BOSTON — Thanks to a pair of wraparound goals midway through the second period, Minnesota State holds a 2-1 lead over Minnesota after 40 minutes of the second national semifinal of the 2022 NCAA Men’s Frozen Four.
The Mavericks have enjoyed a territorial advantage for much of the game and lead the Gophers in shots 22-11. That said, things have hardly been easy for Minnesota State.
It was the Golden Gophers who took the early lead, scoring on their first shot of the game at 11:00 of the first period. Minnesota’s Matthew Knies finished off some tic-tac-toe passing with Bryce Brodzinski for the only goal of the opening period.
The Mavericks, however, kept coming hard and controlled play, something that finally paid off at 7:22 of the second. Benton Maass came down from the blue line below the goal line. He wrapped the puck around the left post, far side on Minnesota netminder Justen Close.
At 13:31, the Mavericks took their first lead, again on a wraparound. This time it was Reggie Lutz swinging around the right post as Close was scrambling in the crease.