Well, I correctly picked both semifinal games to raise my postseason record to 28-12 (.700). Just one more game, with me trying to stay over .700 for both the postseason and the regular season. It’s the marquee game that almost everyone has anticipated during the postseason.

Minnesota vs. Wisconsin
I’ve voted these two teams 1-2 for most of the season. They finished 1-2 in the PairWise, and 1-2 in the last USCHO poll. Minnesota won the season series, 2-1-1, with Wisconsin winning the tie in a shootout. The other games were all decided by one goal. The Badgers do have Stephanie McKeough back in the lineup. This game is pretty much a coin flip, and even multiple overtimes wouldn’t surprise me, especially given the goaltending prowess of Wisconsin’s Alex Rigsby and Minnesota’s Noora Räty. I have to take the defending champs, in a total nail-biter. Wisconsin 2-1

It’s down to four teams. In last week’s picks, I went 3-1 (.750), missing only the BC-St. Lawrence game. I seem to have trouble picking BC games of late. For the postseason, I am now 26-12 (.684). Let’s see how I do on the last three games. I’ll pick the semis first, and will update for the finals before Saturday morning.

Boston College vs. Wisconsin
A rematch of last year’s Frozen Four semi, won by the Badgers in a close contest. The problem picking this game is both teams have exhibited a lot of streaky play in recent weeks. I figure that the Badgers’ depth will be too much for the Eagles over 60 minutes, especially since BC has a tendency to go to sleep defensively for about five minutes per game. Wisconsin 4-2

Cornell vs. Minnesota
Before Cornell gave up seven goals to Boston University, I thought this game might be closer. Minnesota’s offensive balance and depth is outstanding. Cornell can’t afford to get into a shootout with the Gophers, because Noora Räty won’t give up eight goals. I expect Cornell to play better this weekend defensively, but fall short. Minnesota 5-2

Four visitors evicted
Saturday’s first round of the NCAA tournament had a little of everything. Whether you like wide-open offense, defense clamping down for 60 minutes, great saves, soft goals, goalie changes, video review, or overtime tension, there was something to offer — and that was just in Ithaca, N.Y. When the goal lights had been illuminated for the last time and the final buzzer sounded, all of the seeded teams advanced. That outcome was the same as last year’s quarterfinals, and in sharp contrast to the slew of upsets in the conference tourneys.

Boston College 6, St. Lawrence 3
In most years, the game at Chestnut Hill would have been called wide open, although on Saturday, another contest gave new meaning to the phrase. Still, by the second intermission at Kelley Rink, each team had held and surrendered a lead.

The Eagles scored the only goal of a fairly even first period. Alex Carpenter and Emily Field combined on a short-handed, two-on-one attempt that was stopped by goaltender Carmen MacDonald. As the Saints continued to arrive on the scene and offer ineffective resistance, the BC duo fired away until MacDonald, in an effort to push the puck away from danger, instead put it on the stick of Carpenter, and the Eagles’ leading scorer sniped a shot upstairs.

Once the second period got underway, St. Lawrence rediscovered the post-season magic that had carried it to the NCAAs. Cracks in the Boston College defense appeared, and after a quick flurry of odd-man rushes and juicy rebounds, SLU led 3-1 just 3:33 into the second stanza.

This time, however, the Saints’ magic faded. MacDonald, who had been the foundation of the team’s ECAC championship, began to wobble. Her glove failed to capture a soft shot by Field, and Boston College was back in it. Defenseman Blake Bolden scored a back-breaking goal with just 11 seconds remaining in the second period, and the game was even. MacDonald’s blocker failed her on a shot from Danielle Welch that snuck into the top corner of the net, and BC owned a lead that would endure. MacDonald on one shot proved more effective without equipment, catching a shot with her bare hand after her glove had been knocked off. The Eagles added an insurance goal plus an empty-net tally for the 6-3 final and a second straight trip to the Frozen Four.

Cornell 8, Boston University 7 — 3OT
Records are made to be broken, and this game succeeded in breaking a few of them. The previous mark of seven goals by one team in an NCAA tournament game was eclipsed; the record of nine goals by two teams combined was obliterated.

Usually, the concept of a team going on a run is used in basketball, not hockey. Discovering runs in limited hockey scoreboard activity requires as much imagination as discovering constellations in the night sky. However, this match saw each team rattle off a string of at least three goals multiple times.

When Kasey Boucher scored at 16:45 of the opening period to make it 3-0, the Terriers had to feel like they were in control. They would learn that no lead was safe, and it took less than seven and a half minutes of game time for the Big Red to put BU on the short end of a 4-3 score. When Marie-Philip Poulin scored later in the period to tie things up, it took just over a minute for Cornell to take a 5-4 lead. By 6:19 of the third period, Rebecca Johnston had completed a hat trick, and the advantage had mounted to 7-4. The Terriers answered with a run that spanned nine minutes and three power plays, and regulation play ended with the unlikely score of 7-7.

