Gophers' regular season hangs in balance

MINNEAPOLIS — It's only fitting that the final weekend of the WCHA as we know it would come down to a scenario like this.

With two regular-season games to play, the conference champion has still yet to be crowned. Five teams still have a chance to claim the MacNaughton Cup, given annually to the winner of the WCHA's regular season. Minnesota is in that mix, but the Gophers don't necessarily control their own fate. They can finish as high as first or as low as seventh in the conference after this weekend's series at Bemidji State.

"Obviously we want to just play well. We don't control whether we can get a piece of it. That part of it's out of our control," said Gophers coach Don Lucia. "But you certainly don't want to leave points on the table if you're in a position that second night. Our focus is trying to win on Friday night and seeing where we're at."

The first thing Lucia's team has to do? Win both games against the Beavers, who are 11th out of 12 teams in the WCHA standings at 6-18-8 overall. On paper, these games certainly seem winnable for the second-ranked Gophers. But if Minnesota has a repeat performance of Friday's game against Denver (a 2-0 loss), the Gophers can kiss the MacNaughton Cup goodbye.

Minnesota's players received an earful after Friday's shutout loss and responded with a 5-1 win on Saturday. With so much on the line, the Gophers can't afford another off night in Bemidji.

"We don't want to play like we did last weekend. Without the coaches telling us, we knew how bad we played," said junior forward Nate Condon. "It's nuts for us, because we can I think still finish seventh in the league, too, if we mess up this weekend. We know we've got to take care of business this weekend and obviously with the chance at the MacNaughton hanging out there again for the last season of the WCHA is huge."

First-place St. Cloud State had a chance to at least clinch a share of the MacNaughton Cup last weekend against Michigan Tech but lost their home game Saturday night. The Huskies, who have a WCHA-best 35 points entering the weekend, will play at Wisconsin with the chance to clinch the title. Those same Badgers, meanwhile, are also in the mix for a share of the title. Wisconsin has 31 points, four behind St. Cloud State. A sweep of the Huskies — and some help from other teams — would give Wisconsin a chance at the MacNaughton Cup.

North Dakota is tied with the Gophers in second place at 33 points, although it has clinched home ice for the first round of the WCHA playoffs, unlike Minnesota. UND plays on the road against Minnesota State this weekend, another team in the hunt for the conference title. The Mavericks are currently tied with Wisconsin at 31 points but have a chance to lay partial claim to the MacNaughton Cup with a sweep of North Dakota.

Confused yet? It gets crazier. There's a scenario that could lead to a four-way tie for the WCHA title. If the Gophers and North Dakota both split their road series and the Badgers sweep St. Cloud State, those four schools would each share the MacNaughton Cup.

"This is probably the way it should be in the final year with the conference configuration the way it is," Lucia said. "It's unique because teams are still fighting for home ice. I think a lot of teams are fighting to get to Saturday and see where things are at, and I think we're included."

After this season, Minnesota and Wisconsin will join the newly-formed Big Ten Conference, comprised of six teams. Six other WCHA teams will be joining the National Collegiate Hockey Conference, while the WCHA will also add five teams from the CCHA to form a new-look 10-team league.

For the Gophers, this weekend marks their last-ever chance at the MacNaughton Cup, which they currently possess.

"It's definitely a tight race and it shows you how good the WCHA really is," said Gophers junior Justin Holl. "We could be in position to win the McNaughton Cup potentially after this weekend, or we could be away for the first round of the WCHA playoffs. So obviously it's a huge weekend for us. We need to make sure we come out and perform."

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