The schedule is what the schedule is, but if there was one WCHA team the Chargers did not need to see this week, it was Minnesota State.

UAH, playing for the ninth straight week and third straight on the road, had hardly anything again for the seventh-ranked Mavericks. The Chargers lost 3-0 on Saturday, getting swept in a WCHA series for the first time this season.

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The Chargers (6-12-2 overall, 5-7-2 WCHA) will get a much-needed Christmas break next week. Afterward, they go on a three-week odyssey from Bemidji to Fairbanks to Anchorage to finish their road season.

While that’s a long, arduous trip, UAH won’t see a team as potent as Minnesota State, the consensus preseason pick to win the WCHA title and the league’s lone ranked team. The Mavericks (13-5-0 overall, 11-3-0 WCHA) top the WCHA standings by four points over Bowling Green.

MSU is now unbeaten (20-0-4) in the last 24 meetings with UAH going back to 2002. A fresher Charger team on home ice will have a better chance when they host the Mavericks at the Von Braun Center on February 9-10.

UAH had a couple of decent scoring chances early, but Minnesota State controlled the bulk of the contest.

The Mavericks had a great chance to score when C.J. Seuss, who scored twice in Friday’s 5-1 MSU win, lead an odd-man rush, but Richard Buri got in front of Seuss to break it up.

However, it was also an interference penalty on Buri, and MSU ended up scoring anyway on the power play. Reggie Lutz blasted a one-timer from the right circle past UAH goaltender Mark Sinclair for a 1-0 Mavericks lead at the 12:45 mark.

Minnesota State took a 2-0 lead at 4:09 of the second period, when Jared Jaremko fed Seuss from one side of Sinclair to the other, and Seuss burying the puck in the open net.

Seuss scored yet again at 1:26 of the third, again with a clean look. This time Parker Tuomie found him for a 3-0 MSU lead.

UAH had a prime chance to score on back-to-back Maverick penalties. Dallas Gerads got an elbowing call, and then Riese Zmolek went off a minute later after getting a major charging call for his hit on Tyler Poulsen.

The Chargers had two shots on goal during the two-man advantage, but couldn’t get a puck on MSU goalie Connor LaCouvee in the remaining four minutes of the power play.

In the final minute, Brennan Saulnier checked Gerads hard into the boards, and got a contact to the head major and a misconduct penalty. Gerads held his head as he was attended to and then escorted off the ice. Minnesota State head coach Mike Hastings took exception with the UAH bench, but did shake hands with coach Mike Corbett following the game.

Minnesota State outshot UAH 32-16. Sinclair, the freshman, had 29 saves in his fourth start of the season.

Seventh-ranked Minnesota State wore down the Chargers on Friday, winning the opener of the WCHA series 5-1 in Mankato.

UAH (6-11-2 overall, 5-6-2 WCHA) was outshot 41-15 as the Chargers saw its winless streak against MSU go to 23 games. The Chargers are 0-19-4 against the Mavericks since their last victory in 2002.

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The Mavericks (12-5-0 overall, 10-3-0 WCHA) moved into first place in the WCHA standings, two points over idle Bowling Green.

The Chargers, who sit in sixth place, escaped the first period unscathed, although giving the powerful Mavericks three power plays did not make it easy.

Fortunately, UAH goaltender Jordan Uhelski (36 saves) was on his game early, stealing a goal from Reggie Lutz on a diving stop.

Uhelski also needed saves on a quick shot by MSU leading scorer Zeb Knutson and a glove stop on Brad McClure.

UAH’s best chances to score came shorthanded. Hans Gorowski had a breakaway denied by MSU goaltender Jason Pawloski, and Madison Dunn’s slapper from the left circle hit the post.

Minnesota State dominated the second period.

The Mavericks scored the first goal five minutes into the second period. Ian Scheid’s cross-ice pass found Josh French, and Uhelski was well out of position. French capitalized on the wide open net.