Overtime signaled the start of an offensive drought. To that point, the goaltenders had recorded save percentages more likely to be seen in lacrosse. Cornell’s Amanda Mazzotta saved seven of 10 shots, and her day was done after 20 minutes. Replacement Lauren Slebodnick fared no better over the next two periods, yielding four goals against only eight saves. At the other end, Kerrin Sperry was pummeled for all seven goals while stopping 29 shots. Perhaps the goalie coaches showed up for overtime, the team defense tightened, or the attackers were just worn out from all of those post-goal celebrations, but the next 59 minutes and 50 seconds passed with no change in score. Finally, junior defenseman Lauriane Rougeau of the Big Red found the energy to carry the puck end-to-end, and nobody for the Terriers could match her effort. Rougeau cleared the last defender and flicked a backhand that found the five-hole, and Cornell was able to empty the tank on one final celebration.

Minnesota 5, North Dakota 1
In comparison, the games out West were tame affairs, particularly the all-WCHA contest in Minneapolis. The Gophers led for all but the game’s first minute and 28 seconds, and put the game out of reach with a three-goal middle period. Minnesota’s five top-scoring forwards each found the net once, highlighted by the 30th goal of the year for Amanda Kessel on a solo short-handed effort.

As the deficit grew, the only remaining drama was whether North Dakota could snap the shutout string of Noora Räty that had grown to more than four games. UND succeeded in that regard in the final period, but it had to pull its goaltender while on a five-on-three power play to do so.

While the Fighting Sioux were disappointed that their first venture into the NCAA tournament had been brief, they were not shocked by their fate.

“We just ran into a better club,” coach Brian Idalski said. “That’s really the bottom line.”

Wisconsin 3, Mercyhurst 1
A year ago, the Badgers started their march to a fourth NCAA title with a narrow 2-1 quarterfinal win over Minnesota-Duluth. Their 2012 NCAA tournament began in quite similar fashion. Carolyne Prévost staked the hosts to a 1-0 lead 12 minutes into the game, but Kelley Steadman responded for Mercyhurst in the final minute of period two. Twelve minutes later, Prévost struck again. The senior set up Hilary Knight perfectly on a two-on-one rush while short-handed, and Knight doesn’t miss from point-blank range. Wisconsin added a goal into an empty-net and safely advanced to its sixth Frozen Four in seven seasons.

It’s ironic that the winning goal was scored at the Lakers’ expense while their power play was on the ice. Mercyhurst owns the nation’s best conversion percentage, and had not yielded a short-handed goal this season.

Well, my second week in the playoffs I didn’t do so well. Just far too many upsets. I did great the first day, but it was all downhill from there, as I finished 7-5 (.583), dropping to 23-11 (.676). Arlan did a great job previewing the games this weekend, so let’s see if I can pick them properly.

Mercyhurst at Wisconsin
Even though Wisconsin lost to Minnesota-Duluth, I have to think Wisconsin is on a collision course with Minnesota for the NCAA finals. The Badgers are very deep, and while the Bulldogs contained their high-powered offense, I don’t think Mercyhurst will. Wisconsin 4-2

North Dakota at Minnesota
The poor Sioux. They finally make the NCAA Tournament and get to play the same team that has crushed them in two of the last three games. I think this will be closer, but expect the Gophers to prevail. Minnesota 3-2

Boston University at Cornell
A rematch of last year’s Frozen Four game. Though Cornell exacted a measure of revenge by sweeping the Terriers earlier in the season, it was a different Terriers team than the one that hasn’t lost since January. Having said that, when anybody on the other side of the ice doesn’t have “Boston College” on their jerseys, the Terriers haven’t looked nearly as invincible. Cornell 4-2

St. Lawrence at Boston College
I still think that St. Lawrence’s win over BC at the beginning of January is what kicked off the Saints’ incredible run. I haven’t had much luck picking Eagles’ games lately, and while I correctly called St. Lawrence to beat Dartmouth and Harvard, I didn’t see them beating Cornell. I think I’ll pick against BC and then get it wrong. Oh well. St. Lawrence 3-2

Robert Morris celebrates its CHA tournament title

A more equal parity
Our sport has long been hungry for parity. Every time a team has knocked off an opponent ranked a few spots above them in a mid-January game, someone has been quick to herald its arrival.

This past weekend, however, was different. These were games that mattered greatly to both teams. In my memory, only the NCAA quarterfinals in 2007 rivaled this weekend for lack of success by the higher-seeded teams in the postseason.

Four conference tournaments were down to four teams, and the top seed didn’t win even one. While that alone might suggest parity, analysis suggests that none of these upsets were entirely shocking, and that serves to reinforce to a greater extent that the base of power is expanding.

CHA tournament
There are three certainties in this world. Death. Taxes. Mercyhurst claiming every CHA title being contested. I guess we’re now down to just death and taxes.

The semifinals unfolded true to form, with the top-seeded Lakers defeating Syracuse, 4-3, while Robert Morris edged Niagara, 3-2.

Mercyhurst has the country’s most effective power play, converting 28.3 percent of the time. To have any chance in the championship, the Colonials figured to have to stay out of the box. In that regard, they failed miserably. RMU paraded to the box 15 times for 30 minutes, giving that potent power play a dozen opportunities. In fact, the Colonials committed as many penalties as they produced shots on goal, as they could only muster 15 of those as well. Somehow, that proved to be enough.

