MANKATO — In the immortal words of Heath Ledger’s adaptation of The Joker, “Here, we, go.”
No. 20 Minnesota State hockey opens its 2025-26 season this weekend on the road against the University of Nebraska Omaha. The first game is set for 7 p.m. Friday with the finale slated for 7 p.m. Saturday.
MSU leads the all-time series 20-16-5 all-time against Omaha in games dating back to 1998.
“The anticipation of playing is high,” MSU coach Luke Strand said. “The excitement is high.”
Omaha is fresh off a 3-2 overtime win over Air Force Saturday. A 2-0 Omaha lead after two periods was erased in the third period, including a shorthanded goal to get Air Force on the board. Omaha’s Joel Plante scored the game-winner 33 seconds into overtime.
Senior Simon Latkoczy, the reigning NCHC goaltender of the year, got the start in net last week. He saw 27:22 of ice time before being replaced by freshman Dawson Cowan, who stopped 18 of 20 shots to claim the win.
Senior forward Cameron Mitchell and senior defenseman Jacob Guevin are the top returning point producing players. Both totaled 20 points in the 2024-25 campaign.
This weekend will also mark the debut for a multitude of new faces for MSU. The Mavericks welcomed 17 new faces to the program.
“We spent as much or more building culture as we have building hockey,” Strand said. “The guys have been doing a great job away from the rink and in the rink as far as taking care of one another. Just learning that the standard’s not going to dip because of a new player. You’re either going to keep up or it’s going to be really hard.”
Fans can listen to 1420 KTOE AM with Matt Dean calling the game. Fans can also stream the game on NCHC.tv or track the game digitally live at omavs.com.