OXFORD, Ohio — Miami won’t host a playoff series this season, and the RedHawks still aren’t guaranteed a berth in the NCHC Tournament, heading into the final weekend of the regular season.
No. 9 Minn.-Duluth scored three unanswered second-period goals en route to a 4-1 win over Miami at Cady Arena on Saturday, sweeping the RedHawks and nearly ensuring itself home-ice advantage for the first round the conference championship.
It was the fifth straight loss for Miami (17-13-2), which wraps up its regular season with a series in Omaha next weekend, and the RedHawks could still finish anywhere from fifth to ninth in the conference.
RECAP: After a scoreless first period, Minn.-Duluth (20-12) took the lead 4:29 into the second period when Ty Hanson fanned on a wrist shot from the inside edge of the right faceoff circle that trickled to Aaron Pionk at the right side of the net as a power play expired.
Just 2:27 later, the Bulldogs’ Hunter Anderson was credited with cleaning up a rebound at the right side of the cage to make it 2-0.
With 3:39 left in that frame, a wrister from the high slot by UMD’s Scout Truman beat MU goalie Matteo Drobac on the stick side with a second left on a 5-on-3, extending the Bulldogs’ lead to three.
Miami scored its lone goal 52 seconds into the third period. Kocha Delic took a lateral pass in the neutral zone from David Deputy, penetrated the offensive zone and fired a quick wrister from the left faceoff dot that beat Minn.-Duluth goalie Ethan Dahlmeir on the stick side.
The Bulldogs’ Max Plante sealed it on and length-of-the-ice empty netter with 1:09 remaining.
STANDINGS: After earning zero points this weekend, Miami dropped to 26th in the all-important NPI rankings (formerly PairWise).
After the completion of all Saturday’s games, the RedHawks at tied with Colorado College for sixth place in the NCHC with 25 points. Arizona State is at 22 and Omaha 21.
One team will not qualify the eight-team tournament in the nine-team NCHC.
More to come on Sunday…
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