WHITE BEAR LAKE, Minn. – Sometimes, a hockey game follows such a great script that there’s not much original to say.
Of course the first-ever MIAC game to be featured on Hockey Day Minnesota would be a back-and-forth overtime thriller. It was as if it was destined to happen.
Twice in the third period on Friday night, St. John’s fell behind Augsburg. Twice, the Johnnies thought they tied the game only to see the goals waved off. And twice, the Johnnies actually did tie it up – including one extra-attacker goal with less than two minutes to play.
Then, in overtime the Johnnies found a way to go ahead for good. Sophomore Jackson Sabo put a puck between the legs of Auggies goaltender Jack Robbel to give St. John’s a 5-4 victory at Polar Lakes Park in White Bear Lake.
Jackson Sabo scores the game winning goal for @JohnnieHockey in overtime to beat @Auggie_Hockey 5-4 on Hockey Day Minnesota. pic.twitter.com/2Jc3Ep4SM4
— Jack Hittinger (@jackhitts) January 28, 2023
Sabo’s teammate – White Bear Lake native Brett Meister – put it best.
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“I couldn't think of a better way to end the first MIAC game of Hockey Day Minnesota,” the senior forward said. “They took a couple away from us, but we found a way and battled really hard and stuck together as a team.”
Sabo’s game winner came directly after two highlight-reel saves from Johnnies goalie Bailey Huber on the other end. Sabo got a breakaway and shoved the puck in through the five-hole of the Augsburg netminder.
“It was great,” the sophomore from Rosemount said. “We did a lot of team things to get us there. Bailey made two crazy saves…. I’ve never seen anything like that, so that was awesome. Then (senior captain Auggie Moore) and the D-man made a great step up, the puck just came to me and I got a little lucky.”
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The Johnnies (11-7-2, 7-3-1 MIAC) got their share of puck luck late when it looked like they weren’t going to be so lucky early. Moore scored twice in the first period but the Auggies tied it up on power-play goals from Gavin Holland in the first and second.
“Adversity. We fought through adversity,” said Johnnies head coach Doug Schueller. “We didn’t get a power-play goal again, and we gave up two quick power-play goals against us, but we fought through it. Didn’t win the special teams battle but won the game.”
The Johnnies needed some magic in the third to force overtime. Tied 2-2 going into the third period, the Auggies had taken the lead four minutes in thanks to the third goal of the game from Holland.
It was the first-ever collegiate hat trick for Holland, who now has nine goals to share the team’s scoring lead.
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“I haven't had one in college, so I’ve been waiting for it,” the senior from Stillwater said. “It was a dream come true. I had a lot of family here and a lot of friends, so it was fun to do it in front of them.”
The Johnnies’ Jack Johnson tied it up at 3-3 midway through the third, but the Auggies once again took the lead with less than five minutes to go when forward Erik Palmqvist managed to get a puck in the net that had originally bounced off Huber.
That meant St. John’s needed to find a way to get one in the back of the net any way possible. They had two goals disallowed before pulling Huber with about two minutes left to get an extra attacker. Leading scorer Nick Michelf did what he does best. He found the back of the net with 1:03 left in regulation for his 14th goal of the season.
‘A great memory’
From the Jimi Hendrix-esque guitar shredding national anthem to the fireworks that went off when each goal was scored, it seemed like the players and coaches were enjoying themselves beyond the result on the ice.
“Obviously a great atmosphere, a lot of fun,” Schueller, a White Bear Lake alumnus, said. “Right from the national anthem, with the guitar player, the fireworks, it’s like, 'Holy buckets.' They really put on a good show. Our guys had a great experience and it was nice to get the win, but what a great memory.”
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Augsburg head coach Greg May had said earlier in the week that although he of course wanted his team to win, he was also hoping for a good game that showed what Division III hockey and the MIAC was all about. And it seems that in that respect, both the Johnnies and Auggies succeeded.
“The only thing I would have changed was us holding onto the lead at the end of the third or us scoring to win in overtime,” May said. “The atmosphere was great. To be honest, it was a better atmosphere and crowd than I imagined. During the anthem, I had tears because it was so cool.”
Both schools had a healthy contingent of fans in the crowd, including student sections that bussed in from Minneapolis and Collegeville to be a part of the game.
“It was a good game,” Schueller said. “I think people that saw it will appreciate the level of hockey that we play and that we put on the ice. To have all these people here, the students from both campuses showed up, it was a lot of fun.”
It was a dream come true. I had a lot of family here and a lot of friends, so it was fun to do it in front of them.
Now for both teams comes the big challenge – making sure they put Friday’s game behind them. They have to play again in St. Cloud on Saturday for the second game of their conference series.
“It‘s going to be a different game,” Meister said. “Each team kept it real simple. You can’t really be stickhandling too much, pucks are bouncing everywhere. On the indoor ice sheet at our place, we know it’ll be a different game, but hopefully the same outcome.”
“We’ll watch some film, show some clips to the guys tomorrow,” May said. “We’ll have some adjustments to make. But it’s a MIAC game on the road against our biggest rival. There’s not too much that needs to be said.”
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