Men’s hockey: Gophers sweep away Notre Dame

Second-period goals by Jaxon Nelson and Matthew Knies, along with a defensive effort that seemed to mirror what Notre Dame has usually done so well, lifted the Minnesota Gophers to a 3-0 win Saturday and a sweep of their weekend Big Ten series with the Irish in Minneapolis.

For the second consecutive night, Minnesota was in complete control of the offensive zone, pelting Notre Dame goalie Ryan Bischel with 31 shots and scoring on an extended power play.

With the win, the Gophers improved to 7-3-0 and are now 3-1-0 in conference play. Logan Cooley scored into an empty net with 3.1 seconds on the clock for the clincher.

The Irish (4-4-2, 1-2-1) struggled to find offensive continuity throughout. Bischel finished with 29 saves while Gophers goalie Justen Close had 21 for his second shutout of the season.

After a scoreless first period, Nelson gave Minnesota the lead on a pretty backhander at the top of the crease, following a cross-ice pass from Bryce Brodzinski. On the play, Gophers captain Brock Faber was hit up high, leading to a major penalty and an ejection from the game for Irish forward Jesse Lansdell. Knies scored on the extended man-advantage to double the Gophers’ lead.

Jess Myers writes about hockey for the Forum News Service.