News Tribune Semi-Final Article

Frozen Four: UMD wins, advances to championship final
Andy Greder Duluth News Tribune
Published Friday, March 21, 2008
New Hampshire coach Brian McCloskey said this year’s Frozen Four would be ultra-competitive.

The coach, in his sixth season, was proven right Thursday night in the college women’s hockey semifinal between Minnesota Duluth and New Hampshire.

Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award finalist Kim Martin made 41 saves and teammate Laura Fridfinnson scored two goals as second-seeded UMD beat third-seeded New Hampshire 3-2 before 3,161 at the DECC.

“I would say Kim Martin for Patty Kaz,” UMD coach Shannon Miller said, perhaps coining a campaign slogan to pitch the sophomore goalie from Stockholm, Sweden, for the award given to the best Division I player, which will be announced today.

UMD (33-4-1) will play Wisconsin (29-8-3) for the national championship at 12:30 p.m. Saturday. The Badgers beat UMD 4-1 for the 2007 title.

“Clearly, there are four teams here that are as talented as any four teams I’ve seen in my six years [of coaching] on the women’s side,” McCloskey said in Wednesday’s news conference. “You know for a fact that you are going through the iron. No one is going to back into this championship.”

The Wildcats held a 43-15 shots edge, but the Bulldogs persevered without two of their first-line players.

Center Saara Tuominen, who sprained her medial collateral ligament in the NCAA quarterfinals against Mercyhurst, didn’t suit up, and winger Iya Gavrilova remains out of the lineup while the NCAA investigates her eligibility.

Tuominen was ruled out after testing her knee at the team’s pregame skate.

“There is no question that we believe, work hard and good things happen,” Miller said.

The Bulldogs went more than 30 minutes without a shot on goal until Myriam Trepanier’s shot at 10:21 in the third. Off the next faceoff, UMD got the game-winner when Fridfinnson tipped in a Haley Irwin shot from the point.

With a narrow 3-2 lead, UMD killed 53 seconds of a 5-on-3 late in a penalty-marred third period.

Jenn Wakefield gave New Hampshire (33-4-1) a 1-0 lead at four minutes in the first period. After the goal, UMD center Haley Irwin gave Martin a no-big-deal shoulder shrug. Irwin showed good foresight.

Irwin told Martin, “Don’t worry, we’ll get that one back for you.”

Fridfinnson and Sara O’Toole then each scored a first-period goal as the Bulldogs (32-4-1) took a 2-1 lead after the first period.

Miller said the first goal was set up by O’Toole, who Miller pulled aside and told her she needed to be a scorer with their short-handed situation

“She created that goal,” Miller said of O’Toole’s effort.

New Hampshire forward Leah Craig scored a rebound goal in the second period for a 2-2 tie after 40 minutes.

Although the Wildcats and Bulldogs haven’t played since the 2000-2001 season, some of their Canadian players are familiar with each other. Six players were on the Canadian under-22 team — Fridfinnson, Irwin, Joss Larocque and Emmanuelle Blais from UMD and Jennifer Wakefield and Courtney Birchard from New Hampshire.

Kayley Herman made 12 saves for the Wildcats.

“We dominated every facet of the game,” McCloskey said. “For 60 minutes we pressed the pedal and we were clearly the better team.”