Youth served No. 19 Minnesota well on Friday night, as the Gophers shut out visiting Northeastern 4-0 at Mariucci Arena, in nonconference men's hockey action.
Eric Schierhorn made several key saves to guide the Gophers to victory, as the freshman netminder recorded 23 stops. The Anchorage, Alaska native saw his save percentage improve to .932 with the win.
Minnesota (1-2-0 overall) also got stellar efforts from fellow youngsters Tommy Novak, Jack Glover and Tyler Sheehy, as all three scored goals. Additionally, Jack Sadek tallied his first career point with an assist in his collegiate debut.
The Gophers scored three times in the opening period to seize early control.
In addition to his first goal as a Gopher, Novak ended a 12 power-play drought to start the season when he knocked in a loose puck at 6:48 of the first on Minnesota's first advantage of the night. Justin Kloos and Michael Brodzinski assisted on the play.
The hosts never relinquished control from that point forward.
Northeastern fell to 1-3-0 overall with its loss.
The Gophers outshot the Huskies 26-23 on the night, marking the first time this season that Minnesota outshot its opponent.
Minnesota and Northeastern return to battle on Saturday night at 8:05 p.m., in a game set to be televised on FOX Sports North.
