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Beavers looking to recapture six-seed magic

MSU will try for first title since No. 6 squad’s 2019 finish

Ryan Ladika/MDN Freshman Carter Barley (82) skates with possession of the puck during MSU's March 18 contest.

Just days after the calendar flipped to March, the Minot State hockey team was in the midst of 13 days off between its two-game sweep of Williston State and a gauntlet of a remaining schedule against two of the program’s biggest rivals, the Jamestown Jimmies and the University of Mary Marauders.

Riding a 12-game win streak overall and having suffered only two losses since the holiday break, head coach Wade Regier described the upcoming challenge as “just what the doctor ordered.”

Jamestown was the only team to best the Beavers, as all three of their losses at that point came at the hands of the Jimmies. The team had yet to square off against Mary, but Regier has consistently sung the Marauders’ praises as well. With the national tournament on the horizon, he knew he wanted his team up against steep competition to keep his players locked in and motivated for the games on the biggest stage.

The Beavers went on to win four of their final six games following the extended break, a stretch that included a tie with the Marauders 1-1 in Bismarck March 10 and what Regier called the program’s “worst loss in the last decade,” a 7-3 loss to Jamestown at home eight days later.

He was not at all discouraged by the team’s unsteady play following the bye week, though, describing the lopsided defeat as a “good wake-up call” that ignited a dominant finish to the regular season.

“We got really complacent,” Regier said. “We had been undefeated in 12 games. So we had a really good couple of weeks of practice leading into our last two games, where I felt like we played two complete games. We played very well on the road and we did a lot of the little things right, and then the same thing on Wednesday again. They scored first, we didn’t panic and we just got back on track and kept doing our things that we need to do. I was proud of our overall effort.”

Minot State concluded its 2020-21 regular season outscoring Jamestown by an aggregate nine goals to four in a home-and-home series April 6-7, capping off a 25-3-2 season. For its toils, the team was awarded the No. 6 seed entering the 2021 ACHA Division I National Tournament, held in Chesterfield, Missouri this year.

Devoted Beavers hockey fans will remember the eventual 2019 national championship-winning squad was also tagged with the sixth seed entering the dance two years ago. Minot State defeated the Iowa State Cyclones 3-1 in the title game March 26 to secure the second national championship in program history, and the first since 2013.

This year’s squad is hoping that six seed still carries a little bit of magic.

“I wasn’t on the team when they won a couple years back,” goaltender Chad Duran recalled. “But I know they went into the tournament No. 6 in the country. That’s what we’re going in now as, so I’m very happy with that. Overall I’m really excited to get into the tournament, everyone seems to be firing on all cylinders right now.”

The team’s first test Saturday afternoon is an unfamiliar one. Minot State will square off against Calvin University in the opening round, a private Christian university based in Grand Rapids, Michigan.

The Calvin Knights were unable to begin their season until mid-February, and the team completed an abbreviated 12-game slate with a 4-7-1 final record. Because the upcoming matchup will be the first-ever meeting between the two programs, Regier admitted they did not know much about Calvin but was excited to watch the film and get preparations underway this week.

“They’re fairly young, but just on the surface what we do know is they have one of the best players in the country, Jared Virtanen. He’s a top-five player in the country, he played really good junior hockey and he’s been an elite player for them for the last four years. I think if we can neutralize him, which is what I hear has been the case, it gives you a chance to win. So it’s going to be a lot of unknown, but for us we have to get after it right away.”

Virtanen, a 24-year-old, 6’1″ forward, found the back of the net seven times and added three more assists for 10 total points through his team’s 12 games this year, good for the top spot among Knights skaters.

In order to overcome the threat posed by Virtanen, Regier will be looking to his defense and goaltending to continue the stellar play the two units have displayed last few months. Minot State has allowed three or more goals just once since Jan. 23, a source of pride for the blue-liners.

“I think the biggest thing for us has probably been our buy-in to our systems,” defenseman Eric Soar said. “A lot of guys have really come a long way since the start of the season where we were having little mental lapses, but I think we’ve really tightened that up and that’s what we’ve been trying to work on, especially going into nationals. That’s going to be what we need for success.”

The Beavers will lean on their remaining veterans from the 2019 squad to guide the way through the challenges that await them this weekend, hoping to build momentum that will aid them under the brightest lights. Their objective is a simple one.

“Get a national championship,” Duran said with a grin. “As long as we keep our sights on that one specific goal, we’ll be good to go.”

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