March 15th, 1997.
UND freshman forward Peter Armbrust scores less than three minutes into overtime to give North Dakota a 4-3 victory over Minnesota and the WCHA playoff title.
Two weeks later, the Fighting Sioux beat Boston University 6-4 to secure the program’s sixth national championship.
By then, I was certain that I was going to be attending the next WCHA playoff tournament in person.
One year later, we planned a spring break hockey road trip that wound through Duluth, Chicago, and Detroit before settling in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, the site of the 1998 WCHA men’s ice hockey tournament.
In 1999, we made the trek to Target Center in downtown Minneapolis.
I skipped the 2000 tournament (also at Target Center) to be present for our first prenatal visit (we were expecting our son in October of that year).
In 2001, my wife took her very first hockey road trip, to the inaugural WCHA Final Five at Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul. Even though a North Dakota rally fell short in overtime against St. Cloud State in the title game, we were hooked.
There was nothing quite like so many different fan bases – the Duluth Bulldogs, Minnesota Gophers, North Dakota Fighting Sioux, St. Cloud State Huskies, and Wisconsin Badgers – all gathered under one roof and cheering nearly as much against their bitter rivals as for their favorite squads.
For a dozen years more years after that first Final Five, we enjoyed the intense battles, the good-natured ribbing, and the fun on the streets of downtown St. Paul. We shared news about Pairwise predicaments, thought through a variety of potential NCAA regional brackets, and maybe even watched a little basketball along the way.
Beginning in 2014 (and necessitated by college hockey re-alignment), the event was re-branded as the NCHC Frozen Faceoff and moved across the river to Target Center, where it lived until 2017.
The league re-located the postseason tournament to Xcel Energy Center in 2018, where it has resided ever since, with the exception of 2020 (cancelled) and 2021 (held in Grand Forks).
All told, this weekend will be my 25th time attending the league postseason tournament, and while there was fun to be had throughout all of those years, my most vivid memories (and nearly all of the responses I collected for this article) have to do with the Golden Era of the WCHA Final Five, played from 2001-2013 at Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, Minnesota.
Here are the highlights:
SJHovey (SiouxSports.com): The years at the X and before the WCHA broke up were obviously the golden years. It was a perfect storm. You had a new arena, in a city that had made an effort to have food, drink, and hotel establishments within walking distance of it. You had a period of dominance by the conference that was something to behold. Five straight national champions. Multiple programs with Frozen Four appearances. Great players.
@Biddco (X-Twitter): Of course my favorite is when UMD won the Final Five in 2009. First time a road team did so. First time I saw any team of mine win a trophy. Was super cool!
Doug Iverson (Facebook): It’s always a great time when the UND band comes to a bar and plays for the crowd. In the early days of hosting at McGovern’s, their staff had no idea what to expect as far as support from fans. Oh, and it was always fun watching the Michigan Tech drum line stroll around the X when their team wasn’t there. They were fun.
@INCH (X-Twitter): When Denver’s Shawn Kurulak beat NoDak’s Karl Goehring with a 3rd period backhand sauce from the blue line for the GWG in the ’99 WCHA title game.
Wilbur (SiouxSports.com): Believe it was the 2004 title game with the Sioux and Gophers. Sold out Xcel Energy Center. Wide open game that the Gophers won 5-4. That was fantastic for college hockey.
@ronko87 (X-Twitter): Tyler Hirsch crashes the net
ChrisUND1 (SiouxSports.com): McGoverns and beer tents.
@RichardNeedham1 (X-Twitter): My favorite is Alex Stalock standing on his head in 2009 to help UMD win the WCHA Final Five. He gave up 1 goal in 3 games against Minnesota, North Dakota, and Denver. I believe UMD was the #7 seed in the tournament that season.
@real_GrantZ (X-Twitter): Zach Okabe OT game-winner over Nodak a few years back. (editor’s note: this was in 2023)
Snake (SiouxSports.com): For me, it was taking over the Embassy Suites in St. Paul for the weekend. The happy hour memories are too many to count!
Doug Iverson (via Facebook): Obviously (UND) winning the last three Final Fives was awesome! Plus the timeout game was pure craziness.
Thank you for the segue, Doug. There are certainly a few memories, games, and plays that stand head and shoulders above the rest; here they are, at least from the North Dakota side of things:
#5 Evan Trupp, Stick Handling Wizard
March 18th, 2011. In the third period of the WCHA Final Five semifinals, UND and Colorado College are tied at two goals apiece. North Dakota senior forward Evan Trupp attempts the most ambitious coast-to-coast goal in the history of history. While he doesn’t score on the play, a buzz filters through the crowd as more and more people realize what just happened.
