Bulldogs 5, Mavericks 4 (OT)

Freddy's three thoughts of the game ...

1. Mistakes prove costly: Two huge blunders by the Mavericks led to the game-tying and game-winning goals by Minnesota Duluth. On the tying goal, goalie Cole Huggins appeared to have a puck shot at his chest contained, but, likely a fraction of a second before he would have gotten a whistle, he fumbled it, and Kyle Osterberg swooped in short-handed and scored to tie the game midway through the third period. In overtime, MSU defenseman Brett Stern was called for a boarding penalty with less than a minute and a half to play, and Alex Iafallo scored the game-winning power-play goal with 26.5 seconds left on the clock.

2. Finally, a shorty: Zach Lehrke's short-handed breakaway goal as he stepped out of the penalty box door was as pretty as it gets. Just smooth. As a 5x3 went to a 4x3, Zach Palmqust got the puck in the defensive zone and could have iced the puck. But Lehrke stepped out and was all alone at the other end of the ice. He sauntered in on goalie Aaron Crandall and put a soft touch on the puck as he slid it between the goalie's legs. That gave MSU a 4-3 lead in the third period. But things broke down after that. Lehrke, Johnny McInnis and Jean-Paul LaFontaine each finished with a goal and an assist. Matt Leitner also had a goal for the Mavericks.

3. X is unkind: The loss was the sixth in as many times at the Xcel Energy Center for the Mavericks, dating back to the 2003 Final Five. Although it was revealed that about 13,000 advanced-sale tickets were sold for the inaugural North Star College Cup, the 4 p.m. Friday game wasn't a popular pick for fans. The crowd filled in better for the nightcap between St. Cloud State and Minnesota. Still, it seems like this could be a pretty good event over time. "There's extra incentive," McInnis said of playing the in-state teams. "I'm still bitter about my sophomore year when UMD ended our season."

UPDATE: Minnesota defeated St. Cloud State 4-1 in the nightcap, meaning it will be the Mavericks vs. the Huskies for third place on Saturday.

Around the WCHA: Michigan Tech 3, Ferris State 2 ... Lake Superior 5, Bowling Green 3 ... Northern Michigan at Alaska Anchorage (late) ... Bemidji State at Alaska (late)