North Dakota hands SCSU season-ending 4-1 loss

Fargo, N.D. — As difficult as it may have been to advance to the NCAA Frozen Four without the play of Zane McIntyre, North Dakota also got a little assistance from fortunate bounces in front its own net and on the attack.

Whether it was luck or not, UND still had to claw its way to a 4-1 win over St. Cloud State in the NCAA West Regional Final Saturday at SCHEELS Arena.

The bounces were anything but lucky for the Huskies, who finish their season 20-19-1.

“There were a couple of fluke goals, one off our guy’s back, and all of the sudden we’re behind the eight ball,” SCSU coach Bob Motzko said. “It seems to me it’s a game of ifs and buts. It’s frustrating right now because I think we could’ve had a different fate.”

North Dakota advances to play Boston University in the NCAA Frozen Four on April 9 in Boston.

SCSU jumped on the board 89 seconds into the game when Jimmy Murray scored off a faceoff to the left of the UND goal.

“Jimmy broke through that faceoff and got a quick one and that got everyone up on the bench,” SCSU forward Jonny Brodzinski said.

“It was a quick faceoff play,” North Dakota goalie Zane McIntyre said. “It caught me off guard and our team off guard, but resiliency has been in our vocab all year, so it’s no surprise the boys battled up and came back strong.”

SCSU’s lead lasted seven minutes and 30 seconds until Andrew Panzerella scored his first goal of the season when his shot from the point made it through traffic, off the right post and in.

The Huskies turned the puck over in the zone before Panzerella took the shot.

The teams went into the first intermission tied 1-1, but SCSU’s misfortune began to show itself in the next 20 minutes.

Drake Caggiula scored the go-ahead goal for UND at the 6:49 mark of the second period on a puck that deflected in off a St. Cloud State defender and in.

The Huskies had plenty of chances to score in the second period.

Blake Winiecki lifted the puck wide left of the goal and Joey Benik had a point-blank chance that he sent wide right late in the period. McIntyre also made a big save on a Nick Oliver shot.

“There were times where we were putting on pressure and there were times we’d make mistakes and we’re back in our zone,” Huskies defenseman Ethan Prow said.

“In order to come out ahead, you have to play a full 60.”

Luke Johnson added to UND’s lead 2:53 into the third period when he flung a shot toward the goal from the corner in the SCSU zone.

The puck ricocheted off the right post and straight up into the air over the SCSU goal, landed in the crease behind goalie Charlie Lindgren and trickled into the net.

Lindgren finished the game with 22 saves.

UND didn’t allow SCSU to generate much from that point on.

“Typical North Dakota,” Prow said. “They play hard, especially in our zone. They got in on us and put pressure. It was hard for us to get out of the zone.”

McIntyre finished the game with 19 saves and was named Most Outstanding Player of the tournament.

“When we did get to their goaltender tonight, he was awfully strong,” Motzko said. “Not only did he make the saves, he looked good doing it.”

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Erik Haula’s goal salvaged a tie and a three-point weekend for Minnesota at Anchorage on Saturday night. (Photo: Sam Wasson/UAA Athletics)

No. 3 Denver (7-1-0, 5-1-0 WCHA) at Minnesota State (3-5-2, 1-5-0 WCHA)

Friday: DU 4  MSU 3
Saturday: DU 3  MSU 2

The Pioneers chased MSU starting goaltender Phil Cook in building a 3-0 lead in the first 23:28 on Friday night in Mankato. But goals by Jean-Paul Lafontaine and Eriah Hayes late in the second period closed the gap to one heading into the third. The Mavericks could not bury the equalizer, however, and Daniel Doremus score the eventual game winner for Denver with 6:17 remaining in the third. Lafontaine’s second goal of the game at 18:09 with the MSU net empty restored the one-goal margin, but that is as close as the Mavericks would come

Denver’s Chris Knowlton scored twice on Saturday, including the game winner with 3:12 to play and the Pioneers left Mankato four points richer with a series sweep. For the second straight night, Minnesota State dug itself a hole and trailed 2-0 midway through the first on goals by Knowlton and Doremus. But Hayes trimmed the deficit to one at 15:07 of the opening period and Josh Nelson tied it 2:42 into the third.

