Each week, USCHO.com will pick the top 10 moments from the past weekend in our Monday 10 feature.
1. Penn State beats No. 1 for second consecutive week
Eighth-ranked Penn State loves a challenge.
A week after the Nittany Lions took a win and overtime loss at home against then-No. 1 Michigan, Penn State knocked off another top-ranked team with a block M as its logo. Two Connor MacEachern goals, and a goal apiece in the final minute of the second and third periods, helped PSU to a 4-2 win Thursday at Minnesota.
The Nittany Lions won’t have been so enamored with their 3-1 loss in Friday’s series finale in Minneapolis. Christian Sarlo gave PSU an early lead, but Minnesota scored three unanswered and got two goals from Bryce Brodzinski, who finished the series with three.
Minnesota goes to Michigan this Thursday and Friday. Penn State, which at 10-2 ought to rise considerably in the DCU/USCHO Division I Men’s Poll, hosts Michigan State.
2. UConn takes two shootouts against Providence in top-10 series
Seventh-ranked Connecticut and No. 9 Providence effectively skated to a pair of stalemates last weekend, in two games that are considered ties by the NCAA.
UConn took shootout victories in both games, though, giving the Huskies a lift in the Hockey East standings. The Huskies’ Justin Pearson scored the game-tying goal in Friday’s 1-1 draw in Providence, and on Saturday in Hartford, a spirited UConn comeback saw the Huskies tie Providence 6-6. The Friars led 3-0 before UConn did enough to bump its unbeaten streak to five games (3-0-2). Arsenii Sergeev made five saves in Saturday’s shootout for UConn, and Jake Percival netted the winner.
UConn has a home-and-home series this weekend with UMass-Lowell. Providence hosts Vermont.
3. Denver breaks UND spell, wins twice at Ralph
Second-ranked Denver’s recent six-game losing streak when playing against North Dakota is now a thing of the past.
The Pioneers haven’t lost in regulation in nearly a month, and their hot form continued last weekend with a pair of wins at No. 12 UND. Freshman Jared Wright’s first career goal gave DU a 3-2 win Friday at the Ralph Engelstad Arena, before he and Carter Mazur both scored twice in the Pioneers’ 6-3 victory Saturday night.
This was Denver’s third weekend sweep of the season, and the Pioneers first on the road in NCHC play.
Denver hosts Omaha next weekend. UND hosts Miami, the only team currently below the Fighting Hawks in the NCHC standings.
4. Tenth-ranked Buckeyes swept
There will likely be a new No. 10 team in the country this week, too, after Ohio State lost a pair of games Thursday and Friday at unranked Michigan State.
A late game-winner from Daniel Russell and 32 saves from Dylan St. Cyr helped MSU to a 4-2 win Thursday. It was the Spartans’ third consecutive Big Ten win, marking the first time MSU had done that since Jan. 2019.
In Friday’s rematch, Nicolas Mueller had a big first period with two goals and an assist, giving MSU the platform for its eventual 4-3 victory. Davis Burnside pulled Ohio State to within a goal 6:29 into the third, but St. Cyr kept the door shut after that, making 18 of his 33 saves in the final period.
Ohio State, which has now lost its last three games, hosts No. 18 Notre Dame this weekend.
5. BU dominates UMass twice
Fourteenth-ranked Boston University handled No. 11 Massachusetts in both games of a home-and-home series last weekend.
Ryan Greene’s two goals and three assists Friday propelled BU to a 7-2 blowout win at UMass, and a 5-1 BU home win Saturday meant that the Terriers are now 6-0-1 in their last seven games against the Minutemen. Jay O’Brien had a goal and an assist Saturday, while Matt Brown posted two helpers. Fourteen different BU players had at least one point apiece in the series.
BU has another home-and-home set this weekend against Northeastern. UMass visits New Hampshire on Friday, ahead of the Minutemen’s trip to the Friendship Four in Belfast, Northern Ireland, next week.
6. No. 4 St. Cloud salvages home split with No. 17 WMU
Western Michigan picked up a commendable two-game split last weekend at fourth-ranked St. Cloud State, beating the Huskies 4-2 on Friday before SCSU took Saturday’s rematch, 4-1.
Four different WMU skaters scored in Friday’s game, where Max Sasson and Luke Grainger both had a goal and an assist.
Former Colorado College and Minnesota standout Grant Cruikshank scored in both games for St. Cloud, and another two goals Saturday from Jami Krannila helped the Huskies avoid being swept for the first time this season.
SCSU visits CC this weekend, with Western back at home to face Minnesota Duluth.
7. Third-ranked Michigan picks up road split
A big four-goal third period Friday helped No. 3 Michigan to a 5-1 win at 18th-ranked Notre Dame, before the Fighting Irish clawed back to win Saturday’s rematch 3-2 in overtime.
Mackie Samoskevich’s goal and an assist Friday for Michigan gave him a sixth multi-point game of the season, and Adam Fantilli’s two assists clinched a seventh multi-point game from his last 11. Five different Wolverines scored in the series opener.
Michigan started well again Saturday, but a 2-0 lead eventually fell by the wayside. Tyler Carpenter, Chayse Primeau and Grant Silianoff scored three unanswered for Notre Dame.
The Irish visit Ohio State this weekend, while Michigan hosts Minnesota.
8. Quinnipiac wins twice, beats local rival
Fifth-ranked Quinnipiac used a well-firing offense to pick up two ECAC Hockey wins last weekend, beating Brown 4-3 on Friday before blanking nearby rival Yale 4-0 on Saturday in New Haven, Conn.
Three consecutive goals Friday gave Quinnipiac a lift at Brown’s Meehan Auditorium, with Michael Lombardi scoring the Bobcats’ last two in the middle of the third period.
On Saturday, Collin Graf’s first collegiate hat trick helped Quinnipiac rout Yale at the Bulldogs’ Ingalls Rink. Fifteen saves from Yaniv Perets gave him his third shutout of the season.
Quinnipiac plays Princeton in a home-and-home series this weekend.
9. Bowling Green takes two from St. Thomas
Having recently snapped a six-game losing streak, Bowling Green appears to be an upswing with three wins in a row, including two last weekend at home to St. Thomas.
Three different BGSU players scored in the Falcons’ 3-2 win Friday, and the same happened Saturday. Austen Swankler’s seventh goal and 10th point of the season went in with 17 seconds left, as BGSU completed a two-goal comeback effort in the third period.
The Falcons hit the road for their next four games, beginning this weekend against Ferris State. St. Thomas, now 2-10, plays its next four at home, starting Friday against Michigan Tech.
10. Déjà vu for RIT in sweep of Scared Heart
Atlantic Hockey-leading RIT earned matching 3-1 home wins last weekend against conference foe Sacred Heart.
Tommy Scarfone’s season-high 37 saves, including 21 in Friday’s third period, helped RIT win the series opener, as did a goal apiece from three different Tiger skaters.
When the teams returned Saturday to the Gene Polisseni Center, two goals from RIT senior defenseman Gianfranco Cassaro lifted the Tigers once more. Carter Wilkie added a goal and two assists for a RIT team that has now won its last seven games.
RIT hosts the U.S. National Under-18 Team this Saturday. Princeton comes to Rochester, N.Y., in two weeks as RIT continues its six-game homestand. Sacred Heart hosts Merrimack on Thursday.
