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Punchless Huskies fall flat
Team limps into NCAA tourney and is thrown into the ring with the Michigan Wolverines
 Media Credit: Michael Martin/Managing Editor SCSU�s Dean Weasler denies a stuff attempt by CC�s Scott Polaski during the third-place game at the WCHA Final Five. SCSU dropped both games last weekend. They face Michigan this Friday to open up the NCAA tournament.
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ST. PAUL � Exactly one year ago, the SCSU men's hockey team took home their first championship in school history after beating North Dakota 6-5 in overtime of the title game at the WCHA Final Five at the Xcel Energy Center. This year, they had the opportunity to pull of another first: repeat.
But it didn't go that way as the Huskies lost to Minnesota 4-1 Friday night in the second semifinal and then bowed out to Colorado College 2-1 in the third place game Saturday afternoon.
Friday night a Minnesota state record crowd of 18,523 showed up for one of the most anticipated college hockey games in the history of the state, and the Gophers wasted no time getting the partisan crowd into it.
Jordan Leopold picked up a free rebound in the slot and fired a shot that squeezed through Jake Moreland's right arm to give Minnesota a 1-0 lead just 55 seconds into the game.
"We really didn't expect to score that quick," Leopold said later. "We just wanted to weather the storm and survive the first five minutes because we knew St. Cloud was going to come out fast."
But they never did. Leopold's goal put a scare into the Huskies that they didn't break out of until about midway through the contest, but they weren't able to beat Adam Hauser, who looked fresh and sharp for most of the game.
"Doogie Hauser played very good," said SCSU head coach Craig Dahl. "We just couldn't get anything by him until late."
Ryan Malone scored a power play goal late in the third to break Hauser's shutout bid, but by that time Minnesota had already built a 4-0 lead. The game remained 1-0 until the final minute of the second when three Huskies drifted towards Johnny Pohl and forgot about Troy Riddle, who was camped in the left circle. Pohl slid a pass to Riddle, who one-timed a shot past Moreland to make it 2-0.
Jeff Taffe scored a nifty goal 35 seconds into the second period and Matt Koalska cleaned up a loose puck in the crease seven minutes into the third to make it 4-0.
"That second goal was really tough to swallow," said Dahl. "Holy buckets, we had three chances to get the puck out of the zone and we just couldn't do it."
"It was a big goal," said Minnesota head coach Don Lucia of the second goal. "We needed that boost going into the third, and then to get one right away in the third, those were two backbreakers for them."
After the loss, the Huskies were forced to return to the rink to face Colorado College in the third place game just over 14 hours later. The Huskies knew late Friday night that they would get to play in the NCAA tournament regardless of the Saturday's result, but they still played one of their better games in recent weeks.
There was only one problem. Its name: Jeff Sanger.
The senior goaltender turned away 35 SCSU shots, including 15 in the final period, to lift to the Tigers to a 2-1 win and get them into the NCAA tournament.
"We had some great point blank shots and chances and (Sanger) came up with some huge saves," Dahl said. "There comes a time in a coach's life when he has to not blame the team, but give credit to the other one. Sanger was absolutely terrific."
The Huskies did beat him once, and it came just five minutes into the game when Colin Peters snuck in from his point position and took a pass from Matt Hendricks before beating Sanger over his blocker.
But the Tigers answered just over a minute and a half later when Richard Petiot's shot from between the circles beat a screened Dean Weasler.
Chris Hartsburg scored on the power play 3:48 into the second to give CC a 2-1 lead that Sanger would make stand.
"I felt good this whole weekend," Sanger said. "I'm on my game right now and I'm in a groove. I've just got to keep it going and never look back."
The win ultimately got the Tigers into the tournament. If they would have lost the game, their season would have been over because Harvard upset Cornell in the ECAC championship game later that night.
They will face Michigan State Friday afternoon in Ann Arbor, Mich. The Huskies play Michigan Friday night on the same sheet of ice.
Nick Clark can be reached at: [email protected]
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