MANKATO, Minn. - No. 19 ranked Minnesota State meets a Hockey East opponent for the first and only time this season Friday at 7:07 p.m. and Saturday at 6:07 p.m. at the Mayo Clinic Health System Event Center. In their first matchup in nearly 25 years, the Mavericks hope to build on a positive start last weekend at then-No. 7 Michigan.

The Maverick roster features 20 returners and nine newcomers, including five transfers and four freshmen. Through two games, Luke Ashton (1-1--2), Brian Carrabes (1-1--2) and Jordan Power (0-2--2) lead the team in points and six different players recorded goals against the Wolverines.

HOW TO FOLLOW

• AM 1420 KTOE (Matt Dean play-by-play)
• Stream: Midco Sports Plus
• Live Stats: msumavericks.com
• TICKETS are available at the Mayo Clinic Health System Event Center box office (Thursday 10 a.m.-2 p.m., Friday 10 a.m.-second period, Saturday noon-second period)

PUCK DROP IN CITY CENTER

• Prior to Saturday's game, the Minnesota State Blue Line Club and Maverick Athletics will host its annual Puck Drop in City Center presented by Snell Motors.
• The event – which is free for everyone to attend – will begin at 4:30 p.m., includes food and beverage from local vendors, and fans will be able to hear from Minnesota State President, Edward Inch, Director of Athletics, Kevin Buisman, Women's Hockey Coach Shari Dickerman, Men's Hockey Coach Luke Strand and more!

ALL-TIME SERIES

• Merrimack leads the all-time series 5-1-0. The teams have not played since January 2-3, 2000.
• It was a series split with Merrimack winning game one 4-1 and MSU getting even 4-3 on Saturday.
• The first game between MC and MSU was March 15, 1978 in Springfield, Mass. (L, 6-1).

SCOUTING MERRIMACK

• Hailing from North Andover, Massachusetts (population: 30,915), the Warriors attempt to rebound from a 3-2 season opening loss to Stonehill College at home on October 6.
• Head coach Scott Borek is in his seventh season. He owns a 163-210-31(.422) all-time record at the helm with 33 years of collegiate coaching experience.
• The Warriors qualified for the NCAA Tournament for the third time in program history in 2022-23 after falling to Boston University in the HEA Championship in overtime.
• Last year, Merrimack finished 13-21-1, including 6-17-1 in HEA games. No. 7 Northeastern ended the Warriors' season in the first round of the conference tournament 4-0 in Boston. However, the team did notch notable wins in the regular season over UMass (Jan. 13) and Northeastern (Oct. 28). 
• This year's roster is made up of 30 players, including four graduate students, three seniors, three juniors, 10 sophomores and 10 freshmen.
• Merrimack averaged 2.8 goals per game last year and allowed 3.3 goals to opponents. With 27.7 shots per contest, the Warriors efficiency on the power play was 17.1-percent and they were 45.4-percent in the faceoff circle.
• Zach Bookman (Syracuse, N.Y.) played in 33 games and led all defensemen with 28 points, four goals and 24 assists. As the team's second leading scorer, Bookman, now a senior, also had 38 blocked shots.
• Top scorers Matt Copponi (7-25--32) and Alex Jefferies (13-10--23) did not return this year. However, sophomore Ty Daneault (Red Deer, Alberta) recorded a goal against Stonehill last week after he posted 13 goals (T-1st) with eight assists for 21 points (fourth) in 2023-24.
• The Warriors returned neither goaltender who played significant minutes last season and the coaching staff started Marquis Spencer against Stonehill, an emergency measure brought on by injuries and suspensions to the team's first, second and third-string goalies prior to the game.
• Spencer had been an equipment intern the day before but still managed 22 saves and three goals against in his collegiate debut.
• He called it a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and last skated for Brunswick High School in 2020.
• Goal scorers against Stonehill included Ty Daneault (Soph., F, Red Deer, Alberta) and Seamus Powell (Soph., D, Marcellus N.Y.)
• Merrimack alum Johnathan Kovacevic was named to the opening night roster for the NHL's New Jersey Devils on Tuesday.

