Frozen Four 2019: Minnesota-Duluth, Massachusetts Advance to Finals

All eyes were on the 2019 Frozen Four on Friday as all four teams took to the ice with a pair of spots in the championship game on the line.

The first matchup of the day saw the defending champion Minnesota-Duluth Bulldogs take on the Providence Friars, while No. 4 Massachusetts took on Denver in the nightcap.

Below is a look at the latest action from Buffalo, New York.

2019 Frozen Four Results — Semifinals

No. 2 Minnesota-Duluth def. Providence, 4-1

No. 4 Massachusetts def. Denver, 4-3 (OT)

2019 Frozen Four Schedule — Final

Saturday, April 13, at 8 p.m. ET: No. 2 Minnesota-Duluth vs. No. 4 Massachusetts

No. 2 Minnesota-Duluth 4, Providence 1

Early on, both the Friars' Hayden Hawkey and the Bulldogs' Hunter Shepard appeared up for the task as each goaltender recorded a clean sheet in the opening period.

Each team, however, managed to generate some offense in the second.

Minnesota-Duluth got on the board first when Justin Richards broke the scoreless tie just past the six-minute mark in the second:

"It's special," Richards said of his goal during the second intermission. "Playing in the Frozen Four, I mean, I'm going to cherish this moment. Every guy who's playing in this is going to cherish it, so it's definitely really special. I'm happy it went in."

It marked the sophomore forward's 11th goal of the season.

The Bulldogs' lead soon disappeared, though. The Friars used a power-play goal by Josh Wilkins just past the midway point in the period to even the score:

That would set the stage for a winner-take-all third period.

Providence had a golden opportunity early to move out in front thanks to a two-man advantage. However, Shepard stood tall and helped his team survive nearly three minutes worth of power plays for the Friars.

That penalty kill proved pivotal. Minnesota-Duluth senior Billy Exell helped his team regain the lead with his third goal of the season at the midway point of the period:

That wound up being the game-winner, as the Bulldogs would ice the game with a pair of empty-netters in the final 33 seconds. Richards' second goal of the game made it a 4-1 margin.

Shepard finished the game with 28 saves on 29 chances. Hawkey had 32 saves on the day.

Minnesota-Duluth advances to its third consecutive championship game as it looks to defend its title.

No. 4 UMass 4, Denver 3 (OT)

The Pioneers managed to force overtime with a late comeback, but it will be the Minutemen who will have a chance to dethrone the reigning champs.

Denver opened the scoring behind a power-play goal by Colin Staub just more than eight minutes into the game:

Any momentum the Pioneers gained from that goal would quickly vanish, though.

UMass not only responded with an equalizer moments later, but they would grab control of the contest with a trio of power-play goals of their own in a span of 101 seconds:

Bobby Trivigno, Mitchell Chaffee and John Leonard each got on the board during that outburst.

According to Hockey East associate commissioner Brian Smith, the four combined first-period goals were the most in a Frozen Four since 2014. Not only that, but the Minutemen became the first team since Boston College in 2008 to net three goals in the opening period of a Frozen Four matchup.

Smith also noted that it marked the first time a team scored three power-play goals in a single period since Wisconsin in 2010.

It would remain a two-goal margin throughout the second. But with his team's season in jeopardy, freshman forward Cole Guttman stepped up for the Pioneers:

Guttman wasn't finished, though. He struck again with less than four minutes to play in regulation to even the score:

That equalizer led to two of the best words in sports: sudden death.

While the two sides traded scoring chances throughout the overtime period, Marc Del Gaizo played the role of hero for the Minutemen at the 15:18 mark:

That goal helped them avoid what would have been a heartbreaking loss after leading by two with less than 10 minutes to play. 

Just two years after managing just five wins, UMass is heading to the first championship game in program history.