North Dakota brought some different players to the Sanford Center this season, but on Saturday night, they got a familiar result — a 5-2 victory over the Beavers.
Mario Lamoureux’s late goal catapulted the Fighting Sioux (4-6-1, 2-5 Western Collegiate Hockey Association) to their first conference road win of the season and their third 5-2 victory in Bemidji against the Beavers in as many games that they’ve played as conference opponents.
“It was a pretty typical game between the two programs,” said Sioux coach Dave Hakstol.
Indeed, the two teams gritted it out and remained even until UND ran away with it, scoring three times in the third period to hand the Beavers (4-8-1, 2-6-1 WCHA) their fifth loss in their last seven games.
Bemidji State junior forward Brance Orban played a loose puck off a faceoff and fired one high glove past goaltender Aaron Dell (23 saves) at 2:11 of the first period, but Corban Knight’s fifth goal of the season from right in front of Dan Bakala evened it quickly four minutes later at 6:49, just five seconds into a UND power play.
North Dakota then took the 2-1 lead at 4:30 in the second thanks to Brendan O’Donnell, who got a second whack at a rebound just outside the crease and backhanded it past Bakala for his first career goal.
Both of those goals were the ugly, gritty goals that North Dakota has been searching for.
“We needed a couple of those,” said Hakstol.
It was a blue collar effort from both sides, with numerous huge hits. Tempers flared when UND’s Michael Parks and Jake Areshenko started a small skirmish late in the second. Both were given five minute facemasking majors.
Both teams had plenty of chances, but it was Bemidji that capitalized on its early in the third. Shea Walters set himself up in the slot and turned the easy one-timer feed from Brady Wacker into the game-tying goal at 1:12 in the third.
Bemidji then withstood quite a storm. North Dakota put six shots on goal after a Jamie MacQueen slashing penalty, but couldn’t put one home.
Finally however, North Dakota broke through on a clutch goal from Lamoureux at 15:22 when he skated in one-on-one and sniped one glove side for the game-winning goal.
To Hakstol, that goal wasn’t a result of improved play from the Sioux, but of the bounces finally going UND’s way.
“Just overall, this game wasn’t a whole lot different than the games we played over the last three weekends,” he said. “It was a good play by us, but a lot of those pucks haven’t been going in the net.”
Brock Nelson added his sixth goal at 18:30 to put the Sioux up by two late, then sealed it with an empty-netter at 19:31.
For the Beavers, the loss emphasized once more their inability to get over the hump in a frustrating first half.
“We’ve got to start stringing together three periods in a row,” Walters said. “We tied it up right there and kind of let it slip away. This is a tough one, a real tough one.
“We played a lot better; we played a lot tougher. But what counts is up on the wins and losses, and we have to start putting up some wins, that’s for sure.”
It was all the more frustrating considering the play of Bakala, who looks to be back on his stride after a rough start to the season.
“He brings it every night,” Walters said. “You can always count on him. It would have been nice to get a win for him, but that’s what happens.”
North Dakota began the tough task of digging themselves out of the conference cellar, moving past Minnesota State. A win Sunday would put them even with Bemidji State for ninth, but would build even more confidence for a team that seemed to find a lot of it Saturday.
“I thought we smoothed out our game throughout the night. We got a little bit better,” Hakstol said. “Bottom line, it’s a good win for us.”
