The post Gallery: Frozen Four Championship, Denver vs. Boston College appeared first on Minnesota Hockey Magazine.

No, not win an NCAA national championship. That happened for the first time Saturday night with Denver. But he’s scored game-winning goals on the ice sheet at Xcel Energy Center in a couple of big games to help his team pull off the upsets of a top-seeded opponent.

Skating in a Denver Pioneers sweater Saturday, Wright scored about halfway through the second period to give his team a 1-0 lead over No. 1 Boston College (34-6-1) in the Frozen Four national championship game. It turned out to be all the Pioneers (32-9-3) needed on the way to a 2-0 shutout of BC for Denver’s 10th national championship in program history and second in three years; no program has won more national titles.

“I think it’s the biggest moment of my life,” Wright said. “I’m just so proud to be a Pio and a part of this program.”

Jared Wright (center) and his Denver teammates celebrated two goals on the ice before eventually celebrating the program’s 10th NCAA championship. (MHM Photo / Rick Olson)

Wright, a Burnsville native, celebrated with his teammates in his home state. It’s also been about four years since he helped his St. Thomas Academy to an upset victory in the state high school hockey tournament as a junior. In the 2020 tournament, Wright also scored a second-period goal which held up for the winner in the Class 2A quarterfinals as the unseeded Cadets upset top-seeded Andover 3-2.

The Cadets took fourth place in 2020 and reached state the next season but lost to Eden Prairie in the quarterfinals. Wright was a senior captain that season, finishing second in scoring with 16 goals and 38 points in 21 games. He only scored six goals but added 18 assists in his junior season.

Before coming to Denver, Wright scored 15 goals and 19 assists during the regular season with Omaha in the USHL.

Though the high school tournament offered a couple of bright spots, Wright didn’t get the chance to celebrate a state championship that so many hope to achieve.

“Obviously, that’s a big dream growing up in Minnesota to win that,” Wright said, of the high school state tournament. “Winning this is I think so much bigger. It’s the pinnacle of my life so far.”

Making such a contribution to his team on the biggest stage in college hockey is huge. But doing it in his home state?

“It just means everything,” Wright said. “Especially with my grandparents, don’t get to see me a whole lot in Denver. So, just scoring in front of them, and then also my mom and brothers and family, it just means the world to me.”

Minnesota connects
For all of the pre-Frozen Four chatter around the state of hockey lamenting the fact that none of the Minnesota teams made it to St. Paul, the Frozen Four still offered some home cooking. Among the final four teams, seven Minnesota natives were listed on the rosters. Of those, five players hit the ice over the weekend. Two of them played for Denver in Wright and his teammate Tristan Broz, former Gophers player and Blake School graduate, who scored the overtime winner in Thursday’s semifinal.

Sophomore Rieger Lorenz is pumped after scoring Denver’s second goal of the game against BC. (MHM Photo / Rick Olson)

Though not a Minnesota native, Minnesota Wild prospect Rieger Lorenz assisted on Wright’s goal and scored the second goal in the championship game. As Wright did in the postgame press conference four years ago when St. Thomas Academy upset Andover, he praised teammates for their contributions to his goal in the NCAA title game.

“Rieger made an awesome play to get it back to me,” Wright said. “Just kind of threw it blind to the net, and I was lucky enough it rolled in.”

That Lorenz and Wright line, the two sophomore wingers combined with freshman center Kieran Cebrian, was responsible for the goal-scoring in the championship game. Also credit to defensemen Shai Buium, Sean Behrens and Zeev Buium for their assists, especially the pass along the boards from Zeev to Rieger.

“I think we move our feet a lot, stay above pucks,” Wright said. “We reload really well. I’m beyond blessed to play with Zeevs and Rieger. And I think we just complement each other really well.”

Road to Denver
Wright played for three seasons with St. Thomas Academy, and he also skated in a few games with the Minot Minotauros in the NAHL during that 2020-21 season before a year with Omaha in the USHL. His visit to Denver’s campus, plus the people and the coaches, all went into his decision to make Denver University his college home, he said. Wright added that he’s “very lucky that this coaching staff saw something in me” and is grateful for the opportunity to play.

