WORCESTER, Mass. - It will be a 'ping' Sioux hockey fans will be hearing for a long time.
Trailing Yale 2-0 late in the second period of tonight's NCAA Northeast Region semifinal, North Dakota senior Darcy Zajac (Winnipeg, Manitoba) had a chance to cut the lead in half when he was awarded a penalty shot after being hauled down on a breakaway.
Zajac skated in on Yale goalie Ryan Rondeau, who was making only his fifth start of the season, and beat him cleanly with a wrist shot to the blocker side. However, Zajac's shot clanged off the goal post to keep the 2-0 Bulldog lead intact.
Just two minutes later, Yale center Mark Arcobello chased down his own rebound off the end boards and beat Sioux goalie Brad Eidsness (So., Chestermere, Alberta), a stunning turn of events that gave Yale a daunting 3-0 lead heading into the second intermission.
The Bulldogs would hold off a furious third period rally by the Sioux and hang on for a 3-2 and a berth in Sunday's regional championship against Boston College. The loss ended UND's season at 25-13-5.
One week after rallying from an early 2-0 deficit against St. Cloud State in the WCHA championship game, the fourth-ranked Sioux appeared intent on creating another epic comeback despite staring down a three-goal deficit with 20 minutes remaining.
Sioux sophomore Brett Hextall (Manhattan Beach, Calif.) got UND on the board just 2:59 into the third period, circling in the left circle and beating Rondeau with a wrist shot from the slot. It was Hextall's 14th goal of the season.
Then, just three minutes later, UND's Matt Frattin (Jr., Edmonton, Alberta) cut the Yale lead to 3-2 with a brilliant individual effort. Frattin blocked a shot at the Sioux blueline and pounced on the loose puck, racing in alone on a breakaway while fighting off a Bulldog defender. While falling to the ice and a delayed penalty coming on Yale, Frattin managed to muscle the puck past Rondeau for his 11th goal of the year.
With all of the momentum on the side of the Sioux, Yale coach Keith Allain called a timeout in an effort to calm his bench. UND kept pressing, however, throwing 18 shots at Rondeau in the period.
Frattin had perhaps UND's best chance to tie the game with 5:45 remaining, streaking down the right wing and blasting a shot from the top of the circle that was kicked aside by Rondeau, who also turned away Frattin's rebound effort from a difficult angle.
The Sioux continued to push for the equalizer in the final minutes, pulling Eidsness for an extra attacker with 1:02 remaining. UND had a chance at a loose puck in front of the Yale goal during a wild scramble in the final minute, but were unable to locate the puck. With the Sioux playing six forwards during the final minute, the Bulldogs hung on for the dramatic win.
UND outshot the Bulldogs 37-23, including an 18-5 edge in the third period. Eidsness made 20 saves and Rondeau countered with 34.
The Sioux went 0-for-4 on the power-play while Yale went scoreless in three chances.
Notes: Zajac and senior Chris VandeVelde (Moorhead, Minn.) each played in their final collegiate game. They finish their careers tied for eighth all-time at UND with 166 career games played ... VandeVelde led the team in scoring this season with a career-high 41 points ... Freshman forward Danny Kristo (Eden Prairie, Minn.) had his 13-game point streak come to an end. It was the longest by a Sioux this season ... Frattin scored 11 goals in his final 13 games, with all 11 coming against nationally-ranked opponents ... UND's penalty kill finished at 87.0 percent this season, just short of the school record of 87.2 set in 2002-03.
~GO SIOUX~
