Fox 9 Sports Now: Hobie Artigue talks NCAA Frozen 4 with MSU-Mankato coach Mike Hastings

MINNEAPOLIS - It’s NCAA Frozen Four week, and two teams from Minnesota have the chance to finish the season with a national championship.

The only unfortunate thing is Minnesota State University-Mankato and the University of Minnesota meet Thursday night, and not on Saturday for the national title. The Gophers and Mavericks, led by close friends Bob Motzko and Mike Hastings, square off in the late game Thursday for a spot in the national championship.

Sunday night on Fox 9 Sports Now, Hobie Artigue caught up with Mike Hastings to talk about facing the Gophers on Thursday. The two teams took different paths to get there.

The Mavericks beat Bemidji State 2-1 in overtime to win the CCHA championship after a goal was disallowed following a review that took nearly an hour. The Mavericks eventually got the winning goal after a restart. Mankato held off Harvard 4-3 in its opening NCAA Tournament game, then knocked off Notre Dame 1-0 to reach the Frozen Four for the second straight year.

Last season for the Mavericks ended in a 4-3 loss to St. Cloud State in the national semifinals.

The Gophers lost to Michigan 4-3 in the Big Ten title game, earning the No. 2 seed in the Worcester Regional. Minnesota trailed defending champion UMass 2-1 and 3-2 before rallying for a 4-3 win in overtime. The Gophers then shut out No. 1 seed Western Michigan 3-0 to reach the Frozen Four.

The Gophers and Mavericks have not played each other this season. The last time the two teams met, Mankato knocked Minnesota out of the NCAA Tournament last season with a 4-0 victory to advance its first Frozen Four. The Mavericks are seeking their first national title, and the Gophers are looking for their first national title since 2003. They last played for a national title in 2014.

Watch the video for the full segment with Mankato coach Mike Hastings!