Denver coach David Carle complimented winger Jared Wright on the different ways he’s found to score goals this season. (MHM Photo / Rick Olson)

Perhaps that notable “something” was Wright’s speed. Denver coach David Carle referred to his speed as “exceptional” and said that he’s not sure if there is a faster player in college hockey than Wright. The sophomore finished the season with 15 goals and 10 assists. As his offensive confidence keeps growing, Carle said Wright is learning to score in different ways.

In Saturday’s game, Wright tried to make it a two-goal effort with a breakaway tally only a couple of minutes after his goal, but he was denied by Boston College goaltender Jacob Fowler. Carle noted that Wright had a few of those types of breakaway goals throughout this season and last.

“But he’s scoring in different ways around the net, finding open ice in quiet areas,” Carle said. “So, that’s been great to see.

“And he’s the nicest human you’ll ever meet. Amazing, amazing kid. So proud of him. Teammates love him. You can tell how much it means to him to be here and to be part of this, and there’s not many people that you cheer harder for than Jared Wright, I’ll tell you that.”

The post The Wright Stuff appeared first on Minnesota Hockey Magazine.

Four of the top-five scoring college hockey players in the entire country on one team managed to be shut out just once during the 2023-24 season. The worst part for the Boston College Eagles is that their only goalless game came in the most important one, the national championship game. Denver capitalized when Boston College couldn’t and won 2-0 to collect its 10th national championship, the first program to hit double-digit national titles.

“There’s a lot of great college hockey programs, this is a really hard event to win,” Denver coach David Carle said. “The nine title teams to prior to [now] went through a huge lift to get us here. We certainly try to attract people that want to be a part of something bigger than themselves.”

Denver’s defensive effort was led by Matt Davis as the team’s backstop, earning his 23rd win of the season with a shutout. (MHM Photo / Rick Olson)

Despite having those four scorers and averaging 4.46 goals per game as a team, Boston College scored zero in its quest for its sixth national championship. Fittingly, the only team that averaged a higher goals per game this season was Denver, at 4.59 goals per game.

How did Denver change the fortunes of this highly touted Boston College team that had made scoring look so easy all season long? First, the Pioneers employed a stifling defense that started in the neutral zone. Second, they had a goalie have the tournament of his life, highlighted by the save of the year. Third, they had the entire team buy in to the process of what it takes to shut down a team that wins on the back of flashy scoring and speedy offensive transitions.

“It was everything,” Carle said. “Our offense is always the most important zone to slow them down, how they break pucks out, how they transition out of their [defensive] zone, how they pull pucks back, they can really try to spread you out. … They’re a team that keeps you on your heels, and if you’re playing on your heels, you’re playing with fire.”

Boston College’s defenders continued to force stretch passes and long breakouts to forwards to streak into the Denver zone with speed. The Pioneers realized this tactic right from the outset of the game and put themselves in the right position to stifle most of those breakouts and turn it into a chance the other way for Denver.

In addition to getting sticks into the waiting areas, Denver had an extremely aggressive forecheck that often sent two players deep into BC’s end and force hurried plays that made life difficult for the Eagles attack.

Denver goaltender Matt Davis goes across the crease to make a sprawling save on Ryan Leonard (No. 9) on a BC power play in the third period. (MHM Photo / Rick Olson)

Denver team captain McKade Webster, though, thought the game was as simple as an unreal game from their starting goaltender, Matt Davis.

“I mean, Matthew Davis,” Webster plainly said. “What a job he did. The best goalie in the world.”

For Boston College, coach Greg Brown understood his team’s ability and attempt to push its strengths in breaking the puck out, but said that Denver’s neutral zone presence was incredibly suffocating and tough to get through.

