Walker’s late goal lifts No. 2 Minnesota to B1G title date with Michigan; No. 11 Northeastern solidifies NCAA hopes with 3-2 win over BC; No. 6 Quinnipiac heading to Lake Placid after 2OT win vs. SLU

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Sammy Walker scored late in regulation as Minnesota advanced past Penn State to earn a date with Michigan next Saturday in the Big Ten title game (photo: Jim Rosvold)

Sammy Walker’s goal with 2:39 remaining in regulation broke a 2-2 tie and gave top-seeded Minnesota a berth in the Big Ten title game, where it will face Michigan, a 2-1 victor over Notre Dame on Saturday.

Minnesota jumped to a 2-0 lead on goals by Ben Meyers and Jackson LaCombe before the 27-second mark of the second. But Penn State had a response.

Tyler Paquette and Dylan Lugris each tallied late in the second to even the score.

Neither team generated much offense in the third, Penn State holding a 5-4 shot advantage. But Walker’s moment sets up a home game on Saturday with the Wolverines with a Big Ten title on the line.

Hockey East quarterfinals

Northeastern 3, Boston College 2

Northeastern, regular-season champions in Hockey East but still fighting for its NCAA life, jumped to a 3-0 lead through two periods and then held off a massive rally by the Eagles, earning a 3-2 victory to advance to the TD Garden and a date with Connecticut in Friday’s semifinals.

Gunnarwolfe Fontaine, Justin Hryckowian and Sam Colangelo all scored in the second period to give the Huskies a 3-0 lead.

But Boston College dominated the third. Drew Helleson scored on the power play at 8:29 and Marshall Warren drew the Eagles within a goal with 3:48 remaining.

BC pulled its goalie and had plenty of chances to even the game – BC held a 25-9 shot advantage in the third – but Northeastern goaltender Devon Levi was solid, stopping 46 shots to earn the win.

Other Hockey East quarterfinals
UMass Lowell 7, Merrimack 2
Connecticut 3, Boston University 1
Massachusetts 4, Providence 2

ECAC quarterfinals

Quinnipiac 4, St. Lawrence 3 (2OT – Quinnipiac wins series, 2-0)

Saturday’s  sole double overtime game was decided on a Desi Burger goal 8:09 into the second extra period as Quinnipinac rallied from 3-1 down to sweep St. Lawrence, two-games-to-none.

Quinnipiac never led in the game, surrendering an early goal to Aleksi Peltonen in the first period.

Trailing 3-1 in the third, Brendan Less and Skyler Brind’Amour each scored in the middle of the third to knot the game at 3 and force overtime.

Other ECAC quarterfinals
Rensselaer 4, Harvard 3 (OT – Series tied, 1-1)
Colgate 4, Cornell 2 (Series tied, 1-1)
Clarkson 4, Union 3 (OT – Clarkson wins series, 2-0)

CCHA Semifinals

Minnesota State 8, Northern Michigan 1

Julian Napravnik scored a goal and added two assists to pace the Minnesota State offense and Dryden McKay stopped 20 shots as Minnesota State cruised to an 8-1 win and will host next weekend’s CCHA title game.

Eight different players scored goals for the Mavericks, who are seeking just their second tournament title in five years despite winning their regular-season in all five seasons.

The Mavericks will face Bemidji State, which upset Michigan Tech, 5-2, on Saturday.

Atlantic Hockey quarterfinals

Mercyhurst 3, Canisius 1 (Mercyhurst wins series, 2-0)

Jonathan Bendorf and Rylee St. Onge each scored in the third period to break a 1-1, the final goal into an empty net, as Mercyhurst pulled a two-game upset over Canisius and will advance to the league semifinals in Utica, N.Y., next weekend.

St. Onge finished with two goals, having opened the scoring at 4:11 of the first. Ryan Miotto evened the game at 8:58 of the second.

Kyle McClellan made 29 saves to earn the win for the Lakers.

Other Atlantic Hockey quarterfinals
Sacred Heart 3, RIT 1 (Series tied, 1-1)
Air Force 3, Army West Point 2 (OT – Air Force wins series, 2-0)
AIC 6, Bentley 2 (AIC wins series, 2-0)

NCHC quarterfinals

Minnesota Duluth 4, St. Cloud State 3 (OT – UMD wins series, 2-0)

Noah Cates scored at 10:58 of overtime to complete a two-game sweep of St. Cloud State and set up a date with top-seed Denver in next Friday’s NCHC semifinals.

It was Cates’ second goal on the night who match opponent Nick Perbix with a pair of goals.

St. Cloud State, though out of the NCHC tournament, will still earn an NCAA Tournament at-large bid.

Other NCHC quarterfinals 
Denver 5, Miami 1 (Denver wins series, 2-0)
Western Michigan 5, Omaha 4 (OT – WMU wins series, 2-0)
North Dakota 2, Colorado College 1 (North Dakota wins series, 2-0)

 

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