Denver ends Bemidji State's wild ride

Bemidji State gave the No. 5-ranked team in the country a battle for two periods. Even outplayed Denver at times.

Then came the final 20 minutes. The Pioneers scored four unanswered goals in the third period to pull away for a 6-2 victory over the Beavers on Friday in the first WCHA Final Five seminal at Xcel Energy Center.

Denver will play North Dakota, a 4-3 winner over Colorado College, in Saturday's final.

The announced afternoon crowd was 12,903 and it was heavily pro-Bemidji State.

"We brainwashed ourselves," Beavers coach Tom Serratore said. "We really thought we were going to win this game. Even after two periods, we felt very good."

The Beavers, who finished 10th in their first season in the WCHA, should have. The score was 2-2 through two periods and BSU was outshooting the Pioneers 28-17.

"The bottom line is, the cream rose to the top, and that's Denver," Serratore said. "We just couldn't get it going in the third and they did."

And the goals for Denver (24-10-5) kept coming. Jarrod Mermis scored during a scramble in front, Luke Salazar on a tip and Kyle Ostrow on a late empty-netter.

"We didn't sit back and let [Bemidji State] get back in the game," said Ostrow, who also scored the Pioneers' first goal. "We kept pushing hard, and that really helped us in the third period."

Bemidji State (15-18-5) had a 5-on-3 power play for the first 29 seconds of the third period and then a 5-on-4 for another minute but had one shot blocked and another missed the net.