Wendell goal lifts Gophers past Badgers 3-2 in WCHA final

It should have been the best of times for the Wisconsin Badgers, having just accomplished a mini-miracle comeback with two goals in the last minute to send their WomenÂ’s WCHA playoff championship game against Minnesota into overtime. Instead, it became the worst of times, when two penalties in the final 14 seconds of regulation snuffed any rekindled Badgers hope and created an almost inevitable 3-2 victory for Minnesota.

Minnesota improved to 33-2-2 overall, while Wisconsin dropped to 28-8-1. But the records and the final score donÂ’t come close to conveying a stunning finish that left the result both controversial and anticlimactic.

Everyone knew MinnesotaÂ’s strength as the No. 1 rated womenÂ’s hockey team in the nation, and everyone knew of Minnesota-DuluthÂ’s elite perch as the No. 2 team in the WCHA and national rankings. But if there were any lingering doubts about WisconsinÂ’s No. 3 status, they were dispelled by the superb three-day weekend performance of the Badgers at the WomenÂ’s WCHA playoffs.

After beating St. Cloud State on Friday, the Badgers rallied on Saturday to tie UMD, and beat the Bulldogs 3-2 on Saturday when Sharon Cole rapped in Sara BauerÂ’s pass from behind the net at 2:34 of overtime. UMD rebounded as Caroline Ouellette scored two goals and three assists and Riitta Schaublin shut out Ohio State 5-0 in the third-place game, before Sunday afternoonÂ’s final.

Minnesota posed a daunting challenge for WisconsinÂ’s third game in three days, but the Badgers played tough, dedicated defense, and prevented the powerful Gophers from scoring at even strength. Strong as they are offensively, the Gophers also are dominant defensively, so after scoring power play goals late in the second period and early in the third, another Gopher victory seemed inevitable, and an outstanding performance by the Badgers would go down as almost good enough.

But Wisconsin coach Mark Johnson called timeout and pulled Horras for a six-skater attack in the final minute. The Badgers swarmed to the front of the net, and got the puck back to Carla MacLeod at the right point. MacLeodÂ’s shot found its way through the maze of bodies and ruined Jody HorakÂ’s shutout. Minnesota still led, but now by 2-1, and, more importantly, there were still 50 seconds remaining.

“In that situation,” said Johnson, “we needed to get some pucks to the net. It’s nice to get one early enough to get back to center-ice for a chance to get another one. We were hoping to get the draw back to Carla or Molly (Engstrom).”

The Badgers did get time for another chance, and they did get the puck back to MacLeod at the right point again. This time she moved up the boards and fired from the circle. Incredibly, with 24 seconds remaining, MacLeodÂ’s shot beat the screened Horak and snared the upper right corner of the net. Two to two.

With only 24 seconds to go, the Wisconsin strategy was simple. “We just wanted to get through those 20 seconds to get to overtime,” Johnson said.

The Badgers got through it, but not unscathed. With 14 seconds to go, referee Jay Mendel called Wisconsin’s Bobbi-Jo Slusar for interference. Normally, in a game of such high intensity, a penalty would have to be flagrant to be considered as time ran out. Veteran officials call it “a feel for the game,” and while games are not supposed to be called more leniently in the later stages, the fact is, they usually are. In this case, however, there had been a lot of collisions that had gone uncalled during the game, which made the late interference call seem even more obtrusive.

The Badgers killed the final 14 seconds, and still had hope, if they could kill that penalty. But at the buzzer, Mendel added another penalty, to WisconsinÂ’s Nikki Burish, for high-sticking. That meant the Badgers would play the first 1:46 of sudden-death overtime for the WCHA playoff championship game two skaters short. Johnson exchanged some words with Mendel, as he walked across the ice at the end of the third period, and his futility had to felt even by the Gopher fans. One questionable penalty would put the Badgers in serious jeopardy, but facing the Gophers two skaters short would make their task in overtime hopeless.

And it was.

The Wisconsin goal and the outnumbered Badgers were surrounded by world-class, white-jerseyed Minnesota Golden Gophers when overtime started. U.S. National linemates Natalie Darwitz, Krissy Wendell and Kelly Stephens were out there, along with U.S. National defenseman Lyndsay Wall, and WCHA freshman of the year Bobbi Ross. Most of them touched the puck, and there was a lot of room to see it for goaltender Megan Horras, because there were only three Badger defenders out there with her. Horras tried to keep up with the angle as the Gophers threw the puck around quickly. Stephens passed from the left side to Darwitz inside left point, and Darwitz, the nationÂ’s scoring leader, immediately relayed it to the right side of the net, where Wendell, a left-handed shooter, and the nationÂ’s top goal-scorer, swung hard.

