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Writer's pictureBrenden Duffy

Notre Dame vs Minnesota: Series Recap

Notre Dame Hockey hosted the number four-ranked Minnesota Golden Gophers this weekend in South Bend. The Irish, 5-7-0 on the year, entered the series on a five-game skid. Minnesota, 10-2-0 on the year, is coming off their second loss of the season after splitting their series at Bemidji State. We have your recap of the weekend series here:

Photo by The Irish Tribune


Friday Result: 6-3, Loss


The Irish were outmatched on Friday night and did not do themselves any favors throughout the game. Things started well for Notre Dame, however, this game was out of hand by the end of the second period.


Notre Dame got the scoring started under three minutes into the game when forward Hunter Strand lit the lamp off an assist from Blake Biondi. The contest-opening goal was Strand’s third of the season. 


Minnesota tied the game up six and a half minutes into the first period when the Gophers’ Brady Lamb snuck one past Irish goalie Owen Say. 


The Gophers took the lead under a minute into the second period when they connected on a successful power play opportunity to put them ahead 2-1. Minnesota would maintain the lead for the rest of the game. They notched another goal about 14 minutes later to extend their lead to 3-1. 


The Irish were able to respond three minutes later when forward Jack Larrigan scored his first collegiate goal to bring the game within one score. Larrigan’s goal was assisted by Carter Slaggert, his first point of the season, and defenseman Ryan Helliwell. 


Under a minute after this score, Irish forward Justin Janicke delivered a dirty, illegal knee-to-knee collision that killed any momentum Notre Dame had following the goal. The Irish were given a five-minute major penalty while Janicke was ejected from the contest. 


Minnesota capitalized on this mistake big-time, scoring twice during the five-minute penalty to extend their lead to 5-2, essentially putting the game out of reach with under a period remaining in the contest. 


With about four minutes remaining in the game, Biondi capitalized on an Irish power play opportunity to make the score 5-3. His fourth of the season came via assists from forwards Cole Knuble, his team-leading eighth of the season, and Danny Nelson.


Minnesota added their sixth goal of the night on an empty-netter. 


Key Players:

Blake Biondi (ND): 1 goal on 2 shots, 1 assist, +1

Sam Rinzel (MIN): 2 goals on 4 shots, 3 blocked shots

Aaron Huglen (MIN): 1 goal on 3 shots, 1 assist, 4 blocked shots, +1

Oliver Moore (MIN): 1 goal on 7 shots, 1 assist, +2


Key Stats:

Shots: MIN (38) - ND (28)

Power Play Success: MIN (3-5) - ND (1-3)

Penalty Minutes: ND (21) - MIN (6)

Faceoffs Won: ND (40) - MIN (29)



Saturday Result: 5-3, Loss


Notre Dame’s losing streak hit seven after Saturday’s loss. The Irish were very competitive for about 50 minutes, but two late Minnesota goals would end up putting this game away. Notably, Notre Dame was without assistant captain Janicke, serving a one-game suspension for his illegal hit on Friday.  


Like Friday, Notre Dame notched the first goal of the evening. Defenseman Axel Kumlin went top-shelf to give the Irish an early 1-0 advantage. Kumlin’s third goal of the season came off nice set-up assists from defenseman Paul Fischer and forward Brennan Ali. 


Also similar to Friday, Minnesota responded with three consecutive goals of their own. Moore added his second goal of the series, and fourth of the season, off a tipped shot that snuck past Irish goalie Nicholas Kempf. 


The Gophers took the lead when Jimmy Snuggerud converted a power play chance under two minutes into the second period. Snuggerud was not done as he put home another shot past Kempf about seven minutes later to give Minnesota a 3-1 lead halfway through the game. 


Notre Dame would respond about 15 minutes into the period when Danny Nelson buried Kumlin’s assist past the Minnesota goalie. Ali was also awarded an assist on Nelson’s team-leading sixth goal of the season. This marked the second point of the night for both Kumlin and Ali. They were not finished either…


With under a minute remaining in the second, the power play unit consisting of Ali, Kumlin, and Fischer struck again to even the game up at 3-3 heading into the final period. Great passing from the defensive duo of Kumlin and Fischer led to Ali’s fourth goal of the season. 


A hard-fought, defensive third period for both teams lasted until about 13 minutes into the frame. Minnesota netted the eventual game-winner past a lost Nicholas Kempf. The Gophers added their fifth goal on an empty net with about ten seconds remaining in the game. 


Key Players:

Jimmy Snuggerud (MIN): 2 goals on 4 shots, 1 assist, +1

Axel Kumlin (ND): 1 goal on 2 shots, 2 assists, 2 blocked shots

Brennan Ali (ND): 1 goal on 2 shots, 2 assists

Brodie Ziemer (MIN): 1 goal on 7 shots, 1 assist, +1


Key Stats:

Shots: MIN (39) - ND (23)

Power Play Success: ND (2-2) - MIN (1-6)

Penalty Minutes: ND (12) - MIN (6)

Faceoffs Won: ND (38) - MIN (33)


The Irish, 5-9-0, look to get their season back on track with a trip to Northern Ireland next week for the 2024 Friendship Four.


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