MANKATO, Minn. - Maverick men's hockey is back on home ice for the first time since December 8 this weekend when it hosts CCHA opponent Ferris State Friday at 7:07 p.m. and Saturday at 6:07 p.m. Minnesota State (9-8-2, 5-4-1 CCHA) swept the Bulldogs in Big Rapids in November. Fans can listen to both games on KTOE AM 1420 and watch via FloHockey.tv. 

Last Weekend

• Minnesota State tied Augustana 3-3 on Friday, January 5 in Sioux Falls (and lost an exhibition shootout)then bounced back for a 2-1 win Saturday night. Both nights, the Mavericks rallied for a pair of third period goals. Connor Gregga scored his first goal of the season Friday and Brett Moravec notched a power-play marker as the Mavericks outshot Augustana 47-23. Zack Rose made 44 saves, including three in the shootout for the Vikings. Fifth year senior captain Sam Morton finished with a goal and an assist and Alex Tracy made 20 saves.
• Saturday, Adam Eisele snapped a one-timer past goaltender Josh Kotai 17:59 into the third period to help MSU complete its comeback. Again, Morton recorded a multi-point game with a goal and an assist. Keenan Rancier stopped 26 shots in goal for his third win of the season and the Mavericks topped 40 shots for the second straight night with 42.

Rancier Named CCHA Goaltender of the Week

• Minnesota State junior Keenan Rancier (Victoria, British Columbia) was named CCHA Goaltender of the Week on Monday (Jan. 8). It was the first time Rancier earned the distinction this season and second in his career (Jan. 16, 2023).
• Rancier made 26 saves on 27 Augustana shots to help the Mavericks secure a 2-1 victory over Augustana Saturday night at Sanford PREMIER Center in Sioux Falls, South Dakota.
• Rancier made five stops in the first period, 13 in the second, and eight in the third, including 12 of 13 while shorthanded. The Vikings finished 1-for-5 on the power play.
• In six games played this season, Rancier holds a .917 save percentage and 2.39 goals against average. He has allowed 14 goals against and has a 3-2-0 record in net.
• Last winter, Rancier anchored the Mavericks in their run to the MacNaughton Cup and Mason Cup Championships, playing 33 games and holding a 1.86 goals against average and 19-10-1 record.

Morty By the Numbers

• The Maverick captain ranks fourth in the nation with 15 goals, after he scored in both games against Augustana last weekend.
• Morton trails only Jack Devine (17, Denver), Dylan Wendt (16, Western Michigan) and Jimmy Snuggerud (16, Minnesota) in Division I. 
• His six power play goals are tied for sixth in the nation.
• Morton scored the tying goal and assisted on the winner in the Mavericks' 2-1 victory Saturday, solidifying himself as a contending All-America candidate as he contributed on four of Minnesota State's five total goals (2-2--4). 
• Morton's 1.15 points per game are second best in the CCHA and his team-leading 23 points are second in the conference only to Jared Wescott (24, Lake Superior State). 
• His 4.05 shots per game are second highest in the CCHA.
• Morton leads the league in total faceoff wins (240-445) and ranks eighth in faceoff percentage (.539). 
• Also a strong defender, Morton leads the Mavericks and ranks sixth in the CCHA with a plus-7 ledger.

A Quick Check of the Polls

• For the ninth time this season, the Maveicks received national rankings votes (2) on Monday, but remained just outside the USCHO.com Division I Top-25 teams. Fellow CCHA opponent Michigan Tech also received votes in week 11.
• Boston College (37 first place votes) retained the No. 1 position in the rankings with a 13-3-1 record. 
• Boston University (12-4-1), Wisconsin (18-4-0) and Maine (13-3-2) also received first place votes.

Murr Named CCHA Defenseman of the Week

• Freshman Evan Murr (Stillwater, Minn.) was named CCHA Defenseman of the Week on Monday (Jan. 8). It was Murr's first time earning the distinction. He was also CCHA Rookie of the Week on November 13.
• Murr helped the Mavericks with a 3-point weekend on top-line defense, including an assist on Adam Eisele's game-winning goal approaching two minutes remaining in the third period of Saturday's victory over Augustana.
• Murr leads Maverick defensemen and ranks second on the squad with 16 points. He is also second among CCHA defensemen and first among rookie defensemen in points.
•  With two assists in Saturday night's win, Murr recorded his third multi-point game this season. He also has one game winning goal, two power play goals and 20 blocked shots through 20 games.

