Minnesota State leave for Worcester, Mass., today (Thursday) as it prepares for the NCAA Northeast Regional. The Mavericks will practice at the DCU Center on Friday afternoon and will play UMass-Lowell at 6:30 p.m. (CDT) on Saturday, following the Boston College-Denver game.
This won't be the first time MSU and Lowell have met in the national tournament. You have to go back 30 years, however, to the schools' Division II era when they met three times in the final four.
The two teams have undergone transformations in recent years to get to the top of their respective conferences and onto the national stage — Lowell under Norm Bazin over the last three years and MSU under Mike Hastings over the last two.
Some more about the River Hawks ... goalie Connor Hellebuyck is, statistically, the best goaltender in the country but he did not land a spot on the Hobey Baker top 10. Three other goalies did. Read more about that snub and other notes from Barry Scanlon of the Lowell Sun.
The runaway favorite for the Hobey is Boston College's Johnny Gaudreau, who leads the nation in goals and points (he has 69 points, 12 more than the next player). The junior forward was featured in the New York Times this week.
It might be strange to think that Denver slipped into the NCAA tournament, needing to win the NCHC tournament to get there. But now that the Pioneers are in, they look like they're peaking at the right time.
If anyone from Mankato is going to Worcester for the games this weekend drop me a line at sfrederick@mankatofreepress.com. I'm hoping to do a story on weary travelers while I'm out there.
No comments:
Post a Comment