SUPERIOR, Wis. – The 2024-25 season has been a magical one for the Yellowjacket men's hockey team. After a fifth-place finish in 2023-24, a season in which they won just 11 games, the 'Jackets were picked to finish fifth in the pre-season poll of the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC) coaches.

After Friday's win, a victory or a tie in Saturday's game would have propelled the Yellowjackets into next week's WIAC Championship, which they would host at Wessman Arena by way of winning the conference's regular-season title and earning the No. 1. UW-River Falls on the other hand needed to win the game and a mini-game to advance and bring the magical Yellowjacket season to an end.
 
Unfortunately, the latter happened, and the great 2024-25 Yellowjacket men's hockey season came to a close.
 
River Falls scored single goals in the first and second periods Saturday and held on for a 2-1 win. In the mini-game, the Falcons scored within the first two minutes and final two minutes, sandwiching those goals around the long Yellowjacket tally, defeating them 2-1 for the second time on the day, ending the season.
 
Game Notes

• River Falls opened the scoring Saturday at 13:14 of the first period when Arsenii Smekhnov got the puck in the left circle and put a shot past a screened Jack Boschert (Florissant, Mo./Duchesne) to make it 1-0.
• In the second period Justin Dauphinais (Val Caron, Ontario/École Secondaire Catholique Horizon) had a pair of opportunities from point blank range, getting stopped on a breakaway first before being stopped on a two-on-one.
• With 3:01 to go in the second Alex Atwill made it 2-0 River Falls, scoring up high from the right circle on the power play.
• The Yellowjackets broke through late, with 1:01 to play, when freshman Sam Brennan (Eau Claire, Wis./Memorial) scored his first collegiate goal, taking a shot from the right point that got past River Falls goaltender Brennan Boynton to make it 2-1.
• The Yellowjackets pulled the goaltender, but were unable to get the equalizer.
• In the opening minute of the mini-game the Yellowjackets were whistled for too many men on the ice and River Falls capitalized, as Dylan Smith scored from the left circle, beating Jan Skorpik (Brandýs nad Labem, Czechia/OA Prague).
• The Yellowjackets had a decisive edge in shots but were unable to break through. That changed with 3:02 left when Blake Holmes (Apple Valley, Minn./St. Thomas Academy) fed a pass to the right circle and Reed Stark (Suffern, N.Y./Douglas County West) ripped a one-timer past Boynton to even the score.
• River Falls called a timeout immediately following the goal and it worked, stifling the Yellowjacket momentum.
• With 1:02 left, Cole Teleki held a clearing attempt in on the right wing and took a shot from a sharp angle that eluded Skorpik up high, putting the Falcons in front 2-1, a lead they wouldn't give up.
• All-time in mini-games, the Yellowjackets are now 8-13.

 The Yellowjackets close the season 19-5-3.
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