Gustavus vs. Concordia
Date: Thursday, Feb. 22
Time: 7:05 p.m.
Location: St. Peter, Minn. | Don Roberts Ice Rink
Live Coverage: Stats | Video
ST. PETER, Minn. – The Gustavus men’s hockey team is set to open the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Playoffs, hosting a quarterfinal matchup against Concordia College Thursday evening. The No. 4 seeded Gusties (10-12-3, 9-7 MIAC) take on the No. 5 seeded Cobbers (10-12-3, 7-8-1 MIAC) at 7:05 p.m. from Don Roberts Ice Rink.
Last Time Out
The Gusties split their final regular season series of the season last weekend versus No. 14-ranked Saint John’s University as the two teams traded 2-1 victories. On Friday at Don Roberts Ice Rink, Gustavus defeated the Johnnies to secure a spot in the MIAC Playoffs, ending a three-year conference postseason drought.
MIAC Playoffs
In a race that came down to the final series of the regular season, St. Thomas locked down the top seed and the regular season championship with a sweep over Hamline, while Saint John’s claimed the No. 2 seed and Augsburg earning the No. 3 seed. Gustavus hosts Concordia in the No. 4/5 seed quarterfinal matchup.
The Gusties are making their first appearance in the MIAC Playoffs since the 2013-14 season, in which the Black and Gold fell 2-1 in the MIAC Championship game versus St. Thomas. Gustavus qualified for the conference playoffs each previous season since the tournament expanded to five teams in 2002-03. Making its 24th appearance in the playoffs this season, Gustavus holds a 20-24 record with four playoff titles since the four-team MIAC Tournament was initiated for the 1986-87 season. The last MIAC Championship title came during the 2011-12 season as they Gusties defeated St. Olaf 4-2 and went on to fall in the NCAA Tournament Quarterfinals.
Concordia is making its sixth consecutive trip to the MIAC Playoffs, searching for its first postseason title since 2000. The Cobbers and the Gusties most recently met in the conference tournament in 2003, with Gustavus prevailing 3-1.
Playoff Schedule
Quarterfinals | Thursday, Feb. 22, 2018
No. 5 Concordia at No. 4 Gustavus
Semifinals | Saturday, Feb. 24, 2018
No. 3 Augsburg at No. 2 Saint John’s
No. 4/5 Seed at No. 1 St. Thomas
Championship | Saturday, March 3, 2018
Semifinal winners at highest remaining seed
Series Snapshot
Thursday’s game marks the 122nd all-time meeting between the Gustavus and Concordia men’s ice hockey programs, with the Gusties holding an 84-30-7 advantage in the series.
Gustavus and Concordia split their regular series series, meeting just a couple weekends back in for a two-game series at Don Roberts Ice Rink Feb. 9-10. The Cobbers took a 4-2 victory in the series opener, scoring three unanswered goals, twice in the second period. A power play goal from Jon Grebosky just over five minutes into the middle frame stood as the game-winner, answering Reid Brown’s (So., Supeior, Colo.) go-ahead goal just a minute before. Concordia added another goal late in the second period and tallied an empty net goal late in the third to seal the win. Chris Amsden (Jr., St. Peter, Minn.) recorded 33 saves in goal while suffering the loss.
The Gusties bounced back to salvage a series split with a 5-1 victory Saturday afternoon. Colin Hernon (Sr., Bloomington, Minn.) scored the first of his two goals just 3:06 after the opening puck-drop, with the Cobbers answering with the eight seconds remaining in the first to tie the game. After a scoreless second period, Gustavus popped four goals in the third period to secure the victory. Robbie Goor (Fy., Anoka, Minn.) earned the win between the pipes, making 20 saves.
Scouting Concordia
The Cobbers concluded their regular season schedule with a split against Augsburg University in Moorhead, Minn., falling 6-3 on Friday prior to earning a MIAC Playoff berth with a 4-2 win over the Auggies. Concordia ended its regular season with a 10-12-3 overall record and a 7-8-1 mark in the conference to claim the No. 5 seed and its sixth consecutive trip to the conference postseason. Senior forward Zach Doerring notched five points (1g-4a) during the Augsburg series to claim the team scoring lead over the regular season with 28 points, including 14 goals (T-2nd/MIAC). Sophomore goaltender Jacob Stephan has started in six of the last seven games for the Cobbers and ranks among the top-five netminders in the MIAC with a .921 save percentage and 481 saves.
Goaltending Consistency
The netminding duo of Chris Amsden and Robbie Goor have continued to be a steady between the pipes, each sharing time in goal. Goor ranks second in the conference with a 1.97 goals against average and a .929 save percentage after tying a season-high with 31 saves at Saint John’s, while Amsden ranks third in the MIAC with a .927 save percentage, limiting Saint John’s to just one goal last Friday.
Gustavus Notables
- First-year forward Caleb Anderson (Sioux Falls, S.D.) leads the MIAC in freshman scoring with 15 points (5g-10a).
- Anderson is tied for the lead in the MIAC with two shorthanded goals. The Gusties scored one shorthanded goal all of last season.
- After two consecutive series sweeps over Hamline and Bethel, the Gusties surpassed their win total from the 2016-17 season.
- 19 Gusties have found their way into the goal-scoring column this season, while 11 have tallied at least two goals.
- JT Walters (Sr., Escondio, Calif.) scored his first goal in Black and Gold on senior night last Friday versus Saint John’s, the game-winner.
- Gustavus has posted a 8-3-2 record when scoring a power-play goal and is 2-9-1 when not scoring a goal on the man advantage.
- The Gusties are undefeated with scoring four or more goals at 6-0.