GRAND FORKS, N.D.<\/b> — Colorado College has only celebrated one victory in the past 18 games. <\/p>\n
Tonight wasn’t that night.<\/p>\n
In a matter of 46 seconds, North Dakota (10-7-2, 6-5-0 NCHC) crushed a once-tied scoreboard with two consecutive goals en route to a 5-3 victory over the Tigers (2-14-3, 2-6-3 NCHC) in front of 10,387 Friday night at Ralph Engelstad Arena.<\/p>\n
“We were able to build the lead,” UND coach Dave Hakstol said. “I thought that was important. We gave the one-goal lead away in the first period, got it back in the second and were able to build that to a three-goal lead — that was important.” <\/p>\n
For Bryn Chyzyk, those 46 seconds in the opening minutes of the second period were enough to rally a goal and an assist to erase the 1-1 tie. <\/p>\n
With a Mark MacMillan hit on Gustav Olofsson to force a turnover, Chyzyk picked up the puck and found Michael Parks all alone in front of Josh Thorimbert (23 saves) to post an assist and begin North Dakota’s surge. <\/p>\n
Chyzyk secured the puck again seconds later and fired it in the net after Wade Murphy’s shot on a rush down the ice yielded a rebound, to force a 3-1 advantage after goals from MacMillan and Olofsson in the first period. <\/p>\n
“We came out the way we wanted to,” UND senior captain Dillon Simpson said. “Start of every period, we kind of control the pace. We built a lead, which is something we’ve been struggling with this year. Obviously, they pushed back. They’re a good team, but it’s nice to respond and hang on.” <\/p>\n
Though it looked as if the teams would begin the third period with the Tigers trailing 3-1, Simpson found time for one more at 19:54 of the middle frame. <\/p>\n
“It’s just part of the deal,” Colorado College coach Scott Owens said. “They got two in a pretty short period and I think we weathered pretty good. We thought we were going to make it through the period, but that shot with six seconds left made it tough.” <\/p>\n
The three-goal margin would be erased, though, when Jaccob Slavin tallied a second goal for CC, followed by a second of his own minutes later past Zane Gothberg (20 saves) at 4:52 of the third period to separate the teams by one. <\/p>\n
Colorado College persisted in searching for a victory that has become uncommon this season. <\/p>\n
Despite their heavy loss column, the Tigers’ attitude remains steady. <\/p>\n
“The morale is good, the effort is good,” Owens said. “They love coming to the rink and working. I’m sure, to a certain extent, because we haven’t had success in the win-loss column at all — when things don’t go well — a little doubt sets in. But I was proud of the way our guys came back in the third.” <\/p>\n
Sam Rothstein’s checking from behind major penalty and game misconduct at 15:02 of the third period gave North Dakota a man-advantage, which it used to tally a fifth goal from Parks — his second of the night — with minutes remaining in the final frame. <\/p>\n
For the Tigers, the energy in the third period wasn’t enough.<\/p>\n
“We didn’t play well enough to win a road game – there were too many holes,” Owens said. “You give up three goals in a period like that, you give up a goal with six seconds to go in a period, you take a five-minute major — it’s tough to win against a good team like North Dakota.” <\/p>\n
With the win, UND is riding a six-game winning streak — its best since March of 2012 — a rhythm Hakstol sees as a stepping-stone for what’s next. <\/p>\n
“It’s one win,” Hakstol said. “Obviously, you look back to before Christmas, and we had a good finish to the first half, but this is one win. I think that’s the mentality that our team needs to carry forward.<\/p>\n
“It’s one night at a time. We had a good positive win tonight — now we turn the page. This one’s done. We have to turn to tomorrow. These home games are so critical for us.”<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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