Gophers Explode for Four Third Period Goals, Beat North Dakota 5-3

Minnesota erased its early season frustrations with a four goal third period Thursday night, defeating No. 3 North Dakota 5-3 in front of a sold out crowd of 10,566 at 3M Arena at Mariucci. The victory was the first for head coach Brett Larson behind the Gopher bench.

After Tanner Henricks gave Minnesota a 1-0 lead late in the first period, North Dakota answered in the second to send the teams into the final 20 minutes tied.

Christian Humphreys changed the game in a hurry. He scored at 2:02 of the third period, and Jacob Kvasnicka followed just 65 seconds later to give Minnesota a 3-1 advantage. Humphreys added his second goal of the night on the power play, stretching the lead to 4-1.

North Dakota didn’t go quietly, scoring twice to pull within one. Goaltender Luca Di Pasquo made several important saves down the stretch, and Beckett Hendrickson sealed the victory with an empty-net goal with 1:04 remaining.

Humphreys’ two goal performance was particularly notable given his coach’s assessment after the game. During the postgame scrum, I asked Brett Larson about Humphreys appearing to be in the doghouse during the second period before redeeming himself.

“I just told him in the locker room I said good thing you scored that goal. You just got yourself back in the lineup because it was 50/50 whether I was putting his name in the scorecard after that penalty.”

Brett larson

It was an honest assessment from Larson, who made it clear that one strong offensive performance doesn’t erase the need for discipline. Humphreys responded when Minnesota needed him most, scoring twice in a span of less than three minutes to help turn a tied game into a commanding lead.

Kvasnicka’s goal proved to be the game winner, while Henricks scored his first goal as a Gopher. Mason Moe and Evan Murr each recorded two assists. Minnesota outshot North Dakota 35-24 and killed four of the Fighting Hawks’ five power plays.

The win moves Minnesota to 1-3-1 on the season, while North Dakota falls to 4-1-0. The teams meet again Friday night at Mariucci, with a 6 p.m. start.

For the Gophers, the challenge now is to build on a third period that showed what their offense can do and make sure Thursday’s breakthrough wasn’t a one night performance.

Post Game Media Scrum: Brett Larson, Evan Murr and Christian Humphreys