FOX Sports North Midweek Stock Report for Feb. 10
Every Wednesday, FOX Sports North takes a look at which athletes' stock is trending up and whose is trending down.
In other words, who is trending up, like Minnesota Gophers forward Amanda Kessel, and whose stock is way, way down, like Minnesota Wild defenseman Jonas Brodin.
With that in mind, let's "take stock" of the current sports scene in Minnesota.
Amanda Kessel, Gophers forward
Her career may have been in jeopardy just a few months ago, but the University of Minnesota forward is finally back. Kessel was shelved while battling post-concussion symptoms following the 2014 Sochi Olympics, missing the 2014-15 season after sitting out the previous year in order to train and compete with Team USA. The 2013 winner of the Patty Kazmaier Award as the best women's player in college hockey and a silver medalist in Sochi, Kessel notched a pair of assists in the Gophers' road series against WCHA rival North Dakota, and brings yet another offensive weapon to 25-3-1 Minnesota's high-flying attack.
Rachel Banham, Gophers guard
The Minnesota senior matched the NCAA's single-game women's scoring record Sunday, scoring a whopping 60 points to lead the Gophers to a double-overtime win over Northwestern. Banham finished 19 of 32 from the field to tie a record that has stood since 1987, six years before she was born. Banham also moved into 24th on the NCAA's all-time scoring list, and now has 2,773 career points for the Gophers. To top it all off, she got a congratulatory tweet from NBA star Kobe Bryant.
Alex Iafallo, Minnesota Duluth forward
A junior forward for the Bulldogs, Iafallo picked up his first multi-point game of the season Friday, scoring twice to lead UMD to a 5-3 win over NCHC foe Colorado College. The New York native was at it again Saturday, scoring the game-winner in the third period of a 3-2 win. Iafallo chipped in Tuesday as well, notching an assist in a 3-2 loss to nonconference rival Bemidji State, and now has 14 points on the season.
Jonas Brodin, Wild defenseman
The fourth-year defenseman and rumored trade candidate has a minus-1 rating over his last 10 games, as well as just one assist during that span, but his season hit another speed bump Saturday. The Wild announced that Brodin will be out three to six weeks with a foot injury, complicating both Minnesota's defensive corps and its search for scoring talent in the lead-up to the Feb. 29 trade deadline.
Nemanja Bjelica, Timberwolves forward
The Serbian forward was productive in a loss to the Pelicans on Monday, scoring 10 points and grabbing four rebounds despite doing much of his damage with the game out of reach in the fourth quarter, but it's been a rough week for Bjelica otherwise. He was inactive in wins over the Chicago Bulls and the Los Angeles Clippers.
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