Minnesota
No. 6 Minnesota-Duluth 3, No. 10 Penn State 1: Goalied
After a heroic goaltending performance lifted Penn State to the Frozen Four last year, the Nittany Lions were on the receiving end of a strong goaltending night in Friday’s 3-1 NCAA Tournament loss to Minnesota-Duluth. Adam Gajan made 29 saves, many of them high-danger, to lift the Bulldogs past Penn State. Shea Van Olm scored Penn State’s only goal of the night in the first period. Josh Fleming made 36 saves in defeat for the Nittany Lions.
First Period
Penn State’s attack was relentless in the first period. Midway through the period, Casey Aman made a perfect cross-ice pass to Shea Van Olm. The freshman laced a beautiful shot past Adam Gajan to put Penn State on top 1-0:
Max Plante tied the game for Minnesota-Duluth late in the first period when his brother Zam found him open near the front of the net. Max fired it through Josh Fleming’s five hole to even the game at 1.
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Second Period
Minnesota-Duluth took control of the flow of the game in the second period and rolled up 11 of the first 12 shots in the frame. Josh Fleming made several high-danger chances to keep Penn State afloat with the offense drying up. A too many men on the ice penalty against Penn State gave the Bulldogs their only power play of the night, but Penn State killed it off to keep the game level at 1 after two periods.
Charlie Cerrato exited the game with an injury late in the second period. He came back onto the ice briefly following the injury but did not finish the game.
Third Period
Penn State got a power play of their own when Max Plante hooked Aiden Fink as he was setting up for a prime scoring chance. Matt DiMarsico had a wide open chance at the left faceoff circle but Gajan got across just in time to make the save. Minnesota-Duluth killed off the penalty and seized momentum back.
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A bad breakout led to a defensive zone turnover by Gavin McKenna as he misplayed the puck. Minnesota-Duluth’s Grayden Siepmann quickly found Hunter Anderson off the turnover, and Anderson beat Josh Fleming glove side high to give the Bulldogs their first lead of the night.
Penn State struggled to gain possession in the offensive zone while trying to tie the game in the dying minutes. The Nittany Lions got a couple of decent looks, but Ty Hanson iced the game with an empty-net goal in the closing seconds to end Penn State’s season.
Scoring Summary
|
1 |
2 |
3 |
Final |
|
|
Penn State |
1 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
|
Minnesota-Duluth |
1 |
0 |
2 |
3 |
First Period
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PSU: Shea Van Olm (9)- Casey Aman (5), Mac Gadowsky (17)- 5v5- 8:37
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UMD: Max Plante (25)- Zam Plante (28), Ty Hanson (26)- 5v5- 15:01
Third Period
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UMD: Hunter Anderson (7)- Grayden Siepmann (13)- 5v5- 14:47
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UMD: Ty Hanson (9)- Max Plante (26)- EN- 19:59
Shots By Period
Takeaways
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Thank You, Seniors- Jarod Crespo, Ben Schoen, and Carter Schade played their final game for Penn State tonight. They left it all on the ice tonight.
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Goaltending- Adam Gajan stole this game for Minnesota-Duluth, but Josh Fleming played one of his best games of the season as well. It was hard to fault Fleming for either of the two goals scored against him. The future is bright for Fleming at Penn State.
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Nightmares- Penn State’s season-long struggles with defense and puck handling came back to haunt them in the third period on Minnesota-Duluth’s game-winning goal. The injury cloud also hung over the team yet again with Charlie Cerrato exiting the game.
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Expectations- After last year’s Frozen Four, the hype for this program launched into outer space, and rightfully so. They were unable to repeat last season’s success, but that’s hockey. They’ll be back before long.
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Atmosphere- I was watching this game on TV at a friend’s house, and it seemed like the atmosphere at the arena was dead. The Roar Zone had a strong contingent, but there were lots of empty seats and it felt like a run-of-the-mill regular season game and not a postseason game. The NCAA may want to revisit moving the tournament to campus sites.
What’s Next
Penn State’s season is over, but the offseason will certainly be busy. Roster changes are on the horizon with players graduating out or signing professional contracts, and the transfer portal window opens on April 13. The Nittany Lions have another solid recruiting class coming in and should retain several key pieces on the current roster. Stay tuned to BSD for updates as we head into the offseason. It will be a long six months without Penn State hockey before the 2026-27 season begins, but it will be here before we know it.
