Third-seeded Saint John's hockey hosts sixth-seeded Saint Mary's in the MIAC quarterfinals at 6 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 27, at the Herb Brooks National Hockey Center in St. Cloud. - Listen Live (WBHR-660 AM) | Live Stats/Live Video

TICKET INFO: Admission is $10 for adult and $2 for any student (5 years old and younger are free). There is no senior discount. MIAC passes will be honored, though no other passes will be accepted.

-The ticket booth and entrance to the Herb Brooks National Hockey Center one hour before the game's start. 
-Those with MIAC passes need to go to the ticket window to receive a ticket into the game.
-CSB/SJU students gain free admission by showing their ID at the ticket booth to get their free ticket.

SPECTATOR POLICY: Saint John's University and St. Cloud State University updated the spectator policy for home hockey games in the Herb Brooks National Hockey Center. 
 
-Masks are required at all times. This an SCSU policy. 

-Social distancing is strongly encouraged. The lower bowl will be open on both sides of the ice (seating will be blocked off behind the team benches).
 
-The concession stand will not be open. No food or drink is allowed to be brought in. 
 
Fans with any COVID-19, cold or flu symptoms are asked to not enter the venue.   

A LOOK AT THE JOHNNIES: Saint John's (16-7-2, 9-4-1 MIAC) ended the regular season last weekend with a series split with No. 4 Augsburg.

at No. 4 Augsburg 5, Saint John's 1 (Feb. 18)
SJU's four-game win streak came to a halt with a 5-1 loss in Minneapolis.

An SJU turnover at its own blue line turned into a breakaway goal for Augsburg's Erik Palmqvist with 6:58 left in the first period for a 1-0 lead. Kyler Yeo made it 2-0 for the Auggies 2:11 into the second period and Fritz Belisle extended the lead to 3-0 with 10:36 left in the frame.

Sophomore forward Nick Michel (Waconia, Minn.) erased the shutout for SJU with a power-play goal, his 10th tally of the season, 6:43 into the third period. 

Augsburg quelled the Johnnies threat with two quick goals to seal its 13th consecutive victory. Belisle tallied his second goal of the night, on the power play with 5:09 remaining, and Grant Reichenbacher ended the scoring 1:22 later. Senior goaltender Mac Berglove made 30 saves in the loss.

The Auggies recorded a 35-25 advantage in shots and both teams were 1-for-4 on the power play.

at Saint John's 3, No. 4 Augsburg 2 (Feb. 19)
Junior captain Auggie Moore (Edina, Minn.) scored the game-winning goal with 0:00.1 remaining to give the Johnnies a 3-2 victory Saturday night in St. Cloud. Moore took the puck at the Johnnies' own blue line and skated into the offensive zone, stick-handled past two Auggie defenders into the slot and ripped home a wrister for his second goal of the night and 13th of the season.

SJU was awarded a five-minute power play when Mason Palmer checked Moore high into the glass after a scoreless first period expired. The Johnnies, however, were whistled for a penalty 2:23 into the major. Nevertheless, Moore put the home team in front 1-0 with two seconds left on the 4-on-4.

Junior defenseman Peter Tabor (Edina, Minn.) made it 2-0 with a power-play goal 34 seconds later, his third tally of the season, on assist to Berglove. The assist was the second of Berglove's career and first since his freshman season (at home against Augsburg on Feb. 1, 2018). Berglove improved to 12-5-2 on the year with 31 saves on the night.

Augsburg cut its deficit in half on a goal from Tommy Carls with six seconds left in the second period and tied it on the stick of Austin Martinsen with 3:48 remaining in regulation. The loss snapped the Auggies' 13-game win streak.

ATHLETE OF THE WEEK: Moore was named the MIAC Men's Hockey Athlete of the Week on Monday (Feb. 21) for his heroics in Saturday's win. The honor was Moore's first of the season and third of his career. Moore's 13 goals tie him for second-most in the MIAC, while his team-leading 25 points are fourth. He has seven points (5g/2a) in his last five games.

POWER PLAY: Augsburg entered last weekend's series fourth in NCAA Division III on the penalty kill at 91.4 percent (74-for-81) and Michel's power-play tally Friday night was just the second the Auggies had allowed in conference play (50-for-52). SJU finished 2-for-10 on the man advantage in the two games. Although the Johnnies struggled to 6.8 percent (5-for-73) on the power play in the season's first 16 games, they are 9-for-38 (23.7 percent) over the last nine contests.

SJU'S MIAC PLAYOFF HISTORY: The Johnnies are making their fourth consecutive MIAC Playoff appearance (not counting the COVID-shortened 2020-21 campaign), fifth in the last six (full) seasons and 23rd overall (established for the 1985-86 season). SJU is 20-21-3 in MIAC Playoff games, including a 12-8-2 record in St. Cloud.