Katelyn Scott, Thea Imbrogno, and Brianna Delaney scored goals in the trenches, and by the time Bailey Bram converted the Lakers’ second power-play goal of the game with seven seconds remaining, it was only changing the final score, not the fact that the Colonials would win, 3-2, and claim the first championship in program history. Junior Kristen DiCiocco turned away 45 shots and was named tournament MVP.

ECAC Hockey championship
St. Lawrence has accomplished a lot of things over the years, but until Saturday, winning the ECAC tournament had not been one of them. Entering the day, the Saints were 17-0-1 since Thanksgiving against everyone other than Cornell, and 0-2 versus the Big Red. Apparently, SLU has now figured out Cornell as well.

Regular season champion Cornell posted a 5-1 win over Quinnipiac in the semifinal, scoring twice in the last 100 seconds of the middle period to break a 1-1 tie. League Player of the Year Rebecca Johnston scored her team’s first two goals and assisted on the next three.

Meanwhile, fifth-seeded St. Lawrence needed to go to overtime for the second weekend in a row to get by No. 2 seed Harvard, 2-1. Kelly Sabatine was the hero once more, scoring her second of the game at 3:14 of OT. Carmen MacDonald made 29 saves to record the 20th win of her rookie campaign.

In the final, the Saints tweaked the script only slightly. Sabatine scored her third game winner in four games, but struck with 1:50 remaining in regulation this time. Alley Bero scored into an empty net 29 seconds later for the final verdict, 3-1. MacDonald turned away another 33 shots and took the tournament’s Most Outstanding Player designation.

WCHA Final Face-Off
One of the few times fans of the nation’s No. 1 team, Wisconsin, had reason to cheer was when the scoreboard displayed a photo of reigning Patty Kazmaier Award winner Meghan Duggan. The Badgers spent much of their semifinal versus host Minnesota-Duluth looking like a team that suddenly missed its former captain. Newly-crowned conference Player of the Year Brianna Decker did her part, scoring a goal on an electric rush that drew oohs, but that proved insufficient, as the Bulldogs countered with three highlights-reel goals of their own. Jennifer Harss stopped 32 shots in bouncing UW from the bracket.

In North Dakota’s first foray into the league semifinals a year ago, they were shut out, 3-0, by Wisconsin. Its second appearance didn’t go any better. Minnesota’s Sarah Davis celebrated a hat trick, linemate Emily West scored twice, and Noora Räty recorded a 6-0 shutout.

UMD needed one more win to claim the league’s automatic bid and keep alive the dream of reaching the Frozen Four in Duluth. The dream faded as West scored on a power play, Räty completed a perfect weekend by earning tournament MVP recognition, and with a 2-0 win, Minnesota notched its first tournament title since the days when Natalie Darwitz and Krissy Wendell were college players, not high school coaches.

Hockey East Championship
Coming into its semifinal with Providence, top-seed Northeastern was likely haunted by the memory of a game two weeks earlier when the Huskies were unable to solve the Friars’ Genevieve Lacasse in a scoreless tie. Northeastern had the same problem on Saturday, and when PC’s Haley Frade scored 12 seconds into a power play at the end of the second period, the Huskies were in trouble. Not even nine minutes of penalties on the Friars in the third period, including a full two minutes with a five-on-three Northeastern advantage, were enough to best Lacasse and extend the career of Florence Schelling. Ashley Cottrell added an empty-net goal, and Lacasse negated all 41 shots in a 2-0 PC victory.

In semifinal two, Boston College fell victim to a pattern that has plagued it periodically throughout the season: outshoot the opponent, limit shots allowed, but lose handily. Marie-Philip Poulin had two goals and an assist as Boston University scored five times on 26 shots, Kerrin Sperry turned aside 33 of 35 shots on the other end, and the Eagles were sent to the sidelines with a 5-2 defeat.

The final proved that hockey can be a game of inches, a game of seconds, and even both. Midway through the first period, Laura Veharanta exploited a BU fumble into a 1-0 Providence lead that looked increasingly likely to hold up as the game progressed. Lacasse stopped the first 32 Terriers’ shots and was poised to be the fourth goalie on the weekend to be named a tournament’s premier player, but with each team having a player in the penalty box and Sperry pulled for an extra attacker, Poulin got the puck to the front of the net and Jenn Wakefield maneuvered it through Lacasse at 19:52 of the third period. In the second overtime session, Providence hit a crossbar, and as play transitioned to the other end, Wakefield’s shot hit a Providence player’s skate and went into the net at 2:15. Wakefield was awarded MVP, and BU wore the crown.

The NCAA Bracket
So what were the national implications of the weekend tournament action? Providence and Minnesota-Duluth, two teams that needed to win auto-bids to have any hope, fell just short. BU and St. Lawrence, tasked with the same mission, achieved it. Harvard and Northeastern, teams that were inside the field going into the weekend, couldn’t survive the combination of semifinal losses and the wrong teams earning automatic bids. Boston College came out smelling like the proverbial rose when all the teams around it floundered. North Dakota fell short of the opportunity to host that it desired, but apparently would have been denied by NCAA sanctions in any case; UND was at least invited to its first dance. Mercyhurst went from potential host to the Madison blues, whether by merit or voodoo economics is difficult to surmise.

