Penalties doom Beavers, No. 14 Huskies roll to sweep with big 3rd period

Dec. 31—ST. CLOUD — Playing a disciplined game was a strength of the Bemidji State men's hockey team heading into its home-and-home series against No. 14 St. Cloud State. However, the Beavers took an undisciplined turn to close the old year.

Two nights after taking five penalties in a

6-1 loss at the Sanford Center,

BSU committed eight more at the Herb Brooks National Hockey Center, leading to seven SCSU power plays and two goals on the man advantage.

Those two goals came late in the third period to cap another 6-1 win, pushing Bemidji State to 1-7-0 in nonconference play and 0-6-0 against NCHC teams.

"We took too many penalties, and you can't continue to go in the penalty box and expect to win," BSU head coach Tom Serratore said. "Didn't they score two power-play goals in the third? Well, there you go. Obviously, some of it is a byproduct of the plays that set up those penalties. We have to take care of the puck in those situations."

The Huskies extended their one-goal lead in the third period with Ethan AuCoin's first goal this season. Barrett Hall picked the short-side corner on the power play to make it 4-1 before Kyler Kupka broke the game wide open with 3:30 left in regulation. Adam Ingram scored a second power-play goal with 64 seconds left, adding insult to injury.

"It was a weird third period," Serratore said. "I wanted it to be a 5-on-5 period to get all four lines rolling. Certain guys were playing a lot of hockey."

Much like Friday's end of the home-and-home series at the Sanford Center, the Huskies jumped on the Beavers early in the first. Ryan Rosborough scored his second goal in as many games four minutes into the first period. Zach Okabe made it 2-0 on an odd-man rush following a BSU neutral-zone turnover.

Bemidji State got back in it shortly before the first media timeout. Logan Achenson's second of the year fell right in his lap after Adam Flammang whiffed on a one-time pass from Jere Vaisanen. The puck trickled to the Beavers' sophomore defenseman for his second goal of the season.

"We caught some breaks, and we were skating well," Serratore said. "We popped in a goal, and we were feeling good. I thought we played really well, 5-on-5, for two periods. The thing is, you can't continually go to the box and have your best guys expend a lot of energy."

Once BSU adjusted to playing on an Olympic-sized sheet of ice for the first time this season, it started to control the pace. However, SCSU freshman goaltender Isak Posch shut the door.

Posch had one start before Sunday's contest — an overtime loss against Nebraska Omaha on Dec. 9. In his final game in 2023, Posch stoned Jakub Lewandowski and Kyle Looft on first-period breakaways. He also made an impressive save with his right leg on Flammang's redirection.

Posch carried his momentum over to the second period, stoning Eric Martin on a breakaway before turning aside two more tipped shots.

BSU junior Mattias Sholl matched Posch's effort, stopping 20 shots in the second period and totaling 38 for the game. He backstopped Bemidji State to three successful penalty kills in the middle period, two of which came on bench minors for too many men on the ice.

"He was the difference, especially on a couple of those power plays right there," Serratore said. "We got some big blocks, but Sholl was really dialed in."

Looft exited the game in the second period after blocking a shot off his left wrist during penalty kill. He did not return for the third peirod.

Bemidji State was the sixth-least penalized team before its final series against an NCHC opponent. But spending over 11 minutes on the penalty kill was a recipe for disaster.

Even though this sweep won't count against the Beavers' chances for winning the CCHA, Serratore was frustrated with a seventh nonconference loss.

"(These games) aren't exhibition games. They mean everything," Serratore continued. "These are hockey games, and they mean a lot. To me, they're just as important as a conference game. Our spirit right now is great after losing 6-1, 6-1. That's what these losses can do to you. They play tricks on your mind."

No. 14 St. Cloud State 6, Bemidji State 1

BSU 1 0 0 — 1

SCSU 2 0 4 — 6

First period — SCSU GOAL: Rosborough (Reimann, AuCoin) 4:04; SCSU GOAL: Okabe (Peart, Wylie) 6:25; BSU GOAL: Acheson (Flammang, Vaisanen) 8:05.

Second period — No scoring.

Third period — SCSU GOAL: AuCoin (Ingram, Gross) 5:26; SCSU GOAL: Hall (Anhorn, Ver. Miettinen) PP, 11:34; SCSU GOAL: Kupka (Moelenaar, Salquist) 16:31; SCSU GOAL: Ingram (Kupka) PP, 18:56.

Saves — Sholl (BSU) 38; Posch (SCSU) 27.