She didnÂ’t hit the puck squarely, but it didnÂ’t matter. Horras had been on top of her game all weekend, but she couldnÂ’t get all the way across to cover, and WendellÂ’s shot flew, straight and true, but in painstakingly slow yet inevitable motion, finding the open net after only 19 seconds of overtime. It was WendellÂ’s 40th goal, to go with 55 assists for 95 points.

The Gophers streamed off the bench in their home arena, perhaps as relieved as joyful, at escaping WisconsinÂ’s spellbinding last-minute rally with a 3-2 victory.

“I’ve been around hockey a long time, and a lot of strange things happen,” said Johnson, afterward, as he chose his words judiciously. “They (the officials) have a job to do, and I’m sure they’re going to do it to the best of their ability and capability. The penalties certainly made it interesting. But I’m from the school that you want the players to decide the game.”

The tournamentÂ’s championship game was testimony to coach JohnsonÂ’s strategy. The Badgers not only harnessed MinnesotaÂ’s explosive offense, but outshot Minnesota 9-3 in the first period. They again harnessed the Gophers effectively in the second period, but when referee Mendel called Lindsay Macy for tripping in the closing seconds of the still-scoreless game, MinnesotaÂ’s potent power play connected with less than five seconds remaining in the second period. Wall fed Wendell on the right point, and WendellÂ’s hard pass through traffic to the left edge was one-timed by Darwitz for a 1-0 lead at 19:46.

“You’re dealing with world-class players here,” said Johnson. “Not many players could take the puck like Krissy and saucer a pass over to Natalie for a one-timer.”

Another penalty to Macy early in the third period arranged the scenario again. This time Darwitz and Wall collaborated for a shot and Ross knocked in the rebound at 5:26. The power-play goal and a 2-0 Minnesota lead made it look like another in a long series of good performances that fell short against the Gophers.

“Wisconsin carried play in the first period and most of the second,” said Darwitz, whose goals and two assists boosted her over the 100-point plateau with 39 goals, 63 assists for 102 points. “We played a great third period – the best period of the tournament for us, definitely.”

When the Badgers failed to generate much attack on a power play of their own midway through the third period, there seemed no doubt in the minds of 1,513 fans that the result was secured. But then came that final minute, and WisconsinÂ’s six-attacker try clicked twice.
Darwitz said she had never played in a game where an opponent had pulled its goalie and scored twice in the last minute. Wendell and Lyndsay Wall said they hadnÂ’t either.

“It’s not a good feeling on the bench, either,” said Minnesota coach Laura Halldorson.

U.S. women top Canada, subzero cold for fifth in bandy

Team USA had age and experience on its side. That, and a good nightÂ’s sleep brought the U.S. skaters back with enough fire to defy subzero cold and beat Canada 2-0 to claim fifth place Friday at the WomenÂ’s Bandy World Championships.

The age and experience didnÂ’t mean as much as young legs Friday night, when the same teams met in what was the second game of the day for both teams, to conclude the round-robin portion of the tournament. In that one, CanadaÂ’s youthful squad, which averages 20 years of age compared to Team USA’s average age of 38, outhustled the U.S. 1-0 for the first victory for Canada in its first World Bandy Championship.

There wasnÂ’t much time between the end of Thursday nightÂ’s game and the 9 a.m. start on a bright, sunny Friday, but it was enough time for the U.S. squad to recharge and match CanadaÂ’s vigor. The Canadian team, which ordinarily plays ringette and came together for two exhibition games over the Christmas holidays, and for this tournament, which was held at the John Rose Oval in Roseville, Minnesota.

While the sun was shining brightly, the temperature was minus-5 degrees Fahrenheit at the start, and the wind was blowing from the north end toward the south at a bone-chilling 30 miles per hour, making a windchill temperature of about 25 degrees below zero.

Skating with the wind at their backs, the U.S. skaters gained the lead off a perfect corner pass play, when Heather Pritchard, the sweeper on Team USAÂ’s stout defense, drilled her shot after 10:28 of play in the first half.

The lead held through a very closely contested half,, then the teams took an extended half-hour break inside to thaw out their body parts. The test was whether the U.S. could maintain its pace in the second half, when it had to skate into that same brisk wind, which kept the various flags flapping straight out on the sidelines.