STAT COMPARISONS: SJU ended the conference schedule second in the MIAC in GAA and third in scoring offense.

Scoring Offense
3. SJU, 3.14 gpg. (3.40 overall)
5. SMU, 2.83 gpg. (2.55 overall)

GAA
2. SJU, 1.97 (2.17 overall *No. 15 in Division III)
7. SMU, 3.24 (3.35 overall)

Power Play
4. SMU, 15.0 percent/6-for-40 (16.9 percent/13-for-77 overall)
9. SJU, 8.2 percent/5-for-61 (12.6 percent/14-for-111 overall)

Penalty Kill
5. SJU, 83.7 percent/36-for-43 (82.9 percent/68-for-82 overall)
7. SMU, 81.6 percent/40-for-49 (82.4 percent/70-for-85 overall)

A LOOK AT THE CARDINALS: Saint Mary's (8-13-1, 5-7-0 MIAC) stopped a three-game losing streak with a 4-0 shutout at Bethel to earn the series split last Saturday (Feb. 19) in Blaine. The Royals won the opener with a 3-2 score Friday night. Junior forward Brady Lindauer leads the team in assists (11) and points (16), and sophomore forward Matt Hutton is second in both categories (10 assists, 15 points). The team's leading goal scorer is freshman forward Gabe Potyk with six. Freshman goaltender Matt Sankner is 5-6-1 with a 2.73 GAA and a .914 save percentage (339 saves).

EARLIER THIS SEASON: The two teams split the series, very early in the 2021-22 season, with a pair of one-goal games.

Saint Mary's 2, at Saint John's 1 (Nov. 18)
The Johnnies controlled the game by out-shooting Saint Mary's with a 36-13 margin and winning 41 of the 62 faceoff draws, but hit the pipe twice and went 0-for-6 on the power play.

Freshman forward Spencer Rudrud (Eden Prairie, Minn.) gave the Johnnies a 1-0 lead with his first collegiate goal, on a breakaway, 4:31 into the second period. Moore sent a long pass to Rudrud on the other blue line and he beat the goaltender with a forehanded shot.

Trevor Schroder tied the game for the Cardinals with a breakaway goal of his own at the 12:54 mark of the second. Kasyn Kruse scored what proved to be the game-winning goal for SMU with a deflection of Schroeder's shot atop the circle 8:23 into the third period.

The 13 shots on goal allowed were the fewest in a Johnnie loss since then-No. 4 Wisconsin-River Falls scored four goals on 14 shots in a 4-0 shutout of then-No. 11 SJU on Dec. 9, 2014.

Junior forward Henry Enebak (Lakeville, Minn.) hit the pipe in the first period and sophomore defenseman Max Osborne (Anchorage, Alaska) clanked the iron with three minutes remaining.

SJU was given a power play with 1:51 remaining, but Moore was called for an offensive-zone penalty (slashing) six seconds later. The Johnnies were given another opportunity when SMU goaltender Matt Sankner was whistled for delaying the game (purposely kicking the net off its moorings) with 10 seconds remaining. The visitors, however, pushed a loose puck out of SJU's offensive zone to end the threat.

Saint John's 3, at Saint Mary's 2 (OT, Nov. 20)
Moore gave the Johnnies a 3-2 win at Saint Mary's with his first goal of the season 2:14 into overtime. Osborne fed Michel into a 2-on-1 with Moore, who stick-handled the puck into a backhander to the net for the game-winning goal. Moore has eight points (4g/4a) in three career games at SMU Ice Arena.

The Johnnies gained leads of 1-0 and 2-1 thanks to a pair of power-play goals from sophomore forward Lewis Crosby (Edina, Minn.), his fourth and fifth tallies of the season. He redirected a shot from sophomore defenseman Jack Olsen (Lakeville, Minn.) with 8:06 left in the first period and gave the lead back to SJU at the 16:11 mark of the second.

The Cardinals tied the game at 1-1 four minutes into the second period and again with a power-play goal of their own 8:32 into the third. The Johnnies out-shot SMU 28-14 on the night and 64-27 in the two-game series.

SERIES HISTORY: The Johnnies are 58-30-5 against the Cardinals since the 1981-82 season, including a 21-7-2 record under the direction of head coach Doug Schueller (since 2008-09). SJU has won 31 of the last 42 meetings overall (31-9-2 record), but is only 5-6-1 in the last 12 meetings at the HBNHC.

SJU is 5-0 all-time against SMU in the MIAC Playoffs, including a 3-0 record at the HBNHC (the other two wins occurred in 1996's first-round series held at the Bloomington Ice Gardens). Sunday's meeting is the first between the two teams in the conference tournament since March 1-2, 1997, when the four-team tournament consisted of two-game series in each round.