ST. CLOUD, Min. -- Junior defenseman Michael Joyaux tied the game up with 18 seconds left to complete his first career hat trick and Drew Worrad scored 43 seconds into overtime as the Western Michigan hockey team defeated No. 4/5 St. Cloud State on the road on Saturday night.
WMU (6-11-3, 6-11-3-1-0-1 NCHC) pulled reserve goalie Austin Cain from the net with just over two minutes left, down 4-3. The Broncos had the puck in the SCSU and when Cole Gallant found Joyaux open at the right point. The Bloomingdale, Ill., native fired a low shot through traffic and into the net for the game-tying goal. With the goal Joyaux made National Collegiate Hockey history, becoming the first defenseman since the league's inception to record a hat trick. Gallant picked up his 10th assist on the goal and Ronnie Attard tallied his second of the night and 10th on the year.
Very early in overtime senior forward Paul Washe created a turnover in the WMU zone and dished the puck off to junior forward Drew Worrad. Worrad and Washe had a two-on-one rush down the ice and Worrad fired the puck off the far-right post and into the net to give the Broncos the win.
WMU outshot SCSU 29-28 on the night and finished 1-for-6 on the power play.
The Huskies took a 1-0 lead at 10:52 in the first period on a power play goal by Easton Brodzinski. Veeti Miettinen threw the puck toward the net and Brodzinski redirected it past starting goalie Alex Aslanidis
The Broncos responded just 51 seconds later on Joyaux's first of the night. Gallant won the puck in front of the SCSU bench and passed it out to Ethen Frank. Frank and Joyaux went toward the net unguarded and Frank passed it to Joyaux at the last second and he punched it into the net for his second goal of the season. Frank tallied his sixth assist and Gallant his ninth and first of three on the night.
St. Cloud State retook the lead with 4:48 left to play in the first period when a shot by Spencer Meier deflected off of a Bronco and into the net.
Western Michigan tied it up at 2-2 on a power play goal by Jason Polin at 3:27 into the second period. After winning the Washe won the draw back to Aidan Fulp and Fulp dished it off to Attard in the left circle. Attard fired a shot and Polin punched in the rebound for his fourth goal of the season. Attard tallied his ninth assist of the season and Fulp picked up his sixth assist.
SCSU scored shortly after but the goal was reviewed and waved off due to goalie interference. Cain came in to replace Aslanidis.
WMU took its first lead of the weekend at 7:46 in the second period on Joyaux's second of the night. Gallant won the puck on the boards in the SCSU zone and centered it from just in front of the left wall, finding Joyaux streaking up from the blue line for the tap-in to take a 3-2 lead.
St. Cloud State sent the game to the third period tied at 3-3 after Jared Cockrell scored unassissted from the left circle.
Midway through the third Sam Hentges punched in a rebound on a shot by Easton Brodzinski to gake a 4-3 lead. The power play goal came at 10:30.
Western Michigan returns to Lawson Ice Arena to host Minnesota-Duluth on Friday and Saturday next weekend. Friday's game starts at 6:05 p.m. and Saturday's at 4:05 p.m.
