Finlandia had perhaps the biggest win of the weekend, stunning nationally ranked Wisconsin-Eau Claire 1-0 Saturday night at home. Cale Markham scored the game-winner as the Lions defeated the fifth-ranked Blugolds for the first time since 2002.
Marcus Gloss was unreal in goal. He stopped 18 shots in the first period alone and finished with 40 saves in the victory.
Finlandia was particularly tough against the power play, stopping all 11 of Wis.-Eau Claire’s opportunities on the night. It’s the first time since February 2017 that the Blugolds did not have a power-play goal in a two-game series.
It was a far different game Friday night, when Wis.-Eau Claire knocked off Finlandia 4-3. Connor Koviak and Nathan Dingmann both scored in the first period to give Wis.-Eau Claire an early 2-0 lead, and the Blugolds never looked back. Finlandia’s scoring opportunities were limited, as Zach Dyment made just six saves.
Russell Daavettila led the Lions with a goal and an assist.
Finlandia is already on its way to a better season than it had a year ago, when it won just once. The Lions have won three games in the first month of the season, which is two more wins than what they had in the last two seasons combined.
Krug gets milestone win
Adam Krug won the 100th game of his coaching career as his second-ranked Adrian Bulldogs took down No. 15 Plattsburgh, 5-2, Saturday at the PrimeLink Great Northern Shootout. Krug, a former standout for the Bulldogs, is now 100-23-6 in five seasons at Adrian. Adrian and Plattsburgh had never met before Saturday. By winning the tournament, Adrian improved to 14-3-2 against teams from the SUNYAC. Teams that have played in the tournament have won the NCAA tournament nine times.
Dino Balsamo paved the way, as he scored a goal and dished out a pair of assists. Bryan Yim and Matt McNair both tallied a goal and assist as Adrian won its eighth game of the season. Yim is on a roll, having tallied five goals and three assists in the last four games.
Pointers win holiday tournament
Wisconsin-Stevens Point is the top-ranked team in the nation, and the Pointers did nothing to diminish their status as the nation’s best team after winning the championship of their own holiday tournament Saturday night. The Pointers defeated Utica, 4-1, in the title game and are now 8-0-2 on the season. Ryan Mackellar scored his first career goal, and Drew McLean scored off the power play. Steven Quagliata and Austin Kelly also scored goals in the win. Connor Ryckman was solid once again, stopping 19 shots. He has won all eight games for the Pointers this season.
Wis.-Stevens Point opened the weekend with a 5-2 win over Nichols Friday night. Ryckman made 21 saves in the victory. B.J. Duffin came through with a goal and an assist. Collin Raver did the same for the Pointers to help them advance to the tourney title game.
Shutout win
St. Thomas blanked Nichols 3-0 in the consolation game of the holiday tournament at Wis.-Stevens Point Saturday. The Tommies scored all three of their goals in the first period, and all three came within a 10-minute span. Ben Vikich, Luke Radetic, and Jack Christensen all scored for St. Thomas, while rookie Cam Buggrabe earned his first collegiate shutout as he stopped 22 shots. The goal by Radetic was his sixth of the year. Vikich and Christensen scored their first goals of the year.
The win ended a three-game losing streak for St. Thomas, which improved to 4-3-1 on the year.
Cardinals forge a tie
Saint Mary’s scored a season-best four goals, with Kyle Meeh scoring twice as the Cardinals skated to a 4-4 tie against Lake Forest Saturday. The Cardinals had lost 2-1 to the Foresters on Friday night. Saint Mary’s trailed 4-2, but rallied to earn its second tie of the year. The Cardinals are still looking for their first win of the season.
Tommy Stang scored off the power play. He also scored the lone goal for the Cardinals in Friday’s loss. Andrew Cummings scored the other goal for Saint Mary’s Saturday.
Cody Guidorzi scored twice for the Foresters, with both of his goals coming in the second period. Lake Forest took a 4-2 lead into the final period.
Yellowjackets get revenge
Wisconsin-Superior notched a 6-3 win over Northland Saturday and got its revenge against the Lumberjacks in the process. The Yellowjackets had lost, 5-3, to Northland earlier in the month. Will Blake and Troy York both scored a goal and dished out an assist for the Yellowjackets. It was the first career goal for Blake. Jordan Martin punched in his first career goal as well, giving Wis.-Superior a 4-2 lead. Andrew Durham also scored for Wis.-Superior. He has now scored a goal in seven consecutive games as the Yellowjackets improved to 3-6-1 on the year. A.J. Smith started in goal for Wis.-Superior and made 22 saves. Wis.-Superior held a 42-25 advantage in shots.
