The Michigan Tech Huskies faced the Bemidji State Beavers in hockey during Winter Carnival weekend. The Huskies fought without giving up, but they lost both games to the Beavers, with the scores 3-5 on Friday and 5-6 on Saturday in overtime.
On Feb. 7, the Huskies put up a tough battle against the Beavers when Stiven Sararian was given two minors on the same play for tripping and unsportsmanlike conduct. However, the Huskies were able to show their strength in the first period without letting a goal through.
In the second period, the Beavers gained the lead by scoring the match’s first goal at 11 minutes and 50 seconds. This was followed by another goal at 17 minutes and 51 seconds. At the end of the second period, the Huskies were down 0-2.
With Tech’s resilience, Owen Baker scored the Huskies’ first goal in the third period, with the assistance of Henry Bartle and Sardarian at three minutes and 53 seconds; however, the Beavers found their stride, scoring three goals within two minutes.
On Saturday, Feb. 8, Elias Jansson demonstrated the Huskies’ strength by scoring the first goal of the game with the assistance of Max Koskipiritti and Isaac Gordon on a power play. The Beavers responded by scoring two goals minutes apart. However, Koskipriti scored on a power play, tying it up at two to two. With two minutes left of the first period, Beavers found the space to squeeze another goal, ending the first period with the Huskies down 2-3.
In the second period, both teams persisted without letting the puck into the goal. However, Alex Nordstrom found an opening with the help of Chase Pietla and Matthew Campbell to tie up the game once again.
As the third period began, stakes were high for both teams. They traded goal for goal, starting with Beavers taking the lead on a power play. Jansson was able to close the gap minutes later. The Beavers could take the lead with the remaining three minutes and 31 seconds left. The Huskies were on a tightrope as the clock ticked down. With 20 seconds left in the game, Jansson got a hat trick by putting the puck in the back of the net, causing the game to go into overtime. With a tight game, the Beavers took the game in overtime.
“We played like we practiced,” explained Joe Shawhan, head coach of MTU’s hockey team. “It is typical of us after… [every] biweek… [to] try to compete.” With the loss, Shawhan thinks that due to the weeks, players “take [their] foot off [the] gas as soon they have availability.” He hopes that next week when Tech hits the road to face Augustana, they will be able to show their strength.
