ST. CLOUD, MINN. (National Hockey Center) -- Junior Jordan George (F, Madison, Wis..) scored two goals and posted an assist to lead the Bemidji State University men’s ice hockey team to a 6-6 tie with St. Cloud State University Friday at National Hockey Center. Aaron McLeod (Jr., F, Ottawa, Ontario) added a pair of goals and Brad Hunt (Sr., D, Ridge Meadows, British Columbia) posted two assists as nine BSU players had a hand in scoring.

In a wild Western Collegiate Hockey Association (WCHA) contest that saw 12 goals scored, four lead changes and the score tied on four occasions, the Beavers rallied from a pair of two-goal deficits to earn a tie and a point in the league standings.

Bemidji State was first to strike in a high-tempo, five-goal first period.  McLeod redirected a pass from Jamie MacQueen (Sr., F, St. Thomas, Ontario) between the pads of SCSU’s freshman goaltender Ryan Faragher to give the Beavers a 1-0 lead 5:03 into the game.

St. Cloud State would respond with a Nick Oliver goal at the 11:31 mark of the period and would get goals from Ben Hanowski and Taylor Johnson during the next 4:14 to extend its lead to 3-1 with 4:15 to go in the first. But the Huskies would commit a costly turnover in their own zone and Bemidji State would make them pay.  Jeff Jubinville (So., F, Edmonton, Alberta) picked up the puck and placed a nifty pass on the stick of George, who pocketed a backhand over Faragher to reel the Beavers to within a goal, 3-2, before the first period expired (17:23).

In a penalty-riddled second period, the Beavers and Huskies each got seven shots on goal and netted a power-play marker, but the Beavers managed to record an even-strength goal to even the score at 4-4 after 40 minutes.

George registered his second goal of the night at the 1:25 mark of the second, just 39 seconds into the Beavers’ first power-play opportunity of the night. Brady Wacker (Jr., D, Jansen, Saskatchewan) posted the first of his two points on the night (1-1=2), scoring his second goal of the season at the 3:30 mark to put the Beavers up 4-3, before SCSU bounced back with a Hanowski power-play marker at the 9:16 mark that would knot the game 4-4. George was credited with an assist on the play.

Tied 4-4 to open the third, the Huskies got goals from Travis Novak and Jordy Christian to take a 6-4 lead just 5:42 into the frame.

But the resilient Beavers would not back down.

After sitting out of the Beavers’ last three games due to injury, Radoslav Illo (So., F, Bystrica, Slovakia) sparked BSU’s second comeback with an unassisted goal with 10 minutes to play (10:06).  He skated from end to end and scored stick side for his second goal of the season. Just over three minutes later (13:23), McLeod  took a pass from Matt Prapavessis (Fr., D, Oakville, Ontario), skated down the slot, got the goaltender to commit low and roofed his second goal of the night to settle the score at 6-6. Hunt was also credited with an assist on the play, his team-leading 11th of the season and 78th of his career, matching BSU great and former teammate Matt Read (2008-11) for BSU’s Division I-era assists record (78).

The score would stay locked at 6-6 through the end of regulation and despite out shooting SCSU 5-3 and dominating the extra period, the Beavers would settle for the tie on the road marking just the third point taken by BSU on the Huskies’ ice since Mar. 7, 1987.

Despite getting just two power-play opportunities on the night, BSU won the special teams battle finishing 1-for-2 (.500) on the man advantage, while snuffing out two of the Huskies’ three power-play chances, holding the hosts to just one shot on the power-play.

Relieving Bakala at the 15:45 mark of the first period, Andrew Walsh (Fr., G, Dawson Creek, British Columbia) was credited with the tie.  He allowed three goals in 49:15 and piled up 14 saves, which included three stops in overtime.  He moves to 2-2-1 in his career.

The Beavers continue to hold an edge in the all-time series 44-39-4.

Bemidji State (5-8-2; 3-6-2 WCHA) and St. Cloud State (6-7-4; 4-4-3 WCHA) wrap up the series tomorrow with a 7:07 p.m. face off at National Hockey Center.

--bsu--