Each week during the season, USCHO.com will pick the top 10 moments from the past weekend in our Monday 10 feature.
1. Denver’s streaks come to an end
Minnesota Duluth defeated host Denver 3-2 on Saturday, handing the Pioneers their first loss on home ice this season and ending their nine-game winning streak.
Bulldogs sophomore Darian Gotz’s first career goal with 4:44 left was the game winner for sixth-ranked Duluth.
Denver, which came into the game ranked third, remains in first place in the NCHC, leading North Dakota by two points.
2. AIC on the verge
On Saturday, American International traveled to West Point with a chance to clinch an unprecedented fourth straight Atlantic Hockey regular-season title.
A win would have secured it, but the Yellow Jackets ran into a wall named Gavin Abric. The Black Knights goalkeeper stopped all 39 shots to secure a 1-0 win and a series split with AIC.
The Yellow Jackets need a solitary point in their final four games, or anything less than a perfect finish by Canisius to lock up the title and top seed in the AHA tournament.
3. Clarkson wins ECAC showdown with Quinnipiac
After a forgettable December, the No. 19 Clarkson Golden Knights have turned it on in 2022, going 8-1-2 with a pair of shootout wins.
On Saturday, Clarkson defeated visiting and second-ranked Quinnipiac 3-1. Luke Santerno, a graduate student transfer from Bentley, scored his ninth and tenth goals of the season to pace the Golden Knights.
Clarkson, currently in second place in the ECAC, narrowed first-place Quinnipiac’s lead to just one point.
4. Minnesota sweeps (formerly) red-hot Ohio State
In a battle of teams near the top of the Big Ten standings, Minnesota put an end to Ohio State’s seven-game unbeaten streak with a 3-2 win on Friday and a 5-1 victory on Saturday at Value City Arena. Golden Gopher goaltender Justen Close won both games, making a combined 61 saves on 64 shots.
The sweep vaulted Minnesota over Ohio State and into second place in the Big Ten standings, two points behind frontrunner Michigan.
5. Wolverines win in the “D”
Michigan claimed first place in the Big Ten with a convincing sweep of Michigan State, including a 7-3 win at Little Caesars Arena in the teams’ annual “Duel in the D” contest.
Down four players competing in Beijing, the Wolverines still put up plenty of offense, totaling 13 goals on the weekend, including three from freshman Luke Hughes, who now has 13 on the season.
Michigan, currently ranked fourth, retained the Iron D trophy for the fifth consecutive year.
6. Collegians help keep Team USA perfect in Beijing
The US Olympic Men’s Hockey team defeated Germany 3-2 on Sunday to finish a perfect 3-0 in the preliminary round.
Harvard’s Sean Farrell leads the team with three goals and three assists, while Michigan’s Brendan Brisson and Minnesota’s Ben Meyers each have a pair of goals so far.
Drew Commesso (Boston University) has started and won two games in net for the Americans.
A total of 13 current collegians are on the U.S. team, as well as four on Canada’s roster. In all, there are 56 current or ex-college players in the men’s Olympic tournament.
7. Miami records first sweep of the season
Miami defeated Omaha 4-2 on Saturday to complete a weekend sweep of the Mavericks, the first sweep of the season for the Redhawks. PJ Fletcher opened the scoring for Miami just 34 seconds into the game, and the Redhawks never trailed.
The night before, Miami overcame deficits of 0-1, 1-3 and 3-4 to win 5-4 on Hampus Rydqvist’s tally with 4:29 left in regulation.
Ludvig Persson picked up both wins in net for the Redhawks.
8. Alaska finishing strong
After losing 12 of their first 13 games this season, Alaska has gone 10-4-1 since, including a sweep of visiting St. Thomas this weekend.
The Nanooks outscored the Tommies 13-4 in the series, including a 7-3 win on Saturday that featured a pair of goals each from Didrik Henbrant and Eriks Zohovs.
Alaska has won five in a row, their longest streak since the 2014-15 season. The Nanooks travel to Long Island to face LIU next weekend.
9. Terriers stay hot
Last Thursday, 20th ranked Boston University defeated No. 17 Providence, 4-1 for its sixth consecutive win. The Terriers got goals from four different players to erase an early 1-0 Friars lead.
BU started the season 6-9-3 but has gone 10-1 since and has not lost a game in regulation since dropping 6-4 decision to Cornell in the Red Hot Hockey game at Madison Square Garden back on Nov. 27.
10. Backups brace for Beanpot championship
For the third time in four years, Boston University and Northeastern will meet for the Beanpot championship on Monday.
With both team’s starting goaltenders away at the Olympics (the Huskies’ Devon Levi for Team Canada and the Terriers’ Drew Commesso for the USA), the game will feature a battle of backups: TJ Septimphelter for Northeastern and Vinny Duplessis for BU.
Both performed admirably in the first round of the Beanpot, especially the rookie Semptimphelter, who made 41 saves in a 3-1 win over Boston College. Duplessis stopped 22 of 25 shots in a 4-3 victory over Harvard.
