Tomorrow's Reporter will have a Gameday, along with small blurbs about the other WCHA games this weekend.
Here's another preview
No. 11 Minnesota State (8-3-3, 5-3-2 WCHA) vs. St. Cloud State (8-6-0, 3-5-0 WCHA) (home-and-home)
7:07 p.m. Friday, Alltel Center
7:37 p.m. Saturday, National Hockey Center — St. Cloud
By looking at stats, both teams are virtually identical. Both have scored 49 goals, MSU has given up two more (36), both kill penalties at 81 percent and their power-play success is just 1.2 percent different. MSU - 17.2; SCSU - 16.
Last season the Mavericks had a pair of 5-3 wins against the Huskies in another home and home series and played a physical style of hockey that made SCSU look overmatched. The main key to the game, however, might be stopping Ryan Lasch and Garrett Roe from scoring. Roe is off to a very good start, with seven goals and 21 points on the season, but Lasch is still stuck with just one goal, which came in the Huskies' second game of the season.
Dan Dunn and Jase Weslosky have both been good in net this year, with Dunn owning a 2.35 GAA and Weslosky at 2.38. Weslosky will most likely start Friday, and is a big reason St. Cloud State isn't struggling more than it is already.
BOTTOM LINE: The Mavericks need to finish. Twice at home this season they've had games slip away at the end. It's not even a stretch to say they would be in first place in the WCHA right now if not for a late-period downfall.
I'll give a quick preview of the other conference games Thursday or Friday, and an update on some injuries if I can. Otherwise, I'll be at the Alltel Center Friday for pregame and ingame coverage.
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