MENDOTA HEIGHTS, Minn. – The Lake Superior State (LSSU) hockey program (17-19-1) are moving on to the CCHA Mason Cup Semifinals after picking up a 3-2 win over the Tommies of St. Thomas (15-20-2) in the final seconds on Sunday in what marked the first victory in a game 3 for LSSU in 17 years.
“It’s nice to get those bad omens out of the way,” said Laker Head Coach Damon Whitten postgame. “This team earned it with three tough fought games on the road.”
Both teams battled in the opening period, playing with high energy and desperation with their seasons on the line, but it was the Tommies that ended the drought midway through the period as Luc Laylin scored the opening goal of the game.
Then, just over five minutes into the second period, Dawson Tritt (Spokane, Wash.) was able to steal the puck away and get it to Connor Milburn (Kamloops, B.C.) who raced ahead to tie up the game with the first shorthanded goal of his career. The Lakers would then continue to build momentum on the defense, killing off the rest of a five-minute major, including two minutes of being down 5 skaters to 3. However, Chase Cheslock would eventually put the Tommies back on top going into the second intermission.
The Lakers kept fighting in the third, but Grant Hindman (Oakland, Mich.) was able to find Reagan Milburn (Kamloops, B.C.) who fired the puck into the back of the net as both Milburn brothers scored on the night to knot the game up at 2-2. Each team earned multiple chances to take the lead, but the defenses were there to answer the call, including an impressive kick save by Laker goaltender Ethan Langenegger (Kamloops, B.C.) with a few minutes left in regulation.
“We need those timely saves,” said Whitten. “It’s not necessarily all the saves you make, but the time you make them.”
Then, with 6.6 seconds to play, Tritt found himself in the right place at the right time to clean up a rebound and send his team into the second round.
Langenegger finished the night with 28 saves on 30 shots faced, and both Evan Bushy (Thief River Falls, Minn.) and Ross Roloson (Woodbury, Minn.) picked up a pair of blocks defensively.
The Lakers will now turn their attention to the CCHA Mason Cup Semifinals where they will take on the Bemidji State Beavers on Saturday, March 16 with puck drop scheduled for 7:07 p.m. Central Standard Time.
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