MSU sensed it was about to take over the game, and started making it tougher on Uhelski by firing away.

At 12:43, captain C.J. Seuss made it 2-0 MSU as he fired in a rebound from a Parker Tuomie shot.

With six minutes to go, Richard Buri checked Jake Jaremko from behind. Jaremko was not plowed into the boards, so it was surprising that Buri got a five minute major and a game misconduct.

Seuss then scored during the major power play for a 3-0 Maverick lead. Uhelski had no chance as Seuss was alone on the doorstep.

With their energy and power play time, the Mavericks outshot the Chargers 22-3 in the second period.

Five minutes into the third, UAH got on the board when Tyler Poulsen, all alone in front of the Minnesota State net, redirected a Brandon Parker pass from the boards past Pawloski to cut the MSU lead to 3-1.

Whatever glimmer of hope the Chargers had to get back into the game was quickly squashed.

Fifty seconds later, Nicolas Rivera swings around the UAH net for a wrap-around, deflecting the puck off Kurt Gosselin’s stick for a goal.

One minute after that, Walker Duehr’s wrister from the left side beat Uhelski high and on his glove side, and just like that Minnesota State led 5-1.

It’s the second straight game the Chargers had fewer than 20 shots on goal while allowing more than 40. Bowling Green outshot UAH 42-12 last Saturday.

Andrew Dodson was back in the UAH lineup on Friday after missing five weeks from an injury.

Josh Kestner scored two goals for the second straight game as the Chargers earned a 3-3 tie Friday night at Bowling Green.

UAH (6-9-2 overall, 5-4-2 WCHA) got two points in the WCHA standings after earning its first-ever shootout victory (2-1).

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Bowling Green (7-5-6 overall, 6-2-5 WCHA) got one point with its third tie in four games, staying in first place by that one point over Minnesota State.

UAH started with a defensive lapse and Bowling Green quickly pounced. Mitch McLain easily scored on a wide open net after a shot rebound came right to him all alone and Jordan Uhelski out of position. McLain easily made it 1-0 Falcons at 1:16.

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The Chargers got on the board at 5:37, as Madison Dunn unleashed a blast from the left point for his third goal of the season. Richard Buri’s pass from the boards earned the primary assist. Cody Champagne also got an assist for his first point of the season.

The Chargers then started hitting. Kurt Gosselin put on a vicious hip check on Niko Coffman, but it only earned him a minor roughing penalty that UAH was able to kill off. Coffman did not return to the game.

Cam Knight was not so fortunate after checking Lukas Craggs from behind into the boards. Knight got five minutes and a game misconduct at 9:52, ending his night early.

Nearly a minute and a half into the major Falcon power play, Jacob Dalton give the UAH penalty kill a break with an interference penalty.

During the 4-on-4, Kestner picked up a loose puck and beat BGSU goaltender Eric Dop glove side to give the Chargers their first lead at 2-1.

UAH killed the remainder of the power play after it resumed, but the Falcons tied the game while the Chargers were on the power play. Stephen Baylis scored from the slot after a turnover with 3:13 remaining in the first and it was 2-2.

Two shorthanded goals were the killer for UAH in last Friday’s 3-2 loss at Northern Michigan. The Chargers have allowed five shorthanded goals this season, three in the last two series.

The second period was mostly lax until late, when both Uhelski and Dop put on a goaltending exhibition. Each made huge pad and glove saves on 2-on-1 rushes and breakaways to keep the score tied at the second intermission.

Kestner’s second goal of the game gave UAH a 3-2 lead just 2:08 into the third. He worked his way around Falcon defenseman Connor McDonald, then beat Dop high with an odd-angle shot for his 12th of the season.

McDonald tied the game at 3-3 with 10:10 to go, as his shot from the left point glanced off of John Teets’ arm in a screen and over Uhelski.

From there, it was the Uhelski (24 saves) and Dop (21 saves) show to keep the game equal through regulation. Dop made one final save on Dunn with nine seconds left.

