Off the Hop
Fifth-rated Minnesota State (0-0-0 overall, 0-0-0 CCHA) starts the 2022-23 season this weekend when it takes on #2 Minnesota (0-0-0, 0-0-0 Big 10) Friday and Saturday. Face-off between the Mavericks and the Gophers in Minneapolis Friday at Mariucci Arena (10,000) is slated for 7:00 p.m. The two teams square-off Saturday night in Mankato with a 6:07 p.m. start scheduled for Mayo Clinic Health System Event Center (4,832).

Mavericks vs. Gophers
Minnesota State heads into the weekend having won the last four meetings with Minnesota and eight of the last 10 games vs. the Gophers. The Mavericks stand 18-38-6 in the all-time series vs. Minnesota.  The last two meetings between the two schools have NCAA Tournament action.  Minnesota State claimed a 4-0 win over Minnesota in the 2021 Western Regional championship in Loveland, Colo., before earning a 5-1 in a semifinal tilt played in Boston, Mass., at the 2022 NCAA men's hockey Frozen Four.

Season Openers
Minnesota State stands 27-22-4 all-time in season openers. The Mavericks have won their last four season openers (2-0 win at UMass in 2021-22, 5-0 win at Bemidji State in 2020-21, 4-1 home win over Arizona State in 2019-20 and 5-3 win at Boston University in 2018-19).  

About the Exhibition Game last Saturday
Minnesota State squared-off against Omaha on the road last Saturday in Omaha in exhibition action. Junior forward David Silye had a hand in both Maverick goals in the 7-2 loss with a goal and assist. Junior defenseman Jake Livingstone and freshman forward Luc Wilson drew assists on Silye's goal and freshman forward Adam Eisele scored Minnesota State's second goal in the game. All three of Minnesota State's goaltenders saw action in the game with Keen Rancier, Alex Tracy and Andrew Miller combining for 17 stops.

Behind the Bench
Minnesota State has gone 274-96-24 in 10 seasons under the tutelage of head coach Mike Hastings (St. Cloud State '93). Including a pair of trips to the NCAA Frozen Four in 2020-21 and 2021-22, Hastings has led the Mavericks to eight NCAA tournament appearances and no program in the nation has won more games (274) during his time behind the MSU bench.

In addition to his role as the head coach of the Mavericks, Hastings also spent three weeks in February as a member of the Team USA coaching staff at the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing. He also was named to the Team USA coaching staff for the 2022 IIHF Men's World Championship held in Finland in May.

For the Ages - Reviewing 2021-22
Describing the 2021-22 season for the Minnesota State men's hockey team as record-breaking would be a disservice in that there was so much more. Certainly the Mavericks had experienced wins in previous seasons, but not 18 wins in a row and not 38 wins in a season.  Certainly the Mavericks had experienced individual recognition before, but not a Hobey Baker Award recipient. And certainly the Mavericks had continued their rise up the NCAA DI postseason ladder over the several seasons, but an appearance in the national championship game?  Nope, another first for the program.

In 2021-22, Minnesota State constructed a 38-6-0 record and captured the Central Collegiate Hockey Association regular-season title with a 23-3-0 league mark. After claiming the CCHA postseason tournament title, the Mavericks picked up wins over Harvard and Notre Dame in winning the NCAA Albany Regional Championship. A second straight trip to the NCAA Frozen Four saw Minnesota State down Minnesota in a semifinal contest before a loss to Denver in the national championship season ended the season.

McHobey
Graduated netminder Dryden McKay was named the 2021-22 Hobey Baker Award recipient as the top men's hockey player in NCAA Division I. In doing so, he became the first player from Minnesota State to capture the award.

The third goaltender to win the Hobey Baker (the others are Robb Stauber (Minnesota/1988) and Ryan Miller (Michigan State/2001)), McKay finished the 2021-22 season owning a 38-5-0 record with a .931 save percentage and a 1.31 goals against average. McKay was named 2021-22 CCHA Player of the Year, 2021-22 CCHA Goaltender of the Year and First Team All-CCHA in his senior season with Minnesota State. He led the nation with a NCAA record 38 wins and in addition to establishing a NCAA standard for career shutouts with 34, also set a Minnesota State record for career wins (113, which stands second all-time in NCAA history).

