Stanzel’s Sports Takeout — BREAKING NEWS: 1.27.25

Jan 27

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Super Bowl 59 is a rematch of Super Bowl 57, with the Chiefs the lone team in history to get to a Super Bowl trying to threepeat. The Eagles had seven rushing TD’s yesterday…the Vikings had nine all season. The Chiefs? I’m no conspiracy theorist but gosh they get all the calls. In a multi billion dollar league, how do we let aging men with poor eyesight spot the ball in an arbitrary place.

Fights aren’t allowed in college hockey, but check out this bench clearing brawl (coaches left the bench, too) in the Cornell/Dartmouth game.

We should get more PGA final rounds in Saturday on primetime.

Tough year with injuries for Taylor Heise (and most of the Frost), but she doubled her goal output for the season with two goals in a 5-2 win over Boston yesterday.

Wild Holds off Tanking Blackhawks

Midway through their game against Chicago last night, the Wild had as many goals (three) as the last-place Blackhawks had shots. Minnesota still won, but barely, holding off Chicago’s furious third-period rally, 4-2, at United Center.

After two woeful games, the Wild looked like All Stars for 40 minutes in the second of a back-to-back. But the final 20 minutes looked far too much like a Wild team that had lost five of six. But Minnesota managed to kill off two late penalties with Chicago having a chance to tie before Marcus Foligno scored an empty-netter.

Instead, the Blackhawks took another step towards the cellar of the NHL and a better chance at yet another No. 1 overall pick. The Blackhawks also traded away Taylor Hall this week. Another tank job is in, with only San Jose to stand in the way. .

The win came on the heels of a pretty stern press conference from John Hynes on Saturday night about his team not wanting to do the hard things it takes to win in the NHL. He made a couple lineup changes after that 5-4 loss to Calgary, a game that was not as close as the final score indicated as Minnesota scored three late goals to get close.

This five-game road trip continues Wednesday in Toronto, a team that’s in first in the Atlantic despite losing two in a row.

GMBB Beats Another Ranked Team; GWBB Visits Two Top Four Teams This Week

Talk about an improbable turnaround. They’re not calling for Ben Johnson’s head (much) anymore, not after the Gophers upset another ranked team, beating No. 15 Oregon 77-69 at The Barn on Saturday. It’s the Gophers’ second win over a ranked team in a nine-day stretch, leading a full house to storm the court on Saturday. Remember, this is a team that looked very much like they may go winless in the Big 10. If they win four in a row overall it’ll be something, because they visit No. 8 Michigan State on Tuesday.

Quite a week ahead for the Gopher women, who are ranked No. 23 and beat Wisconsin 71-50 yesterday at home. Minnesota plays No. 4 USC and No. 1 UCLA on the road Thursday and Sunday, respectively.

Wolves Crush Nuggets in Playoff Rematch

The down-then-up season of the Wolves continues. But they’re on the upswing now, after whipping Denver 133-104 in a playoff rematch on Saturday at Target Center. It was Minnesota’s most complete game of the season. They hit 14 3-pointers, and Anthony Edwards led the way with 34 points.

Minnesota has climbed into seventh in the West, and hosts Atlanta tonight. The Hawks have lost four in a row.

GMH Winless at Michigan State; GWH Carries Six-Game Win Streak into OSU Series

Six points available, just one taken home by the Gopher men in East Lansing over the weekend. After giving up nine goals on Friday, the Gophers rallied for a 3-3 tie on Saturday. However, the Spartans got the extra point in the shootout. There are four weekends left of Big 10 hockey; the Gophers trail the Spartans by five points and would also lose the tiebreaker. Minnesota hosts Wisconsin for two this weekend.

On the women’s side, the Gophers swept Bemidji State by a combined 7-2 margin, including a 3-1 outdoor win at Valleyfair on Hockey Day Minnesota. The Gophers carry a six-game winning streak into a huge test this weekend against Ohio State. Minnesota hosts the Buckeyes, with the teams tied for second in the WCHA. The Gophers do have two games in hand. No one’s catching No. 1 Wisconsin.

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