Frozen Four: Mavericks take the ice for practice in Boston
The Minnesota State men’s hockey team officially hit the ice for the first time this evening since arriving in Boston last night at around 5:15 local time.
The Mavericks were the third team to skate TD Garden today, behind Denver and Michigan. MSU’s Frozen Four matchup, Minnesota, followed behind the Mavs to wrap up team practices a day ahead of the first games.
It was a normal practice for the team, which featured a ton of emotions from the players. Several roars of excitement rang throughout the nearly empty arena as the team first made their opening laps around the ice. The team then began drills, where they worked on transitions and speed with the puck before eventually wrapping up with one-on-one chances on the goaltenders.
The team then wrapped up at center ice atop the new 2022 NCAA Frozen Four logo before heading to media availability.
For the Mavericks, there is much more than the chance at a National Championship to be excited about this week. The ability to learn about a new city and enjoy a different culture is second to none for the team, and Mavericks’ head coach Mike Hastings was quick to share appreciation for the Boston area today.
“We’re excited about being in Boston. The trip has been seamless and the people have been fantastic,” said Hastings. “Our entire group is excited about what is in front of us on Thursday.”
With only one day of practices before what the team hopes to be the first of two big games this week, the team is also weary of game planning for the Golden Gophers. Senior defenseman Wyatt Aamodt commented on what the Mavericks have to do in order to be successful against Minnesota tomorrow.
“We’ve got to do our best to hop on them early and enjoy the experience but know that there is a job at hand,” said Aamodt. “We have to take the game five minutes at a time and play our game.”
Header Photo: Senior defenseman Benton Maas (right) practices with sophomore Josh Groll at TD Garden in Boston. (Mansoor Ahmad/The Reporter)