Ranked No. 16 in last week's USCHO poll, the Minnesota State Mavericks (8-7-1) traveled to Ohio to face off against the Bowling Green State Falcons, with both teams currently sitting in the top two spots of the CCHA standings.

The first period of game one saw a flurry of shots from both teams, but the goaltenders held strong, saving all 27 shots faced. The Mavericks broke the deadlock early in the second period on the power play, with freshman forward Christian Fitzgerald scoring off a one-timer from the top of the circle. The Falcons immediately responded, with Austen Swankler recording his ninth goal of the season less than a minute later.

The Mavericks' Ryan Sandelin scored late in the period to head into the second intermission ahead 2-1. Mankato's freshman goaltender Alex Tracy saved all 10 Bowling Green shots in the third period to help his team secure the victory in game one of the series.

Game two was more action-packed than the low-scoring affair Friday night, with eight goals scored in Saturday night's game. Northfield native Andy Carroll started the scoring halfway through the first period, tallying his first goal and tenth point this season.

That 1-0 score held until the midway point of the second period when Christian Fitzgerald doubled the Mavericks' lead. For the second night in a row, Austen Swankler recorded the Falcons' first goal of the game, making it 2-1 with 5:24 remaining in the period. The Mavericks then flipped a switch and put the game out of reach, recording three goals in two minutes and thirty seconds to make it 5-1 heading into the third period.

In the third, Mankato's Will Hillman tallied his second goal to bring the score to 6-1 before Bowling Green added a goal in the closing seconds of regulation, ending in a 6-2 final. Alex Tracy played between the pipes in both wins this series, improving his season record to 6-1-0.   

The University of Minnesota Duluth (8-8-0) faced their toughest test of the season so far as they squared off against the No. 1 ranked Denver Pioneers (12-4-0).

It was a feisty first period with six penalties, two on Denver and four on UMD, with all three goals coming on the various power plays. The Bulldogs recorded the first two goals, with Dominic James scoring first before Ben Steeves doubled the lead. The Pioneers' leading points scorer Massimo Rizzo responded with 1:37 remaining in the period, tallying his eighth goal of the season. Denver outshot the Bulldogs 13-6 in the second frame, but no one scored, with the Bulldogs holding onto their one-goal lead heading into the third. That lead did not last long as the Pioneers' Carter Mazur tied the game at 2-2 only a minute into the period.

The remainder of regulation was scoreless, so the teams headed to a 3-on-3 overtime, with Bloomington native Tristan Broz scoring the overtime winner to complete the comeback for the Pioneers. 

The concluding game of the series Saturday night saw the Pioneers get on the board first, with Harvard transfer and Edina native Casey Dornbach recording his eighth goal of the season. With only six seconds remaining in the first period, the Bulldogs' Dominic James tied the game at one, scoring on the power play in back-to-back nights.

The Bulldogs recorded the lone goal in the second, with Tanner Laderoute scoring off a Jesse Jacques feed to put the team ahead 2-1 heading into the third. Like the night prior, Carter Mazur ripped the equalizer home only 1:22 into the period to retie the game. Unlike the night before, the Bulldogs' Luke Mylymok found a way past the Pioneers goaltender, making it 3-2 with nine minutes remaining.

The visitors forced overtime again, with McKade Webster tying the game with 4:47 left on the clock before the Pioneers once more snatched the victory from UMD. With their back-to-back overtime wins and series sweep, the Pioneers up their winning streak to five games and improved their season record to 14-4-0.

The No. 3 ranked University of Minnesota Gophers (13-5-0) looked to repeat the most recent Border Battle against the Wisconsin Badgers (7-9-0) that saw them sweep the series with a cumulative 13-0 score line against their rivals.

The Gophers' high-powered top unit started the scoring, with Logan Cooley scoring four minutes in before Jaxon Nelson utilized his farmer's strength and blasted a one-timer home to make it 2-0 a few minutes later. Rosemount native Charlie Stramel scored for the Badgers on the power play to bring it to 2-1, but two late-period goals from Bryce Brodzinski and Logan Cooley put the game out of reach. Rhett Pitlick scored four minutes into the second period to make it 5-1, resulting in ex-Gopher and former Holy Family standout Jared Moe being pulled from the net.

At the 9:12 minute mark, Ryan Chesley fired home his first collegiate goal to bring the score to 6-1. Aaron Huglen added a breakaway goal in the third, and goaltender Justen Close made several big stops, finishing the game with 37 saves in the team's lopsided 7-1 victory. 

