WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Bemidji State Beavers became college hockey’s Cinderella team by knocking off No. 2-ranked Notre Dame and No. 9 Cornell to earn the right to play West Regional winner Miami (Ohio) in the Frozen Four. The Beavers are the first 16 seed to advance to the finals since the field was expanded to 16 teams in 2002. “We knew what we were up against, but we also believed,” coach Tom Serratore said after his team defeated Cornell, 4-1, in the Midwest Regional. “We really felt we could win this. We knew it was an uphill battle, I mean come on, who’s kidding who?” Bemidji’s underdog status was enhanced by the fact the Beavers played the past decade in College Hockey America (CHA), which is disbanding at the end of this season. The team is searching for a new home and has applied for admission in the WCHA. The Beavers’ top line consists of the diminutive trio of sophomore Matt Read centering for senior wingers Matt Francis and Tyler Scofield, who have accounted for six of the team’s nine goals in the regional bracket. Goaltender Matt Dalton has posted the most impressive statistics, stopping 59 of the 61 shots he’s faced in the two regional games. Unranked Bemidji State began the season with an unimpressive record of 8-13, losing all of its regular season match-ups against the other teams on it’s schedule that made the tournament (Air Force, the University of Minnesota-Duluth and North Dakota), but the Beavers finished with a 12-2-1 run, then stunned the Fighting Irish 5-1, and advanced past Cornell to reach the Frozen Four. Though the Beavers clearly are playing in rarefied air, they’ve had success on lower rungs of college hockey. The school’s program won 13 Division II and III national championships from 1968 to 1997, before moving to Division I under longtime coach Bob Peters in 1999. Serratore, the current coach, played under Peters in the mid-1980s and adapted his predecessor’s high-pressure forechecking system, which is built around forcing turnovers near the opponent’s blue line. Miami (Ohio) are also playing in their first-ever NCAA Division I national semifinal after upsetting Denver, then defeating Minnesota-Duluth 2-1 in the regional final. The team had enjoyed an unexpected week off prior to the tournament after losing its CCHA quarterfinal series to Northern Michigan. Sophomore Carter Camper and senior Justin Mercier lead a particularly deep RedHawks offense that also includes Garrett Steffes and Pat Cannone fortifying the attack. Miami has rotated freshman goalies Cody Reichard and Connor Knapp for most of the season and boasts the second best penalty-kill rate in college hockey. The team has struggled to score at points during the season, raising questions about its ability to adapt should it run into a hot goaltender.
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