NOTRE DAME, Ind. – The Irish opened their home series with the No. 2/2 Gophers, snagging the extra conference point in a 2-2 tie.
Just 24 hours after being named to the Mike Richter Award Watch List, Ryan Bischel had a career performance, stopping 39 shots, including three saves in the shootout, to pick up the two Big Ten Conference points early in the second half of the year.
With the Irish putting pressure on the Gopher end halfway through the first period and drew a boarding penalty, the first infraction of the night. With four seconds left on the man-advantage, Justin Janicke fired a shot top shelf to give the Irish the 1-0 lead.
Moments later however, the Gophers would tie things up following an awkward bounce in the crease that sent the puck high in the air and nearly out of sight. On the downfall a Gopher tapped the puck past Bischel to even the score, a tie that would hold through to the end of the period.
The Irish found themselves on the man-advantage once more late in the period but were unable to capitalize and skated to their locker room tied 1-1 after one frame.
The two teams returned to the ice for the second period with the Irish on the powerplay but the Gophers killed the penalty and returned to full strength.
Minnesota native Trevor Janicke broke the stalemate at 9:34 of the second period to give the Irish a 2-1 edge halfway through the contest. The highlight reel goal was assisted by Jackson Pierson and Jesse Lansdell and was the senior’s third tally in the last two games.
After 40 minutes of action, the Irish continued to hold the narrow 2-1 lead with Ryan Bischel notching 24 saves between the pipes.
The two teams battled through the third period but both netminders stood tall in net, turning aside shot after shot. The Irish got another powerplay opportunity at 6:00 of the third period but despite multiple shots on the man-advantage, they were unable to extend the lead and continued with their one-goal lead late in the game.
With the net empty on the opposite end of the ice, the Irish doubled down defensively as Bischel made a series of saves while the blueliners jumped in front of shots to keep the puck off net. Although stepping up defensively, a tough shot with 24 seconds left in regulation beat Bischel as the Gophers forced the overtime session.
Through the overtime three-on-three session, the Irish and Gophers each had multiple rushes up the ice but were unable to find the ultimate game-winner and the two teams headed to a shootout.
Jackson Pierson was denied the first shot in the shootout but Bischel turned the Gophers’ attempt and both teams remained 0-0 through the first round. The Irish sent Ryder Rolston out second who wasted no time netting the go-ahead tally. Bischel made the next two saves as Notre Dame earned the extra conference point in the NCAA recognized tie.
GOALS
- In the waning moments on the man-advantage, Landon Slaggert won the battle along the boards, finding Chayse Primeau at the bottom of the near circle. Without a clean shot, Primeau passed the puck through the slot to an open Justin Janicke who buried his shot for the Irish lead.
- The elder Janicke scored the second goal to give ND the 2-1 lead halfway through the second period. Fending off a strong defensive effort, Trevor Janicke wound around for his seventh goal of the year. Jackson Pierson and Jesse Lansdell picked up assists on the goal.
KEY STATS
- The Irish finished with 22 shots on the night while Ryan Bischel recorded 36 saves through the overtime session. The senior netminder also stopped all three shootout attempts by the Gophers to give his team the extra point in conference play.
- With three shots on goal each, Ryder Rolston and Drew Bavaro led the team in shots.
- On the defensive side of the puck, Ben Brinkman jumped in front of three shots from his former team for a team-high blocked shots.
- With the second goal Friday, Trevor Janicke now boasts three goals in his last two games and leads the team in goals (seven) and points (16).
UP NEXT
The two teams return to the ice at 6:05 p.m. Saturday night for the regular season series finale before the Irish take to the road for a pair of matchups at Penn State next weekend.