#1 Minnesota State Hosts Northern Michigan in CCHA Semifinal Tilt; Mavericks Riding 13-Game Winning Streak & Lead Nation with 33 Wins
Top-rated Mavericks have 22 Wins in Last 23 Games; 33 Wins This Year Establishes School Record for Victories in a Season; McKay Ranks Third All-Time in NCAA History With 108 Career Victories

Off the Hop
Rated #1 by USCHO and USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine this week, Minnesota State (33-5-0 overall) hosts Northern Michigan (20-15-1) in Central Collegiate Hockey Association semifinal action Saturday.

The Mavericks and the Wildcats square-off at Mayo Clinic Health System Event Center (4,832) in downtown Mankato Saturday at 6:07 p.m. CST.

Mavericks vs. Wildcats
Including three wins in four games vs. Northern Michigan this year, Minnesota State stands 21-7-3 all-time vs. Northern Michigan.  The Mavericks are 9-3-0 in the last 12 games vs. the Wildcats and stand 12-3-0 vs. NMU in games played in Mankato.

The Last Time Out
Minnesota State, which has won its last 13 games and 22 of its last 23 outings, stands 33-5-0 overall after going 2-0 in a best-of-three CCHA quarterfinal series vs. St. Thomas last weekend.

Junior forward Sam Morton scored twice and junior forward Lucas Sowder got the game-winning goal as the Mavericks rallied for a 3-2 victory over the Tommies last Friday.  Sophomore center Ondrej Pavel had two goals and an assist and Morton had a goal and two assists in Saturday's 8-2 series-clinching win.

Behind the Bench
Minnesota State has gone 269-95-24 under the tutelage of head coach Mike Hastings (St. Cloud State '93), who is in his 10th season in charge of the Mavericks. Including a trip to the NCAA Frozen Four in 2020-21, Hastings has led the Mavericks to six NCAA tournament appearances and no program in the nation has won more games (269) during the time Hastings has been behind the MSU bench.

Polling
Minnesota State has been rated in the top five in all 22 polls issued by USCHO and USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine this year.  The Mavericks, who have been rated #1 in the USCHO and USA Today/USA Hockey polls 14 times this year, are ranked first for the seventh consecutive week this week.

Daylight Savings
Senior netminder Dryden McKay, a Hobey Baker Hat Trick finalist and a finalist for the Mike Richter Award in 2020-21 and a two-time All-American, stands 33-4-0 for the season with a .932 save percentage and a 1.28 goals against average.

For his four-year college career, the Downers Grove, Ill., native stands 108-19-4 with a 1.46 GAA, and .932 Sv% in 134 games played.

One of 11 players named a 2021-22 Richter Award semifinalist, McKay's 108 career wins ranks third on the NCAA's all-time list, standing only behind the 127 wins by Marty Turco (Michigan 1995-98) and the 111 wins by Steve Shields (Michigan 1991-94).

McKay's 33 wins this year stands tied for third on the NCAA DI men's hockey single-season list. Minnesota's Robb Stauber (1987-88) and Michigan's Marty Turco (1995-96) stand atop the list with 34 wins. Turco also had 33 wins in 1996-97 and 1997-98.

McKay, who had three shutouts in a row in wins this year over St. Thomas (9-0 and 5-0 Nov. 18-19) and Lake Superior State (3-0 Nov. 27), has established a NCAA standard for career shutouts (he has 33) and a Minnesota State record for career wins (106).  

McKay, who has been named CCHA Goaltender of the Week seven times this year, has been named HCA National Goaltender of the week on two occasions this year.

Saint Nik
Senior forward Julian Napravnik, who has tallied at least one point in 15 of the last 17 contests, ranks second on the Mavericks with 17-28--45 on the season. His career totals of 44-75-119 have him tied for ninth on Minnesota State's all-time scoring list.

Reso-Nate
Junior center Nathan Smith, who spent three weeks in China at the 2022 Winter Olympics with the U.S. men's national team,  had two assists in Minnesota State's 8-2 win over St. Thomas last Saturday.

Smith, who heads into Saturday's game vs. Northern Michigan having tallied at least one point in 12 of the last 13 games (6-15--21), leads the Mavericks in scoring with  17-29--46.

His 46 points are the most scored by a Maverick since Matt Leitner had 47 points 2012-13.

Elk Club
With 50-64--114 for his Minnesota State playing career, senior forward Reggie Lutz  (Elk River, Minn.) is tied for 11th on the school's career scoring list.

For the Defense
Senior defenseman Jack McNeely has 1-12--13 on the year and has registered 7-41--48 and is +99 with 183 blocked shots in 168 career games.

Games People Play
Senior forward Reggie Lutz ranks first and senior defenseman Jack McNeely second on Minnesota State's career games played list.










Charting Your Course
Junior forward Cade Borchardt has racked up 8-14--22 in the last 18 games. The Burnsville, Minn., native  has 15-24--39 in 38 games on the season and owns 24-39--63 in 76 career games played.

Back Forty
Forwards Nathan Smith and Julian Napravnik top the Minnesota State scoring charts with 46 and 45 points each, respectively. The last time the Mavericks had at least two players with at least 40 points on the team in the same season was 2018-19 when Marc Michaelis (42) and Parker Tuomie (40) accomplished the feat.  

With 39 points a piece, Brendan Furry and Cade Borchardt are closing in on the 40-point threshold.
This year marks the seventh season for the school's DI-era that the Mavericks have had at least two players with 40 or more points. The Mavericks have had one year in which three-players hit the 40-point plateau (2017-18) and none with four or more.

Minnesota State Teams With Multiple 40-Point Players
Nathan Smith (46)    2021-22
Julian Napravnik (45)    2021-22

Marc Michaelis (42)    2018-19
Parker Tuomie (40)    2018-19

C.J. Suess (43)    2017-18
Zeb Knutson (43)    2017-18
Marc Michaelis (40)    2017-18

Matt Leitner (45)    2013-14
J.P. Lafontaine (40)    2013-14

Travis Morin (42)    2005-06
David Backes (42)    2005-06

Shane Joseph (65)    2002-03
Grant Stevenson (63)    2002-03

Tyler Deis (46)    1996-97
Ryan Rintoul (40)    1996-97

Re-Furbish
Junior center Brendan Furry stands tied for third in scoring on the Mavericks with 10-29--39 in 38 games. The Toledo, Ohio native, who has 4-11--15 in the last 13 games, has posted 15-37--52 in 66 career games.

Mavericks Statistically Nationally
Minnesota State ranks first in the nation with 33 wins, goals scored (157), scoring margin (2.84), and face-off percentage (58.5%).

The Mavericks are second in goals against average (1.29) and scoring offense (4.13) and are seventh in penalty killing (87.0) and seventh on the power play (25.5).

Nathan Smith (17-29--46) ranks second and Julian Napravnik (17-28--45) is tied for third in the nation in scoring. Brendan Furry and Smith are tied for fourth in assists (29) and Napravnik (28) is eighth. Ryan Sandelin's 20 goals are tied for sixth in the nation.

Dryden McKay's 33 wins lead the country and his nine shutouts stand third. His 1.28 GAA is second and his .932 sv% is seventh.

Didja Know
Minnesota State's 33 wins this year is a school record. The previous record of 32 was set in the 2018-19 campaign.  Minnesota State has now hit the 30-win plateau four times in the program's history.  Three of those seasons have come during the Mike Hastings era.