Shootout win earns Omaha series split with North Dakota
Nov. 5, 2022; Omaha, NE, USA; North Dakota’s Griffin Ness (11) attempts a play on the puck against Omaha’s Victor Mancini (23). (Photo Courtesy Russell Hons Photography).
OMAHA-Neb.- The Omaha Mavericks defeated the No. 10 North Dakota Fighting Hawks in a shootout 2-1 to earn a series split with the defending Penrose Cup champions.
After a scoreless first period, Omaha freshman left wing Jacob Slipec scored his first career goal on a wrist shot from North Dakota’s crease after a centering pass from sophomore Victor Mancini to give Omaha a 1-0 lead at 2:58 in the second period.
Gabinet said Slipec was inserted into the lineup due to injuries with two of Omaha’s top forwards, Brock Bremer and Matt Miller, but also how hard Slipec works in practice.
“Anytime a guy like that gets rewarded, you’re pretty excited for him,” Gabinet said.
North Dakota’s Judd Caulfield tied the score at 1-all with 1:22 remaining in the second when he snuck a wrist shot past Omaha goalie Jake Kucharski.
Kucharski, who was starting at goal on consecutive days, kept the game close for Omaha by allowing just one goal on 27 shots-on-goal for the Fighting Hawks.
“It was nice to see him go back-to-back and perform so well and made some timely saves at key moments in the game,” Gabinet said.
North Dakota’s Nick Portz nearly gave North Dakota the lead at 1:30 in the third on a breakaway opportunity, but Portz shot attempt deflected off Kucharski’s left pad.
At 6:08 in the third, Omaha defender Joaquim Lemay was called for a two-minute hooking penalty, six seconds left on the Lemay penalty North Dakota’s Tyler Kleven scored on a one-timer to give North Dakota a 2-1 lead. Omaha challenged the goal for goaltender interference due to Caulfield allegedly obstructing Kucharski’s view of the puck, but the call on the ice stood.
Omaha was quick to respond; however, less than 90 seconds later, Omaha’s Ty Mueller tied the at 2-all when he scored off a no-look assist from Tyler Weiss.
Omaha took the lead less than two minutes later when Omaha’s alternate captain tipped in his nation-leading 11th goal of the season from in front of DeRidder’s goal giving Omaha a 3-2 lead in the third.
Randl has scored a goal in six of the Maverick’s eight games. Randl is the only player in program history to score eight goals in the season’s first six games, and Austin Ortega and Brando Scereo held the previous record of seven.
“He’s the same every day whether it’s practice or games he brings it,” Gabinet said. “I keep putting him out there because he’s a special player, and he continues to make a big impact for our program.”
North Dakota’s Riese Gaber tied the score at 3-all when he scored on a wrist shot from an Owen McLaughlin backhand pass from behind the Omaha goal at 13:53 in the third.
At 2:35 in overtime, Gaber was called for a hooking penalty giving Omaha a 4-on-3 power play advantage. However, North Dakota killed off the penalty, helping send the game to a penalty shootout.
“They did a good job on their kill there, and we had a couple of looks but weren’t able to capitalize,” Gabinet said.
Omaha and North Dakota were rewarded one point each for a tie, but Omaha’s shootout win gave the Mavericks an extra point in the conference standings.
North Dakota started the shootout by sneaking a wrist shot underneath the right pad of Kucharski to give the Fighting Hawks a 1-0 lead in the shootout. Goals, however, first by Mueller, then Weiss and a missed goal by North Dakota’s Griffin Ness sealed Omaha’s 2-1 shutout win.
“We all dug in, and we found a way to get that extra point,” Kucharski said.
Omaha improves to 4-4-2 overall and 0-1-1 in conference play with the win, while with the loss, North Dakota drops to 4-3-2 and 1-0-1 in conference play.
The Mavericks will travel to No. 20 Minnesota Duluth Bulldogs for a two-game series on Nov. 11 and 12 from Amsoil Arena in Duluth, Minnesota.
Omaha falls short to North Dakota in NCHC season opener
Nov. 4, 2022; Omaha, NE, USA; Omaha Freshman Forward Michael Abrgall (18) attempts a play on the puck against North Dakota’s Dylan James (26). (Photo courtesy Mark Kuhlman Photography).
