Minnesota Edges St. Cloud St. 2-1
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Nick Bjugstad scored the game-winner in the second period as Minnesota beat St. Cloud State 2-1 Friday in the Western Collegiate Hockey Association.
Bjugstad got the game-winner for the third-ranked Gophers at 11:49 of the second period. The goal followed one by St. Cloud State's Ben Hanowski that tied the game earlier in the period.
Jake Hansen put Minnesota (18-9-1, 14-5-0) on the board first at 13:26 of the first period. Hansen skated in alone and scored when his shot rebounded of Huskies goalie Mike Lee, hit Hansen's leg and went into the net.
Making an early goal is important for Minnesota, which is just 2-5-1 when its opponent scores first. The Gophers improved to 6-8-0 in one-goal games.
Lee finished with 24 saves for the Huskies (10-13-4, 7-9-3).
Kent Patterson made just 12 stops for the Gophers, who outshot the Huskies 26-13.
St. Cloud State held Minnesota scoreless in three power-play chances. The Huskies have allowed just two power-play goals in the last eight games.
St. Cloud State's Andrew Prochno and Nic Dowd had their four-game point scoring streaks snapped.
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