Bemidji State (15-17-5) at Augustana (18-13-4) – CCHA Quarterfinals

It was a win-or-go-home situation for both teams entering the quarterfinal round, with second-place Augustana hosting seventh-place Bemidji State at Midco Arena in Sioux Falls. Game one was scoreless into the back half of the second period when the Beavers' leading scorer, Kirklan Irey, scored shorthanded to carry a 1-0 lead into the third. Augustana tied it 3:50 into period three before quickly adding two goals from Owen Baumgartner and Colton Friesen minutes later to win 3-1 in the team's first playoff game in program history. 

Game two mirrored game one with a goalless first period before the Beavers again struck first in the middle frame to open the scoring. This time, Bemidji State built on their lead and made it 2-0 off a Jackson Jutting goal 6:45 into the second period. Less than a minute later, Farmington native Quinn Rudrud clawed one back for the Vikings, with Augustana later tying it up at 2-2 at the close of the second. With their season on the line, the Beavers buried two quick goals early in the third from Tony Follmer and Adam Flammang to make it 4-2, and Bemidji State held on to force game three by winning 4-3. 

In game three, Bemidji State capitalized on their first power play opportunity to score first for the third consecutive game, with Jackson Jutting scoring 4:28 into period one. Midway through the opening frame, the Vikings responded via a net-front tip from Grand Rapids native Hunter Bischoff, leading to a 1-1 scoreline at the break. Bischoff then scored a go-ahead goal for his tenth of the season to make it 2-1 Augustana 9:12 into period two.

That 2-1 scoreline held into the late stages of period three when Bemidji State's Noah Quinn scored a huge goal to tie it, and the game eventually headed to overtime. For the second night in a row, the game-winner came off the stick of Adam Flammang, who rifled the puck home to win 3-2 and keep the Beavers season alive. Goaltender Mattias Sholl was a key factor in the victory, making a season-high 41 saves in net. 

Bemidji State will move on to face top-seeded Minnesota State in a single-elimination game at 7:07 PM on 3/15. 

No. 4 Minnesota (25-10-4) vs. Notre Dame (12-24-1) – Big Ten Quarterfinals

Facing the last-place team in the conference with their season on the line in what is Head Coach Jeff Jackson's final season behind the bench, game one did not go as planned for the Gophers or their starting goaltender.

A gaffe from goalie Liam Souliere gave Notre Dame an early lead, and the Fighting Irish made it 2-0 later in the first, with Matthew Wood tallying a late-period power play goal to trail 2-1 at the break. A second error from Souliere led to a 3-1 Fighting Irish lead only 1:18 into period two, and Coach Motzko had seen enough, switching to sophomore Nathan Airey in net. Airey saved all 13 shots on net from that point forward, but the Gophers fell 3-2. 

Game two saw the Gophers outshoot Notre Dame 15-7 in a goalless opening frame, with the Fighting Irish scoring to take the first lead of the game 2:40 into period two. An Oliver Moore power-play goal tied it at 1-1 in the second and 4:16 into period three, and Minnesota took their first lead of the weekend off a goal from Connor Kurth. Three minutes later, Minnesota added an insurance goal from Matthew Wood before going on to win 4-2 and force a deciding game three. 

The coaching staff went back to Nathan Airey in net, and for the third straight game, the Fighting Irish opened the scoring and led 1-0 after one. Notre Dame scored the lone goal in the second, with Edina's Grant Silianoff cleaning up a loose puck in front to take a two-goal advantage into period three. On their third power play opportunity of the game, the Gophers finally capitalized to make it 2-1 with 11:53 remaining, but it was all for naught as Minnesota fell 4-1 to bow out of the Big Ten tournament. 

Currently sitting at No. 4 in the Pairwise, Minnesota will likely be a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament, but now all the team can do is sit and wait for the bracket to be released on 3/23 to find out their fate. 

Minnesota Duluth (13-18-3) at St. Cloud State (14-19-1)

Marking the close of the regular season for both squads, Minnesota Duluth looked to repeat their January sweep over the Huskies, but this time, it would take place on the road at the Herb Brooks National Hockey Center. A late first-period power-play goal from Zam Plante opened the scoring, with Anthony Menghini making it 2-0 UMD midway through the second.

