Men's Hockey | 1/3/2017 9:49:00 AM

Off the Hop:   #19 Minnesota State (11-7-2 overall, 7-5-2 WCHA) resumes league play with a two-game set at Alabama Huntsville (7-13-2 overall, 7-7-2 WCHA) this weekend. The Mavericks and the Chargers play at Van Braun Center (6,600) Friday (7:07 p.m. CST) and Saturday (7:07 p.m. CST).

About the Minnesota State-Alabama Huntsville Series:   In a series that dates back to the 1988-89 season, the Mavericks are 27-19-7 all-time vs. the Chargers and have gone 16-0-4 in the last 20 games vs. UAH.  The last time the Mavericks lost to the Chargers was in 2001-02.

Minnesota State Most Recently:  The Mavericks split a nonconference road series at Princeton in closing out their pre-Holiday schedule Dec. 16-17. Minnesota State, which has gone 4-3-1 in its last eight games, lost 6-1 and won 5-4 vs. the Tigers.

About Alabama Huntsville:  The Chargers stand 7-13-2 overall and are 7-7-2 in WCHA games on the year after absorbing a pair of overtime losses (2-1 loss vs. Massachusetts and 3-2 loss vs. Merchyhurst) at the Mariucci Classic, which was played in Minneapolis Dec. 30-31.

UAH, which enters the series with Minnesota State having gone 3-3-0 its last six games, is paced offensively by  a pair of junior forwards in Josh Kestner (6-11--17) and Max McHugh (7-8--15). Junior goaltender Jordan Uhelski (5-5-2, 2.67, .907%) has started 12 of UAH's 22 games this year.  

The Chargers are led head coach Mike Corbett (Denver '96) who stands 24-101-19 in behind the UAH bench (this is his fourth year with the Chargers).  

Minnesota State On the Web:  Tickets, Releases, statistics, player and staff biographies, etc. on all of Minnesota State's 20 sports are available at the official website of MSU Athletics located at www.msumavericks.com

Minnesota State All-Time:  The Minnesota State men's hockey program, begun in 1969-70, completed its 47th year of competition last year.  The Mavericks are in their 21st year as members of NCAA Division I and in their 18th season as members of the Western Collegiate Hockey Association.   The Mavericks are 847-629-149 (.567) all-time and stand 218-213-58 (.505) in regular-season games vs. WCHA opponents.

Sean Flanagan Notes: In first season serving as an alternate captain...Three-time letterwinner (2013-14, 2014-15 and 2015-16) is a two-time WCHA All-Academic honoree and WCHA Scholar-Athlete honoree (at least 3.50 grade point average)...Has 2-4--6 on the year, owns 10-34--44 with 152 shots on goal, is +16 and has 115 blocked shots in 121 career games.

Carter Foguth Notes: In second season serving as team captain...Three-time letterwinner (2013-14, 2014-15 and 2015-16) was a WCHA All-Academic honoree last year... At 125 games played stands as Minnesota State's active career games played leader...Has 38 blocked shots this year, which is tied for 26th in the nation...Has 254 blocked shots and is +24 in four seasons with the Mavericks.

Cole Huggins Notes: Three-year letterwinner (2013-14, 2014-15, 2015-16) is a two-time WCHA All-Academic pick...Owns school record for shut-outs with 11...Named WCHA Defensive Player of the Week (third time in career) after backstopping Mavericks to 3-1 an 4-0 wins over #17 Michigan Tech Oct. 7-8...Stands 7-4-0 with a 2.41 goals against average and a .899 save percentage for the year and is tied for fifth at Minnesota State for career wins with 45 victories.

Michael Huntebrinker Notes: Three-year letterwinner (2013-14, 2014-15, 2015-16) is in first year as an alternate captain...Two-time WCHA All-Academic honoree and WCHA Scholar-Athlete honoree (at least 3.50 grade point average)...Had three assists in Minnesota State's 7-3 win over Alaska Dec. 2...Scored his third goal of the season in Minnesota State's 5-4 win at Princeton Dec. 17. The goal is the first career game-winning tally for the Chesterfield, Mo., native and gives him 14-31--45 in 105 career games with the Mavericks.

Jordan Nelson Notes: Three-year letterwinner (2013-14, 2014-15, 2015-16) is a two-time WCHA All-Academic honoree and WCHA Scholar-Athlete honoree (at least 3.50 grade point average)...Ranks second on the Mavericks with 166 face-off wins and leads the team in face-off percentage (.564). The Williston, N.D., native has 15 goals and 18 assists for 33 points in 120 career games played.

Zach Stepan Notes:  Three-time letterwinner (2013-14, 2014-15 and 2015-16) is a 2012 Nashville Predators draft pick (4th round, 112 overall)...Has 18-30--48 in 118 career games.

