ANCHORAGE, Alaska - For the first 30 minutes of the 2010-11 regular season, second-ranked North Dakota looked every bit like the team that was tabbed as the WCHA preseason favorite.
The Fighting Sioux used their depth, speed and special teams to build a 5-1 lead over host Alaska Anchorage midway through the second period at the Kendall Hockey Classic. Then, suddenly and inexplicably, the wheels fell off.
UAA exploded for four unanswered goals in less than 11 minutes to salvage a 5-5 overtime tie in a thrilling season opener.
Sean Wiles' shorthanded goal with 1:53 remaining in the second period cut the Sioux lead to 5-3 and turned the game completely in the Seawolves' favor. Just 53 seconds after Wiles' goal, UAA's Tommy Grant scored on a brilliant individual effort to make it a 5-4 game heading into the second intermission.
UAA pressured the Sioux from the outset of the third period and found the equalizer just 94 seconds into the frame when freshman Brett Cameron knocked home a rebound off of a faceoff.
UND head coach Dave Hakstol pointed to Wiles' shorthanded goal as the momentum changer.
"It was a terrible play on our part in terms of our intensity in getting back to a puck and communicating," Hakstol said. "I give Alaska Anchorage a lot of credit; they out-hustled us on that play, and on several others in the next 10 minutes.
"We lost our intensity in all areas of the game. We thought we had it in the bag, and that's never the case."
Despite not recording a shot on goal until nearly midway through the third period, the Sioux regained their composure in the final minutes of the third period and pressured heavily to take back the lead, but could not do so.
Sioux goalie Brad Eidsness made the save of the game with 2:13 left in overtime, sprawling right to left and snaring a Wiles one-timer with his glove.
The final 35 minutes of the game were in stark contrast to the first 30 put forth by the Sioux. UND found the net on both of its power-play chances in the first period, first when Brad Malone converted a Brett Hextall centering pass at 3:06, then on a Jake Marto one-timer with 22 seconds left in the frame.
Holding a 2-1 lead to start the second period, UND sophomore forward Corban Knight scored his first of two goals on the night just 47 seconds into the period. Linemate Jason Gregoire sprung Knight at the UAA blueline to create a 2-on-1, and Knight beat UAA goalie Chris Kamal off the far post.
Carter Rowney made it a 4-1 game three minutes later, tapping home a Gregoire rebound seconds after a UAA power-play expired. Knight scored his second of the game at 7:32, converting a Danny Kristo Rebound.
"I thought we played with speed, we were tenacious on pucks and we were making plays and completing plays all over the ice," Hakstol said of UND's start.
"We expected them to push back," said Knight, "and we just didn't handle that push very well."
The Sioux finished 2-for-4 on the power-play and killed all four Seawolf chances.
Eidsness stopped 18 shots while Kamal countered with 25.
UND will face 12th-ranked Alaska on Saturday at 7:07 p.m. Central. The Nanooks cruised to a 5-2 win over Air Force on Friday.
"I expect we'll play a full 60 minutes of solid hockey," Hakstol said. "The physical side is not the issue right now. It's the mental side and us having the integrity as a team to play a full 60 minutes."
Notes: Although the game officially goes into the books as a tie, UND won the shootout after overtime for tournament purposes. Knight and Anchorage native Evan Trupp each scored for UND in the shootout ... Gregoire finished the game with two assists ... Rowney had a goal and an assist ... Senior captain Chay Genoway notched an assist in his first game since Nov. 13, 2009 ... Hakstol said following the game that sophomore goalie Aaron Dell would draw the start Saturday against Alaska.
- Go Sioux -