The question was answered when Team USA did far more than just bunch up defensively, and pressed their attack. When they were awarded possession for a right corner pass-in 6:30 into the second 30-minute half, Janice Klausing golfed a low shot cleanly into CanadaÂ’s goal. On corner passes, the defending team must start on its own goal line, then they disperse as the pass is made, trying to cover the opposing shooters. But Klausing’s right-handed swat drove the ball through the scrambling Canadian skaters and into the lower left of the net.

“We put our thoughts together for today’s game,” said Klausing, after Team USA had claimed the 2-0 victory – its first in two World Championship appearances – for fifth place. “Fast ice helps, and a good night’s sleep.”

Canada’s Chris Delisle said: “The cold really shut us down. And the wind was so strong. When we first cameout, we were frozen. We had more energy last night.”

An interesting comparison was that Delisle is 18, in her first year at the University of Manitoba, while Klausing is 42 years old. As Delisle said, the severe cold seemed to affect Canada more than the U.S., and it didnÂ’t make her feel any better that she and her team are from Winnipeg, the Manitoba city being credited with being the site from where the severe cold front was coming from.

“Give credit to the U.S., they played a better game,” said Canada coach Costa Cholakis. “The U.S. yesterday had some good scoring chances on corners, but didn’t capitalize. Today, they scored beautiful goals on two chances on corners, which meant we were chasing them.”

U.S. coach Paul Meehl said he always hears the talk about tactics involving the wind, and he took the wind at his back for the first half, but acknowledged it might all be more psychological than fact.
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“The thing about the wind,” Meehl said, “is that whichever way you’re going to try to score, you’re going the other way half the time.

“But you always want to take the wind,when you can, because you never know if the wind might change by the second half,” Meehl added. “We put a priority on getting the first goal, and once we got it, we played a strong game defensively and shut down the middle of the ice. We clogged up the middle, and then we got a second goal on a perfectly excecuted corner stroke.”

The tournament, which concludes Saturday with a third-place game at 12 noon, and the championship at 3 p.m., will end the season for Canada.

“We have no rink in Winnipeg,” said Delisle, “so our season is over.”
Aside from practicing on a hockey rink, which is tiny compared to a bandy rink, which is the same size as a soccer field, CanadaÂ’s players found a practice site on a water hazard at a Winnipeg golf course. ThatÂ’s at least big enough, although Cholakis said that the ice on the water hazard has a few trees and shrubs on it.

The John Rose Oval is the only bandy rink in Minnesota, but BlaineÂ’s National Sports Center, which has four rinks, is considering a plan to add a bandy rink.

The sport of bandy, using a hard but light ball, with short sticks that can easily be one-handed, has 11 players a side, similar to soccer, and stresses great skating speed and finesse, with no bodychecking allowed.

“Our next goal is to get a rink,” said Delisle. “We’ll never catch upto the Swedes if we don’t have a rink.”

The intention is to aim for getting bandy installed as a Winter Olympic sport. Sweden, Finland, Russia and Norway –the teams playing in Friday night’s semifinals, are the top countries for bandy, but the range of skill levels is similar to women’s hockey, which has been in the Olympics since 1998.

Reichmuth secures 3-point UMD weekend over Gophers

DULUTH, MN. — When rebuilding with freshmen, it’s vital for a team’s veterans to come through to assure success, and Minnesota-Duluth found the right combination at exactly the right time to grab three points with a tie and a victory against Minnesota.

With 10 freshmen in the lineup – 10 comparatively unheralded freshmen, it must be added – UMD senior goaltender Isaac Reichmuth gave the Bulldogs his best weekend. It’s possible that Reichmuth, from Fruitvale, British Columbia, has never played two better games under intense pressure than he did in securing a 2-2 tie and 4-3 victory against the archrival Gophers.

Not only did Reichmuth make 72 saves before two packed houses at the Duluth Entertainment and Convention Center, but the five goals he gave up out of 77 shots all were on rebounds in heavy traffic. Perhaps the only time Reichmuth was caught off-guard all weekend was when he was asked if he could remember ever playing a better game than he had in the 2-2 first game.

“I can’t remember one,” he shrugged. “I felt good, and everybody on the team played well.”

As intense rivalries go, the Minnesota-Duluth vs. the University of Minnesota has taken some strange twists and turns. The UMD Bulldogs, for example, had gone 7-2 in their last nine games against the Gophers going into the series, but Minnesota had gone 14-2 against UMD right until that streak.

