Saint John's hockey hosts two more non-conference games this week at the Herb Brooks National Hockey Center in St. Cloud, beginning with a 7 p.m. puck-drop against Beloit (Wis.) on Thursday, Jan. 8. SJU then faces Wisconsin-Superior at 7 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 10.

LIVE COVERAGE (Both Games): Listen Live (WBHR-660 AM) | Live Stats | Live Video

A LOOK AT THE JOHNNIES: Saint John's (6-2-3, 3-1-2 MIAC) swept then-No. 12 Trine (Ind.), 3-2 and 4-2, last weekend (Jan. 2-3) at the neutral-site Municipal Athletic Complex (MAC) in St. Cloud.

Saint John's 3, then-No. 12 Trine (Ind.) 2 (Jan. 2)
Down 2-1, junior forward Logan Lyke (Medina, Minn.) scored a pair of goals in the second period and senior goaltender Jon Howe (Chanhassen, Minn.) made 40 saves, including 19 in a clean third period for the win.

Sophomore forward Jordan Newpower (Lino Lakes, Minn.) gave the Johnnies an early 1-0 lead with his fourth goal of the season 6:51 into the game. Junior defenseman Parker Gnos (Excelsior, Minn.) walked the puck around the zone and sent it to classmate Jackson Borst (Edina, Minn.), who deflected the puck out of Trine's control and to Newpower at the bottom hash for the clean look.

Luke deVries tied the contest at 1-1 for the Thunder with a breakaway goal halfway through the frame (10:07) and Logan Furstenau put them ahead on the power play, his sixth tally of the season, with 1:34 left. Trine entered the game at 7.1 percent (3-for-42) on the man advantage.

The second period belonged to Lyke, who tallied the equalizer and game-winning goal. His first of the frame came at the 10:03 mark from Newpower and Borst. The three linemates cycled the puck in the corner of the Trine zone before Newpower made a pass out to the circle for Lyke.

The go-ahead goal, Lyke's fifth of the season, was a breakaway wrister with 53 seconds remaining thanks to a takeaway from junior forward Jack Wandmacher (St. Louis Park, Minn.) on Trine's leading scorer.

Trine dominated the third period, where shot attempts were 34-2 (19-1 on net). SJU did not have a shot attempt until three minutes were left on the clock. The Johnnies blocked 14 shots (to the Thunder's four), including nine in the third period.

Saint John's 4, then-No. 12 Trine (Ind.) 2 (Jan. 3)
The Johnnies responded to a 2-1 deficit in the second period with three-consecutive goals, while Howe made a career-high 46 saves – 86 on the weekend – between the pipes.

Junior forward Jackson Bisson (Edina, Minn.) got SJU rolling early in the game, tallying his fourth goal and 10th point of the season just 1:02 after the first puck drop. After junior forward Jack Wandmacher (St. Louis Park, Minn.) and senior captain Mason Campbell (Rosemount, Minn.) broke the puck out of the zone, Bisson made space for himself before rifling a shot at the Trine goaltender from the circle. His puck trickled through the arm of Ronnie Petrucci to put SJU ahead early.

Keiton Klein evened the score before the end of the first with a power-play goal at the 17:34 mark for a 1-1 deadlock at the first intermission.

Trine then put the Johnnies down 2-1 in the second period for the second game in a row, as Brody Simko gave his team its only lead of the game 6:28 after the break. 

Once again, though, the Thunder were met with Lyke, who scored his third goal of the weekend to tie the game at two apiece. Senior defenseman Conner Couet (St. Michael, Minn.) fed Lyke a long pass through the neutral zone, and the junior wheeled the edge of the zone before roofing the puck for his sixth of the season.

Just over a minute later, freshman defenseman Cashen Naeve (Independence, Minn.) scored from the point off a Jordan Larkee (St. Paul, Minn.) faceoff win and Carter Krenke (Bloomington, Minn.) pass from the half-wall. 

Saint John's carried the 3-2 lead into the third period and iced the cake with an empty netter from junior forward Jackson Borst (Edina, Minn.) and a perfect period from Howe to seal the victory.

