Cloud State had a 5-on-3 power play of its own at the 13:06 mark of the second period that lasted for 1:34, however, the Gophers were able to kill off the penalty to maintain the one-goal lead. Minnesota added a power-play goal of its own for the lone score of the second period and made it 2-1 when Evan Kaufmann tipped in a Blake Wheeler shot with the Gophers on a 5-on-3 advantage at 4:35. This time, however, it was the Gophers who had the best scoring chance as a drive to the net and a nifty backhand by Mike Carman was just steered wide by Weslosky.
Stu Bickel was penalized for hooking, sending the Huskies’ potent power-play unit back on the ice. Just 16 seconds later, Minnesota once again found itself shorthand. Cloud State leveled the game at 1-1 when Garrett Raboin slipped a shot through the pads of Gopher netminder Alex Kangas at 7:33. With Howe in the box for tripping and Ben Gordon sent off for hooking and the Huskies on a 4-on-3 power play, St. It was the second time in the game that Peltier had directly had a hand in a goal as Tony Lucia, the hero of Minnesota’s series-clinching win in Mankato just four nights earlier, deflected a Peltier shot from the right point past Weslosky just 25 seconds into the game to give the Gophers a 1-0 lead.Ī drive from the left slot by freshman Mike Hoeffel at 5:10 of the first nearly gave the Gophers a two-goal lead before Minnesota ran into a rash of penalties that helped turn the tide. The game-wining goal was set up by senior team captain Derek Peltier’s blast from the point that just missed the left post and ricocheted right to Howe, who buried it for his sixth goal of the season.
The Gophers’ berth in the semis was far from a sure thing, however, as Minnesota appeared destined to play its fourth overtime game in seven days until Howe lit the lamp with just seconds remaining. Denver and North Dakota will meet in the other semifinal game, which is slated to get underway at 2 p.m. Minnesota will face regular-season champion Colorado College at 7 p.m. The victory was the third in a row and the fifth in the last seven games for the suddenly red-hot Golden Gophers (18-15-9), who simultaneously advanced to the WCHA semis for the 10th straight year and ended a 0-4-3 run against the Huskies with the win. Cloud State goalie Jase Weslosky with just 12.7 seconds to play and Minnesota advanced to the WCHA semifinals with a 3-2 victory before a quarterfinal round record crowd of 19,232 at the Xcel Energy Center in St. Mike Howe ripped a rebound off the boards pasts St.
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