The goalies stayed strong through the regular overtime (to make the game an official tie), and through the 3-on-3 overtime to determine who gets a second point WCHA standings.

In the shootout, Christian Rajic and Brandon Salerno beat Dop. Max Johnson scored in the first round, but Uhelski stopped Brandon Kruse to secure the point after tie.

It was UAH’s first point after tie in five tries since the WCHA instituted the tie-breaking procedure last season.

Josh Kestner scored two goals as the Chargers forced another series split with a 3-2 win on Saturday over Northern Michigan in Marquette.

UAH (6-9-1 overall, 5-4-1 WCHA) has split five of the eight series this season, all of them with the Chargers winning the Saturday contest. UAH is 5-2-1 on Saturdays and 1-7-0 on Fridays.

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UAH goaltender Jordan Uhelski allowed two first-period goals, but was on the ball the rest of the way toward a 22-save night in sending Northern Michigan (8-8-0, 6-4-0) to its fourth loss in five games.

The Chargers completed the first of six straight road series. Their next stop is next week at Bowling Green.

Northern Michigan scored the first goal on the power play. Ryan Black’s blast from the right point was wide, but bounced off the boards behind the UAH net to Darien Craighead, who had an open net on Jordan Uhelski.

UAH tied the game at 1-1 as John Teets scored from the slot on a centering pass from the left side by Austin Beaulieu. Teets third goal of the season came with 2:59 left in the period.

NMU quickly gained the lead 57 seconds later. Troy Loggins scored from the left wing on an outlet pass from Jordan Klimek.

The Chargers equalized again with just three seconds left in the first after Jordan Klimek cross-checked Austin Beaulieu. On the power play, Connor Merkley found Josh Kestner in the left circle, who unleashed a one-timer for a 2-2 game at the first intermission.

Kestner struck again at 1:48 of the second period to give UAH its first lead of the night. He took a pass from behind the goal line by Christian Rajic, and scored alone from the slot.

It was Kestner’s 10th goal of the season, surpassing his team-leading total from all of last year.

The Wildcats amped up their offensive pressure in the third period, but Uhelski stopped all eight shots, including a couple while NMU netminder Mathias Israelsson (18 saves) was pulled for the extra attacker for almost the final two minutes.

Two shorthanded goals late in the second period were the Chargers’ downfall Friday in a 3-1 loss at Northern Michigan.

UAH (5-9-1 overall, 4-4-1 WCHA) got a goal early in the second by Christian Rajic, but made turnovers on two power plays led to the Chargers’ seventh loss in eight series openers this season. UAH will try to salvage a split on Saturday, where the Chargers are 4-2-1 this year.

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NMU (8-7-0, 6-3-0) ended a three-game losing streak while outshooting the Chargers 32-16.

The Chargers were very fortunate to get out of the first period unscathed. Most of the action was in the UAH zone, and the Wildcats had a 15-3 advantage in shots on goal.

Jordan Uhelski made all the saves, including one where he was caught out of position and dove back to make a stop on NMU’s Troy Loggins.

But he also needed a little help. During the first of two Wildcat power plays in the period, the net was left open again. Adam Rockwood tried to take advantage with a wraparound, but Madison Dunn was there in the crease to keep the game scoreless.

The second period started well enough, as the Chargers took a 1-0 lead on a power play goal by Christian Rajic, who sneaked one past NMU goalie Mathias Israelsson. His seventh goal of the season, assisted by Connor Merkley and Tyler Poulsen, came with 10:43 left.

UAH had the benefit of back-to-back slashing penalties by the Wildcats, but not only did the Chargers not convert, they gave up back-to-back shorthanded goals and the lead.

With 3:05 left in the period, Denver Pierce finished off a 2-on-1 break with Rockwood following a bad pass in the UAH end to tie the game. Then with 1:12 left, Rockwood was found all alone in front of the UAH net to make it 2-1 UAH.

