Sometimes you have to report what will not happen.

It's not a big surprise, but the Gophers won't be playing Notre Dame outdoors this season.

Nope, the Irish and the Gophers will meet on Saturday, Jan. 8 in the Hall of Fame game within the cozy confines of Mariucci Arena instead of across the street at TCF Bank Stadium.

Gophers coach Don Lucia said it was always AD Joel Maturi and the administration's call. Obviously, it's a risky financial call. Will Minnesotans flock to the Bank in January for a Gophers vs. Notre Dame game?

Also Wednesday, a U spokesperson said Chris Rial won't be playing for the Gophers this season.

Rial, a 6-5, 205-pound defenseman, played for Kenai River of the NAHL. He made an official visit to the U in February. A story on the NAHL's web site on March 26 quotes Rial as saying he had committed to the U for the 2012-13 season.

Hmm. The Gophers can't comment on recruits until they sign and Rial never did. One possible scenario is the U offered him only a small scholarship or wanted him to walk on and he got a better deal elsewhere. Trying to check with the Brown Bears, his team.

Even without Rial, the Gophers still have eight defensemen so they should be OK. Here are what the pairings could be:

Left defense right defense

1st Ben Marshall, 5-10, 166, fr. Mark Alt, 6-3, 195, so.

2nd Seth Helgeson, 6-5,220, jr. Justin Holl, 6-2, 180, so.

3rd Nate Schmidt, 5-11, 200, so. Blake Thompson, 6-3, 220, fr.

4th Jake Parenteau, 5-10, 190, so. Chris Student, 5-9, 170, so.

Usually six D-men play per game, so Gophers could survive one or two injuries.

HALFWAY THROUGH GOPHERS CAMP

This is the week for the annual Gophers' MODEL camp, in its 25th year, at Mariucci and Ridder arenas.

The six-day camp runs throught Saturday and players are split among 10 teams. Each team plays five games. NHL scouts and college coaches often come to watch.

Among the players at this year's camp is Mario Lucia, the son of Gophers coach Don Lucia. Mario was at the NHL combine in Toronto last month and is expected to be an early second round pick in the NHL draft on June 24-25 at the X.

In his team's first two games, Lucia, who as a junior played for Wayzata last season, has four goals and five assists for nine points. Lucia, 17, is listed at 6-2 1/2, 189 pounds. He is a winger.

Two players who have committed to the Gophers are also in the camp, run by Don Lucia and his two assists, John Hill and Grant Potulny. They are defenseman Mike Reilly of Shattuck-St. Mary's and forward Justin Kloos of Lakeville South. Both will be high school seniors in the 2011-12 season, so the earliest they would become Gophers is the fall of 2012.

The rosters are filled with players who have names most Minnesota hockey fans will easily recognize:

* Tyler Leddy, 6-0, 168, D-man, Eden Prairie, 16, class of 2013. ... Nick's younger brother

* Hudson Fasching, Apple Valley, F, 6-2, 201, 15, 2013 ... committed to U.S. nat'l team in Ann Arbor, Mich., for this season

* Hans Gorowsky, Centennial, 5-8, 158, 16, 2013

* Luc Snuggerud, Eden Prairie, D, 5-9 1/2, 143, 15.

* Sawyer Marshall, Mahtomedi, G, 5-9, 227, 17, 2012.

* Mike Prochno, Minnetonka, D, 5-8 1/2, 150, 17, 2012

* Joey Hanowski, Little Falls, F, 5-8 1/2, 204, 17, 2012.

* Matt Serratore, Bemidji, F, 5-8, 137, 16, 2013 ... son of Bemidji State coach Tom Serratore and cousin of Gophers forward Tom Serratore

* Mario Bianchi, Holy Angels, F, 5-7, 155, 16, 2013.

* Lou Nanne, Edina, F, 5-10 1/2, 163, 16, 2013 and Vinni Lettieri, Minnetonka, F, 5-8 1/2, 160, 16, 2013 ... Lou Nanne's grandsons