Minnesota seemed pretty certain to turn things around against the Bulldogs this season, because the Gophers had been ranked No. 1 in the league and the nation to start the season, based mainly on a recruiting crop rated clearly the best in the nation. UMD, on the other hand, had built up a contending team that peaked two years ago under coach Scott Sandelin, but it suffered a disappointing nosedive to sixth with a senior-dominated team last season.

The Bulldog recruiting crop was huge to replace all the seniors from last season, but it wasnÂ’t ranked nearly as high as MinnesotaÂ’s, and nobody was forecasting anything close to contention for UMD. When the Bulldogs opened by losing twice at home to Bemidji State, then twice more at Vermont, they lookedÂ…well, like a team with a lot of freshmen. Opening the WCHA season with a victory and a tie at Michigan Tech was pretty good, but didnÂ’t insulate UMD from risking being blown out by the Gophers when the big rivalry was renewed.

Minnesota, meanwhile, had been led offensively by freshmen Phil Kessel and Blake Wheeler, but the Gophers hadnÂ’t exactly gotten off to a great start, either. Sweeping Minnesota State-Mankato was a pretty good WCHA start, but splitting at St. Cloud State exposed some problems, and Minnesota shared UMDÂ’s need for the veterans to come up big as the rookies got some experience.

UMD gained a beachhead in the opening 2-2 tie, a masterful high-speed chess-match. UMDÂ’s Steve Czech, the only senior amid three freshmen and two sophomores on defense, was gone in the first four minutes for a checking-from-behind penalty. Chris Harrington, one of only two seniors on MinnesotaÂ’s blue line, was tossed for checking from behind with 2:45 remaining in the third period, as if to complete an odd pair of bookends. Neither team scored on those five-minute power plays, with HarringtonÂ’s carrying over through much of overtime.

MinnesotaÂ’s freshmen struck first, as Wheeler took off on a breakaway and shot off the right post, and when the puck caromed to the left side of the crease, Reichmuth tried to get his split-leg over it, but Kessel chipped it up and in for a power-play goal and a 1-0 first period. UMD countered in the second period, on a two-man power play, when freshmen Matt Niskanen and Mason Raymond collaborated to get the puck to senior Tim Stapleton, who beat Kellen Briggs at point-blank range.

Reichmuth had by far the tougher shots to face as the Gophers swarmed on offense, outshooting UMD 37-33 for the game, but Andrew Carroll, another of those unsung UMD freshmen, rushed up the left side and fired a 40-foot shot that beat Briggs high to the short side with only 6:58 remaining.

Then it was time for Minnesota captain Gino Guyer to come through, and he did, lunging after a loose rebound in the slot and sliding it just inside the right post with 4:37 left. Guyer had another great chance from the slot, but Reichmuth solved it, and the teams left their 2-2 deadlock to be determined in Game 2.

Reichmuth duplicated what some called his best game as a Bulldog in the Saturday game. His teammates started strong, as freshman Nick Kemp scored a remarkable goal at 0:48 of the first period. Kemp had fed off the right boards to Matt McKnight, sending him up the left side into the Minnesota zone behind the Gopher defense. McKnight was home free on the breakaway, but instead of shooting he passed left-to-right across the slot, where the trailing Kemp scored on what wound up a 2-on-0 at Briggs.
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Kessel, a center who had played a couple games at wing on the first line, moved back to center for the second game and scored his fourth goal of the young season with another power-play rebound goal for a 1-1 tie at 4:19. But Justin Williams, in the right circle, one-timed fellow-senior StapletonÂ’s pass for a far-side power-play goal at 8:07, and UMD led 2-1.

Reichmuth withstood a five-shot power-play flurry to hold the lead, then UMDÂ’s freshmen struck again. MinnesotaÂ’s Kris Chucko fired a shot off the upper right post behind Reichmuth, but Carroll raced right back to the other end and somehow squeezed a shot from the left circle that through a space where there appeared to be none between the short-side pipe and freshman goalie Jeff Frazee.

Minnesota coach Don Lucia pulled the highly-touted Frazee at that moment and put Briggs back in goal for the second half of the game. He kept it to 3-1 into the third period, and Ryan Potulny, a junior center who had been dropped from first line to third when Kessel went back to the middle, scored at 2:21 by converting a long rebound.

