MANKATO, Minn. - The Beavers are back in town as Minnesota State men's hockey hosts the CCHA Mason Cup Semifinals on Saturday, March 15 at 7:07 p.m. CT. The top-seeded Mavericks swept Lake Superior State 4-1 Friday and 3-2 Saturday in the quarterfinals to extend their playoff run while seventh-seeded Bemidji State came from behind to defeat Augustana in Sunday's decider 3-2 in overtime on the road.

MSU, winner of two Mason Cup titles would host the conference tournament championship with a win on Saturday. Already, the Mavericks took back the MacNaughton Cup from the Beavers. Now they hope to end BSU's season at Mayo Clinic Health System Event Center. The Purple and Gold are unbeaten over their last nine outings and 2-1-1 against BSU in 2024-25. The in-state rivalry stretches back more than 50 years.

ALL TIME SERIES

• Minnesota State holds a narrow lead 69-64-17 all-time against Bemidji State.
• While MSU holds the regular season edge this year, BSU shutout the Mavericks twice at Sanford Center at the end of the regular season in 2023-24 to hoist the MacNaughton Cup.
• MSU is 4-5-1 over their previous ten meetings.

TEAM COMPARISON

Minnesota State		Bemidji State
47.4% (53rd)	Faceoff Percentage	48.8% (39th)
20.4% (31st)	Power Play Percentage	24.8% (11th)
1.50 (1st)	Opponent Goals	2.97 (39th)
+1.39 (6th)	Scoring Margin	-0.46 (41st)
74% (T-4th)	Winning Percentage	47% (36th)
2.89 (29th)	Scoring Offense	2.51 (47th)
85% (8th)	Penalty Kill	77.2% (47th)

TURN THE DIAL

• AM 1420 KTOE
• Stream/TV: Midco Sports Plus
• Live Stats: msumavericks.com

FOR CONTEXT

• With the wins over Lake Superior State, the Mavericks are now 5-0 in CCHA quarterfinal series.
• MSU's first round success stems from 2016 (if you include the former WCHA). The Mavericks' last CCHA Mason Cup Championship came in 2022-23 in Mankato against Northern Michigan (W, 2-1 OT).
• Current graduate senior Zach Krajnik was the hero in overtime for the Mavericks.
• Other current Mavericks to play in that game and lift the Mason Cup include Mason Wheeler, Campbell Cichosz, Adam Eisele, Will Hillman and Steven Bellini.
• MSU's first Mason Cup Championship came in 2021-22, also the last postseason meeting against Bemidji State (W, 2-1 OT).
• The win tied the school record for consecutive victories (15) and featured a memorable overtime goal review which sent teams back to the benches after an ice resurfacing

LAST YEAR: MAVERICKS FALL TO HUSKIES IN CCHA SEMIFINALS

• Scoring on a third-period penalty shot and again on a deflection in the crease with nine seconds left in regulation, Michigan Tech completed its comeback and defeated Minnesota State 4-3 in the CCHA Semifinal game on March 16, ending MSU's postseason at John MacInnes Student Ice Arena in Houghton, Michigan.
• The Mavericks outshot the Huskies 38-32 and marked the final games in a Maverick sweater for first-line senior forwards Sam Morton and Lucas Sowder.
• Adam Eisele, Will Hillman and Sowder scored goals while Brandon Koch recorded three blocked shots. Logan Pietila was credited with the game-winner after the puck sailed back into the crease off the end glass and deflected off an MSU defender with 9.1 ticks left

TRACKING TRACY

• Tracy (Chicago, Illinois) played in 25 of Minnesota State's 26 conference games, going 17-5-3 with a 1.43 goals-against average and a .947 save percentage, which all led the league. He turned away 640 shots in 1514:48 minutes, picking up two shutouts. Overall, he is 24-8-3 with a 1.45 goals-against average and a .944 save percentage, with four shutouts.
• A two-time CCHA and national Goaltender of the Month, he currently leads the nation in wins, GAA, SV% and is a Semifinalist for the Mike Richter Award.
• He is a finalist for CCHA Goaltender of the Year.

