WCHA Final Five Should Have Crazy Friday

Before I make my way down I-35 for the semifinals of the WCHA Final Five, here are a few quick thoughts on what's happened and what is to come.

• Michigan Tech gave Denver all it could handle, largely thanks to goalie Josh Robinson. You might not see a better goaltending performance all weekend. He was in good position, saw the puck well, and was aggressively challenging all afternoon. That Denver found a way to beat him was not a problem of Robinson's, but instead an issue with the players in front of him, who seemed to run out of gas in a way. I thought Denver owned a good chunk of the third period, and then they scored too early in overtime for either team to really establish dominance.
• Luke Salazar will be a player to watch Friday afternoon. The Pioneers might not be in the Final Five without him, and his goal late in the third period Thursday extended that game so Jason Zucker could win it in overtime. Coaches like to talk about needing their best players to be their best players, and I'm not disputing that at all. But more often than not, teams get major contributions from guys who are not superstar players (Kyle Schmidt, anyone?).
• I'm not a huge fan of rooting for the Gophers, but you can bet I'll be doing it if UMD wins the Friday afternoon semifinal. As much as I respect North Dakota, this isn't about North Dakota. UMD fans have wanted another shot at the Gophers since October, and this is the best chance to get one with little consequence. Hell, there are realistic scenarios where UMD could still get a No. 1 regional seed if it loses to Minnesota in the championship game. Better than playing them with everything on the line next week.
• Friday night is going to be a bonkers atmosphere in St. Paul. There was a fight in the stands Thursday involving fans of Minnesota and North Dakota. Imagine what it will be like when those teams are actually playing each other. Fans of Friday afternoon's winner are advised to be in the lobby when the game ends, as there should be some cheap tickets available for Saturday's championship game.
• Too much up for grabs the next two days to lay down any kind of prediction which regional UMD will end up in. I'd say with about 85 percent (or maybe a bit higher) confidence that UMD will not be playing in a regional that involves a flight.
• If you're heading down Saturday, remember that the St. Patrick's Day parade in St. Paul will bring in huge crowds of people, hampering your ability to find a ramp to park in, and your ability to drive to where you want to go in downtown. Plan to arrive early so you have time to find a way to get where you want to go and find a spot to park.

Wherever you will be Friday, enjoy. This should be a great environment for the players and fans in attendance.

WCHA Final Five Previews

Instead of writing completely separate previews on all the Final Five teams here, I partnered with my pals at Hockey Wilderness (SB Nation), and I wrote team previews for them.

Here are links to all the pieces, along with one more look at the tournament schedule.

PREVIEWS
1. Minnesota
2. UMD
3. Denver
4. North Dakota
5. St. Cloud State
6. Michigan Tech

SCHEDULE
Thursday
Denver vs. Michigan Tech, 2pm
North Dakota vs. St. Cloud State, 7pm

Friday
UMD vs. Denver/Mich Tech winner, 2pm
Minnesota vs. UND/SCSU winner, 7pm

Saturday
Semifinal winners, 7pm

UMD Readies for Final Five Test

Some of what you're seeing here is similar to last year, when UMD made the trek to St. Paul knowing it had an NCAA Tournament bid locked down.

Armed with that knowledge last year, UMD laid a bit of an egg at the Final Five, losing to Bemidji State 3-2 in overtime in the quarterfinals. We all know what happened from there.



And, yes, that was an excuse to embed this video again. Enjoy.

This time around, UMD is heading down I-35 with not only an NCAA bid in its back pocket, but also the chance to earn the tournament's No. 1 overall seed with a pair of wins at the WCHA Final Five.

"That one stung for a while," senior captain Jack Connolly said. "Obviously you don't want to go down and lose in the play-in game like that."

The Broadmoor Trophy was last won by UMD in 2009.

"We've put ourselves in a great position to try to do that, and it would mean an awful lot for the program to get another one of those," Connolly noted.

Just because it worked out for UMD to lose in the Final Five last year doesn't mean it's a good idea to go that route again.

This Bulldog team is hungry for a shot at Minnesota. Connolly admits it would be great to play the Gophers again. This Bulldog team is also hungry to, in a way, atone for last year's performance in the Final Five.

"I think we're in decent shape," head coach Scott Sandelin said this week. "I know our players are excited to get back there. It's the fourth time for our seniors to play in this tournament."

UMD's fourth straight trip to the Final Five starts with a Friday semifinal game against either Denver or Michigan Tech. Even though Denver is the higher seed, there are arguments for UMD fans to root for that matchup to happen.

For starters, UMD and Denver always seem to play good hockey together. I don't know if it's just a perfect match of playing styles, or if it's because the teams don't hate each other enough to play any other way, but it seems like -- for lack of a better way to describe it -- there is good chemistry between the two. Not only that, but UMD goalie Kenny Reiter has a .943 save percentage in four games (three starts) against the Pioneers.

The Bulldogs, though, might have some unfinished business with Michigan Tech. Hopefully, you haven't forgotten the teams' last meeting, a 5-0 Tech win at Amsoil Arena. I know I still haven't forgotten it, despite my best efforts.

No matter who UMD plays, the goal is clear. Win two games. By doing so, UMD will help its NCAA Tournament seeding, and also head into the tournament on a strong note.

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As for what will happen on Sunday, when the brackets are announced, it's too early to say for sure. I'm of the belief that UMD will be placed in the West Regional in St. Paul unless UMD and Minnesota are on the same or opposite seed lines (meaning they'd play in the first round of the tournament, which can't happen per the NCAA handbook unless a league has at least five teams in). If UMD is not placed in St. Paul for that reason or some other, it will head to Green Bay.

But I think St. Paul is most likely right now.

For those wondering, Michigan Tech would be automatically placed in the Midwest Regional (Green Bay) if it wins the Final Five, because it is the host of that regional. But if that happens, UMD can't be a No. 1 regional seed, and neither can Minnesota. UMD would still end up in Green Bay, as Minnesota can't be moved from the regional in St. Paul.

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Six UMD players have consecutive game streaks higher than 60 games heading into Friday. Jack Connolly is at a school-record 163, Travis Oleksuk 112, and David Grun hit 100 on Saturday. Keegan Flaherty has played in 78 straight games, and Wade Bergman and Jake Hendrickson are both at 62.

WCHA Final Five Set

Thanks to Denver's 3-2 overtime win over Wisconsin Sunday night, the field of six is finally set for the WCHA Final Five, which starts Thursday in St. Paul.

Luke Salazar's wrap-around at 1:40 of overtime pushed the Pioneers into the field, and likely locked DU into the NCAA Tournament, meaning the WCHA will get four teams -- and maybe five -- into the tournament.

Here is the Final Five schedule:

Thursday
No. 6 Michigan Tech  vs. No. 3 Denver, 2pm
No. 5 St. Cloud State vs. No. 4 North Dakota, 7pm

Friday
Michigan Tech/Denver winner vs. No. 2 UMD, 2pm
SCSU/North Dakota winner vs. No. 1 Minnesota, 7pm

Saturday
Semifinal winners, 7pm

Barring a catastrophic turn of events that might be mathematically impossible, Denver and North Dakota will join Minnesota and UMD in the NCAAs. If Michigan Tech or St. Cloud State win the tournament, the WCHA would likely get five teams in the field.