Colorado College has all session ticket packages ONLY available for purchase beginning at 9 a.m. Mountain Monday, at 719.389.6324 or 719.389.6336 . Packages are $165 each and will include one ticket to each of the five games.
Games for Thursday, March 21: Quarterfinal – No. 5 Minnesota State vs No. 4 Wisconsin, 2:07 pm CT; Quarterfinal – No. 6 Colorado College vs No. 3 North Dakota, 7:07 pm CT.
Games for Friday, March 22: Semifinal – Minnesota State/Wisconsin vs No. 1 St. Cloud State, 2:07 pm CT; Semifinal – Colorado College/North Dakota vs No. 2 Minnesota, 7:07 pm CT.
Colorado College packages are limited and priority will be given to Center Ice Club members, Tiger Pride Fund members, season ticket holders, Colorado College Alumni and Colorado College students. If we are able to confirm your order, you will receive an email by 6 p.m. Monday with details on your purchase.
Single-game tickets are available at 1.800.745.3000 or at ticketmaster.com. Note: Colorado College does not sell single game tickets to the WCHA Final Five.
GAME RECAP
DENVER – The game-winning goal for Colorado College stunned everyone at Magness Arena, especially Denver goalie Juho Olkinuora.
CC sophomore Charlie Taft lifted a crossing pass toward the left corner, but Olkinuora reached out with his blocker and stick, intent on deflecting the pass harmlessly away.
Instead, it bounced off his stick and blocker and spun in as he turned toward the net, stunning most of the 2,754 fans in attendance and sending the 300 Tiger faithful into wild cheers. The goal held up in CC’s shocking 4-3 win in Game 3 of the best-of-three playoff series.
“I was very surprised,” Taft said. “I just wanted to send the puck into the corner and avoid a turnover. It ended up going in. I don’t know how it happened, but I’ll take it.”
The goal ranks up with other memorable highlights of this storied rivalry. More importantly, the win sends the Tigers (16-18-5) on to the Western Collegiate Hockey Association Final Five Tournament for a 6:07 p.m. MT quarterfinal Thursday against No. 3 seed North Dakota at the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, Minn.
In all likelihood, CC must win the Broadmoor Trophy to qualify for the NCAAs.
“It’s huge for us,” Taft said. “We are the underdogs, but we are playing our best hockey.”
Just when Colorado College looked headed quietly into its offseason, the Tigers scored three goals in 5:05, capped by a shorthanded score by Rylan Schwartz with 11:04 left to put the visitors ahead 3-2 entering the third period at Denver.
Here is a video interview with Schwartz about advancing to the Final Five.
Andrew Hamburg jumpstarted the Tigers when his shot rebounded over to Cody Bradley, who backhanded the rebound in to make it 2-1 with 16:09 remaining. Hamburg collected a loose puck in the neutral zone to spark a 2-on-1 breakaway which he capitalized on when he feathered a crossing pass to Hunter Fejes, who one-timed the puck in off the left post to tie the game with 13:05 left.
A CC penalty gave Denver a chance to regain control, but Rylan Schwartz completed a 2-on-1 shorthanded breakaway with Alexander Krushelnyski only 17 seconds into the power play to make it 3-2. Schwartz lifted his own rebound over Denver goalie Juho Olkinuora’s left leg pad for the go-ahead goal.
Schwartz broke up a pass at just outside the Denver zone and skated in straight toward the right post for the scoring chance.
Denver scored twice in 80 seconds to take a 2-0 lead over CC in the first period. Nick Shore scored on a power play while CC goalie Joe Howe was sprawled on the ice after being bumped by a Denver forward, which the referee ruled was driven into the netminder by a CC defender.
Denver made it 2-0 when Daniel Doremus scored off his own rebound from between the circles with 6:06 left in the opening period. DU out shot CC 16-11 and enjoyed a 16-7 edge in faceoffs.
WCHA ROUNDUP
No. 3 seed North Dakota 6, No. 10 Michigan Tech 0
GRAND FORKS — Senior forward Corban Knight had a goal and an assist to help North Dakota earn a 6-0 win against Michigan Tech on Sunday night at Engelstad Arena. With the win, UND advances to the WCHA Final Five.
No. 6 Minnesota State 3, No. 7 Nebraska-Omaha 1
MANKATO — Sophomore forward Matt Leitner had a goal and an assist to help propel Minnesota State into the WCHA Final Five with a 3-1 win against Nebraska Omaha on Sunday night at Verizon Wireless Center.
Sophomore Ian Young replaces freshman Russell Finch at No. 3 left defense while DU has an open spot at left wing with an injury to Shawn Ostrow.
Josiah Didier plays to give DU a full six defensemen for first time this series. Juho Olkinuora gets the start for the Pioneers as expected.
