Each week, USCHO.com will pick the top 10 moments from the past weekend in our Monday 10 feature.
1. Denver keeps unbeaten streak going
The country’s hottest team kept its unbeaten streak intact last weekend.
No. 4 Denver took four of six NCHC road points from Omaha, although both games will count as ties for NCAA purposes.
The two draws extended the Pioneers unbeaten streak to a nation-best nine games (6-0-3).
Denver never led Saturday but forced overtime thanks to Bobby Brink’s goal with 13.8 seconds remaining in regulation. The Pioneers won the shootout and ended the weekend tied with Minnesota Duluth for second in the conference between North Dakota.
2. Working overtime
Minnesota State needed an extra period to help keep its seven-game winning streak alive, but the Mavericks weren’t the only WCHA team that needed extra time Saturday.
Three of the four conference games in the WCHA went to overtime Saturday, as Minnesota State beat Bowling Green 3-2, while Michigan Tech and Bemidji State and Alabama Huntsville each ended in ties.
For the Mavericks, the win not only extended the country’s longest winning streak, but helped Minnesota State open up a six-point lead over second-place Bemidji State, who is 5-0-1 in its last six games.
3. Staying golden
It’s been a good season for Sacred Heart and a rough season for Canisius, but those roles were reversed last weekend, as the Golden Griffins had an impressive weekend on the road against the Pioneers.
Friday’s game ended as a tie for NCAA purposes. But Canisius won the three-on-three overtime and then tied a season best with five goals in a win on Saturday.
The weekend series extended the Golden Griffins’ unbeaten streak to eight games (4-0-4), which is second best stretch in the country behind Denver.
4. Huskies coming alive
It’s been a tough season for last season’s No.1 overall seed in the NCAA tournament, but St. Cloud State had a big home sweep of Minnesota Duluth to help the Huskies move into fifth place in the NCHC.
“There was a lot of energy in the building, obviously the fans carried us through in the third,” St. Cloud State coach Bret Larson said after Saturday’s 2-0 win over the Bulldogs. “They really got us going.”
It was the second NCHC sweep of the season for the Huskies, and their sixth straight win over the Bulldogs in St. Cloud. Huskies junior David Hrenak made 27 saves for his eighth career shutout and is now tied with Charlie Lindgren for the second-most shutouts in school history.
5. Top five unbeaten
It was a good weekend for the top five teams in the latest USCHO.com poll.
In addition to Denver, Cornell, North Dakota, Minnesota State and Boston College all posted unbeaten weekends, although the Big Red and Fighting Hawks each finished with a tie on Friday.
6. Granite State heating up
It’s been a good month of hockey for New Hampshire’s only two Division I teams.
Dartmouth swept Clarkson and St. Lawrence at home to move to 6-1-1 in the second half, while New Hampshire split with Providence and its 4-2 since the semester break. Both teams are creeping up in the PairWise as well. The Wildcats end the weekend at No. 17, while the Big Green are 19th.
If the season ended today, Dartmouth’s .639 winning percentage would be the best overall mark in coach Bob Gaudet’s 23 seasons with the school.
7. Hall pass
Yale’s best offensive weekend of the season was highlighted by a strong effort by the country’s top goal scorer.
Curtis Hall scored twice each on Friday and Saturday to help the Bulldogs to a four-point weekend at Ingalls Rink. The sophomore and Boston Bruins draft pick has 12 goals 13 games, and leads Division I with 0.92 goals per game.
8. Big Ten standings tighten
It’s shaping up to be quite the race in the Big 10, as the top three teams are separated by one point.
Ohio State is in first with 26 points, while Michigan State and Penn State are tied for second with 25 points. The Buckeyes tied and beat Notre Dame, while the Spartans split with Wisconsin and the Nittany Lions lost to and tied with Michigan.
Penn State and Michigan State will meet for a two-game series next weekend.
9. Staying hot
Arizona State is making a bid to receive an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament as an independent for the second season in a row.
The Sun Devils swept RIT at home to extend their winning streak to four games and move to 11th in the PairWise. Arizona State will travel to Clarkson for an important two-game series this weekend.
The Golden Knights are currently eighth in the PairWise.
10. Egle hits 100 points
Haralds Egle’s 100th career point helped Clarkson beat Harvard 5-3 Saturday and return home with an ECAC road split.
The senior assisted on Josh Dunne’s goal to make it 2-1 Clarkson midway through the first, and then scored a power-play goal later in the period to extend the lead to 3-1 and record his 100th career point.
Egle, who has one of the better shots in the league, leads the Golden Knights with 11 goals this season.
