An MIAC Quarterfinal Rematch

MOORHEAD, Minn. (2/23/23)—Concordia will host St. Olaf in the quarterfinal game of the MIAC men's playoffs on Friday, Feb. 24 at 7 p.m. at the Moorhead Sports Center. The Cobbers are making their 10th straight MIAC playoff appearance and eighth in the past nine years.

Below you will find all the information you need to get ready for the "second season".

TICKET INFORMATION: The first 50 Cobber students will be admitted free of charge. Ticket prices for all others are $10 for adults and $2 for any students (5 years old and younger are free). There is no senior discount. MIAC passes will be honored. No other passes will be accepted.

WHAT: MIAC Men's Hockey Quarterfinals

WHEN: Friday, Feb. 24 at 7 p.m.

WHERE: Moorhead Sports Center – Moorhead, Minn.

TEAMS: No.5 Seed St. Olaf (13-10-2/7-8-1 MIAC) at No.4 Seed Concordia (12-11-2/9-6-1 MIAC)

LIVE LINKS:  Live Video | Live Stats

HOW THEY GOT HERE: Concordia finished the regular season with 26 conference points and a 9-6-1 mark in league play. The Cobbers earned their 10th straight trip to the MIAC postseason – and 11th in 12 years – by sweeping St. Mary's in Winona on the final weekend of the regular season. The sweep against the Cardinals capped a 10-game stretch for CC that saw them go 7-2-1 and jump from seventh place, and five points behind the final playoff spot, all the way to the No.4 seed. Concordia started the conference season by dropping four of their first four games against league opponents.

St. Olaf also used a sweep in their final series of the regular season to jump into the playoff picture. The Oles were in 7th-place entering last weekend, but then posted a pair of shutouts against Gustavus, and jumped over St. Mary's and Bethel to reach the postseason for the second straight season. St. Olaf made their hay at the start of the year when they won their first three league games, and went 4-2 before the New Year.    

RECORDS VS. OTHER PLAYOFF TEAMS: Concordia went 2-6-0 against MIAC playoff teams this year with their only victories coming in the series with St. Olaf. CC swept St. Olaf at the end of January when they won both games 5-2. The Oles have a 1-6-1 record against playoff teams.

HOME AND AWAY: Concordia was 5-3-1 at home this year in all games. The Cobbers were 5-1-1 at home against MIAC teams. St. Olaf was 6-5-1 on the road this year, including a neutral-ice game win against Bethel outdoors. The Oles were 4-4-1 on the road in conference games.    

PLAYOFF PEDIGREE: Concordia is making its 10th consecutive playoff appearance and 11th in the past 12 seasons – in a stretch that dates back to 2011. It will be the 18th overall spot in the league playoffs. CC is 11-18-2 all-time in the MIAC playoffs, which included a 2-game series back in the late 90's. The Cobbers have made the MIAC title game on four different occasions with the most recent appearance coming in 2021 against St. Thomas. CC has claimed the title on two occasions – 2000 and 1987. Concordia is 3-6 at all-time at home, and 3-5 in the quarterfinals, in conference playoffs.    

St. Olaf is making 14th appearance in the MIAC postseason. They are coming off one of their two tournament titles. The Oles entered last season's "everyone in" tournament as the No.7 seed and proceeded to capture three straight road wins on their way to their second conference playoff championship. Before last season, the last time the Oles were in the postseason was 2014. That appearance capped a stretch where they made the playoffs in three straight season and four of five year. The other title for St. Olaf came in 2006 when they were the No.3 seed. The Oles are 11-12-0 all-time in the MIAC playoffs. St. Olaf is 5-2 in quarterfinal games, and 7-9 in road games, in the MIAC playoffs.      

PLAYOFF HEAD-TO-HEAD: The two teams have faced each other twice in the MIAC playoffs, with both games coming in the quarterfinals and St. Olaf coming away with wins in each. Besides last year's 3-2 win for St. Olaf in Moorhead, the only other time the teams squared off in the postseason was in 2014 when the Oles posted a 5-3 win in Northfield. In that game, the Cobbers trailed 2-1 after one period and 4-2 after the second intermission. CC got goals from Garrrett Hendrickson, Charlie Aus and Andrew Deters, and Kelly Andrewmade 30 saves for the Cobbers.  

REGULAR SEASON MATCH-UPS: Concordia posted identical 5-2 wins against St. Olaf in the regular-season series which took place in Moorhead on Jan. 27-28. The Cobbers used a 4-goal string to win the opener. The Oles scored in the third minute of the first period, but then CC scored four straight in the first and second third periods. The second game was won in the third period when Concordia scored three straight goals after the teams were deadlocked at 2-2 after two periods.

Concordia outshot St. Olaf 56-34 in the series. Both teams scored have scored on the power play in each game. Concordia was 2-for-5 on the PP vs. the Oles, while St. Olaf went 2-for-7 on their man-advantage situations.

Matt Fitzgerald was the goalie of record in both games and finished the 2-game series by stopping 30 of the 34 shots he faced. St. Olaf used Tyler Laureault in the opener and Lukas Haugen in the finale.       

STATISTICALLY SPEAKING: How each team ranks in the MIAC for conference games only.

STAT STARS: Concordia is led in scoring by freshman Joe Harguindeguy who was tied for sixth in the MIAC with seven goals and 10 assists for 17 points in conference play. Junior Cole O'Connell is one point off the pace of Harguindeguy with five goals and 11 assists for 16 points. Hanson O'Leary is tied for the team lead in goals scored in MIAC games with seven. Fitzgerald, the reigning MIAC Defensive Player of the Week is 7-2-1 in his last 10 starts – all coming against league foes. He has a 2.44 GAA mark in conference games this year which is tied for third in the MIAC. His save percentage of 90.7% is sixth best.

Sophomore Troy Bowditch leads St. Olaf in scoring in conference play. He has five goals and eight assists for 13 points which is No.15 in the MIAC. Fellow sophomore Sean Walsh leads the Oles with six goals. St. Olaf has used three goalies throughout the league campaign. Thomas Lalonde, who posted shutouts in both games last weekend vs. Gustavus, leads the team with a 2.35 GAA and a 91.2% save percentage with a 3-2-1 record in his six starts.       

PLAYOFF PREVIEW VIDEO