After being held scoreless on Friday night, No. 4 Michigan Tech co-captain Tanner Kero was involved in all three of his team’s goals as the Huskies completed a sweep of the Northern Michigan Wildcats with a 3-1 win at the Berry Events Center Saturday night.
With the win, the Huskies did their part in pursuit of the Western Collegiate Hockey Association regular season title.
“All we can do is take care of our business,” said Huskies coach Mel Pearson. “I thought our guys did a real good job tonight given the circumstances. It’s a rivalry game, a lot of emotion. We found a way to win the game.”
“It was definitely a big win,” said Kero. “We had to finish the season strong and just put ourselves in a big opportunity to win the MacNaughton Cup. We just had to come out and get a big win here.”
The Huskies have won 26 games for the first time since 1976. That also happens to be the last season the Huskies won the WCHA regular season title.
The Wildcats (14-16-6 overall, 11-13-4 WCHA) needed a better start than the one they had Friday night, and seemed to be on their way toward getting it in the early going.
“Kudos to Tech,” said Wildcats coach Walt Kyle. “I think they have a very good team and do a very good job. I thought we were better tonight than we were last night. I think we took a step.”
Reed Seckel pounced on a rebound just 40 seconds into action, but Huskies goaltender Jamie Phillips made the save.
Michael Doan was tested at the other end some 18 seconds later when Reid Sturos fired a long shot that Doan misplayed with his glove. Fortunately for the hosts, the puck then ricocheted off the post. He finished the night with 37 saves.
The Huskies (26-8-2 overall, 21-5-2 WCHA) were awarded a power play when Dominik Shine was whistled for charging at 6:48, and needed nearly the full two minutes to find the back of the net.
Kero fed the puck to Malcolm Gould in the left corner, who passed it to Tyler Heinonen in the slot, who fired a shot that beat Doan at 8:40.
The Huskies extended their lead 1:57 into the second when assistant captain Alex Petan dug the puck out behind the net, saw Kero cutting through the slot, and fed him a quick pass. Kero one-timed the pass home. It would stand as the game-winner.
Sturos gave the Huskies a three-goal lead just after a power play ended at 9:15. He fired a shot from the slot, and while Kero crashed the net, Doan fell backwards, knocking the puck in.
“He’s very important,” said Pearson when asked about Kero. “You can tell just by his speed on an Olympic ice sheet. He’s got that confidence that comes along with being a senior and being a good leader. He knows we need him.”
A scrum ensued after the goal, leading to five players receiving penalties, including Zach Urban of the Wildcats, who was given a five-minute major for facemasking. The Huskies did not score on the advantage.
Kero had another good scoring chance early in the third when he skated in and fired a wrist shot that Doan stopped. The rebound kicked back at Kero, bounced off his skate and over Doan, but missed the far post.
From that point forward, the game broke down into a parade to the penalty box. The teams combined for 14 of the game’s 24 penalties in the period.
Phillips’ bid for a fifth shutout on the season was snapped at 19:05 when Purpur tipped shot from Maschmeyer.
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