The combination of the PairWise rankings and selection-committee discretion produced a bracket of:

Mercyhurst at No. 1 Wisconsin
St. Lawrence at No. 4 Boston College
North Dakota at No. 2 Minnesota
Boston University at No. 3 Cornell

How much any team profited or was wronged is always open to debate. For comparison, here is how the bracket would have looked seeded strictly by auto-bids and KRACH:

Boston University at No. 1 Wisconsin
Minnesota-Duluth at No. 4 North Dakota
St. Lawrence at No. 2 Minnesota
Boston College at No. 3 Cornell

Those pairing may serve to put in perspective any indignation fans that Lakers’ fans may be feeling. I have no such comforting thoughts to offer to the UMD faithful.

Well, aside from incorrectly picking the Clarkson series, and incorrectly picking the St. Lawrence-Dartmouth, OSU-Minnesota-Duluth, and North Dakota-Bemidji series to go three games (though I did get the winners right), I did pretty well in picking the first week of playoff action. I even got the scores right in both Minnesota-St. Cloud games. I went 16-6 last week to start the playoffs (.727).  Let’s see how I can do this week. If I am off with any of my first picks, I’ll update them on before the next game.

Friday, March 2

Syracuse vs. Mercyhurst
While I think the Lakers will be challenged in this tournament, I don’t think the Orange are the team to do it. Mercyhurst 4-1

Niagara at Robert Morris
These two were, for the most part, very evenly-matched this year. Robert Morris won the season series 2-1-1, but one win and the loss were one-goal games. OT would not be a surprise, but the Colonials advance. Robert Morris 2-1 (OT)

Quinnipiac at Cornell
Quinnipiac surprised Clarkson on the road last week in three games. Can they surprise another New York team? Probably not. Cornell 4-1

St. Lawrence vs. Harvard
St. Lawrence swept Dartmouth last week, and has been exceptionally hot, going 16-2-1 since November. Before that streak, the Saints played Harvard twice and got crushed, which is the only thing making me hesitate, but I think I’ll call St. Lawrence to pull off the minor upset. St. Lawrence 3-2

Wisconsin vs. Minnesota-Duluth
Is home ice enough to get the Bulldogs over the Badgers’ hump? Or will Brooke Ammerman continue her no-Kazmaier-nomination tear. Bet on the latter. Wisconsin 4-2

North Dakota vs. Minnesota
This one should be an excellent game. Overtime is not a bad bet. The question is if the North Dakota defense can slow down Amanda Kessel and Jen Schoullis enough to negate Noora Räty’s superiority in goal and give Jocelyne Lamoureux and Monique Lamoureux-Kolls time to work their magic? The two split their season series. I’m calling Minnesota in a squeaker. Minnesota 3-2 (OT)

Saturday, March 3

Boston University vs. Boston College
Another big game in a big rivalry. The Terriers crushed the suddenly-vulnerable Eagles a few weeks ago, but something tells me that Boston College comes out on top. Boston College 4-3

Providence vs. Northeastern
Two of the best goalies in the game square off for their final confrontation. This looks like another OT game to me, with Northeastern having a slight edge. Northeastern 2-1 (OT)

St. Lawrence vs. Cornell
The Big Red express claims the ECAC crown. Cornell 3-1

Minnesota vs. Wisconsin
The bottom line is the Badgers have had the Gophers’ number the last few years. Wisconsin 3-2

Robert Morris vs. Mercyhurst
Can the Colonials wrest the crown from the Lakers. I’m sure they’ll give it their all, and it will be a close game, but I don’t think they are quite ready to take that step. Mercyhurst 3-1

Sunday, March 4

Boston College vs. Northeastern
Northeastern was unable to beat Boston College during the regular season. If the Eagles get by the red-hot Terriers, it will show they are back playing to peak ability. Boston College 3-1

The first tournament volley
Teams compete all season attempting to gain home ice for the postseason, and in the quarterfinal rounds in three conferences, that advantage proved decisive in 80 percent of the matchups. The only teams to buck the trend were found in ECAC Hockey. St. Lawrence, one of the country’s hottest teams over the last couple of months, was undaunted by traveling to Thompson Arena, where Dartmouth wound up a .500 team on home ice, despite a strong 10-2-2 record elsewhere. Quinnipiac, more off than on in 2012, came alive against Clarkson and ended the Golden Knights’ season in three games.

ECAC quarterfinals
Brown put up notable resistance in losing 4-2 on Friday, less in a 6-0 defeat Saturday, and Cornell moves on to host the remainder of the ECAC tournament. Chelsea Karpenko and Catherine White led the Big Red offense with five- and four-point weekends, respectively, and Amanda Mazzotta had fairly quiet duty in picking up two wins in the crease.

