Zach Stejskal was UMD’s starting goalie for the Bulldogs’ opening night win in Bemidji. He got the nod the following Friday against Michigan in the Ice Breaker, a game that went south for the home team after captain Noah Cates was ejected.
It appeared coach Scott Sandelin was content to run a time share with Stejskal and Ryan Fanti, who played the first two Saturdays of the season. UMD started 3-1 and things appeared to be going well.
But Stejskal’s time as the co-starter ended the following week, when he wasn’t feeling right and went to the doctor. Stejskal would be diagnosed with testicular cancer, putting a long-term pause on Sandelin’s plans with the position and making Fanti the unquestioned starter going forward.
“I want everyone to know that I DO PLAN TO PLAY hockey yet this season,” Stejskal told UMDBulldogs.com in that special November piece where he publicly revealed his diagnosis. He returned to the ice with his teammates not long after UMD finished the first half on Dec. 11 and began working himself back into game shape. By Dec. 30, when the Bulldogs returned from break and played in Mankato, Stejskal was healthy enough to suit up, though Sandelin cautioned he was still a ways away from playing.
It didn’t go unnoticed that Stejskal — who was listed as the third goalie behind Fanti and Ben Patt for the first few games out of break — was listed as the backup behind Fanti for the Western Michigan series in late January. But Fanti continued to hold down the net.
Until Saturday./
After making 13 saves on 13 shots in the first period while fighting some sort of ugly-sounding illness, including a penalty shot save on Denver freshman Carter Mazur, Fanti had no choice but to tag in Stejskal.
Less than four months after his diagnosis, the sophomore from Cohasset was back on the ice in a game. And he came in cold against one of the hottest offensive teams in the country. After hanging a five-spot on UMD Friday night, the Pioneers were up to 53 goals for over an 11-game unbeaten streak. Before Saturday, Denver scored at least four goals in every game but two going back to a 4-1 loss at North Dakota. On Nov. 6. A span of 19 games.
Stejskal was sharp early, making four early saves before the first media timeout of the second period. A couple of them were pretty good chances for Denver, as UMD worked to protect a 1-0 lead attained on a goal by Kobe Roth 31 seconds into the game. Justin Lee (second period) and Shai Buium (third) would score on long-range, screened shots to give Denver a 2-1 lead, but UMD responded.
Roth pinballed a power play goal by DU goalie Magnus Chrona about midway through the third, his second of the game and UMD’s sixth power play goal in the last seven games. It was reviewed for a potential high stick, but looking at the replay, it looks like it would have been difficult, if not impossible, to determine which of the many flailing sticks hit the puck and where.
The two biggest moments of the game would follow Roth’s equalizer. As if Stejskal hadn’t fully announced his presence back between the pipes, he denied Denver’s Cameron Wright on an odd-man rush not long after UMD tied the game.
Welcome back, @Zstejskal! #NCHChockey // #NCHCTopPlay@UMDMensHockey // #BulldogCountry pic.twitter.com/BQGTen347L
— The NCHC (@TheNCHC) February 13, 2022
That remarkable stop loomed large, because with 4:44 left, sophomore Darian Gotz — consistently lauded by Sandelin as a guy who can consistently get pucks through from up high — finally got his first career goal eight seconds after a UMD power play ended.
From there, the Bulldogs held on, grinding out the game like the Pioneers did the night before. Denver only had three shots down the stretch, with just one of them coming after Chrona was pulled for an extra attacker with 1:20 to go. Three other shot attempts were blocked, while one missed the mark.
But the night belonged to Stejskal.
Maybe it was best that he didn’t know until late Saturday afternoon, when Fanti reported he wasn’t feeling well. Perhaps it was good that he didn’t have to think about it for a few days before he officially made his return. Everyone wants the storybook “Come out at home and get the big cheer” moment, but Stejskal seemed relaxed and ready to go when he suddenly and unexpectedly was inserted into a road game to start the second period.
Either way, the game became The Game in college hockey Saturday night. Stejskal’s story has been well-documented, and my TweetDeck lit up from basically the second he came into the game. The social media interaction I saw during and after the game was akin to a UMD game in the Frozen Four. It was really cool to see the fanbase rally around Stejskal the way they did.
After the game, I was making my way out of the building to head back to the hotel when I ran into a few UMD parents in the Magness Arena concourse. As we were chatting, Stejskal came upstairs and received quite the loud ovation, which he sheepishly acknowledged. It was a great moment to cap a night full of them.
******
In an alternate universe, Fanti doesn’t fall ill. He finishes a game he started sharp as a tack. Stejskal watches from the bench, and maybe UMD — which played much better and more composed for most of Saturday than it did Friday — closes out the win and gets the split.
If the game ends the way it did, only with Fanti in goal, it’s still a great win. Denver hadn’t lost at home all season (14-0-1). The Pioneers owned a lot of Friday’s game, leading Sandelin to label his team as “passive.”
Denver still owned a lot of the puck possession on Saturday, but UMD wasn’t as passive. The Bulldogs were active with their bodies and sticks, defending hard in their zone. They were more willing to get pucks behind Denver’s defense, and there were even moments where UMD established a forecheck, certainly moreso than Friday.
And UMD did this without two of its best forwards — Noah Cates (Olympics) and Dominic James (upper body) — along with one of its top blue-liners, thanks to Wyatt Kaiser’s lower-body injury suffered Friday. It was a gut-check performance for UMD, one that Sandelin had to be more pleased with over Friday.
But Stejskal’s return made it special. It appeared to further galvanize the players in front of Stejskal, especially in the third period. UMD fell behind on a nice shot by Buium, who somehow only has two goals this season despite possessing some nice skill (both goals, oddly, have come against UMD). But it didn’t feel like a game the Bulldogs were going to lose.
And they didn’t.
Matt Wellens reported after the game that whatever illness Fanti had was going through the team. Hopefully it’s a quick one.
Fanti was unable to finish today’s game due to an illness that was sweeping the team.
No one wanted to go in detail, but it sounded stomach related (food poisoning?)
— Matt Wellens (@mattwellens) February 13, 2022
Sandelin indicated to me that the plan was for the team to take Monday off anyway, so here’s to everyone feeling better by Tuesday so prep for next week can begin. Because it doesn’t get any easier.
******
Next up for UMD is a home series against North Dakota. Since a four-game losing streak out of the holiday break, the Fighting Hawks have gone 4-1-1 in six games, picking up 14 of 18 NCHC standings points. UND fell out of the league lead, yes, but the Hawks are two points back of Denver in the Penrose race.
8pm Friday and 7pm Saturday starts, preceded by 3pm UMD women’s games against St. Cloud State. All four games on KDAL this weekend.
Back later this week with more.
Welcome back, Zach.