Just 31 seconds later, however, the remarkable Carroll, whose college credentials blossomed when he went from Roseville High School to play for Sioux Falls in the USHL, deflected in a point shot by fellow-freshman Travis Gawryletz, and his third goal of the weekend restored UMDÂ’s two-goal edge at 4-2.

Minnesota put on its strongest pressure of the weekend the rest of the third period, outshooting UMD 21-5 for the period and 40-28 for the game, but Reichmuth was not about to vary from his brilliant weekend. The only goal he let in came when Potulny rapped in a wide-right rebound of KesselÂ’s left circle power-play try with 7:28 remaining.

Risky as it is to play a containment game against an offensively potent foe, it worked for UMD, thanks to Reichmuth. Like Briggs, ReichmuthÂ’s career has shown brilliant stretches dotted liberally with some leaky goals, although Lucia disputed that.

“His whole career, Reichmuth has played that way against us,” Lucia said. “We’re not in sync right now. The third period was great – we played with desperation. But you’ve got to play the second period, too.”

Potulny was more direct. “Talent doesn’t beat hard work,” he said. “We’ve got to find that swagger. Usually when we walk into a building, we do it with a swagger. I think we’ve done enough talking, we’ve got to go out and do it.”

When the Gophers left the DECC, it was with more of a stagger than swagger. The season is still young, but no team is younger than UMD’s Bulldogs, who played freshmen Carroll, Mason Raymond, Kemp, Matt Greer, and Jay Cascalenda up front – with Matt Gergen sitting out – while Niskanen, Jason Garrison, Josh Meyers and Adam Davis gave them four more freshmen on defense.

While they looked raggedly youthful in their first half-dozen games, they came of age against the Gophers – with a large assist coming from their four seniors, including Reichmuth. ESPECIALLY Reichmuth, who has led the Bulldogs to an improbable 8-2-1 record in their last 11 games against Minnesota. And a 2-0-2 record in the WCHA.

UMD’s top guns take aim at Gophers in women’s finale

Minnesota has already clinched the Women’s WCHA regular-season title, and Minnesota-Duluth is assured of second place. Minnesota is ranked No. 1 in the country, and UMD is ranked No. 2. They might meet again in the WCHA playoffs, or even in the NCAA tournament, but those are “maybes.” The certainty is that the best women’s hockey rivalry in the country will unfold this weekend at the Duluth Entertainment and Convention Center when Minnesota tries to finish the WCHA season undefeated in a Saturday-Sunday series against Minnesota-Duluth.

“Playoffs are coming up, and then maybe the NCAA Frozen Four,” said Caroline Ouellette. “But every time we play Minnesota, it is all that matters.”

One of the highlights of the series is what should be a scintillating duel between the two best forward lines in women’s college hockey. The prominent publicity all season has been Minnesota’s 1-2 punch of Natalie Darwitz and Krissy Wendell, with Kelly Stephens on the other wing. Darwitz leads the WCHA in scoring with 26 goals, 45 assists for 71 points. Wendell is a close second with 26 goals, 40 assists for 66 points. Stephens stands fourth in league scoring with 23-24—47.

Those are incredible statistics. But consider UMD’s top line. Ouellette ranks third in WCHA scoring at 27-38—65, one point behind Wendell. Noemie Marin stands fifth, at 27-19—46, one point behind Stephens. But with 27 goals apiece, Ouellette and Marin are tied for the league goal-scoring lead, one ahead of Darwitz and Wendell. Jessica Koizumi, who was inserted at center between Ouellette and Marin about halfway through the season, stands at 19-14—46.

While the mathematical edge goes to the high-scoring Gopher line, the Darwitz-Wendell-Stephens unit has scored 75 of Minnesota’s 126 league goals – or 59.5 percent of the Gopher goals. UMD’s big line has scored 73 goals, only two less than Minnesota’s league total, but the Ouellette-Koizumi-Marin line has scored 68.9 percent of UMD’s 106 league goals.

In overall scoring, Darwitz leads the nation at 33-59—92, while Wendell is second at 36-50—86, and Stephens stands at 28-34—62. That’s 97 goals, or 60.2 percent of Minnesota’s total of 161 goals. In all of UMD’s games, Ouellette stands 28-40—68, Marin 27-20—47, and Koizumi 23-14—37, which is 78 goals, or 67 percent out of UMD’s total of 115. So Minnesota’s line has scored more goals, assists and points, but UMD’s top line has scored a greater percentage of UMD’s goals.

