U working OT but has nothing to show for it

Three overtime games stand out for senior Derek Peltier in his 3 1/2 seasons as a Gophers defenseman.

When he was a freshman in 2004-05, Minnesota beat Maine 1-0 and Cornell 2-1 in back-to-back overtime games in the NCAA West Regional to advance to the Frozen Four. Last season the Gophers beat North Dakota 3-2 in overtime to win the WCHA Final Five.

This season the Gophers already have played nine overtime games -- the school record is 13 -- but, Peltier said, "There are not any ones I want to remember."

That's because Minnesota is 0-3-6 this season in overtime games, which are adding up quickly. Five of the Gophers' past seven games have gone into overtime, including the past three. That's historic territory.

A fourth consecutive overtime game tonight, when the Gophers open a two-game series at Denver, would tie a school record set in 1992-93.

What are the odds of that? The Pioneers (18-8, 12-6) are one of the two NCAA Division I teams who have not played an overtime game this season.

Then again, this should be a low-scoring series. Sophomore Brock Trotter, Denver's leading scorer, on Thursday signed a three-year free agent contract with the Montreal Canadiens. Sophomore Tyler Ruegsegger, third in team scoring, also is doubtful because of a recent injury to a stomach muscle.

"It's good someone else is going through some turmoil," Gophers coach Don Lucia said. "We've had ours this year."

The Gophers (12-12-6, 6-10-4) are healthy now, but they aren't scoring much. Minnesota is averaging only 2.47 goals per game. Scoring throughout the WCHA is down, too. An average of 5.5 goals are being scored in conference games this season -- almost 1.5 fewer than during the 2001-02 season.

The Gophers' six ties do not bother Lucia too much. The latest was Saturday, a 1-1 tie with North Dakota.

"When you score one goal in 60 minutes," he said, "the odds are not real good you are going to score one in five" of overtime.

The three overtime losses -- the latest was 2-1 to the Fighting Sioux last Friday -- are devastating, Lucia said. A tie is worth one point, an overtime loss zero.

"Those are three big points in the standings," he said.

Indeed. Adding three points to the Gophers' total would move them up from seventh place in the WCHA to a three-way tie for fourth with 19 points. No other conference team has more than one overtime loss.

Only one of the other 58 Division I college hockey teams has played more overtime games than the Gophers; Boston College has been in 10. And only one team has more overtime losses than Minnesota; Western Michigan has five.

In overtimes, Lucia said, his Gophers play to win but are cautious.

"You want to play the percentages and not force something that is not there," he said.

For his players, overtimes are intense, exciting.

"I try not to think about it too much," freshman goalie Alex Kangas said. "I just try to make every save look routine and not overplay things."

Said Peltier of overtimes, "We've been a little too defensive-minded. We've been trying not to give up that goal rather than going out there and scoring. [But] you got to love playing in overtime, it's a pressure situation."

Freshman winger Mike Hoeffel agrees with that thought: "Overtime makes every play that much more important. It's an exciting feeling that maybe the decisive play could be on your stick if you have the puck."

Trouble is, after playing 36 minutes, 19 seconds in nine overtimes this season, the Gophers still are looking for their first goal.