Power, Power, Power

NORTHFIELD, Minn. (1/23/24)---Concordia used the strength of three power play goals to outlast St. Olaf 5-4 in the series opener which will conclude on Friday at Hockey Day Minnesota.

The Cobbers bolted to a 4-2 lead after two periods thanks to the trio of extra-skater strikes as they upped their overall record to 9-7-2 on the season. CC is 4-4-1 in the conference. They have 13 points in the MIAC standings and are one point behind the Oles for the fifth and final spot in the league playoffs.

Concordia never trailed in the game and has only lost once in the last four contests.

Hanson O'Leary opened the scoring with the first of the three power play goals at the 4:14 mark of the first period. Isaac Henkemeyer-Howe and Mason Plante picked up the assists. For Henekemyer-Howe it would be the first of three points on the night.

The Oles (8-9-2, 4-5-2 MIAC) tied the game midway through the first frame but that lasted only 7 seconds as a goal by Hunter Bjorge reclaimed the 1-goal advantage. Ryan Pogue recorded his first assist of the season on the go-ahead goal.

The game would stay at 2-1 until the second minute of the second period when Henkemeyer-Howe struck on the power play at the 1:32 mark. The goal would be the first of back-to-back goals for Henkemeyer-Howe. "

St. Olaf got to within a goal when they scored at 11:33, but then Henkemeyer-Howe notched his team-leading ninth goal of the year with 3:11 left in the period. Defenseman Bauer Barry was credited with the assist on the Cobbers' fourth goal.

Concordia took a 4-2 lead into the second intermission and held that margin through the first half of the third period. It appeared that CC would coast to the 2-goal lead but then the Oles got to within one with a power play goal of their own at 13:46.

The game took a dramatic turn in the final 1:38 of play. St. Olaf pulled their goalie at the 18:22 mark and CC was able to gain control of the puck after the faceoff and fill up the vacated goal. Hunter Olson scored the eventual game-winning goal at 18:36 with an assist by O'Leary.

St. Olaf kept their goalie on the bench and then scored the final goal of the game at 19:30 to bring the final tally to 5-4. The Oles would have one more shot on net in the final 20 seconds of play but CC goalie Matt Fitzgerald made the save to preserve the win.

The Cobbers were outshot 32-30 in the game. Olson, Henkemeyer-Howe and Caden Triggs all had a team-high four shots on target.

Concordia finished the contest by going 3-for-6 on the power play. The three power play goals mark the second time in the last four games that CC has dropped a trio of scores on the power play. They also scored three against Wis.-Stout in a 7-1 win. The Cobbers are 7-for-19 (on the power play in the last four games and lead the MIAC in power play percentage this season with a 23.9% success mark.

UP NEXT: Concordia will face St. Olaf in Warroad on Friday, Jan. 26 at 5:30 p.m. as part of the annual Hockey Day Minnesota weekend celebration.