Lyssa BeyerMen’s hockey coach Matt Loen said in an interview last week the goal for Saturday’s game against UW-Stevens Point was to move up a spot in the Northern Collegiate Hockey Association playoffs. Mission accomplished.
The Blugolds knocked off Stevens Point 2-0 to take the Pointer’s spot in the No. 5 seed. While the two teams are tied for points, Eau Claire has more NCHA wins, giving it the tiebreaker.
The Blugolds will now face UW-Superior Friday and Saturday in Superior.
“It’s a good feeling,” Loen said. “We wanted to finish fourth, but we definitely accomplished something tonight.”
Junior Sam Bauler got things started for Eau Claire early in the first period. At 5:39, Bauler scored on a rebound from sophomore Nicholas Kuqali. Bauler’s goal is the second game winning goal of the season.
Senior Sean Garrity added to the lead in the second period when he scored on an even strength goal with an assist from junior Greg Petersen. Garrity is tied for the most goals this season with 11.
“We stepped up and won the battle,” sophomore goalie Tyler Brigl said.
The two teams were evenly matched on penalties, with Stevens Point racking up 10 and Eau Claire 9. Several of the penalties came in the third period when a fight broke out between the two teams.
“They are a physical team,” Loen said. “We expected that from them. We’re a physical team too, you just have to match it up between the two teams.”
The Blugolds dominated play, outshooting the Pointers by a more than 2:1 ratio. Eau Claire had 42 shots on goal compared to Stevens Point’s 19.
Brigl had success in the net with 19 saves, which brings his total amount of saves to 532 out of 590. That gives Brigl a 90.2 save percentage.
“(The defense) was great,” Brigl said. “They played the best game of the year tonight.”
The shutout brings Brigl’s season total to four, which is the most in Blugold history in a single season. His career shutout total is now five, which is also the most for any Blugold in program history.
“Overall, they all played great,” Loen said. “From Tyler on up. I’m very happy. It’s a good way to end the season.”
Eau Claire finishes the season 10-14-1 and 6-7-1 in the NCHA. Ten wins is the most since the 2004 season. It is the best NCHA finish for the men since the 2001-02 season.
The Blugolds have faced Superior twice already this season, winning the first game in Superior 3-1. Superior returned the favor last week, beating the Blugolds 2-1 in overtime.
“We beat them up there, and then they beat us down here in overtime,” Loen said. “We’re ready for a good battle.”
