The No. 3 University of Minnesota Duluth men's hockey team skated to a 2-2 tie with the No. 17 University of Nebraska Omaha, but fell in the shootout 2-1. The Bulldogs now carry a 5-1-2 record on the season and have one game remaining in the National Collegiate Hockey Conference (NCHC) Pod before taking a 10-day break.

"Disappointed not to be able to get the three points with a 2-0 lead. We had plenty of opportunities throughout the game to make it a bigger lead but we didn't capitalize," said head coach Scott Sandelin. "Saville made some big saves, and we have to give them credit too. It was what we expected, a tight battle, a hard-fought battle, and they got the extra point."

Sophomore goalie Ryan Fanti got his sixth straight nod in between the pipes and had a solid performance Wednesday evening stopping 26 shots, while UNO's goalie Isaiah Saville made 29 saves. Fanti now carries a 4-1-2 record on the season, with a .919 save percentage and a 2.23 goals against average.

UMD came out of the gates firing in the first, holding a majority of zone time in the Mavericks end. After getting a power play early, the Bulldogs committed a penalty of their own. That didn't stop UMD from striking first, however. Right off of the ensuing faceoff, senior defenseman Matt Cairns chipped the puck up the boards to junior forward Noah Cates. Cates carried the puck from the Bulldogs' blue line to UNO's slot, dishing a pass to senior forward Nick Swaney, who rifled a shot past Saville with 7:25 to go in the first. UMD went into the locker rooms with a 1-0 lead and a 12-5 advantage.

Swaney struck again in the second, this time with 7:22 to go in the period. Freshman defenseman Wyatt Kaiser dropped down on a cycling play. Kaiser dropped the puck to N. Cates, who was skating up the half wall. He dropped the puck to a swift skating Swaney, who drove to the net and back handed a rolling puck to the far side, squeaking it by the blocker and leg pad of Saville. The Bulldogs were up 2-0 heading into the final 20 minutes of regulation.

UMD went on a five-minute penalty kill when sophomore forward Luke Loheit was called for contact to the head. Right off the faceoff, UNO was able to cut their deficit in half. Just 2:47 into the third, the Mavericks forward Chayse Primeau redirected a pass in the slot from the boards. The bouncing puck jumped past Fanti on his right side.

"I thought we came out playing good. Having a two-goal lead going into the third period, it's tough to give that up," said Swaney. "It kind of put us in a little hole by having to kill some penalties. Getting a point any night is good in the NCHC, but we would like to get some more."

UNO would tie things at two apiece with 6:34 left in the third. While applying pressure on the Bulldogs, the Mavericks were able to get a puck to the front of the net, causing a scrum. UNO's Taylor Ward found the loose puck and snapped it by Fanti's right shoulder.

Scoring would go quiet for both sides for the rest of the third and overtime, forcing a tie and a shootout to see who would grab the extra point in the NCHC standings.

Junior forward Cole Koepke was the only Bulldog to net one in the six-round standoff, while junior forward Jesse Jacques hit the post. UNO netted two in the shootout.

Swaney finished with two goals, one being shorthanded, on the evening. Sophomore forward Quinn Olson, Kaiser, N. Cates and Cairns all finished with one assist.

UMD hits the ice again for their final Pod contest with another top-10 matchup with the No. 4 University of North Dakota on Saturday, Dec. 19 at 12:05pm.