Anyone who has watched both teams knows that focusing on the scoring antics of those top lines is worth a nightÂ’s entertainment.
“Their line is very strong and difficult to play against,” said Ouellette. “Wendell is so hard to stop 1-on-1, and Darwitz is so good at using everyone on the ice with her, and Stephens is good both ways. They seem to change positions well.

“Our line has been working well. Noemie (Marin) is all-around very good. She can finish, she’s very smart, and she’s strong on the puck and knows what to do with it. We have a very good connection, and we always seem to know where each other is on the ice. Nora Tallus was centering us until she got hurt, and she’s probably the best two-way forward on our team. When she got hurt, Jessica Koizumi was moved to center on our line, and she is probably the quickest player we have.
“I’ve been wondering if our line will play against that line head-to-head. We don’t know yet.”

So the games, Saturday night and Sunday afternoon, will be a season highlight for both teams. Minnesota, at 24-0-2, is shooting for an undefeated regular-season record, while UMD (21-3-2) is securely fixed in second place, but could strengthen its hold on the nationÂ’s No. 2 rank ahead of Dartmouth with at least a split of the series. The teams met earlier at Ridder Arena, and Minnesota won 4-2 before the teams tied 2-2. Wisconsin is the only other team to have tied the Gophers, while UMD has lost to Minnesota, Wisconsin and, two weeks ago in the seasonÂ’s biggest upset, St. Cloud State.

There are other sidelights to the series. For one, MinnesotaÂ’s goaltending ranks No. 1, behind starter Jody Horak, while UMD is No. 2 in the WCHA, led by Riitta Schaublin. Another factor is the competition to make Team USAÂ’s roster for the World Tournament. Along with Darwitz, Wendell and Stephens, the entire Gopher line, USA Hockey also named Gopher Lyndsay Wall to the team last week, but did not list UMD senior Julianne Vasichek among the selected players.

“All I can do is play my best against Darwitz and Wendell and that line,” said Vasichek.

The match-up also could forecast the 2006 Olympic Games, because while Darwitz and Wendell were standouts on the silver medal 2002 U.S. Olympic team, Ouellette was the top season scorer on the gold medal winning Canadian Olympic outfit. That all means nothing, compared to the Gopher-UMD rivalry. When the teams played earlier, the series was two weeks after UMD had beaten Wisconsin twice, in a pair of one-goal games. Ouellette had been slashed on her left hand, and faced the Gophers with her hand in a cast, unable to shoot with her normal force or accuracy.

“I feel much better now,” said Ouellette. “And I’m very excited about the series.”

Huffer’s hockey magic now installed in U.S. Hall of Fame

DULUTH, MN. — Keith (Huffer) Christiansen will command the spotlight during the U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame induction ceremonies Saturday, not because his fellow-inductees are any less significant, but simply because the ceremonies will be held in the Duluth Entertainment and Convention Center, which could be called “The House that Huffer Built.”

Christiansen, a former UMD scoring phenom, who went on to be captain of the 1972 U.S. Olympic team, and in pro hockey with the Minnesota Fighting Saints, will be joined by Murray Williamson – a former University of Minnesota All-America who coached Chrstiansen on that silver-medal-winning 1972 Olympic team – as well as Lane MacDonald, who didn’t play in the WCHA, but did star at Harvard, where he led the Crimson to a memorable 4-3 overtime victory over Minnesota in the NCAA titla game in the St. Paul Civic Center.

Christiansen, however, will take center stage at SaturdayÂ’s award ceremony, because it will be held at the DECC where it will be amplified by the renewal of the rivalry between UMD and Minnesota. The Gophers have been UMDÂ’s most intense opponent since before UMD entered the WCHA back in 1965.

Christiansen is unquestionably the brightest star in UMDÂ’s galaxy, not that there havenÂ’t been other outstanding individuals to wear the big Bulldog crest. Consider defenseman Tom Kurvers and scoring champion Bill Watson, who won back-to-back Hobey Baker awards, an award that Brett Hull and Derek Plante somehow missed later, but Chris Marinucci and Junior Lessard more recently won. Olympians Mark Pavelich and John Harrington, and NHL star defenseman Curt Giles, were UMD heroes before the Hobey was thought up.

Christiansen also did his thing in the days before the Hobey, and he would have been a slam-dunk, so to speak, for the award. Christiansen came from Fort Frances, Ontario, after first moving across the Rainy River to live with an uncle in International Falls, and lead International Falls to the 1962 Minnesota state high school hockey championship. He came to UMD in the fall of 1963.

