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St. Cloud State
18-10-0
Boston University
10-5-1
The Monkey is Off: St. Cloud State downs Boston in NCAA Regional
3/27/2021 4:32:00 PM | Men's Hockey
ALBANY, N.Y. - They said there was a curse that the St. Cloud State University men's hockey team couldn't win in big games.
Boy, did the Huskies prove everyone wrong Saturday afternoon.
After earning an at-large bid to the NCAA Regional, one question seemed to hang over St. Cloud State as the team traveled to Albany, New York: would the Huskies finally be able to win their first NCAA tournament game since the 2014-15 season? The answer is yes. St. Cloud State handily defeated college hockey perennial power Boston University in the first round of the Northeast Regional, earning a 6-2 win over the Terriers to advance to Sunday's regional final.
It took both St. Cloud State and Boston a full period to figure each other out, as neither team scored in the 20 minutes of play. The speed and skill of both teams was on display early in the first period, as the Huskies and Terriers saw time in their respective offensive ends. Five minutes in, though, it was scoreless, as neither team was able to figure the other's goalie. Twenty minutes later, not much changed, as the first period ended in a 0-0 tie despite grade-A scoring chances by both teams. St. Cloud State saw its first chance to put a point on the board at 9:08 in the first period, as Boston's Dylan Peterson was calling for a five minute major. Though the Huskies peppered Drew Commesso with shots, the freshman stayed firm, making multiple highlight real saves to preserve the scoreless tie.
David Hrenak (Povazksa Bystrica, Slovakia / Green Bay) did much of the same minutes later, as the Terriers went on the power play at 15:14 in the same period after Micah Miller (Grand Rapids, Minn. / Grand Rapids) was called for flashing. The senior faced just one shot on goal the entire power play, as the Huskies stingy defense prevented almost anything from reaching their netminder. Hrenak's save, though, was much needed, as it kept Boston off the scoreboard and the score 0-0 after one.
The scoreless tie didn't last very long, as the Terriers scored eight seconds into the second period to take an earlier 1-0 lead. In the ensuing moments, the Huskies badgered their way into Boston's zone, creating an abundance of scoring chances. Commesso continued to make the saves, and the Terriers defense clogged the middle, blocking nearly any close shot St. Cloud State took.
Then, weird hockey ensued and the Huskies scored a goal. Micah Miller (Grand Rapids, Minn. / Sioux City) threw the puck up in the air and it came back down behind Commesso to tie things up at 12:14 in the second. The goal broke a 10 game scoreless streak for the junior forward and was his first since the opening game of the 2020-21 season.
Roughly a minute later, Nick Perbix (Elk River, Minn. / Omaha) gave St. Cloud State its first lead of the night, as he blasted a wicked slapshot past Commesso at 13:29 for a 2-1 lead. Of course, Boston had to go ahead and tie the game two minutes later, as Jake Wise scored a power play equalizer on the Huskies usually stingy penalty give to even things up at 2-2.
That was the last time the Terriers would score all evening, but it certainly wasn't the last time St. Cloud State would put on in the back of the net. With exactly four minutes remaining in the second period, Easton Brodzinski (Blaine, Minn. / Green Bay) gave the Huskies a lead they would never relinquish, as he beat Commesso stick side for the 3-2 St. Cloud State lead.
Boston failed to score in the remaining minutes of the second period, but it seemed like momentum was on the Terriers side early in the third. Chase Brand (Nevis, Minn. / Madison) took a five minute major and game misconduct for contact to the head at 3:29 in the third period, giving Boston five full minutes with a man advantage. In the end, the Huskies ended up scoring more on the Terrier power play thanks to Jami Krannila (Nokia, Finland / Sioux Falls). The speedy sophomore chased down an errant puck only to be tripped right in front of the goalie. Boston's trip of desperation turned into a penalty shot for Krannila, one the Fin buried deep in the back of the net to put St. Cloud ahead 4-2.
The Terriers could never recover from the Krannila penalty shot, but the Huskies never let up in the final 15 minutes of play, scoring two more goals in the process. Brodzinski scored his second of the night at 10:04 to boost St. Cloud State's lead to 5-2 before Veeti Miettinen (Espoo, Finland / Kiekko-Espoo U20) entered the chat with his first goal since the regular season, cementing the Huskies 6-2 victory with a signature wrister.
Hrenak was gold in between the pipes for St. Cloud State, as the senior netminder made 34 saves on 36 shots in 59:53 minutes of play. He also earned his 15th win of the season and 64th of his Huskies career moving Hrenak just two wins closer to the program record for career wins.
Three St. Cloud State student-athletes recorded multiple points in Saturday afternoon's victory. Nolan Walker (Anchorage, Alaska / Sioux Falls) tallied assists on Miller and both Brodzinski goals to end the day with a team-leading three points. Brodzinski and Krannila both ended the day with two point games, pulling the former within two of the 100 point milestone. Additionally, Spencer Meier (Sartell, Minn. / Fargo) played in his 100th career game in a Huskies uniform.
With the win, St. Cloud State's overall record improves to 18-10-0. More importantly, the Huskies advance to the NCAA Regional final, where they will face top-seeded Boston College at 5:30 p.m. EST on Sunday, March 28. The game is set to air on ESPN2, and watch parties will be hosted at the Blue Line Sports Bar and Grill South location and on St. Cloud State's campus.
