You want answers, U.P. edition

From Sam: 1) What did you think of the power play over the weekend? To me it looked great on Friday, but a bit lackluster on Saturday. ... 2) To me, a big part of the problem on Saturday, at least when it came to the power play, was absence of Zach Lehrke. I thought he looked excellent on Friday. Any explanation for him sitting on Saturday, other than to give another player some ice time? ... 3) Will we be seeing Austin Lee in goal on Friday? ... 4) How serious is Evan Mosey's injury?

Sam, the power play did look great Friday. They moved the puck around with ease and had a couple of scoring chances during the 5-minute major. However, they were credited with just three shots on goal during PP time. One of those shots was Mike Dorr's goal. On Saturday, they had eight power plays with 13 shots and no goals but they never really got it set up. I thought the power play in OT was a mess. ... I think you're onto something about Lehrke. He'll be back in the lineup on Friday and, I expect, back on the PP. I like what I saw from him there. As for him sitting on Saturday, I think it was to give John McInnis a chance to play. They need to see everyone early if they can. ... As for the goalies, I would guess both guys get a chance to play but Jutting did not commit to his Friday starter before the team left for Houghton. ... Mosey did not practice this week and is not on the trip. I think they'll take it easy with him and make sure he's 100 percent before getting him back out there. I don't think it's a long-term thing, though.

From Nation: 1) Who are the extra players making the trip to Michigan? ... 2) What do you think of J.P. Burkemper? The coaches seem to be high on him. ... 3) Which rookie did you think played the best or impressed you the most over the weekend?

Nation, the extra guys on the trip are Leivermann and Heath, which means rookie Josh Nelson will play on defense again as he did last Saturday. Nelson is ahead of Heath at that spot because of their junior experience. Nelson played more than 100 junior games over the last two years while injuries limited Heath to just 27 over that same time. ... I wrote a bit about Burkemper on the blog last week. He sure had a nice opening weekend. He probably came in as the least-heralded freshman forward. But he's got good size and can skate. Players were raving about him during captains practices, too. ... I thought all of the freshman had nice moments. Leivermann's goal certainly was impressive. Burkemper made the play to set up Saturday's lone goal.

From hockey25: Do you think the Mavs will have a different offensive strategy this year because of the lack of proven scorers?

hockey25, not really. I think the hope is that the veterans take the next step, players like Galiardi, Dorr, Hayes, Louwerse, Jokinen, Schiller, Zuck. They really like the skills the offensive skills the freshmen bring, and defensemen like Youds, Davis and Mosey can really move the puck up the ice.

From Dan Myers: Are the Mavericks' throwback uniforms going to be a Saturday night staple like last year's or were they a one-time thing?

Dan, based on what I've heard, those will be the Saturday-night jerseys.

From MSUMaverickFan: UAA's star defenseman Kane Lafranchise was recently ruled academically ineligible for the first half of the season. How is this situation different from Matt Lietner's? Is there any hope that he could become eligible for the second half of the season?

MSUMaverickFan, even if they could get Leitner eligible by the semester break, I doubt they'd play him because he can't even practice with the team right now. He wouldn't be ready to play. They're best off letting him get his academics in order and be ready to go next fall. I'm hoping do more on Leitner later this year.

High-scoring Huskies

Michigan Tech -- Minnesota State's opponent this week -- tied Northern Michigan 4-4 on Tuesday night, putting up 53 shots along the way. These don't appear to be your same-old Huskies. They're 2-0-1, having defeated NMU and Lake Superior State last weekend and have 14 goals in three games (4.67 goals per game). Last season, Tech went 5-30-1 for a national-worst .153 winning percentage. They also averaged just 2.06 goals per game.

Senior wing Bennett Royer has four goals and two assists already, while senior defenseman Deron Cousens has six assists, four of which came in Tuesday's game.

Forward Milos Gordic was named WCHA rookie of the week for his play over the weekend. Gordic, who now has three goals and one assist, is considered a freshman as he was granted a medical hardship season after suffering a season-ending injury 10 games into last season.

