It was the first set of games Jimmy Kilpatrick circled on the Colorado College hockey schedule. Yet when the long-awaited trip finally arrived, all Kilpatrick could do was sit and watch.

He was not the only one.

When CC visited the University of Minnesota in late October, the Golden Gophers were rolling and the Tigers were reeling.

Kilpatrick and several other regulars were out of the lineup and could only watch as CC opened its Western Collegiate Hockey Association schedule with two losses, including 8-1 in the finale.

The Tigers are hoping to prove much has changed in the rematch against the second-ranked Golden Gophers, beginning tonight at World Arena in Colorado Springs (FSN Rocky Mountain, live at 7:30 p.m. today, tape at 9 p.m. Saturday).

"Me being from Minnesota, it was hard not playing in that one," said Kilpatrick, a native of New Prague who was ill when the Tigers visited Minnesota. "When the North Stars left, for a while, Minnesota was the only hockey we had in the (Minneapolis- St. Paul) metro region. I know a lot of the guys on that team. It makes it that much more fun and competitive."

Kilpatrick, CC's leading scorer with 24 points, had plenty of company on the sideline when the Tigers visited Minnesota.

Freshmen Billy Sweatt and Nate Prosser also were sidelined and redshirt freshman Andreas Vlassopoulos had not yet returned from a serious knee injury he suffered in the 2005-06 opener.

CC's previous performance at Minnesota completed a stretch in which it lost four in a row against the Golden Gophers and New Hampshire by a combined 21-6.

After slowly getting its lineup intact, CC has moved into contention for home ice in the first round of the WCHA playoffs and a spot in the NCAA tournament.

CC is 10-3 at home since the beginning of November and has not been swept in any series since its visit to Minnesota.

"I don't know if it is revenge or anything, but we definitely want to show something," junior forward Scott McCulloch said. "To pick up points would be huge."

CC (16-11-3, 12-8-2 WCHA) is in fourth place in the league, one point behind idle Denver. The Tigers also are ranked 11th in the PairWise poll, putting them on the NCAA tournament bubble.

But with series remaining against Minnesota, at Minnesota State and a home-and-home series against DU, the Tigers remain in control of their postseason fortunes.

"We want to focus on the league," coach Scott Owens said. "We rarely, rarely talk about the PairWise around here. With the difficulty of our schedule, if we play well, all that will take care of itself."