In his freshman year, when UMD had made the move from Division III to independent Division I status, Christiansen took over the old Curling Club rink to lead a talent-thin UMD team in scoring with 16 goals, 20 assists for 36 points. It is more than coincidence that UMD opened his freshman season by sweeping home-and-home games from Minnesota – the first time the Bulldogs ever defeated the Gophers. UMD actually took three out of four from Minnesota that1963-64 season.

The pint-sized 5-foot-6 Christiansen established the textbook definition of what an assist in hockey should be, because when he got an assist, he didn’t leave much for the goal-scorer to do. As a sophomore, Christiansen scored 23-35—58 to again lead the Bulldogs in scoring. When he was a junior, UMD moved into the WCHA, and though they finished last, Christiansen’s 13-27—40 statistics again led the team.

Huffer’s signature season came as a senior, when, as captain, he scored 23-39—62 to lead UMD’s scoring for the fourth straight year. This time he also led the WCHA in scoring.

The defining game of Christiansen’s career, and reason enough for the fact that his No. 9 jersey hangs from the DECC rafters as the only number ever retired by the team. UMD was moving into the new Duluth Arena for its second WCHA season, and while the ‘Dogs rose only to sixth place, nobody could stop Huffer or his wings were Pat Francisco, now a Duluth businessman, on the right, and somebody named Bruce McLeod, now the commissioner of the WCHA, on the left. As if to underscore Christiansen’s impact, McLeod finished second and Francisco third in league scoring, and both his wingers still applaud Christiansen as a deserving WCHA most valuable player and All-America.
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That first WCHA game UMD played in the new facility was also the first game Glen Sonmor coached at Minnesota. Sonmor learned quickly enough what Christiansen could do to sign him a few years later to play for the Minnesota Fighting Saints. Sonmor, who later coached the Minnesota North Stars, also returns to the DECC – renamed from “Duluth Arena” — as color commentator on the Gopher radio broadcast.

Sonmor recalled that he came to Duluth that November 19, 1966 game, having already heard his fill of the raves and almost mythical praise for Christiansen. Sonmor needed some first-hand convincing, and got it swiftly. He took his Gophers down to the new arena for a morning skate, and, after finding some ice-plant problems had left water covering the ice, Sonmor took his shot at the Duluth Blue Line luncheon at noon that day.

“I said I was really worried, because…from all that I’d heard, Huffer Christiansen was the only guy who could walk on water,” Sonmor said.
Then, with a capacity crowd of 5,700 inside, and the ice properly frozen, they dropped the puck to start the game, and Christiansen put on a show. UMD blasted the Gophers 8-1, and six times ChristiansenÂ’s setups became goals. His six assists still stand as UMDÂ’s records for assists, and points, in a single game.

“I got lucky,” is the way Christiansen recalled that night.

His “luck” accounted for 75-121—196 in 102 games, which means he averaged 1.92 points per game over his four UMD years. The 196 points still ranks him eighth among all-time UMD scorers, even though expanding schedules mean four-year players could play as many as 80 more games than Christiansen did 40 years ago.

It wasn’t that Christiansen was merely a magician with his stick, although he certainly was that. He was short, but wide, and anyone who thought about simply blotting out that stocky tormentor with a bodycheck or a cheapshot knew instead that they’d better be prepared. Christiansen’s motto could have been “It’s better to give than to receive” when it came to uncompromising physical play.

When former Gopher coach and player Doug Woog played his first game against Christiansen, he said: “We both went into the corner and I reached for the puck…The next thing I knew, he was gone, the puck was gone, and I had been punched twice in the face.”

UMD was just starting its Division I tenure, so other teams needed only to shut down one line to stop the Bulldogs. “We weren’t sneaking up on anybody,” said McLeod, who played his sophomore year with Christiansen, and still expresses amazement at Huffer’s style.

“He never boasted, he never put anyone down, he never had an air of superiority, he was so modest, and he was just one of the guys,” said McLeod, who added that the only time Christiansen came close to being critical was when McLeod and Francisco would try to get a little fancy.

“WeÂ’d come back to the bench,” McLeod said, “and Huffer would say, ‘Quit dinkin’ around out there. Just get open and put your stick on the ice. IÂ’ll take care of the rest.’ ”

The same was true with the 1971 U.S. National team, when Christiansen centered Gary Gambucci and Craig Patrick – both of whom turned pro before the 1972 Olympics. Williamson made Christiansen the captain of that team, which included Tim Sheehy, Henry Boucha, Robbie Ftorek, goaltender Lefty Curran, and enough overall talent to capture the silver medal in Sapporo, Japan.

