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Minnesota State University, Mankato
Minnesota State University, Mankato

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Page address: https://web.mnsu.edu/sports/bluelineclub/news/html/continue_sweep.html

Men's Hockey Looks to Continue Sweep Trend Against St. Cloud

Mavericks took only games from Huskies last season, both in overtime

by Dan Myers
Issue date: 10/19/06 Section: Mens Sports

The Minnesota State men's hockey team will open its WCHA schedule this weekend as it plays host to St. Cloud State Friday, and visits the Huskies Saturday at the National Hockey Center.

The Mavericks will look to continue their winning ways against the Huskies, as MSU won both meetings last season. Both contests went to overtime, with Rob Rankin netting the winner in a 2-1 game Feb. 17. Brock Becker tallied the game-winner the following night in a 3-2 Maverick victory.

The games started a five-game winning streak for MSU. All five wins were against ranked opponents.

The key to victory in each game last season was goaltending. Mike Zacharias started Game 1 and made 33 saves before handing off to Dan Tormey for the finale. Tormey stopped 46 shots the next night and earned the victory.

While Mavs coach Troy Jutting would like to have the option of rotating the two sophomores again in this series, he will not have the chance. Zacharias - scheduled to start last Thursday's season opener at Notre Dame - left the ice during pre-game warm-ups and did not return. The undisclosed leg injury will keep him from action for two to four weeks and will force Jutting to start Tormey both games - a decision that was made easier after his stellar 27 save performance Saturday against ND.

"Goaltending is going to be a huge key for us all year long," Jutting said. "I don't know if we are going to be a team that scores a lot of goals on a regular basis and so I think we are going to need to be strong defensively and have a great game in net."

Strong goaltending is something that is almost assured from MSU's opponent this weekend. St. Cloud State boasts one of the best goalies in the nation, Bobby Goepfert. A First-Team All WCHA selection last season, Goepfert is not prone to giving up goals in bunches and will require a lot of effort to get the puck past him this weekend.

"I think the key to beating any goalie is to put traffic in front of him," Jutting said. "We're going to need to get traffic in front of him and we need to find the loose pucks that he does give up."

Working in the Mavericks' favor this weekend may be the schedule. If the Mavs can win Game 1 in Mankato, that may establish enough confidence for the team to go on the road the following night and complete the sweep. If SCSU is able to take Game 1, the young Mavericks may find themselves in a lot of trouble come Saturday night.

"I think it's good for us right now that we are at home and in front of our crowd," Jutting said. "That way, we can get used to the league in our place instead of somebody else's."

Dan Myers is the Reporter Sports Editor

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