Minnesota
Boldy, Eriksson Ek help Wild cruise past Stars in Game 1 of Western 1st Round | NHL.com
Kirill Kaprizov had a goal and two assists, and Ryan Hartman had a goal and an assist for the Wild, who are the No. 3 seed in the Central Division. Wallstedt made 27 saves in his Stanley Cup Playoff debut, and Zuccarello had three assists.
“I was definitely nervous,” said Wallstedt, a rookie. “I think it shows that it means something to you. I like a little bit of nerves. I think it’s something good. There were definitely some nerves throughout the day and then a little bit extra rolling into the game. But after the national anthem was over and the first couple pucks started coming, you’re good.
“I wanted to play and I felt like I have been going good. I was a little surprised (to get the start). But I was very excited as soon as I got the news. I just wanted to make sure I was ready today.”
Jason Robertson scored, and Jake Oettinger made 23 saves for the Stars, who are the No. 2 seed in the Central.
“We didn’t deserve to win,” Dallas forward Mikko Rantanen said. “I think two power-play goals for them, two a little-bit bounces for them where we had guys in the right spot. Just even keel. Playoffs are like this. Sometimes you lose a game, you can feel like you’re done. But that’s the mentality you need to have, you’ve got to reset and learn from mistakes.
“First 30 minutes, we didn’t win enough battles. They were just that little bit stronger in the battles and that’s why they were able to make us defend more than we want to. Just got to be stronger.”
Game 2 is here on Monday (9:30 p.m. ET; FDSNWI, FDSNNO, Victory+, ESPN, TVAS2, SN360).
“We prepped for a couple days coming into this one. Now, we will gather information from this game and continue to move forward,” Minnesota coach John Hynes said. “For me, it’s game to game and day to day. We want to continue to get better. We won and they [Dallas] lost. It’s not so much being satisfied where you’re at or that’s what it is. We need to continue to find ways to get better.”
Eriksson Ek gave the Wild a 1-0 lead at 5:35 of the first period on the power play. He scored on a one-timer from the left hash marks to finish a tic-tac-toe passing play with Zuccarello and Boldy, who found an open Eriksson Ek with a pass from the goal line.
“I think every team in the playoffs talks about not getting too high or too low. Just enjoy every day and each game and then we will go from there,” Eriksson Ek said. “I think we played pretty good today. The next game is a new game, so we just have to do it over and over every game. We know they are probably not the happiest with that game, so I am sure it’s going to be hard next game.”
Minnesota
ICE agent assault charge marks a ‘milestone’ for Minnesota prosecutors
Minnesota prosecutors charged a federal immigration agent with assault accusing him of involvement in a February road-rage incident.
Trump administration ends Minnesota immigration operation
Border Czar Tom Homan announced the end of Minnesota’s immigration operation after fatal shootings heightened tension and community backlash.
Minnesota prosecutors charged a federal immigration agent with assault, saying the agent was involved in a February road-rage incident during the Trump administration’s Operation Metro Surge.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent Gregory Donnell Morgan Jr., 35, faces two counts of second-degree assault with a dangerous weapon, according to April 16 Hennepin County court records. He has a nationwide warrant for his arrest.
On Feb. 5, prosecutors said Morgan allegedly drove illegally on the shoulder of a congested Minnesota highway in an unmarked SUV and pointed his weapon at two people in another car.
Morgan is the first agent charged in Operation Metro Surge, the controversial Minneapolis-area federal immigration operation that resulted in two American citizens fatally shot by federal officials, according to the Hennepin County Attorney’s Office.
The charges “reflect an important milestone in our efforts to seek accountability for the harms inflicted on our community during Operation Metro Surge,” Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty said in an April 16 video statement.
Second-degree assault with a gun has a presumptive sentence of 36 months in prison if convicted, she said.
“Mr. Morgan’s conduct was extremely dangerous,” she said, adding his actions could have led to “another disastrous incident” in the community.
Neither ICE nor the Department of Homeland Security immediately responded to email requests for comment. A cell phone listed for Morgan, identified as a Maryland resident, didn’t immediately respond to a call or text message.
The incident came less than two weeks after two Customs and Border Protection officers shot and killed Alex Pretti, 37, during a protest in Minneapolis. Pretti would be the second American killed during Metro Surge after an ICE agent in early January fatally shot Renee Good, 37, while she drove her SUV in Minneapolis near an immigration operation.
