NO. 1 GOPHERS vs. NO. 15 NOTRE DAME
7 p.m. Friday and 4 p.m. Sunday at Mariucci Arena
TV/radio/live stream: BTN on Friday and ESPNU on Sunday; 1500-AM both nights; BTN2Go on Friday and ESPN3/WatchESPN on Sunday.
Gophers at a glance: The Gophers (5-1) are banged up heading into the second month of the season. Senior forward Travis Boyd will miss a month and junior forward Brady Skjei at least two weeks after the pair suffered lower-body injuries last weekend against St. Cloud State. Even senior captain Kyle Rau was nursing an upper-body injury throughout the week, but he'll play. The Gophers used the week of practice to restructure their power-play and penalty-kill units without Boyd and Skjei. They will rely heavily on the team's young talent and freshman defensemen Ryan Collins, Jack Glover and Steve Johnson to shut down one of the best offenses in college hockey.
Irish at a glance: Notre Dame (5-2-1, 1-0-1 Hockey East) is arguably one of the hottest teams entering November. The Irish are unbeaten over their past six games and won five in a row before last Saturday's tie with No. 14 Vermont. They are averaging nearly five goals per game during this stretch. The Irish were 0-2 as host of the season-opening Ice Breaker Tournament that the Gophers won. Junior forward Mario Lucia, son of Gophers coach Don Lucia, has played a big role in Notre Dame's turnaround. Lucia was named the Hockey East Player of the Month after scoring seven goals with two assists through seven games in October. The run included a hat trick and a game-winning goal. Don Lucia said if the Gophers can keep his son from scoring the Gophers should have a successful weekend.
TV note: The "Power 5" matchup of Minnesota and Notre Dame means a pair of national broadcasts this weekend at Mariucci Arena. The Big Ten Network will air Friday's game. John Buccigross and Barry Melrose will call the game for ESPNU on Sunday.
JASON GONZALEZ
