Box Score

ST. CLOUD, Minn. – Saint John's hockey advanced to the MIAC Playoff Championship with a 4-1 win over Bethel on Saturday night, Feb. 28, at the Herb Brooks National Hockey Center (HBNHC).

SJU (16-6-4, 10-3-3 MIAC) broke a 1-1 tie with the game's final three goals for the victory.

Junior forward Chris Kernan (Maple Grove, Minn.) scored two goals, including what proved to be the game-winner in the second period, and senior goaltender Jon Howe (Chanhassen, Minn.) made a career-high 51 saves to improve to 15-5-4 on the year.

The Johnnies host Gustavus Adolphus (18-7-1, 12-4-0 MIAC) for the postseason title and the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA Division III Tournament at 7 p.m. next Saturday, March 7, at the HBNHC in St. Cloud. The Gusties won their semifinal with a 6-1 score over Saint Mary's earlier Saturday.

SJU scored first midway through the first period, as assistant captain Conner Couet (St. Michael, Minn.) converted on the power play at the 10:31 mark. The Johnnies set up their unit in the Bethel zone after the faceoff and passed the puck around the perimeter. Couet, junior forward Jack Wandmacher (St. Louis Park, Minn.) and junior forward Jackson Bisson (Edina, Minn.) exchanged passes until the senior defender found a lane to the net, ripping the puck into the top left corner for the first goal of the game and his third of the season.

Connor Brazil tied the game for BU (14-12-1, 9-7-0 MIAC) with 2:39 remaining in the frame after he stole the puck from an SJU player in front of his own bench and skated in on net.



Couet started SJU's second scoring play of the night, breaking the puck out of the Johnnies' zone after Howe left it for him at the side of the net. Couet weaved through the neutral zone and dished the puck to Kernan before pulling the Bethel defense with him on the offensive zone entry. Kernan found the middle of the ice and the back of the net for his eighth of the season and the 2-1 lead.

SJU took control of the final period, extending its lead to two halfway through the final frame. Junior forward Cam Boche (Lakeville, Minn.) won a scrum in the corner against two Bethel d-men, moving the puck out to the slot where it missed the first Johnnie, but found a wide-open Kernan for his second of the night. 

Junior forward Jackson Borst (Edina, Minn.) delivered the punctuation mark, scoring an empty netter from the red line with 1:09 left for the 4-1 final.