After dropping down to the No. 3 ranking the week prior, the University of Minnesota (7-3) was back at No. 1 heading into their home series against the No. 8 ranked Penn State Nittany Lions (9-1).

The two-game series kicked off on Thursday night, with Connor MacEachern tallying the game's first goal, putting Penn State up 1-0 in the first.

In period two, Logan Cooley deked around the defenseman entering the offensive zone and fed Bryce Brodzinski the puck, who ripped it home to tie the game at one. The Gophers then gave up a bad goal late in the period, allowing Christian Sarlo to exit the penalty box behind the lone defenseman and score with less than ten seconds remaining.

Less than a minute into the third period, the Nittany Lions doubled their lead off Connor MacEachern's second goal of the night. Roseau native Aaron Huglen then cut the deficit to one, scoring his first goal of the season on a 3-on-1. However, the comeback fell short, with Penn State adding an empty net goal to cap off a 4-2 win. 

Friday's game saw the Nittany Lions strike first again, with Christian Sarlo recording his second goal of the series in period one. That 1-0 lead held until late in the second period when Mason Nevers tipped a power play goal home to tie the game. At the 13:05 minute mark of the third, the Gophers took the lead, with Jaxon Nelson feeding Bryce Brodzinski, who snapped it home. The Gophers repeated that same goal connection only a minute later, with Nelson winning a puck battle behind the net and finding the open Brodzinski out in front. Justen Close stopped all remaining shots, helping the Gophers earn a 3-1 win and his seventh win in net this season.

The now 8-4 Gophers will travel to Ann Arbor, MI, to take on the Michigan Wolverines in another Thursday/Friday series. 

Minnesota Duluth (5-5) welcomed the Nebraska Omaha Mavericks (4-4-2) to Amsoil Arena for a two-game series.

Friday's game saw the Mavericks jump to a 1-0 lead in the first period, with Eden Prairie graduate Nolan Sullivan scoring his second goal of the season.

The Bulldogs tied the game up at one early in the second, with a Blake Biondi shot taking a fortunate bounce off Jesse Jacques and finding its way in the back of the net. Later in the period, the Bulldogs took the lead off a Tanner Laderoute goal, his first of the season. Early in the third period, with the Mavericks on the power play, Ty Mueller scored off a cross-crease pass from Jacob Guevin to tie the game at two.

With 8:27 remaining, the Mavericks scored the go-ahead goal and eventual game-winner, with Matt Miller banging home a rebound on the power play. Senior goaltender, Jake Kucharski, had a big night in the net for Omaha, saving 36 of 38 shots faced. 

Unlike the night before, the Bulldogs started the scoring in game two, with Ben Steeves tallying a goal at the 13:59 minute mark of the first period to make it 1-0. In the second, the Mavericks tied the game at one through a Jake Pivonka 2-on-1 goal, but the Bulldogs answered late in the period, with Ben Steeves scoring his second of the game to make it 2-1.

The Bulldogs held onto that one-goal lead until late in the third period, when Matt Miller tied the game with only 90 seconds remaining. In overtime, Quinn Olson took the puck end-to-end and beat the goalie high, scoring his first goal of the season and securing two points for the Bulldogs in the NCHC standings. Matthew Thiessen earned the win in net for UMD, saving 19 of 21 shots. 

The No. 4 ranked team in the USCHO poll, St. Cloud State (8-2), battled No. 17 ranked Western Michigan University (7-4) for two games at home.

Game one was scoreless until late in the first period, when the Broncos scored two back-to-back power-play goals a minute apart, first from Aidan Fulp and second from Jamie Rome. St. Cloud's points leader, Grant Cruikshank, answered for the Huskies in the second, scoring his ninth goal of the season to make it 2-1.

In the third, the Huskies once again found themselves a player short due to a five-minute major penalty, leading to a Broncos third goal and a 3-1 lead. On the penalty kill, Micah Miller forced a turnover that led to a breakaway goal, scoring shorthanded at the 11:05 minute mark to make it 3-2. However, the Broncos still came out victorious, with Luke Grainger adding a fourth goal, resulting in a 4-2 final. 

