Off the Hop
Rated third this week both by USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine and USCHO, Minnesota State (13-2-1 overall, 10-0-0 WCHA) is on the road for the second consecutive weekend with for a pair of nonconference games at Ferris State (1-17-1, 0-11-1 WCHA). Face-off between the Mavericks and the Bulldogs at Ewigleben Ice Arena (2,490) is slated for 6:07 p.m., CST both Friday and Saturday.

The Mavericks, who swept Alabama Huntsville in a pair of road league games last weekend, are unbeaten in 13 of their last 14 games.
 
Mavericks vs. Bulldogs
In a series that dates back to the 1992-93 season, Minnesota State owns a 25-8-2 record vs. Ferris State.  The Mavericks, who have gone 9-6-1 in games vs. the Bulldogs in games played in Big Rapids, Mich., stand 11-1-0 in the last 12 meetings vs. FSU.

Behind the Bench
Minnesota State has gone 227-87-24 for a .705 winning percentage under the tutelage of head coach Mike Hastings (St. Cloud State '93), who is in his ninth season in charge of the Mavericks. No program in the nation has won more games (227) during the time Hastings has been behind the MSU bench. Under his leadership, the Crookston, Minn., native has guided the Mavericks to five NCAA tournament appearances, five WCHA regular-season titles and three WCHA postseason tournament championships.

The Group
In his first year serving as captain of the Mavericks is senior defenseman Riese Zmolek. Senior defenseman Jack McNeely, and senior forwards Dallas Gerads and Jared Spooner are serving as alternate captains. All three are in their first seasons wearing an "A" for the Mavericks.

The Mavericks and the MacNaughton Cup
Minnesota State won the MacNaughton Cup as 2019-20 WCHA regular season champions - marking the third season in a row the Mavericks have accomplished the feat and fifth time in the last eight years.

Goal Mitigation
Junior netminder Dryden McKay picked up his eighth shutout of the season with last Friday's 5-0 win at Alabama Huntsville. McKay, who ranks second on the NCAA career shutouts list with 22, heads into this weekend leading the nation with a 0.79 goals against, average, .959 save percentage, .929 winning percentage and eight shutouts.  For his career, the Downer's Grove, Ill., native who is a Hobey Baker Award nominee and appears on the Richter Award Watch List, stands 67-12-4 with a .1.40 GAA, and .938 Sv% in 85 games played.

McKay, a First Team All-American in 2019-20, stands 6-0-0 all-time in games vs. Ferris State. His goals against average vs. the Bulldogs  is 0.83 and along with a .958 save percentage, he owns two shutouts vs. FSU.

One Foot Forward
Senior forward Todd Burgess had two goals and two assists for a four-point weekend in the two wins at Alabama Huntsville.  Burgess, a Phoenix, Ariz., native who has 4-6--10 in 15 games played for the Mavericks this year, has 32 shots on goal for the season.

Cadence
Currently in the midst of a three-game point-scoring streak (1-2--3), sophomore forward Cade Borchardt ranks second on the Mavericks in scoring with 7-11--18.  His points per game average of 1.12 stands tied for 17th in the nation.

Mint Julep
Junior forward Julian Napravnik had a three-point weekend in the series at UAH with a goal and two assists vs. the Chargers and stands atop the Minnesota State scoring charts with 7-12--19 in 15 games played. He leads Minnesota State with three game-winning goals and stands tied for the team lead with four power play markers.

Centrality
Sophomore center Nathan Smith enters the series at Ferris State having tallied 1-6--7 in the last seven games.  Smith has 3-14--17 in 16 games played this year and his assists per game mark of 0.93 stands tied for fifth in the country.

Regenerable
Senior forward Reggie Lutz stands tied for the Minnesota State goal-scoring lead with seven goals this year and owns a team-high 66 shots on goal.  In 128 career games, the Elk River, Minn., native has registered 34 goals and 47 assists for 81 points, which ties for 31st on the school's career scoring list.

Now and Then
Senior center Jake Jaremko owns a three-game point-scoring streak heading into the Ferris State series having registered four assists during that span.  With 31-54--85 in 117 career GP, the Nowthen, Minn., native stands tied for 26th on the school's all-time point-scoring list.

Self Defense
Freshman defenseman Jake Livingstone registered two assists in the series at Alabama Huntsville and has 3-5--8 in 16 games played in his first season of college hockey.

Strategic Defense
Freshman Akito Hirose is Minnesota State's top-scoring defenseman with 1-10--11 on the year. The Calgary, Alta., native  leads the Mavericks with a +15 rating - a mark that ties for first in the country amongst all freshmen.

Civil Defense
Junior forward Andy Carroll scored a goal and assisted on the game-winning goal in last Thursday's 4-1 win at Alabama Huntsville.  Carroll, who has 2-5--7 on the season, has a +37 rating and 42 blocked shots for his three-year college career.
 
Special Teams
Minnesota State has connected on 20 of 62 power play chances for a .323 power play percentage, a mark which ranks first in the nation. The Mavericks own an .882% success rate on the penalty kill which ties for seventh in the nation in having fended off 45 of 51 opponent chances with the man advantage.

Keeping Track
Defenseman Connor Mackey became the 15th former Minnesota State player to play in the National Hockey League when he suited up for Calgary in a road game at Vancouver last Saturday (Feb. 13). Named AHCA/CCM West Second Team All-America following the conclusion of the 2019-20 season, Mackey posted 18-43--61 with a +47 rating and 92 blocked shots in 118 games in his three seasons with the Mavericks from 2017-20.