OMAHA, Neb.- The North Dakota Fighting Hawks defeated the Omaha Mavericks 4-1 in the National Collegiate Hockey Conference opener at Baxter Arena.
North Dakota initially grabbed a 1-0 first-period lead when freshman center Owen McLaughlin scored on a wrist shot. Omaha would challenge the goal contesting the play was offside, and the call was overturned, keeping the game scoreless at the end of the first period.
At 1:44 in the second period, Omaha defenseman Jonny Tychonick was called for a two-minute minor holding penalty. Eight seconds into the power play Fighting Hawk defenseman Ethan Frisch scored on a one-timer to give North Dakota a 1-0 lead. Fifteen seconds later, left-wing Jackson Kunz extended the Fighting Hawk lead to 2-0.
Omaha briefly cut the North Dakota lead to 2-1 in the second period when Maverick left-wing Cameron Berg scored on a wrist shot off of a rebound of North Dakota goalie Drew DeRidder. The Fighting Hawks challenged the goal for goalie interference, and the call was overturned after an official review to no goal keeping the score 2-0.
Alternate captain Riese Gaber extended the North Dakota lead to 3-0 when he snuck a wrist shot past Omaha goalie Jake Kucharski at 13:51 in the second period.
Omaha responded with an even-strength goal when Tychonick scored his second goal of the season on a one-timer from the North Dakota blue line to cut the Fighting Hawk lead to 3-1 with 56 seconds remaining in the second period.
Seconds after the goal, Berg was assessed a game misconduct for indirect contact to head on North Dakota’s Ty Farmer.
Omaha head coach Mike Gabinet said he disagreed with Berg’s misconduct after Gabinet said Farmer slashed and cross-checked Berg, who was trying to defend himself.
“I don’t know how we walked away with the only major penalty out of that call,” Gabinet said.
Riese Gaber’s third-period goal, a wrist shot between Kucharski’s pads, extended the lead to 4-1.
“They’re a team that likes to get shot volume and like to make plays in the slot,” Gabinet said. “We’ve got to do a better job making sure they can’t penetrate that good ice.”
Omaha finished 0 of 7 on the power play, while DeRidder finished with 21 saves in North Dakota’s 4-1 win against Omaha.
Gabinet said figuring out line combinations was the main factor in Omaha’s lack of production on the power play.
“You’re trying to put guys in sports they’re not used to going, so that’s a little bit of an adjustment, but we’ll clean that up for tomorrow and be ready,” Gabinet said.
Omaha falls to 4-4-1 with the loss, while with the win, No. 10 North Dakota improves to 4-3-1 on the season.
Omaha reigns supreme with 7-2 win in Battle of the Mavericks
Oct. 1, 2022; Omaha, NE, USA; Omaha’s Ray Fust (8) Tyler Rollwagen (21) celebrate after scoring a second-period goal vs. the Minnesota State Mavericks. (Photo courtesy Mark Kuhlman Photography)
Proctor Game Winner Leads Mavericks to Sixth Win Over Tigers
OMAHA, Neb.- The Omaha Mavericks hockey team completed a two-game sweep Saturday night, defeating the Colorado College Tigers 3-2.
The Mavericks suffered from a dismal performance in the first two periods of play. However, the Mavericks rallied, scoring twice before Kirby Proctor scored the game-winning goal with 1:01 left in regulation.
“I saw a lane to the net,” Proctor said.“ I felt pretty fortunate to score.”
The Tigers showed strong effort in the first period out shooting the Mavericks 10-3 and grabbed a 1-0 lead on a Grant Cruikshank goal.
The Tigers continued to ride their momentum from the first period into period two, scoring in the first 3:45 of the period on Cruikshank’s second goal of the game.
The Mavericks avoided the shutout with a power-play goal by freshman Matt Miller tipping a shot from the blue line by Johnny Tychonick.
