Colorado College ties Michigan Tech in hockey
HOUGHTON, Mich. • For 20 minutes Friday night, Colorado College played fantastic hockey. The other 45 minutes cost the Tigers a win.
CC and Michigan Tech tied 2-2 at John MacInnes Student Ice Arena. CC, which is 13-9-7 and 9-8-4 in the Western Collegiate Hockey Association, scored twice in the second period to take a 2-1 lead but couldn’t close out the game. Michigan Tech is 5-18-6 and in last place in the WCHA at 1-14-6.
The Tigers feel they have to win the series finale to have a positive outcome this weekend.
“We feel like we need to get a win (today),” senior center Chad Rau said. “(Today) is going to be an important game for us, I think we all realize that.”
CC failed to convert four power-play chances in the first period. Michigan Tech, which had five power plays in the period, grabbed the early lead when Deron Cousens scored on a two-man advantage.
A tough first period was accentuated for the Tigers when they lost two players. Forward Brian McMillin suffered an upper extremity injury when he was checked from behind by the Huskies’ Alex MacLeod, who received a 5-minute major penalty and a game misconduct, ending his night. The officials evened it up later when Tigers defenseman Nate Prosser was booted from the game for the same offense.
Shorthanded, CC played an excellent second period. The Tigers were physical and scored two goals to take the lead. Tyler Johnson scored first and then Rau snapped a six-game streak without a goal, converting on a power play.
“I didn’t want the period to end,” CC coach Scott Owens said.
The momentum didn’t carry over into the third period. Michigan Tech center Brett Olson scored 7:04 into the period, while the Tigers got only three shots on goal.
With a little more than a minute remaining in overtime, CC forward Scott McCulloch had a breakaway but goaltender Rob Nolan made a save. A few seconds later, the Tigers were fortunate as the puck caromed off the boards behind CC’s net and past goaltender Richard Bachman, who was moving to play the puck. CC center Nick Dineen extended his stick and the puck bounced toward the empty net. Bachman, who said he never saw the puck, somehow got a piece of it as he moved back in front and kept it out, even though the horn went off for a moment.
“My heart skipped a beat,” Owens said.
