Get the T-shirt!

Whenever I go  to cover Minnesota State games at Ralph Engelstad Arena in North Dakota, I usually take a stroll through the building's very nice team shop. They have a wide variety of jerseys, T-shirts, hoodies and other souvenirs.

One popular item there is an NHL T-shirt of a former UND player. The front has the  team logo, and the back has the name and number — the Devils' Zach Parise, the Blues' T.J. Oshie, etc.

Every time I see those shirts, I think, "Why doesn't MSU and the Verizon Wireless Center sell David Backes T-shirts?" Why not the Flames' Tim Jackman? I think they would be quite popular.

I figured it must be difficult to get those to sell in the team shop. No biggie, right? (Although it would have made a great Christmas present for my kid!)

But then I went to Bemidji this weekend and stopped by the Sanford Center's very nice team stor and saw Matt Read Flyers T-shirts for sale. And people were wearing them all over the arena. Matt Read! Read is a rookie (signed undrafted out of Bemidji State last spring) and having an outstanding season, even participating in All-Star weekend.

The point is this: If Bemidji found a way to get Matt Read T-shirts already, there's no reason MSU couldn't be selling tees representing its alumni. Backes is the Blues captain, a one-time All-Star and an Olympian in the midst of an outstanding NHL career.

Speaking of Backes, he didn't make the All-Star Game this year, but he sure did some good things over his break.

Bonding campaign begins

Minnesota State on Friday will kick off a campaign to drum up support for and increase awareness about the proposed Verizon Wireless Center improvement project that includes hockey arena upgrades and moving the MSU men's and women's teams downtown permanently.

Read more about the initiative, called "Greater Mankato Carries the Puck" on the MSU website here and more details on the VWC project on the Greater Mankato site here and here, but before Friday's game against Michigan Tech at Red Sky Lounge, people will get their first look at and be able to sign a giant puck that will be used in a community advocacy group's presentation at the state capitol later this month.

Checking in on recruits (updated)

Today is national signing day for football and a few other sports. This has been made into a huge deal on ESPN and elsewhere, despite the fact that we know where most of those players are going already. The only difference is now the coaches get to talk about those players.

In honor of this not-as-newsworthy-as-everyone-thinks day, lets take a look at the Minnesota State men's hockey recruits for next fall and beyond and see how they're doing:

2012
Teddy Blueger, F, Shattuck-St. Mary's: 15 G, 41 A, 38 PIM in 35 games
Nick Buchanan, D, Penticton (BCHL): 1 G, 12 A, 23 PIM in 44 games
Dan Carlson, F, Sioux Falls: 6 G 8 A, +4, 38 PIM in 29 games
Jon Juntzi, D, Powell River (BCHL): 8 G, 19 A, 12 PIM in 43 games
Brett Knowles, F, Cowichan Valley (BCHL): 12 G, 35 A, 60 PIM in 44 games
Bryce Gervais, F, Pentiction (BCHL): 35 G, 26 A, 35 PIM in 44 games
Dylan Margonari, F, Youngstown (USHL): 11 G, 7 A, +1, 73 PIM in 34 games
Stephon Williams, G, Waterloo (USHL): 6-9-2, .913 SV%, 2.70 GAA

2013
Ryan Schwalbe, F, Shattuck-St. Mary's: 18 G, 41 A, 40 PIM in 41 games
Eli May, D, Eagan High School: 7 G, 9 A, 15 PIM in 20 games

Notes: UPDATE: Williams was traded from Sioux Falls to Waterloo on Tuesday. ... Gervais ranks second in the BCHL in goal scoring. ... Knowles was traded from Salmon Arm to Cowichan Valley 10 games ago. ... Williams is tied for fourth in the USHL in SV%. ...  May's Eagan team is ranked No. 4 in Minnesota.

A peek at the Sanford Center (updated)

I thought I'd bump up this blog post, since I added a few pictures to it. I also wrote a column about the arena, which should appear in Tuesday's edition of The Free Press.

There is plenty of curiosity about what the city of Mankato and Minnesota State will do if and when they remodel the Verizon Wireless Center. For sure, they could take a few cues from what Bemidji's done with the Sanford Center. Here are a few low-quality photos taken Friday and Saturday night:

A video/replay scoreboard hangs over center ice.

A view from the press box, which is also suite level.

The club room/bar overlooks one end of the rink.

The student section is surrounds the glass at one end of the ice.

A view from one of the arena suites.

A concourse wall with interactive video screens.

The in-arena store where you can get BSU gear.

The doors to the Beavers' locker room.

The hallway to the BSU coaches' offices.

The walls are adorned with pictures of NHL players and All-Americans.

BSU's weight room, as seen from outside the arena.

The hall from the bench to the BSU locker room.

Another shot of that hall.

Team photos outside the Beavers locker room.

One of a few walls of fame in the BSU area. NHL guys, All-Americans, etc.

The $8 prime rib sandwich available in the concourse.