“We’re usually pretty good at breaking pucks out and having speed through the neutral zone, and they had three and four guys a lot of times above our guys right away,” Brown said. “I don’t think we generated as much speed, that’s more a credit to [the Pioneers.]”

For the chances that did get into the offensive zone for BC, as Webster said, Davis was there to meet the challenge for Denver. At no point was that challenge more difficult than the third period. Davis recorded 23 saves in the third period alone, a tie for the most saves in a single period in Frozen Four history.

The Eagles realized it was ‘do-or-die’ and poured on the shots to try and get something past Davis. He kept his positioning, didn’t give up rebounds and calmly approached the opposing offense with an expectant demeanor to frustrate the BC offense.

“Superhuman,” Carle said of Davis. “This whole run, he gave up three goals. … I agree with McKade, without him, we’re not sitting here.”

The post Denver Defense Wins Championship appeared first on Minnesota Hockey Magazine.

Michigan freshman forward Garrett Schifsky, a 2021 Andover graduate, skated at right wing on the third line for the Wolverines in the Frozen Four. His high school coach, Mark Manney, spoke this week about the excitement in the area to see Schifsky play on such a big stage.

“First, you’re just happy for the kid, because his hard work paid off,” Manney said. “When you advance like this, it’s just another reminder that there’s something bigger than you there, too.”

Garrett Schifsky winds up for a shot against Boston College in the Frozen Four. (MHM Photo / Rick Olson)

The result of Thursday’s second Frozen Four semifinal didn’t go in Michigan’s favor against No. 1 Boston College, however. BC shut out Michigan 4-0, despite the 32 shots on goal from the Wolverines. BC goaltender Jacob Fowler stopped all of them. BC capitalized with a goal only 1 minute, 20 seconds into the game and then extended their lead with a pair of goals 49 seconds apart in the middle frame.

“I thought we brought it to them in the first period, and just kept going,” Schifsky said. “But they generated their stuff off the rush. They had a good goalie tonight. And everything he saw, he stopped. Credit to them. They’re a good team.”

Schifsky finished the game with one official shot on goal. He also fired a shot just wide of the net in the middle of the second period, and he drew a slashing penalty in the third period while driving the net trying to generate a scoring chance and get the Wolverines on the board.

Despite the stinging end to the season, Schifsky said after the game that it was special to come back home and play in front of family and friends at Xcel Energy Center “and try and win something very special.”

Manney noted that as good of a season as Schifsky had, which is wonderful, Schifsky was still down on the list of depth scoring for Michigan; “there’s stars all around him,” Manney said, adding that Schifsky is willing to be a penalty killer since he hasn’t been put in that typical scorer’s role.

Schifsky entered the Frozen Four weekend as the seventh-leading scorer for Michigan with 16 goals and 34 points in 40 games. He was also a plus +18, ranking just behind scoring leaders Gavin Brindley and Rutger McGroarty at +19.

“He’s been put in a regular role, and he’s performing that role well, but he’s also getting goals,” Manney said. “We’re super proud of him.”  

A leader at Andover, then in Waterloo
Schifsky is the second Andover graduate to skate in a Frozen Four. Wyatt Kaiser, a 2020 Andover grad, skated with Minnesota Duluth in the 2021 Frozen Four. He was also a freshman, manning the blue line for the Bulldogs who lost to Massachusetts 3-2 in the semifinals. Kaiser is now in the NHL with the Chicago Blackhawks organization.

Garrett Schifsky battles for the puck in front of the BC net. (MHM Photo / Rick Olson)

Schifsky played three seasons for Andover, helping lead the program to its first two state tournament appearances in 2020 and 2021. Though Andover lost in the state quarterfinals in those two years, Andover won the consolation bracket in 2020 and took home the Class 2A state championship in 2022.

As a senior captain, he led the Huskies in scoring with 29 goals and 60 points during the 2020-21 season. That year was played out with a shortened schedule in the wake of the pandemic. It was also a season with limitations and restrictions because of the pandemic, so the team couldn’t be together as much. Manney credited Schifsky for his leadership that season, which also carried over into the next season’s state championship team.