C.J. Franklin Notes: Two-year letterwinner is in first season as team captain...2014 Winnipeg Jets draftee (5th round, 129th overall)... Finished third on team in scoring and second in goals with 14-11--25 in sophomore season and saw action in all 41 games...Leads the Mavericks with three game-winning goals, ranks fifth in the nation with six power play markers. He leads the Minnesota State with 196 face-off wins this year and with 30-40--70 in 98 career games, the Forest Lake, Minn., product stands as Minnesota State's active career scoring leader.

Zeb Knutson Notes: Two-year letterwinner (2014-15, 2015-16) finished sixth on school's point-scoring charts in 2015-16 with six goals and 11 assists for 17 points...Registered his fifth goal of the year 3-2 win at Ferris State Dec. 5. Knutson, who stands tied for ninth on the Mavericks in goals and seventh in +/- at +2, has 5-6--11 on the year and owns 13-18--31 in 66 career games.

Clint Lewis Notes: Lettered as a freshman in 2015-16...Missed most of season due to injury (saw action in six games)...Stands tied for second on the Mavericks in plus/minus with a +8 on the year, has 21 blocked shots and 18 shots on goal in 2016-17.

Brad McClure Notes: Two-time letterwinner (2014-15, 2015-16) is in first  year as an alternate captain...Posted 5-8--13 numbers while playing in all 41 games as a sophomore... Racked up three assists in 7-3 win over Alaska (Dec. 2), then scored his eighth goal of the season the next night and added an assist on C.J. Franklin's game-tying goal...Racked up 3-7--10 in the last eight games prior to the Holiday break, leads Minnesota State with 77 shots on goal. The Stratford, Ont., native ranks second on the Mavericks in points with 8-10--18 on the season. 

Aaron Nelson Notes: Two-year letterwinner was a WCHA All-Academic selection last year.

Daniel Brickley Notes: Lettered in first season with Mavericks (2015-16)....Named to 2015-16 WCHA All-Rookie Team...Collected 2-9--11 in 36 games played as a freshman...Scored his fourth goal of the season in Minnesota State's 5-4 win at Princeton Dec. 17 and stands fourth on Minnesota State's scoring charts with 4-12--16 in 12 games this year.  He leads all WCHA defensemen (and is tenth in the nation amongst blueliners) in scoring despite missing a month of playing time due to an upper body injury.

Max Coatta Notes: Lettered in first season with Mavericks (2015-16)...Named to 2015-16 WCHA All-Rookie Team.....Tied for third in the WCHA in rookie scoring with 5-6--11 in 28 league games...Collected 5-8--13 in 36 games played as a freshman...Has 8-12--20 in 56 career games, assisted on Nick Rivera's goal in Minnesota State's 5-4 win at Princeton Dec. 17.

Steen Cooper Notes: Lettered in first season with Mavericks (2015-16)...Collected 1-0--1 in 10 games played as a freshman... Scored first career goal in 2-2 overtime tie in WCHA road game at Northern Michigan (Nov. 21)...Enters weekend with 1-0--1 in 14 career games.

Chandler Madry Notes: Lettered in first season at Minnesota State (2015-16)...Had 2-1--3 in nine games played in debut season with Mavericks...Registered first career goal in 2-0 home win over Alaska Anchorage (Nov. 27, 2015)...Also scored in a game at Michigan Tech (Jan. 16, 2016)... Scored his first career game-winning goal in 6-4 victory over St. Cloud State (Oct. 15, 2016), has 3-1--4 in 12 career games.

Jason Pawloski Notes:  Lettered in first season with Mavericks (2015-16)....8-2-5 won-loss record with .901 save percentage and 1.85 goals against average in first year of college hockey...Named WCHA Rookie of the Week after backstopping Mavericks to a two-game home league sweep over Alaska Anchorage with a 2-0-0 record, a 1.00 goals against average and a .947 save percentage (Nov. 27-28)...Got his first win of 2016-17 when he stopped 18 shots in Minnesota State's 2-1 win at Lake Superior State, Nov. 5...Owns a 12-4-7 career record with a 2.08 GAA and .905 sv%, stands 4-3-2 for the year with a 2.49 GAA and a .909 sv%.

Ryan Schwalbe Notes:  Lettered in first year with Minnesota State (2015-16)...Had 0-3--3 in 28 games in debut season with Mavericks while playing both forward and defense...Had 24 shots on goal and blocked eight shots...First career point came in 3-2 win at Ferris State (Nov. 7) when he assisted on a goal by Casey Nelson...Enters Alabama Huntsville series with 0-3--3 in 47 career games played.

Alec Vanko Notes: Lettered in freshman season (2015-16)...Registered 0-4--4 and was +3 in 12 games played in debut season with Minnesota State...Scored first career goal in 7-1 win at Alaska (Oct. 21, 2016)...Oregon, Wis., native has 2-1--3 in ten games played this year.