Mavericks 5, Beavers 2

Eric Stromgren/Bemidji Pioneer

Freddy's three thoughts of the game ...

1. Saturday splits: It was almost a predictable outcome. For the fourth series in a row, the Mavericks bounced back from a Friday-night loss to get a series split. This time, they got a two-goal, one-assist performance from Michael Dorr, as well as goals from Eriah Hayes, Zach Lehrke and Mike Louwerse to top Bemidji State. "Really, the only difference between tonight and last night," MSU coach Troy Jutting said of the goal scoring. "We gave up the same two goals; we just scored when we had chances. We probably had more chances last night than we did tonight."

2. Passing fancy: While MSU couldn't score on great chances on Friday, they converted those on Saturday. The goals were the easy part, as there was some nifty passing. A nice touch pass from Matt Leitner from the slot to left wing for Hayes' goal, which opened the scoring. Adam Mueller passed the puck from the left corner through the crease to Dorr at the right post for the second. A nifty move by Johnny McInnis got the D and the goalie out of position to set up Lehrke's goal. Lehrke later set up Dorr's insurance second goal on a 3 on 1 late in the third period.

3. Keep Cooking: Mavericks goaltender Phil Cook remained calm, cool and confident, stopping 29 shots. With 8:38 left in the second period, Cook stretched out to put a toe on Jeff Jubinville's move across the front of the crease after a nice pass from Danny Mattson. For the weekend, Cook stopped 53 of 57 shots. He was a victim of his teammates' goal-scoring problems on Friday but certainly enjoyed Saturday's goal support.

Quote of the night: "We're snakebitten on Fridays. We realize what we have to do and we come out and capitalize on Saturdays." — Phil Cook

Read the Freep's gamer here. More from the Bemidji Pioneer here.

Around the WCHA: Minnesota 3, St. Cloud State 2 ... Michigan Tech 5, Minnesota Duluth 0 ... North Dakota 4, Wisconsin 2 ... Denver at Alaska Anchorage (night)

MSU at Bemidji State — Game 2 live blog

Lines will be posted below the live blog when available ...



MINNESOTA STATE
23-Dorr     19-Lehrke     8-Gaede
12-LaFontaine     18-Leitner     25-Hayes
22-McInnis     26-Schiller     14-Jokinen
24-Mueller     29-Zuck     9-Louwerse

16-Elbrecht     2-Nelson
7-Palmquist     27-Stern
17-Mosey     10-Knoll

30-Cook
31-Karambelas

BEMIDJI STATE
9-Kinne     14-McLeod     28-George
18-Illo     11-Walters     4-Boehm
17-MacQueen     12-Jubinville     16-Mattson
7-Orban     13-Fisher     6-Findlay

8-Areshenko     25-Wacker
29-Hunt     22-Prapavessis
26-Brodie     15-Windle

30-Walsh
25-Dugas

Beavers 2, Mavericks 1

Eric Stromgren/Bemidji Pioneer

Freddy's three thoughts of the game ...

1. Friday-night funk: Going into Friday's game at Bemidji State, the Mavericks were 5-5-0 in their last 10 games. But they couldn't win on their last four Friday games. This week was more of the same as they lost 2-1. Not only was it the fifth straight Friday loss but it was the third over that stretch by a 2-1 score. MSU outshot Bemidji 40-26, took just one penalty all night and got solid goaltending from Phil Cook. A lot of credit has to go to Beavers goalie Dan Bakala, who made a few outstanding saves (including one on Mike Louwerse with 4:56 remaining) for the win.

2. To the Max: Minnesota's lone goal was scored by Max Gaede, which put the Mavericks up 1-0 at 8:58 of the first period. It was the freshman's second goal of the season and his first in 14 games. It was nice play, as he finished off a centering pass from Zach Lehrke. But Michael Dorr did all the work on the play. With MSU reeling in its own end, Dorr swatted the puck out of the defensive zone and then chased it down at the opposite end. Dorr beat a Bemidji defender to the puck and moved it ahead to Lehrke. But Gaede missed a primo opportunity to make it 2-0 during a 5-minute major in the first period. He whiffed on a beautiful pass to the back door from Jean-Paul LaFontaine.

3. Falling behind: The Mavericks could have moved ahead of the Beavers in the WCHA standings with a series sweep. After dropping Friday's game, though, they fell five points behind Bemidji State. In their last three series, the Mavericks have bounced back to win the Saturday-night game. "I don't think we need to change much," Gaede said, "just bear down on our chances."

Quote of the night: "How many good chances do you want in a game in this league?" — MSU coach Troy Jutting

See the box score here. Read my Free Press gamer here. Check out the Bemidji Pioneer's story and a photo gallery on Eric Stromgren's blog.

Around the WCHA: Michigan Tech 4, Minnesota Duluth 4 (OT) ... Minnesota 2, St. Cloud State 1 ... North Dakota 5, Wisconsin 3 ... Denver at Alaska Anchorage (late)