BEMIDJI, Minn. – Before a sold-out crowd of 4,373 at the Sanford Center on the shores of Lake Bemidji, Michigan Tech defeated No. 20 Bemidji State 2-1 to win their first CCHA Mason Cup championship and qualify for the NCAA tournament.
Dueling pep bands and a group of 100-plus Huskies fans, affectionately known as “Misfits,” made for a festive championship atmosphere. One could hear continuous chants of “Let’s Go Huskies” and “Let’s Go Beavers” throughout the game. The Tech fans never sat down and were rewarded with the victory.
“I just wanted to mention, that our guys felt the energy, the show, the atmosphere that was Bemidji,” said MTU coach Joe Shawhan. “The environment tonight was exceptional. It was fun.”
“I want to make sure I thank our fans,” added Bemidji State coach Tom Serratore. “What a night it was. What a memory. This environment was so special. It was exciting to play in this game.”
The Beavers fought hard in the third period, outshooting Tech 17-6, but Huskies goaltender Blake Pietila came up big allowing just one goal on 35 shots.
“This was just a one-shot game. Our goaltending was phenomenal, as always,” remarked Shawhan.
“It’s called desperation,” noted Serratore. “We are down 2-1 and you got to find it. You just had to find our juice. You have to and we did. But Michigan Tech weathered a few storms and they managed the hockey game. It just wasn’t meant to be.”
Coming into the game, both teams were on a hot streak. The Beavers were 9-0-1 in their last 10 while the Huskies were 7-2-1. As expected, the game was closely contested where both teams controlled play at various times.
Michigan Tech took a 2-1 lead on a highlight-reel transition goal by Ryland Mosley at 9:20 of the second period. Mosley received a stretch pass from Matthew Campbell as he crossed into the attacking zone. Mosley put on the brakes and broke to the inside, pealing the defender and fired a backhand past Mattias Sholl.
Mosley was named MVP of the game.
“I just kinda through the puck on my backhand and luckily it went in,” commented Mosley.
Ryland Mosley gave us the lead in the second period with his 18th goal of the season! #mtuhky #FollowTheHuskies pic.twitter.com/7NiXbOJP2S
— Michigan Tech Hockey (@mtuhky) March 23, 2024
The Huskies had the momentum early, outshooting Bemidji 10-4 in the opening 10 minutes.
“We were kinda chasing the game early on and they kinda dictated play,” Serratore said. “I thought as the game went on, we got better. It was just one of those games where they made one more play than us.”
The game opened up in the later part of the first as the teams exchanged goals just 52 seconds apart.
Bemidji started the scoring at 14:07 when Kasper Magnussen took a turnaround shot off a pass from Austin Jouppi from just inside left faceoff circle.
The Huskies answered quickly at 14:59 on a rebound shot that defenseman Chase Pietila cleaned up in front of Sholl from 10 feet out. Pietila lifted the puck on his backhand over the Beavers netminder.
Michigan Tech will be either the 15th or 16th seed in the NCAA tournament depending on if St Lawrence wins the ECAC Hockey tournament. There is a strong possibility the Huskies will head east to play Boston College or Boston University. It’s the third straight trip to the NCAA tournament for Michigan Tech.
“Not many players can say they went three years in a row to the national tournament,” Shawhan said. “They earned their way to three straight national tournaments. That’s a huge feat for them.”
The NCAA Selection show will be on Sunday, 6 p.m. CT on ESPNU where the Huskies learn who and where they will play next.
