GRAND FORKS, N.D. - For a WCHA-leading eighth consecutive season, the Fighting Sioux are off to the Red Baron WCHA Final Five next weekend in St. Paul.
Sophomore forward Jason Gregoire (Winnipeg, Manitoba) had a goal and two assists to lead UND to an inspired 4-1 win over rival Minnesota tonight in Game 3 of their WCHA playoff first round best-of-three series at Ralph Engelstad Arena.
Gregoire's deflection of a Danny Kristo (Fr., Eden Prairie, Minn.) shot with 3:42 left in the second period snapped a 1-1 tie and held up as the eventual game-winner.
Fifth-ranked UND erased much of the drama in the third period, outshooting the Gophers 11-4 and sealing the win with a Matt Frattin (Jr., Edmonton, Alberta) power-play goal at 11:24, followed by a Brett Hextall (Manhattan Beach, Calif.) empty netter with 43 seconds remaining.
For their parts, Gregoire and Frattin were named the game's first and second stars, respectively.
Frattin's goal was his fourth of the series, tops among all players on either team, and his ninth in the last nine games. The junior right winger was a force up front for the Sioux, throwing 20 shot attempts on goal, including 11 in the third period alone.
"We just played the game we wanted to play," Frattin said. "Get pucks deep, grinding down low...we didn't really want to turn too many pucks over because they are a great transition team. Just get pucks to the net and we got a couple of lucky ones in the third (period)."
UND opened the scoring just 4:59 into the game when Sioux defenseman Ben Blood (Jr., Plymouth, Minn.) beat Gopher goalie Alex Kangas with a wrist shot from the high slot while on the power-play.
The Sioux dominated the first period, registering the game's first 10 shots, but found themselves in a 1-1 tie when Jake Hansen's low shot, Minnesota's first of the game, from the middle of the high slot found its way through traffic and beat Sioux goalie Brad Eidsnsess (So., Chestermere, Alberta).
Minnesota had a golden opportunity to take the lead when Frattin received a five-minute major for charging five minutes into the second period, but the Sioux held the Gophers to just three shots on goal and killed the major, bringing the 11,627 in attendance to their feet for a rousing, sustained standing ovation.
"As hard as those guys (penalty killers) worked, what a charge that type of reaction from the crowd gives our players, our bench and our team. They (the fans) were such a big part of this win tonight," said UND head coach Dave Hakstol.
"The penalty killers did a great job, the goaltending was very good and that allowed us to move forward and continue the momentum."
Although the Gophers held a 13-5 edge in shots on goal in the second period, it was the Sioux who would take a lead into the second intermission thanks to Gregoire's deflection goal, his team-leading 19th of the season.
Frattin potted his ninth of the season at 11:24 of the third period, gathering his own wrist shot in the right circle and beating Kangas with a wrister from the faceoff dot.
Then with Kangas on the bench for an extra attacker, Gregoire led a 2-on-1 rush through the neutral zone and threaded a pass to Hextall on the right win, and Hextall iced the game with an empty-netter, snapping a six-game goal-scoring drought.
Kangas finished the night with 25 saves, while Eidsness countered with 18 and was named the game's third star by the print media.
UND, now 22-12-5, prepares for a quick turnaround for a Thursday afternoon tilt against UMD, against whom the Sioux went 3-1-0 during the regular season.
Notes: Kristo's assist on the Gregoire goal extended his scoring streak to 10 games, the longest by a Sioux player this season. Kristo has six goals and seven assists during that stretch ... Gregoire has eight points (4g, 4a) in his last five games ... UND is 7-0 in WCHA first round Game 3s since the league switched to the Final Five format in 1993. The Sioux have outscored their opponents 35-8 in those games, all of which were at home ... Senior forwards Chris VandeVelde (Moorhead, Minn.) and Darcy Zajac (Winnipeg, Manitoba) played in their final home games as Sioux. VandeVelde had an assist, his 112th career points, to tie Darcy Mitani (1992-96) for 58th on UND's all-time scoring list.
~GO SIOUX~
