#1 St. Cloud State edged by #4 UMD in NCHC Frozen Faceoff title game

Saturday, March 23

St. Paul, Minn.

7:38 p.m.

St. Cloud State

30-5-3

University of Minnesota Duluth

25-11-2

OT 1

OT 2

Minnesota Duluth

St. Cloud State

Patrick Newell

#1 St. Cloud State edged by #4 UMD in NCHC Frozen Faceoff title game

3/23/2019 11:22:00 PM | Men's Hockey

Box Score

Jackson, Lizotte, Newell and Schuldt named to All-Tourney Team

In an epic battle between two of the nation's top college hockey programs, #1 St. Cloud State University (30-5-3) lost a heartbreaking 3-2 double overtime showdown against #4 Minnesota Duluth (25-11-2) in the championship game of the 2019 NCHC Frozen Faceoff at the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, Minn.

Before a crowd of 10,621 fans, the Huskies and Bulldogs battled through 87:29 minutes of play before UMD ended the game with a goal at 7:29 of the second overtime session by Nick Swaney.

The goal snapped a 10-game winning streak for the Huskies and it also broke a 13-game unbeaten streak dating back to Jan. 26.

In the first period of the game, St. Cloud State broke into the scoring column with a goal by Robby Jackson at 7:45 with assists from Blake Lizotte and Patrick Newell. This was Jackson's 19 goal of the season and his 52nd career goal as a Husky. The goal provided Lizotte with his 26th assist of the year and it was Newell's 26th assist of 2018-19 and his 119th career point.

UMD tied the game at 10:49 of the first period with a goal by Mikey Anderson, which included assists from Scott Perunovich and Parker Mackay. The first period ended in a 1-1 tie but the Huskies did manage to outshoot the Bulldogs 15-6 in the opening period.

In the third period, SCSU's Newell notched his 21st goal of the year with a marker at :28 on the power play. He was assisted on the play by Blake Lizotte and Jack Ahcan, who now has a team leading 28 assists, while Lizotte has 27 helpers in 2018-19.

UMD then tied the game up at 15:09 of the third with a shorthanded goal by Billy Exell.

On the night, SCSU outshot the Bulldogs 39-30. David Hrenak made 27 saves in the game, while Hunter Shepherd had 37 saves for UMD. On the power play, SCSU was 1-of-6 and the Huskies were a perfect 3-of-3 on the penalty kill.

SCSU players selected to the 2019 NCHC Frozen Four All-Tournament team included senior defenseman Jimmy Schuldt, senior forward Patrick Newell, senior forward Robby Jackson and sophomore forward Blake Lizotte.

The game marked SCSU's fourth trip to the championship game of the NCHC Frozen Faceoff since joining the league in 2013-14. In previous years, SCSU placed first in 2016 and placed second in 2015 and 2018.

The Huskies now await for the NCAA Division I tournament bracket selection show to find out where they will play next weekend in the opening round of NCAA tourney play. SCSU fans can gather with the team on Sunday, March 24 at the Ultimate Sports Bar and Grill in Waite Park, Minn to watch the bracket announcement on ESPNU. The event is free and open to the public and it will begin at 5:30 p.m. and the selection show will air beginning at 6 p.m.