• Box Score: UNO 3, Minn.-Duluth 1
• Photo Showcase: UNO 3, Minn.-Duluth 1
• Video below: See highlights from UNO's win over No. 1 Minnesota-Duluth
* * *
UNO got the record Friday night. Saturday night, the Mavericks got the two points.
UNO's 3-1 victory over top-ranked defending national champion Minnesota-Duluth, in terms of the direction of the rest of the season, is so much more significant than the record crowd of 16,138 that had turned out Friday night at CenturyLink Center.
“Duluth is a good hockey team, obviously,” UNO coach Dean Blais said. “I'm happy for the two points. It keeps us in contention.”
Before a smaller crowd of 8,364 Saturday, the Mavs picked up two points in the Western Collegiate Hockey Association standings and added a bullet-point to their potential postseason résumé.
And that's not to say that the joint wasn't jumping.
“It was probably the most exciting game I've ever been a part of in my entire hockey career,” said UNO goalie Ryan Massa, who was plenty exciting himself with a stand-on-his-head, 43-save effort.
“The atmosphere, our fans, you couldn't ask for a better finish, playing the No. 1 team and reigning national champs. You couldn't buy that atmosphere. It was loud and exciting.”
The battle-tested Bulldogs, with five key seniors and other veterans who've played in big games before, won the series opener 6-2. But UNO's kiddie corps stepped up in key moments Saturday.
The game-winning goal was by freshman Andrew Schmit, the first goal of his collegiate career, with 7:27 left in the second period, breaking a 1-1 tie.
More heroics came from Massa, a freshman who has become UNO's Saturday-night starter and may have staked a claim to overall No. 1 goalie.
And freshman Josh Archibald added an empty-netter with 1:08 left, as UNO snapped Minnesota-Duluth's 17-game unbeaten streak, during which it had gone 14-0-3, and handed the Bulldogs their first road loss of the season (8-1-3).
“Good team effort,” Blais said. “Everybody chipped in. Even the guys who got (playing time) eliminated in the third period because we went to nine forwards were as fired up and good on the bench as the guys who were playing.”
Said Minnesota-Duluth coach Scott Sandelin: “It's been a long time since we've had this feeling. I feel better about the way we played in the third period (a 17-3 advantage in shots on goal), and that's something to build on. I'm proud of our team for what it's done. They've put themselves in good position in the league. ... But it doesn't feel good right now, because they don't like losing.”
UNO (11-9-4 overall, 8-5-3 WCHA) put just 15 shots on goal — a role reversal for the offensive-minded Mavs. But, no, Blais said, the Mavs weren't channeling their inner Bemidji State, playing conservatively with the lead.
“Oh no, we were trying to catch them,” Blais said. “We lead the WCHA in shots taken. That's how good a team Duluth is, when they can limit you to under 20 shots and get twice as many.
“We know how that is. We've lost games when we've outshot the other team 2 to 1 or more. But we deserved to win tonight based on circumstances.”
Schmit's wrist shot from the right circle trickled between the pads of Kenny Reiter, giving the Mavs a 2-1 lead.
“My goal was to just get a shot on the net,” Schmit said. “The surprise on my face when it went in was probably priceless.”
Terry Broadhurst's first-period power-play goal, his team-high 15th of the season and seventh with the man advantage, had given the Mavs a 1-0 lead.
With Wade Bergman off for hooking, Bryce Aneloski unleashed a slap shot from the high slot, near the blue line, and Broadhurst redirected it over the blocker of Reiter.
The Bulldogs (15-4-3, 11-3-2) tied it 1-1 just 1:32 into the second period as senior Jack Connolly collected a loose puck to Massa's left and flipped in his 13th goal of the season.
“They were the better team last night,” Blais said. “We worked harder tonight, got a few bounces and got great goaltending. We put the puck in the net when the opportunities came.”
After Connolly's goal, Massa wouldn't let anything past him.
“Our D-corps was phenomenal,” Massa said. “They forced every single one of their players to the wall, making them shoot from the perimeter, making them shoot from far out, trying to get a garbage goal. They did a great job allowing me to see everything into my body and of ultimately giving me the chance to make the saves I needed to make.”
Contact the writer:
402-444-1027, rob.white@owh.com
twitter.com/RWhiteOWH
Video: See highlights from UNO's win over No. 1 Minnesota-Duluth
Copyright ©2012 Omaha World-Herald®. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, displayed or redistributed for any purpose without permission from the Omaha World-Herald.
RSS Feeds