Later in February, the Trump administration drew down Metro Surge, which officials called the largest immigration operation in modern American history.
Investigators said they interviewed Morgan, who identified himself as the driver. Morgan told investigators he and the other ICE employee were returning from a surveillance shift. Morgan said he feared for his life and others’ safety, so he pulled up alongside the vehicle and drew his Glock 19 firearm. He said he identified himself as police.
State investigators said neither Morgan nor the other ICE agent reported the incident to an ICE supervisor.
The April 16 warrant, signed by District Court Judge Paul Scoggin, said there was a “substantial likelihood” Morgan would fail to respond to a summons, and officials couldn’t locate him.
On April 18, Daniel Borgertpoepping, a spokesperson for the county attorney’s office, said there is no knowledge of Morgan being arrested yet.
Eduardo Cuevas is based in New York City. Reach him by email at emcuevas1@usatoday.com or on Signal at emcuevas.01.
Minnesota
Reds Brandon Williamson beats Twins in first Minnesota homecoming
Reds’ Brandon Williamson talks Minnesota homecoming, beating Twins
Cincinnati Reds lefty Brandon Williamson pitched into the sixth inning to beat his home-state Minnesota Twins 2-1 in his first pro start in Minnesota.
MINNEAPOLIS – Brandon Williamson came to this ballpark as a kid, rooted for Joe Mauer and the Twins, maybe even dreamed a little of playing there one day.
“Oh, yeah. Joe Ma,” Williamson said. “That’s my guy.”
By the time that day came, Mauer had a statue outside the stadium, and Williamson had 29 career starts across three big-league seasons for the Cincinnati Reds.
And then the kid from tiny Trimont, Minnesota, came up big enough to beat the Twins in his first professional start in his home state – a 2-1 victory Friday in front of 200 or more personal friends and family from Trimont. And about 31,000 other people.
“It was awesome,” said Williamson, whose personal contingent at the game represented close to one-third of greater Trimont (pop. 705). “It was everything I thought it would be.”
The left-hander didn’t pitch especially deep into the game, getting two batters into the sixth. But on a night made for native Minnesotans, with a game-time temperature of 43 degrees, Williamson looked right at, well, home, pitching to the conditions and setting down the first six batters he faced – and eight of the first nine.
As one local press box wag quipped during the second inning, “These Minnesota boys know how to pitch in the cold.”
A pair of one-out runs in the fourth inning provided the scoring for a Reds team lineup still trying to break free from its early season woes – albeit with the twin obstacles of the weather and All-Star starter Joe Ryan’s presence on the mound for the Twins for the first six innings.
The only two hits off Ryan were doubles in the fourth by Elly De La Cruz and Eugenio Suárez, sandwiched around a throwing error by third baseman Ryan Kreidler. Suárez’s hit drove in two.
The only run against Williamson scored after he inexplicably followed four strong innings with three consecutive walks to open the fifth, including a four-pitch walk to No. 8 hitter Brooks Lee leading off the inning.
Austin Martin followed the three freebies with a sacrifice fly on a dying liner to the gap in right that Will Benson caught with a slide.
Williamson then rallied to get Luke Keaschall on an inning-ending, 5-4-3 double play started by Suárez, who got the rare start at third base.
“I thought he handled himself really good,” manager Terry Francona said. “He looked like he was having fun pitching. I know he didn’t like walking the bases loaded. But he looked like he was enjoying himself out there. I like that when guys are enjoying competing; then we’re OK.”
Williamson also left the bases loaded in the third after a hit batter and two-out single followed by a walk. He struck out Keaschall on a called third strike that was confirmed after Keaschall challenged.
“I could have kissed whoever was running the ABS,” Williamson said.
The Reds improved to 12-8 and remained tied for first place in the National League Central after their third win in four games – the second in that stretch by a 2-1 score.“That was cool,” said closer Emilio Pagán, who pitched a 1-2-3 ninth for the save in his first outing since experiencing hamstring tightness Tuesday.
“I don’t have a team in my home state (of South Carolina),” Pagán said, “so I don’t know what that feels like. But to pitch against probably his favorite team growing up in front of that many friends and family had to be a surreal feeling. And he handled it great.”
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