Articles by Chris Eckes

Minnesota Starts 4-0 for 1st Time Since 14-15 Minneapolis, MN – Normally, Gopher fans have to wait a whole week to see their team take the ice again. 2020 has disrupted everything, included the beloved Friday-Saturday cadence of college hockey. The Minnesota Gophers (4-0-0-0 B1G, 4-0-0 Overall) hosted the Ohio State Buckeyes (0-2-0-0, 0-2-0) in a rare Monday-Tuesday series, just a few days after Minnesota swept Penn State to open the 2020-2021 campaign. The Gophers […]

Key Upperclassmen Power Minnesota to Victories Minneapolis, MN – Cast your minds back, if you will, to late February. After a miserable first half of the season, the Gophers fought back to a 9-2-1 record since the Christmas break and had actually put themselves in position to win the Big Ten regular season title. Then, Penn State came to town, winning 5 of 6 points and securing their own conference title. Minnesota sputtered to the […]

Minneapolis, MN – With their backs to the wall, the Minnesota Golden Gophers won a gritty game Saturday to give themselves a chance. An equally gutsy performance Sunday evening means the Gopher hockey season isn’t quite over yet. Minnesota (16-14-7 overall) beat Notre Dame (15-15-7) 3-2 in a fierce struggle of a game Sunday. With both teams facing elimination, the Gophers showed adversity, scoring three goals in the 2nd period after going down 1-0 and […]

State College, PA – Just one weekend ago, Minnesota fought back from two third-period deficits in South Bend to steal five of six points from Notre Dame. A week later, the tables turned. Despite being vastly outshot and generally outplayed, the Minnesota Golden Gophers (14-12-6 Overall, 9-7-6-4 B1G) found themselves with one-goal third-period leads both Friday and Saturday against the Penn State Nittany Lions (20-10-4, 12-8-4-1). This time, it was the Gophers’ turn to give […]

South Bend, IN – The second half surge continues for the Maroon & Gold. Many viewed the 19-20 campaign as potentially another lost season for the Gophers, especially after a 5-9-4 start. However, the young team started rounding into form after the break, and the Golden Gophers came bursting out of the gates after Christmas, to the tune of a 9-2-1 record. The latest of these solid results are a win and a tie at […]

Minneapolis, MN – For five periods this weekend, it looked as if nothing could stop the Gophers continuing their winning streak. In the third period Saturday, Minnesota did as much to beat themselves as Michigan State did. A sloppy final period of Saturday’s game put a slight tarnish on an otherwise successful weekend, as the Gophers (13-11-4 Overall, 8-6-4-3 B1G) split with Michigan State (14-13-1, 10-7-1). The split moved both teams into a tie for […]

Madison, WI – Just a few short weeks ago, Minnesota was 5-9-4 at the winter break and staring right down the barrel of another lost season. Funny what change a couple weeks can make. The second half surge continued another weekend, as the Gophers (12-10-4 Overall, 7-5-4-3 B1G) went into the Kohl Center and swept the Wisconsin Badgers (10-15-1, 5-12-1-1) behind another 10-goal offensive outburst. Minnesota has now won five straight and is 7-1-0 since […]

Minneapolis, MN – After a rocky start to the first half of the 2019-2020 season, the Gophers may finally be showing some life. Minnesota (10-10-4 Overall, 5-5-4-3 B1G) put itself in the discussion for the Big Ten conference title with emphatic 6-3 and 4-1 wins over the sixth-ranked Ohio State Buckeyes (15-8-3, 8-6-2-0). The biggest issue for the Gophers this season has been scoring goals. That was not the case against typically-stingy Ohio State. Minnesota […]