During his weekly media session, Minnesota State coach Luke Strand was asked about the significance of this weekend’s matchup in Mankato, Minn., between his Mavericks and Lake Superior State.
It’s a big matchup. After all, the Mavericks are in first place in the CCHA standings and riding high in the midst of a nine-game unbeaten streak. The Lakers, meanwhile, are 7-2-1 since the start of November and currently sit behind the Mavericks in second.
But Strand said that’s not something he’s even thinking about at this juncture.
“For the media, I’ll say yes. For us, you just told me what place everyone’s in,” Strand said with a smile on Tuesday. “We don’t really get into it. I know they’re a talented team that has skill. They play hard. They’ve beat some good opponents. They took (Michigan) State to overtime at the beginning of the year, and I know they had a hiccup against Ohio State, but at the same time, they’ve beaten some really good teams, and they play their backside off. I think they play a very complete game.”
The Lakers (8-7-1 overall, 6-2-0 in the CCHA) are coming off a weekend in which they split with defending MacNaughton Cup champions Bemidji State. The week before that, they swept St. Thomas.
And they’ve been getting it done with a lethal offense. In league play, their 31 goals scored are tied with St. Thomas for the league’s best. Sasha Teleguine, who had a hat trick in Saturday’s game against Bemidji State, is tied for the league’s overall goalscoring lead, while Connor Millburn has seven goals and 10 assists and currently leads the conference with 1.13 points per game. He’s currently on an eight-game point streak.
“I think they’re a really dangerous group,” Strand said of the Lakers’ offense. “They can come at you in waves. I think they’ve got some individuals, like Millburn and Teleguine, who have just been outstanding. You can’t beat them individually. They’ve got a whole group, like that Millburn line, which has been outstanding.”
The Mavericks, meanwhile, have been finding success in many different ways during their recent nine-game unbeaten streak, but it’s started with defense, specifically goaltender Alex Tracy, who has some of the best numbers in the country. He’s started every single one of MSU’s 18 games, has a 12-4-2 record, a 1.38 goals-against average and a .945 save percentage.
“We know it’s a heck of a test against a really good team,” LSSU coach Damon Whitten said during his weekly radio show. “It’s a little bit of a chess match against them this week, and matching some of that patience, some of that structure will be really important for us finding success on the ice.”
And the Minnesota State team defense has likewise been outstanding. In their 10 conference games so far this season, MSU has allowed a team to score more than two goals just once, and that was a 5-3 victory over St. Thomas. Their lone loss in that span was a 1-0 decision against Bemidji State. The Mavericks haven’t lost since.
“I do think ‘Trace’ has been great. Don’t get me wrong, but I think we also need to give some credit to what’s going on in front of him,” Strand said. “I think there’s been a little bit of balance to our team.”
Strand was specifically talking about the trust the entire team has in each other to play solid defense, pointing out that even a player like Rhett Pitlick, a prolific scorer, is someone who is making sure he does the little things and makes sacrifices to make sure MSU’s defense is solid.
“When you find us five-on-six late in a game, and Pitlick’s on the ice, I trust the kid. I think there’s just enough trust in our group this we probably defended hard as a group of five in front of Tracy. But at the same time, when we needed a stop, it’s 33 who has made some big saves at some big times.”
Overall, Minnesota State has allowed the fewest goals per game (1.50) in the country. Chalk most of that up to experience. The Mavericks’ defensive corps has a boatload of veteran defensemen on their backline like Steve Bellini, Jordan Power, Mason Wheeler, Campbell Cichosz and Ralfs Bergmanis.
“There’s some great balance there. (Cichosz and Wheeler) give us so many sturdy, steady minutes, and (Bergmanis), knock on wood, has been scored on I think one time five-on-five all year long,” Strand said. “Then we get the balance of offense with Evan Murr and Bellini and Luke Ashton, who has done a great job as a young player here… We’ve got a good combination of skill sets.”
This will be the final series of 2024 for both squads. It will be crucial in determining who leads the conference at the holiday break. Because the CCHA is calculating the final standings based on points percentage instead of the traditional way, every point matters. Current MSU has 23 points from 10 games, a .767 percentage, while LSSU is at 18 points from eight games (.750).
The permutations are confusing, but a Lakers sweep would bring them to .800 and into first place and likewise push MSU down to .638. An MSU sweep would likewise make them even harder to overtake at .805.
“It ratchets up in the second half of the season. We’ve done a good job to put ourselves in a good position, and I think this weekend will have a big part of that, but the stakes just get higher,” Whitten said. “The intensity rises. We’re starting to see teams shift into playoff positioning. There won’t be a lot of secrets in the second half.”