Northern Michigan extended its lead to 3-1 on the power play at the 5:03 mark of the third period. After a Josh Kestner slashing penalty, Zach Diamontoni sneaked the puck between Uhelski’s legs from the slot.

Uhelski finished with 29 saves.

UAH now finds itself tied for fifth in the WCHA standings with Ferris State, which also has a 4-4 league record and 13 points. NMU is in fourth place with 18 points.

Defenseman Cam Knight was back in the UAH lineup after missing last week’s series against Ferris State with a small injury.

UAH got a much-needed win to finish its home stand in up-and-down fashion, beating Ferris State 5-3 Saturday night at the Von Braun Center for a series split.

UAH (5-8-1 overall, 4-3-1 WCHA) got two goals from Brandon Salerno to finish 3-2-1 on its six-game home stand before embarking on a 12-game road swing.

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The next home game for the Chargers is January 26 against Bemidji State.

Ferris State (6-9-1, 3-4-1) held leads of 1-0 and 2-1 in both intermissions, but both were erased by two-goal bursts by the Chargers in the second and third periods.

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The Bulldogs continued where they left off Friday, when they scored six unanswered goals to win 6-2, and had control of most of the first period.

It took only 1:13 for the Bulldogs to take a 1-0. Corey Mackin’s tip of Nate Kallen’s shot up the middle bounced over UAH goaltender Jordan Uhelski like a bad bounce through an baseball infielder. It was Mackin’s second goal for the series.

UAH had a couple of power play chances, including a five-minute opportunity when Tyler Dorantes drew a major penalty for cross-checking Brennan Saulnier into the boards late in the first.

The power play continued into the start of the second period, and the Chargers finally capitalized. Josh Kestner ripped a one-timer from the left circle to tie the game at 1-1 at the 1:21.

It was Kestner’s team-leading eighth goal of the season, assisted by Brandon Parker on the pass from the high slot, and Tyler Poulsen.

The major power play was cut short on Kestner’s tripping penalty, resulting on some 4-on-4 hockey before a Ferris State power play.

Eight seconds into the FSU advantage, before the Bulldogs could get possession, Saulnier found Salerno in front of the FSU net. Salerno deked FSU goaltender Darren Smith and scored his first goal of the season to give UAH a 2-1 lead at the 3:34 mark.

UAH almost made it 3-1 on a Kestner breakaway, and the goal light went on, but the referee waved it off. Video replay confirmed the no goal as the puck hit the pipe.

Just as quickly as UAH took the lead, Ferris State took it right back.

The Bulldogs converted a Parker tripping penalty into the tying goal by Zac Tierney with 2:58 left in the second. Then Mitch Maloney, who had a hat trick in FSU’s win Friday, made it 3-2 Bulldogs on a breakaway goal with 41 seconds left.

UAH regained the lead with another two-goal spurt halfway through the third.

At 10:06, John Teets scored from near the blue line for his second goal of the season to tie the game at 3-3, with Madison Dunn and Hans Gorowsky getting the assists.

Salerno got his second goal of the game just 2:48 later, taking a nice feed from Poulsen as the Chargers regained the lead again at 4-3.

UAH made sure it would keep that lead for good as Gorowsky converted a two-on-one with Kestner with 1:55 remaining.

The Chargers withstood one final flourish from the Bulldogs, who pulled Smith with about a minute left and got a power play after UAH was assessed a delay of game penalty for intentionally knocking its goal off the mooring.

Uhelski finished with 32 saves in his 11th start of the season. Ferris State outshot UAH 35-26.

With 13 points, the Chargers head into their long road stretch in fifth place in the WCHA standings. The first stop is Northern Michigan next weekend.

Three stars of the game:
1. Brandon Salerno (2 goals)
2. Hans Gorowsky (goal, assist)
3. Tyler Poulsen (2 assists)

Notes: UAH is 4-2-1 on Saturdays this season, but 1-6-0 on Fridays. … FSU defenseman Cam Clarke left the game after taking a puck to the head in the second period.