NCAA West Regional
No. 1 seed Gophers vs. No. 4 Nebraska Omaha • 9 p.m. in Loveland, Colo. • ESPNU, 103.5-FM, 1130-AM
Gophers at a glance: With Wisconsin being upset by Bemidji State and Notre Dame and Michigan out of the tournament because of COVID-19, the Gophers are the only Big Ten team remaining in the field. … Minnesota (23-6) has thrived with a balanced attack that features seven players with 20 or more points. Leading the way is junior F Sampo Ranta, who leads the team and is tied for second nationally with 18 goals and has a team-high 29 points. He's followed by junior F Sammy Walker (13-15-28) and junior F Blake McLaughlin (12-15-27) … Jack LaFontaine, a Mike Richter Award top-three finalist for goalie of the year, is 21-6 with 1.74 goals-against average, .936 save percentage and five shutouts.
Mavericks at a glance: Nebraska Omaha (14-10-1) finished fourth in the NCHC regular-season standings and lost in the league tournament quarterfinals to Denver. The Mavericks went 5-4-1 against conference powers North Dakota, St. Cloud State and Minnesota Duluth. This is the Mavericks' fifth NCAA tournament appearance, and they reached the Frozen Four in 2005. … F Chayse Primeau, whose father, Keith, played 15 years in the NHL, leads the Mavericks in scoring (9-14-23). Junior F's Tyler Weiss (7-14-21) and Taylor Ward (11-9-20) add scoring depth. … G Isaiah Saville is 12-10-1 with a 2.86 GAA and .912 save percentage. … The Mavericks have nine Minnesotans on their roster, the most of any non-Minnesota team in the field. Among them is Nate Knoepke, who played for the Gophers for two games in 2017-18.
