It’s hard to believe, but Notre Dame hockey returns home this weekend to greet a full student section for the first time since late November. They will do so while playing as well as they have all season, with wins in two out of their last three games.
Notre Dame (8-15-1, 3-12-1 B1G) will have the band and the Compton Family Ice Arena crowd behind them when they welcome Lindenwood (5-17-2) for a winnable pair of games on Friday and Saturday night. After last Saturday’s overtime win at No. 4 Minnesota, the Irish will have an opportunity to gain some long-sought momentum at home this weekend.
Irish earn split at No. 4 Minnesota
Notre Dame finished its weekend series at No. 4 Minnesota with perhaps its best 3:46 of hockey all season.
By the time graduate student forward Blake Biondi had rifled the game-winning overtime goal past Gopher goalie Liam Souliere, the Irish had already dominated every moment of the extra frame.
It was a well-earned overtime victory for Notre Dame, who were outshot by the Big Ten’s second best team but still managed to hang in for their second win in three games, marking their best stretch of results since the end of October. Notre Dame’s 4-3 win Saturday came behind goals from graduate forward Ian Murphy, and sophomore forwards Carter Slaggert and Cole Knuble. Junior netminder Owen Say made 30 saves on 33 shots.
The win also proved to be an effective response to Friday night’s loss, a game in which Notre Dame was played out of the building in the first period. Despite getting on the board first after sophomore defenseman Paul Fischer scored less than five minutes into the game, the Irish conceded five consecutive Golden Gopher goals in what would end as a 5-2 loss. Notre Dame also yielded 24 first period shots, ending the game outshot 46-15. Freshman netminder Nick Kempf was pulled from the game after allowing all five goals on 24 shots.
“The last two Fridays I can’t grasp why we were a little sluggish. It’s got to be a mindset thing, so I put that on me to make sure we’re mentally prepared and ready to play,” head coach Jeff Jackson said Wednesday. “We also have to consider that the opponents want to jump on us early. We’re not in the top of the standings. So they come out hard and want us to chase the game, and frankly it works.”
Notre Dame is 0-6-1 in their last seven series-opening games.
Irish will face fledgling Lindenwood program
Lindenwood will make their first trip to South Bend in program history this weekend, though that’s not saying much. This is only the Lions’ third season at the Division One level, and the program has endured slow growth. Head coach Bill Muckalt, a Michigan alum, is in his first season behind the bench for the Lions after Rick Zombo departed in the offseason.
“He’s a pretty high-profile coach for Lindenwood to bring in,” Jackson said of Muckalt. “I’m sure as he gets time he’s going to end up with more and more quality players. He’s built his program on the transfer portal as a lot of the new programs have done. They play a heavy game; they forecheck aggressively.”
Lindenwood has also struggled for momentum this season, and have yet to string together consecutive wins. After upsetting Wisconsin on the road to open the season, they lost in overtime to the Badgers the following night and dropped eight of the next 10 games. More recently, the Lions are coming off a tie and a loss at Augustana.
The Lions’ leading scorer by far is senior forward David Gagnon, who has been with the program all three years. Gagnon is the team leader with nine goals and 21 points. The next closest skater on the roster to his points total is freshman defenseman Noah Houle, who has 11.
Expect sophomore netminder Owen Bartoszkiewicz to start both games this weekend. Bartoszkiewicz transferred from Minnesota over the summer and enters the game having played in 21 of Lindenwood’s 24 games. Despite having only five wins, he has posted a 2.54 goals-against-average and ranks 24th nationally in save percentage (.921).
Knuble named Hobey Baker nominee
The Hobey Baker foundation announced earlier this week that Notre Dame sophomore forward Cole Knuble is among the 97 preliminary nominees for the Hobey Baker award, given to the best player in college hockey.
Knuble leads the Irish in every major category, with nine goals and 25 points on the season. He has done so despite being regularly out of the lineup due to nagging injury concerns.
“He has the innate ability with the puck to be in the right place at the right time,” said Jackson of Knuble. “Not every player has that — a scorer’s instinct. He’s not the biggest guy in the world, but he’s not afraid to get into those dirty areas of the ice. He always seems to find quiet ice where he can get an opportunity to score.”
Finalists for the award will be announced on March 19.