You want answers?!?! It's a new season

It's time for this season's first installment of You Want Answers, where you ask a question about Minnesota State hockey (or anything else on your mind) and I'll answer. Post your questions on Tuesday and Wednesday (use the comments section on this post), and I'll answer them on Thursday.

Minnesota State 1, St. Lawrence 1 - OT

Minnesota State rookie Chase Grant (20). (Wright Braudt photo)

PucKato's Three Thoughts of the Game

1. Don't speak too soon: So much for praising the Mavericks for scoring goals. On Saturday, they had 38 shots on goal but only ended up with on goal -- and that one had to be jammed during a scramble in front of outstanding freshman goalie Matt Weninger. MSU had eight power plays to mess around with and failed to score, including on a Saints penalty in overtime. There are many new faces on the power play, though, and it might take time for them to jell. The Mavericks had one power-play goal on two chances on Friday, although the first chance was a five-minute major. 

2. Jock jams: Mavericks junior forward Justin Jokinen scored the Mavericks' lone goal and finished the series with two goals and an assist. It's a great start to the year for a player who was a healthy scratch for the last 10 games of last season. He played in 21 games as a sophomore and finished the year with three goals and one assist. Could it be a breakout season for the fourth-round NHL draft pick? "He had a good summer," MSU coach Troy Jutting said. "He was a kid who was young (coming straight to college from high school). He's the same age (now) as our freshmen. It takes a little time. But he's bigger and stronger and has gained some confidence being bigger and stronger."

3. Young fellas: Every freshman skater except defenseman Danny Heath got on the weekend. The only ones who played both games were Chase Grant and J.P. Burkemper. Grant looks the part on the top line, making some nice, smart plays that looked more like a veteran made them than a freshman. Burkemper came to MSU a little under the radar. A 6-3, 190-pound forward who was not a top scorer in junior hockey, one might think he was coming in as a grinder. But he appears to be an excellent skater with skill enough to make the kind of plays that led to MSU's goal. "He's a very good skater, a great skater," Jutting said. "He's got very good skill. He's a little bit younger than the other freshmen. I thought he played very well this weekend."

MSU vs. St. Lawrence, Game 2 live blog

Tonight's lines can be found below the Cover It Live box. A few notes: Austin Lee will get the start in goal for the Mavericks tonight. ... Other lineup changes include Adam Mueller for Corey Leivermann and John McInnis for Zach Lehrke at forward and Josh Nelson for Evan Mosey on defense. Mosey was injured on Friday but the others are believed to be healthy scratches. ... It appears that Matt Weninger will start in goal for the Saints.



MINNESOTA STATE
Chase Grant - Rylan Galiardi - Eriah Hayes
Adam Mueller - Joe Schiller - Andrew Sackrison
Michael Dorr - Mike Louwerse - John McInnis
J.P. Burkemper - Eli Zuck - Justin Jokinen

Tyler Elbrecht - Ben Youds
Channing Boe - Kurt Davis
Cameron Cooper - Josh Nelson

Scratches: Danny Heath, Brett Peterson, Corey Leivermann, Zach Lehrke, Evan Mosey (inj.)

ST. LAWRENCE
Kyle Flanagan - Aaron Bogosian - Sean Flanagan
Max Mobley - Rick Carden - Jacob Drewiske
Greg Carey - Kyle Essery - Jeremy Wick
Mark Armstrong - Nic Vangog - Sean Logue

George Hughes - Peter Child
Justin Baker - Matt Raley
Riley Austin - Matt Dyer

Matt Weninger
Joe Spadaccini
David Grilk

Minnesota State 5, St. Lawrence 5 - OT

Corey Leivermann celebrates after scoring his first college goal Friday night. (Pat Christman photo)

PucKato's Three Thoughts of the Game:

1. Comeback kids?

One game might be too early to make any sweeping statements about a team, but after trailing 4-2 after two periods, the Mavericks came out and dominated the third, scoring two goals in the first 1:38 (Justin Jokinen had a hand in both, scoring the first at 38 second and assisting on Eli Zuck's tying goal a minute later) and taking the lead on Mike Louwerse's goal at the 10:38 mark. The Mavericks outshot the Saints 24-10 in the third period and overtime. 

