Game Summary

WINONA, Minn. — A tie — it's probably the least favorable outcome to a hockey game.

Three 20-minute periods and a five-minute extra session, and yet a winner could still not be determined.

For Saint Mary's University men's hockey coach Don Olson, however, Saturday's 2-2 tie with Gustavus — when you get right down to it — was just as good as a win.

How, you ask?

Simple.

The Cardinals have two games remaining in the regular season and are battling Concordia for the fifth and final MIAC playoff spot. A loss to the Gusties on Saturday would have left SMU in a dead-heat with Concordia for that fifth slot with 15 points.

Instead, thanks to their 2-2 tie, the Cardinals picked up a single point and moved one point in front of the Cobbers.

No big deal?

It is when you realize that SMU must travel to Moorhead, Minn., to take on the Cobbers in their final MIAC series of the season next weekend — and that one-point advantage means the Cardinals can lock up that final playoff berth with just one win, instead of a weekend sweep.

"The guys played a great game," said SMU coach Don Olson, whose team moved to 7-5-2 in the MIAC and 12-8-3 overall with the tie. "The tie was big when you look at it in terms of what it does to the (MIAC) standings, but it's a little frustrating that, with that kind of effort, we couldn't come up with the win."

The Cardinals certainly had their chances.

SMU outshot the Gusties 36-21 — including a whopping 11-1 in the second period — but could only manage a pair of first-period goals for their efforts.

B.J. Gaustad (Portland, Ore.) got the Cardinals on the board first, taking a picture-perfect pass from Jason Fillipp (Fox River Grove, Ill.) and beating Gustavus goalie Dan Melde seven minutes into the first period.

Gustavus knotted the game at 1-1 at the 10:50 mark when Sam Johnson beat SMU goalie Dave Rogalski (St. Louis Park, Minn.). Four minutes later, Craig Jakowski gave the Gusties their first — and only — lead of the game when he banged a loose puck past Rogalski.

Fillipp got the equalizer for SMU with two minutes remaining in the period, tallying his 11th of the season on the powerplay.

"We've said all season that one of our goals was to get into the (conference) playoffs, and we're put ourselves in position to do just that," said Olson. "We know (the Concrodia series) is going to be a battle — but that's nothing new, every game this season has been a battle."