How good a tune-up were Mercyhurst, New Hampshire and Bemidji State? The Gophers will find out this weekend when eastern power Boston College comes to town, fresh from a boost in the rankings and still, no doubt, smarting from a drubbing at Mariucci Arena last winter.
The Gophers are ranked #1 in the new USCHO and USA Today polls, up from #5 last week. The Eagles, who were ranked #9 before drubbing Wisconsin last weekend, are the new unanimous #5.
Minnesota has won its first four games. The Gophers, who had been ranked #2, swept Bemidji State up in Paul Bunyan Country over the weekend, 6-3 and 6-1.
The teams play Friday night and Sunday afternoon. We’ll have the Sunday game only on FSN at 12:30 CDT for Gophers Live with play-by-play at 1:00.
Bitter Memories For the Eagles: BC, of course, is not happy after its upset loss to Minnesota in Minneapolis last December. Then, the short-handed Eagles – who were without, among others, their top scorer, Johnny Gaudreau – were handled by the Gophers 8-1. The Maroon and Gold was paced by two-goal nights from Kyle Rau and Nick Bjugstad.
Bashing Bucky: The Eagles are coming off a 9-2 whacking of then-#2 Wisconsin last Saturday on Jerry York Night in Boston. Gaudreau, who’s now a junior and is off to a torrid start, scored a goal and an assist and became BC’s newest 100-point scorer.
Join DOUG McLEOD, former Gopher stars CASEY HANKINSON and BEN CLYMER and the rest of the Fox Sports North crew for live coverage of the Gophers-Boston College tilt Sunday beginning at 12:30 CDT on FSN.
