Beavers Shut Out by Duluth, Streak Reaches 19 Games
Bemidji State lost 4 to 0 to Minnesota Duluth on Saturday, extending the Beavers to their 19th straight defeat against the Bulldogs. The shutout highlights ongoing offensive struggles but also showed a stronger penalty kill that local fans can take note of heading into the holiday break.
Bemidji State fell to Minnesota Duluth 4 to 0 on Saturday at the Sanford Center, marking the 19th consecutive loss for the Beavers against the Bulldogs and underscoring Minnesota Duluth’s defensive dominance in the rivalry. The Bulldogs have now played 14 straight games against Bemidji State without allowing more than one goal, a streak that kept Bemidji State off the scoreboard for the second straight meeting this weekend.
The game featured tense goaltending and limited offense. Bemidji State senior Raeley Carney was among the skaters who pushed into the attack, but the Beavers could not convert opportunities past Minnesota Duluth netminder Ève Gascon. Gascon stopped six power play shots and made a key save on Morgan Smith’s one time attempt to preserve a 1 to 0 lead late in the second period. On the other end, Bemidji State goalie Kaitlin Groess denied a breakaway chance and helped kill two UMD power plays in the second.
The Beavers did show improvement on penalty killing. Bemidji State raised its penalty kill percentage to 84.4 percent for the weekend, going four for four on the penalty kill against Minnesota Duluth. That facet of the game offered a measurable positive for coach Amber Fryklund to build on during the pause in WCHA play.
Coach Fryklund reflected on the contest and the weekend, saying, "I don’t think it was our best game," and, "I don’t think we came out and competed like we did yesterday." She added, "Credit to Duluth; they’re a good team and we knew they were going to come back today and battle." She closed on the need for a reset, saying, "I just don’t think we had the intensity we had yesterday."
For Beltrami County residents who follow Beavers hockey, Saturday’s result is a reminder of the gap the program faces within the conference while also signaling an area of progress in special teams. The team will use the holiday break to regroup and return to WCHA play in January, leaving local supporters to hope that the penalty kill momentum can be translated into more consistent offense and tighter results in the new year.
