Staff Writer- Nathan Swanson

Gustavus Men’s hockey hit the road on Saturday to play the Saint Mary’s Cardinals from Winona, Minnesota. Their game on the road was won 5-3 in an impressive outing, benefiting their winning mood after a home win against Saint Mary’s the night before. Friday’s game against the Cardinals ended in exhilaration as Senior Wilmer Svensson scored the game-winning goal in the overtime period, leading the Gusties to a 5-4 victory. The goal for Svensson, which was his 10th goal of the season, was assisted by defensemen First-year Ludvig Mellgren. On Monday, Svensson was named the MIAC Men’s Hockey Offensive Player of the Week, as he had two goals in the victory against the Cardinals on Friday. For the season, Svensson now has 10 goals, 4 assists, and 14 points, having played in 15 games. With two wins against the Cardinals, the Gusties’ win streak has extended to eight games, and they are now 6-2 against MIAC opponents. 

“The team feels great. Winning that many games in a row is a very difficult thing to do, so we are happy and confident with where we are at. With that being said, we aren’t satisfied and are still looking to continue the win streak and great play into the back half of the regular season and into the playoffs”, Senior forward Nate Stone said. T

welve minutes into Saturday’s game, Gustavus scored first with an even-strength goal from Junior forward Riku Brown. His first goal of the season was assisted by Stone.

“I was able to get into the play first and get the puck out of the corner and into the slot area, where Riku was ready to rip it home,” Stone commented. In the final two minutes of the first period, the Gusties scored again with another even-strength goal, this one from Junior forward Grant Ellings. Elling’s goal, which was his fourth of the season, was assisted by Junior forward Drew Holt and Junior defender Jack Anderson. Concluding the first period, Gustavus was up 2-0. The second period saw no goals, with Saint Mary’s getting two chances on the power-play and Gustavus getting one chance on the power-play.  Almost six minutes into the third period, Gustavus scored their third goal of the game on the power-play with a goal from First-year forward Emil Samuelson. Scoring his fifth goal of the season, Samuelson’s goal was assisted by Anderson and Mellgren. Gustavus had a 3-0 lead, less than a minute later, Saint Mary’s got a power-play opportunity and scored their first goal of the game, the goal coming from forward Carter Newpower. 12 minutes into the third period, Saint Mary’s got a second goal with another power-play goal. With the score 3-2, Gustavus created a little separation as they scored on a short-handed goal from Junior forward Hunter Newhouse with 4:50 left in the game. Newhouse’s goal, his third of the season, was assisted by Anderson. With just 3:02 remaining on the clock, the score 4-2 Gustavus, Saint Mary’s scored on the power-play with an extra attacker. With a minute left in the third period, the Cardinals pulled their goalie to get an extra attacker on the ice and in an effort to get a game-tying goal. Gustavus, however, made a play, and Sophomore forward Nick Blood was able to get his stick on the puck, sending it down the ice and into the empty net. With 33 seconds left, Gustavus secured the 5-3 victory. “It was a very back-and-forth end of the game, so watching that one go into the net and seal the victory was an awesome feeling,” Stone said. For the game, Gustavus had 34 shots on net, while Saint Mary’s had 15 shots on net. Saint Mary’s had 3 power-play goals, while Gustavus had 1 power-play goal. The Gusties had 1 short-handed goal for the game. Saint Mary’s had 36 faceoffs won, and the Gusties had 28 faceoffs won. Junior Marko Belak, Gustavus goaltender, saved 12 shots on goal in the contest. The two-game series against Saint Mary’s was a good opportunity for the Gusties to improve and aim to add important points to their record.

“We learned a lot, as every weekend we play is another opportunity for us to grow as a team. This weekend helped us fine-tune some little things and learn how to win a tough game on the road in a back-to-back with major points on the line,” Stone said.

Gustavus Men’s hockey will next play against the University of Wisconsin-Stout in a non-conference road game in Menomonie, Wisconsin. The game will be played on Friday, January 16th at 7:00 p.m.