MANKATO, Minn. - Minnesota State takes the ice for the first time since December 16 on Friday in Sioux Falls, South Dakota against Augustana University at 7:07 p.m. CT. The Mavericks will likely be the Vikings' final opponent at Denny Sanford PREMIER Center before the team christens their new home, Midco Arena later this month. 

• The Mavericks went 3-2-1 in the month of December and are shown fifth in an extremely competitive CCHA, five points shy of first place Bemidji State, but with a pair of games in hand.
• Fans can watch the game on Midco Sports and FloHockey.tv and listen on AM 1420 KTOE.

First Time for Everything

• Minnesota State has had a long-standing rivalry with Augustana within its many Division II programs, but Friday marks the first time the teams will play as Division I men's hockey foes. The Vikings announced their transition to Division I on October 5, 2021 and they are set to become a full time member of the CCHA in 2025-26.
• Construction of the 3,000 seat Midco Arena is in its final stages in Sioux Falls and will become the home of South Dakota's first Division I Ice Hockey team.
• Augustana won its first game on October 14 against Bowling Green (W, 3-2) on home ice. Three days later, the Vikings stunned No. 2 ranked Denver on the road by upsetting the Pioneers in a shootout 6-5. The following night, Augustana also beat Colorado College 4-3. 
• Conference matchups do not count toward the standings this season, but if they did, Augustana would be 3-2-1 against CCHA opponents this fall. Most recently, Augustana won and tied Northern Michigan in Marquette Dec. 1-2. 

Meet the New Boss

• Garrett Raboin was hired as head coach for Augstana's inagural season. Raboin spent the previous four seasons as at Minnesota as Assistant Coach of the Gophers (under head coach Bob Motzko) and made a trip to the NCAA Frozen Four. Prior to Minnesota, Raboin was assistant coach at St. Cloud State University for six years. 
• He has also served on USA Hockey coaching staffs for a number of development camps. He is a graduate of St. Cloud State, where he was a three-year team captain and made three NCAA Tournament appearances.

Eyes on Eisele

• Adam Eisele carries a five-game point streak (3-3--6) into the new year, leading to his selection this week as the CCHA's Forward of the Month for December.
• He recorded his third multi-point game with a goal and an assist against Lake Superior State (Dec. 2) and scored to help the Mavericks over RPI 4-2 on Dec. 16. 
• Eisele has been MSU's most reliable man in the faceoff circle with 157 wins and 121 losses at center since October. His .570 win percentage is third best in the CCHA so far.
• With five goals, seven assists, Eisele's 12 points rank 4th most on the team and he is durable as one of eight Mavericks to play in all 18 games this season.
• Last year, he played 33 games as a freshman and recorded four goals, six assists for 10 points with a plus-8 rating.

Morty Continues to Score

• Senior forward Sam Morton heads into the second half atop the CCHA statistics with 13 goals. He ranks tied for sixth in Division I at 0.72 goals per game. 
• A model of consistency this season, Morton posted his fifth multi-point game December 16 at RPI with one goal and one assist. 
• The Maverick captain also has three multi-goal games with his last one on November 18 against Bemidji State. 
• Morton has 3-1--4 over the past five games.

A Quick Check of the Polls

• Minnesota State has been Nationally ranked as high as No. 20 in the USCHO Division I Ice Hockey Poll and No. 19 in the USA Hockey/The Rink Live Rankings Poll.
• The Mavericks were not receiving votes in either poll on Dec. 11. Boston College (13-3-1) received 34 first place votes to ascend to No. 1, followed by Boston University (11-4-1), Quinnipiac (12-4-1), North Dakota (12-5-1) and Denver (12-5-1).

Scouting the Vikings

• Augustana ended the year with a pair of losses to Notre Dame (B1G). The Vikings fell by scores of 5-1 and 3-2 in overtime. 
• Fifth-year forward Ryan Naumovski (Shelby Township, Mich.) suited up for his 150th consecutive game on Dec. 30. He leads AUGIE with 13 points (4-9--13) through 18 games.
• Junior forward Luke Mobley (St. Louis Park, Minn.) leads the team with seven goals, including one marker Friday night against Notre Dame. Mobley also has five assists for 12 points (second).
• Freshman goaltender Kayden Hargraves made an appearance on Sports Center Top 10 plays after his 33 save effort in Friday night's overtime loss to Notre Dame. It was just his third appearance this season and second start for the third string netminder.
• Senior goaltender Zack Rose (Paradise, N.F.) made 37 saves and allowed three goals in Saturday's loss. In nine appearances, Rose holds a team best 3.27 goals against average and .907 save percentage. Opponents are posting an average of 31.9 shots on goal against.
• Augustana averages 2.7 goals per game on 26.8 shots. The Vikings are 18.9-percent on the power play and average 4.0 penalties per game. The team is also 41.8-percent in the faceoff circle.
• In Saturday's 3-2 overtime loss at Compton Family Ice Arena, The Vikings scored the opening goal of the first period, but fell in the extra session after a penalty forced them to play a man short and Notre Dame's Cole Knuble cashed in on the power play.

Last Time Out

• Steven Bellini threw a long-range wrister toward the net and scored the game-winning goal as Minnesota State topped Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute 4-2 on Dec. 16 to even the weekend series in non-conference play at Houston Fieldhouse.
• "The guys played a very team-oriented game," said Maverick head coach Luke Strand. "I thought we were able to utilize our entire bench giving us stability up and down the lineup."
• At this point in the 2022-23 season, the Mavericks were 10-9-1 overall and went on to win both MacNaughton and Mason Cup Championships.

Dynamic Duo

• For the fourth straight weekend, coach Strand went with a goaltending split against an opponent. Alex Tracy made 32 saves and allowed four goals in the Friday loss to RPI. 
• Keenan Rancier was tested less frequently in Saturday's victory but managed 21 saves with two goals allowed the next night.

MSU Team Summary

• Goals for: 3.11 (2nd)
• Goals against: 2.78 (2nd)
• Shots on goal: 29.50 (5th)
• Power Play Percentage: .210 (3rd)
• Penalties per Game: 3.67 (6th)
• Penalty Kill Percentage: .780 (3rd)
• Faceoff Win Percentage: .502 (4th)
• Blocked Shots per Game: 11.94 (4th)

Special Teams Report

• Both RPI and Minnesota State went 3-7 on the power play in New York on Dec. 15-16. Morton leads the Mavericks with six power play goals.
• Freshman defenseman Evan Murr is the only other player with multiple goals on the man advantage (two). With first-line power play time, Morton also leads MSU in +/- at plus-7.

Captains

• Fifth year senior forward Sam Morton (Lafayette, Colorado) was named team captain for the 2023-24 season.
• Alternate captains include sophomore Mason Wheeler (Rosemount, Minnesota), fifth year senior forward Jordan Steinmetz (Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin) and senior defenseman Tony Malinowski (Clarkston, Michigan).

CCHA Matchups Friday:

• Minnesota State at Augustana 7:07 p.m. CT
• Bowling Green at Ohio State 7 p.m. ET
• Bemidji State at Ferris State 7:07 p.m. ET

CCHA Matchups Saturday:

• Minnesota State at Augustana 6:07 p.m. CT
• Minnesota Duluth at St. Thomas 4:07 p.m. CT
• Michigan Tech at Northern Michigan 6:07 p.m. ET
• Bemidji State at Ferris State 6:07 p.m. ET
• Ohio State at Bowling Green 7:07 p.m. ET