Upstart CC stuns North Dakota 4-3 in OT
By John Gilbert
SAINT PAUL, MINN. — Peter Stoykewych fired a screened shot from the right point at 4:52 of sudden-death overtime to give Colorado College a stunning 4-3 victory over North Dakota in the second quarterfinal game of the Red Baron WCHA Final Five, sending the tenacious Tigers into Friday’s second semifinal against Minnesota.
Stoykewych got the puck when Jeff Collett won a right-corner faceoff and passed back. Because he’s a left-handed defenseman playing the right point, Stoykewych had to shift for a shooting angle, creating a screen of bodies at the net. His shot appeared to glance off a defenseman to elude goaltender Clarke Saunders.
Alex Krushelnyski's short-handed breakaway goal puffed the netting behind North Dakota goalie Clarke Saunders to lift CC to a 2-2 tie.
The Tigers, who lost the first playoff game at Denver before rallying to win the next two and gain the Final Five after an eighth-place finish in the WCHA, have now clawed their way to within one game of the .500 mark at 17-18-5. The loss ended North Dakota’s bid to win its fourth consecutive Final Five, assuring a new champion in the final Final Five under the WCHA’s current structure.
To survive, CC used Joe Howe’s often spectacular goaltending through the first two periods, when they were dominated by North Dakota (21-12-7). But Colorado College’s outright tenacity was equally important. Outshot 11-4 in the first period despite having three power plays, CC got the first goal of the game from senior center Rylan Schwartz. But the Tigers had to rally from a 2-1 deficit in the second period, with Schwartz setting up a breakaway goal by Alex Krushelnyski, before gaining a 3-2 lead on a Hunter Fejes goal to open the third.
Drake Caggiula’s second goal of the game gained the 3-3 deadlock for North Dakota at 12:45 of the final period, but by then, the Tigers had caught up to North Dakota’s rapid tempo and was battling UND on even terms.
North Dakota came storming out at a near-frantic pace to open the game, but the exuberance came at a price, when Caggiula was called for an over-aggressive charge that flattened a Tiger skater at 2:17.
Colorado College capitalized at 3:06, when Cody Bradley got loose in front, carried across the slot right to left, and attempted to make a blind pass backwards to Schwartz. The pass hit a sliding North Dakota defenseman and the ricochet went toward the crease, behind goaltender Saunders, and Schwartz had an easy tap in.
Caggiula’s spirits took a distinct turn upward later in the first period, though, when Carter Rowney forechecked the puck free and fed Rocco Grimaldi, who headed toward the net from the right circle, then passed across the slot to Caggiula, whose quick shot beat Joe Howe in goal for a 1-1 tie.
The team formerly called Fighting Sioux but now nicknameless ended the first period strong. After killing off successive penalties that overlapped for a 57-second two-man CC power play, North Dakota struck fort what appeared to be a pivotal goal when Danny Kristo curled out to the left faceoff circle and fired a bull’s-eye past Howe with 9.1 seconds showing, for a 2-1 lead.
CC was penalized for too many men on the ice at 7:42 of the second, but turned the game around with Krushelnyski’s huge goal at 7:54. Schwartz made the penalty-kill sing when he sent a perfect breakaway pass to Krushelnyski, who sailed in all alone and snapped his shot into the right edge to tie the game 2-2.
Jared Hanson (24) and Jeff Collett (21) celebrated when Peter Stoykewych's shot from the right point foiund its way into the North Dakota goal in overtime.
It stayed that way until the third period, and then the opportunistic Tigers claimed a 3-2 lead at 3:42, when Hunter Fejes carried up the right side, crossed the blue line and pulled the puck abruptly to his left, firing past a screening defenseman to beat Saunders from 50 feet.
North Dakota, racking up a lot of shots, found Howe basically impenetrable through the second period and much of the third, but with 7:15 remaining and the hopes of the green-clad fans dominating the cavernous seating section fading with each minute, Caggiula rushed across the blue line and dropped a pass off to his right to Colten St. Clair, then broke up the middle to convert St. Clair’s deft return pass, with Howe having no chance of covering.
That sent the game speeding into its final minutes, with overtime looming as a distinct possibility. Both teams exchanged spirited rushes, with CC doubling its shot tally for the game in the third period, but Howe and Saunders continued to come up with the right answers.
In the overtime, CC got three shots while North Dakota failed to register any, leaving UND with a 32-23 edge, but one goal short.
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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.
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