Second-seeded Harvard swept Princeton, but there were some anxious moments along the way for the Crimson. They blew a two-goal, third-period lead in the opener before getting the game-winner with less than four minutes to play and adding an empty-net goal for a 5-3 win. Game two proved even tougher to close out. The Crimson went up 3-2 late, as Jillian Dempsey deflected in a shot to complete a hat trick. This time however, the Tigers were successful with the extra attacker, with Sally Butler finding the net with just over a minute remaining in regulation. Harvard had to toil an extra 18 minutes, but Marissa Gedman spared her team the need to play a third game, firing a blast from the point that eluded Rachel Weber’s blocker for a 4-3 win.

The aforementioned Saints needed overtime as well in their first game at Dartmouth. Camille Dumais twice scored for the Big Green to erase single-goal deficits, and after 60 minutes, the game was knotted at 3-3. Kelly Sabatine ended matters after only 22 seconds in the extra session, hammering a drive from the slot for her 100th career point for the Saints. Freshman Carmen McDonald took over in game two, denying all 32 Dartmouth shots. In the third period, Vanessa Emond backhanded in the game winner, and Mel Desrochers added some insurance in SLU’s 2-0 win. Next up for the Saints is Harvard.

In the only series to go three games, visiting Quinnipiac took both of the odd games to knock off Clarkson. The Bobcats seized control of the opener early with three goals in a stretch of 2:38 within the first seven minutes and sealed a 4-1 win into an empty net. The Knights pulled even on Saturday, forging a 2-0 lead and limiting the guests to a single power-play tally in the final frame. Clarkson was unable to solve Bobcats goaltender Victoria Vigilanti in the deciding game, and Nicole Kosta and Brittany Lyons provided the goals in a 2-0 Quinnipiac victory. The Bobcats advance to face Cornell in a Friday semifinal.

Hockey East quarterfinals
The Providence power play supplied four of the team’s six goals, and Genevieve Lacasse took care of the rest, saving all 38 Maine shots. The ease with which the Friars dispatched the Black Bears, coupled with PC winning six of its last eight games, the only exceptions being a tie and one-goal loss versus Northeastern, suggest that the Friars may be a dangerous foe for NU in one semifinal.

On the other side of the bracket, Boston University embarrassed New Hampshire with a 9-1 trouncing. The Terriers raced to a 4-0 lead by the first intermission and blew the game wide open with four more goals in the final eight plus minutes of the game, including three short-handed goals. Jenn Wakefield supplied a hat trick in her final appearance against her former team. BU moves on to its fourth meeting of the season with Boston College, having taken two of the previous games, including a 6-0 shellacking in the most recent contest in January.

WCHA quarterfinals
The first round of the WCHA playoffs went according to seed. Wisconsin breezed by Minnesota State with 7-0 and 4-0 shutouts. In the aftermath of being overlooked in the Kazmaier nominations, Brooke Ammerman responded with four goals in game one and another goal and assist on Saturday.

Minnesota handled St. Cloud State by a similar composite, 6-1 and 6-0. Amanda Kessel tallied a hat trick in the clincher.

North Dakota displayed defensive prowess in limiting Bemidj State to 15 shots in a 3-1 win, and the Fighting Sioux backed it up with a 19-save shutout by Stephanie Ney. UND advances to its second consecutive WCHA Final Face-Off, where it will take on the Gophers.

Host Minnesota-Duluth will be competing as well after taking out Ohio State with a pair of one-goal wins. Jennifer Harss stood strong in goal, allowing UMD to win, 4-3, on Friday despite being outshot 37-23. In game two, freshman Shara Jasper scored the biggest goal of her Bulldogs career at 6:40 of overtime to propel her team to a 3-2 triumph and a semifinal date with the top-seeded Badgers.

CHA bracket finalized
In the final regular-season games of the year, Niagara and Syracuse split overtime wins. The results give Niagara the third seed and a matchup with Robert Morris; the Orange face Mercyhurst. The Purple Eagles have now played beyond 60 minutes in three straight games and 13 times on the season.

Young girls who play hockey dream of competing in college, and maybe if they’re good enough, taking part in the Olympics some day. But before those dreams start to take shape for girls growing up in Minnesota, they dream of playing in the State High School Hockey Tournament.

Perhaps they’ve had a relative or friend lucky enough to live that dream, and it is the carrot on the end of a stick, something to be chased as long as a season of prep competition remains. Pursuing the tournament dream fuels the drive of those that have never been lucky enough to make it out of section play and reach the state tournament in the Xcel Energy Center, the same rink where the Minnesota Wild play and where the men’s WCHA Final Five will be held next month.

For those players and teams that have already experienced State, they want another taste.

Not all tastes are sweet. Such was the case for Molly Illikainen, now a senior forward for the Grand Rapids/Greenway Lightning, when she debuted in the tourney while in eighth-grade. Less than a period into the experience, Illikainen slid heavily into the side boards on the far side of the rink, got up in obvious distress, and somehow made her way to her bench as play continued.

“It tells you how special this game is for her, obviously to be back to the state tournament, because her last memory of the state tournament was going out in the quarterfinal game, first couple shifts, not just her leg but her shoulder broke,” Lightning co-head coach Brad Hyduke said. “She has a pin in her ankle and still has shoulder issues from that injury, but obviously has excelled through her high school career to the point where she played on that USA [U-18] team with two of the Roseville players, and also [receiving a] Division-I scholarship to Providence.”

