The possibility of two national championship trophies -- one women's, one men's -- has been the talk for the last two weeks in hockey circles in Wisconsin, a state known for producing quality cheese, beer and, this season in particular, hockey players.
Before a raucous crowd at the Bradley Center that could not have been more partisan, the University of Wisconsin men's hockey team matched the feat of its women's team by winning the national championship on Saturday night. Tom Gilbert's power-play goal with 10 minute 28 seconds to play broke a tie and helped the Badgers to a 2-1 victory over Boston College in the Frozen Four final.
The game was dominated by two of the nation's hottest goaltenders, but Gilbert's wrist shot from the slot beat Eagles goalie Cory Schneider on the stick side.
PHOTO: AFP
Between the time the shot rippled the net and Gilbert pumped his right fist, the estimated 16,000 Badger fans in the crowd of 17,814 jumped to their feet and roared. The reaction was just as loud at the final horn.
Wisconsin (30-10-3) captured its sixth NCAA men's hockey title, and its first since 1990. BC (26-13-3), a two-time national champion, finished as runner-up for the fifth time.
Chris Collins, the Eagles' leading scorer, gave Wisconsin fans a scare with a short-handed breakout down left wing with about 2:20 to play, but his shot slid wide of the net.
Badgers goalie Brian Elliott, who made 22 saves, stood strong in the final 20 seconds, when the Eagles pulled their goalie and scrambled to try to tie the score. Schneider finished with 37 saves.
Wisconsin is the fifth consecutive national champion from the Western Collegiate Hockey Association. Denver won the previous two titles, and Minnesota won in 2002 and 2003. The last winner from outside the WCHA was BC in 2001.
Robbie Earl, who scored the Badgers' other goal, was named most outstanding player of the Frozen Four. He also had two goals and an assist in Wisconsin's 5-2 semifinal victory over Maine.
Joe Sakic and the Colorado Avalanche extended the St. Louis Blues' winless streak to 13 games with a 4-2 win.
The Avalanche appeared in danger of losing for the third time in four games and further endangering their playoff aspirations when they fell behind St. Louis 1-0 in a lifeless first period. But Sakic began Colorado's recovery with a second-period goal, his 31st of the season and 573rd of his career, tying Mike Bossy for 17th all-time.
Peter Budaj (14-6-10) got the win in his 13th straight start -- and what could be one of his last. Goaltender-in-waiting Jose Theodore hopes to make his Colorado debut on Sunday against Minnesota or Tuesday against Phoenix before the Avs close the regular season with a three-game trip to Canada.
Rangers 4, Bruins 3, OT
At Boston, Michael Nylander scored his second goal of the game 40 seconds into overtime and Jaromir Jagr set a New York Rangers club record with his 53rd goal of the season.
Islanders 5, Capitals 0
At Uniondale, New York, Alexei Yashin scored two of New York's three power-play goals in the first period, and the Islanders snapped their season-worst, six-game losing streak by shutting down Alexander Ovechkin and Washington.
Maple Leafs 5, Flyers 2
At Philadelphia, Jeff O'Neill had two of Toronto's five power-play goals. The Flyers fell five points behind the Atlantic-Division leading New York Rangers with five games remaining for each, including one meeting between the teams. Philadelphia is fifth in the Eastern Conference.
Devils 3, Canadiens 2
At Montreal, Brian Gionta got his 43rd goal and Scott Gomez scored twice -- his 29th and 30th -- and New Jersey took sole possession of sixth place in the Eastern Conference.
Martin Brodeur made 40 saves for New Jersey, which won its sixth in a row and moved two points clear of seventh-place Montreal.
Red Wings 4, Blue Jackets 2
At Columbus, Ohio, Jason Williams scored the go-ahead goal and Chris Osgood made it stand for Detroit.
Brendan Shanahan and Tomas Holmstrom also had goals for Detroit, which cemented its position atop the Presidents' Trophy standings with 114 points. Chris Chelios added an empty-net goal.
Thrashers 5, Hurricanes 2
At Atlanta, Ilya Kovalchuk scored his 51st goal to offset Justin Williams' two-goal effort and keep Atlanta's slim playoff hopes alive.
Atlanta has won two of three, but remain six points behind Tampa Bay for the eighth spot in the Eastern Conference.
The Hurricanes, who are tied with Ottawa for first in the East, saw their three-game winning streak end.
Peter Bondra, Scott Mellanby, Marc Savard and Serge Aubin all scored for Atlanta.
Sabres 6, Senators 2
At Ottawa, Tim Connolly scored two goals and had an assist to lead Buffalo over Ottawa.
The win allowed Buffalo to get within six points of Ottawa for the Northeast Division lead. Buffalo has four games left to play while the Senators have five.
The Senators have lost three straight games for the first time all season.
Canucks 3, Flames 2, OT
At Vancouver, British Columbia, Ed Jovanovski returned from a two and a half month absence to score the winning goal with 2:33 left in overtime, lifting Vancouver over Calgary.
Despite the loss, Calgary clinched a playoff spot when Mark Giordano and Byron Ritchie scored two minutes apart midway through the third period to force overtime, giving the Flames a point for the seventh straight game.
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