SATURDAY GAME RECAP COURTESY OF MTU ATHLETICS
BEMIDJI, Minn. – The Michigan Tech hockey team earned a CCHA sweep of Bemidji State after a 4-3 victory at the Sanford Center on Saturday. It was the Huskies' third win of the season over the Beavers as Tech improved to 14-8-2 overall and 9-3-2 in the CCHA.
"We started the game so well, and then it got a little goofy in the third," Tech coach Bill Muckalt said. "I'm proud of the way we stayed composed. We're figuring out how to hold the lead and close out the game. We're getting contributions up and down the lineup right now, and guys are doing the little things rig
Similar to Friday night, the Huskies jumped out to a lead in the first period. Tyler Miller took a shot through traffic that found the back of the net 106 seconds into the game. Tom Leppa and Matthew Van Blaricom assisted on Miller's third of the season.
Brayden Boehm added to the lead with his first of two on the night at 13:44 of the first. He finished off a backhanded cross-ice pass from Reid Daavettila while Michael Cicek also assisted.
BSU (9-10-3, 7-4-3 CCHA) got on the board 3:22 into the second on a goal by Tory Lund.
Tech responded when Brayden Boehm buried his sixth of the season on a 2-on-1 with Jack Anderson at 7:35 of the second. Reid Daavettila and Michael Cicek were again credited with the assists.
The Beavers weren't going to go back underwater. Oliver Peer scored his 13th of the season to again make it a one-goal game at 10:39 in the second.
Later in the period, Luca Fasciano scored his second of the season with a blast from the point on the power play. Max Koskipirtti and Isaac Gordon assisted on the goal with 2:55 left before the second intermission.
Reilly Funk scored the lone goal in the third, capitalizing on a 5-on-3 power play and redirecting the puck at the side of the net.
The Huskies were whistled for four penalties in the third and were down 6-on-3 for the final moments of the game with the goaltender pulled.
Owen Bartoszkiewicz made 26 saves to earn the win—his 14th of the season and the 25th of his career. He made a pair of tremendous saves midway through the third and at the very end. Max Hildebrand stopped 25 shots for the Beavers.
Tech finally returns to the John MacInnes Student Ice Arena next weekend, hosting No. 15 Minnesota State for a CCHA showdown.
FRIDAY GAME RECAP COURTEY OF MTU ATHLETICS
BEMIDJI, Minn. – The Michigan Tech hockey team defeated Bemidji State 5-2 on Friday at the Sanford Center in its return to CCHA play. Max Koskipirtti scored twice, and Stiven Sardarian had a pair of assists as the Huskies improved to 13-8-2 overall and 8-3-2 in the CCHA
"It's huge when you can get off to a start like that on the road," Tech coach Bill Muckalt said. "We ran into penalty trouble, but we were able to kill them all off.
"They're a really good hockey team that is well coached with some very skilled players. We let them get back into the game in the second but reset for the third and played to our identity."
Tech jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the first period. Stiven Sardarian set up Isaac Gordon on the first shift of the game on a 2-on-1 43 seconds after the initial faceoff. Gordon scored his third of the season and 28th of his career.
Tom Leppa added to the lead 6:38 into the first, scoring his fourth of the season. Matthew Van Blaricom had a backhanded centering feed to Leppa, while Carson Birnie also assisted.
Max Koskipirtti made it 3-0 in the first period when he tipped in a shot by Kalem Parker at 15:25. It was Koskipirtti's eighth of the season.
Connor McClennon scored twice in the second period to get the Beavers back into the game. He got the home team on the board 1:28 after intermission. McClennon made it a one-goal game at 10:20 of the second, scoring on a breakaway.
In the third period, Max Koskipirtti scored his fourth goal against the Beavers this season, blasting in a centering feed from Stiven Sardarian, who stole the puck behind the net. Koskipirtti now has 20 career goals as he made it a two-goal game again at 13:18.
Elias Jansson sealed the win with an empty netter at 16:41. Jack Anderson and Joe Prouty assisted on Jansson's fifth goal of the season and 17th of his career.
BSU (9-9-3, 7-3-3 CCHA) led in shots 21-16. Owen Bartoszkiewicz won his 13th game of the season and the 24th of his career with 19 saves. Raythan Robbins stopped 11 shots on the other end of the ice.
Stiven Sardarian leads the nation with 22 assists. Max Koskipirtti is third nationally in faceoff wins after dominating in the circle on Friday with 20 wins and nine losses. Owen Bartoszkiewicz is second in the country in minutes played and fourth in wins.
