Extremely close games has been an early-2024 theme for St. Cloud State.
Five of the Huskies’ last seven games have gone to overtime, and its two-goal differential in one of the others was due to a late empty netter.
Miami’s lone home conference win in 2022-23 — a 5-0 victory on Dec. 10, 2022 — came against SCSU, although the RedHawks are only 2-6-2 in their last 10 games against the Huskies in Oxford.
VFTG takes a look at the upcoming series:
WHO: No. 16 St. Cloud State Huskies (12-9-5, 8-4-4 NCHC) at Miami RedHawks (7-17-2, 1-14-1).
WHERE: Cady Arena (3,049), Oxford, Ohio.
WHEN: Both games — 7:07 p.m.
ALL-TIME SERIES: St. Cloud State leads, 32-19-6.
ST. CLOUD STATE RADIO: Both nights — KNSI-AM (1450) and KNSI-FM (99.3), St. Cloud, Minn.
MIAMI RADIO: Both nights — WKBV-AM (1490), Richmond, Ind.; Saturday — WMOH-AM (1450), Hamilton, Ohio.
STREAMING: NCHC.tv ($).
NOTES: St. Cloud State finished the 2023 portion of its schedule 6-1-1 but is 1-4-3 since the calendar flipped, with two shootout wins.
Of course, the Huskies’ first eight contests of 2024 have been against Denver, North Dakota, Omaha and a rejuvenated Colorado College.
Little has changed in SCSU’s MO since it dispatched Miami, 3-2 and 6-0 in the teams’ NCHC opening series in early November.
The Huskies are allowing just 27.3 shots per game, and Colorado College transfer Dominic Basse has been a workhorse in net, logging 1,292 minutes.
Basse has a 2.65 goals-against average and a mercurial .901 save percentage. Swedish freshman Isak Posch has excelled in limited action as a backup, posting a 1.88 GAA and save percentage of .938.
Graduate senior and Union transfer Dylan Anhorn has been a key reason for SCSU’s defensive success, as the blueliner leads the team in points (24), assists (20) and plus-minus (15).
Juniors Josh Luedtke (2-10-12) and Jack Peart (2-5-7) have been steady two-way D-men, and youngsters Cooper Wylie and Warren Clark have also been key shut-down cogs on the SCSU blueline.
Up front, fifth-year senior Kyler Kupka is enjoying a career season with 11 goals and 12 assists for 23 points, second-best on the team and two points shy of his collegiate high.
Veeti Miettinen leads the team with 13 goals, and him and his brother, Verner Miettinen, put a hurting on Miami when the RedHawks visited the Huskies three months ago.
Nashville draftee Adam Ingram is having an excellent sophomore season, going 7-15-22 including five points in his last four games.
And of course graduate senior Zach Okabe is always a scoring threat, having netted 48 collegiate goals including 18 in last season. He has six markers and 11 assists in 2023-24.
Miami is still battled numerous key injuries, but it appears Matthew Barbolini and Raimonds Vitolins — both first liners — are at least questionable for this series after missing both games vs. North Dakota.
Barbolini is second on the team in points (21) and first in assists (12) and has led MU in goals each of the previous two seasons.
F William Hallen and G Logan Neaton are still doubtful, D Michael Feenstra may return by the end of the season but is still out with a UBI, and F Frankie Carogioiello appears to be done for the year.
The RedHawks have lost six straight games and are in last place in the NCHC, 14 points clear of the field with a 1-14-1 conference record.
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