Scouting the Bulldogs

• Ferris State (6-14-1, 4-9-0 CCHA) suffered a pair of defeats at the hands of the Mavericks in their first encounter of the season Nov. 10-11 in Big Rapids. 
• Lucas Sowder notched four assists to help MSU to a 6-2 win Friday night. Brian Carrabes posted two goals and one assist and Sam Morton finished with one goal, two assists for the Purple and Gold.
• The Mavericks scored three first period goals and three more in the second.
• Minnesota State won 3-2 the following evening behind Evan Murr's game-winner with 6.3 seconds left in overtime at Ewigleben Arena. Adam Eisele and Jordan Steinmetz assisted. The Bulldogs outscored the Mavericks 1-0 in the third period to send it to an extra session.
• Ferris State broke up a seven game losing streak Saturday when they bested Bemidji State 5-3 at home. The Beavers won game one 4-1. In the 5-3 win, Noah Giesbrecht turned aside 21 of 24 BSU shots to pick up his third win this season.
• Senior forward Antonio Venuto (Whitmore Lake, Mich.) recorded three points, all assists, giving him 20 points this year. Luigi Benincasa also had a three-point night with a goal and two helpers. The Bulldogs outshot the Beavers 38-24 and won 43 faceoffs.
• The Bulldogs finished 14-19-4 overall in 2022-23, including 9-14-3 in CCHA play.
• The Bulldogs rank seventh in the CCHA in goals per game (2.33), seventh in goals allowed (3.62), seventh in power play percentage (.145), eighth in penalty killing percentage (.733), fifth in faceoff winning percentage (.496) and sixth in blocked shots (11.05).
• Venuto leads the team with 12-8--20 but also has 36 penalty minutes in 21 games played. Sophomore defenseman Travis Shoudy has logged 2-14--16 for the second most points on the squad. Benincasa has 2-13--15 in 20 games played for the Bulldogs.
• Head coach Bob Daniels is in his 32nd season behind the Bulldog bench. He led FSU to the school's first postseason tournament championship in 2015-16 at the WCHA Final Five. From 1989-92, Daniels was an assistant coach, having joined the staff under head coach Bob Mancini.

Last Year They Met

• Minnesota State met Ferris State five times last year, including a CCHA semifinal matchup on March 11in Mankato. The Mavericks won 7-2 to advance to the championship after the teams split regular season bouts 2-2. Seven different Mavericks scored in the semifinals as MSU went 3-for-4 on the power play and scored three unanswered goals in the third period. Minnesota State dominated shots on goal 39-21 and Keenan Rancier stopped 19 of 21 shots for his 17th victory of the season.

All-Time Against Ferris State

• Minnesota State leads the all-time series 34-10-2 in games dating back to 1992-93. The Mavericks have won seven of the previous ten matchups, scoring at least five goals on six occasions.
• MSU swept Ferris State in Big Rapids January 27-28, 2023 with scores of 4-1 and 5-1.

MSU Team Summary

• Goals for: 3.05 (2nd)
• Goals against: 2.70 (1st)
• Shots on goal: 31.0 (3rd)
• Power Play Percentage: .214 (3rd)
• Penalties per Game: 3.60 (1st)
• Penalty Kill Percentage: .769 (4th)
• Faceoff Win Percentage: .501 (4th)
• Blocked Shots per Game: 11.50 (5th)

Special Teams Report

• The Mavericks went 1-3 on the power play Friday night with an extra man tally from Brett Moravec in the third period. MSU killed 1 of 2 penalties.
• Saturday, MSU converted 1 of 5 power plays and allowed Augustana to score once on four of its power play opportunities.
• Adam Eisele's game-winning third period goal came on the man advantage.

FloHockey.TV

• All Minnesota State home and CCHA games during the 2023-24 season will be live streamed on FloHockey.tv.
• Fans can purchase either annual ($150) or monthly ($30) subscriptions and will have access to all CCHA games along with the full USHL, Atlantic Hockey and ECHL schedule. Download the FloSports app today on Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV, Roku, and the App Store.

CCHA Scores Last Friday:

• Minnesota State 3, Augustana -3 OT
• Bowling Green 2, Ohio State -6
• Bemidji State -4, Ferris State -1

CCHA Scores Last Saturday:

• Minnesota Duluth -1, St. Thomas -3 (Exh.*)
• Michigan Tech -2, Northern Michigan -7 (Exh.*)
• Bemidji State -3, Ferris State -5
• Minnesota State -2, Augustana -1
• Ohio State -4, Bowling Green -2

CCHA Matchups Thursday:

• Michigan Tech at St. Thomas 7:07 p.m. CT

CCHA Matchups Friday:

• Northern Michigan at Lake Superior State 7:07 p.m. ET
• Ferris State at Minnesota State 7:07 p.m. CT

CCHA Matchups Saturday:

• Northern Michigan at Lake Superior State 7:07 p.m. ET
• Ferris State at Minnesota State 6:07 p.m. CT
• Michigan Tech at St. Thomas 6:07 p.m.