Statistics, notes for 6 teams playing in WCHA’s Final Five this weekend

 

The last WCHA Final Five as we know it begins Thursday at Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul. Here are updated statistics for each team’s top players and goalies and other notes and quotes on each of the six teams that will participate:

ST. CLOUD STATE

Final Five seed: No. 1.

Overall record: 23-14-1.

Record vs. Final Five teams (9-4-1): 3-1 vs. Colorado College, 1-1 vs. Minnesota, 2-0 vs. MSU-Mankato, 2-1-1 vs. North Dakota, 1-1 vs. Wisconsin.

PairWise Ranking: No. 12.

All-WCHA picks: Center Drew LeBlanc and defenseman Nick Jensen are first team picks. LeBlanc was the first player to receive the WCHA Player of the

Year and WCHA Outstanding Student-Athlete of the Year awards in the same season. He is the first St. Cloud State player to receive the Player of the Year honor. Jensen is the first St. Cloud State player to be named WCHA Defensive Player of the Year.

Notes: This is the first time that the Huskies have been in the Final Five as the No. 1 seed after tying for the WCHA regular season title … St. Cloud State won its lone Final Five title in 2001 … LeBlanc is the ninth player in the program’s Division I

era to have 50 points in a season … Jonny Brodzinski is the second St. Cloud State rookie to have more than 20 goals in a season (Mark Hartigan, 22, 1999-2000). Brodzinski also leads the nation in plus/minus (plus-28) … Ryan Faragher has played in 36 games in goal, two from the most in a season (38, Bobby Goepfert in 2005-06 and Brian Leitza in 1997-98). Faragher’s 22 wins are tied with Leitza (22-14-2 in 1997-98) for the second most in a season. Scott Meyer went 25-8-1 in 2000-01 … St. Cloud State has 7 players with 10 or more goals. The last time the Huskies had 7 players with 10 or more goals in a season was 1997-98 (Matt Noga 15, Mike Maristuen 16, George Awada 15, Jason Stewart 14, Mike Rucinski 11, Sacha Molin 12, Jason Goulet 10).

TOP SCORERS AND GOALIE

Player	GP	G	A	Pts	PM	+/-
Drew LeBlanc	38	13	37	50	14	+14
Nic Dowd	38	14	24	38	39	+8
Jonny Brodzinski	38	21	11	32	10	+28
Kalle Kossila	36	15	17	32	8	+17
Nick Jensen	38	4	25	29	12	+21
Ben Hanowski	33	15	13	28	14	+3

 

Goalie	GP	W-L-T	Save%	GAA
Ryan Faragher	36	22-12-1	.916	2.27

MINNESOTA

Final Five seed: No. 2.

Overall record: 26-7-5.

Record vs. Final Five teams (7-4-3): 1-0-1 vs. Colorado College, 2-2 vs. MSU-Mankato, 1-0-1 vs. North Dakota, 1-1 vs. St. Cloud State, 2-1-1 vs. Wisconsin.

PairWise Ranking: No. 2.

All-WCHA picks: Defenseman Nate Schmidt, a St. Cloud Cathedral graduate, was named to the first team. Forward Erik Haula was named to the second team. Forward Nick Bjugstad and goalie Adam Wilcox were named to the third team.

Notes: The Gophers have won or shared the WCHA regular season four out of the last eight seasons … The last time that Minnesota won the Final Five was 2007 … The WCHA went to its current playoff format in 1988. The other seasons that the Gophers have won the playoff title since 1988 were 2004, 2003, 1996, 1994 and 1993 … Three former Gophers assistant coaches (SCSU’s Bob Motzko, MSU-Mankato’s Mike Hastings and Colorado College’s Scott Owens) are coaching in the Final Five … The Gophers join the Big Ten Conference next season.

 

 

 

 

TOP SCORERS AND GOALIE

Player	GP	G	A	Pts	PM	+/-
Erik Haula	35	16	33	49	14	+18
Kyle Rau	38	15	24	39	20	+14
Nick Bjugstad	38	21	15	36	28	+5
Zach Budish	38	13	22	35	14	+16
Nate Condon	38	12	19	31	8	+16
Nate Schmidt	38	8	23	31	16	+16

 

Goalie	GP	W-L-T	Save%	GAA
Adam Wilcox	37	25-6-4	.923	1.84

 

NORTH DAKOTA

Final Five seed: No. 3.

Overall record: 21-11-7.

Record vs. Final Five teams (5-6-3):  2-2 vs. Colorado College, 0-1-1 vs. Minnesota, 1-1 vs. MSU-Mankato, 1-2-1 vs. St. Cloud State, 1-0-1 vs. Wisconsin.

PairWise Ranking: tied for No. 6.

All-WCHA picks: Forward Danny Kristo was named to the first team. Forward Corban Knight was named to the second team. Forward Rocco Grimaldi was named to the All-Rookie Team.

Notes: UND is making its 14th straight trip to the Final Five. The next closest current streaks of teams making the Final Five is St. Cloud State and Minnesota, both of which are making their second straight appearances … UND has won three straight Broadmoor Trophies as the Final Five champion and have won the tournament in its current format (since 1989) six times. The other three titles were won in 2006, 2000 and 1997 … UND joins the NCHC next season.

 

 

 

 

TOP SCORERS AND GOALIE 

Player	GP	G	A	Pts	PM	+/-
Danny Kristo	37	24	26	50	22	+15
Corban Knight	38	15	33	48	40	+16
Rocco Grimaldi	37	13	21	34	16	+14
Carter Rowney	38	10	16	26	10	+7
Mark MacMillan	39	13	12	25	20	+11
Dillon Simpson	39	5	19	24	6	+5

 

Goalie	GP	W-L-T	Save%	GAA
Clarke Saunders	24	13-7-4	.920	2.20

 

WISCONSIN 

Final Five seed: No. 4.

