{"id":130871,"date":"2021-12-09T14:00:29","date_gmt":"2021-12-09T20:00:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp-admin.uscho.com\/?p=130871"},"modified":"2021-12-09T10:09:41","modified_gmt":"2021-12-09T16:09:41","slug":"this-week-in-ccha-hockey-top-ranked-minnesota-state-bemidji-state-square-off-this-weekend-with-first-place-in-conference-standings-at-stake","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wp-admin.uscho.com\/2021\/12\/09\/this-week-in-ccha-hockey-top-ranked-minnesota-state-bemidji-state-square-off-this-weekend-with-first-place-in-conference-standings-at-stake\/","title":{"rendered":"This Week in CCHA Hockey: Bemidji State, top-ranked Minnesota State square off this weekend with first place in conference standings at stake"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"<\/a>
Bemidji State’s Ross Armour and Minnesota State’s Brendan Furry set for a faceoff during a game in 2020-21 (photo: BSU Photo Services).<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

For the past few weeks, the top-ranked team in the country has lost at least once.<\/p>\n

There\u2019s no telling if this is because there\u2019s extra pressure on the team at the top, or if teams playing No. 1 are especially excited at the chance to earn a marquee win, but one thing is certain: Those things aren\u2019t going to be what motivates either team this weekend when No. 1 Minnesota State takes on Bemidji State.<\/p>\n

For both MSU\u2019s Mike Hastings and BSU\u2019s Tom Serratore, it\u2019s the top of the CCHA standings \u2013 not the top of the national polls \u2013 that matter this weekend.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s about first place in my eyes,\u201d Serratore said. \u201cWe\u2019re looking at the points that are on the line, and where we\u2019re at in the standings right now. That\u2019s the important intangibles right now. Six points is a lot of points, especially against the No. 1 team in the conference.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hastings concurred.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt seems like any time we\u2019re playing Bemidji, we\u2019re playing for playoff positioning. With both teams being where they\u2019re at right now, we\u2019re chasing Bemidji,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

In what will be the final series before the holiday break for both teams, the first-place Mavericks head to Bemidji to take on the Beavers. MSU currently has 29 points, but has played 12 games, compared to BSU\u2019s 24 from 10 games. So a Beavers sweep would give them a one-point lead over the Mavericks at top of the table going into the break, with room to expand said lead due to the games-in-hand.<\/p>\n

\u201cRight now, we\u2019re five points up on them but they have two games in hand, so if they were able to win, we\u2019d be behind them,\u201d Hastings said. \u201cIt\u2019s very important for us because we see them as a team that\u2019s ahead of us.\u201d<\/p>\n

It\u2019s yet another big series in what has been one of the most-played rivalries for both programs.<\/p>\n

The Beavers and the Mavericks first met in 1974, when MSU was then known as Mankato State. They continued to meet numerous times at the NAIA, Division II and Division III levels \u2013 they were both members of the small-college National Collegiate Hockey Association \u2013 and when both the Beavers and the Mavericks elevated to Division I in the late 90s, they continued to play one another yearly despite being in different conferences.<\/p>\n

But now that both teams have been in the same Division I conference for a decade, meetings have become even more frequent. It\u2019s no longer the closest in-conference road trip for either team \u2013 St. Thomas joining the CCHA changed that \u2013 but it remains the most important.<\/p>\n

\u201cBecause of where we are in proximity, they\u2019re our closest and biggest rivals,\u201d Hastings said. \u201cHistorically you’ve seen, whether we\u2019re talking the last 10 games or the last 10 years, it seems like every time we get together it\u2019s a battle and I don\u2019t see any difference this time.\u201d<\/p>\n

Those matchups have frequently been what decides the league title. One memorable 2016 series saw the Beavers defeat the Mavericks 1-0 on the final day of the regular season to deny them sole possession of the MacNaughton Cup.<\/p>\n

In 2020, the title race again went down to the final weekend of the season, with MSU needing to beat BSU 4-1 in the finale to clinch the title and prevent the second-place Beavers from winning the cup.<\/p>\n

And last season, MSU clinched its record-setting fourth-consecutive MacNaughton with a 4-3 overtime win against the Beavers.<\/p>\n

\u201cOver the past few years, since I\u2019ve been here, we\u2019ve always had really intense weekends against them,\u201d said Alex Adams, a senior forward for Bemidji State who is a Minnesota native. \u201cEvery year they have one of the best teams in the country and they always bring it every weekend.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThey\u2019re well-coached, they’re deep, and they\u2019re No. 1 in the country for a reason,\u201d Serratore said. \u201cYou look at their success over the years, they\u2019ve earned everything that they have.\u201d<\/p>\n

And what about MSU\u2019s No. 1 ranking?<\/p>\n

The teams actually have played once before when the Mavericks were the nation\u2019s top-ranked team: On Jan. 24, 2015, the Beavers topped MSU 3-1 to win the late North Star College Cup at the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul. It was a big win for the Beavers, but does anyone really remember who was ranked No. 1 the next week?<\/p>\n

When asked about the rankings this week, the coaches and players also agreed: They don\u2019t really matter much right now.<\/p>\n

\u201cEspecially this early in the year, the rankings don\u2019t really mean a whole lot, but it definitely goes to show how good of a team they have, and we respect how good they are,\u201d Adams said of the Mavs. \u201cBut we play them hard every year no matter where they are in the rankings.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAt the end of the day we\u2019re all judged when the season\u2019s over,\u201d Hastings added. \u201cWe appreciate the recognition for what an opinion poll is, but if you look throughout college hockey there\u2019s only one poll that everyone is concerned with, and that\u2019s the last one.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

For the past few weeks, the top-ranked team in the country has lost at least once. There\u2019s no telling if this is because there\u2019s extra pressure on the team at the top, or if teams playing No. 1 are especially excited at the chance to earn a marquee win, but one thing is certain: Those […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":98,"featured_media":130872,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[5,4,1,7],"tags":[812],"coauthors":[854],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nThis Week in CCHA Hockey: Bemidji State, top-ranked Minnesota State square off this weekend with first place in conference standings at stake - College Hockey | USCHO.com<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"For the past few weeks, the top-ranked team in the country has lost at least once. 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