Gophers Freshmen Orientation

The Minnesota Gophers opened the 2009-10 season by defeating British Columbia 6-1. For the most part it was the veterans that are expected to lead the Gophers that led the way Sunday. BOX SCORE But if Minnesota is going to return to elite status in the WCHA it needs Nick Leddy to step up and be the defenseman that can shut down opponents as well as add offense . When the Gophers were one of the top teams in the NCAA and won two national championships they were led by premier defensemen like Jordan Leopold, Paul Martin and Keith Ballard. Leddy can be just as good as any of them if not better. He scored his first goal as a Gopher making it 6-1 in the easy victory. Leddy is one of only four freshmen on this year's Gophers roster. He will likely receive the most ice time.


The other freshmen on the roster are Seth Helgeson, Zach Budish and Josh Birkholz. This frehmen class is unique from previous classes under Lucia in recent years that it doesn't include that one prolific scoring forward. And the size of the players in this class is the biggest and most impressive. Helgeson (6'5, 220 ) and Budish (6'3", 229 ) already have the size the NHL teams desire. Leddy and Birkholz, while not known for their size, are both big enough and physical enough for the NHL. Birkholz is 6'1", 182 pounds and Leddy is 5'11" 180 pounds. This class has a serious chance of having each player playing in the NHL five years from now.


Leddy was drafted in the first-round draft choice by the Minnesota Wild and 16th player taken overall in 2009 NHL Entry Draft. Budish was selected selected by the Nashville Predators in the second round of the 2009 NHL Entry Draft. Birkolz was drafted by the Florida Panthers in the third round of the 2009 NHL Entry Draft. Helgeson was drafted by the New Jersey Devils in the fourth round of the 2009 NHL Entry Draft.