Huskies, Falcons rebound

With four games remaining in the regular season, Minnesota State has a two-point lead atop the WCHA standings.

Michigan Tech and Bowling Green both rebounded from their Friday-night losses and won on Saturday for series splits on the road.

The Huskies, who were shut out at Bemidji State in the series opener, exploded for nine goals in the finale and won 9-2, leaving the Beavers feeling a more than a bit "sour." Tech got goals from eight different players, and Bemidji State used three goalies.

In Fairbanks, the Falcons scored the first four goals of the game and beat Alaska 4-1, recovering well after giving up a short-handed game-winner in the final 10 seconds on Friday.

Elsewhere in the WCHA, Northern Michigan beat Alabama Huntsville 3-1 for a series sweep, and  Alaska Anchorage beat visiting Lake Superior State 5-2 for a split.

So here's where things stand:

WCHA Men - 2015-2016 Standings

                            Conference Only            Overall
                       Pts  GP  W  L  T Win%  GF- GA   GP  W  L  T
 1 Minnesota State      33  24 13- 4- 7 .688  71- 45   32 15-10- 7
 2 Bowling Green        31  24 13- 6- 5 .646  61- 47   34 17-11- 6
   Michigan Tech        31  24 14- 7- 3 .646  74- 47   30 17- 8- 5
 4 Ferris State         28  24 12- 8- 4 .583  63- 56   31 14-11- 6
   Northern Michigan    28  24 12- 8- 4 .583  61- 55   32 15-11- 6
 6 Bemidji State        22  24  9-11- 4 .458  57- 57   32 14-13- 5
 7 Lake Superior State  20  24  8-12- 4 .417  40- 63   34 11-19- 4
 8 Alaska Anchorage     18  24  8-14- 2 .375  58- 73   30 11-16- 3
 9 Alaska               16  24  6-14- 4 .333  52- 74   30  8-18- 4

10 Alabama Huntsville   13  24  4-15- 5 .271  51- 71   30  6-19- 5

The battle for the MacNaughton Cup is going to come down to the wire, as it has the last two years. MSU goes to Anchorage then hosts Bemidji State. Bowling Green hosts Ferris State then goes to Huntsville. Michigan Tech hosts Alaska then plays a home and home against Northern Michigan.

Ferris State and Northern Michigan remain in the hunt, five points out of first and three out of second. They're both vying for home ice, too. Bemidji State's loss on Saturday put it six points out of fourth, making home ice a tough proposition. There's also the race for the final playoff spots. Currently Alaska (two points out) and Huntsville (five) are on the outside looking in.