UND would score shorthanded soon after to break the tie and went on to win the game 4-3; Trupp assisted on the game-winner. This victory set up a championship game showdown with the Denver Pioneers (see #3 below).
#4 North Dakota’s Furious Comeback in 2001
March 17th, 2001. Down 5-2 with less than eight minutes to play in the WCHA Final Five Championship game, UND begins clawing back. When Jeff Panzer scored with 5:35 remaining to make the score 5-3, his look to his teammates in the celebration huddle seems to suggest, “Why not get a couple more here and make things interesting?”
For me and my family and friends, this is the “Is there still time left on the clock?” game.
farce poobah (SiouxSports.com): At the point it was 2-5, my daughter (age 8) looked at the scoreboard, saw we were behind with 6 minutes left, and said, “We have Panzer. I think we will win.”
Debbie Gieseke Forst (via Facebook): 2001 final UND vs. St. Cloud State. UND was down three goals in the third period, Dean Blais pulled the goalie, and UND came back to tie the game to send it to overtime. UND lost in OT but it was still a thrilling game in the new Xcel rink.
gordwiser (SiouxSports.com): 2001… first year the Final Five is at the X. Sioux were down 5-2 to St. Cloud with less than six minutes left. People were starting to stream out. Blais pulls the goalie and sure enough, the Sioux score and the exodus slows… then they score again… then again to tie it up. The place was going nuts. St. Cloud won in overtime, but it was the start of something grand with the Final Five and it was an amazing era for the WCHA.
#3 Matt Frattin’s Overtime Winner
March 19th, 2011. Denver and North Dakota are locked in an epic battle for the WCHA Final Five Championship. After a scoreless first overtime, UND dominates the second extra session, punctuated by Matt Frattin’s game-winner, his 35th goal of the season.
AlphaMikeFoxtrot (SiouxSports.com): Frattin’s overtime goal in 2011. His redemption story after getting kicked off the team remains my favorite article about the team published outside of the Herald.
#2 Blake Wheeler’s Overtime Winner
March 17th, 2007. After defeating St. Cloud State 6-2 in the semifinals, North Dakota locks heads with Minnesota in the title game. UND kills all eight Gopher power plays in the game but has no answer for Blake Wheeler, who – in attempting to get his stick on the puck and negate an icing call less than four minutes into overtime – scores a diving goal for the ages.
March 16th, 2012. After winning Thursday’s play-in game 4-1 over St. Cloud State, UND faced a rested and ready Minnesota squad. And it showed. Midway through the second period, North Dakota had just four shots on goal and trailed 3-0 (and, were it not for Aaron Dell’s goaltending, it could have been even worse).
A hockey coach has only one timeout. Dave Hakstol used his, and everything changed. North Dakota scored on a Derek Forbort blast from the blue line to make it a 3-1 game heading into the second intermission.
In the third period, the green goals rained down in bunches. Michael Parks and Brock Nelson in the span of 30 seconds. Mario Lamoureux and Corban Knight in the span of 37 seconds. By the time it was 6-3, all of the Maroon and Gold had left the building.
Sweethockey (SiouxSports.com): The “Timeout game”. Prior to the game walking in the concourse yelling SIOUX YEH YEH!!, then hearing the response fill the arena like a sleeping giant just woke up.
@Biddco (X-Twitter): As a neutral fan the Timeout Game was a classic. First time experiencing the rivalry. Sat with a UND fan friend and Minnesota fan friend.. saw agony and ecstasy in both fans and in inverse.
Emerald Joker (SiouxSports.com): For me it was the Sioux down 3-0 to Minnesota going into the 3rd, then coming back scoring 6 goals in a row to win their 3rd WCHA Final Five championship in a row! Awesome night of hockey!
Thank you so much to everyone who contributed to this walk down memory lane. And, fittingly, it’s InHeavenThereIsNoBeer (SiouxSports.com) with the final thought:
It’s nostalgia and camaraderie that keeps bringing me back. One last trip down I-94 for this final year’s version to put a cap on it. The end of an era.
For many of us, this weekend truly marks the end of an era. Fans will always remember their first Final Five, and together, we’ll enjoy one last call in St. Paul. Here’s to hockey!