GR/G had not cleared section play since, vanquished in recent years by Elk River/Zimmerman, led by New Hampshire-signee Jonna Curtis. This season, the Lightning had the last laugh. After winning a section semifinal contest in double overtime, Illikainen potted the game winner in the fourth overtime to eliminate Curtis and ER/Z, and advance the Lightning to St. Paul.

In Thursday’s AA state quarterfinal versus Roseville Area, Illikainen assisted on the only goal of the first period, and as the second period wound down, it appeared that the Lightning would be able to carry that lead into the second intermission as well. At that point, Illikainen’s teammates from the U-18 World Championships in January came back to haunt her. Roseville senior defenseman Lee Stecklein picked off a pass at center ice, made a couple of moves to enter the zone, and let fly a low drive that eluded the goaltender’s glove and found the low corner of the net for a 1-1 tie with 28 seconds remaining in the middle frame. Right out of the gate in the final period, Stecklein passed to forward Kate Flug, sending her on a partial break that the junior finished with a backhand to the top of the net with only 17 seconds elapsed. Flug finished the scoring into an empty net in the game’s final seconds, again assisted by Stecklein.

Although obviously disappointed by having her last chance at a state championship denied, Illikainen was philosophical afterward. She joked that she’d met her first objective by making it through the entire game. With the exception of the remaining consolation bracket of the tournament, her hockey future will be in Providence.

“Providence is a good example of a school that’s made an effort to get to Minnesota and recruit Minnesota girls,” Hyduke said.

This season’s Friars’ roster has half a dozen products from the state.

Grand Rapids/Greenway has had success sending players to the next level as well. Former Lightning players include junior Emily Erickson, one of the leading scorers for Bemidji State, and Illikainen’s sister Morgan, a freshman at Dartmouth. Despite the team playing most of its games in the northern part of the state, not as accessible to recruiters from the East, the best players still get noticed.

“A lot of these girls are getting exposed outside of our season anyway,” Hyduke said. “It’s happening in select camps, it’s happening with USA Hockey and what they do, and then obviously, Minnesota has a great foundation for elite leagues, and Molly’s one that had the opportunity to play on some pretty special teams outside of the season.”

Stecklein, who is signed to play next season for the Gophers, was part of a state championship team at Roseville as a sophomore.

“We’ve been fortunate that we’ve had a lot of good players over the years, so the star players today weren’t the star players two years ago,” Roseville coach Vic Brodt said. “They were maybe the third line players, the second line, they’ve got a chance to emulate. That’s special; that doesn’t really happen that often in girls high school hockey. Typically, you’ve got a top player and she comes in as an eighth or ninth grader, a lot of times she’s going to be the player to go to right away. That’s not been the case, so I think that does prepare our players for different roles. And I think it will prepare them for when they go into college, because when they become a freshman in college, they’re not going to be the star players right away.”

For now, at the high school level, Stecklein is definitely a star. In Thursday’s quarterfinal, she said she noticed that the Lightning were having success bottling up and limiting the opportunities of top forwards like Flug and Hannah Brodt, the coach’s daughter and a St. Cloud State recruit. So Stecklein did what top players do, expanding her efforts beyond her normal strong defensive role and quickly turning the game around once she looked to become more offensive.

Roseville has another pair of defensemen headed to D-I programs next season. Lexi Slattery will join Illikainen at Providence, and Paige Jahnke will be part of the first recruiting class at Penn State.

“It’s a great opportunity, especially if you’re kind of a fringe player, so to speak, maybe not a marquee player, that she’s going to get an opportunity to play,” Brodt said. “Obviously, they’re probably going to take their lumps early on, but when it’s all said and done, you want to play. They’re competitive kids, and I know Paige Jahnke is happy to have that opportunity.”

Before Brodt’s Roseville team could qualify for state, they had to pull what many regarded as an upset, defeating St. Paul Hill-Murry in a section final. Hill-Murray was led by highly-regarded senior Hannah Brandt, signed to play at Minnesota.

“She is a phenomenal hockey player,” Brodt said. “She’s in the likes of some of the marquee players of the past. She’s the best player that I’ve seen in a while, just from an individual skill. What makes her so good is she moves the puck so well. It’s not just about her bringing the puck up the ice, she uses her teammates well, makes all the players around her so much better.”

One coach that has had great success in reaching the state tournament is Edina’s Laura Slominski. The Hornets are appearing in a fourth-straight tourney, and finished as the runner up to Roseville in 2010 and Minnetonka last season. Slominski says they don’t have the star forward that can take over a game like they did with Providence sophomore Corrine Buie and Harvard freshman Samantha Reber, but they play a good team game and are strong defensively. The Hornets boast three defensemen bound for Division I:  Megan Armstrong to New Hampshire, Ali Austin to Yale, and Lizzy Otten to Union. Otten will be joined at Union by her goaltender, Maddie Dahl.

