ST. CLOUD, Minn. - Fresh off its trip to the Czech Republic over the holiday break, the Gustavus men's hockey team Friday night returned to conference play and suffered a tightly-contested 3-2 loss at Saint John's, dropping to 7-5-2 overall and 2-4-1 in the MIAC. 

The Johnnies gained the momentum early, scoring 39 seconds into the game and again five minutes later for a quick 2-0 lead. In the final minute of the first period, Saint John's added another goal and carried a comfortable three-goal advantage into the first intermission. 

Nearly halfway through the second frame on a Gustie power play, Connor Mahony collected a loose puck in the neutral zone, stepped into the Johnnie zone and shot from the right circle to break the shutout with his fifth goal of the season. Nate Stone and Jack Anderson assisted on the goal. Just over a minute later, Gustie goaltender Marko Belak stopped a two-on-one Johnnie breakaway. Luke Delzer then pushed the puck to Stanislav Danaev who took a shot from the slot and scored his first goal of the season. After 40 minutes of play, Saint John's led 3-2. 

The Gusties created a trio of scoring opportunities midway through the third period on shots from Wilmer Svensson, Stone, and Jack Kubitz but couldn't net the equalizer. With an extra attacker in the final minute, Stone had one last opportunity directly in front of the net, but the Johnnie goalie came up with the biggest stop of the night. 

Gustavus outshot SJU 34-32 with Belak making 29 saves. 

Game two of the MIAC series is set for 7 p.m. Saturday in Saint Peter. 
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