Will it be a golden year for Gophers?

Snuggerud returns to deep, talented roster

By Dain Solberg, Let’s Play Hockey

Minneapolis, Minn.—The University of Minnesota Gophers Hockey team will look to bounce back from last season’s 6-3 loss to Boston University in the Sioux Falls Regional. Despite losing the likes of Charlie Strobel (Colorado College), Garrett Pinoniemi (Omaha) and Carl Fish (Providence College) to the transfer portal, The Golden Gophers will return a high-powered offense which includes leading scorer Jimmy Snuggerud and high-flying forward Oliver Moore. They will be joined by transfer and first-round draft pick Matthew Wood (University of Connecticut) to give the team three first-rounders. Mason Nevers (Edina, MN) also returns for a fifth season and solidified a solid forward group that includes Brody Lamb (Dodge County, MN), Aaron Huglen (Roseau, MN) and Jimmy Clark (Edina, MN). The Gophers are without the services of Rhett Pitlick, who transferred recently to Minnesota State-Mankato.

On the defensive side, the pair of Mike Koster and Sam Rinzel will return to the explosive D-Core with Ryan Chesley and are adding the likes of Leo Gruba (Hill-Murray/Fargo/USHL)  and John Whipple (USNTDP) to give the Gophers a deep defensive unit.

Koster and Rinzel combined for 42 points bolstering the reputation of being two offensive defensemen. Whereas Cal Thomas also played a huge role on the Maroon and Gold’s back end last season where Thomas tallied nine total points.

Keys to Success for the Maroon and Gold

Blueline depth

The U of M returns a veteran D-Core including Mike Koster, Cal Thomas, Chicago Blackhawks draft pick Sam Rinzel, Luke Mittelstadt, and Ryan Chesley.  A season ago, the Gopher top-six combined for 80 points. Rinzel led all defensemen with 28  points which included an unassisted goal. Despite the returning cast, the Gophers welcome in Leo Gruba and John Whipple to the U of M’s backend. The two freshmen bring offense and speed to a D-core that has been greatly established just a season ago with a plethora of NHL draft picks.

Snuggy’s Return

St Louis Blues draft pick Jimmy Snuggerud made the choice to continue his collegiate career in quest to making a national championship run to that exact city that drafted him St. Louis, Missouri. This storyline is all too familiar to the Gopher faithful with the departure of current Utah Hockey Club forward Logan Cooley who announced he was coming back for another season but then chose to sign an entry-level deal with the Arizona Coyotes prior to the 2022-2023 season. Snuggerud bolstered a team-high 21 goals a season ago and will look to use his big frame and explosive speed to light the lamp this season inside 3M at Mariucci. His leadership will also be very important to younger guys who are starting their college hockey careers in Minnesota.

Powerplay Prowess

Special teams was a huge success for the Gophers a season ago. The power play was rated 14th in the NCAA whereas the penalty kill was 35th. The U of M scored 108 even strength goals sitting 10th in college hockey. Snuggerud led all Golden Gophers in power play tallies with six. The trio of Luke Mittelstadt, Mike Koster and Sam Rinzel will look to run the Gopher blueline when they are a man up. Gruba’s offensive skill set, especially his ability to fire the puck off the pass could force Bob Motzko to find a spot on one of the units for him. Throughout juniors Gruba scored 30 goals in 120 games for the Fargo Force (USHL) in his two seasons.

Goaltending

This will be a major question mark with the departure of graduate student and two-year starter Justen Close. Many fans thought this was sophomore Nathan Airey’s net until Penn State veteran Liam Souliere chose to enter the transfer portal and call the University of Minnesota home for another year of NCAA hockey. Airey appeared in a contest versus Robert Morris and two exhibition games against Bemidji State and the USNDTP game where he earned victories in all three outings. Souliere is no stranger to being the starting goalie,  recording a .897 save percentage, 2067 saves, and a 39-39 overall record in a total of 85 starts in four years suiting up for the Nittany Lions.

Striking first

A season ago, the U of M had no problem getting the first goal in big games, but it was maintaining leads and finishing in the third period that became an issue. This was all too prevalent in their early season contest against Notre Dame where the “U” dropped a two-goal lead into a 4-2 loss. The same storyline happened in an important Saturday night game where the Gophers were hosting No. 16 Michigan, ending in a 6-5 overtime loss to a team that would advance to the Frozen Four but falter against the eventual runner-up Boston College. With more depth, especially on the blueline, the Gophers will look to put teams to bed early and often this season.

(Nevers) Never Leaving

Mason Nevers announced that he will return to the Maroon and Gold squad by way of NCAA fifth-year Eligibility. Last season, Nevers started the season with a setback in the Gophers victory over Bemidji State in an early season exhibition battle. Following the recovery from injury, he exploded offensively on a line with Rhett Pitlick and Oliver Moore recording 15 points in a total of 35 games after missing two of the first regular season games due to injury. Nevers will bring strong veteran leadership and skill to the table as a fifth-year player.

Airey is the Next Man up.

The sophomore goaltender saw action in a series against Robert Morris and the exhibitions against USA Hockey and Bemidji State. Over the last year, Airey assumed the second-string role behind Justen Close. With the late arrival of Liam Souliere using his portal eligibility to transfer from Penn State to the State of Hockey, will Nathan Airey be tested by the Gopher coaching staff between the pipes this season. Goalie competition is a good thing so the Gophers should benefit whether the two tenders split time or one of them emerges as the clear starter.