Michael Bigelbach Notes: Played two seasons with Omaha (USHL) where he served as an alternate captain for the Lancers in 2015-16...Had 2-10--12, along with 105 PIMS with Omaha in 2015-16...Toiled in the North American Hockey League in 2013-14, playing 44 games with Minot (4-10--14) and 18 games with Janesville (0-2--2)...Assisted on Jordan Nelson's game-winning goal in Minnesota State's 2-1 victory at Lake Superior State, Nov. 5...Has 0-2--2 and is +1 in seven games played on  the year.

Josh French Notes:  Spent two campaigns with Omaha (USHL) where he had 16-32--48 and served as an alternate captain for the Lancers in 2015-16...Led Omaha in points and assists and was named team MVP and Forward of the Year in 2015-16...Posted eight points on a goal and seven assists and was +10 with Omaha in 2014-15...Made debut for Minnesota State he played in season-opening games with Michigan Tech, Oct. 7 and has played in every game this year...Registered first career point with an assist on Charlie Gerard's goal vs. Bemidji State Nov. 11.

Charlie Gerard Notes:  Played with three different teams in the USHL in 2015-16 - Collected 10 goals and five assists for 15 points in 26 games with Madison, 3-5--8 in 18 GP with Fargo and 6-4--10 with Muskegon...Totalled 17-16--33 with Madison in 2014-15....Notched first career goal with Minnesota State when his scored in a 1-1 home tie with Bemidji State (Nov. 11) and has 1-1--2 in 12   games played to date.

Edwin Hookenson Notes:  Spent three seasons with Nanaimo (BCHL) where he served as an alternate captain for the Clippers and earned team's Coaches Award in 2015-16...Had six goals and 17 assists for 23 points in 58 games in 2015-16...Registered 5-23--28 in 58 games and was named team's Most Improved Player in 2014-15 in helping lead Nanaimo to an Interior Division regular-season title and play-off series victories over Alberni Valley and Powell River and a place in the BCHL championship series....Made his college debut when he played in both games vs. the University of Alaska Dec. 0-2...Has eight shots on goal and six blocked shots in debut season with Mavericks.

Marc Michaelis Notes:  Two-year USHL vet spent a pair of seasons with Green Bay where he had 10-41--51 in 59 games in 2015-16... A two-time WCHA Rookie of the Week award recipient this year, freshman forward Marc Michaelis finds himself atop the Minnesota State scoring chart with 25 points on 10 goals and 16 assists. The Mannheim, Germany native leads the WCHA in scoring, ranks 11th in the country in scoring and is second amongst all freshmen skaters in the nation in scoring. Michaelis, who has accrued at least one point in 15 of 20 games played in his debut season with the Mavericks, enters the New Year riding a three-game point-scoring streak (1-4--5).

Nick Rivera Notes:  Team captain for Omaha (USHL) in 2015-16...Had 23-18--41 with 132 PIMs and +5 in 48 games with Lancers in 2015-16...Had 14-14--28 and was +12 in 58 games with Omaha in 2014-15 and collected 18-9--27 with Wenatchee (NAHL) in 2013-14...Scored twice and had two assists in earning WCHA Rookie of the Week honors for his play in Minnesota State's two games at Alaska Oct. 21-22)...Enters Alabama Huntsville series with 4-3--7 in 20 games played.

Ian Scheid Notes:  Played the first five games of the 2015-16 season with Fargo (USHL) before being traded to Sioux City where he had 5 goals and 11 assists for 16 points in 47 games...Spent the 2014-15 campaign with Austin (NAHL) where he registered 12-23--35 in 55 games with the Bruins and was named NAHL All-Rookie First Team...Scored his first career game-winning goal in 4-2 victory over Ferris State (Oct. 28)...Has played every game for Minnesota State in debut season...Assisted on Daniel Brickley's goal in Minnesota State's 5-4 victory at Princeton Dec. 17 and has 1-6--7 in the last nine games. He has 4-9--13 on the year to rank second amongst all WCHA first-year blueliners in points.

Parker Tuomie Notes:  Former Sioux Falls (USHL) captain...Had a goal and three assists, along with 10 shots on goal, in earning WCHA Rookie of the Week honors for his role in Minnesota State's two wins over St. Cloud State (Oct. 14-15)...has 3-5--8 in 20 games in his debut season with the Mavericks and ranks fourth on the team with 55 shots on goal.

Noteables: Minnesota State's freshmen have racked up 22-38--50 in 20 contests so far this season to stand fourth in scoring in the nation as a group.

Minnesota State's defensive corps have totalled 15-34--49 in 20 contests so far this season and are tied for 13th in scoring in the nation as a group.

Minnesota State has outshot its opponents in 14 out of 20 games this year and rank eighth in the nation in shots on goal margin at +143.

On Tap: Following this weekend's conference series at Alabama Huntsville, Minnesota State hosts Bowling Green in a pair of WCHA contests Jan. 14-15.