In game two, the Badgers came out firing, scoring eight minutes into the first on a power play goal before doubling their lead with 5:29 remaining in the period. Then, the Badgers' Charlie Stramel was awarded a five-minute major penalty, during which the Gophers took full advantage. Rhett Pitlick scored during 4-on-4 play to make it 2-1 before Jimmy Snuggerud and Luke Mittelstadt added power-play goals, closing out the period with the Gophers ahead 3-2.

Still on the power play to start the second, the Gophers' Mason Nevers scored forty-five seconds in before Connor Kurth and Logan Cooley added back-to-back goals two minutes later, resulting in six goals scored in a total span of 5:53.

With the Gophers still ahead 6-2 in the third, Edina native Liam Malmquist tallied his first goal of the season to bring the deficit to three before the Badgers added another goal a few minutes later to make it 6-4. However, the Gophers were able to hold on late to claim the 6-4 win and series sweep. 

Dropping down one spot in the USCHO rankings to No. 4, the St. Cloud State Huskies (13-3-0) traveled to Oxford, OH, to take on the Miami Redhawks (5-9-2), who currently sit at the bottom of the NCHC standings.

The first period of game one was all St. Cloud, with Dylan Anhorn scoring less than a minute in before Jami Krannila doubled the lead two minutes later. Dylan Anhorn then added his second goal of the game and twenty-first point of the season with 12:06 remaining in the period.

The Redhawks struck early in the second to bring it to 3-1, but the Huskies Veeti Miettinen responded three minutes later to extend the lead to three once more. However, the Redhawks battled back, with John Waldron adding two goals in the second to complete his hat trick and bring the score to 4-3 heading into the third.

The Huskies did not allow the game to slip away and added an early goal in the third via Kyler Kupka before tacking on two additional goals to win the game 7-3. Senior forward Jami Krannila ended the game with four points (2g, 2a), and goaltender Jaxon Castor earned the win in net.

After scoring at will the night before, it was a different story in game two for the Huskies. Following a scoreless first period that saw the Huskies outshoot the Redhawks 8-7, the second period was close to also going scoreless before the Redhawks scored a flurry of goals. With 4:41 remaining in the period, the Huskies' Brendan Bushy was given a five-minute major penalty, leading to three straight Miami power-play goals.

In the third, the Huskies did everything possible to get back into it, putting 18 shots on net, but the Redhawks Ludvig Persson brushed them all aside, earning the shutout and saving all 36 shots faced.

John Waldron tallied a goal late in the period for his fourth goal of the series before the Redhawks added an empty net goal, claiming the 5-0 victory. The Huskies will now begin their holiday break, playing an exhibition game on December 30th before taking on the University of Minnesota the first weekend of January. 

Bemidji State University (6-4-4) welcomed the Lake Superior State Lakers (1-11-2) to Bemidji for a two-game series, with the Lakers currently sitting at the bottom of the CCHA standings with only one win this season.

Current Bemidji points leader Mitchell Martan kicked off the scoring in game one, forcing a turnover and then scoring on a breakaway unassisted. The Beavers went on to double their lead five minutes into the second, with Thief River Falls native Aaron Myers recording his first goal of the season.

The Lakers responded with 1:32 remaining in the period, with Logan Jenuwine making it 2-1. That score held until the waning seconds of regulation when with their goaltender pulled, the Lakers' Jacob Bengtsson scored to tie the game at 2-2. In the 3-on-3 overtime, Bengtsson made an excellent cross-crease pass to Brandon Puricelli, who buried the puck to help the Lakers complete the comeback and upset win over the Beavers. 

Night two Saturday night saw a scoreless first period before the Beavers struck first early in the second, with Lleyton Roed scoring on the power play for his sixth goal of the season. That goal sparked a four-goal second period for the Beavers, with defenseman Kyle Looft scoring unassisted before Ross Armour added back-to-back goals, with both goals coming on the power play. In the third, the Lakers ended their scoreless night at the 12:33 minute mark, with Louis Boudon scoring on the power play.

Bemidji goaltender Mattias Sholl saved all remaining shots in the third, ending the game with a .958 save percentage in the team's 4-1 win. The Beavers will face a more challenging test next weekend when they travel south to square off against Minnesota State Mankato. 

Did Not Play:

• University of St. Thomas (4-13-1) – the Tommies will play the Ferris State Bulldogs (7-7-2) at home this coming weekend, starting at 7:07pm CT on Friday and 6:07pm CT on Saturday night.