BUFFALO, N.Y. -- Take a nap in the afternoon. Consider carbo-loading before the puck drops. Then pace yourself during the game.

That would be good advice for college hockey fans, not the players, because there's a very strong chance Saturday night's NCAA men's ice hockey championship game (ESPN, 7 p.m. ET) between New Hampshire (28-7-6) and Minnesota (27-8-9) will go beyond 60 minutes of play.

	Stats Class
	April 12 ESPN 7 ET
	Record	28-7-6	27-8-9
	Last 10	8-0-2	9-0-1
	Road/Neutral	12-4-5	13-4-3
	Goals/Game	3.78	4.18
	GAA	2.22	2.75
	Power Play	.240 (41-171)	.250 (62-248)
	Penalty Kill	.868 (24-182)	.806 (38-196)

Four of the last five (and five of the last seven) title games have gone into overtime, and there's no reason to think the 2003 Frozen Four finale won't do the same.

"I think you better expect it this time of year," Minnesota coach Don Lucia said. "This is my third national title game and I've won one in OT and lost one in OT."

Lucia lost the 1996 final when Michigan beat his Colorado College team 3-2 (3:35 into overtime). Last year, Lucia was on the positive side of a 4-3 decision when his Golden Gophers topped Maine after Grant Potulny cleaned up a loose puck just outside of the Black Bears' crease that found the back of the net (16:58 into overtime).

Minnesota's win last season marked the fourth longest championship game in Frozen Four history. The longest one was a four-OT affair in 1984, won by Bowling Green (5-4 over Minnesota-Duluth).

Neither coach is looking to set any overtime records, but each realizes an extra-session game would be somewhat fitting.

"If it goes to OT, that's appropriate for both teams in the national championship game," New Hampshire coach Dick Umile said. "Hopefully the game is played that well if we have to go there. But I'd rather win it in the last minute."

That's because like Lucia, Umile also has been on the losing end of an overtime title game when Maine beat UNH in 1999 (10:50 into overtime).

	Keys to the Game
	ESPN analyst Bob Norton:
	New Hampshire Be like Mike: Ayres needs to continue spectacular play Self control: UNH has to stay out of the penalty box Speed trap: Wildcats D must contain Gopher speed Minnesota Good start: Can't repeat first-period problems from semis Goal-oriented: Travis Weber needs another top effort Taken for Grant-ed: Captain Potulny has to be a factor

So is there any magic formula to surviving overtime in postseason play? Besides getting a little lucky, both coaches agree the approach to the game needs to be simplified a bit at that point.

"You just have to be real cautious and you have to play a little smarter and wait for your chances to execute and make a play," Umile said. "Hopefully if you get to that point it's a great goal.

"You kind of live on the edge with the bounces and never know what's going to happen. When you get to that point, you just live with the bouncing puck and hopefully it's going to bounce our way."

Lucia agreed with Umile's assessment about playing smart and doing the little things well. He also stressed the importance of faceoffs and not making any mistakes off the draw.

And most importantly, "shoot the puck," Lucia said. "You can't be afraid to shoot the puck in overtime, you never know when it's going to go in."

That's what freshman Thomas Vanek did in Thursday's second semifinal against Michigan. His shot at 8:55 of overtime found an opening between goalie Al Montoya's legs or Minnesota might not be playing for its second consecutive title.

Minnesota and UNH each have three overtime wins this season. The Gophers registered two of theirs in the postseason (3-2 over MSU-Mankato in the WCHA Final Five and 3-2 over Michigan in the Frozen Four), compared to one for UNH (1-0 over Boston University in the Hockey East championship game).

"I think they're a lot like our team was last year," Lucia said. "They're hungry, they're probably one of the last great programs that have never won a national title. I think they are a very driven team and that's something I'm going to get across to our players.

	“	There's going to be two boxes of shirts and hats out there -- one with UNH and one with Minnesota. Somebody's going to break them out and the other ones gets shredded. ”
		— Minnesota coach Don Lucia

"New Hampshire is going to play desperate hockey tomorrow because they desperately want to win a national title."

A UNH win would mark the 18th different school to win a Division I national championship, while Minnesota would become the fifth school to win at least five titles. Michigan leads the way with nine, followed by North Dakota (7), Wisconsin (5) and Denver (5).

"There's going to be two boxes of shirts and hats out there -- one with UNH and one with Minnesota," Lucia said. "Somebody's going to break them out and the other ones gets shredded.

"This is my fourth Frozen Four and I've been involved in four overtime games. It's a great way to win and it's an awful difficult way to lose."

Especially if you just got shredded.

David Albright is a senior editor at ESPN.com and can be reached at david.albright@espn3.com