UMD at MSU Preview

An interesting note before I begin... 22 people voted for Joel Hanson and his zero points so far as this season's biggest surprise (68%). Not saying I disagree with you, just found it interesting...

Piggy-backing off of that, an interesting roster tweak this weekend by Mavericks head coach Troy Jutting. Finding his way onto the fourth-line is the long-lost "eighth defenseman" Ryan Gunderson. He will play along side James Gaulrapp and Geoff Irwin during Friday's game.

For awhile, I thought maybe Jutting was trying to prove a point to another forward by putting Gunderson up-front all week in practice. But when I asked Jutting this afternoon if he had changed his mind, he said no.

"He's worked hard," Jutting said. "He's a big kid who skates well and has good hands. This is a chance for him to prove he belongs."

Gunderson didn't play in many games last season - suiting up in just seven contests. I'm not knocking is skills, and time will tell how he plays this weekend. I guess I was just surprised Jutting decided to move Gunderson to forward, considering they spent much of last season transitioning him to defense.

"He's played forward his whole life, so this move shouldn't be too drastic," Jutting said.

Gunderson tallied one assist last year in a November contest against Colorado College. No word on whether the move is permanent. Stay tuned this weekend for updates on his play.

Meanwhile, the Mavericks are concluding a very intense week of practice. The pace has quickened recently at All Seasons Arena and this week, the hitting picked up as well.

"We need it," said junior forward Jon Kalinski. "Maybe it will help us play a 60-minute game instead of a 40-minute game."

Indeed, playing complete games has one major problem. But the Mavericks tackled another one during their two week layoff: scoring goals.

The team worked on drills in practice designed on putting the puck in the net. A few of the lighter moments were spent just trying to increase the players' confidence. One individual that could help the Mavericks offense get on track is the senior captain Hanson.

It's not difficult to see that Hanson - perhaps the team's classiest player - is frustrated with answering the same question over and over. But he has handled it well.

"You just have to work through it I guess," he said Wednesday.

Jutting and Kalinski both feel that once Hanson gets going, so will the Maverick offense. Hanson's goals usually come in bunches, which may help kickstart the MSU attack, especially if Hanson could net one in the early stages of Friday's game.

"There's no question, he's the key right now," Jutting said. "There's no if, ands or buts about it."

Kalinski says he'd like to see Hanson rewarded.

"He's working hard, but right now, he's just not getting the lucky bounces."

Something tells me Hanson gets on track this weekend.

MSU FORWARD LINES
Berge-Sackrison-Kalinski
Hanson-Mouillierat-Bruess
Galiardi-Harrison-Stewart
Gaulrapp-Gunderson-Irwin

ON THE BLUELINE
Davis-Kilburg
Canzanello-Friesen
Youds-Linder
*Boe is the odd-man out for Friday's contest

IN NET
Zacharias
Tormey
Lee
*Zacharias will start Friday

PREDICTION
I have a feeling MSU finds a way to get back on track this weekend. The No. 12 Bulldogs have a few nice wins on their schedule this season, including a 4-2 win at North Dakota last weekend, a victory the weekend before against Michigan Tech and a 3-0 win at Denver in October. They have struggled against the Mavericks in the past couple of years, and to me, this Mavericks simply need this series more than UMD does. Look for the Mavericks to come away with three points this weekend.

IN OTHER WCHA ACTION THIS WEEKEND

Michigan Tech at Minnesota: SPLIT
St. Cloud State at Wisocnsin: SPLIT
Colorado College at Alaska-Anchorage: CC SWEEP
North Dakota at Denver: SPLIT

If you can't make it to Alltel Center this weekend for the games, be sure to check the blog as I will try to post in-game comments. Thanks for reading!