Last Updated 11:37 AM, April 11, 2021
NCAA.com

UMass wins 2021 DI men's hockey championship, program's first national title

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Final minute & celebration from UMass' first NCAA hockey title
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1:37 am, April 11, 2021

UMass beats St. Cloud State, 5-0, wins first national championship in program history

Recap: UMass handles St. Cloud State to win first-ever national championship

UMass took down St. Cloud State, 5-0, in Saturday night’s national championship. For the Mintuemen, it’s their first title win in program history. 

ROLL THE TAPE: View the game highlights here | Watch the final minute & celebration

The scoring started a little over seven minutes into the first period when Aaron Bohlinger found himself on a 2-on-0 and cashed in to make it 1-0 UMass. With 1:04 left in the first 20 minutes, Reed Lebster tapped one past David Hrenak to give UMass the 2-0 lead entering the first intermission. 

With St. Cloud State on the power play five minutes into the second frame, Phil Lagunov dangled around Nick Perbix to score a shorthanded goal that’ll be on every highlight reel for the next decade. Matt Kessel added a power play goal in the back half of the second period to make it 4-0. 

Bobby Trivigno added a snipe in the third period to make it 5-0. 

The championship comes just four seasons after UMass went 5-29-2. It’s a turnaround that is stunning in the college hockey world.

To view the completed bracket, click or tap here. 

1:11 am, April 11, 2021

UMass makes it 5-0 in the third period

UMass just can't stop scoring. 

Bobby Trivigno made it 5-0 when he sniped one past David Hrenak early in the third period. 

Here's the reaction from inside the arena: 

12:44 am, April 11, 2021

UMass leads St. Cloud State, 4-0, after two periods

UMass leads 4-0 after two periods

UMass continued its dominance from the first period into the second, scoring two more in the middle 20 minutes to make it 4-0. 

First it was Phil Lagunov scoring one of the prettiest goals of this college hockey season. It came shorthanded and made it 3-0 Minutemen. 

Then it was Matthew Kessel blasting one past David Hrenak on the power play to make it 4-0. 

UMass is just 20 minutes from its first national title. 

SCORE: 4-0 UMass

SHOTS: 15-13 St. Cloud State

12:31 am, April 11, 2021

UMass takes 4-0 lead on the power play

UMass continued its domination of St. Cloud State late in the second period when Matthew Kessel wired a slapper past David Hrenak to make it 4-0 UMass. 

Here's the reaction from inside the arena: 

12:14 am, April 11, 2021

UMass takes 3-0 lead on beautiful shorthanded goal from Phil Lagunov

What. a. goal. 

Phil Lagunov cashed in shorthanded for UMass, dangling around Nick Perbix and slipping it through David Hrenak to give UMass the 3-0 lead early in the second period. 

11:52 pm, April 10, 2021

UMass leads St. Cloud State 2-0 after first period

UMass leads 2-0 after one period

UMass came out firing in the first period of the national title game, jumping out to a 2-0 lead. 

The first goal came from freshman Aaron Bohlinger, who created a 2-on-0 and cashed in with his first collegiate goal. 

Then it was Reed Lebster who tapped in a pass from Cal Kiefiuk with 1:04 left in the period. 

St. Cloud State actually started the first period off well, but couldn’t convert on any chances. 

SCORE: 2-0 UMass 
SHOTS: 7-3 UMass 

11:46 pm, April 10, 2021

UMass takes 2-0 lead over St. Cloud State

Reed Lebster extended UMass' lead to 2-0 after tapping in a pass from Cal Kiefiuk. 

UMass leads 2-0. 

11:23 pm, April 10, 2021

UMass strikes early, takes 1-0 lead

UMass scored the first goal in the national title game when a little over seven minutes in, Aaron Bohlinger scored his first collegiate goal to make it 1-0 Minutemen. 

Not a bad time for a first career goal. 

Here's the reaction from inside the arena: 

11:17 pm, April 10, 2021

Follow live: UMass vs St. Cloud State for national championship

UMass battles St. Cloud State in the national championship.

The puck has dropped and UMass and St. Cloud State both look to win their first national titles. 

Follow the game here. 

10:17 pm, April 10, 2021

National championship preview: UMass vs. St. Cloud State

The 2021 Frozen Four national championship game, previewed

It’s here. It’s finally here. 

In less than an hour, UMass and St. Cloud State will battle for the national title. No matter which squad wins, it will be their first national championship in school history. 

