The only thing Mike Zacharias was bitter about was the final outcome.

As for everything else that took place in the Minnesota State men’s hockey team’s marathon Western Collegiate Hockey Association playoff series against Minnesota last winter, the Mavericks goalie isn’t ashamed to say it was the most memorable series of hockey he’s ever been part of.

“I think when you have a situation like that, when every goal counts so much and every shot has people holding their breath and standing on their chairs,” Zacharias said, “from that standpoint, it was a pretty exciting weekend of hockey.”

Minnesota State ended up losing that three-game series to the Gophers on March 14, 15 and 16. Tonight, Zacharias and the Mavericks will take the Alltel Center ice for the first time since then when they open the 2008-09 season against Bemidji State.

A big reason people are optimistic about Minnesota State’s chances this year is the return of Zacharias, a senior who ranked ninth in the nation in goals-against average and 12th in save percentage a season ago.

In that memorable series against Minnesota, which featured two double-overtime games and one that ended in the first overtime, Zacharias saved 116 of 121 shots (95.9 percent), including 47 of 50 shots in the finale. Minnesota’s Alex Kangas stopped 115 of 119 (96.6) shots in the series.

“I think I showed I can play at a high level in this league,” Zacharias said. “Kangas and I took it to a whole other level.”

Actually, Zacharias had been raising his bar all season long.

He won 18 games, the most by an MSU goaltender in eight years, to up his career record to 31-25-10 and tied a team record with his .924 save percentage. He also set a school-record with five shutouts, including a 1-0 win over Minnesota in the playoffs and a 1-0 win at Bemidji State last December.

“He absolutely stood on his head last year,” said senior defenseman Blake Friesen, one of the Mavericks’ assistant captains. “He stole I don’t know how many games for us. ... He’s quick as a cat. You can’t beat him with a straight-on shot. You can only beat him with rebounds — sometimes two or three rebounds.”

With Zacharias, fellow senior Dan Tormey, who was the goalie on the WCHA all-rookie team in 2005-06, and heir apparent Austin Lee, a redshirt freshman, Mavericks coach Troy Jutting said his team’s goaltending situation might be as strong as it’s been since he took over as coach in 2000.

“I don’t think last year was a fluke,” Jutting said. “I think (Zacharias) is a good goaltender. I think (Tormey) is a good goaltender. ... I like both of them.”

As is his modus operandi, Jutting would only commit to starting Zacharias tonight.

Zacharias and Tormey are roommates this school year. Any competition between them remains on the ice, they say, and they leave Jutting to make the final call.

“If they’re both playing great, that’s fantastic,” Jutting said.