MICK
BERGE
Minnesota State
Jr. | F | Oklahoma City
Berge's father, Mark, played 107 games on defense
for North Dakota between 1976-81.
Key Statistic: Berge
started his sophomore campaign with six goals in his
first seven games and shared the team lead in goals
with seven goals in the Mavericks' first 13 contests
before breaking his shoulder blade in practice Nov.
28. His six power-play goals ranked third among Mavs
skaters.
What He Does: Until the
injury cost him eight games in December, the 5-10, 170-pound
Oklahoma City native was on track enjoy a breakout season
offensively similar to
classmate Jon Kalinski, who scored 27 points in 37 games
last season. And while his production last season tipped
rather one-sidedly toward the goals column, Berge is
a
skilled playmaker as evidenced by his final season with
the Lincoln Stars of the United States Hockey League
— he ranked third in the circuit with 44 assists,
and his 57 points tied for the league's 12th-best total.
The Bigger Picture: Coach
Troy Jutting is counting on Berge and Kalinski to fill
the
void left by the graduated Travis Morin, who scored
58 goals and 133 points in 151
career games, with good reason — seniors-to-be
Joel Hanson and Matt Tyree are the only upperclassmen
up front. They'll set the pace for a promising group
of sophomore forwards, and Jutting is also high on the
incoming freshman class.
Minnesota State coach Troy Jutting
on Berge: "He's got a great release [on
his shot] ... a quick release. He creates his own scoring
opportunities, and I think he's the type of kid who
can step into the role of creating opportunities for
his linemates.
