Michigan to Close Out Regular Season at No. 8 Minnesota

ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- The No. 16-ranked University of Michigan ice hockey team (17-12-3, 10-10-2 Big Ten) looks to close with momentum heading into the postseason when it takes on No. 8 Minnesota (19-8-5, 12-6-4 Big Ten) on Friday and Saturday (March 1-2) at 3M Arena at Mariucci. Both games are set to start at 7:30 p.m. CST and will be broadcast live on Big Ten Network.

Notes

• Michigan swept Notre Dame last weekend to secured home ice for the Big Ten playoffs. This weekend, it has a chance to move into third place, ahead of Minnesota, with a sweep. The Gophers currently have 37 points, three ahead of the Wolverines.

• With a 17-12-3 record, the Wolverines are ranked No. 14 in the Pairwise ratings. Two conferences, Atlantic Hockey and CCHA, do not have a team in the top 16 and will take two of the six automatic bids.

• Minnesota holds a 151-133-20 edge in the 101-year old rivalry with U-M, but in the last 10 meetings at Mariucci, Michigan is 6-3-1 including both the 2022 and 2023 Big Ten Tournament championships. Dylan Duke leads the current players in the series with eight goals and one assist in his 12 games against the Gophers. Seamus Casey and Gavin Brindley each have seven points in seven games.

• Michigan's scoring offense ranks third in the nation, averaging 4.28 goals per game. The top five scorers in the conference are all Wolverines, led by Brindley (42), Rutger McGroarty (40), T.J. Hughes (39), Duke (38), Frank Nazar III (35) and Casey (35).

• Michigan ranks sixth in then nation in penalty minutes, with a total of 214. The Big Ten has four of the nation's top-10 schools in penalty time (Michigan State, Michigan, Ohio State, Notre Dame).

• Six Wolverines are averaging more than a point per game, as they continue to jockey as the team's leading scorer. Currently, Brindley is first with 39 points, followed by two-time National Player of the Month McGroarty who has 38 points. Hughes, Dylan Duke, Nazar and Casey all follow with 35 points or more. In the last 25 years, no Michigan team has finished with more than four Wolverines averaging a point per game.

• Jake Barczewski was named the Big Ten First Star of the Week after a sweep of Notre Dame. He recorded a 22-save shutout in on Friday (Feb. 23), which included a penalty-shot stop and made 28 saves in Saturday's (Feb. 24) win. In 120 minutes, he finished with a 0.50 goals-against average and a .980 save percentage. This is his fourth weekly honor of the season.

• Mark Estapa reached the 100th game of his career last weekend against Notre Dame. He is one of six players on the roster with more than 100 games of experience.

• Michigan's power play continues to stay red hot at 35 percent with 42 tallies, ranking first in the nation. The team has scored at least one power-play goal in 21 games. Dylan Duke has a team-high 10 power-play goals while Hughes leads the team in power-play points with 21.