“He did a wonderful job of getting the most out of the other kids on that team,” Manney said. “The juniors, or seniors when we won the state tournament, I think that Schifsky had a big impact on them.

“We’ll be forever indebted to him here for taking a group of kids and turning them into professionals, at least for a couple of hours a day for three or four months in the winter.”

Schifsky had continued success in junior hockey, playing for the Waterloo Black Hawks and racking up 100 points (58 goals, 42 assists) in 125 career USHL games. He put up 46 points as an alternate captain in 2021-22 and then 28 goals and 52 points in 57 games last season as the team’s captain.

A coachable, respectful leader
Having watched Schifsky at Andover and then catching a few games when he played for Waterloo, Manney said he sees the same player in Schifsky.

Garrett Schifsky recorded a shot on goal and drew a penalty in the Frozen Four game against BC. (MHM Photo / Rick Olson)

“Just doing what he does better,” Manny said. “That’s what I see. He’s always been so coachable. I think that’s one of the things that sets him apart.

“He’s an active listener and was then (with Andover). If you asked him to try something a different way, he would go out and do it. I think he’s that was in his life, too.”

Beyond the hockey talents, Manney spoke highly of Schifsky with his good character and being a role model for the youth in the Andover community. Schifsky and Kaiser return to Andover in the summers to work for Manney with his summer youth programs.

Schifsky gave credit right back to Manney, someone he said became like a father figure to him.

“Just taught me everything I know to this day, and I couldn’t have done it without him and just great leaders above me,” Schifsky said.

Along with coachability and listening skills, Schifsky is open to new things, which is what Manney said drew Schifsky to Michigan’s program. Schifsky “really just buys into the team thing,” Manney said, referring to him as one of the top three or four leaders the Andover program has ever seen.

“He owned the locker room,” Manney said. “If there’s a kid out of line, it never got to me. Then he was captain in Waterloo, and I’m assuming they saw the same stuff we did.

“He’s a future captain in Michigan, too, someday, I think, for the same reason.”  

The post ‘Doing What He Does Better’ appeared first on Minnesota Hockey Magazine.

The post Gallery: Frozen Four Semifinal, Michigan vs. Boston College appeared first on Minnesota Hockey Magazine.

Despite losing 4-0 in the second Frozen Four semifinal at Xcel Energy Center, the Wolverines routinely sent their offensive-minded defensemen up into the play as fourth forwards, and had multiple power plays to set up shop and get to work. What better way to showcase their nine NHL draft picks on the roster? Michigan knew it needed to meet Boston College’s once-in-a-generation collection of offensive talent, highlighted by four first-round NHL draft picks, head-on.

That’s what made Eagles’ goaltender Jacob Fowler even more impressive on Thursday.

BC goaltender Jacob Fowler weathers a storm in front of the net as Michigan players Max Estapa (94) and Josh Eernisse (6) try to put the puck in the net. (MHM Photo / Rick Olson)

“Jacob was outstanding in net tonight,” said Boston College coach Greg Brown. “Ideally, we’d like to spend more time in the offensive zone, but they were doing a solid job defensively.”

In what they hope is a precursor to ending the season with a victory on Saturday in the national championship game against Denver, the Eagles shined offensively, but maintained a solid backstop to prevent the opposition from gaining any momentum, clinging to any sign of life in the game.

Fowler was there to meet the challenge. He met every one of Michigan’s 32 shots and kept it out of his own net.

“He’s probably the calmest goalie I’ve ever played with,” said forward Cutter Gauthier. “Any opportunities we give up, just knowing that safety net back there, that he’s in between the pipes, and he’s as competitive as all of us, and he’s a great kid as well.”

Just another victory for one of the nation’s top goalies on the team that has been turning heads across the college hockey landscape all season long. Even though it was his 32nd victory of the season, Fowler makes the feat even more impressive for another reason, too: His age.

