The Broncos extended their lead to 3-1 at 5:18 of the second period when Ty Henricks, a sixth-round pick in 2023 by the New York Rangers, followed up a shot in the low slot.

New Jersey Devils prospect Shane Lachance, a 2021 sixth-round pick by the Edmonton Oilers, cut the Terriers deficit to 3-2 at 10:42 when he jammed a power-play goal past Slukynsky. The Broncos challenged for goalie interference but the call on the ice was upheld, and WMU lost its time out.

Michaels made it 4-2 at 7:16 off a 2-on-1, snapping a wrister from the inside of the right circle.

“It was definitely a big moment in the game and kind of tilted the ice back our way and back in our favor,” said Michaels, who had four goals in two games at the Frozen Four. “It’s not one bit about me, it’s about this group. The Western Michigan Broncos doing something we’ve never done. Each and every year, the bar seems to be getting raised. We took a lot of pride in doing our part.”

BU’s challenge at 11:56 failed when a no-goal call on the ice was confirmed.

“They said it was tied up. So he blew the whistle, I guess,” Pandolfo said. “I haven’t seen the replay of it, so I’m not sure exactly what it looked like. Someone said it was on top of [Slukynsky’s] pad and we pushed it in. It’s hard to comment when I don’t see the replay yet. Just live it looked like the puck was still moving, but it’s far away from where I was sitting or standing. So, yeah, the explanation was the whistle blew and it was tied up.”

Hakkarainen tapped in a short side shot off a feed from behind the net to extend Western Michigan’s lead to 5-2 at 16:02, and Michaels scored into the empty net at 17:52 to make it a 6-2 final, leaping into the bench to begin an early celebration.

“I’m not too sure what I was screaming,” Michaels said. “A ton of emotions. That goal was not about me one bit, it was about this team and this group and doing something this program’s never done. I just wanted to be with the guys.”