Colorado College
LW-C-RW
Krushelnyski-Schwartz-Taft
Skalbeck-Winkler-Rapuzzi
Fejes-Bradley-Hamburg
Maric-Collett-Hanson
LD-RD
Stoykewych-Boivin
Harstad-McDermott
Young-Marciano
Goalies – Howe, Thorimbert
Denver
LW-C-RW
Q. Shore-N. Shore-Knowlton
Larraza-Doremus-Loney
Jacobson-Tabrum-Allen
OPEN-Levin-Arnold
LD-RD
Phillips-Mayfield
Zajac-Makowski
LaLeggia-Didier
Goalies — Olkinuora, Brittain, Murray.
SUNDAY NOTEBOOK
CC special teams shine in final game
The Colorado College penalty kill’s improved play reached a cescendo when senior Rylan Schwartz scored an unassisted shorthanded goal with 11:04 left in the second period to give the Tigers their first lead of the night, 3-2.
The PK performed well during the Tigers’ WCHA playoff series at Denver’s Magness Arena with a 1-4 showing in Sunday’s decisive Game 3.
“I just jumped on the D (defenseman) and got a turnover,” Schwartz said. “It was huge for me personally, I started out slower than I wanted in the first and that got me going.”
The Tigers kill was 5-for-6 through the first two games to set a mark of 8-for-10 in the best-of-three first round series.
“Our penalty kill has quietly improved over the past few weeks,” Tigers coach Scott Owens said.
CC’s PK units clicked at a respectable 83 percent (39-for-47) during its 5-3-3 stretch entering the postseason after spending much of the season around 75 percent. During that improved stretch, the Tigers held opponents scoreless on the man advantage in four of the last six games.
The Tigers power play was not as successful, going 0-for-10 in three games, including squandering on a 5-on-3 chance lasting 1:07 during the second period of Saturday’s win.
“You look at our numbers and you’ll say it isn’t doing well but we are getting momentum off them,” Owens said.
And right now, it doesn’t matter to the Tigers.
Slap shots
Denver’s win Friday gave it its 12th straight 20-win season, tied for longest in Division I for now. Michigan (17-18-3) still in the hunt to extend its streak to 12 this season. … DU is a likely at-large NCAA team. … CC entered Sunday’s elimination game at 16-11-5 all-time at Magness. Saturday’s win put CC at 9-10-5 in the 24 one-goal games played this season. … Archie Skalbeck’s game-winner Saturday was his team-high fourth this season. He assisted on three others. … Scott Winkler had assisted the previous three CC game-winners. … The WCHA Final Five quarterfinals are Minnesota State versus Wisconsin at 1:07 and CC against North Dakota at 6:07 p.m. MT Thursday at the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, Minn. and will be broadcast live on ROOT Sports and FSN North.
SATURDAY NOTEBOOK
Howe moves up to No. 3 all-time in saves
CC senior goalie Joe Howe’s 41 saves Saturday upped his career totals to 3,068, lifting him past program great and former NHL player Eddie Mio (1972-76, 3,047) into third all-time for the Tigers. Howe’s 34 saves on Friday put him at 3,027, just 20 shy of tying Mio. Marty Wakelyn (1982-86) is first all-time with 3,630 saves followed by Derek Pizzey (1985-89) with 3,603.
Howe recorded 40 or more stops six times this regular season. He started his 13th consecutive games for Colorado College since mid-January with a 6-4-3 mark to show for it.
CC picks up goalie commit
CC picked up Howe’s roster replacement for next season with a commit from Tyler Marble, a 6-foot-1, 175-pound goalie from Detroit. Marble leads the North American Hockey League with a .941 saves percentage and is 28-8-3 for the North Division-leading Soo Eagles of Sault Ste. Marie, Mich. His 2.24 goals against is eighth in the NAHL.
“I had a chance to talk to their coaches in person and on the phone and they set up a conference call that included my parents. At the end of the day they made me an offer I couldn’t refuse,” the future business marketing major told NAHL.com. “To be told I will have the chance to compete for the starting goaltending job is everything I could ask for.”
Eagles coach Bruno Bragagnolo said the goalie earned the full-ride scholarship.
“The good goalies are the ones who win games for you on their own and I would say that Tyler has stolen at least a half a dozen games for us that we probably shouldn’t have won,” he said.
It is Marble’s fourth year playing junior hockey, breaking out with a strong season (14-4-1, .929 saves) for the Wellington Dukes of the Ontario league last year. Marble, born in January 1992, is almost nine months older than current CC goalie Josh Thorimbert, who is expected to return for his senior season.
Here is a link to a radio interview profiling Marble. He has since de-committed from future WCHA member Lake Superior State.
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