Box Score

RIVER FALLS, Wis. (uwrfsports.com)- The UW-River Falls men's hockey team hosted UW-Stout in the WIAC Semifinals on Friday night at Hunt Arena.  The Falcons would get two 4 on 4 goals in the second period and that is all they would need behind a strong effort from senior goaltender Tanner Milliron as the Falcons beat the Blue Devils 3-1.
 
The first period began with both teams playing good clean defensive hockey. Both teams kept the puck away from the other team at times and didn't take any chances getting the puck in deep and making good line changes along the way.  The Falcons generated a few scoring chances early on in the period but were unable to take the early lead. 
 
The Blue Devils would strike first at the 5:39 mark of the first period when Danny Ray looked to center a pass from behind the Falcon net and it hit someone in front and squeaked by Tanner Milliron to give Stout the early 1-0 lead.
 
After the goal the Falcons picked up their physicality as they started connecting on some big hits all over the ice.  The Falcon penalty killers would be tested at the 9:59 mark of the period when Terry Leabo was called for holding.
 
The Falcon penalty killers would make quick work of the Blue Devil power play as they controlled the puck and Tanner Milliron made a few big saves through some traffic in front. 
 
After the power play the Falcons would go back on the offensive generating multiple quality scoring chances over the next 5 minutes, but were unable to tie the game. 
 
The Falcons would get a power play opportunity at the 14:57 mark of the period when Nolan Kirley was called for cross-checking.  The Falcons would get some quality shots on net during the power play but the UW-Stout netminder, Nick Schmit, was up to the challenge.
 
The Falcons continued to pressure for the rest of the period but were unable to find the back of the net.  The first period ended with the Falcons down 1-0.  The Falcons out shot the Blue Devils 16-9 in the period.
 
The second period began just like the first period ended, with the Falcons being physical and controlling the bulk of the play.  The Falcons generated a few scoring chances early in the period but could not get even. 
 
The Falcon penalty killers would be tested early in the period.  At the 2:42 mark of the period Taylor Burden was called for unsportsmanlike conduct.  The Falcons would kill off the Blue Devil power play, with some timely shot blocking and a couple of good saves by Tanner Milliron. 
 
After the power play the Falcons would control the pace of play and the physicality of the game.  They would generate multiple scoring chances but could not tie the game at 1.
 
At the 12:31 mark of the period the Falcons would go on the power play when UW-Stout was called for tripping.  The Falcons looked like they were going to tie the game when Kyle Gattelaro set up Christian George right in front of the net with a great pass, but the Stout netminder made a great save.  The Falcons were unable to tie the game on the power play, but they did generate some momentum that helped that explode for two goals late in the period.
 
At the 16:59 mark of the period Kyle Gattelaro and Tom Schmidt for UW-Stout would both be called for unsportsmanlike conduct.  The Falcons would take full advantage of the open ice the 4 on 4 hockey provided.
 
At the 17:02 mark of the period the Falcons finally broke through to tie the game at 1.  The Falcons' Christian George won a face off to the right of the UW-Stout net and got the puck over to Ryan Doner who found the back of the net.  The goal was Doner's 6^th goal of the season and George's 8^th assist.
 
The Falcons would strike again just over a minuter later at the 18:20 mark of the period when the Mike Dietrich took a shot and Eddie Matsushima redirected it past the Stout netminder.  The goal was Matsushima's 6^th of the season and it was Dietrich's 4^th assist.
The goal put the Falcons up 2-1, as they finished the second period the Falcons would out shoot the Blue Devils 18-8 in the period.
 
The intensity and physicality really ramped up at the start of the third period.  The Falcons came out on fire in the third period looking to add to their one goal lead.  At the 6:24 mark of the period Zach Schrotenboer would rifle a shot past the glove of the Stout goalie to the back of the net.  The Falcons went up 3-1 and never looked back.
 
After the goal by Schrotenboer, the game got a little more physical with both teams taking penalties.  Over the last 14 minutes of the game 5 different penalties were called.
 
The first two roughing penalties were called at the 7:37 mark of the period when Alex Murphy and Shayne McLaughlin got tangled up infront of the Falcon net, and went a little too far after the whistle.  The Falcons would look to strike again on a 4 on 4 situation but could not find the back of the net.  They generated a few really good chances with the open ice, but could not score.
 
The Falcons would go on a power play at the 12:09 mark of the period when UW-Stout was called for boarding.  The Falcons would not get setup in the offensive end to sustain any pressure on the power play, but they were content to let the 2 minutes run off the clock.
 
At the 14:06 mark of the period, the game got very tense for the Falcons, when one of the Blue Devils ran into goaltender Tanner Milliron.  Tanner went after the Blue Devil that ran into him and ended up getting a 2 minute roughing penalty.  The Falcon penalty killers were up to the challenge and Tanner Milliron made a few good stops to keep the Falcons up 2. 
 
The Falcons looked to ice the game on the power play that came at the 15:35 mark of the period.  The Falcons generated some good quality scoring chances but could not get their 4^th goal of the night.
 
The Blue Devils pulled their goal tender twice in the last two minutes, but could not score on the Falcons.  The third period ended with the Falcons winning 3-1. The Falcons out shot the Blue Devils 40-22 and Tanner Milliron recorded 21 saves on his way to his 14^th win of the season.
 
The Falcons are back in action Saturday night when they host the UW-Stout Blue Devils in game 2 of the WIAC Playoffs at Hunt Arena.  Puck drop is set for 7:05pm.