Big Mac
Minnesota State won the MacNaughton Cup as 2021-22 CCHA regular season champions - marking the fifth season in a row the Mavericks has captured a league regular-season title and sixth time in the last nine years.

Analyze This
Minnesota State ranked first in the nation in 2021-22 with 38 wins, winning percentage (.864), goals scored (178), scoring margin (2.68), and face-off percentage (57.9%).

Entering the 2022-23 campaign, the Mavericks ranks highly in returning stat lists.  Brendan Furry is tied for first with Lake Superior State's Louis Bourdon amongst top returning individual scorers from 2021-22, with both players tallying 44 points last season.  Cade Borchardt, who had a 41-point season a year ago, ranks fourth on the list.

Senior defenseman Andy Carroll is the NCCA's active career +/- leader amongst a;; defense,em with a +66 mark. Junior Akito Hirose (+46) ranks fourth and junior blueliner Jake Livingstone (+42) is sixth.

Minnesota State's active NCAA tournament appearance streak of four tied for third amongst all schools (UMD leads with seven, while Notre Dame is at six. SCSU also has gone four straight times).

Roster Check
Minnesota State returns 20 skaters off of last year's roster who played in at least one game.  Those returnees accumulated a total of 111 goals and 309 points last year.

Lining it Up
Paced by senior forwards Brendan Furry (13-31--44 in 44 GP) and Cade Borchardt (15-26--41 in 44 GP), the Mavericks return four of their top six scorers from last year.  Minnesota State's top goal scorer from a year ago - senior forward Ryan Sandelin (21 goals), also returns as do seniors Sam Morton (9-16--25 in 38 GP) and Lucas Sowder (7-16--23).

Other returnees up front include juniors Ondrej Pavel (12-10--22 in 44 GP), David Silye (8-9--17 in 43 GP), Josh Groll (408--12 in 41 GP), Connor Gregga (6-4--10 in 33 GP) and sophomores Zach Krajnik (2-6--8 in 26 GP), Will Hillman (1-1--2 in 5 GP), Tanner Edwards (1-0--1 in 6 GP and Brenden Olson (0-1--1 in 13 GP).

The Mavericks have six returning members from last year's defensive corps and boast a nice mix of veterans and underclassmen. Juniors Jake Livingstone (9-22--31 in 44 GP, CCHA Defenseman of the Year, 1st Team All-CCHA) and Akito Hirose (2-24--26 in 38 GP) are joined by fifth-year senior Andy Carroll (9-30-39 in 131 career GP), along with junior Tony Malinowski and sophomores Steven Bellini and Bennett Zmolek.

The Mavericks have a trio of underclassmen vying for goaltending duties in sophomore Keenan Rancier, and freshmen Alex Tracy and Andrew Miller.

Newcomers to the roster include forwards Adam Eisele, Christian Fitzgerald, Simon Tassy and Luc Wilson, along with defensemen Cameron Cihosz and Mason Wheeler.

Captaincy
Senior forwards Cade Borchardt and  Brendan Furry are serving as this season's team captains (both are in first year as a captain).  Senior forward Sam Morton is in his first year as an alternate captain, as is junior defenseman Jake Livingstone.

CCHA Preseason Awards
The Mavericks, who were rated first in the CCHA coaches preseason poll, had a pair of players on the Preseason All-Conference Team and one who garnered attention as the leagues Preseason Player of the year.

Brendan Furry
CCHA Preseason Player of the Year & Preseason All-CCHA

Jake Livingstone
Preseason All-CCHA

On the Docket
Following the two games with Minnesota, the Mavericks continue in-state nonconference action by hosting #5 Minnesota Duluth Oct. 14 and 15 and before playing at #13 St. Cloud State Oct. 21-22.

Bowling Green visits Mayo Clinic Health System Event Center Oct. 28-29, signalling the beginning of Central Collegiate Hockey Association action.