Ben Meyers, Brock Faber lead way for Gophers, who expect sold-out crowd vs. Michigan

On Saturday night, the Gophers will play Michigan for the Big Ten hockey tournament championship in front of what university officials expect to be a sold-out crowd at 3M Arena at Mariucci.

The Gophers are riding a nine-game winning streak and 14-3 stretch that started in January, helped them win the conference regular-season title and has them on the cusp of earning a No. 1 seed in the NCAA tournament.

While the team's overall depth and the stellar play of goalie Justen Close since he was thrust into the lineup have been second-half strengths, coach Bob Motzko's squad also has relied on two stalwarts who are among the best in the country at their positions.

Center Ben Meyers and defenseman Brock Faber are the brightest stars for the second-ranked Gophers (24-11). Meyers shines with his scoring ability that has resulted in a team-high 16 goals and 36 points in 30 games. Faber stands out not with his scoring, but with his speed, power and positioning that short-circuits opposing attacks.

This week, Meyers was named Big Ten Player of the Year and a final 10 candidate for the Hobey Baker Award, while Faber was named Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year. Both will be needed for the Gophers as they face No. 4 Michigan (28-9-1), a team stacked with seven first-round NHL draft picks. Motzko expects Meyers and Faber to be up to the challenge.

"Those are athletes who make your program and everybody better. They make coaches better,'' Motzko said. "They just have it, that 'it' factor.''

Both were Olympians for Team USA in Beijing, along with teammate Matthew Knies, and since they returned, they've kept the Gophers rolling. Meyers has five goals and five assists in the past four games, while Faber has solidified a defense that has helped limit opponents to a total of two goals in the past three games.

On second thought

Both Meyers and Faber originally did not plan to be Gophers but still ended up in Dinkytown. Meyers, a former standout at Delano High School, verbally committed to Nebraska Omaha, while Faber, a Maple Grove product who played for the U.S. National Team Development Program, pledged to Notre Dame.

Motzko first recruited Meyers when he was St. Cloud State's coach, then set his sights on landing him when he was hired by the Gophers in 2018.

"He was the first one I called,'' Motzko said. "The great news is he picked up. … He said, 'Coach, I can't do this [recruiting] again.' I said, 'Ben, you have no choice. You're staying home, pal.' ''

Faber sees Meyers as the tone-setter for the Gophers.

"He's special – one of the most special players I've ever played with. His work ethic tops everything,'' Faber said. "… He's definitely THE leader in that locker room, and everyone feeds off that.''

At 5-11 and a solid 200 pounds, Meyers deflects the praise and credits his teammates. He's fine if opponents put a target on his back.

"They can go after me because we have plenty of other guys who are going to score then,'' Meyers said. "I'm not too worried.''

Enjoy them now

A 23-year-old junior, Meyers was not selected in the NHL draft but will be a highly sought-after free agent after the season if he leaves the program, as expected. Faber was a second-round draft pick by the Los Angeles Kings in 2020, and the sophomore's steady play at the Olympics showed that he can handle the next level.

Faber has three goals and 22 assists in his Gophers career, and his coach expects his offense to develop.

"He's going to continue to get better offensively. Two more years with us, and he's really gonna get better,'' Motzko joked.

When informed of his coach's "two more years'' comment, Faber laughed, saying, "No comment. No comment.''

Whatever their futures might hold, Faber and Meyers are focusing on getting the most out of this season.

"Gopher hockey hasn't been where it should be, and we've been trying to change that,'' Faber said. "We're going to change that.''