Puck drop is slated for 7 p.m. ET. The game can be watched on ESPN. 

Here are the lines: 

 

UMass Minutemen 

20 Oliver Chau - 18 Jake Gaudet - 11 Carson Gicewicz 

8 Bobby Trivigno - 10 Josh Lopina - 12 Garrett Wait 

7 Cal Kiefiuk - 17 Phil Lagunov - 13 Reed Lebster 

12 Anthony Del Gaizo - 29 George Mika - 19 Ryan Sullivan 

28 Eric Faith 

 

2 Marc Del Gaizo - 26 Colin Felix 

24 Zac Jones - 4 Matthew Kessel 

25 Aaron Bohlinger - 3 Ty Farmer 

 

35 Filip Lindberg 

 

St. Cloud State Huskies 

10 Kyler Kupka - 20 Nolan Walker - 15 Micah Miller 

27 Chase Brand - 28 Kevin Fitzgerald - 19 Sam Hentges 

29 Veeti Miettinen - 13 Jami Krannila - 14 Zach Okabe 

22 Joe Molenaar - 16 Will Hammer - 21 Jared Cockrell 

 

3 Seamus Donohue - 25 Nick Perbix 

18 Brendan Bushy - 9 Spencer Meier 

6 Luke Jaycox - 5 Ondrej Trejbal 

8 Tyler Anderson 

 

34 David Hrenak 

12:55 pm, April 10, 2021

The 2021 DI men's ice hockey champion will be crowned tonight

Getty Images St. Cloud State faces UMass in the 2021 DI men's ice hockey championship match

We're finally here. The 2021 DI men's ice hockey championship concludes tonight at 7 p.m. ET on ESPN, and neither contender, St. Cloud State or UMass, has ever won the title. It's going to be an exciting night. 

2021 FROZEN FOUR FINALS: St. Cloud State vs. UMass live stats | Full bracket

Here's how St. Cloud State and UMass got to this point:

The Huskies were picked to finish fourth in the NCHC to begin the season. Fast forward to selection day: St. Cloud State entered the NCAA tournament as the second seed in the Northeast region. Not too shabby. The toughest blow came in the regional final against 1-seed Boston College. The Huskies found themselves down 1-0 early when senior forward Easton Brodzinski broke his leg. They came back to win and are now competing for their first national championship.

UMass carried a different storyline heading into the 2021-21 season. The Minutemen finished as 2019 championship runner-ups. They closed out the 2020-21 regular season winning the program's first-ever Hockey East tournament title. Now, after an overtime thriller in the Frozen Four semifinals against Minnesota Duluth, UMass is ready to hoist its first championship trophy in program history.

For more on the path to the DI men's ice hockey championship for St. Cloud State and UMass, click or tap here.

7:44 pm, April 9, 2021

5 observations from the Frozen Four semifinals

Here are the five observations from the Frozen Four.

Here are the five observations from an unforgettable Frozen Four semifinals: 

1. UMass turned things up to a whole new level in overtime 

2. Kyler Kupka and Nolan Walker stepped up big in Easton Brodzinski's absence 

3. Matt Murray was the reason UMass forced overtime 

4. St. Cloud State showed its resilience 

5. UMass gets added boost with Filip Lindberg and Carson Gicewicz returning 

Click here for the full story. 

4:25 am, April 9, 2021

UMass takes down Minnesota Duluth, 3-2, in OT to advance to national championship

UMass advances to the national title game.

UMass spent the majority of the first three periods getting outplayed. Then came overtime and UMass looked like a whole new team. 

That domination showed on the scoreboard when a little over 14 minutes into the fourth frame, Bobby Trivigno brought the puck from behind the net and found Garrett Wait for the tap-in to win, 3-2. 

The Minutemen forced OT midway through the third period when Anthony Del Gaizo tied the game 2-2. 

In the second period, the lone goal belonged to Cole Koepke to put the Bulldogs up 2-1 after their first goal late in the first period when Tanner Laderoute got them on the board. 

Zac Jones scored the first goal of the game on the power play. 

UMass will face St. Cloud State in the national title game Saturday night. The game is at 7 p.m. ET on ESPN.

4:16 am, April 9, 2021

Garrett Wait wins it in OT, sends UMass to the national championship

UMass dominated overtime from start to finish. 

That culminated in Garrett Wait's OT-winner from Bobby Trivigno's effort behind the net. 

The Minutemen advance to their second-straight title game.