Saint John's plays host to Gustavus Adolphus for the MIAC playoff championship and the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA Division III playoffs, at 2 p.m. Saturday, March 2, at the National Hockey and Events Center in St. Cloud. Free buses will be provided for CSB/SJU students and the first 200 students in attendance will gain free admittance (see below). – Listen Live (Real Audio Player) | Live Stats
Preview Video:
-Head coach Doug Schueller (0:49)
STUDENT BUSES: The student buses will depart from the Bell Banner (SJU) at 1 p.m., followed by a 1:15 p.m. pick-up at the HCC (CSB).
ADMISSION: Admission for all MIAC playoffs games is $7 for adults and $3 for any student (five years old and younger are free). There is no senior discount. MIAC Passes will be honored, but no other passes are accepted. The SJU senate will pay for the first 200 CSB/SJU students in attendance.
A LOOK AT THE JOHNNIES: Saint John's (15-7-4, 9-4-3 MIAC) advanced to the MIAC playoff championship game with a 5-1 win over Concordia-Moorhead on Feb. 23 in St. Cloud. Junior Axel Ramsgard (Gothenburg, Sweden) gave SJU a 1-0 lead with a shorthanded, breakaway goal 7:24 into the game. The 6-foot-7 defenseman intercepted a Cobber pass at the blue line, sped down the ice and beat the CC goaltender to the far side for his first goal of the season. Junior Justin Hochsprung (Alexandria, Minn.) made it 2-0 with his 10th goal of the season 13 seconds into the second period. Concordia won the opening faceoff, but turned the puck over behind its own net to junior Josh Gross (Maple Grove, Minn.), who then found Hochsprung all alone in front. Sophomore Wally Cossette (Maple Grove, Minn.) started the Johnnies' three-goal third period with a blast from the point 4:08 into the frame, with an assist going to Hochsprung. Ramsgard tallied his second goal of the game, directly from the faceoff win by senior Michael Palmiscno (East Grand Forks, Minn.), with 8:57 remaining. Gross ended the scoring with his second goal of the season with 5:19 left. Freshman Saxton Soley (Elk Mound, Wis.) made 19 saves to improve to 14-4-1 on the year and 9-1-1 in his last 11 starts. SJU out-shot the Cobbers 37-20 in the game, including a 12-5 margin in the third period.
STILL TRENDING: The Johnnies have scored at least four goals in six of their last seven games. They have also held their opponent to under two goals in each of their last 12 contests.
8 YEARS: Saturday's MIAC playoff championship game is the first for SJU since March 5, 2005 (2-1 loss to St. Thomas in St. Cloud), a span of 206 games.
SHORTY: Ramsgard's breakaway goal Feb. 23 was the Johnnies' eighth shorthanded tally of the season. SJU totaled only eight shorthanded goals in the previous four seasons combined (2008-12) since registering nine during the 2007-08 campaign (27 games).
SAVING THE BEST FOR LAST: Saint John's has outscored its opponents by a combined score of 67-37 in the second and third periods this season, including a 19-2 margin in the third period of its last 11 contests.
STREAKING: Although SJU is 9-1-3 in its last 13 games (since Jan. 11), Gustavus is 10-1-2 since Jan. 1.
A LOOK AT THE GUSTIES: Like Saint John's, the Gusties (17-7-3, 9-5-2 MIAC) have been on fire during the second half of the season. The team has now won eight straight games after their most recent victory, a 1-0 semifinal win at St. Thomas Feb. 24. Sophomore forward Jack Walsh was the one to find the back of the net for Gustavus in that game, his fifth game-winning goal in the team's last seven contests, and his seventh overall. He and junior Adam Smyth lead the team with 20 points apiece. Senior goaltender and reigning MIAC Athlete of the Week, Tyler Venne, also played a big part in the St. Thomas win with his third shutout of the season (24 saves). Gustavus is making its second consecutive appearance in the MIAC playoff championship, a game it won by a 4-2 score over St. Olaf last season.
REGIONAL/NATIONAL RANKINGS: Both Saint John's and Gustavus received votes in both the D3hockey.com and USCHO.com top-15 polls released Feb. 25. The Gusties are currently ranked seventh in the West region. SJU was ranked eighth in each of the first two, but was knocked out by Marian (Wis.), which did not play last weekend, and St. Scholastica (2-1 loss to St. Norbert, Wis.).
WINNER: The winner of Saturday's showdown will likely play either St. Norbert (Wis.) or Wisconsin-Eau Claire in the first round of the NCAA tournament on Wednesday, March 6. The full 11-team field (eight automatic berths, three at-large berths) will be announced live at 9 p.m. Sunday, March 3, on NCAA.com. SJU is playing for its first trip to the NCAA Tournament since 2005.
EARLIER THIS SEASON: Saint John's and Gustavus Adolphus played to a pair of ties, 3-3 and 1-1, Jan. 11-12. The Johnnies fought back to gain a 3-2 lead following an early 2-0 deficit Friday night. Andrew Peterson gave Gustavus a quick 1-0 lead on the game's first shot 2:39 in and Blake Schammel made it 2-0 with 1:03 remaining in the opening period. Junior Jason Johnson (Duluth, Minn.) cut the deficit to 2-1 with his third goal of the season at the 16-minute mark of the second period. Hochsprung tied the game 2:31 into the third period with an assist from sophomore Dave Mylrea (Brooklyn Park, Minn.). Sophomore Josh Gaughan (Buffalo, Minn.) gave SJU its first and only lead of the game with his first goal of the season 1:56 later. Joey Olson ended the scoring with 9:43 remaining for GAC. Junior Mitch Thompson (Onalaska, Wis.) made 25 saves in the tie for SJU. The Johnnies combined for only one shot on net on their two power-play opportunities.
Following a scoreless first period, senior Tobias Linbro (Nykvarn, Sweden) gave SJU a 1-0 lead with his third of the season 7:53 into the second of Saturday night's game in St. Peter. Darren Lapic tied the game for Gustavus 3:19 into the third period. Senior J.D. Wells (Anoka, Minn.) made 26 saves in the tie for SJU, which out-shot the home team 11-8 after the second period. SJU's woes on the power play continued Saturday night, as the Johnnies were 0-for-5 on the man advantage. The visitors tallied only two shots on goal in the first 4:09 of a five-minute major penalty on GAC in the third period until SJU was whistled for a penalty of its own.
SERIES HISTORY: The Johnnies have either defeated or tied Gustavus in 36 of the last 44 meetings (29-8-7 record) and are 19-4-2 against GAC at home since 1992-93 (17-2-2 in the last 21 games at the National Hockey Center in St. Cloud).
