BUFFALO, N.Y. -- Move over Boston University. Michigan is next.

With Minnesota's 5-1 win over New Hampshire in the 2003 Frozen Four title game Saturday night in front of 18,759 at HSBC Arena, the Golden Gophers became the first team to repeat as national champions since BU did it in 1971 and 1972.

That means the 1951-53 run by the Wolverines is clearly in the sights of a Minnesota team that only loses one player who dressed in Saturday night's game.

	“	The future of the team is pretty much unstoppable. ”
		— Minnesota senior Matt DeMarchi

And that player, senior defenseman Matt DeMarchi, sees no reason why the Gophers can't continue to make their mark on the record books.

"The future of the team is pretty much unstoppable," he said.

On Saturday night, it was Thomas Vanek who proved to be unstoppable when the game was on the line.

With the score tied at 1-1 in the third period, the freshman from Graz, Austria, took over the game.

He wheeled around UNH defenseman Mick Mounsey in the left circle and skated in alone on goalie Mike Ayers. Instead of trying to beat him straight up, Vanek moved from left to right through the slot and waited for Ayers to commit.

When Ayers did, going down to try and block the shot he thought was coming, Vanek dropped his shoulder and went around Ayers before putting the puck in an open net -- past a sprawling Mounsey, who tried to recover and make a play -- at 8:14 to make it 2-1 Minnesota.

"Ayers is so tough to beat on a blank shot because he comes out and plays the angle well," Vanek said. "I knew I had to move him from left to right and that's what I did. I was just patient on it, made a move around him and I had an open net so it was an easy goal at the end."

Easy for a player with 31 goals on the season, including 17 in the third period or overtime, and five game-winners.

"He showed a lot of patience," Ayers said. "When I went down I thought he had a lot less room short-side. He made a great play -- a good goal scorer's goal.

"After he scored that goal, I thought we were a little timid out there."

It showed.

Just over three minutes later, Vanek picked up an assist when he fed Jon Waibel in the slot on a goal that made it 3-1 Gophers and effectively ended any thoughts of a UNH comeback.

For his efforts, Vanek was named the Frozen Four MVP. He finished the NCAA Tournament with five goals and three assists in four games -- including the game-winner in both Frozen Four games.

None of his accomplishments come as a surprise to his teammates.

"People were saying that we didn't have any superstars on this team," said captain Grant Potulny, who was the MVP of the 2002 Frozen Four. "You don't have to look any farther than (No.) 26. That kid's the best freshman I've ever seen."

"He'll score on you in practice and you'll just be in awe because you're like, 'what was that?' because you've never seen it before," said goalie Travis Weber, who made 26 saves in the win. "He's got awesome hands, he can really skate."

Vanek is a lock to be a top-pick in June's NHL Entry Draft, but the expectation at this point is that he will return for another season -- probably his last -- in the Twin Cities.

That may be one of the reasons the Gopher players were talking three-peat amongst themselves on the ice before the final horn sounded.

Their head coach was trying to quell those thoughts and words during the ensuing postgame celebration.

"What you do this year doesn't guarantee anything the following year," coach Don Lucia said. "This was a unique team and even though we only lose one player that played in this game, chemistry can change, injuries can happen, somebody could sign over the summertime.

"You have to be good. You have to be lucky."

And you have to have players.

In addition to the nearly complete roster that returns next season, Lucia is bringing in another top recruiting class to the U.

Two of the names will sound familiar to the Minnesota faithful. One is Ryan Potulny, the leading scorer in the USHL (Lincoln) and the brother of current Gopher Grant. The other is Mike Vannelli, the leading scoring defenseman in the USHL (Sioux Falls) and the son of former Gopher Tom, who was named the Frozen Four's MVP in 1976 when Minnesota won its second national title.

Another case of the rich getting richer, even if the coach doesn't want to admit it.

"When next year begins, you have to put the puzzle together," Lucia said. "And just because the puzzle was basically complete at the end of one year, it doesn't mean you start there. You have to start over again and put it together.

But it's a lot easier to build the puzzle when you already have pieces. And more of them on the way.

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