Small line-up change gives Gophers' offense a boost

"To see the joy in the kids' faces after the game on Sunday makes everything worthwhile," Gophers men's hockey coach Don Lucia said on 100.3-FM on Monday morning. "Everything" was a reference to the hard work his players put in, starting in the offseason.

It paid off in the West Regional.

The Gophers beat North Dakota 5-2 in the championship game in the West on Sunday, 10 days after losing 6-3 to the Fighting Sioux in the Final Five semifinals. Losing a three-goal lead in that loss brought out some naysayers.

"Whenever they have been doubted the most, that's when they seem to play their best," Lucia said.

A minor line-up change seemed to revitalize the Gophers' offense in the regional. Lucia moved freshman center Travis Boyd up from the fourth line center to the third line, and switched captain Taylor Matson from center to right wing on that line last weekend.

"We had to get Taylor scoring," Lucia said. "We had to get [left wing] Nate Condon scoring again a little bit. The first half of the year we were getting major contributions from four lines and all of a sudden our fourth line hadn't had a goal since December and our third line hadn't contributed much.

"So instead of scoring three, four goals a game, we were scoring two or three goals a game and that makes it difficult this time of the year."

But the third line, often called the black line because of the color of their jerseys in practice, busted out for three goals against North Dakota. Each of the three players had a goal and one assist. "Now they feel a little better about themselves and hopefully that will continue into the Frozen Four," Lucia said..

QUIET CELEBRATION

Lucia said he rode the team bus back to campus with his players. Then he and his wife, Joyce, went out for dinner at Buffalo Wild Wings with Frank and Carol Serratore, whom he called great friends for many years.

Frank is the head coach of the Air Force Academy. His son, Tom, is a Gophers sophomore forward this season.

There was some reminiscing, Don Lucia said during his radio interview, and wondering "who would have thought that Tommy would be playing here and on the way to a Frozen Four?"