The Mavericks tied the game in regulation when Taylor Ward scored his team-leading 10th goal of the season. Ten seconds later, the Mavericks struck again when Jack Randl scored off a scramble. The officials waved off the goal because Colorado College goalie Dominic Basse’s helmet was knocked off.
Overtime was imminent until Proctor scored the game-winning goal in the third period.
“This team finds ways to win games,” Mavericks head coach Mike Gabinet said.
Proctor has scored four goals in his UNO career; all four have been game-winning goals.
The Tigers pulled their goalie in the final minute of the third period but could not tie the game. Nolan Sullivan won a faceoff with 2.4 seconds left to secure the win.
“They’re a good team,” Gabinet said. “But so are we.”
With the win, the Mavericks guaranteed themselves a top-four finish in the NCHC standings, moving to 13-6-1 and 6-0 this season against the Tigers.
This team finds ways to win games
Mike Gabinet
Hats Off: Bremer’s Hat Trick Propels Mavericks to Fifth Win Over Colorado College
OMAHA, Neb. —Freshman Brock Bremer tied a school record with five points, scoring a hat trick Friday night, leading the Mavericks to a 7-1 win over the Colorado College Tigers.
Bremer scored two goals during a five-minute penalty in the second period.
“It was exciting,” Bremer said. “Obviously you don’t get many hat tricks in your career so I’m going to remember this one.”
Chayse Primeau scored halfway through the first period helping the Mavericks gain a lead they would never surrender. Jimmy Glynn and Ryan Brushett each scored a goal in the second period helping the Mavericks break the game wide open with a four-goal second period.
Maverick goalkeeper Isiah Saville made 26 saves in the win, but a third period goal by Tiger freshman Jackson Jutting ruined Saville’s chances of recording a shutout. Maverick defenseman Brandon Scanlin scored less than a minute later after the Jutting goal capped the scoring for the Mavericks.
“Lots of things went well for us tonight,” Mavericks head coach Mike Gabinet said. “We stayed focused.”
The win pushes the Mavericks to 12-6-1 with 35 points for fourth place in the NCHC standings. The loss dropped the Tigers to 3-12-2 with 15 points, good for last place in the NCHC standings.
“Obviously you don’t get many hat tricks in your career so I’m going to remember this one.”
Brock Bremer
Mavericks rebound after loss to upset #2 North Dakota
OMAHA, Neb. —The ninth-ranked Omaha Mavericks hockey team bounced back after a loss Friday night against the second-ranked North Dakota Fighting Hawks with a 5-4 win.
The Mavericks spread the wealth when it came to scoring goals Saturday night. Kevin Conley, Nolan Sullivan, Chayse Primeau, Taylor Ward and North Dakota transfer Jonny Tychonick each scored goals for the Mavericks.
“It’s obviously a big win for us taking down the No. 2 team in the nation,” Tychonick said. “We know we’re a really good hockey team, and we showed that tonight.”
The Mavericks were an efficient 3 of 5 on the power play Saturday compared to just 1 of 7 on Friday. Conley scored the third and game-winning power-play goal that put the Mavericks up 5-3 with 4:43 remaining in the third period.
Omaha has shined defensively on the penalty kill their last two games holding the Fighting Hawks to a combined 1 of 10 on the power play. The Mavericks lead the nation in penalty kill percentage at 94.5%.
“Every single person on our penalty kill has done a great job at doing the work,” Tychonick said. “We preach every day to be a hard-nosed team.”
Goals from North Dakota’s Jasper Weatherby and Shane Pinto kept the game close at 3-2 Mavericks entering the third period. Goals by Ward and Conley in the third helped the Mavericks maintain their lead.
Third-period goals by North Dakota’s Ethan Frisch and a second goal by Pinto cut the Omaha lead to 5-4 with 12 seconds remaining, but the Mavericks played hard-nosed defense in the final seconds to hold on to a narrow one-goal win.
“It’s not easy to regroup after a hard-fought battle and shows a lot of character when you come back prepared like we were tonight and execute a game plan, and the guys did just that,” Mavericks head coach Mike Gabinet said.
The Mavericks will visit No. 20 Denver Pioneers for a two-game series on Feb. 5 and 6 from Magness Arena in Denver, Colorado.