While Sean Flanagan's goal with 3:54 remaining in regulation forced the tie (it was Flanagan's second goal  and fourth point of the night), the Mavericks showed something they just never did last season. Last year, they were 1-12-0 in games where they trailed after two periods. The lone win was in Game 1 of the WCHA playoffs at St. Cloud State. 

2. It was the best of times, it was the worst of times

That was Corey Leivermann's night in a nutshell. The Mankato native couldn't have had a better start to his career at MSU, batting a loose puck out of the air to score the Mavericks' first goal midway through the first period. But at the end of the second period, he was called for checking from behind, getting a five-minute major and a game misconduct. With Leivermann out of the game, the Saints quickly scored on the major to take their 4-2 lead. 

"It was a rollercoaster ride," Leivermann said. "I went from Cloud 9 to 'What just happened?'"

Said Mavericks coach Troy Jutting: "I thought Corey played a good game while he was in there, but obviously, you've got to be careful (on the checking from behind play). ... But I thought it was a good start for him."

3. What scoring problem?

Offense is the big question mark for the Mavericks this season, but they didn't necessarily show that on Friday. They put 49 shots on net and got goals from five different players: Leivermann, Jokinen, Louwerse, Zuck and Michael Dorr. Jokinen and Dorr also had assists, and Kurt Davis had a two-assist game. Joe Schiler, Andrew Sackrison, Zach Lehrke, Cameron Cooper and Phil Cook also had assists. Lots of guys with points.

Dorr was kicking himself after the game, thinking he could have had four goals. He put two shots off the crossbar and, in overtime, had a prime scoring opportunity barely turned away by the paddle of goalie Robby Moss' goal stick. Had Dorr lifted the puck off the ice, he would have won the game. Dorr was credited with seven shots on goal.

On the flip side, the Mavericks have to shore up their penalty kill, as St. Lawrence was 3 for 6 and had 14 of its 31 shots during the man advantage.

Notes: Mavericks sophomore defenseman Evan Mosey suffered upper-body injury in the first period and did not return to the game. ... St. Lawrence's Sean Flanagan finished the game with two goals and two assists. ...  Read The Free Press game story.

Minnesota State vs. St. Lawrence live blog

Tonight's lines and officials can be found below the live blog (starters in bold). ... A good primer on this year's new hockey rules can be found here (pdf). ... A reminder about some number changes: Mike Louwerse wears No. 9 now, while Michael Dorr wears No. 23.



MINNESOTA STATE
Chase Grant - Rylan Galiardi - Eriah Hayes
Michael Dorr - Mike Louwerse - Zach Lehrke
Andrew Sackrison - Joe Schiller - Corey Leivermann
J.P. Burkemper - Eli Zuck - Justin Jokinen

Tyler Elbrecht - Ben Youds
Channing Boe - Kurt Davis
Cameron Cooper - Evan Mosey

Phil Cook
Austin Lee
Evan Karambelas

Scratches: Adam Mueller, John McInnis, Brett Peterson, Danny Heath, Josh Nelson

ST. LAWRENCE
Kyle Flanagan - Aaron Bogosian - Sean Flanagan
Nick Pitsikoulis - Mark Armstrong - Jared Keller
Max Mobley - Rick Carden - Jacob Drewiske
Greg Carey - Kyle Essery - Jeremy Wick

George Hughes - Peter Child
Jordan Dewey - Matt Raley
Justin Baker - Pat Raley

Robby Moss
Matt Weninger
Joe Spadaccini

OFFICIALS
Referees: Todd Anderson, Jon Campion. Linesmen: Matt Anderson, Jerome Krieger