The Montreal Canadiens third-round draft pick is just a freshman, having been the go-to starter for Boston College all season long. To say he’s been up to the challenge is an understatement, with a .926 save percentage (fourth best in the nation) and a 2.14 goals against average (eighth best in the nation). In the victory on Thursday, Fowler now has the third-most wins in a season all time for BC, adding to his accolade of having the most wins in a single season as a freshman for the program.

This bucks a significant trend in college hockey that was even evident in BC’s own semifinal matchup. Michigan goaltender Jake Barczewski is nearly six years older than Fowler. A graduate transfer in his first year with the Wolverines, Barczewski arrived on a Wolverines team in need of proven goaltending, a resume he spent four years building at Canisius in the Atlantic Hockey Association, plus two years before that in the USHL.

Jacob Fowler stood tall in net all game long for BC. (MHM Photo / Rick Olson)

Many schools across the college hockey landscape attempt to go goalie-hunting to remain competitive with an experienced roster outside the crease. While Michigan has ventured into this realm of the transfer portal in the last few years, so has North Dakota and rival Boston University.

In a game where the Brown said it was a “track meet” with high-danger chances going both ways throughout, Fowler was the solid rock that meant the difference. Even though there were key blocks on the penalty kill and 4-on-4 play, the buck stopped with the freshman goaltender.

“Going into every game, it’s nice having him back there,” said forward Will Smith. “He has such a confidence in net, coach touched on it, there [were] a few too many odd-man rushes, so having him back there definitely helps. I’m looking at this, he had 32 saves, he was unreal tonight.”

With the high-end talent in front of him, Fowler kept the distance to allow the success of his forward group to shine through for a chance at the program’s sixth national championship on Saturday.

“I’m super pumped for him and the game he had today,” Gauthier said. “It’s been fun learning how to score goals on him in practice, but a great kid and he had a heck of a game tonight.”

The post Fowler Shines In Frozen Four appeared first on Minnesota Hockey Magazine.

The post Gallery: Frozen Four Semifinal, Denver vs. Boston University appeared first on Minnesota Hockey Magazine.

The Pioneers faced down an early deficit thanks to a breakaway, top-shelf goal from Boston University’s Luke Tuch on Thursday at Xcel Energy Center. The forwards were still apprehensive about what BU’s top players could showcase when caught off guard, and the defense was keeping the Terriers’ shots to manageable areas. The real breakthrough came when there was a brief lapse in greatness from highly-touted NHL prospect and Montreal Canadiens draft-pick Lane Hutson.

Deep in his own zone, Hutson blindly sent the puck lazily toward the front of his own net, where Miko Matikka gladly scooped the puck up and sent it over to the open man, Tristan Lemyre, with a crease open just enough to sneak the puck past.

Denver’s Tristan Lemyre skates by his teammates receiving high-fives after he tied the game 1-1 in the Frozen Four semifinal. (MHM Photo / Rick Olson)

Lemyre had an interesting journey to the game-tying goal for Denver. Looking at the line chart released before the game, Lemyre was a bit lonely. That is, because he was the 13th forward for the game, without any permanent linemates. In this instance, he was out there with Matikka and Aidan Thompson for the goal.

“He’s been really good for us, he’s been fighting through an injury of his own,” said Denver coach David Carle. “[He’s been] putting his body on the line for the guys and the team. Really, really happy for him that he was able to get rewarded.”

Lemyre’s goal-scoring prowess hasn’t been on full display this season, to say the least, though it has come at opportune times. His game-tying goal in the Frozen Four semifinal game was just his second of the season and sixth of his career.

His only other goal this season? A tally in a 7-2 rout of St. Cloud State on March 2. Lemyre also hasn’t slotted in to each game this season, with Thursday being his 26th of Denver’s overall 43 played through the national semifinal round. Carle said that Lemyre played an integral role while star forward Massimo Rizzo was out with an injury.

“He comes into the night as our 13th forward, he’s been a big reason we’ve went 12-1-1 without Rizzo in the lineup,” Carle said, of Lemyre.

