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The University of Minnesota announced yesterday the addition of Eden Prairie native Mitch Rogge to the Golden Gopher hockey roster. Rogge fills the space vacated by the departure of Gabe Guertler earlier this summer, bringing the roster back to 26 players.
Jason Gonzalez of the Star Tribune reports that Rogge will join the team as a walk-on and should be eligible to play immediately despite the fact that he played two games for the Sacred Heart Pioneers of the Atlantic Hockey Association last year.
I his high school days, Rogge was a part of Eden Prairie's 2009 Class 2A State Championship squad. Rogge spent three seasons in the NAHL, playing for the Amarillo Bulls and the Springfield Jr. Blues. He notched 23 goals and 32 assists in 132 games. As stated above, he played in only two games for Sacred Heart and totaled zero points in those games. Data on minutes played in those two games is not readily available, unfortunately.
Overall, Rogge is a nice depth addition for the Gophers; he's the fifteenth forward on the roster. He should be a serviceable skater on the lower lines, or in case of injury. I feel much better about the the number of available forwards at fifteen as opposed to fourteen. The Gophers have seven upperclassmen forwards and a pile of talented underclassmen forwards, so it will be a challenge for Rogge to break into the lineup consistently.
Now that Guertler's roster spot has been back-filled, we this winter's roster is likely set. But what do I know? Something could change, I guess. Here's a breakdown of the roster as it is today:
| Defense | 8 |
| FR | 3 |
| JR | 2 |
| SO | 2 |
| SR | 1 |
| Forward | 15 |
| FR | 2 |
| JR | 2 |
| RS SO | 1 |
| SO | 5 |
| SR | 5 |
| Goalie | 3 |
| FR | 1 |
| JR | 2 |
The Gophers will be a much more experienced team this year, with all eligible players returning(with the exception of Guertler). They will be one of the favorites to return to the Frozen Four and vie for the National Championship, but that's still a long way off.
I know we're in the middle of FOOTBALL HYPE times, but we're less than two months from hockey season, and I personally can't wait. We'll be ramping-up hockey coverage next month, so make sure to stick with The Daily Gopher for the best Gophers centric college hockey coverage throughout the winter. Ski-U-Mah!
DarkKnight5 is a college hockey writer for The Daily Gopher. You can also follow him on Twitter!
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