Gophers learn from errors; Fasching's blast beats Michigan in OT

Of all the lessons the Gophers have learned this season, Thursday's painful loss to Michigan was one of the most difficult to swallow. Still, Hudson Fasching and his teammates took note of how it felt—and returned Friday determined to set things right.

A day after their third-period meltdown, the Gophers rode a wave of persistence, energy and grit — plus a well-timed goal by Fasching — to beat the No. 6 Wolverines 3-2 in overtime. Fasching hammered home a one-timer from the center point 57 seconds into the extra period, lifting the U back to the top of the Big Ten. The No. 20 Gophers (17-14-0, 12-4-0-0 Big Ten), who were leapfrogged by Michigan after Thursday's 6-2 loss, now lead the Wolverines by one point with four regular-season games remaining.

Friday's rematch at Mariucci Arena began with a hiccup, as Michigan (20-5-5, 10-3-3-2) exploited a Gophers mistake to score the game's first goal. The Gophers' refusal to fold ensured it ended in a frenzied celebration, as his teammates mobbed Fasching along the glass.

"Tonight, we didn't quit on each other,'' Fasching said. "We came together as a team, and it was awesome to see.

"We battled right to the end. We came together instead of falling apart today, and that was huge for us.''

The Gophers were in a foul mood Thursday after losing the conference lead. They allowed four goals in a little more than five minutes in the third period, and defenseman Steve Johnson said the team "gave up" during that span.

He also said it was unacceptable, and the Gophers wanted to prove it Friday. After a film session, they recognized the kind of defensive effort it would take to beat the Wolverines, who had lost only once in their past 15 games. But they also knew they needed to be more aggressive on offense.

"We didn't like our game yesterday,'' said forward Leon Bristedt, whose second-period goal gave the Gophers a 2-1 lead. "This was kind of revenge for us. We wanted to come back.''

Michigan scored first when Gophers defenseman Jack Glover tried to pass the puck out of his zone, and the Wolverines' Justin Selman intercepted it. He sent it to an unguarded Cooper Marody, who beat goalie Eric Schierhorn for a 1-0 Wolverines lead.

A similar mistake put the Gophers behind early in Thursday's game, and they never shook it off. Friday, they dug in, tying the score on Vinni Lettieri's goal at 11 minutes of the first period and taking the lead when Bristedt's throw-in from the blue line bounced past Michigan goalie Steve Racine at 7:17 of the second.

This time, when the Wolverines counterpunched, the Gophers stood their ground. Tyler Motte pulled Michigan even at 17:19 of the second, but the Gophers outshot the Wolverines 12-3 in the third and kept their energy high on the bench and on the ice. They gave good support to Schierhorn, who made several outstanding saves, and steadied themselves late in the game to force overtime.

Connor Reilly's takeaway started the winning play. He got the puck to Tommy Novak, who teed up Fasching for a booming one-timer that buoyed the Gophers' confidence as they enter the final four games of the regular season.

"We've fallen a little bit short in a couple of games, but we've always known it was there,'' Fasching said. "We never gave up on each other. We kept fighting until the end.

"We're in first place, and it feels good. [Thursday] we learned a lesson here. Just keep going.''