After a week off from Western Collegiate Hockey Association competition, the No. 4 University of Minnesota Duluth will dive back into league play this weekend when the Bulldogs travel to St. Cloud, Minn. to face St. Cloud State University. The series will take place at Herb Brooks National Hockey Center, and will get underway Friday at 7:07 p.m. before wrapping up Saturday at 3:07 p.m.
USCHO RANKING: UMD-- No. 4, St. Cloud State-- N/R
USA TODAY/USA HOCKEY MAG: UMD-- No. 3, St. Cloud State-- N/R
THE SERIES: The Bulldogs went 2-1-1 against the Huskies last season and are 56-11-5 all-time against SCSU
The Bulldogs finished up the 2015-16 regular season with a series split against St. Cloud State in St. Cloud in their last exchange on Feb. 19-20 of this year. On the first night, the Bulldogs shelled the Huskies net 33-18, but suffered a 3-2 loss. The setback was the first one by UMD at the hands of SCSU in 10 games, snapping a nine-game unbeaten streak. Two of the Huskies three goals came off of their power play. Three players had two points in the outing, with Ashleigh Brykaliuk and Michela Cava registering a goal and an assist and Lara Stalder posting two assists.
The following afternoon (Feb. 20), Michelle Lowenhielm bookended a goal in the second period by Maria Lindh to help lead UMD over SCSU 3-2. Lowenhielms goal at 14:56 of the third period was the game-winner for the Bulldogs. Goaltender Kayla Black made 25 saves in the contest.
LAST TIME OUT: The Bulldogs swept Harvard University in Cambridge, Mass. over the weekend by scores of 4-1 and a 2-1 overtime thriller.
UMD needed just three minutes to turn a one-goal lead into a three-goal lead Friday night, scoring two power play tallies early in the third period to ice the 4-1 game. Senior forward Katherine McGovern scored two of the Bulldogs four goals, while Lara Stalder had a game-high three assists. The Bulldogs outshot Harvard 36-25 in the skate.
The Crimson scored 8:57 into the third period Saturday, but senior forward Ashleigh Brykaliuk one-time redirection goal with 1:17 remaining in regulation sent the game into overtime. Senior blueline Sidney Morin buried the game-winner 1:51 into extra time for the 2-1 win and series sweep.
The Bulldogs outshot the Crimson 36-25 Friday and a staggering 41-16 Saturday for a weekend total of 77-41.
NOTES FROM THE HARVARD SERIES: UMD is now 12-5-1 all-time against Harvard and 33-11-34 against ECAC opponents.
--The Bulldogs outshot the Crimson 36-25 Friday and a staggering 41-16 Saturday for a weekend total of 77-41.
--With the sweep, second-year head coach Maura Crowell is now over the .500 mark with a record of 25-24-4 with the Bulldogs. The Crowell era is also 3-1 against Harvard.
--With two assists Saturday and three Friday night, Lara Stalder had five assists against Harvard, and figured in five-of-the-six goals UMD scored.
--Ashleigh Brykaliuk has now posted a point in her last seven games, with four goals and six assists for 10 points over that span.
--Sidney Morin has now scored two game-winning goals from the blueline this season and five over her career.
RANK AND FILE: UMD's series with St. Cloud State will mark the first back-to-back series the Bulldogs have played against a team that wasn't ranked.
In both the weekly USCHO.com and USA TODAY/USA Hockey Magazine national polls, the Bulldogs are ranked fourth.
UMD has played 10 of its first 16 games against teams ranked in the top-10. Over that span, the Bulldogs have gone 4-3-3, including toppling the No. 1 Wisconsin 4-1 on Nov. 18.
Ashleigh Brykaliuk leads all scorers against ranked opponents, with six goals and seven assists for 13 points in 10 games. Lara Stalder has posted four goals and seven assists for 11 points in those same 10 games. Brykaliuk has recorded points in nine of UMD's 10 games against teams ranked in the top-10.
MORIN'S NAMED THE THIRD-CONSECUTIVE WCHA DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK: After flexing some offense against Harvard last weekend, Sidney Morin is the WCHA's Defensive Player of the Week.
The senior defenseman had a league-leading two points against the Crimson, including the overtime game-winning goal Saturday that gave UMD a 2-1 win against Harvard. The Minnetonka, Minn. native had the primary game-tying assist on Friday night in the Bulldogs come-from-behind 4-1 win in Cambridge, Mass., and had three shots on goal with a +1. Saturday, Morin's shot at 1:51 of overtime sealed the series sweep for UMD. With two shots on goal and a +2 Saturday, Morin had five shots and went +3 in against the Crimson, as well as helping hold their power play scoreless in four attempts.
In 16 games this season, Morin has four goals and six assists for 10 points with a plus/minus rating of +15, and leads all WCHA blueliners in points
BULLDOG NOTES: UMD owns the nation's 13th best offense, scoring an average of 3.19 goals per game, but have no scorer ranked in the top-20. UMD's only top-11 categories are Lara Stalder in fifth with three game-winning goals and rookie freshman Sydney Brodt, who is 11th in scoring among freshman nationwide with three goals and 10 assists for 13 points.
--Stalder leads the Bulldogs with 23 points on eight goals and 15 assists in 16 games. Brykaliuk has 20 points (9g, 11a), while Katerine McGovern has a team-high 10 goals to go with her nine assists for 19 points.
--Maddie Rooney owns the NCAA's eighth best saves percentage at .939, and has made the second most saves of any goaltender in the country at 450.
--The Bulldogs have the nation's fifth-best power play at 12-of-60 for 20.0 percent.
--Five of the WCHA's top-14 scorers are Bulldogs -- Stalder (4), McGovern (5), Brykaliuk (7), Brodt (9), and Mrázová (14).
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Live Stats: http://www.sidearmstats.com/stcloudstate/whockey/
