Fast Start Lifts No. 20/18 St. Cloud State Men’s Hockey Over (RV) Alaska

Friday, October 20

St. Cloud, Minn.

7:30 P.M. CT

St. Cloud State

2-3-0

Alaska Fairbanks

1-3-1

Alas. Fairbanks

St. Cloud St.

Fast Start Lifts No. 20/18 St. Cloud State Men’s Hockey Over (RV) Alaska

10/21/2023 1:36:00 AM | Men's Hockey

Box Score

Huskies score three first period goals, beat Nanooks 4-1 to open series

ST. CLOUD, Minn. – Three first period goals gave No. 20/18 St. Cloud State Men's Hockey (2-3-0, 0-0-0 NCHC) the lift it needed to defeat Alaska (1-3-1, IND.), 4-1 on Friday evening at the Herb Brooks National Hockey Center in St. Cloud, Minn. Four different Huskies found the back of the net in the game, including junior forward Nick Portz (St. Cloud, Minn.), who's first score as a Husky came as the game-winning goal in the first period.

Senior forward Veeti Miettinen (Espoo, Finland) got the scoring started for SCSU, as he scored on the power play just 5:32 into the game on a wrist shot from the high slot. The lead gave the Huskies a 1-0 lead, as junior forward Mason Salquist (Grand Forks, N.D.) and senior forward Kyler Kupka (Camrose, Alberta) recorded assists. Just five minutes later, it was Portz's turn, as freshman forward Barrett Hall (Apple Valley, Minn.) made a centering pass from behind the net that found his stick, leading to a near-side goal beating the Alaska goalie to make the score 2-0. Sophomore forward Adam Ingram (West St. Paul, Manitoba) would tack on the Huskies third goal of the period with 21 seconds remaining, as he buried a rebound for the score.

After a scoreless second period, Alaska ended the Husky shutout-bid midway through the third period before senior Joe Molenaar (Minnetonka, Minn.) put the finishing touches on the Husky victory, scoring 13:55 into the period to mark the score 4-1.

TOP HUSKIES

Miettinen scored a goal and added an assist on Ingram's goal to record two points and earn the first star of the game.
Kupka recorded a pair of assists in the game to earn the second star.
Ingram had the Huskies third goal and tacked on the secondary assist on Molenaar's goal to earn the third star.

NOTES

With the win, St. Cloud State improves to 12-6-0 all-time against Alaska and extended its win streak to nine straight over the Nanooks.
St. Cloud State recorded its second-highest shots-on-goal mark this season with 34 and outshot Alaska 34-13, its best margin of the season by a wide margin (previously +7).
The Huskies went 1-of-5 on the power play and was a perfect 5-of-5 on the penalty kill.
Miettinen scored his second goal of the season and recorded his third assist, moving his season point total to a team-leading five points.
Miettinen's multi-point game was the second of his season and the 22^nd of his career.
Ingram scored his second goal of the season and his third season to move into a tie with Miettinen for the team-lead with five points. It marked his first multi-point game of the season and sixth of his career.
Kupka recorded two assists in the game, marking the first time this season and sixth time in his career he has recorded two or more assists.
Portz scored his first career SCSU goal and first career game-winning goal while tallying his fifth career goal overall.
Molenaar scored his second goal of the season and 10^th of his career.
Senior goalie Dominic Basse (Alexandria, Va.) made 12 saves to earn the victory in net for the Huskies.
Adding single assists in the game was fifth-year defenseman Dylan Anhorn (Calgary, Alberta), sophomore forward Grant Ahcan (Savage, Minn.), Hall and Salquist.

HIGHLIGHTS

PRESS CONFERENCE

UP NEXT

St. Cloud State will finish its series with Alaska on Saturday, as puck drop is scheduled for 6:00 p.m. CT from the Brooks Center.

For all the latest on St. Cloud State Men's Hockey, stay tuned to SCSUHuskies.com and follow the team on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook. Tickets for the 2023-24 season are available at www.scsutickets.com, downloading the St. Cloud State Huskies app or by calling 1-877-SCSUTIX / 320-308-2137.