LAST TIME OUT

• Michigan struck first but Minnesota State rallied back with four unanswered goals to defeat the No. 7 Wolverines 5-2 Friday night at Yost Arena. The Mavericks had five different goal scorers and were backstopped by Alex Tracy, who made 32 saves.
• A pair of first period goals proved consequential as No. 7 Michigan outlasted Minnesota State 4-1 on Saturday to even the series.
• Luigi Benincasa redirected a pass for his first goal as a Maverick to cut the deficit to 2-1 in the third period, but the Wolverines sealed victory with a pair of empty net tallies late.
• The Mavericks limited last season's No. 1 ranked power play to 0-6 on the night and outshot Michigan 25-18. 
• The weekend split improved the Mavericks' rank to No. 19 in both USCHO.com and USA Hockey/The Rink Live national polls. The team was receiving votes in both polls in the preseason.
• Luke Ashton (Fr., D, North Vancouver, B.C.), Brian Carrabes (Sr., F, North Reading, Mass.) and Jordan Power (Sr., D, Ottawa, Ontario) lead the team with two points apiece heading back to Mankato.

ASHTON CCHA ROOKIE OF THE WEEK

• Freshman Luke Ashton (North Vancouver, British Columbia) was named the Central Collegiate Hockey Association (CCHA) Rookie of the Week on Monday (Oct. 7). 
• Ashton paced all CCHA rookies with two points last week, scoring his first collegiate goal and assisting on another in a 5-2 victory Friday. 
• Posting a league-best +3 on the weekend, he had seven shots on goal and blocked four on the defensive end of the ice.

BLUEGER READY FOR EIGHTH NHL SEASON

• Former Minnesota State center Teddy Blueger (Riga, Latvia) has been named to the opening night roster for the Vancouver Canucks.
• As a member of the Mavericks, Blueger skated in 155 games over four seasons, with 31 goals, 77 assists and 108 points from 2012-16.
• He has played 336 games in the NHL since 2018-19 with 41 goals, 85 assists and 126 points, along with two playoff goals and four playoff assists.
• He won the Stanley Cup as a member of the Vegas Golden Knights in 2022-23.

THIS WEEK IN THE CCHA

Friday, October 11, 2024

• Northern Michigan at Colorado College
• Lake Superior State at USA Hockey NTDP 7 p.m. ET
• Ferris State at Western Michigan 7 p.m. ET
• Alaska at Michigan Tech 7:07 p.m. ET
• Merrimack at Minnesota State 7:07 p.m. CT
• LIU at Augustana 7:07 p.m. CT
• Vermont at St. Thomas 7:07 p.m. CT
• Bemidji State at St. Cloud State 7:30 p.m. CT

Saturday, October 12, 2024

• Northern Michigan at Colorado College
• Simon Fraser at Lake Superior State 3 p.m. ET
• Alaska at Michigan Tech 6:07 p.m. ET
• St. Cloud State at Bemidji State 6:07 p.m. CT
• Merrimack at Minnesota State 6:07 p.m. CT
• LIU at Augustana 6:07 p.m. CT
• Vermont at St. Thomas 6:07 p.m. CT
• Western Michigan at Ferris State 7:07 p.m. ET

SPECIAL TEAMS REPORT

• MSU was the 30th best team in Division I (fourth in CCHA) last year on the power play (.200) and the 21st best team on the penalty kill (.817), which was second in the CCHA.
• The Mavericks ranked second in the CCHA for fewest penalties per game (3.59). 
• MSU also scored three short-handed goals on the year.
• The Mavericks went 0-7 on the power play at Michigan. However, the team killed five of six penalties.

MIDCO SPORTS PLUS

• Fans can stream all CCHA games live and on-demand, on their home televisions, computers, tablets, and mobile devices via Midco Sports Plus.
• The app is available on mobile/tablet apps (iOS and Android), connected TV device apps (AppleTV, FireTV and Roku) and a web-based browser interface.
• If you have additional questions or want to see more information about coverage or subscriptions, go to MidcoSportsPlus.com.

