Notables
-Saints advance to their first-ever MIAC Championship
-Ledenkov's score a pair of goals
-B.Johnson scores game-winner in third
DULUTH, Minn. (csssaints.com) – The No. 1 Seeded St. Scholastica men's hockey team hosted the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) Semifinals Playoffs Sunday night against No.5 St. Olaf College. The Oles got here by pulling off an upset victory, against No. 4 Concordia on Friday evening.
The Saints would score two in the first and another in the second, but the Oles would add two of their own in the second period too. The Saints would hold their one-goal lead all the way until the last remaining seconds and knock off the 2022 MIAC Playoff champions, 3-2.
How It Happened
At 14:08 the Oles would be called for hooking, and a minute into the power-play, Filimon Ledenkov (Polotsk, Belarus/Ostroshitsko-Gorodokskaya (New York Aviators-USPHL)) would put the Saints on the board first at 13:13. Twin brother Arkhip Ledenkov (Polotsk, Belarus/Ostroshitsko-Gorodokskaya (New York Aviators-USPHL)) and teammate Danylo Sukhonos (Kharkiv, Ukraine/Brovary Professional Lyceum (New York Aviators-USPHL)) would have the assists.
Less than two minutes later, Arkhip would add another score to make this game 2-0. Fil would add another point to his totals with an assist and Jack Fuss (Edina, Minn./Edina HS (Minnesota Mullets-USPHL)) would have a hand in it as well. The Saints would end the period with a two-goal advantage.
The second period would see St. Olaf's Connor Kalthoff score a goal to put his team on the board at 10:47 of the second period. As a few minutes went by, junior Bryce Johnson (Roseau, Minn./Roseau HS (Thief River Falls-SIJHL)) scored the game-winning goal to restore the two-goal lead. Credited for the assists were Carsen Richles and Sam Olson (Duluth, Minn./Cloquet HS(Minnesota Wilderness NAHL)). Just as the second was nearing an end, Tyler Cooper would score for the Oles at 17:42.
In the final period, each team would have one power play opportunity, but they would be killed off. Near the end, the Oles pulled their goaltender with 1:53 remaining. Jack Bostedt (Janesville, Wis./Janesville Craig HS (Minnesota Mullets-USPHL)) and the Saints defenders would pull through with multiple shots being saved or blocked in the last moments. Both teams would have a total of 48 shots on the night, but CSS would have a slight lead on shots on goal with 25 to the Oles' 23.
Goaltending
Bostedt would make some impressive saves on the night. The junior had 21 saves for a .913 save percentage. Thomas Lalonde would have 22 saves respectively, for the Oles.
Up Next
The Championship Game is tentatively set for 7:00 p.m. on Saturday, March 4 at Mars Lakeview Arena. The Saints will see No. 2 Augsburg University, as this will be the first-ever MIAC Playoff matchup between these teams. Whoever wins next weekend will automatically advance to the NCAA Division III Tournament.
