Kaidan Mbereko made a season-high 39 saves and Bret Link scored twice to lead Colorado College to a 4-1 victory over No. 9 Minnesota Duluth Friday night at Amsoil Arena.
 
Owen Beckner collected a goal and an assist and Klavs Veinbergs added two helpers for the Tigers (13-15-5, 7-11-5), who secured a spot in the NCHC playoffs. CC can finish anywhere from fifth to seventh in the NCHC standings.  
 
Mats Lindgren opened the scoring with his sixth goal of the season at the 9:36 mark of the first period. He took a pass from Wilson Björck at the top of the left circle, produced a toe drag and fired a wrister that beat UMD goalie Ethan Dahlmeir on CC's first shot of the game.
 
Lindgren has 10 points in his first 15 career games since joining the team over winter break. Björck collected his ninth assist and Veinbergs his 11^th of the season.
 
UMD (20-13-0, 11-12-0), which hit a post midway through the second period, took the first penalty of the game with 15.8 seconds left in the middle frame.
 
The Bulldogs successfully killed the penalty, then had a power play of their own a few minutes later but could not get anything past Mbereko.
 
Link blocked a shot and had a clean breakaway with 13 minutes remaining, but was stopped by Dahlmeir to keep it a one-goal game.
 
UMD did not score on another power-play opportunity midway through the final frame, but Scout Truman scored seconds later at the 11:41 mark with a wrister from the bottom of the right circle.
 
The Tigers regained the lead just 25 seconds later when Owen Beckner sent the puck towards the net from the left circle and it was deflected by a Bulldog in front of the net past Dahlmeir.
 
Mbereko made sure UMD would not tie the game again, making six saves, including a spectacular stop on Zam Plante with two minutes remaining, before Drew Montgomery sealed it with an empty-net goal with 48.9 seconds left. Bret Link then did the same with 21 seconds remaining for the second multi-goal game of his career.
 
UMD outshot the Tigers, 40-19, and were 0-for-2 on the power play after entering the game with the nation's best power-play percentage at 31.4 percent. The CC penalty kill unit was perfect for the fifth consecutive game.
 
The teams will wrap up the regular season on Saturday, Feb. 28, beginning at 6 p.m. (CT).