Denver goaltender Matt Davis made 33 saves and allowed only one goal against Boston University. (MHM Photo / Rick Olson)

‘Big-time’ goaltending performance
Another person that can be hoisted onto a pedestal for why Denver will be playing for its 10th national championship is the backstop, goalie Matt Davis.

Goal scoring has been tough to come by for the Pioneers in the last three games. Just six goals over that span, but the best part for Denver has been that its only ceded three goals. Davis has made the clutch plays when it matters, gobbling up pucks and preventing rebounds to keep the electric BU forwards from cashing in on anything but the Tuch breakaway goal.

“Matty D sitting here again, was excellent for us,” Carle said. “Especially was the best player in the first period and overtime.”

Carle wasn’t kidding. BU had 20 shots through the first two periods while Denver had just 11. Even more, in the first period, the Terriers outshot the Pioneers 10-3. Despite going down a goal, Davis kept Denver in the game with a close score long enough for the forwards to find their game and deliver on offense.

“He’s been unbelievable,” Rizzo said, of Davis. “He showed up when we needed him the most, I’m super proud of him.”

Added Broz regarding Davis: “Big-time performance by him, three straight games.” 

Davis, Lemyre and the rest of the Pioneers will hope to replicate the big-time performance in the national championship game on Saturday.

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What is interesting is that as time has evolved, there is no question that women’s Division I basketball has caught and passed the men from the standpoints of technical excellence and creative playmaking. Plus, they shoot 3-pointers as though they invented them.

Another interesting footnote to the NCAA’s wild and crazy climax to the winter sports season is that somehow the NCAA convinced the rest of the world to reserve the first weekend in April for the basketball semifinals and finals — the Final Four in both men’s and women’s basketball. That forces the NCAA hockey tournament to play down to its final four — which are known as the “Frozen Four” — and then put its game on hold before being allowed to finish its peak competition. It’s grown to now-popular status and fills up big arena. But it must wait to be decided a week later.

We have a vested interest this year, because the men’s hockey Frozen Four will be held at St. Paul’s Xcel Energy Center. The semifinals are on April 11, with the two winners coming back to collide on April 13 to decide the championship.

That means a two-week break from the wind-up to the intensely heated and competitive play in four regionals around the country, which led to some very surprising survivors to convene in St. Paul. In the first semifinal, it will be No. 2-ranked Boston University facing No. 3 Denver at 4 p.m., followed by the 7:30 p.m. game between No. 1 Boston College and Big Ten stalwart Michigan.

If it appears that all six of Minnesota’s Division I hopefuls got locked out of their home facility, we must admit that there could probably not be four more potent heavyweights in the college hockey world than the ones in the Frozen Four.

Men’s hockey regionals set Frozen Four
We were all hoping to see two or three of Minnesota’s teams reach the Frozen Four, but they fell like dominos leading up to or into the regionals. The Minnesota Gophers was the only team from the state to reach a regional final. That was in Sioux Falls, where the Gophers got a couple of incredibly lucky breaks to score goals and subdue Omaha 3-2 in the semifinal, only to fall 6-3 to Boston University.

At Springfield, Mass., Denver escaped Massachusetts 2-1 in overtime after Cornell came back and whipped Maine 3-1 in the semifinals. In that final, Cornell banged Denver around with speed and strength, and the Pioneers — who spent the season banging around NCHC rivals — were fortunate to win 2-1 to gain the Frozen Four in the slot against BU.

At Providence, Boston College had a tough opener against upstart Michigan Tech from the CCHA before erupting in the third period for a 6-1 victory. Defending NCAA champ Quinnipiac rallied to stun Wisconsin 3-2 in overtime. Quinnipiac then gave BC all it could handle before the Eagles battled from behind four times to catch the Bobcats and only gained the lead once — in overtime, for a 5-4 victory.

That left Maryland Heights, Mo., where Big Ten arch-rivals Michigan State and Michigan battled through a classic championship game before Michigan got third-period goals 12 seconds apart, from Dylan Duke and Gavin Brindley, and beat the Big Ten champion Spartans 5-2.