Nine different Johnnies recorded a point in Saturday's outing, led by Campbell's two assists. Howe has now made 40 or more saves in four different wins this season, while his record in net improves to 6-1-3. The 46 saves are the most by a Johnnie goaltender in a game since Bailey Huber '25 made 52 in a 1-1 tie at Utica (N.Y.) on Nov. 24, 2023.

ATHLETE OF THE WEEK: Howe was named the MIAC Men's Hockey Defensive Player of the Week on Monday (Jan. 5) for his performance in last weekend's sweep of Trine. The honor was Howe's second this season and third of his career. He is now 6-1-3 with a 2.45 GAA and .933 save percentage (349 saves) in 10 starts this season. The .933 save percentage is good for second in NCAA Division III among those with 300 saves or more, while the 2.45 GAA is eighth nationally among goaltenders with 600 minutes played or more.

LYKE TYME: Lyke scored three goals with a team-leading +5 in the Johnnies' sweep of No. 12 Trine last weekend. Down 2-1 in the second period in both games, Lyke provided the game-tying goal each contest and added the game-winning goal in Friday's 3-2 victory. He currently leads the team in goals (6) and is tied for third in points (10).

STATISTICAL COMPARISONS
Scoring Offense
-SJU, 3.64 gpg.
-UWS, 3.08 gpg.
-BC, 2.00 gpg.

GAA
-UWS, 2.52
-SJU, 2.76
-BC, 4.22

Power Play
-SJU, 21.9 percent (7-for-32)
-UWS, 19.6 percent (10-for-51)
-BC, 13.0 percent (6-for-46)

Penalty Kill
-UWS, 82.7 percent (43-for-52)
-BC, 80.4 percent (37-for-46)
-SJU, 69.2 percent (27-for-39)

A LOOK AT THE BUCCANEERS: Beloit (2-9-1, 1-5-0 WIAC) saw its losing streak extend to six games with a 4-1 defeat on Sunday (Jan. 4) at Lawrence (Wis.). The Buccaneers visit Wisconsin-Superior tonight (Jan. 7) before making the trek to St. Cloud Thursday. Freshman forward Landon Adams (0g/5a) and junior forward Valerii Kneib (3g/2a) lead Beloit, which is in its first year as a hockey program, with five points apiece. Four goaltenders have made a start in net this season, led by Andrew Yocum (1-5-0 record, 3.87 GAA, .915 save percentage) and his six games.

A LOOK AT THE YELLOWJACKETS: Wisconsin-Superior (7-5-1, 3-3-0 WIAC) swept a pair of road games at Beloit (Wis.), 3-1 and 6-3, back on Dec. 12-13. The two teams complete the three-game, conference series tonight (Jan. 7) in Superior, Wis. Junior forward Daniel Rozsival leads the team in goals (6) and points (11), while senior forward Chris Ishmael is close behind with a team-best seven assists and 10 points. Senior goaltender Jan Skorpik is 4-3 with a 2.50 GAA and a .911 save percentage (184 saves) in eight games (seven starts) this season.

LAST SEASON: Superior scored 14 seconds into the 3-on-3 overtime to hand SJU 2-1 defeat last Jan. 11 (2025). UWS won the faceoff and the defenseman fed Rozsival, who sped up the left side and centered a one-timer to Justin Dauphinais for the game-winner.

The defensive chess match contrasted the previous evening's high-scoring results, as Superior defeated Concordia-Moorhead 7-1 and the Johnnies earned a 6-3 win at Northland (Wis.).

Forward Jackson Sabo '25 tied the game at 1-1 for SJU with his second goal of the season with 9:23 remaining in regulation. Senior defenseman Zach Enebak (Lakeville, Minn.) ripped a shot from the point and the rebound trickled to Sabo on the doorstep to the goaltender's left for the rebound goal.

Rozsival broke the scoreless stalemate for Superior with his fifth goal of the season 5:08 into the third period. A defensive-zone turnover along the boards led to a centering pass from Dauphinais to Rozsival in the slot.

Howe made 39 saves in the loss for SJU, which went 0-for-4 on the power play and was out-shot 41-34.

SERIES HISTORY: The Yellowjackets have won each of the last three meetings against the Johnnies, though SJU was victorious in the four prior to that stretch.