PITLICK POSTS POINTS

• Rhett Pitlick (Plymouth, Minnesota) produced a CCHA-best 30 points on 10 goals and 20 assists in 26 league contests, posting a +22 rating, with 68 shots and 12 blocks defensively. He collected two power-play markers and two game-winners in conference play.
• Overall, he has 13 goals and 24 assists for 37 points, including five game-winning goals, which rank 10th nationally.
• He earned CCHA Forward of the Month honors in October. He is a finalist for CCHA Forward of the Year.

MURR CONTINUES SECOND HALF SURGE

• Evan Murr (Stillwater, Minnesota) paced CCHA blueliners with 22 points in 26 CCHA games, scoring five goals with 17 assists. Amassing a +11 rating, he recorded 53 shots and 23 blocks defensive, with four power play tallies and one game-winner.
• He notched six multi-point games in conference play was assessed only three minor penalties.
• Overall, he has six goals and 19 assists for 25 points.
• Murr is a finalist for CCHA Defenseman of the Year. He was named Second Team All-CCHA and All-Rookie CCHA as a freshman in 2023-24.

KRAJNIK NAMED DEFENSIVE FORWARD OF THE YEAR FINALIST

• Zach Krajnik (Eagle River, Alaska) has skated in 34 games at wing this season and has one goal and six assists for seven points.
• With the Mavericks since 2021-22, Krajnik has dressed for 121 games in Purple and Gold with eight goals, 24 assists and 32 points.
• He memorably scored an overtime game-winning goal in the 2022-23 CCHA Championship against Northern Michigan.
• This year, Krajnik scored at Michigan Tech on Nov. 23 in a 3-1 win. He also posted two assists at Ferris State on Jan. 25. Krajnik has 13 blocked shots, six penalty minutes and 46 shots on goal.
• Other Defensive Forward of the Year Finalists include Ben Doran (Bowling Green) and Jackson Jutting (Bemidji State). 

LAST TIME OUT 

• Minnesota State used its roster depth to sweep Lake Superior State with a 3-2 win Saturday night in the CCHA Mason Cup quarterfinals.
• It was the ninth straight quarterfinal series sweep for the Mavericks after a 4-1 victory Friday at Mayo Clinic Health System Event Center.
• Evan Murr helped the Mavericks take a 3-2 lead at 6:04, striding into the top of the circle and firing one high to the blocker side.
• Brian Carrabes picked up the primary assist. The Mavericks held off the Lakers with the net empty late.
• Junior goaltender Alex Tracy made 20 saves for the Mavericks to collect his 24th win.

SCOUTING BEMIDJI STATE

• The Beavers at 6-1-1 over their past eight games and will be hungry for Mason Cup glory after falling 2-1 to Michigan Tech in the title game a year ago, missing out on the NCAA Tournament as a result.
• Following a 3-1 loss Friday night in Sioux Falls, the Beavers bounced back for a 4-3 victory Saturday with four different scorers.
• Jackson Jutting posted one goal and one assist and Vince Corcoran collected two assists for his second career multi-assist effort.
• Mattias Sholl earned his seventh career playoff victory, stopping 23-of-26 shots. It took overtime for BSU to prevail 3-2 on Sunday.
• Adam Flammang scored 4:13 into the extra session and the Beavers trailed 2-1 with 6:19 to play in regulation.
• Sholl was dominant in goal with 41 saves, the most saves in a BSU playoff game since 2015. It was tied for the fourth most saves by a BSU goaltender in the playoffs in the Division I Era.
• Flammang finished with one goal and one assist. Jutting scored on the power play.
• Jackson Jutting (Savage, Minn.) was named CCHA Defensive Forward of the Year this week for the second year in a row.
• He has 10 goals and six assists for 16 points in 26 conference games.
• He also had 81 shots on goal, 12 blocked shots and won 313 draws (52-percent). Overall, he has 14 goals and eight assists for 22 points in 37 games.
• Isa Parekh (Nobleton, Ontario) was named to the CCHA All-Rookie Team. He has appeared in 25 of 26 conference games, scoring two goals with 14 assists.
• He also posted a +1 rating with 26 shots on goal and 12 blocks.
• Sholl (Hermonsa Beach, Calif.) was the CCHA Preseason Goaltender of the Year and CCHA Goaltender of the Week on Nov. 18.
• The fifth-year senior holds a .898 save percentage (12th in CCHA) and 2.80 goals against average (eighth in CCHA) in 36 games for the Beavers (including two shutouts).