We’ve got another week to let the ice chips land where they might and ponder the Denver-BU game and the BC-Michigan match. What will astound the NCAA is that this year, instead of brushing off the hockey finals, the men’s basketball final will serve as the appetizer for what should be a fantastic Frozen Four.

And the NCAA women’s basketball finals will put on a show that may attract more attention than the men get — or deserve.

Final Fours in men’s, women’s hoops set with intriguing matchups
What could save the men’s Final Four is that UConn — the driving force in women’s basketball — will also be in the men’s field, and faces Alabama in the second semifinal on Saturday (7:49 p.m. CT). The first semifinal, at 5:09 p.m., features two Cinderella stories when Purdue, from the Big Ten, makes its first Final Four appearance against North Carolina State.

The story of the NC State Wolfpack men’s team means that institution also has both men’s and women’s teams in the Final Four, but NC State spent most of the winter sputtering and struggling to finish 10th in the Atlantic Coast Conference. NC State lost its final four games of the regular season. But everybody gets into the conference tournament and, for no apparent reason, the Wolfpack took off — and hasn’t lost since!

NC State won the South Region by blitzing arch-rival Duke 76-64, and the Wolfpack extended their winning streak to nine games, through the playoffs. How refreshing to not have the usual high-end basketball powers dominating the headlines this year. Purdue would be Cinderella if NC State didn’t also have glass sneakers.

In the women’s Final Four, NC State and UConn also made those fields, and NC State gets to take on South Carolina, which comes in behind the steamroller of a 36-0 record. The field became solidified Monday night when Iowa got a 41-point performance from Caitlin Clark to outlast defending national champion LSU. In the other game that night, UConn blew a 12-point third-quarter lead to allow the University of Southern California to catch up. But former Hopkins High School star Paige Bueckers finished a brilliant 28-point performance to lead the UConn Huskies to a 80-73 victory over USC.

As hype goes, nothing in men’s or women’s basketball can approach the Clark-Bueckers showdown between two of the best guards ever in women’s basketball.

The upset-filled men’s and women’s basketball have been exceptional, and they had to be to coax us to suspend our evaluation of the Frozen Four for another week. Warm up the TV and fill the popcorn bowls with fresh stuff, and enjoy yourselves.

No, none of the six Minnesota teams reached the Frozen Four, so we’ll have to be content to bask in the glow of holding the Frozen Four in our “State of Hockey” palace on West Seventh Street in St. Paul. We just have to wait a week.

The post Hockey Goes On Hold While Basketball Shines appeared first on Minnesota Hockey Magazine.

Yet in reality, successfully mastering the move is the result of months and years of work behind the scenes.

For Minnesota State fifth-year senior forward Reggie Lutz, scoring a go-ahead wraparound goal in the Frozen Four against Minnesota is a move that he has been practicing on since the age of five when the Elk River native received a special incentive.

“Every time I would score a wraparound goal, my Dad would take me to McDonald’s, and I’d get a Happy Meal. I’ve been working on one for a while and it was pretty cool to see it work on the big stage,” he said after the Mavericks defeated Minnesota 5-1 in the Frozen Four semifinals. “It was able to pay off tonight, so it was pretty cool.”

Working for years behind the scenes is Minnesota State’s M.O. 41 NHL Draft picks descended to Boston from the Frozen Four teams. Only one, Nathan Smith, came from the Mavericks.

It did not matter to the only program to make a repeat Frozen Four appearance, as thousands of fans came from Mankato, Minnesota, and points elsewhere to cheer, to high-five, and enjoy a program-high against three of the sport’s traditional bluebloods. Thousands lined the TD Garden red carpet for both the April 7 semifinal and the April 9 championship game.

“We’re still building,” said Mike Hastings, who found his wife in the crowd before Thursday’s game. “Pretty special to be a part of it and to have the people travel that distance, spend the time away from work.

