ST. PAUL, Minn. — Even before the puck dropped on the second annual North Star College Cup’s championship game, one conference had already picked up a victory.
The WCHA, which is made up of the teams that were often regarded as the “leftovers” when the Big Ten and NCHC came into existence, was represented by Minnesota State and Bemidji State in the final game of the tournament that determines best collegiate team in the “State of Hockey.”
Bemidji State built an early lead and denied any though of a comeback down the stretch en route to a 3-0 victory. Beavers’ goaltender Michael Bitzer was the tournament’s most valuable player.
“We’ve got a heck of a league,” Bemidji State coach Tom Serratore said after the game. “That team right there that we played is the best team in the country and it’s not their ranking, that team’s really good.
“We have a couple other teams in our league that are high-end. Our league is deep, and I think our nonconference record shows that.”
The yearly tournament features Minnesota every year and three out of the four other Minnesota teams on a rotating basis. After being the team that sat out last year’s tournament, the Beavers won it on their first try this year.
“It’s pretty cool to have the bragging rights right now,” BSU’s Matt Prapavessis. “We’re happy for our school, our fans and our alumni. I think everyone’s really proud of us.”
Charlie O’Connor got the Beavers on the board first when he received a back-door pass from Brendan Harms and put a shot past an out-of-position Stephon Williams. Minnesota State’s netminder looked to have sold out on Harms shooting the puck from the high slot before the sophomore slid the pass to O’Connor.
“The first one, it’s on our stick and we don’t get it out of the zone,” Minnesota State coach Mike Hastings said. “They transition, go back and beat us off the wall and score a goal.”
Bemidji State scored again three minutes into the second period when a Mavericks’ defender checked a Bemidji State player into Williams, essentially taking to goaltender out of play. Gerry Fitzgerald had possession of the puck and easily scored on the empty net with a wraparound shot.
“Same thing on the second goal, pucks on our stick and in our zone,” Hastings said. “Their aggressiveness on the back pressure I though really separated them tonight. They forced us into mistakes and then capitalized on them.”
The Beavers padded their lead with five minutes remaining in the second when Kyle Bauman took a deflected puck in the Minnesota State offensive zone, outraced the Mavericks defense and put the puck through Williams’ five hole for the goal.
Hastings said that there were mistakes made by the Mavericks on all three goals, but added that Bemidji was flat-out the better team on the ice.
“They were good tonight,” Hastings said. “They were better than us and they deserve the outcome that they had.”
With about five minutes remaining in the second, the Mavericks got their best opportunity of the game when O’Connor took a five-minute penalty for interference. However, the Mavericks’ power play wasn’t even able to get set up in the zone, much less get any opportunities, with the extra man.
“We were dialed in pretty good,” Serratore said. “You’re always nervous about getting a five-minute major against you in the second period with the long change. Sometimes you can’t get guys off. We were fortunate enough to clear pucks and we got into a routine and a pretty good rhythm.”
Eventually, Hastings took his timeout with less than two minutes remaining in the power play. Jon Jutzi made that move look genius when he took a shot from the point that deflected off of a Beavers’ defender and found its way past Bitzer.
Minnesota State got a glorious opportunity to cut the lead to one goal near the midpoint of the third when Dylan Margonari was hauled down on a breakaway opportunity. MSU elected to take the penalty shot, but Margonari was stoned by Bitzer.
“We work on them at the end of practice every day so to be honest, I’d almost rather take the penalty shot over the two-minute power play,” Bitzer said.
The Mavericks played most of the final three minutes of the game with an empty net, but even with an extra attacker, struggled to get puck through to Bitzer. When the goaltender was tested, he stood tall.
Bitzer finished the game with 26 saves.
“My defense was great in front of me this weekend blocking a ton of shots,” Bitzer said. “Not many shots were getting through, so it made it pretty easy on me.”
