This week on the WCHA RinkRap: an ugly flashback in Mankato, a goal-fest by Bemidji has hockey historians reaching for new terminology, and Northern Michigan’s fifth goalie comes up aces.

Marquee Matchup Ends the Wrong Way

The WCHA offices have generated a steady stream of black and white nostalgia all season long, celebrating seven decades of greatness, but Saturday’s high-profile series in Mankato between Bowling Green and Minnesota State was a return to the dark ages of Western hockey.

In the final half-minute of a series dominated by the hometown Mavericks, frustrated Bowling Green defenseman Will Cullen took a gratuitous run at MSU’s Jared Spooner, driving him headfirst into the end boards. It prompted a fight, several skirmishes, and call-outs to the league offices for supplemental discipline. 

“Terrible . . . egregious . . . disgusting” were the words spouting, rightfully, from the broadcast booth. An emotional Mike Hastings echoed those sentiments in the FloHockey postgame. 

“We don’t want to have anyone getting hurt,” the Mavericks’ head coach said. “That was an incredibly, incredibly dangerous play . . . terrible.” 

The brutal act took away from another sensational weekend of goaltending that now places Dryden McKay into a tie for second place all-time with 21 career shutouts.

The WCHA acted swiftly on the Cullen transgression, suspending the BGSU junior for three games, two for his senseless hit plus an automatic one-game suspension for committing his third game misconduct major in one season. The ensuing wrestle-mania from Saturday’s major — and the standing-room-only crowds in the penalty boxes — harkened memories of the old WCHA, and not the feel-good nostalgia being turned out by commissioner Bill Robertson’s tireless staff. 

The episode in Mankato was like the WCHA of yore, the league that intimidated Eastern squads in the 1960s and ‘70s. Line dances like Saturday’s was often business as usual for teams like Duluth, the Gophers, Badgers, and Michigan Tech. Saturday’s farewell fight between the Falcons Sam Craggs and Maverick Captain Riese Zmolek would have been whistled as double-minors for roughing back in the 1970s, an act forgotten by Monday with a shrug amidst comments like “old-time hockey” and “boys will be boys.”

But today college hockey has evolved today into a more sensible sport, one that recognizes how its players’ increased speed and strength have made them dangerous weapons, human battering rams that can leave opponents in wheelchairs if not regulated.

Today’s WCHA has acted accordingly, rightfully placing Will Cullen will be in the Slater Arena stands for this weekend’s Lake Superior series and beyond.

Although Spooner left under his own power Saturday night, according to coach Hastings on Tuesday, "Jared Spooner is not able to compete and is not healthy."

Owen Sillinger & the Hockey Thesaurus

Bemidji State junior Owen Sillinger’s stunning four-goal game Saturday at Ferris State had hockey aficionados getting a refresher course in terminology. When Sillinger collected his third goal at 12:26 of the second period, he had achieved both the classic “hat trick” and what is also known as a “natural hat trick,” because he had scored his three goals consecutively. He did not, however, score those three all in the same period, which would have constituted a “pure hat trick,” since the first of his consecutive goals occurred in the first period. An internet search tells us that the term “pure” is translated from German and Austrian soccer (football) circles, when a player’s three goals are not interrupted by an intermission.

The Sillinger siblings, however, combined to score three consecutive goals in the second period when younger brother Lukas chipped in his fifth of the year, five minutes after Owen’s second of the second. As of now, there is no term for a pair of brothers scoring three consecutive goals, so we’ll call that a “fratty natty” for the time being.

When older bro Owen notched his fourth and final goal Saturday mid-way through the third, he once again expanded the hockey word search. Four-goal games have been referred to as a “pants trick,” a “haul,” or a “rooster,” depending on your source. 

Owen Sillinger’s aptly named “haul” of four goals (and one assist) Saturday night raised his scoring totals to 9 G and 3 A for the year. A 9-3 scoring record carries yet another nickname, the “Cy Young.” The disproportionate ratio of goals to assists resembles the won-loss record of the HOF pitcher who is the namesake of MLB’s top honor for pitchers. None of Sillinger’s teammates would complain if Owen achieved a Cy-like 20-win, or in his case, 20-goal campaign.

Tinkering in the Crease in the UP

The best sports drama over Super Bowl weekend was not found from the NFL or even the NHL on network television, but two intense rivalry games streaming out of Taffy Abel Arena in the American Soo. Northern Michigan and Lake Superior State divided up six league points with two overtimes, two buzzer beaters, and three overtime winners, as the first of AJ Vanderbeck’s two OT thrillers for Northern in GM2 being disallowed after a four-minute post-celebration review. 

Numerous headlines emerged from the scintillating series: The historic Cappo Cup was presented to Lake Superior for the second straight season; a scoring star was born in Vanderbeck, who now is now tied for the WCHA lead with nine goals scored against Division I opponents. Both those stories, however, bury the lede. The most significant hockey news emanating from the Soo this past weekend was that Grant Potulny may have finally found a winning goalie.

To hockey hounds in the U.P., the hard truth coming out of Marquette is that when it comes to Wildcats goaltending, there has been significantly more quantity than quality between the pipes. In January, Grant Potulny activated a fifth goalie onto his roster, Rico DiMatteo, who had spent the first half of the season playing for Lone Star of the North American Hockey League.

Potulny used two justifications for his action: 1) Due to this season of COVID-19, DiMatteo would not be burning a year of his NCAA eligibility, and 2) Potulny wanted goaltending competition at practice, something to drive up performance. And like the optimistic inventor who tinkers endlessly to find the right formula, Potulny has finally seen a positive result come out of the lab.

In his first NCAA appearance, DiMatteo made 34 saves on Saturday, six in overtime that harkened the “standing on his head” cliché. He earned both third star honors and an official win for his efforts. He will be the talk of the town in Marquette hockey circles, and thanks to a timely assist from NMU SID Katherine Harvath, we learn that Rico’s last name is pronounced “Deh-mah-T-Oh.” 

One game is not much for sample size, but the initial results from the latest Potulny goaltending experiment is a win.

Note: we have made a change regarding the health of Minnesota State's Jared Spooner, who is unable to compete after the hit he suffered, according to Minnesota State Athletics.

Tim Rappleye is the author of two books: Jack Parker's Wiseguys and Hobey Baker, Upon Further Review. You can find him on Twitter.