For someone so at ease befuddling opponents, Christiansen was always uncomfortable talking about his own accomplishments or ability, which he finally put on display at the professional level when he agreed to play for Sonmor and the Fighting Saints. “He was one of the greatest puck-handlers I ever saw, anywhere,” said Sonmor.

Christiansen later went to Switzerland to play, and he enjoyed the chance to take his family – wife Evie, and kids Brad and Marla – to Europe. He could have continued to play there, but he chose to come home to Duluth. “That was enough,” he said. “It was time to go to work.”

Christiansen has worked for KolarÂ’s new car dealership in Duluth for years, selling new Toyotas and Buicks. He said he never really wanted to coach. You get the feeling that he could still lace on the skates, find an old stick, and show youngsters how to extract a little magic.

In fact, several years ago, UMD staged a big summertime reunion game, and various players, including NHLers, came back to play. Hull was there, and he brought his dad, Bobby Hull. Christiansen, who hadnÂ’t even skated for a dozen years, put on his stuff. Everybody had a good time, and at one point, Christiansen got a breakaway. Bob Mason, another former International Falls and UMD star, nearly 20 years younger and in the midst of his eight-year NHL career, got ready. Christiansen closed in, his stick flashing as the puck seemed to be on a string, then he hesitated, giving Mason one of those patented head dekes. Then he waited. Mason waited too, then started to go down. In an instant, and Christiansen drilled the puck. Five-hole. Goal.

HufferÂ’s magic never left. And now itÂ’s safely stored in the U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame.

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• About the Author

  John Gilbert is a lifetime Minnesotan and career journalist, specializing in cars and sports during and since spending 30 years at the Minneapolis Tribune, now the Star Tribune. More recently, he has continued translating the high-tech world of autos and sharing his passionate insights as a freelance writer/photographer/broadcaster. A member of the prestigious North American Car and Truck of the Year jury since 1993. John can be heard Monday-Friday from 9-11am on 610 KDAL(www.kdal610.com) on the "John Gilbert Show," and writes a column in the Duluth Reader.
  
  For those who want to keep up with John Gilbert's view of sports, mainly hockey with a Minnesota slant, click on the following:
  
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• Exhaust Notes:

  PADDLING
  More and more cars are offering steering-wheel paddles to allow drivers manual control over automatic or CVT transmissions. A good idea might be to standardize them. Most allow upshifting by pulling on the right-side paddle and downshifting with the left. But a recent road-test of the new Porsche Panamera, the paddles for the slick PDK direct-sequential gearbox were counter-intuitive -- both the right or left thumb paddles could upshift or downshift, but pushing on either one would upshift, and pulling back on either paddle downshifted. I enjoy using paddles, but I spent the full week trying not to downshift when I wanted to upshift. A little simple standardization would alleviate the problem.
  
  

  SPEAKING OF PADDLES
  The Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution has the best paddle system, and Infiniti has made the best mainstream copy of that system for the new Q50, and other sporty models. And why not? It's simply the best. In both, the paddles are long, slender magnesium strips, affixed to the steering column rather than the steering wheel. Pull on the right paddle and upshift, pull on the left and downshift. The beauty is that while needing to upshift in a tight curve might cause a driver to lose the steering wheel paddle for an instant, but having the paddles long, and fixed, means no matter how hard the steering wheel is cranked, reaching anywhere on the right puts the upshift paddle on your fingertips.
  
  

  TIRES MAKE CONTACT
  Even in snow-country, a few stubborn old-school drivers want to stick with rear-wheel drive, but the vast majority realize the clear superiority of front-wheel drive. Going to all-wheel drive, naturally, is the all-out best. But the majority of drivers facing icy roadways complain about traction for going, stopping and steering with all configurations. They overlook the simple but total influence of having the right tires can make. There are several companies that make good all-season or snow tires, but there are precious few that are exceptional. The Bridgestone Blizzak continues to be the best=known and most popular, but in places like Duluth, MN., where scaling 10-12 blocks of 20-30 degree hills is a daily challenge, my favorite is the Nokian WR. Made without compromising tread compound, the Nokians maintain their flexibility no matter how cold it gets, so they stick, even on icy streets, and can turn a skittish car into a winter-beater.