Minnesota hockey opens 2025-26 season against Michigan Tech
The Minnesota Golden Gophers men’s hockey team returns to ice on Friday night to drop the puck on their 2025-26 season by hosting Michigan Tech for a two-game set.
Puck drop is set to be at 7 p.m. live on FOX9while Saturday night’s game can be seen on Fox9+ with a 7:00 p.m. puckdrop. Both games will also be available to watch on B1G+. Fans can listen to both games on the Gophers Radio Network on 103.5 FM/AM-1130 KTLK.
According to BetMGM, the Gophers are a 2.5-point favorite over Michigan Tech with a total goals set at 5.5. Minnesota overall enters the season with the seventh best odds to win the national championship. Penn State is the current favorite to win it all at +475.
Motzko enters year seven
Gophers head coach Bob Motzko enters his seventh year with the program. The Austin, Minnesota native through his first six seasons with the Golden Gophers has collected a 161-82-21 record including 101-47-18 in Big Ten play. The Gophers last season were 25-11-4 with a 15-6-3 record within the conference, they earned their seventh Big Ten Conference Championship in the process, tying Michigan State with 50 points. It was also their 30th overall conference championship.
The Gophers were eliminated last season and made the NCAA Tournament but were eliminated in the regional semifinal by the Massachusetts Minutemen 5-4 in overtime. Motzko and his program will look to get back to the Frozen Four in 2025-26 after missing each of the last two seasons.
Gophers return quality production from last season
The Golden Gophers had to say goodbye this past offseason to their top five scorers, leaving plenty of questions for this year’s team as they enter the season. Among those who are no longer with the program however include Jimmy Snuggerud, Connor Kurth, Matthew Wood, Oliver Moore, and Sam Rinzel.
Those five skaters combined for 194 points and 47% of the team’s total point production from a year ago, according to the Minnesota athletic department.
Minnesota this fall returns quality production throughout their lineup with 49 goals, 99 assists, and 148 total points returning offensively, which made up 35.7% of their scoring output a year ago.
Leading that returning production includes Brody Lamb (17 goals, 9 assists), Brodie Ziemer (12 goals, 11 assists), and Jimmy Clark (5 goals, 17 assists).
The Gophers also return solid production at goalie with 48% of their wins, 38% of their saves, and 42% of their total minutes from a year ago returning.
With Liam Souliere gone, the Gophers will look towards Nathan Airey to be their starting goaltender this season. Airey made 19 appearances and 17 starts a season ago finishing with a 12-3-2 record and a 2.47 goals against average with a .900 save percentage.
New additions
This weekend will give Minnesota fans their first chance to see several key additions to the roster this offseason including Omaha transfer Tanner Ludtke, a former top-100 draft pick as well as top recrutis Mason Moe, L.J. Mooney, Javon Moore, and Jacob Rombach who all are NHL draft picks.
Michigan Tech overview
Michigan Tech is coming off a 16-17-3 season in 2024-25 which included a 4-6-0 record in non-conference play. They’re expected to be a quality team, picked to finish tied for third in the CCHA Coaches’ poll this preseason alongside Augustana. St. Thomas and Minnesota State are the favorites to win the conference.
Notable returning peices for the Huskies include senior forward Stiven Sardarian and junior forward Isaac Gordon.
Sardarian last season recorded 11 goals and 24 assists in 35 games, Gordon posted similar numbers with seven goals and 19 asssists in 36 games. He also had 18 goals and 18 assists in 2023-24.
This offseason, nine different Huskies were parrt of NHL developmental camps. Here is the full list courtesty of Michigan Tech.
• Jack Anderson – Philadelphia Flyers (2025)
• Owen Bartoszkiewicz – St. Louis Blues (2025)
• Rylan Brown – Winnipeg Jets (2025)
• Isaac Gordon – Columbus Blue Jackets (2024 & 2025)
• Max Koskipirtti – Dallas Stars (2025)
• Carson Latimer – Ottawa Senators (2021, 2022)
• Kalem Parker – Minnesota Wild (2023 & 2024)
• Stiven Sardarian – Buffalo Sabres (2021, 2022, 2023, 2024)
• Teydon Trembecky – Winnipeg Jets (2025)
• Max Vayrynen – Calgary Flames (2023)
Of those players, Carson Latimer was a 2021 fourth round pick of Ottawa, Kalem was a 2023 sixth roudn by Minnesota and Stiven Sardarian was a third round pifk of Buffalo’s in 2021. All three palyers are now considered NHL free agents.
A familiar name will be a part of the Huskies’ goaltending room this season as former Gopher Owen Bartoszkiewicz transferred into the Michigan Tech progarm after spenidng last season with Lindenwood.
Weekend Prediction
Minnesota is historically very good to open the season with a 65-37-2 all-time record in season openers, they’re also dominant at home in home openers with a 70-31-3 record including 22-82-2 at 3M Arena at Mariccui.
We expect that trend to continue this weekend. This is a quality Michigan Tech team to challenge the Gophers’ early on but ultiamtely thisis a matchup that the Gophers should win and probably do so comfortably. We expect the Gophers to get off to a strong start and sweep the weekend series.
Game 1 Prediction: 4-1 Minnesota
Game 2 Prediction: 5-3 Minnesota
