Do you have a glass half full or half empty view of the Gophers?
The Gophers are 11-4-1 and leading the WCHA with an 8-2-0 record. Most of their fans, asked at the start of the season, would be overjoyed with those records.
But, when a team rises to No. 1 in the country for two weeks, expectations rise. And when a team loses three Fridays in a row -- twice to teams they decisively beat the next night -- the critics come out.
Did the Gophers peak too early? Are they at the start of a downward spiral? Fans have to be a little worried looking back at the past three, four seasons.
Goalie Kent Patterson looked average on Friday in a 4-3 loss at Michigan State. He played better the next night in a 4-4 tie with the Spartans, but going 0-1-1 last weekend doesn't impress voters. The Gophers dropped from No. 3 to No. 5 in USCHO.com's weekly ratings.
Ahead of them are Merrimack (9-0-1), the only unbeaten Division I team remaining, at No. 1. Tied for No. 2 are Boston College (10-4-0) and Notre Dame (10-3-3). And at No. 4 is Minnesota Duluth (9-3-2) which has been on a roll since losing twice to the Gophers.
Besides UMD and the Gophers, the only other WCHA teams in the top 20 are No. 8 Colorado College, No. 10 Denver and No. 20 Michigan Tech.
Michigan State of the CCHA is No. 16 after a win and tie against the Gophers.
