Men's Hockey Takes Three, Moves Up in Standings

Irwin's overtime winner, solid goaltending move Mavericks into tie for sixth-place

by Dan Myers
Issue date: 2/6/07
Section: Mens Sports

The Minnesota State men's hockey team entered its weekend series against Michigan Tech looking to make a splash in the Western Collegiate Hockey Association standings.

Geoff Irwin's wrist shot three minutes into overtime did just that, securing a three-point weekend as the Mavericks (10-15-5 overall, 7-11-4 WCHA) moved from ninth to sixth in the WCHA standings within a span of just 24 hours.

Considering how the series began Friday night, it was somewhat surprising the Mavs had the juice to secure the win Saturday.

The Huskies fought back from a 2-0 deficit in the first 20 minutes of play on Friday.

Travis Morin scored his team-leading 14th goal of the season and Jon Kalinski added a short-handed goal nine minutes later.

But Tech added a goal in each of the final two periods to claw back for the point. MTU outshot MSU by a 39-16 margin.

"In one way, it was a good tie for us [Friday]," said Mavericks head coach Troy Jutting. "I thought we got outplayed."

Mike Zacharias started in net for MSU and stopped 37 shots.

Saturday's rematch was the same type of game as Friday's but the teams played a bit of a role reversal.

On Friday, Tech doubled MSU's shots in the first-period (12-6) but fell behind 2-0. Saturday, MTU held the first period lead despite being outchanced 15-5.

Tyler Shelast put the Huskies on the board at 14:47, scoring his 12th goal of the season. It was his fifth straight game with a goal.

"I kind of overcommitted," Zacharias said. "He made a good shot, putting it where he had to put it right inside the pipe but I was a little off my angle. Those things happen every once in a while, and all I needed to focus on was shutting the door."

It was the only offense all night for the Huskies, who had few scoring chances the rest of the way.

The Mavericks tied the score in the second, as Irwin took a shot from the point that hit traffic in front of the net. As the puck came toward the net, it deflected off of fellow freshman Jerad Stewart, who was credited for the goal at 7:24 of the second. Irwin and Nick Canzanello earned assists on the play.

"Every point [Saturday] was scored by a freshman," Jutting said. "It was a huge night for those guys and a huge one for us."

In a season that began on a low note for the highly touted Irwin - a sprained ankle cost him the first two months of the season - it is quickly turning around for the freshman from Victoria, British Columbia Irwin scored the Mavs' first goal in their 3-1 win over Wisconsin two weeks ago.

But it was his wrister from the top of the left circle that will be remembered for some time.

After losing Jon Kalinski to a knee injury, freshman center Trevor Bruess won the ensuing face off cleanly to Irwin. He wasted little time releasing a shot that rocketed past Tech netminder Rob Nolan just under the crossbar to win the game for MSU at 3:35 of overtime.

"I sat there hoping Bruess would get the puck back to my stick," Irwin said. "I just put it on net and it found its way there."

The three-point weekend, coupled with two Wisconsin losses at Colorado College, means the Mavericks are tied with the Huskies for sixth place in the WCHA standings - just two points behind fifth place North Dakota. The top-five teams in the standings at the end of the season will host first-round playoff games.

Minnesota State will have a chance to catch the Fighting Sioux when the two teams play in Grand Forks, N.D. next weekend. The last time MSU played at Ralph Engelstad Arena was during last season's playoffs, when UND took two of three games. MSU has won a game at North Dakota each of the last two seasons.

If the Mavericks can find a way to win them both next weekend, MSU will find themselves in what was thought to be an unlikely position just two months ago in the driver's seat for home-ice advantage.

"These three points were huge," Zacharias said. "Every weekend they just get bigger and bigger. Next weekend is our biggest of the year."

Face-off from Ralph Engelstad Arena is scheduled for 7:37 p.m. Friday and 7:07 p.m. Saturday. The Fighting Sioux swept then-No.1 Minnesota two weeks ago before having this past weekend off.

Dan Myers is the Reporter Sports Editor