Game two saw the Huskies quickly jump out to a 1-0 lead, with Grant Cruikshank scoring only a minute in, recording his fifteenth point of the season. Aidan Spellacy doubled the lead for the Huskies later in the period, slamming home the puck from in front of the crease off an Ondrej Trejbal pass. Midway through the second period, the Huskies made it 3-0, with Jami Krannila scoring on a rebound off a Zach Okabe shot.

The Huskies' potential shutout held until late in the third, when the Broncos pulled their goaltender and made it 3-1 off a Ryan McAllister goal. Jami Krannila then added an empty net goal for his sixth goal of the season, capping off a 4-1 win and series split for the Huskies.

St. Cloud will hit the road for another NCHC matchup this weekend, squaring off against the Colorado College Tigers. 

Over the weekend, St. Thomas (2-8) traveled to Ohio for a two-game series against the Bowling Green Falcons (3-7).

Friday's game saw the home team score first on the power play before the Tommies answered late in the period, with Mack Byers tying the game at one with only seven seconds remaining. Bowling Green scored the go-ahead goal in the second period, with Ryan O'Hara scoring the team's second power-play goal.

In the third period, Jaden Grant made it three 3-1 for the Falcons, scoring off a Brett Pfoh feed. Eastview High alum, Josh Eernisse, scored halfway through the period to make it 3-2, but that ended up being the final, with the Tommies losing their third straight game. 

Saturday night saw the Tommies score first, with Cooper Gay scoring his third goal in the last four games to make it 1-0. A few minutes later, the Falcons found themselves on the power play where Nathan Burke tipped in a Zach Vinnell shot to tie the game up at one. In the second, freshman Braidan Simmons-Fischer scored from the point, regaining the lead for the Tommies and tallying his first collegiate goal.

That lead held until the 5:13 minute mark in the third, where Ethan Scardina scored to tie the game at two. With only 18 seconds remaining, the Falcons' Austen Swankler scored the go-ahead goal, claiming the 3-2 victory and series sweep at home. The Tommies will look to turn things around next weekend at home when they take on Michigan Tech. 

In Marquette, MI, for a two-game series, the Bemidji State University Beavers (4-2-2) battled conference opponents, the Northern Michigan Wildcats (7-5).

The first two periods of game one were scoreless, with Mattias Sholl saving all 21 shots faced in net for the Beavers and Beni Halasz saving all 12 shots for the Wildcats.

This scoreless battle came to an end with less than two minutes remaining in the game, with Artem Shlaine scoring his seventh goal and twelfth point of the season. Shlaine, a native of Moscow, Russia, previously attended Shattuck St. Mary's for two seasons of prep hockey. The Wildcats added an empty net goal for a 2-0 win, with Halasz earning the 25-save shutout.

In the second game Saturday night, the Beavers put the previous night behind them and jumped out to a 1-0 lead in the first, with Chaska native Will Magnuson scoring his first goal of the season. Four minutes later, the Wildcats answered, with Joey Larson scoring on a backhand from the slot.

The second period went scoreless before the Beavers recaptured the lead, with Will Zmolek scoring only thirty seconds into the third. The Beavers built on this lead, scoring at the 7:14 minute mark on an Alexander Lundman goal. With less than four minutes remaining, the Beavers made it 4-1, with Jere Vaisanen scoring to help the team claim their fifth win of the season. Mattias Sholl secured his third win in net for the Beavers, saving 24 of 25 shots faced.

The Beavers will now have a bye weekend before facing the University of North Dakota Fighting Hawks for a home-and-home series over Thanksgiving weekend. 

• Minnesota State Mankato (7-3) – The Mavericks will host the Northern Michigan Wildcats (8-6) this coming weekend, starting at 7:07 PM CT on 11/18 and 6:07 PM CT on 11/19.