 2024-25 Roster

Key Losses 

-Rhett Pitlick, forward,  19 goals –  transferred to Minnesota State

-Jaxon Nelson, forward (39 games, 19 goals, 12 assists, one game winning goal)

-Bryce Brodzinski, forward (39 games, 14 goals, 22 assists, two game winning goals)

-Justin Close, goaltender (38 games, 22-10 record, .924 save percentage, 2.18 GAA)

2023-24 Scoring Break-down (Forwards)

1. Jimmy Snuggerud- 21 goals
2. Jaxon Nelson/Rhett Pitlick- 19 goals
3. Bryce Brodzinski- 14 goals
4. Brody Lamb- 12 goals
5. Oliver Moore- 9 goals

New Additions

TRANSFER- Matthew Wood-UCONN (Hockey East)

Wood spent the 2023-24 season with the University of Connecticut recording (16g,12a) for the Huskies who fell to No. 1 Boston College in the opening round of the Hockey East Conference Tournament. Wood comes to the Gophers with a big frame (6’3″) and a lot of skill. When looking at his style of play fans will likely see a resemblance of Luverne native Jaxon Nelson. Wood will bring a heavy shot and high net front presence. Chosen 15th overall in the 2023 draft, he led UCONN with 34 points as a freshman.

TRANSFER- Liam Souliere – Penn State (Big Ten)

Souliere appeared in 84 games over four seasons for the Nittany Lions. Souliere registered a 2.72 goals against average and a .908 save percentage. Souliere spent his junior hockey days with the BCHL’s Victoria Grizzlies. Souliere led Penn State to a 15-18-3 record. He is no stranger to the ruthless crowd at 3M at Mariucci having started in both road games against the Maroon and Gold. Souliere is not the biggest goalie in college hockey but uses his advantage of a butterfly style in net despite his stature.

FR.- Beckett Hendrickson- Dubuque (USHL)/ USNDPT

Hendrickson split the 2023-24 season with the Dubuque Fighting Saints and USA Hockey’s National Development program recording 27 goals and 37 assists appearing in 59 games for both organizations. The Boston Bruins draft pick will follow his dad’s footsteps (Darby Hendrickson) who played for the Gophers in 1991-93. Hendrickson chose to take his talents from Minnetonka H.S. to the junior ranks. Hendrickson uses his speed and hands to find the back of the net… he is often compared to have the same style of play as current Gopher Forward Oliver Moore.

FR.- John Whipple- Shattuck St. Mary’s/ USNDTP

Whipple spent last season with the United States Hockey U18 team. The Morristown, NJ native recorded 17 points and appeared in an exhibition match against the University of Minnesota. Whipple is an offensive defenseman who is not afraid to jump up into the rush. He will once again be a teammate with Beckett Hendrickson where they both starred for Minnetonka High School in the 2019-20 season. Whipple is very shifty and uses his speed as an advantage to get good looks in high pressure situations, especially on special teams.

FR.- August Falloon- Tri City (USHL)

Falloon spent three seasons at St. Cloud High School before taking the path of juniors to the Tri-City Storm where he has been a mainstay for the past four seasons. Falloon collected 46 points during his time in the junior ranks. Falloon flipped his commitment from Arizona State to join the 2024-25 Golden Gophers squad. Falloon is known as a power forward who has a high success rate of winning faceoffs. Gopher fans may see a resemblance of former star Nick Bjugstad who is currently with the Arizona Coyotes (Utah Hockey Club in 2025).

FR. Brodie Ziemer- Shattuck St. Mary’s/USNDTP

Ziemer recorded 94 points during the past two seasons playing for the United States U18 NDTP team. Ziemer, a Chanhassen, MN native, spent his youth days with the Chanhassen Storm Youth Hockey Program where he took his talents to prep hockey starring for Shattuck- St Mary’s.  Ziemer will play for his home state and join former high school competition as college teammates (John Whipple and Beckett Hendrickson). Ziemer is not afraid to get in the dirty areas and use his size to make defensemen and goaltenders lives miserable below the dots.

FR. Erik Pahlsson- Dubuque (USHL)

Pahlsson originally hailing from Landskrona, Sweden was teammates with newcomer Becket Hendrickson with the Dubuque Fighting Saints in the USHL. Pahlsson also split time late in the season to put on the yellow and blue for Team Sweden at the World Junior Championships. In 2023-24, Pahlsson tallied 28 goals and 44 assists appearing in 57 games. Pahlsson hails from Sweden and is doing very well transitioning to the American style of hockey after spending seasons in the United States Hockey League. Critics compare Pahlsson’s style of play to current NHL’er and Pittsburgh Penguin Erik Karlsson. Pahlsson is a threat with or without the puck. He finds the open areas to create scoring chances and uses his 6’1 frame to protect the puck in the offensive zone.

FR. Leo Gruba- Fargo (USHL)

Gruba played his high school hockey for Hill Murray High School captaining his team to the Class 2A State Tournament in 2021 and winning the Reed Larson Award as the state’s top defenseman.  Gruba spent three seasons with the Pioneers before most recently being a top-goal scorer for the USHL’s Fargo Force the past two seasons, recording 30 goals in a total of 120 games. Gruba’s style of play is a two-way player who uses his quick hands and speed to shut down the attack of opponents. He proved very adept on the power play for the Force and could land on special teams for the Gophers in his freshman campaign.

Non-Conference Schedule-

10/5- @St Cloud State

10/11- Air Force (Ice Breaker)

10/12- UMass/Omaha (Ice Breaker)

10/18- 10/19- Minnesota Duluth

10/25-10/26- St. Thomas

11/14-11/16- Bemidji State

11/29-11/30- Alaska

1/3-1/4- Mercyhurst