Saint John's hockey returns to conference action by hosting St. Olaf at 7 p.m. Friday, Nov. 22, at the Herb Brooks National Hockey Center in St. Cloud. The two teams then meet for a 5 p.m. puck-drop on Saturday, Nov. 23, in Northfield.

LIVE COVERAGE
-Friday, Nov. 22 in St. Cloud: Listen Live (WBHR-660 AM/95.7 FM) | Live Stats | Live Video
-Saturday, Nov. 23 in Northfield: Listen Live (WBHR-660 AM/95.7 FM) | Live Stats | Live Video

A LOOK AT THE JOHNNIES: Saint John's (4-1, 2-0 MIAC) recorded a pair of non-conference wins last week at the HBNHC.

at Saint John's 3, then-No. 15 Wisconsin-River Falls 0 (Nov. 14)
Senior forward Jackson Sabo (Rosemount, Minn.) gave SJU an early 1-0 lead with his first goal of the season and 10th of his career 5:56 into the game. A shot from sophomore defenseman Parker Gnos (Excelsior, Minn.) from the left point was deflected by a UWRF player to the stick of sophomore forward Chris Kernan (Maple Grove, Minn.), who unleashed a backhanded shot toward the net and Sabo redirected to the back of the net.

Junior forward Rob Christy (St. Paul, Minn.) made it 2-0 with his third collegiate goal 2:27 into the second period. Senior forward Cody Carlson (Buffalo, Minn.) won the offensive-zone faceoff back to junior defenseman Michael Spinner (Prior Lake, Minn.), who ripped a shot from the point off the pipe. The carrom bounced to an open Christy on the right side of the net.

Sophomore forward Cam Boche (Lakeville, Minn.) extended the lead with his third goal of the season and fifth of his career – a wrister from the left faceoff circle – with 6:10 left in the second frame.

The Falcons recorded the third period's first 15 shots on goal, finishing with a 24-3 barrage on net in the frame, but could not get the puck past junior goaltender Jon Howe (Chanhassen, Minn.). Howe finished with a career-high 44 saves for his second collegiate shutout and 10th career win.

at Saint John's 3, Wisconsin-Stout 1 (Nov. 16)
Sophomore forward Logan Lyke (Medina, Minn.) gave SJU a 1-0 lead with his fifth collegiate goal (10th point) with 5:27 left in the first period. Senior captain Matt DeRosa (Alpharetta, Ga.) charged up the right side of the ice and sent a pretty feed near the end line to a one-timer for Lyke at the left side of the net.

Nicholas Stevens tied the game for Stout with a power-play goal, the first allowed by SJU this season, on a deflection in front 2:39 into the second period.

The Johnnies answered, however, with a pair of goals to take a 3-1 lead into the second intermission. Boche scored what proved to be the game-winning goal, on the power play, with 5:22 left in the frame. 

Senior forward Spencer Rudrud (Eden Prairie, Minn.) made it 3-1 when he intercepted an errant Blue Devil pass in front of the net for an easy goal, his first of the season and 11th as a Johnnie, with 3:06 remaining in the second.

Senior goaltender Bailey Huber (Mahtomedi, Minn.) made 34 saves, including five during a 6-on-4 penalty kill for the game's final 1:34, in the win. 

The Blue Devils posted a 35-30 advantage in shots, thanks to a 15-7 margin in the third period, but went 1-for-6 on the man advantage.

DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Howe was named the MIAC Men's Hockey Defensive Player of the Week on Monday (Nov. 18) for his 44-save performance in last Thursday's shutout of Wisconsin-River Falls. The shutout was the first for SJU against River Falls in 42 meetings on the ice and the 44 saves were the most by a Johnnie in a shutout since Andrew Lindgren '20 recorded 44 in a 2-0 win over Gustavus Adolphus on Feb. 14, 2019. Howe is 2-0 with a 1.00 GAA and a .973 save percentage (72 saves) so far this season.

RECEIVING VOTES: The Johnnies received votes in both the USCHO.com and D-III Hockey News polls on Monday (Nov. 18).

STAT COMPARISONS
Scoring Offense
-SJU, 3.00
-STO, 3.00

GAA
-SJU, 1.80
-STO, 3.62

Power Play
-STO, 22.2 percent (4-for-18)
-SJU, 20.0 percent (3-for-15)

Penalty Kill
-SJU, 93.3 percent (14-for-15)
-STO, 83.3 percent (20-for-24)

A LOOK AT THE OLES: St. Olaf (2-3-1, 1-1-0 MIAC) topped Gustavus Adolphus 3-1 last Friday (Nov. 15) at home but settled for the series split with a high-scoring, 6-5 loss the following night in St. Peter. Senior forward Connor Kalthoff leads the team in assists (5) and points (7), while classmate Jonathan Young touts a team-best four goals with two on the power play. Three STO goaltenders have combined for a 3.62 GAA and a .893 save percentage (184 saves) so far this season.

LAST SEASON: SJU ended the 2023-24 season in February with a pair of losses to St. Olaf.

St. Olaf 3, at Saint John's 1 (Feb. 8)
Following a scoreless first period, Kernan put SJU on the scoreboard first with his first collegiate goal 11:47 into the second. Kernan's initial shot from the slot was blocked by an Ole defender, but the puck deflected to senior forward Garrett Smith (Eden Prairie, Minn.), who passed it back to Kernan in front of the net.

The Oles, however, responded with three-straight goals. Troy Bowditch tied the game 56 seconds after Kernan's tally and Jack Boxer gave the visitors, who were fresh off their bye week, the lead 1:29 later. Young made it 3-1 with 1:14 remaining in the frame.

The Johnnies had an extra attacker on the ice for the final 2:16 and looked to have cut their deficit to one with 55.6 seconds left in regulation, but the referee blew the play dead with the puck loose in the crease. 

Howe made 22 saves in the loss. The Johnnies posted a 9-3 shot advantage in the third period to even the game's total at 25-25.

at St. Olaf 7, Saint John's 1 (Feb. 9)
Camden Benson gave St. Olaf a 1-0 lead 5:10 into the game and added two more, 1:23 apart, in the second period.  

Smith put SJU on the scoreboard with his fourth goal of the season and fifth of his career with 4:16 left in the second period, but the Oles sandwiched the second intermission with a pair of goals. Parker Casey lit the lamp with 54 seconds left in the second period and Kalthoff made it 5-1 just nine seconds into the third.

Tony Leahy scored an empty-net goal with 8:38 remaining in regulation and Cody Sherman ended the game's scoring with a power-play goal 21 seconds later.

Huber made 21 saves in the loss as STO recorded a 28-24 advantage in shots.

SERIES HISTORY: SJU is 54-30-5 against St. Olaf since the 1984-85 season, including a 15-7-2 record in the last 24 meetings overall and a 20-10-4 mark in the last 34 games on the Johnnies' home ice.