MENDOTA HEIGHTS, Minn. — Despite a heroic effort from junior goaltender Jake Sibell, St. Thomas fell to Bemidji State and their star performers 3-1 in a Saturday night showdown at St. Thomas Ice Arena.
“I don’t want to take anything away from Bemidji. They’re a very good hockey team,” St. Thomas coach Rico Blasi said.
A heavyweight CCHA matchup was in store Saturday night when the first-place Beavers (14-15-2, 12-7-2 CCHA) came to Mendota Heights to battle the second-place Tommies (13-16-2, 11-9-1 CCHA). St. Thomas’ losing streak was extended to five games after their rivals from the north, Bemidji, defeated them in overtime on Friday night. The Tommies would look for some Saturday night revenge at St. Thomas Ice Arena in their final home game of the regular season, to no avail.
Major CCHA playoff implications were at play, with the top four teams in the CCHA only separated by 4 points. St. Thomas was only two points away from fourth place, meaning that losing their final three games would almost guarantee squandering their chance to have a home playoff series in the CCHA quarterfinals.
From the first faceoff, the game was fast, hard-hitting, and in-your-face from both teams.
Tensions flared early in the first, especially when junior forward Matthew Gleason and Bemidji State first-year student forward — and San Jose Sharks draft pick — Eric Pohlkamp started a shoving match in the Bemidji corner after the whistle.
Mike Richter award semifinalist Sibell made two electric saves in the first minute of play. Setting the tone for what would be the rest of his evening.
St. Thomas ice arena was split down the middle with Beaver Green and Tommie purple. The sellout crowd was loud and proud all evening in admiration of the top two CCHA teams.
St. Thomas’ sophomore forward Lucas Wahlin was awarded a rare penalty shot after the Tommie captain was tripped on a breakaway into the Bemidji net on a pure effort play from the sophomore.
Beavers captain, fifth-year student defenseman Kyle Looft put the puck behind Sibell, giving the Beavers the first lead of the game. Looft, currently second on Bemdji’s roster in points, possesses the best plus/minus of any Beaver defenseman.
Bemidji senior forward Austin Jouppi had a one-on-one chance against Sibell with 13 minutes to go in the second period, allowing Jouppi to take his time and get the perfect deke.
However, instead of putting the puck behind the St. Thomas goaltender, Sibell made a breathtaking save, when he was lying on his stomach, and scorpion-kicked his right leg up into the air, getting just enough of the puck to keep it in front of him.
Sibell recorded 31 saves at the end of the second period, nearly double the amount that Bemidji’s junior goaltender Mattias Sholl. The junior goaltender from California recorded 17 saves of his own after 40 minutes but was clearly under less stress than Sibell, who ended up with 37 saves on the evening.
Bemidji doubled their lead with 13 minutes to go in the game when sophomore forward Lleyton Roed was fed a redirected pass, which Sibell couldn’t stop. Roed scored his 15th goal of the season, and his 29th point, leading Bemidji in both categories.
Bemidji’s second goal took the wind out of St. Thomas’ sails and quieted the Tommie fans in the arena. The green and white added insult to injury minutes later when sophomore defender Vince Corcoran buried a slapshot behind Sibell, putting Bemidji up by three.
Corcoran’s goal would have had much more of a sting, if St. Thomas junior forward Liam Malmquist didn’t respond back seconds later by finally breaking the seal and putting the first Tommie goal on the board, bringing it back to a two-goal deficit.
St. Thomas brought Sibell to the bench for an extra skater with 2:31 remaining in the third period, and the first wave of fans began to head for the exits. Bemidji would not score an empty net goal, but time would run out for St. Thomas.
“I’m just proud of our team, to battle like that with nine guys in the stands,” Blasi said.
St. Thomas’s recent weekends have been plagued by injuries to key players, such as senior forward Mack Byers and graduate forward Ryder Donovan.
Bemidji State and St. Thomas players shook hands, the Beavers and the officials returned to their locker rooms, and the Tommies remained on the ice to hold a brief senior night ceremony. The following seniors were recognized:
5th-year forward Luke Manning, senior forward Ethan Gauer, senior forward Mack Byers, graduate defenseman James Marooney, graduate forward Noah Prokop and graduate forward Ryder Donovan.
“They sacrificed a lot. They helped identify, and solidify our culture and identity,” Blasi said.
The Tommies wrap up the regular season next weekend at 6:07 p.m. on Friday, March 1, at the John J. MacInnes Student Ice Arena in Houghton, Mich., when they take on the Michigan Tech Huskies.
The current CCHA standings are volatile, and depending on next weekend’s results, St. Thomas could finish as high as second place, or as low as sixth. The top four teams in the conference get first-round playoff series at home, and St. Thomas mathematically has to win both games against the Huskies to guarantee a top-four spot.
Karl Warner can be reached at warn5356@stthomas.edu.