Freshmen Step Up Once Again, No. 16/15 Huskies Finish Sweep of Bemidji State with 3-2 Win

Saturday, October 12

Sanford Center | Bemidji, Minn.

6:00 P.M. CT

St. Cloud State

3-0-0

Bemidji State

1-2-0

St. Cloud St.

Bemidji St.

Photo by: Bill Prout

Freshmen Step Up Once Again, No. 16/15 Huskies Finish Sweep of Bemidji State with 3-2 Win

10/12/2024 10:18:00 PM | Men's Hockey

Box Score

Burnevik finds the back of the net again, Ralph scores game-winner with first collegiate goal

BEMIDJI, Minn. – No. 16/15 St. Cloud State Men's Hockey (3-0-0, 0-0-0 NCHC) finished off a series sweep of (RV) Bemidji State (1-2-0, 0-0-0 CCHA) with a 3-2 win on Saturday night at the Sanford Center in Bemidji. For the second time in as many nights, the Huskies freshmen stepped up and provided offensive production, as freshman forward Austin Burnevik (Ham Lake, Minn.) scored his third goal of the series while freshman defenseman Colin Ralph (Maple Grove, Minn.) scored the game-winning goal in the third period.

Burnevik got the scoring started for the Huskies, capitalizing on the power play for the first time this season midway through the first period. The Huskies executed the man advantage perfectly, winning a draw then moving the puck to the goal line for sophomore forward Tyson Gross (Calgary, Alberta) at the goal line, who then fed Burnevik on the weak side for a one-timer with a wide-open net.

After BSU tied the game at 1-1 in the second, SCSU responded 70 seconds later with a goal from sophomore forward Barrett Hall (Apple Valley, Minn.), his first of the season. Hall was in front of the net when the puck came flying in head high. He snatched the puck out of mid-air, dropped it quick around his back and got his stick on the puck to deflect it behind the Beaver goaltender for the score. Later on in the period, Ralph cleaned up a slapshot rebound for his first collegiate goal to give SCSU a 3-1 lead. The Huskies ten held off a late barrage from Bemidji State in the third period to seal the victory, 3-2.

TOP HUSKIES

Burnevik scored his third goal of the season and added two assists for the first three-point game of his career.
Hall scored the game-winning goal with his first goal of the season.
Sophomore goaltender Isak Posch (Umea, Sweden) made 23 saves and only allowed one even-strength goal in the game.

NOTES

With the win, the Huskies improve to 56-46-7 all-time against Bemidji State and 1-2-2 against the Beavers in St. Cloud since moving to Division-I (1986-87).
SCSU improved to 3-0-0 in one-goal games this season.
The Huskies were dominant in the faceoff dot, winning 40-of-66 opportunities, led by sophomore forward Verner Miettinen (Espoo, Finland) who went 20-6 in the circle.
Miettinen shattered his previous career high in faceoff wins, surpassing his mark of 12 set twice, last on March 8, 2024, against Minnesota Duluth. On the season, Miettinen is an outstanding 70.5 percent (43-18).
SCSU went 3-of-4 on the penalty kill and killed its first six penalties of the season before a third period BSU power play score. On the season, SCSU is 90.0 percent (9-of-10) on the penalty kill.
Burnevik scored SCSU's first power play tally of the season, as the Huskies went 1-of-2 on the man advantage in the game.
Burnevik scored a goal and had two assists to record his first career three-point game and now has five points through his first three collegiate games.
The Husky freshman is the first Husky to produce three goals and five points through the first three games of the season since Patrick Newell had six points (3-3-6) in 2018-19. He is the first freshman to reach those marks since Andres Nodl, who had 3-4-7 through three games in 2006-07, the same season Nodl was named WCHA and HCA Rookie of the Year.
Hall had a goal and assist for two points, his second consecutive game with two points. It marked the fourth time in his career he has reached the four-point mark in a game.
Ralph scored his first collegiate goal with the game-winning score in the second period.
Gross, Miettinen and junior defenseman Cooper Wylie (Stillwater, Minn.) each had single assists in the game.
Posch made 23 saves in the game, the 13^th time in his career he has made at least 20 saves in a game.
Freshman defenseman Thor Byfuglien (Roseau, Minn.) had a career-high three blocks in the game.

UP NEXT

St. Cloud State will hit the road next to face No. 10/13 Michigan in Ann Arbor, Mich., the Huskies first trip to Yost Ice Arena the 2002 NCAA Regional (March 22, 2002). The two teams will play Friday and Saturday, both games scheduled to start at 7:00 p.m. ET / 6:00 p.m. CT on B1G +.

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 2024-25 season are available at www.scsutickets.com, downloading the St. Cloud State Huskies app or by calling 1-877-SCSUTIX / 320-308-2137.