MANKATO — The Minnesota State men’s hockey team’s loss on Friday night at Michigan Tech was such a low spot for this season that the Mavericks had no choice but to hit their virtual reset button.
That was the talk, anyway, in the bowels of the MacInnes Student Ice Center on Saturday night in Houghton, Mich., after Minnesota State won 3-2 to break a five-game losing streak and salvage a series split against the Huskies.
That button can’t erase the first four months of the college-hockey season from the record books, but it can attempt to change the focus — and maybe even the identity — of a team that’s wondering how it ended up near the bottom of the Western Collegiate Hockey Association standings.
“We’re starting from scratch,” Kael Mouillierat said.
“We’re wiping the slate clean,” Rylan Galiardi added.
“We’re oh and oh (0-0),” coach Troy Jutting said.
What the Mavericks seem to be doing is all but conceding a top-five finish in the WCHA standings to the teams still in the hunt for home ice.
Currently, just three points separate the first five teams in the conference, and that group is starting to break away from the rest of the pack.
Minnesota State is 6-13-1 in league play and 12 points out of fifth place. The Mavericks are currently in ninth place with eight games to play before the first round of the conference playoffs begins in March.
After getting this weekend off, they will go to Wisconsin, the nation’s third-ranked team, and then host eighth-place Alaska-Anchorage and national No. 2 Denver before closing out with a home-and-home series against No. 4 St. Cloud State.
“We want to be firing on all cylinders by the time we get to the playoffs,” said Mouillierat, who scored his third game-winning goal of the season on Saturday night.
If the Mavericks aren’t shooting for fifth place or better anymore, they are shooting for a strong finish and some momentum going into a tournament that gives even Michigan Tech a chance. Minnesota Duluth did that last year, finishing seventh in the league before pulling off a string of upsets en route to an improbable run to a Final Five championship and a berth into the NCAA tournament.
“I told the guys (before Saturday’s game), ‘We’re oh and oh and have nine games to play. Then we’ve got the playoffs after that,’” Jutting said. “Our goal is to play in Game 13. Game 13 gets us to the (Final Five).”
Can the Mavericks just flip a switch and become something they haven’t been?
They’re a veteran team that, more often than not, plays hard and has gotten solid goaltending and defensive play. But they’re also a team that can’t seem to score, even with wide-open nets to tap into. Even in Saturday’s victory, scoring those goals remained such an issue, as the Mavericks fired a season-high total of 45 shots on goal.
“We know we have a good team,” Galiardi said. “We’ve got to start proving it.”
Shane Frederick is a Free Press staff writer. Read his blog at www.mankatofreepress.com/hockeyblog.
Sports
Related Photos
-
frederick, shane.jpg
Mavs hope win sparks late-season playoff run
- Sports
-
-
Mavericks defeat Alaska Anchorage
Minnesota State stayed ahead of Alaska Anchorage in the WCHA standings with a 3-2 win on Friday night.
-
FBA nips Loyola in overtime
Sam Jensen's free throws in final seconds lift Faribault Bethlehem Academy to 54-53 overtime victory over Mankato Loyola in boys basketball Friday.
-
Gustavus hockey team ties but loses big point
Gustavus was 15.4 seconds away from winning and getting an extra, important point for the MIAC standings. But the St. Mary's Nick Gorup scored a rebound goal on a flurry in front of goalie John McLean to force overtime and the two teams ended up tied.
-
East girls rout Albert Lea
Seniors Ries, Crawford provide the punch
-
Courrier: Mavericks roster due for an offseason shakeup
-
College Basketball Notebook: Zach Romashko's improvement a bright spot for Minnesota State men's basketball
Freshman power forward producing more since break
-
College Hockey Gameday: Minnesota State at Alaska Anchorage
The Mavericks (10-19-1, 6-15-1 in WCHA) will head north to take on the Seawolves (7-17-2, 4-17-1). It will be the second meeting of the year between the two teams.
-
Prep Basketball Notebook: Siemers has memorable game
Minnesota Valley Lutheran's Nate Siemers had a big night Monday in a 70-60 win over Sleepy Eye.
-
Hockey Notebook: Moe still getting after it
Former Gustavus Adolphus College women's hockey standout Sarah Moe is still playing competitively at the age of 31.
-
West duo’s final performance at MSU as Kenny & Shorty
Former Mankato West standouts Kenra Huettl and Amanda Umhoefer enter their final seasons of collegiate softball at Minnesota State University.
- More Sports Headlines
-
