MINOT, N.D. – The regular season finale did not disappoint for the hometown fans who made their way to the Maysa for some ACHA men's hockey. Minot State, who was back to defend home ice one last time for the 2023-24 calendar year, took on Jamestown in the second leg of a back-to-back. On top of that, it was also Senior Night for the Beavers. There was a little bit of extra motivation to win one for the three Seniors.

It was another rivalry matchup that went the way of the No. 1 Beavers (29-6-1), who sunk the 4^th-ranked Jimmies (24-10-0) in a game with high-octane offense. The final score was 6-3 as Minot finished on a high note heading into the ACHA National Tournament. All throughout the game, the scoring was back-and-forth. Jamestown did not go down easy, as the Beavers would have to work on holding the Jimmies at bay.

Leading things off in the first, the Jimmies came ready to play. An opening goal on the rush gave Jamestown an early spark at 3:45. Not long after settling in, the Beavers would go to work as they capitalize on an early defensive zone turnover by the Jimmies to tie it at one apiece. Over three minutes later, the Beavers would find themselves on a power play opportunity. Speaking of being opportunistic, they would do exactly what they sought after and that is with a goal to go up 2-1 at 13:22 while on the man advantage. Minot did not stop attacking the Jimmie net, as they were swarming with chances towards the cage and bringing the heat.

After a 2-1 first period, each team traded a goal in the second to stay at a one-goal lead for the Beavers. The score became 3-1 at 8:11 until the Jimmies answered after three straight by MSU. It became 3-2 at 11:30 and continued for the rest of the second.

The next goal would be crucial heading into the start of the third, and there the Beavers were again to pounce on a rebound shot for a 4-2 lead. That one came just under five minutes into the final period of regulation. The next five minutes belonged to Jamestown, as they tried to stay afloat. Things got close once again as the Jimmies brought the score to 4-3 at 9:39 in the third. Getting back in focus were the Beavers as they did not sit back and wait for the final horn, they upped the tempo. While the Jimmies waited to pull the goalie, the Beavers regained possession in the neutral zone and tallied a goal on a nice individual effort. At 18:30, it would be a back breaker for Jamestown, who now needed two goals in a minute and 30 seconds. Being aggressive late, the Jimmies decided to pull the netminder for the extra attacker right off the draw and it cost them. The Beavers clinched the 6-3 win on an empty netter with 1:14 left to go in the game.

Minot State honored Tre Sortland, Riley Wallace, and Carter Barley as the three graduating Seniors right before second period puck drop.

There is a new team-leader in goals on the Beavers, as Carter Barley made his mark on Senior Night with two goals. Matthew Yakubowski is starting to heat up from the back end, his third of the season was the ice breaker as he drove the net for a rebound. Trenton Curtis found his way back into the lineup after some time off with injury and picked up his ninth of the year. Already with two assists in the game, Christian Kadolph added more to his stat sheet with his eighth. Putting the lead out of reach was Troy Hamilton, who grabbed the empty netter for his 15^th.

Senior netminder Riley Wallace picked up the start and was not heavily tested. He did enough for the Beavers, tallying 13 saves on 16 shots. That was not all that took place however, as coach Waselenchuk sent other Senior goalie Tre Sortland out to play in the final minute and 30 seconds of the game. He made a save on one solo shot as both goalies got playing time. That meant all three Seniors were able to hit the ice on their special occasion.

The Beavers grabbed win number six over Jamestown this year and the 22^nd since joining MSU Athletics affiliation. And that does it for the 2023-24 regular season for Minot State men's hockey. As the number one ranked team, they finish with a 29-6-1 record heading into the 2024 ACHA National Tournament. The Beavers also look to defend last year's national title victory. Postseason play starts on March 7, but MSU gets a first-round bye so their first matchup will not take place until the quarterfinals on March 8. They face the winner between Illinois State and Grand Canyon.