Mavericks 3, Engineers 3 (OT)

Pat Christman/The Free Press

Freddy's three thoughts of the game ...

1. It's how you finish: The first 50 minutes of Friday's game were pretty ugly for the home team, as Minnesota State trailed 2-1 and was getting outshot 20-12 after the first two periods and then fell behind 3-1 at 7:19 of the third. But the Mavericks woke up and scored a pair of late goals to salvage the tie. Johnny McInnis (pictured) scored a goal with 9:22 to play, and freshman Bryce Gervais tied it up with 3:04 to go. McInnis had a solid game, as he also assisted on rookie Teddy Blueger's first-period power-play goal and had a team-leading four shots on goal.

2. A bit boxed up: Against Alabama Huntsville last week, Minnesota State committed just six penalties in the series. Against a strong, defensive RPI team, they went to the box eight times. Nothing horrible (RPI did the same) but certainly less than ideal. Chase Grant was called for three penalties, including two that negated MSU power plays. The Engineers scored two power play goals and got robbed on a couple of other Grade A chances by goaltender Phil Cook. Cook finished with 26 saves, including 11 the second period.

3. Hastings' home debut: The game, of course, was the first official home game for new MSU coach Mike Hastings. Hastings hasn't lost yet (1-0-2), but he didn't seem too pleased with the way Friday's game went overall, especially in front of the home crowd (announced at 3,266). "It's not a rainy day, it's not gloom and doom," he said. "But we have to be better and take responsibility — from the head coach on down."

Deep thought: Speaking of third-period heroics, the MSU women's team came from behind to tie Minnesota Duluth and then claim an extra WCHA point with a shootout win on Friday at All Seasons Arena. Trailing 3-0, the Mavericks got goals from Casey Hirsch, Tracy McCann and Kathleen Rogan in the final 9:14. Rogan's game-tying goal came with an extra attacker on the ice with 11 seconds to play. MSU is now 3-2-2.

Read The Free Press game story here.

Up next: The Mavericks and the Engineers play at 7:07 p.m. Saturday.

Around the WCHA: Michigan Tech 5, Minnesota 3 ... Notre Dame 4, Minnesota Duluth 1 ... St. Cloud State 8, Alabama Huntsville 3 ... Lake Superior 2, Bemidji State 0 ... Nebraska Omaha 5, Northern Michigan 2 ... Colorado College 6, Air Force 2 ... North Dakota 5, Alaska Anchorage 0 ... Denver 5, UMass-Lowell 1