“We had some students hop on flights. I’m not sure where the pay came from, but they hopped on some flights out here to support us.”

Photo courtesy of Mansoor Ahmad

Lutz’s path to the Mavericks from Elk River included stops in Fairbanks and Chicago. The 25-year-old’s road to college is the norm for Minnesota State, who had one player debut before their 20th birthday. Burnsville’s Cade Borchardt won a USHL Clark Cup after high school, the culmination of three different teams in three years. Smith played high school hockey in Florida. 

Dryden McKay, the 2022 Hobey Baker Award-winning senior goaltender and men’s hockey all-time shutout leader, spent three straight seasons as a Mike Richter Award finalist without winning the award.

Even Hastings, celebrating his 10th anniversary being hired as Minnesota State’s head coach, has come a long way from an early season series against Denver where the Pioneers swept his Mavericks in Mankato. 

“You learn from the hard things. That was a hard weekend. I remember it vividly,” he said. “I thought we played well that weekend, and we didn’t get a point.”

That Mavericks team eventually made the NCAA Tournament, as did another six under Hastings. When Minnesota State broke through to make it to the Frozen Four in 2021, Borchardt said that he took in the moment, remembering the ones that got him there, before his latest.

In its second Frozen Four appearance, Minnesota State, who began the season sweeping the defending national champions in Massachusetts, made the most of its recent experience in comparison to Minnesota, Michigan, and Denver.

Relaxed, screaming, and happy pregame, the Mavericks players embraced their “we before me” team mantra. The group became one, utilizing its suffocating defense against one of the nation’s top offenses and dispatching Minnesota despite trailing 1-0.

McKay gave up a goal on the first shot he saw of the weekend on a 2-on-0. He did not give up another until the third period of the national championship game. Before Lutz, Benton Maass scored a wraparound goal.

“I think it’s right when you step foot on campus. Ever since Coach has been here in Mankato, he’s built a great culture of family, team first,” Lutz said. “Anything that gets thrown our way, you’re going to put our team first. We don’t have one selfish guy on our team.”

The same team that collectively learned from the hard things and took the long path to college quickly became a perennial national title contender. Walking around Boston was a fanbase, dressed in purple suits, Revolutionary War outfits, and the more traditional Mavericks sweaters, ready for a championship. They had been on the road from Day 1.

Facing the same Denver program Hastings learned from a decade prior, Minnesota State spent 45 minutes keeping the nation’s top offense in neutral. The Pioneers had 4 shots on goal in the national championship game’s first half before finding the back of the net.

Once Denver did, the lessons resumed. A 1-0 third period lead quickly wrapped around into a 5-1 defeat for the Mavericks and the first loss in 19 games. The rainbow that was over TD Garden pregame disappeared. 

“You look at the whole season. We hadn’t lost a game since around Christmas until tonight,” Borchardt said after the championship game. “I mean, obviously nothing’s going to solve this or make us happy right now. So I am proud of everyone, proud of the seniors. It stings.”

Boston was a special place for Minnesota State, who continues to present a difficult puzzle for any team to solve. It is a program long past the point of Providence, Palmquist being pushed, NCAA first rounds, and being a surprise national title contender.  

In a decade, Hastings has evolved the program into one that can reload and keep its identity. The only goal left to change the course of the program is one that barely eluded this group, the ones that came so close to the years of work paying off and wrapping their hands around the trophy.

“I’m incredibly proud of them because they’ve gone to work every day. We all know, your dailies are what make your week, what makes your month, which makes your year. These guys came to work every day with a smile on their face and made their dailies fantastic. The ride they took our staff on and our program on was special,” said Hastings after the title-game loss. 

“There will be time for reminiscing and thinking about the rest of it. Like I said, it’s a little raw now. And we’re going to learn from it and we’re going to move on. We’re going to be better because of what happened tonight and because of the journey that these guys allowed us to have together from the beginning of the year until now.”

Photo courtesy of Mansoor Ahmad

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