Western Michigan Takes Down North Dakota 4-2 In NCHC Semifinal

The Western Michigan University Broncos and the University of North Dakota Fighting Hawks played the second semifinal game of the day at the National Collegiate Hockey Conference (NCHC) Frozen Faceoff on Friday evening, Mar. 21. The game started out with a goal by the Broncos that was returned by the Fighting Hawks and it remained close until the very end, when the Broncos pulled away and took the win 4-2. 

Game Recap 

It was the second tightly played game of the day, but the Broncos broke through first with a goal by Alex Bump. He picked the puck off a Fighting Hawks player from behind, turned around, and got the shot unassisted to take the early 1-0 lead. The Fighting Hawks answered back late in the first on a power play to tie it. Sacha Boisvert scored the goal, and Owen McLaughlin and Cameron Berg assisted him. 

Both sides had some strong chances, but neither found the back of the net in the second period, and the score remained tied as they went into the final period. The Broncos got the upper hand in the third period with a goal by Grant Slukynsky to go ahead 2-1, and Liam Valente assisted him. The Fighting Hawks decided to pull their goaltender, which ended up in an empty-net goal for the Broncos, scored by Iiro Hakkarainen, to make it 3-1. 

The game looked to be over at that point, but the Fighting Hawks pulled their goaltender once again and scored a goal to pull back within one. Boisvert scored it for his second of the game, which gave his team some life at the very end. The Fighting Hawks pulled their goaltender one final time, and the Broncos scored again to make it 4-2. Samuel Sjolund, unassisted, recorded the goal, and that was the final goal of the game. 

The Broncos will face the Denver Pioneers on Saturday evening, Mar. 22, in the Championship round of the Frozen Faceoff at the Xcel Energy Center. The Pioneers will be looking to defend their title, while the Broncos will be looking to secure their first.