As buried as the Gophers seemed in the WCHA and PairWise, they have the chance to move way, way up. That's because of the schedule they play.

They still play five of the six teams above them in the WCHA standings, and all of them are rated in thte top 14 in the nation. Next opponent St. Cloud State is No. 14 in the USA Today national ratings this week.

Also on the schedule is No. 1, Denver, No. 3 Wisconsin, N. 4 UMD -- No. 6 North Dakota the Gophers just played -- and No. 8 CC. Minnesota is on a 7-1-1 roll, the Huskies have won six in a row.