HOME ICE ADVANCE

• With 17 home games in 2023-24, the Mavericks averaged 4,439 fans for a total of 75,478 through the turnstiles at the Mayo Clinic HSEC, which has served as the home arena for MSU men's hockey since 1994-95.
• MSU went 20-1-0 in home games in 2021-22 and in 31 seasons in downtown Mankato, the team has enjoyed 25 winning years.
• The top attended game at Mayo Clinic HSEC was on Feb. 28, 2015 (5,446).

MAVERICKS ROLL WITH GROLL AS CAPTAIN

• Minnesota State men's hockey named graduate student Josh Groll (San Diego, California) its team captain for the 2024-25 season in an announcement to the locker room on Tuesday (Sept. 10).
• Alternate captains included senior defenseman Jordan Power (Ottawa, Ontario), graduate forward Zack Krajnik (Eagle River, Alaska) and junior defenseman Mason Wheeler (Rosemount, Minnesota).
• Groll is in his fourth season with the Mavericks. In 2021-22, he led the team with 25 blocked shots and posted 12 points.
• Groll registered 11 points the following year and was a Krampade All-American Scholar.
• Last season, he was again a Krampade All-American Scholar and was honored with the Vets Club Hardest Worker Team Award.
• He also posted his best offensive season, with seven goals and 13 assists for 20 points.
• Spent 2020-21 with Michigan (Big 10) where he saw action in two games with the Wolverines.

TRACY BACK IN THE CAGE AS A JUNIOR

• Entering his third year, Tracy ranked seventh in career goals-against average among returning Division I goalies (2.43).
• 2023-24 AHCA Krampade All-American Scholar.
• CCHA Goaltender of the Week (Mar. 11, Oct. 16)
• Played in 30 games, started 28 as sophomore.
• Held 13-10-4 record with a 2.50 goals against and .910 save percentage last year with two shutouts.
• Totaled 12 games as a freshman, splitting with Keenan Rancier. Held 2.24 goals against and .879 save percentage with one shutout. 
• Made 46 saves and allowed four goals in two games at Michigan last weekend for a 2.02 goals against average and .920 save percentage.

PITLICK JOINS MSU HOCKEY LATE SEPTEMBER

• Minnesota State head coach Luke Strand announced senior forward Rhett Pitlick (Plymouth, Minnesota) has enrolled at MSU and joined the men's hockey program on Sept. 19, 2024.
• Pitlick played for the University of Minnesota each of the past three seasons.
• Last season, Pitlick was named All-Big Ten Second Team and tallied 19 goals and 17 assists for a team-high 36 points.
• The Montreal Canadiens selected Pitlick 131st overall in the 2019 National Hockey League Entry Draft.

BENINCASA TRANSFERS TO MINNESOTA STATE

• Minnesota State men's hockey announced the addition of forward Luigi Benincasa on April 23, 2024. Benincasa comes to the Mavericks from Ferris State, where he played 33 games as a freshman for the Bulldogs. 
• Benincasa posted seven goals, 16 assists and 23 points with six penalty minutes and a plus-2 rating last year.
• Prior to college, he played three seasons with the Spruce Grove Fighting Saints in the Alberta Junior Hockey League (AJHL).
• He led the team with 79 points, 48 assists and 31 goals in 2022-23, including nine goals and 16 points in the playoffs.

OTHER TEAM NOTABLES

• MSU is the seventh oldest team in Division I at an average age of 22.7 years.
• The Mavericks have the second largest senior class in Division I (nine players).
• MSU also has the second fewest freshmen (four). 

POLL POSITION

• MSU was ranked No. 19 in the 2024-25 USCHO.com week two men's hockey poll, released this week.
• The Mavericks were ranked as high as No. 19 last season and received votes on 16 occasions.
• The team finished the 2022-23 campaign ranked No. 12 and 2022-23 ranked No. 2.