No. 6 North Dakota (4-3-1, 2-1-1 WCHA) at No. 15 St. Cloud State (6-4-0, 4-2-0 WCHA)

Friday: UND 3  SCSU 0
Saturday: SCSU 5  UND 2

North Dakota goaltender Clarke Saunders made 32 saves to shut out St. Cloud State 3-0 on Friday night in St. Cloud. UND’s Brendan O’Donnell scored the only goal his team would need just 48 seconds into the contest while Carter Rowney and Mark MacMillan added goals in the second and third periods, respectively.

Drew LeBlanc scored twice to lead the Huskies over North Dakota on Saturday to split the series. (Photo: WCHA.com)

After falling behind North Dakota in the opening period for the second straight night, the Huskies bounced back this time for a resounding 5-2 win on Saturday night. Drew LeBlanc scored twice, including the game winner, and added an assist while SCSU goalie Ryan Faragher made 22 saves for the win. UND’s Drake Caggiula got UND on the board first at 11:18 of the first but Jonny Brodzinski answered with his second goal of the season just 1:01 later. LeBlanc scored twice in the first 12:23 of the second period, the first courtesy of one of Joe Rehkamp‘s three assists on the night, to give the Huskies the lead for good.

Bemidji State (2-3-1, 1-2-1 WCHA) at No. 19 Colorado College (7-3-0, 4-0-0 WCHA) at 

Friday: CC 3  BSU 2
Sunday: CC 6  BSU 3

Rylan Schwartz‘s goal at 16:19 of the second period, one of his two on the night, proved to be the difference in Colorado College’s one-goal win over Bemidji State on Friday night in Colorado Springs. The teams traded goals in a 2-2 first period as the Beavers erased two CC leads on goals by Jordan George and Danny Mattson, the first goals of the season for each. Archie Skalbeck assisted on both of Schwartz’s goals.

Behind two goals and two assists by William Rapuzzi, the Tigers completed a series sweep of BSU on Saturday. Both of Rapuzzi’s goals–including the game winner at 5:17–came in a third period which began with CC clinging to a 3-2 lead. Markus Gerbrandt scored to pull the Beavers within two at 18:32, but that’s as close as BSU would get. Cory Ward and Aaron McLeod also scored for Bemidji State while CC’s Skalbeck (two assists) and Schwartz (three assists) capped off big weekends on Saturday.

No. 2 Minnesota (6-2-1, 3-2-1 WCHA) at Alaska-Anchorage (2-3-3, 0-2-2 WCHA)

Friday: UM 4  UAA 0
Saturday: UM 2  UAA 2

Kyle Rau scored twice while Nick Bjugstad and Ben Marshall each scored a goal for Minnesota on Friday night in Anchorage. Minnesota continued its trend of reliance on the power play for its offense as the Gophers scored four times with the man advantage and Adam Wilcox stopped 14 Seawolves’ shots to post the shutout.

Erik Haula scored Minnesota’s only even-strength goal of the series at 13:31 of the third period on Saturday allowing the Gophers to escape Anchorage with a tie and three of four points on the weekend. The Gophers and Seawolves traded first-period goals and they remained knotted at 1-1 at the second intermission. But Alex Gellert gave UAA its only lead of the series at 5:38 of the third setting the stage for Haula’s big goal.

Minnesota-Duluth (2-5-1, 0-3-1 WCHA) at Nebraska Omaha (6-3-1, 4-1-1 WCHA)

Saturday: UNO 3  UMD 2
Sunday: UNO 6  UMD 3

Mike Seidel and Tony Cameranisi each scored late in the first period to pull the Bulldogs even with UNO at 2-2 after an early two-goal deficit. But the scoring dried up from there until Michael Young‘s goal at 12:12 of the third period lifted the Mavericks over UMD on Saturday night in Omaha. Josh Archibald and Ryan Walters also scored for UNO while Wade Bergman had two assists for the Bulldogs.

Dominic Zombo scored twice and Walters added a goal and an assist as the Mavericks completed a sweep of Minnesota-Duluth on Sunday afternoon. UNO goaltender John Faulkner made 31 saves in raising his record to 6-0-1 overall. Seidel and Joe Basaraba scored first period goals for the Bulldogs as the teams skated to a 2-2 tie after one period as they had the night before. But the Mavericks scored twice in the final 1:14 of the second period, including Zombo’s second of the game with 9.1 seconds left which would hold up as the game winner.

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