SUPERIOR, Wis. – Following Friday's victory over Northland, the Yellowjacket men's hockey team was in position to do something it hasn't done since 2013-14 – sweep a two-game playoff series. That year, the Yellowjackets rode the incredible goaltending of Dayn Belfour to a road sweep of UW-River Falls in an upset of the tournament's No. 1 seed.
 
Saturday the Yellowjackets were the favorite, and they were facing a Northland team desperate to keep their season alive. The Lumberjacks threw everything, including the kitchen sink at the Yellowjackets, but on a night when absolutely nothing came easy, the Yellowjackets emerged victorious in a most unusual way.
 
Freshman Dylan Johnson (Cloquet, Minn./Cloquet) scored a power play goal into an empty net with 16.7 seconds to play in overtime as the Yellowjacket gutted out a 4-3 win to earn the series sweep at Wessman Arena.
 
NCAA Division III hockey has some quirky rules when it comes to the post-season. With the victory Friday, the Yellowjackets needed only a tie to advance to the WIAC semifinals. Northland needed a victory. So playing down a man with the score tied in the final minute of overtime, the Lumberjacks pulled their goaltender to try to get the win and force a mini-game. Johnson put an end to all that when scored into the empty net from center ice, sealing the victory.
 
The Yellowjackets have struggled on the power play of late, going 13 chances without scoring coming into Saturday's game. They broke that streak early when Chad Lopez (Arlington, Texas/University of Texas) got a pass in the slot and lifted a shot over the glove of Northland goaltender Gennaro Anzevino to make it 1-0.
 
Northland had a quick answer, however. Kyle Pouncy took a seeing-eye shot from the left circle that a screened Oscar Svensson (Södertälje, Sweden/Haga Gymnasium) never saw, tying the game 1-1 just two minutes later.
 
At 11:25 the Yellowjackets regained the lead. Troy York (Plano, Texas/West) crossed the Northland line and threaded a brilliant saucer pass onto the tape of Coltyn Bates (Brandon, Manitoba/Vincent Massey Collegiate), and he wristed a shot past Anzevino to put the 'Jackets back in front.
 
Once again, however, Northland had an answer. This time it was Kurt Sonne doing the damage, as he broke into the Yellowjacket zone and snapped a shot from the circle past Svensson to tie the game just 44 seconds later.
 
The Yellowjackets got their third lead of the night at 11:50 of the second period. After a great cycling shift, Artur Terchiyev (Kiev, Ukraine/Everst Academy) moved into the left circle and spotted Bruno Birzitis (Riga, Latvia/Riga Distance Education Secondary) wide open off the right post, and he poked home his fourth of the year to make it 3-2.
 
It stayed that way until the late stages of the third period. At 12:50 Lawson McDonald (Rosetown, Manitoba/Northlands Parkway Collegiate) was called for a penalty, and 98 seconds later Sam Sterne (Batavia, Ill./Batavia) followed McDonald to the box. Northland scored on the two-man advantage, with Pouncy picking up his second of the game at 14:43.
 
The Yellowjackets held off a late Northland surge, and went to overtime looking to end the series. Late in the frame Johnson got behind the Northland defense and was taken down, but no penalty was called. Seconds later Conor MacLean (Wilcox, Saskatchewan/Athol Murray College of Notre Dame) was taken down, and with 1:26 to go Northland went shorthanded, setting the stage for the peculiar finish.
 
Johnson led the Yellowjackets with a goal and an assist in the game.
 
Svensson improved his record to 10-2-0 on the year, as he finished the night 29 saves.
 
The Yellowjackets (16-8-3) advance to the WIAC semifinals, where they will travel to UW-Eau Claire for a two-game-plus-mini-game series February 28 and 29. Both games from the Hobbs Ice Center will have 7:00 p.m. starts.