CCHA SEMIFINALS

Saturday, March 12, 2025

• Bowling Green at St. Thomas 4:07 p.m. CT
• Bemidji State at Minnesota State 7:07 p.m. CT

2024-25 TEAM LEADERS

• Goals Josh Groll/Rhett Pitlick (13)
• Assists Rhett Pitlick (24)
• Points Rhett Pitlick (37)
• Shots Rhett Pitlick (90)
• Plus/Minus Rhett Pitlick (+28)
• Blocks Mason Wheeler (60)
• Minutes Played Alex Tracy (2109:51)
• Saves Alex Tracy (862)
• Save Percentage . Alex Tracy (.944)
• GAA Alex Tracy (1.45)
• Games Played Alex Tracy (35)
• Wins Alex Tracy (24)
• Shutouts Alex Tracy (4)

HISTORY OF THE MASON CUP

• The Mason Cup is awarded to the champion of the CCHA Tournament and was awarded until 2001, until the original CCHA folded at the end of the 2012-13 season. 
• The CCHA was revived in 2020 by seven schools which left the WCHA.
• The cup was created in honor of Ron Mason, who coached three different CCHA teams but is most remembered for his time at Michigan State. Mason ended his coaching career in 2002 and, at the time of his retirement, was the winningest coach in NCAA history with 924 victories.
• The Mavericks have won the Mason Cup twice. 

DEFENSE PREVAILS

• The Mavericks allow the fewest goals per game to opponents (1.50) in Division I ahead of Boston College (1.71), Maine (1.88) and Michigan State (2.06).
• MSU has allowed four goals to an opponent only once in 2024-25, October 5 at No. 7 Michigan.

HEADED TO THE POLLS

• Minnesota State men's hockey was ranked No. 15 by USCHO.com and No. 16 by USA Hockey/The Rink Live in this week's national Division I polls.
• The Mavericks (25-8-3) also improved to No. 15 in the pairwise rankings after sweeping Lake Superior State in the CCHA Mason Cup quarterfinals over the weekend.
• Boston College (26-6-2) stayed in the top slot in both rankings polls, followed by Michigan State (24-6-3) and Western Michigan (26-7-1).

SPECIAL TEAMS REPORT

• The Mavericks are 20-98 (.204) on the power play this season and scored two power play goals in the final two games of the regular season vs. Bemidji State. MSU did not score a power play goal against Lake Superior State in the CCHA quarterfinal series.
• Rhett Pitlick posted MSU's first power play goal of the season in the first period against Merrimack College (Oct. 11), assisted by Josh Groll and Evan Murr.
• MSU scored four power play goals at Northern Michigan in a series (most against any opponent this season).
• The Mavericks have killed 85-100 penalties. 
• 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), second in the CCHA.
• The Mavericks ranked third in the CCHA for fewest penalties per game (3.59) last year. They are currently taking 3.5 penalties per game, with eight major penalties.

MANKATO CHOSEN TO HOST WORLD JUNIORS

• Mankato has been named as one of Minnesota's host communities for the World Juniors Pre-Tournament Series presented by Delta Dental of Minnesota. Several exhibition games will be played throughout Minnesota as part of the exciting lead up to the 2026 International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) World Junior Championship which will take place Dec. 26, 2025 - Jan. 5, 2026, in the Twin Cities of Saint Paul and Minneapolis.
• Details regarding pre-tournament game schedules in Mankato, ticketing information, and related events will be released in the coming months.

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). 

MAVERICK HOCKEY HISTORY

• In its 56th year of existence, Minnesota State owns an all-time record of 1052-697-163 (.602).
• The Mavericks are in their 26th year as members of NCAA Division I and their fourth season as members of the CCHA.