BOSTON – On Saturday night, Ryan Sandelin will attempt to accomplish what his father, Scott, has done three times: win a national championship.
Ryan and his Minnesota State Mankato teammates will face Denver in the men's Frozen Four championship game, looking to bring an NCAA title to southern Minnesota. Ryan is relishing the chance for his dad to get to see him play on college hockey's biggest stage. He also could gain a bit of revenge for this father, whose Minnesota Duluth team lost to Denver in the Loveland (Colo.) Regional final.
"It's really special. He doesn't get a lot of opportunities to watch me play,'' Ryan said. "I kind of use it as a motivator for myself to play at the highest level because I only get so many opportunities in the year where he's in the stands.''
Ryan also has a history with Boston and the Frozen Four.
"It's the first Frozen Four he ever made it to [in 2004],'' he said. "I was a little kid; that was really special. That's the first memory I have of Bulldog hockey. To be back in this setting doing it all over again is kind of full circle.''
Ryan leads the Mavericks with 21 goals, has 33 points and is a plus-33 this season.
Changes coming for Gophers
With their 5-1 loss to Minnesota State on Thursday night, the Gophers began an offseason that will include some changes on their roster.
