Maybe it was just a blip.  A fluke.  Whatever it was, it only lasted for one night.  Last Saturday night was far and away the worst effort of the season for the Yellowjackets.  Friday night, the 'Jackets returned home for the first time in two months, looking to rebound, get back in the win column and stay in the top spot in the NCHA.  It wasn't a perfect game, but it was progress from a week ago - which means it got the job done.  The 'Jackets took the lead early and never looked back, skating to a 5-3 win over River Falls before 975 on a frigid Friday night in Superior.

The win improved the 'Jackets to 16-2-1 on the year, but more importantly kept them in sole possession of first place in the NCHA, two points ahead of St. Norbert, who also won on Friday night.  St. Scholastica and UW-Stout, who were tied with St. Norbert for second place in the NCHA, skated to a 2-2 tie on Friday and fell three points back of the 'Jackets.

Dane Bushey (Jr. Duluth, Minnesota) got the scoring started early.  Tyler Fletcher (Jr. Calgary, Alberta) picked off a clearing attempt on the right wing boards and played it to Bushey near the right point.  Bushey let a shot go that beat Falcons' goaltender Stephen Ritter up high to make it 1-0.  A few minutes later the 'Jackets made it 2-0.  Braden Desmet (Jr. Strathmore, Alberta) had the puck on the left wing boards and fed it back into his own zone.  There, Kent Detlefsen (Fr. Lakeville, Minnesota) took the puck and headed up ice.  The Falcons let him gain the zone and he took it, skating to the top of the circles at letting a wrist shot go that beat Ritter high on the glove side to make it 2-0.  Jeff Herman (Sr. Cranbrook, British Columbia) also got an assist on the goal at 7:53 of the first.  But all wasn't well.  The 'Jackets were guilty of allowing a few odd-man rushes in the first period and the Falcons made them pay before the period was out.  Grant Everett took the feed in the right circle and let a one-timer go that beat goaltender Chad Beiswenger (Sr. Moorhead, Minnesota) to make it 2-1 at 15:37.

The Falcons tied the game at 5:07 of the second.  On the power play, Jordan McIntyre crossed the Yellowjacket line and centered to Derek Hansberry.  Hansberry got Herman turned around and let a shot go from between the circles that beat Beiswenger on the glove side to tie it at 2-2.  Then, luck came to the 'Jackets.  The Falcons owned play for a majority of the second period, but then the maintenance crew had to step in and fix a piece of glass.  The result was a five-minute delay.  Immediately following the delay the 'Jackets regained the lead.  Off the face-off out of the delay, Andrew MacKenzie (Sr. Terrace Bay, Ontario) fed the puck up the left wing to Seth Reda (Sr. Palmer, Alaska).  Reda then fed a pass across the slot to Kevin Huck (Sr. Eden Prairie, Minnesota) who one-timed it from the right circle into the net for his seventh of the year to make it 3-2.  The goal, which was almost a carbon copy of the Falcons' first goal of the night, came at 11:53.

In the third, the 'Jackets again scored early to regain their two-goal edge.  Huck had the puck on the left wing boards and sent it up to Herman at the left point.  Herman let a shot go that was deflected out of the air in the slot by Reda.  The puck got past all defenders and Falcons' goaltender Bo Storozuk to make it 4-2 at 1:14.  But the Falcons wouldn't go away.  A few minutes later, Jamie Ruff picked Eric Bausano's (Sr. Laurium, Michigan) pocket at center and fed Dustin Norman on the left wing.  Norman entered the zone and let a slap shot go from the left circle that Beiswenger got a piece of, but it wasn't enough to keep it out of the net, and the lead was once again shaved to a goal at 4-3.  The 'Jackets closed out the scoring at 10:10 of the third.  Fresh off a full, two-minute 5-on-3 power play, Detlefsen crashed down from the point and picked up a rebound in the right circle, letting a backhand go that eluded Storozuk to make it 5-3.  Bausano and Brian Bina (Jr. Grand Forks, North Dakota) assisted.

Beiswenger was much better than last week, and finished the game with 23 saves.  Ritter made seven saves in the first period before Storozuk relieved him at the 9:28 mark.  Storozuk then finished with 19 saves.

The 'Jackets took six penalties for 20 minutes, while the Falcons took eight for 24 minutes.  The 'Jackets went 0-5 on the power play, while the Falcons were 1-3.

The Yellowjackets will try to complete the weekend sweep as they host UW-Stout on Saturday.  Saturday is also "Gold Out" night at Wessman Arena, as all fans are encouraged to wear gold to the game.  The puck will drop at 7:05 p.m. and can be heard live locally on KUWS 91.3 FM, beginning with the pre-game show at 6:45 p.m.  If you are outside the local listening area, you can tune in via the Internet at www.kuws.fm.  Jon Garver will have the call.