Even with all of that defensive talent, the Hornets were nearly done in by Mounds View and Princeton recruit Maddie Peake. Peake, who centers the Mustangs’ top line, set up her team’s first goal and almost struck again in the final minute with the goaltender pulled for an extra attacker. Her quick shot from in front nearly beat Dahl through the five-hole, to the extent that Peake raised her stick in celebration.

“I still believe that I saw something there,” Peake said. “I can’t blame it on the camera angles or anything. I should have buried it obviously harder, so I knew it for sure went in. But I still think I saw something there.”

If the puck ever did in fact cross the line, it was not captured on replay, so Edina is the team left competing in the championship bracket.

Also still alive is defending champion and top-seeded Minnetonka. Gone are star goaltender Julie Friend and top defenseman Rachel Ramsey, now rookies poised to oppose each other in the postseason at St. Cloud State and Minnesota, respectively.

“Last year was a unique experience because it was our first one,” Skippers coach Eric Johnson said. “Out of our roster of 18 players including goalies, 13 of them were here last year. Last year’s tournament went about as well as we could have hoped for and expected. This year, our girls are going to try to focus on one game at a time.”

One down, two to go, as Minnetonka scored three goals in the final period and defeated Eagan, 4-1. Eagan co-head coach Scott Darwitz was left to lament, “It’s the sixth [appearance] in a row, we can’t get out of the first round.”

Also advancing on the first day of the AA tournament was Lakeville North, defeating Roseau by a 5-0 score. Friday’s first semifinal matches Roseville and Edina, while Lakeville North takes on Minnetonka.

Three teams will see their dreams end, only one will have them realized. But for all, it will be an experience that they will always remember.

Well, I ended up winning the regular season picks race over Arlan by one game, thanks to Princeton beating RPI. It didn’t matter that I got the split dates wrong for Minnesota against North Dakota. Both Arlan and I went 15-3-2 (.761) in the final weekend of regular season action. On the regular season, I went 188-64-24 (.724), while Arlan went 187-65-24 (.721). I’d like to congratulate Arlan for keeping me on my toes all season!

Now we move on the postseason. Arlan is dropping out of a picks race for the postseason, but if anyone wants to challenge me in the coming weeks, let me know. In the meantime, let’s get to this week’s postseason games.

ECAC Playoffs (Friday-Saturday, Sunday if necessary)

Brown at Cornell
This is one of the few series I feel very confident in predicting. The Bears just don’t have the players to keep up with the Big Red Machine. Cornell 4-1, 5-1

Princeton at Harvard
This series depends on which version of each squad shows up. Princeton blanked the Crimson at home, then gave up a 10-spot to them on the road. I have to like home ice in this series, because Princeton has not done well on the road. Harvard 2-1, 2-1 (if it goes three, Harvard wins game three 3-1)

Quinnipiac at Clarkson
The Golden Knights have been playing very well in the second half, and beat Quinnipiac on the road in a close 3-2 game just two weeks ago. Clarkson is a schizoid squad: It is 11-1-4 at home, and 10-7-1 on the road. That bodes poorly for the Bobcats. Clarkson 3-1, 2-1 (if it goes three, Clarkson wins game three 4-1)

St. Lawrence at Dartmouth
This is the ECAC marquee series for the weekend, and I think you could flip a coin to decide who wins it. Here’s an interesting stat to consider: Dartmouth is 9-2-2 on the road, but only 8-6 at home. St. Lawrence is pretty balanced, winning 10 on the road and 10 at home. These two teams split their series, with each winning on the other’s home ice. I think it goes three, and the Saints come out on top. St. Lawrence 2-1, Dartmouth 2-0, St. Lawrence 3-2 (OT)

WCHA Playoffs (Friday-Saturday, Sunday if necessary)

Minnesota State at Wisconsin
The Mavericks haven’t been as awful as their record might suggest, as they did tie North Dakota and split with Mercyhurst, but in four games this season, Wisconsin outscored Minnesota State, 20-3. Wisconsin 4-0, 5-1

St. Cloud at Minnesota
It was nice to see St. Cloud escape the WCHA basement, and win more than one game this year in conference, but the Huskies’ season ends here. Minnesota outscored St. Cloud, 29-1, this year in four games. Minnesota 6-1, 6-0

Bemidji State at North Dakota
This is the series I wish I could attend in person. These two played last year in the first round as well, with North Dakota winning game three in OT. The Sioux are led by two of the more explosive offensive players in the game, Jocelyne Lamoureux and Monique Lamoureux-Kolls, while Bemidji relies on tight defense and the play of goaltender Zuzana Tomcikova. North Dakota won the season series, 3-1, including sweeping at home. I think this will go three though. North Dakota 4-2, Bemidji State 2-1, North Dakota 3-2

Ohio State at Minnesota-Duluth
An interesting series pitting two rather inconsistent teams against each other. They split the season series 2-2. The Buckeyes just showed how dangerous they are by beating Wisconsin in Madison last weekend, 4-2. I know this series will go three, but who wins game three is anybody’s guess. Minnesota-Duluth 3-2, Ohio State 2-1, Minnesota-Duluth 4-2

Hockey East Playoffs

Maine at Providence (Saturday)
In the three games these two played against each other, two went to overtime. The one that didn’t was when Providence exploded for seven goals in a 7-4 win. Providence tends to have a feast or famine offense, and Maine does pretty well on the road. I think this might end up being an upset, in overtime, naturally. Maine 3-2 (OT)

New Hampshire at Boston University
New Hampshire hasn’t won in the month of February, and has only won once since beating the Terriers in mid-January. That was a different Terriers team however. BU is riding a four-game win streak, and has won nine of its last 10 games since losing to New Hampshire. It’s almost as if one team’s fortunes rose while the other’s fell. BU didn’t exactly look like world beaters in its final weekend of action, but should have enough to win this. Boston University 3-1

Bring on the postseason!

