FARGO, N.D. — Different regional, and this time a different result.
In a rematch of their 2022 Worcester Regional semifinal, the Massachusetts Minutemen got the better of the Minnesota Golden Gophers, this time in a 5-4 overtime victory at Scheels Arena on Thursday night.
Three years ago, UMass was denied a chance to play Western Michigan in that regional, but they now will have their chance on Saturday night.
“Extremely proud of the guys. It was a huge win,” said Minutemen head coach Greg Carvel. “We talked all this week about probably going to be a similar type of game where we’re gonna have to find a way to win in overtime.”
The victory sure didn’t come without controversy, however. The referees, assigned to the regional from the ECAC, appeared to miss two crucial calls on UMass in the third period and overtime, both of which directly led to goals including the game-winner. It was controversial enough to where fans were yelling vulgarities at the referees and throwing garbage on the ice just ahead of the final handshake after the winning score by Aydar Suniev.
“These guys deserve better,” said a visibly upset Gophers head coach Bob Motzko.
Minnesota got the scoring started after the teams were assessed a series of penalties – two on the Minutemen followed by one on the Gophers to make it a 4-on-3 advantage. When play moved back into the UMass end, Jimmy Snuggerud connected on a one-timer from the left circle off a feed from Sam Rinzel.
But it didn’t take long for UMass to respond – just 20 seconds. Larry Keenan connected on a soft wrister from the left circle to tie it right back up, temporarily stunning and silencing the Minnesota-heavy crowd.
The Gophers then re-took the lead with just over a minute left in the first after Brody Lamb won an offensive zone faceoff and connected on a top-shelf shot for an unassisted goal to make it 2-1 after one period.
UMass controlled the pace of play for the first five minutes of the second before it evened out. Having a hard time shaking off the pesky Minutemen as they continued to win defensive zone battles, the Gophers finally pushed their lead to a pair as Jimmy Clark passed the puck to Connor Kurth out in front of Michael Hrabal in the UMass net. Kurth then made a beautiful move to shift the puck to his backhand and knock it in to make it a 3-1 game with just under six minutes left in the second period.
Far from finished, the Minutemen roared back in the third with a goal from Suniev after the refs missed a UMass high-stick of Luke Mittelstadt just seconds prior, then Dans Locmelis tied it 1:35 later as he tipped home a centering feed from Owen Murray.
The Minutemen finally claimed their first lead with 4:53 remaining as Francesco Dell’Elce was credited for a tip-in goal. With the game slipping away, Snuggerud tied it at 4 on a snipe off a faceoff with 3:36 remaining.
“Stay positive,” Motzko said when asked about how things were beginning to turn the way of UMass.
In the final seconds of the game, Ryan Chesley skated into the neutral zone before Locmelis appeared to trip him at center ice, triggering a huge chorus of boos from the crowd. Locmelis then picked it up and as Suniev crashed the net, Locmelis fed him on the backdoor for the winner, completing the comeback but triggering even more boos – an ugly scene ensued in which trash was thrown on the ice before the fans finally left the arena.
Still, the Minutemen will take the win. They played very well in the final half of the game in advancing to the regional final.
“Obviously means a lot,” said Dell’Elce. “These kind of games you kind of want to get done for your older guys.
“So really excited that we got the job done, and it was a big team win.”
Needless to say, Motzko was not at all happy about either missed call – but it’s his players on the way out and his coaching staff he’s thinking about more.
“They were an unbelievable group to be around,” he said. “One of the more enjoyable seasons that I’ve had in my coaching career, and it’s a crying shame that we’re sitting here right now like this.”
UMass and Western Michigan will play for a Frozen Four berth Saturday at 6:30 p.m. ET.
