Gophers men’s hockey coach Bob Motzko said he got his wish when his team won a share of the Big Ten title but also got to stay fresh with a playoff series rather than a bye this weekend.
That message didn’t appear to have reached his players.
The Gophers were stung by two major blunders by goalie Liam Souliere on Friday as seventh-seeded Notre Dame pulled out a 3-2 victory in Game 1 of the teams’ Big Ten quarterfinals playoff series at 3M Arena at Mariucci.
Matthew Wood and Sam Rinzel scored for the second-seeded Gophers (24-9-4), while Jimmy Snuggerud assisted on both tallies.
Notre Dame (11-23-1), which had lost seven of its last eight, got goals from Axel Kumlin, Michael Mastrodomenico and Brennan Ali, while goalie Owen Say stopped 30 of 32 shots.
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The Irish struck first in shocking fashion on Kumlin’s goal just 1:30 into the game. From center ice, Kumlin lofted a high, floating shot on goal. Souliere had a clear look at the puck the entire way, but it slipped through his glove and into the net.
After Say turned back several golden scoring chances for the Gophers, Notre Dame scored off an odd-man rush to double its lead with just under 5 minutes left in the first period. Mastrodomenico took a feed from Carter Slaggert, skated into the high slot and fired a wrister past Souliere.
But late in the first, the Gophers caught a break when the Irish were called for too many men on the ice. The bench minor resulted in the game’s first power play, and Minnesota cashed in when Wood redirected Rinzel’s wrist shot from the center point past Say with 6.4 seconds to play in the period.
Souliere’s second major blunder earned him a spot on the bench 1:18 into the second.
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Minnesota’s top goalie tracked down a loose puck behind his net, but his clearing pass went directly to Ali in the right faceoff circle. As Souliere scrambled back into the crease, Ali spun and fired a backhander that found the back of the net for a 3-1 Irish lead.
Nathan Airey came on in relief of Souliere and blanked the Irish the rest of the way, but the damage was done.
Rinzel pulled the Gophers to within a goal at 3-2 when he took a pass from Mason Nevers and wired a wrister past Say at 8:16 of the third.
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After the Gophers won the first three games between the squads this year, Notre Dame broke through on the road with a 4-3 overtime victory on Jan. 18. Since then, however, the Irish had won just two of 10 games and were swept at home last weekend by first-place Michigan State.
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