Beavers and Nanooks battle for top spot in the WCHA
The cream of the Western Collegiate Hockey Association crop will be on display this weekend as first-place Bemidji State University hosts the University of Alaska, which is tied with Minnesota State University, Mankato for second place in the league standings, in a two-game series at Sanford Center.
The Beavers are unbeaten on their home ice this season, at 4-0-2, and open the series with the Nanooks unbeaten in their last five games (4-0-1), while out scoring their opponents 22-7 during that run.
Adam Brady has been a vital cog in the BSU attack. The senior co-captain has at least one point in each of BSU’s last 10 games (6g-7a) and leads the team in scoring with 16 points (8g-8a). Brady also has a team-best four power-play goals for a unit that is 10-for-48 (.208) on the season and is 7-for-19 (.368) in its last four games.
Zach Driscoll has handled the bulk of the goaltending duties for the Beavers this season. Starting each of BSU’s last 10 games, he leads the team with a 7-3-2 record, a 1.56 goals against average and a .939 save percentage. He is currently sixth in the nation in goals against average, while he ranks seventh in save percentage.
Driscoll and the BSU penalty-kill unit have been stingy all season. They have allowed just two power play goals in 42 opponent opportunities (.952) to rank first in all of Division I. The Beavers snuffed out 26 straight opponent man-advantage chances since surrendering their last power-play goal in the third period of their Nov. 2 contest.
Alaska arrives in Bemidji, Minn., at 9-9-0 overall and 7-5-0-0 in WCHA play. Last weekend the Nanooks hosted Michigan Tech and split a WCHA series winning the opener, 4-3, before dropping the finale 2-1.
Junior forward Max Newton leads Alaska with a team-high six goals and 12 points (6g-6a), while senior Colton Leiter has a team-best seven helpers.
Senior Anton Martinsson has occupied the Nanooks’ net for the majority of the season. In 11 appearances, he is 5-5-0 with a 2.34 goals against average and .922 save percentage.