Before taking the opening faceoff at the start of Friday's home game against Penn State, Gophers captain Justin Kloos gave Taylor Cammarata a stick tap on his skates for the first time in a long time.
The two junior forwards had spent their first two seasons on the same line. This year they were kept apart, only occasionally sharing shifts until a shuffling of the Gophers' top three forward lines midweek placed the duo back together with freshman Tyler Sheehy.
The time apart didn't destroy their chemistry.
Cammarata, who entered the game with only eight points in 25 games, responded to a new role with his best performance of the season.
The Plymouth native finished with eight shots on net, scoring the go-ahead goal late in the first period and adding an assist in a 4-1 victory at Mariucci Arena. The victory put the Gophers nine points ahead of the third-place Nittany Lions.
The victory, coupled with Michigan's 3-2 overtime loss to Michigan State, also gave the Gophers sole possession of first place in the Big Ten race.
"It gave me a little more confidence coming into this game," Cammarata said, referring to the line change, "and obviously I felt more energy coming into the game."
He wasn't alone. Sophomore Leon Bristedt also had a goal, his 13th of the season, and an assist playing on his new line with Vinni Lettieri and Brent Gates Jr.