The Full Rink.

We didn't plan for Issue 2 to open like this.

Last night's Michigan-Denver game ran until nearly 1 AM Eastern. It went to double overtime. It ended on a goal from a defenseman who had scored once all season. And somewhere in there, it became one of the better college hockey games in recent memory.

If you stayed up for it: worth it. If you didn't: we have you.

Kent Anderson. Double Overtime. Las Vegas.

Let's start with the number that doesn't make sense: 52-26.

That was Michigan's shots-on-goal advantage. The No. 1 team in the country outshot Denver by 26 over nearly five full periods of hockey. In the two overtime sessions alone, Michigan had 21 shots to Denver's 8. In the second OT, it was 13-3. The Wolverines had a 2-on-1. They hit the post. They had everything but the puck in the net.

And Johnny Hicks just kept stopping it.

"I don't score many goals," Anderson said afterward. "This is ranking up top."

Clarke Caswell's tip-in with 2:46 left in regulation had sent it to overtime, which felt like the moment of the game at the time. It wasn't. The moment was Hicks, holding Michigan's 52-shot assault at bay long enough for one defenseman to find a shooting lane and end it.

Michigan's season is over. T.J. Hughes, Luca Fantilli, Jayden Perron — a generation of Wolverines who made four Frozen Fours in five years — go home without a title. The 28-year drought continues.

For Denver, the championship game is Saturday at 5:30 PM ET on ESPN. Coach David Carle will be going for his third national title in five years. His team just survived the longest possible night to get there.

Saturday: Denver vs. Wisconsin

Wisconsin handled North Dakota 2-1 in Thursday's first semifinal — cleaner than the score looked. Simon Tassy and Ryan Botterill scored 27 seconds apart early in the first period and Daniel Hauser did the rest, shutting down five North Dakota power plays. The Badgers haven't been in this game since 2010. They haven't won it since 2006.

The matchup on Saturday sets up as a study in contrasts. Denver is playing the best version of their season hockey right now — methodical, defensively disciplined, carried by a goalie who flat out refuses to lose. Wisconsinhas the energy of a team that has nothing to lose and keeps finding ways to win ugly. Their regional run included an overtime comeback against Michigan State where they were down two goals with five minutes left. They don't panic.

PWHL: Four Games Left. One Spot. Still Anyone's Race.

No games for the bubble teams last night — which means the standings from Issue 1 are essentially unchanged, except now the clock has ticked one day closer:

Four games left for each team. Most of them against each other.

This is where the PWHL's 3-2-1-0 points system does something fascinating: because head-to-head regulation wins give the winner three points and the loser zero, a single game between Toronto and Ottawa doesn't just move the needle — it potentially swings the gap by three points in one night. Ottawa could be tied with Toronto by Saturday. New York could be within one. Or Toronto could effectively close the door.

The Ottawa situation remains the story inside the story.Carla MacLeod stepped away from coaching to focus on her breast cancer treatment, and the Charge have not collapsed. They're one point back, still alive, still competing. That's not a small thing.

Sarah Fillierhas six goals in her last five games for New York. The Sirens are three points back but they're playing their best hockey. If they can take regulation wins in both of their remaining games against Toronto, they're in.

The PWHL regular season ends April 25. Every remaining game involving these three teams is must-watch hockey. Free on the PWHL YouTube channel for US fans.

NHL: The Eastern Wild Card is on Fire

Eight days left in the NHL regular season. The playoff picture in the West is essentially set. The East is not.

Ottawa, Detroit, Philadelphia, and Columbus are all knotted at 88 points for the second wild card, with Washington one point back — five teams, one spot, six days left. Ottawa holds the tiebreaker edge in regulation wins and faces Carolina, Tampa Bay, and New Jersey to close out. The Islanders just fired their coach and hired Pete DeBoer. Detroit and Philadelphia have both been scorching hot but are running out of runway.

Meanwhile, Montreal has won eight straight and are right in the thick of the Atlantic Division race — within striking distance of Tampa Bay and Buffalo at the top. The Canadiens — who were supposed to be in a rebuild — now appear to be a legitimate first-round threat.

Colorado clinched the Presidents' Trophy last night with a win over Calgary. The Avalanche had a wild second half but the points were always there. Their first-round matchup will likely be against the second Western wild card, which at the moment is a race between Nashville and Los Angeles.

The Eastern wild card picture will likely not be resolved until the final weekend. Possibly the final night. NHL playoffs start Saturday, April 18. One week from tomorrow.

One Thing to Watch This Weekend

T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas for a college hockey national championship game. Circle it.

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See you on the ice.