● Lake Superior State will close out 11 straight weekends of hockey against the No. 10 Bowling Green Falcons in a home series on Friday, Dec. 13 and Saturday, Dec. 14. Both games are set for a 7:07 p.m. puck drop at the Taffy Abel Arena.
● Earlier this season, the Lakers split a road series at No. 17 Bowling Green. Lake Superior lost the opening game 5-0 but responded with a 3-1 win in the series closer to record their first road win of the season on Nov. 23.
● The series will mark the fourth time this season that the Lakers faced a top ten ranked team. The Lakers played a road series against the No. 1 team in the country, the Minnesota State Mavericks, last weekend and competed against No. 2 Denver and No. 4/5 Notre Dame earlier in the season.
● Last weekend, the Lakers recorded a pair of losses against the top ranked Mavericks in Mankato. The Lakers fell in the first game by a final score of 5-1 and in the second game, 2-0.
● LSSU's record sits at 5-14-1 overall and 3-8-1-1 in WCHA play after opening the season against some of the NCAA's stiffest competition including two games against No. 2 Denver, a pair of road games against the Michigan Wolverines as well as a road series against the No. 4/5 Notre Dame Fighting Irish. The Lakers opened conference play with two wins against Ferris State on Nov. 1 and 2, and have rotated between home and road WCHA series since.
● In the first game of the series against the Mavericks, sophomore forward Pete Veillette netted the lone goal in the game for the Lakers when he scored his fifth goal of the season. Veillette ranks third on the team in points with 12, as he continues to build onto his career high totals in goals (5) and assists (7) this season.
● Freshman forward Louis Boudon notched the primary assist on the play to bring his season total to nine points for the Lakers. Sophomore defenseman Jacob Nordqvist added the secondary assist on the goal for his first point since returning to the Laker lineup after missing six games due to injury.
● In the series closer, the Lakers would trail by a goal heading into the final period of play against the Mavericks but would fall in the game by a score of 2-0. Lakers goaltender Mareks Mitens had a solid game in goal despite the loss, stopping 32 shots for a .941 save percentage.
● Mitens made 58 saves against Minnesota State last weekend to bring his season total to 465, which leads the league. The Latvian goaltender leads all WCHA players in minutes played with 1077:34, as no other goalie has surpassed 1000 minutes this season.
● The series against Minnesota State saw the return of senior forward Brayden Gelsinger to the Lakers lineup after missing the first 18 games of the season due to injury. The Regina, Sask. native had three shots on goal against the Mavericks.
● Senior captain Max Humitz leads all current Lakers in career points with 91 (51G, 40A) in 126 career games, which also ranks first among his teammates. The Livonia, Mich. native leads all WCHA players in shots on goal this season with 78.
● This season, Humitz ranks first on the Lakers with nine goals and 15 points. Among WCHA players, Humitz is tied for third in goals and tied for fifth in points this season.
● Hampus Eriksson leads the Lakers in assists with 11 and ranks second on the team in points with 14. The Swedish forward has tied his previous season point total through 20 games this season, as he has posted an identical stat line to his sophomore season in 2018-19.
● The Lakers have won more faceoffs than any other team in the NCAA with 620 victories this season. Freshman Dustin Manz leads the team with a .596 faceoff win percentage this season as he has won 102 of the 171 draws he has taken.
● Leading the Lakers defensively, senior captain Collin Saccoman is tied for first among all WCHA defenseman in goals with six, tied for fifth among league defensemen in points (6-3-9), and sixth among WCHA players in blocked shots with 23. Saccoman who was named WCHA Defenseman of the Week earlier this month is first among WCHA defensemen in power play goals with three this season.
● The Lakers have three players among the top 25 scorers in the WCHA and two players in the top 17. The Laker offense has been evenly distributed this season as 20 players have recorded at least a point,
10 players with six or more points, seven players with nine or more points and two players recording
14 or more points. 15 different players have registered a goal for the Lakers this season.
● This weekend, the Lakers and Bowling Green Falcons will meet for the second time this season. On the weekend of Nov. 22 and 23, the Lakers split a road series at No. 17 Bowling Green.
● Against the Falcons this year, Humitz leads the team with two points while six other players have recorded a point (Ambrosio, Eriksson, Manz, Oliver, Riedell, and Veillette).
● Last season, the teams played each other two times with each team winning won game. The Lakers won the first meeting by a final score of 5-0 and the Falcons would respond in the series closer with a 5-2 win.
● In the two games played in 2018-19, five current roster players recorded two points against Bowling Green. Ashton Calder (1G, 1A), Collin Saccoman (1G, 1A), Will Riedell (1G, 1A), Lukas Kaelble (1G, 1A), and Max Humitz (2A).
● In the all-time series between the two teams, the Falcons hold the advantage in the series against the Lakers with a 85-75-13 record.