12-8, 12-9, 12-11 Weekend Preview
By Meghann Norrbom
Weekend Preview
Match Up:
The Minnesota Blue Ox (21-1-1) will continue play with three games this upcoming weekend. Game 1 will be against the Wisconsin Muskies on the road on Friday, December 8th beginning at 7:30 pm. The Ox will travel back home with two games on Saturday, December 9th and Monday, December 11th. The Blue Ox will welcome the Steele County Blades on Saturday at 7 pm. Monday’s exhibition MIAC Winter Classic game will be played on the outdoor rink against Gustavus Adolphus College beginning at 6:30 pm.
Blue Ox Most Recently:
The Minnesota Blue Ox (21-1-1) are coming off a three game weekend where they won all three games. In the most recent game, the Blue Ox and the Mullets faced off. The Blue Ox started off strong the second period tied 2-2 and slowly grew a lead with two goals in the second. The Mullets came back with 2 goals of their own in the third period to tie the game and head into overtime. Two minutes into overtime, the Blue Ox crossed in front of the goalie and snuck a pass through to the netting to get the overtime win. With 31 shots on goal, the Blue Ox outlasted the Mullets by a score of 6-5.
Muskies Most Recently:
The Wisconsin Muskies (9-13-0) are coming off of a win against the Steele County Blades this past weekend. The Muskies started out the game strong with a 2-0 lead and late into the third period the Blades closed that lead slightly with a goal of their own. The Muskies will look to their top point scorer Kyle Klatt for a few points this weekend as he already has 30 points this season. With 10 goals and 20 assists, Klatt is looking to add to those totals in the Friday night match up. In net, both of the Muskies goalies have held their own by both saving over 320 shots on goals and both having save percentages over .910. The Muskies and the Blue Ox will face off on Friday, December 8th at 7:30 pm in Wisconsin.
Blades Most Recently:
The Steele County Blades (8-15-0) will drop the puck with the Minnesota Blue Ox on Saturday, December 9th at 7:30 pm. In the last match up against the Blue Ox, the Blades’ penalties got the best of them. With multiple goals in each period, the Blades weren’t able to catch up and lost by two goals to the Ox. Saturday, the Blades Zach Bettmeng will be looking for more points as he already has 6 goals and 16 assists this season.
Gusties Most Recently:
The Gustavus Adolphus Gusties (6-3-1) are coming over to the Coon Rapids Ice Center for the first annual MIAC Winter Classic on Monday, December 11th. The match-up between the two teams will begin at 6:30 pm on the outdoor rink at the Coon Rapids Ice Center. In their last game, the Gusties shutout Bethel by a score of 4-0, scoring all four of their goals in the second period. Evan Erickson is currently leading in scoring for the Gusties with 5 goals so far this season.
Minnesota Spotlights:
Mitchell Weiland – Number 15 is coming off of a two goal weekend against the Ironwood Fighting Yoopers. The native of Cologne, MN scored a goal in the Friday and Saturday night games and now has 4 goals and an assist this season. In the 2015-2016 season, Weiland played for Waconia High School and tallied 6 goals and 26 assists throughout the season.
Bailey Emery – Emery, a forward from Dassel, MN, had the opportunity to play both forward and defense this past weekend. In the second game of the weekend, Emery scored the first two goals of the game putting him at 5 total goals this season along with 5 assists as well. Previously, number 18, played for the Willmar WarHawks and Litchfield/Dassel-Cokato High School where he recorded 15 points on the season.
Ryan Cobb – A native of Apple Valley, MN, Ryan Cobb is a defenseman for the Minnesota Blue Ox. This past weekend, Cobb charted an assist in the big 8-5 win over the Ironwood Fighting Yoopers. Cobb now has two assists in the 2017-2018 season. Cobb previously played for the Apple Valley High School hockey team.