The University of Minnesota Duluth men's hockey team won its last game of the 2023-24 regular season at AMSOIL Arena, to complete the sweep of No. 16/17 St. Cloud State University. After honoring seven players in the Senior Night ceremony, the upperclassmen led the charge in UMD's 4-2 victory.
Fifth year goaltender Matthew Thiessen made a career-high 52 saves. This beat out his previous high of 47 saves, in the Bulldogs' 3-3 tie with the University of Minnesota. He also had the secondary assist on the final goal. After the win, Thiessen talked to the media about what was different in this game.
"It was one of those nights where everyone is pulling together," Thiessen said. "You're playing for each other. More importantly, you're playing for the Bulldog." Thiessen went on to say tonight showed what UMD is capable of and that games like this are "pretty special."
It took some second period dramatics to get the scoring going. Graduate student Connor McMenamin tipped in a shot from senior defenseman Darian Gotz, but it was called off on the ice for a high stick. UMD successfully challenged, securing the game's first goal. With a secondary assist from graduate student Luke Loheit, a trio of Senior Night honorees opened the scoring.
It was an upperclassmen effort to extend the lead with two minutes left in the period. Loheit regained control of the puck in the offensive zone, sending it to fellow graduate student Quinn Olson. He skated in from the boards, passing at the last second to defenseman Owen Gallatin who joined the play on the other side of the net and scored for the second night in a row.
The Bulldogs took the first penalty of the game, a tripping call with a minute and a half left in the period. The power play sparked SCSU's offense. The Huskies scored 20 seconds into the man advantage, then again 30 seconds later to tie it.
For the second time this weekend, it all came down to the third period. For the second time, UMD rose to the occasion.
Nearly halfway through the final frame, the Bulldogs went on the power play. They held offensive possession, wearing down SCSU's penalty kill until there was an opening. It was defenseman Aiden Dubinsky who found it, scoring from the faceoff dot.
The Huskies made a final push, but with Luke Loheit's buzzer-beating empty net goal, the Bulldogs had officially swept the series. After the game, the captain reflected on the team's performance and ability to come away with another win.
"The whole entire night was just so special, for the guys, for us seniors, for my family, for their families, for the coaches. To go out that way is just so special. It was crazy. [Thiessen] was unable the whole night. I wasn't worried about anything getting past him, but obviously we all did a really good job of locking it down."
With two wins, UMD ensured they would not see SCSU in the National Collegiate Hockey Conference Quarterfinals. Instead, the Bulldogs will travel to play the winner of tonight's game between the University of Denver and Colorado College.