Here is how the four leagues shape up next weekend.

CHA
Mercyhurst earned the laurels in the CHA with a win and a draw versus Robert Morris over the weekend. That pushes Mercyhurst’s mark to a perfect 10 regular-season titles in the CHA in 10 seasons of the conference. The Lakers are still very much alive in the national picture as well, sitting at No. 5 in the PairWise Rankings.

Because the CHA does not have an automatic bid to the NCAA tournament, the season for the others will end with the league tournament, but it doesn’t mean that they don’t have plenty of motivation. Each is looking for its first conference championship. Robert Morris is already enjoying a landmark season with 17 victories, surpassing the program’s previous high of 12, and is looking to add to that total.

The regular season is not 100 percent complete, because Syracuse and Niagara still have some business to settle, with the host Purple Eagles needing at least a tie from the two games to wrap up the third seed and a semifinal date with Robert Morris rather than Mercyhurst in the CHA semifinals.

Hockey East
Northeastern was pushed to the final seconds of its final game by Providence, but the Huskies claimed a 2-1 victory on Sunday, giving them their first Hockey East title. Now Northeastern and second-seeded Boston College get a quarterfinal bye and a week to rest.

Neither Vermont nor Connecticut were able to secure any points over the weekend and were eliminated, although UConn did not go down without a fight, losing a pair of one-goal decisions to Boston University, the first in OT. One gets the sense that somewhere beneath their 4-23-7 record there lurked a better Huskies team.

The Terriers’ sweep benefited New Hampshire, as the Wildcats clinched the final playoff berth despite losing twice at Maine. UNH can thank BU in person, as the two will be matched in a one-game quarterfinal Sunday in Boston.

Maine’s pair of wins over UNH weren’t routine in the usual sense, but they were definitely consistent with Maine’s routine. On Saturday, the Black Bears came back with a three-goal burst over a two-minute stretch in the third period and won in overtime. The win was the third time this season that Maine has won after trailing by three, and the 12th excursion for the team into bonus hockey. The Black Bears finish tied with Providence for fourth, but the Friars own the tiebreaker and will host the Bears on Saturday. PC was able to forge the tie and gain home ice on the strength of a tie with Northeastern in the Providence half of the teams’ home-and-home series over the weekend.

ECAC
As in Hockey East, the final playoff spot in the ECAC was claimed not by winning on the ice during the final weekend, but by watching others lose. The Brown Bears were the beneficiary, and as a reward, they get top seed Cornell in Ithaca on Friday, Saturday, and likely not Sunday. The Bears did their utmost to earn their way into the playoffs, but settled for backing in when Dartmouth’s Jenna Hobeika scored in the final half minute of OT.

The goal gave Dartmouth the fourth seed and home ice versus St. Lawrence in another best-of-three quarterfinal. That may be a dubious advantage for the Big Green, as the teams split the season series, each pitching a shutout on the other’s ice.

The other two quarterfinal series find Princeton visiting Harvard while Clarkson entertains Quinnipiac. The Tigers and Crimson also split during the season, but this time home ice proved decisive. Clarkson won both of its encounters with the Bobcats; Rick Seely has bested his old team but once in eight meetings with one tie.

WCHA
Minnesota State was unable to win in Duluth and escape the cellar of the WCHA, so the Mavericks must travel to the Eagle’s Nest in Verona, Wis., to face the Badgers in a best-of-three. That may not be as impossible a task as first thought; Wisconsin fell 4-2 to Ohio State on Saturday, putting a damper on Senior Day for Hilary Knight and friends. That was Mark Johnson’s first loss to a team other than Minnesota-Duluth or Minnesota since 2007, a stretch that had reached 103 games. So, not impossible, but the Mavericks may fare better against some of those eagles.

Seventh-seeded St. Cloud State heads an hour down Interstate 94 to take on Minnesota, a team that outscored the Huskies 29-1 in four games on the season; there’s not much more to say about that.

Coming off of a split at Minnesota, North Dakota plays host to Bemidji State with two objectives: advance to a second straight league semifinal, and avoid sacrificing any vital PairWise position along the way. UND holds a tenuous tie for sixth in those rankings. Last season, the Beavers pushed the Fighting Sioux to overtime in the decisive third game, and this time, seniors like Zuzana Tomcikova will be determined to continue competing for as long as possible.

Buoyed by their win in Madison, the Buckeyes head to Duluth to learn how badly the hosts want to play in their own Frozen Four. Either Natalie Spooner of OSU or Haley Irwin of UMD will have seen her career come to an end in another week.