St. Cloud State men's hockey edged in NCHC Frozen Faceoff final, 3-2

Saturday, March 21

Minneapolis, Minn.

7:38 p.m.

St. Cloud State

19-18-1

Miami University (OH)

25-13-1

St. Cloud State

Miami

Jonny Brodzinski

Photo by: Brace Hemmelgarn

St. Cloud State men's hockey edged in NCHC Frozen Faceoff final, 3-2

3/21/2015 9:27:00 PM | Men's Hockey

Box Score

The #18 St. Cloud State University men's hockey team (19-18-1) ended its run in the 2015 NCHC playoffs with a tough 3-2 loss to #5/6 Miami University (25-13-1) in the championship game of the NCHC Frozen Faceoff, which was held at the Target Center in Minneapolis, Minn. on March 21.

The Huskies finished the NCHC playoffs with a 3-1 record and will now await word on the NCAA tournament bid, which will be announced at 11 a.m. on March 22 on ESPNU.

SCSU players named to the All-NCHC tournament team were forward Joey Benik, defenseman Tim Daly and goalie Charlie Lindgren. In tournament play, Benik had two goals and one assist while Daly was stellar at the blueline with 11 blocks to his credit. Lindgren notched a 2.02 goals against average and a .902 save rate in the two games of tournament play.

In the first period, St. Cloud State opened the game's scoring with a marker by junior Joey Benik at 12:00. He was assisted on the play by Ethan Prow. The goal was Benik's 16th of the season and it marked his 15th career point in postseason play for the Huskies.

Miami knotted the score at 1-1 with a goal by Blake Coleman at 16:15 of the first period. Riley Barber and Cody Murphy provided the assists on the play.

In the second period, SCSU's Jonny Brodzinski hit his 20th goal of the season with a tally at 6:03 on the power play. Assists were credited to Prow and Benik on the goal, which was Brodinski's 11th power play goal of the year. This also marks the third consecutive season that Brodzinski has charted 20-or-more goals in a season.

Coleman returned in the second period with his second goal of the night at 7:37 of the period. The power play goal was assisted by Austin Czarnik and Louie Belpedio and it tied the game at 2-2. Coleman provided Miami with a 3-2 edge at 9:20 of the second with his third goal of the evening. The hat trick goal was assisted by Chris Joyaux.

Of note, Coleman was then ejected from the game after he was hit with a contact to the head penalty and game misconduct after decking SCSU's Joe Rehkamp at 14:12 of the second.

Both teams went scoreless in the final period as Miami ended up outshooting the Huskies 21-20 in the game. On the power play, SCSU was 1-5 and Miami was 1-3 on the night. The Huskies had three penalties for six minutes and Miami had six penalties for 23 minutes. In the nets, Charlie Lindgren made 18 saves for SCSU. Jay Williams was the goalie of record for Miami with 18 saves.

NCAA BRACKET SHOW - MARCH 22 - 11 a.m.

The Huskies will learn their fate regarding the 2015 NCAA Division I tournament on Sunday, March 22. The ESPNU bracket show will air at 11 a.m. and the tournament's 16-team field will be announced at that time along with dates, times and locations. SCSU is looking to earn its third consecutive NCAA tournament bid in 2015.

Fans can join the Huskies on Sunday, March 21 at Brothers Bar and Grill in downtown St. Cloud, Minn. to watch the ESPNU NCAA hockey tournament selection show. The doors will open at 10:45 a.m. and the public is invited to this event. Brothers Bar and Grill offers an outstanding selection of food and drink options on its menu.