 1980) I am still pretty excited to watch the NHLers. The guys that I have talked to are definitely pretty excited. I always find it neat to see how much the players get into it. There is no extra money on the line, only pride for your country and the fact that it means that much to them, makes it that much better.

4) Ryan Suter’s ice time – Does this guy EVER get tired? He routinely skates 30 or more minutes per game. In one recent stretch he skated over 91 minutes in three games. He averages 29:33 per game, which is astounding nearly 3 minute more than anyone else in the NHL. But he’s not a that guy in your pick up league that refuses to leave the ice even though he’s sucking wind for the last 5 minutes, he is on the ice because it gives the Wild the best chance to win as 11 of his 15 assists this season come in wins. Simply put, Suter is an anomaly and one that is helping the Wild win.

3) St. Cloud State’s 2013 run – No one gave them a chance. They weren’t the Gophers and they weren’t the Bulldogs of Duluth, they were in the middle. But that was totally cool with them. They won the MacNaughton Cup as WCHA regular season champion on the last weekend of the season and most of the year were ranked in the top ten. For them, none of that mattered because THEY were the last Minnesota team standing and that swagger carried them and captivated the rest of us. The Huskies made it to the Frozen Four behind stand outs that chose SCSU rather than the bigger schools. Drew LeBlanc – a guy who was coming off a terrible injury – made the best comeback of all winning the Hobey Baker award. Yes, the Huskies lost to eventual runner up Quinnipiac but they captured Minnesota’s hearts for the whole run and surely gained a few life-long fans in the process.

2) The Wild being a playoff contending team – While I don’t want to jinx it, the fact that we have an NHL team that seems to be a legit playoff contender is incredibly exciting. The Wild have depth and scoring potential at nearly every position (goaltending being the one in my mind depth could be an issue). Led by an outstanding group of veterans in guys like Zach Parise, Ryan Suter, Mikko Koivu and Jason Pominville, to mention a few. They are also getting great play from the lower lines. Nino Niederreiter seems to have found a good fit in Minnesota, Charlie Coyle has continued the great play that he exhibited in last year’s first round playoff series and Justin Fontaine, a guy who barely made the roster coming out of preseason camp, has appeared in 25 games and scored 6 goals. Chuck Fletcher has finally found the right mix of depth and talent and Mike Yeo is making it work. Because the western conference is so tough, I’m not sure if they are championship caliber yet but for the first time in a while this franchise is heading in the right direction.

1) The Gopher Women’s hockey winning streak – I’ve written about it before, but now sadly it’s in the past tense. The Gopher women’s hockey 62-game win streak was in essence one of the most captivating hockey events of the past two seasons. To be better than everyone else for 62 nights in a row, including TWO national championship games, is incredible. They were front page/top story news every night they played. Unfortunately they did lose (even more unfortunately they did so to the very last team that beat them in North Dakota) but I have no doubt that their eyes are on a bigger prize, a third consecutive national title. In a way maybe it’s a good thing that it’s over so that the media won’t be continually reminding them of it. But you’ll have to excuse that media for being a little bummed that I don’t get to cover that history anymore.

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Zach Budish’s goal on Friday, the first of the season for the Minnesota captain, turned out to be the difference in a win over Minnesota State (Photo: University of Minnesota Athletics)

A Zach Budish power-play goal at 5:40 of the third period–Minnesota’s third of the night with the man advantage–lifted the University of Minnesota men to a 3-2 win over a plucky Minnesota State team in the first game of a home-and-home series between the in-state rivals at Mariucci Arena on Friday night.

“It was a good hockey game, we’ve just got to find a way to kill a penalty,” said Minnesota State coach Mike Hastings. “It’s something that we’ve talked about and we’ve got to get better at but I thought the compete was better tonight.”

Minnesota State sophomore defenseman Zach Palmquist got the Mavericks on the board first against Minnesota on Friday. (Photo: Minnesota State University Athletics)

The teams traded goals in the first two periods with sophomore defenseman Zach Palmquist and freshman forward Teddy Blueger giving the Mavericks one-goal leads in each period. Palmquist’s first-period goal, off of a pretty back-door feed from Jean-Paul Lafontaine, was, itself, a power-play goal for MSU (2-3-2, 0-3-0 WCHA) which was 1-3 with five shots in such situations.

“I thought Teddy [Blueger] was good tonight, not only offensively, but defensively and I think I’ve got to find a way to get him more ice,” Hastings said of the rookie. “I thought he was a good hockey player tonight and he’ll get more ice tomorrow.”

But Travis Boyd and Nate Schmidt answered for the Gophers (5-1-0, 2-1-0 WCHA) with Schmidt’s blast from the high slot at 15:07 of the second tying the game 2-2 heading into the second intermission. After the Mavericks failed to clear their zone, Schmidt stepped around a would-be shot blocker and fired a rocket over Mavericks goaltender Phil Cook’s left shoulder.

Minnesota finished 3-6 with the man advantage firing nine shots on Cook who turned away 29 Minnesota shots in taking the loss, but played well and perhaps deserved a better fate.

“One thing about [Minnesota’s] power play is if you don’t get clears when you have an opportunity to clear, as you saw with Schmidt’s [goal], he can shoot the puck,” said Hastings. “If you give them another opportunity they have a tendency to, once you’re down, to be able to find late guys and he just shot it through them.”

The Mavericks were giving the Gophers all they could handle through 40 minutes but what Hastings referred to as his team’s “Achilles heel” cost them once again. Minnesota State’s Brett Knowles went off for interference 4:49 into the final period and Budish poked in a loose puck through a scrum just 51 seconds later giving Minnesota its one and only lead.

The Mavericks pressed hard late but were unable to bury the equalizer behind Minnesota goaltender Adam Wilcox who finished with 23 saves.

“Tonight was a step from the compete end but, at the end of the day, it’s about wins and losses and we’ve got to find a way to get that first win in the WCHA,” Hastings said.

The Mavericks get that chance tomorrow night in Mankato when they host the Gophers in the series finale.

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