NCAA leading goal scorer Kevin Dufour and the BG hockey team will look to improve on their 4-1-1 overall record as they face Western Collegiate Hockey Association opponent Minnesota State this weekend at home.
Dufour enters the weekend series with eight goals and has scored at least one goal in every game this season.
The last time these two teams met was last March in the 2014 WCHA Final Five tournament. The Mavericks defeated the Falcons 4-0 in the semifinal round and went on to claim the Broadmoor Trophy in the WCHA championship game.
“They’re a team we’re trying to be like, quite honestly and I think we developed a little bit of rivalry last year playing four games in three weeks,” said head coach Chris Bergeron.
Last season, the teams faced each other five times, with four of those games decided by a one goal margin, three of which were decided in overtime.
“This isn’t about redemption for last year, this is about facing a very difficult opponent in our building, a team that we have a bunch of respect for,” Bergeron said.
Forward Mark Cooper recorded a hat trick on Nov. 23, 2013 at the BGSU Ice Arena against the Mavericks. That game also went into overtime, where Cooper scored the game-winning goal near the end of the overtime period.
Both Minnesota State and BG enter Friday’s matchup tied for first in the WCHA in scoring, with an average of 3.50 goals per game. Similarly, the Falcons and Mavericks are first and second in the league with eight and seven power play goals scored thus far, respectively.
The Mavericks currently have an overall record of 4-2-0.
Last weekend, they outscored Alabama-Huntsville 7-2 on the weekend to complete a weekend series sweep of the Chargers.
The Falcons had similar success over the weekend, defeating Clarkson University on the road Saturday night to win the series. Falcon goalie Chris Nell made 30 saves as the Falcons won 5-4.
“The coach in me says that there is always work to do, but ultimately we were happy with the weekend,” Bergeron said.
The Falcon offense has scored 21 goals through six games this season, with 18 of those goals coming from freshmen and sophomores.
The puck will drop at 7:07 p.m. on Friday and Saturday night as the BG hockey team returns home to the BGSU Ice Arena for the first time since Oct. 10.
