Buoyed by three power play goals, including the final one with 1:44 to go in overtime, St. Cloud State University opened up its final regular season series of 2018-19 by clipping the University of Minnesota Duluth 4-3 Friday night in St. Cloud, Minn.

It marked the first loss for the Bulldogs in their last 23 overtime games (10-1-12), a run that dates back to Feb. 19, 2016.

During regulation, the top-ranked Huskies took a one-goal lead three different times and on each occasion the No. 3 Bulldogs answered. St. Cloud State drew first blood by striking on their first man advantage opportunity of the game 5:09 into the second period, but 82 seconds later, UMD junior center Jade Miller evened the score by taking a feed from sophomore left winger Kobe Roth and burying a shot from the low slot. With 4:32 to go in that same period, Micah Miller parlayed a Bulldog turnover into a breakaway goal only to have Bulldog rookie left winger  Noah Cates counter at the 19:12 mark. 

St. Cloud State went up 3-2 with another power play tally at 7:17 of the third period before UMD junior left winger Riley Tufte blasted a one-timer --  off a pin-point cross-ice pass from senior right winger Parker Mackay --  past Husky goaltender David Hrenek.

The Bulldogs (21-10-2 overall and 14-8-1 in the NCHC) did go on the power play with 1:30 remaining in the third period and that carried over into overtime. Just before the extra session started and following a video review from the on-ice officials, Noah Cates was accessed a five-minute major for contact to the head. That put the Huskies on the power play for virtually the entire overtime.

Junior goaltender Hunter Shepard, making his 72nd consecutive start, finished with 24 saves while Hrenak made stops for the NCHC regular season champion Huskies, who were 3-for-4 with the man advantage. UMD converted one of its three power play chances.

"We played a good hockey game," said head coach Scott Sandelin, whose Bulldogs officially claimed second place in the final NCHC standings. "There's things at the end you can't control and it's tough to take, but I thought our guys played a good game."

The two intrastate rivals will meet again Saturday at 4:07 p.m. at the Herb Brooks National Hockey Center.