=46rom Tuesday's (2/13/96) Minn Daily:
 
Denver's coach saw U's future heading into split with CC
 
Matthew Cross - Staff Reporter
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Related Links: Golden Gopher Hockey
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Last Thursday, Denver hockey coach George Gwozdecky made predictions of how
the Gophers' series against Colorado College would be played.
 
And he was right on almost every aspect of the series split at Mariucci
Arena.
 
He said a lot of offense was inevitable, but good goaltending and solid
defense would keep the scores low and close. And Gwozdecky also said the
series might come down to special teams play.
 
During Minnesota's 3-2 win on Friday, the Gophers were 2 of 4 on the power
play compared to the Tigers' 0-for-4 performance.
 
On Saturday, Colorado College was 1 of 3 with a man advantage and Tigers
sophomore Stewart Bodtker scored a shorthanded goal on a 2-on-0, set up by
freshman Brian Swanson.
 
"I thought a defender was behind me and I didn't have much open ice,"
Swanson said. "I looked up and it was Bodtker. My first thought was to pass
and I found him and he buried it."
 
"The Bod" is no luck charm
 
Jesse "The Body" Ventura, a former professional wrestler and current mayor
of Brooklyn Park, gave the pregame speech for the Gophers on Saturday night.
 
Ventura gave three speeches to the Minnesota football team under Coach John
Gutekunst in the late 1980s and did it once last year for the hockey team,
so he is a veteran of the pep talk.
 
However, including Saturday night's loss to Colorado College, Ventura is
0-5.
 
Raise your hand if ...
 
After Saturday's 4-2 loss, the Gophers gathered in the locker room and
Minnesota coach Doug Woog asked this question: "How many guys didn't play as
well as they would have liked?"
 
Woog said about 10 players raised their hands, which indicated to him a
desire to get better.
 
"There's a positive right there," Woog said.
 
Hobey candidate benched
 
Just before the end of the second period of Saturday's game, Colorado
College Hobey Baker candidate Jay McNeill was slapped with a 10-minute
misconduct penalty for unsportsmanlike behavior.
 
McNeill had to sit out the first half of the third period for the
infraction, and Lucia made him grab pine for the second half.
 
This happened even after McNeill had scored the game's first goal in the
first period.
 
"My rule is you don't play again that game if you get a 10 (minute
misconduct)," Lucia said. "Lessons are more important than the outcome of
the game."
 
WCHA notes
 
St. Cloud State's Kelly Rieder and Brian Leitza swept the Offensive and
Defensive Players of the Week awards this week.
 
Rieder scored three goals including two short-handed tallies and both game
winners as the Huskies swept Alaska Anchorage at home this weekend. Leitza
stopped 61 of 62 shots (.984) and recorded five shutout periods.
 
North Dakota senior Teeder Wynne scored five points this weekend in losing
efforts to Wisconsin.
 
Wynne, who has played two more games than Minnesota center Brian Bonin,
moved ahead of the Gophers' senior for the scoring lead.
 
The Sioux forward is five points ahead of Bonin in all games and two points
ahead in conference games.
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=A9The Minnesota Daily
 
Pam Sweeney
Go Gophers!
 
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