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Huskies strike back; earn split with top-ranked Denver
Hartigan tallies two as WCHA championship race will come down to season's final weekend
 Media Credit: Barry Gutierrez/Rocky Mountain News SCSU�s Andy Lundbohm and DU�s David Neale scramble for control of the puck after colliding in the corner during the first period at Magness Arena Friday night.
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 Media Credit: Barry Gutierrez/Rocky Mountain News Pioneers goalie Wade Dubielewicz does the split to save a shot from the Huskies� Ryan Malone in the first period of Friday�s game at Magness Arena.
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 Ryan Malone
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DENVER � After all the hype and excitement that was surrounding this weekend's 1 vs. 2 match up in Colorado, it almost seemed fitting that the SCSU men's hockey team and Denver University would skate to a weekend split of the series that could have decided who will capture the MacNaughton Cup.
And after Denver's 5-2 win on Friday night and the Huskies' 4-2 win Saturday, the question of who will be this year's WCHA regular season champion has yet to be answered.
The Pioneers could have clinched the title on Saturday night with a win, and they took a 2-1 lead into the locker room after two periods, but the Huskies responded with a three-goal third to escape the Rocky Mountains with a split.
"We didn't want to see that trophy (the MacNaughton Cup) tonight," said Jake Moreland following Saturday's win. "That was our motivation in the third."
Denver got itself into position to win their first league title since 1986 by winning on Friday night. The Pioneers used the same ingredients they have been using all year to cook up another strong effort � solid goaltending and a quick strike offense.
How quick? Forty seconds quick. That's how long it took Chris Paradise to score Friday night, giving the Pioneers a 1-0 lead in the game's opening minute. The Huskies did have a response though, and it came off the stick of their "Mr. Everything." After Ryan Caldwell went off for obstruction hooking, the Huskies went on the power play and it took them all of 30 seconds to cash in.
Just as Mark Hartigan snuck in from his point position, Joe Motzko slid the puck across the slot where Hartigan was going. All the Hobey Baker candidate had to do was finish, and he did by burying a shot over Wade Dubielewicz's glove to tie the game at one.
The teams remained knotted up until the 12:17 mark of the second, when Luckas Dora poked home a puck that snuck under Dean Weasler's right pad to give Denver a 2-1 lead heading into the third.
Then Paradise struck early again. This time he slid a puck past Weasler just 18 seconds into the third to make it 3-1.
"Those two goals were huge, absolutely huge," said Denver head coach George Gwozdecky after the game. "It's not very often that you get one of those early goals in a game and we got two, and I think that second one really hurt St. Cloud."
But it didn't break their back. Kevin Doell provided Denver with the spine cracker at 8:45 when he finished off his own rebound to make it 4-1. Derek Eastman scored for SCSU to make it 4-2 with just under seven minutes left, but Paradise scored his third goal of the game into an empty cage to seal it.
"This was a big game for us," said Paradise, whose hat trick was his first of his four-year career. "They are a great team and it was a good test for us, but I know tomorrow night is going to be another tough game."
Which is exactly what it turned out to be.
This time it was the Huskies' turn to strike first, and again it came off a masterful play from Hartigan. He picked up a puck at center ice and skated into the Denver end, earning the attention of the Pioneer defenders. Instead of shooting, he passed to Mike Doyle, who lifted a shot over Adam Berkhoel.
The Huskies took their 1-0 lead into the dressing room only to see it evaporate in the second. Denver scored twice in the middle frame. The first goal came while the teams skated 4�on� 4, on a soft wrist shot from Connor James that handcuffed Moreland, who was starting in place of Weasler. With 1:59 to play in the period, the Pioneer power play struck. Aaron MacKenzie found himself uncovered in the slot and just as teammate Greg Barber spotted him, Barber hit MacKenzie with a pass that was behind Moreland before he knew what happened.
Denver hadn't lost all year when holding a lead in a game (27-0-1), but the Huskies had a great solution for breaking that trend.
"They put that up on the board and (Nate DiCasmirro) pointed it out to me," Hartigan said. "But you know what he said to me? 'Nobody's perfect.'"
And he was right. The Huskies scored three times in the final 20 minutes to give Denver their first loss after leading in a game.
The first came from Ryan Malone while the Huskies had a two-man advantage. Hartigan worked the point with Malone situated just to the left of Berkhoel. The two played catch for about 10 seconds before Malone turned and fired a shot that squeezed past Berkhoel's legs. Then, just over three minutes later, Hartigan tipped home a soft shot from Ryan LaMere to give the Huskies the lead 3-2.
Denver had a great opportunity to tie the game when Jeff Finger was sent to the box for unsportsmanlike conduct with 1:27 to play, but Jon Cullen intercepted a pass at center ice and deposited it into an empty net to assure his team of their 27th win of the year.
"That was a pretty good period for us in the third," said SCSU head coach Craig Dahl. "I told the guys that we dominated them in the first and the second and that there was no way we weren't going to do the same in the third."
The win keeps the Huskies' championship hopes alive, but they will need some help.
Denver still holds a one-point lead over SCSU in the league standings. If they win both of their games next weekend at North Dakota, they will skate off with the MacNaughton Cup, but the Huskies really don't want to think about that.
"It creeps into your mind every once and awhile, but we can't worry about what other teams are doing," said Hartigan, who had his second consecutive four-point weekend with two goals and two assists.
"If we start worrying if North Dakota is going to win or lose we'll just get off our game, we just need to worry about ourselves."
Around the rink
- Forward Joe Motzko suffered a concussion early in the third period Friday night and was out of the lineup on Saturday. Motzko said he got hit from behind and on the side at the same time but he didn't remember much about it. He also said the hit didn't show up on the game tape.
- Dean Weasler was suffering through the flu during most of Friday night's loss and pulled himself midway through the third period. Jake Moreland replaced him and only faced one shot and started Saturday night's game. It was his first start since the Huskies' 4-1 loss to Brown.
- Mike Doyle's first period goal on Saturday night tied a school record for most goals in a season by a freshman with 17. He tied Jeff Saterdalen for the record.
- Two former SCSU administrators, former presidents Bruce Grube and Suzanne Williams, were in attendance this weekend in Denver.
Nick Clark can be reached at: [email protected]
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