BLAINE, Minn. — After a brutal four-game, out-of-conference slate in which the Bethel University men’s hockey team played its opening four games on the road in Wisconsin, the Royals headed into their home opener with an 0-3-1 record, a less than stellar follow up to last season’s run to the MIAC championship game. 

Needing to get back on track, the Royals looked to tally their first win of the season against a 3-0-0 University of Wisconsin-Stout Blue Devils team that outscored its opponents 15-2 coming into Friday’s matchup at the Bethel University Arena.

Tyler Braccini got the Royals on the board 8:15 seconds into the first period, finding the back of the net on a feed from freshman defenseman Jake Svenddal. A Spencer Kring-interference penalty late in the first put the Blue Devils on the power play, where they immediately took advantage, tying the game on a goal from senior center Jacob Halvorson. 

Two Stout penalties seven minutes into the second period gave the Royals a 5-on-3 power play opportunity. Spencer Kring set up Tyler Braccini for a one-timer from the point, firing the puck past the Stout goaltender for his second goal of the night. 

“Me, Kringer and [Logan Anderson] were just dishing the puck back to each other,” Braccini said. “Finally, my third shot found the back of the net, and that was awesome to see a one-timer go in.” 

Freshman defenseman Chase Beacom added another for the Royals at the 9:07 mark of the second period, to give the Royals a two-goal advantage. 

A costly Luke Lindsay high sticking penalty put the Blue Devils back on the power play where Nicholas Pigeon brought Stout to within one, and a Evan Vanden Heuvel goal knotted the game at three heading into the second intermission. 

Just 1:25 into the third, Bethel captain Jack Brown grabbed a rebound and hammered it home to reclaim the lead at 4-3. From there the Royals’ defense held strong, Bethel goaltender Marco Duronio fended off four Stout shots in the third. 

Needing to find the equalizer, the Blue Devils pulled their goalie with 1:56 remaining and, 38 seconds later, Tyler Braccini grabbed a loose puck in his own zone and sent it the length of the ice into the open net, raising his arms high into the air with an emphatic celebration as a lone hat hit the ice. 

“I was lucky to let that one go in,” Braccini said. “I think the Lord was guiding that one.” 

The goal put an exclamation point on the junior winger’s first career hat trick and sealed the Royals first victory of the 2024-2025 season. 

“It’s great for the guys to get their first win,” head coach Chris McKelvie said. “I think they get rewarded… it didn’t go our way the first couple of weeks, and so for them to bounce back and get sort of a grind-it-out win is good for them.” 

The Royals built off their first victory of the year by defeating the University of Wisconsin-Superior 4-3 Saturday night in their final out of conference game, before MIAC play opens and competition heats up.