From the 1/2/96 Minnesota Daily:
 
Backups aid U in Classic victories
 
Matthew Cross - Staff Reporter
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Gophers hockey players and coaches routinely
preach that a good week of practice translates into a good series of hockey
on the weekends.
 
That was exactly the case Saturday as Minnesota won the Mariucci Classic for
the first time since 1991.
 
The Gophers started with an easy 5-2 win over Harvard on Friday and followed
up with a hard-fought 3-2 victory against Bowling Green State on Saturday
for the championship.
 
Coincidentally, the Falcons were the team the Gophers beat four years ago to
win the first annual holiday tourney at the old Mariucci Arena.
 
Perhaps the most important element in the pair of wins for Coach Doug Woog
was that a couple of backups shined in their first action this season.
Several backups needed to replace forwards Casey Hankinson, Wyatt Smith,
Reggie Berg and Erik Rasmussen, who were competing at the Junior World
Hockey Championships in Massachusetts.
 
Woog named forwards Jay Moser and Brett Abrahamson as the two who stood out
the most.
 
Abrahamson scored his first collegiate goal on Friday against Harvard, and
he and Moser played consistently on Saturday to earn the possibility of
future playing time.
 
Woog said, "Those guys have a legitimate chance to play more." With that, he
thinks players like Moser and Abrahamson will challenge other players during
practice and make the atmosphere more competitive for the entire team.
 
And for Abrahamson, who switched from defense and played in only his second
game as a forward, all it took was a taste of the action and the thrill of
scoring his first goal as a Gopher.
 
"Every shift I feel a little more comfortable," he said. "That was the
biggest goal for me so far in my career. It felt great with the crowd
cheering."
 
Moser's and Abrahamson's enthusiastic play impressed assistant coach Tom
Ward, who coached both players when they played for the St. Paul Vulcans
junior league team.
 
"They've earned their stripes," Ward said. "This is a big step for them.
They've proved that they can play at this level."
 
One guy whose ability to play at the college level was never disputed is
center Brian Bonin. He showed again why he is the top scorer in the country
and the leading candidate for the Hobey Baker Award, which goes to the best
player in the nation.
 
Bonin had a goal and an assist and captured all-tournament honors. He scored
the most entertaining goal of the tournament after carrying the puck down
the rink and getting taken down about 20 feet from the goal. From his back,
he swiped at the puck and slid it through the goalie's legs.
 
"I was so shocked that went in," Bonin said. "It was funny because I had one
really good shot that I missed, but I think for the most part we made plays.
Things are going good."
 
Despite his fortunes for the weekend, Bonin failed to score in the
championship game and ended his 21-game scoring streak.
 
Sophomore goaltender Steve DeBus continued his fine play through the
championship game and gathered tournament MVP honors.
 
DeBus chooses not to think about his success too much. Instead, he
concentrates on being prepared for each game.
 
"I don't analyze it," he said. "But I feel like if I'm not ready to play
right off the bat, they're going to have a chance to score and win. Right
now, we just have to get back to it and prepare for Denver. It's going to be
fun."
 
Woog said the best part of DeBus' recent success is the fact that the
goalie's confidence is skyrocketing.
 
"He's 5-foot-10, but he feels like he's six feet right now," he said.
 
Woog is hoping DeBus's confidence spills over to the rest of the team, and
he thinks that "Captain Luck" is on the Gophers' side.
 
Last year, Boston University won the Mariucci Classic and then went on to
win the national championship. Though Woog isn't making any predictions, he
hopes the past is a sign to come for the Gophers.
 
"Maybe that's a good omen and it's our turn," he said.
 
New Hampshire 8, Harvard 3
 
The Wildcats captured third-place honors in the tournament by whipping
Harvard on Saturday afternoon. The Wildcats bursted in the second period
when they scored five goals in less than seven minutes.
 
Harvard winger Kirk Nielsen, the younger brother of former Gophers
co-captain Jeff Nielsen, scored two goals and an assist throughout the
tournament.
 
Notes: Gophers winger Mike Anderson is questionable for next weekend after
suffering a slightly separated shoulder during the game against Harvard on
Friday. Nick Checco has a bruised hand that hindered his play against
Bowling Green, but he won't miss any games. Gophers trainer Bob Broxterman
said the team will know more about Checco's condition after the junior sees
a hand specialist Wednesday.
 
FRIDAY'S SUMMARY
 
Gophers 2 3 0 -- 5
 
Harvard 0 1 1 -- 2
 
First Period: Min -- Crowley 9 (Bonin) PPG 1:11. Min -- Hendrickson 2
(Crowley, Bertogliat) 5:48.
 
Second Period: Min -- Abrahamson 1 (Brink) 14:44. Min -- Bonin 14 (Woog) PPG
17:09. Har -- Adams 3 (Nielsen, Konik) PPG 19:07. Min -- LaFleur 4 (Woog)
19:35.
 
Third Period: Har -- McLaughlin 1 (Philpott, Swenson) PPG 16:11.
 
SATURDAY'S SUMMARY
 
Gophers 1 1 1 -- 3
 
Bowling Green 1 1 0 -- 2
 
First Period: Min -- Bertogliat 4 (Larson, Trebil) PPG 2:10. BGSU --
Holzinger 2 (Ebare, Faulkner) 6:16.
 
Second Period: Min -- Larson 7 (Kraft, Crowley) PPG 8:47. BGSU -- Holzinger
3 (Faulkner) 16:29.
 
Third Period: Min -- Trebil 4 (Checco, Woog) 10:39.
 
Pam Sweeney
Go Gophers!
 
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