Overall record: 19-12-7.

Record vs. Final Five teams (4-8-2): 0-2 vs. Colorado College, 1-2-1 vs. Minnesota, 2-2 vs. MSU-Mankato, 0-1-1 vs. North Dakota, 1-1 vs. St. Cloud State.

PairWise Ranking: tied for No. 16.

All-WCHA picks: Defenseman Jake McCabe was named to the third team.

Notes: The Badgers have won the playoff title in its current format (since 1989) three times: 1998, 1995 and 1990 … The Badgers started the season 1-7-2, but are 18-5-5 since Nov. 30 … “Sometimes when you’re a cycclist, you ride into the wind and you just bear down and keep moving and that was our mentality,” said head coach Mike Eaves, a former St. Cloud State assistant coach, about the Badgers coming back from a slow start to the season. “Eventually, you know the wind is going ti be in your backs. We just geared down and kept it simple.” The Badgers join the Big Ten Conference next season.

 

 

 

 

TOP SCORERS AND GOALIE

Player	GP	G	A	Pts	PM	+/-
Michael Mersch	38	23	12	38	22	+15
Mark Zengerle	32	9	21	30	8	+10
Nic Kerdiles	28	7	19	26	35	+9
Tyler Barnes	37	11	14	25	33	+6
Derek Lee	27	3	18	21	14	+14
Joseph LaBate	37	7	12	19	41	+10

 

Goalie	GP	W-L-T	Save%	GAA
Joel Rumpel	25	13-8-4	.932	1.87

 

 MSU-MANKATO

Final Five seed: No. 5.

Overall record: 24-12-3.

Record vs. Final Five teams (6-8-0): 1-1 vs. Colorado College, 2-2 vs. Minnesota, 1-1 vs. North Dakota, 0-2 vs. St. Cloud State, 2-2 vs. Wisconsin.

PairWise Ranking: tied for No. 9.

All-WCHA picks: Goalie Stephon Williams was named to the first team and WCHA Rookie of the Year. Mike Hastings, a former St. Cloud State player and assistant coach, was named WCHA Coach of the Year in his first season with the Mavericks. Forwards Matt Leitner and Eriah Hayes were named to the third team.

Notes: This is the Mavericks’ third trip to the Final Five and first since 2003 (2000 is the other trip). Mankato joined the WCHA in 1999 and is the lone team in the Final Five that will remain the WCHA next season … Mankato is 8-3 in its last 11 games … The Mavericks’ 24 wins are the most for the team since moving up to Division I in 1996.

 

 

 

 

TOP SCORERS AND GOALIE

Player	GP	G	A	Pts	PM	+/-
Matt Leitner	39	17	28	45	47	+5
Eriah Hayes	39	19	16	35	49	+4
Jean-Paul Lafontaine	39	9	24	33	25	+2
Zach Lehrke	39	8	17	25	50	+7
Zach Palmquist	39	6	18	24	20	+10
Johnny MacInnis	39	13	9	22	12	-1

 

Goalie	GP	W-L-T	Save%	GAA
Stephon Williams	33	21-10-2	.929	1.84

 

 COLORADO COLLEGE

Final Five seed: No. 6.

Overall record: 16-18-5.

Record vs. Final Five teams (6-7-1): 0-1-1 vs. Minnesota, 1-1 vs. MSU-Mankato, 2-2 vs. North Dakota, 1-3 vs. St. Cloud State, 2-0 vs. Wisconsin.

PairWise Ranking: No. 25.

All-WCHA picks: Forward Rylan Schwartz and defenseman Mike Boivin were named to the second team.

Notes: The Tigers are making their second Final Five appearance in the last 3 years … Colorado College is the lone team in the Final Five with a losing record and advanced with a three-game series win over rival Denver … Colorado College has lost four straight meetings against North Dakota in the Final Five (1997, 2001, 2008 and 2011) …. The Tigers have never won the Final Five title … The Tigers are 7-4-3 in their last 14 games … Colorado College joins the NCHC next season. 

 

 

 

 

TOP SCORERS AND GOALIE

Player	GP	G	A	Pts	PM	+/-
Rylan Schwartz	38	17	31	48	35	+7
Alex Krushelnyski	39	14	26	40	14	+13
William Rapuzzi	39	15	19	34	18	-1
Mike Boivin	39	14	14	28	88	+2
Scott Winkler	39	13	14	27	50	-3
Archie Skalbeck	39	12	11	23	24	-9

 

Goalie	GP	W-L-T	Save%	GAA
Joe Howe	28	12-11-4	.912	3.09

 WCHA FINAL FIVE

(All games are on Fox Sports North and played at Xcel Energy Center, St. Paul)

Games Thursday

No. 4 Wisconsin (19-12-7) vs. No. 5 Minnesota State-Mankato (24-12-3), 2:07 p.m.

No. 6 Colorado College (16-18-5) vs. No. 3 North Dakota (21-11-7), 7:07 p.m.

Semifinals Friday

No. 1 St. Cloud State (23-14-1) vs. Wisconsin/Minnesota State-Mankato winner, 2:07 p.m.

No. 2 Minnesota (26-7-5) vs. Colorado College/North Dakota winner, 7:07 p.m.

Championship Saturday

Semifinals winners, 7:07 p.m.