With 1:52 to go in the middle frame, the Huskies got on the scoreboard via a Nick Portz goal to trail 2-1 heading into the third. With their goaltender pulled and little time left on the clock, defenseman Josh Zinger buried his fourth goal of the season to force overtime. St. Cloud State went on to complete the comeback and win 3-2, with Stillwater's Cooper Wylie rifling home the overtime winner with 29 seconds remaining in the extra session. 

It was the Anthony Menghini show at the start of game two, as it took him only 58 seconds to light the lamp before he doubled the lead midway through the first, scoring his 11th and 12th goals of the season. St. Cloud's Gavyn Thoreson answered right back, leading to a 2-1 UMD scoreline heading into the second.

Following a goalless second period, St. Cloud native Jack Smith tipped one home to put the Bulldogs ahead 3-1 with just over twelve minutes remaining. The Huskies continued to battle and made it 3-2 with 5:32 left on the clock, but the team was unable to complete the comeback for a second night in a row. 

At the close of a tough season for both programs, the NCHC standings are now final, with St. Cloud State finishing eighth and Minnesota Duluth finishing seventh.

For the quarterfinal matchups, the Huskies will play at No. 5 Western Michigan (26-7-1) on 3/14 at 6:00 PM, 3/15 at 5:00 PM, and 3/16 at 5:00 PM (if necessary). The Bulldogs will travel to Tempe to face the No. 16 Arizona State Sun Devils (19-13-2), with puck drop at 8:00 PM on 3/14, 7:00 PM on 3/15, and 7:00 PM on 3/16 (if necessary). 

No. 15 Minnesota State (25-8-3) vs. Lake Superior State (12-22-2) – CCHA Quarterfinals

Facing the eighth-place Lake Superior State Lakers, who the Mavericks went a clean four-for-four against this season, Minnesota State started on the right foot with a Zach Krajnik goal 5:12 into game one. Krajnik then added a beautiful backhand goal to make it 2-0 before the Lakers responded to enter the first intermission down 2-1.

After a scoreless middle frame, the Mavericks added an insurance goal just over three minutes into period three, with Brian Carrabes tallying his tenth goal of the season. With their goaltender pulled, Krajnik added an empty net goal to complete his first career collegiate hat trick en route to a clean 4-1 playoff win for Minnesota State. 

The Lakers opened the scoring 2:58 into game two, but the Mavericks responded shortly thereafter, leading to a 1-1 scoreline at the break. An unfortunate goal snuck through the pads of Alex Tracy to put Lake Superior State back in front early in period two, but Minnesota State quickly countered once again.

Only 15 seconds after falling behind 2-1, Zach Krajnik's hot hand made it 2-2 before defenseman Evan Murr scored a go-ahead goal for the Mavericks minutes later. Alex Tracy remained perfect in net from that point forward to seal the 3-2 victory and playoff sweep of the Lakers. 

The top-seeded Mavericks will remain at home and play seventh-seed Bemidji State in the semifinal round, with that game starting at 7:07 PM on Saturday. 

St. Thomas (18-13-5) vs. Ferris State (13-20-3) – CCHA Quarterfinals

Opening the conference playoffs against a Ferris State team that the Tommies swept back in January, St. Thomas trailed early in game one, but two goals twelve seconds apart from Liam Malmquist and Jake Braccini made it 2-1 less than six minutes in. There would be four additional goals in what was a wild seven-goal first period, with Liam Malmquist tallying a second goal to make it 3-2 before Ferris State tied it up once more, and Quinton Pepper scored the final goal of the period to bring it to 4-3 St. Thomas.

The Tommies kept the Bulldogs from scoring from that point forward, adding a shorthanded goal in the second to make it 5-3 before two third-period Cooper Gay goals ended in a 7-3 final. Goaltender Jake Sibell made 28 saves in what was his tenth consecutive victory in net for the Tommies. 

Opposite to game one, game two opened with a scoreless first period. St. Thomas scored the crucial first goal 4:54 into period two, with Minnetonka's Grant Docter scoring only his second goal of the season. For the second night in a row, the Tommies tallied a shorthanded goal in the middle frame, with Liam Malmquist finishing on a rare 2-on-0 break.

Malmquist stayed hot and scored the dagger with 4:59 left on the clock to make it 3-0, and he later added an empty netter to complete the hat trick and secure the 4-1 win. With his four-point night, Malmquist has surpassed the 40-point mark with 18 goals and 24 assists through 36 games. 

With the sweep, the Tommies move on to the single-elimination semifinal round and will face the fourth-seed Bowling Green Falcons (18-13-4) at home, with puck drop at 4:07 PM on 3/15.