Everybody remembers back to the days when their kids played in youth hockey tournaments and lost a couple of games, only to be rewarded with the dreaded "early game" on Sunday morning.

Team Wisconsin played well in the CCM Minnesota NIT but ran into a couple of hot goalies and as a result, faced Team Massachusetts in the fifth place game at 8:30am at the Plymouth Ice Center.

TW started out slowly, trailing by one goal after one period, but played well the last 36 minutes and earned a hard-fought 6-3 victory.

Brad Navin got TW on the board at 7:41 when he scored from close range with assists going to Paul Byrne and Ryan Dau. Byrne played in only two games during the weekend due to sickness, but played very well on Saturday and shone on the blue line on Sunday.

Team Mass tied the score less than two minutes later on an odd-man rush.

Kevin Peduto took a pass from Mike Cashman on the right side and ripped the puck into the right side of the net before TW goalie Saxton Soley could react to the last-minute pass.

Mass took advantage of a TW penalty when Dan Holland's shot from the right circle beat Soley high on the glove side for a 2-1 lead at the 14:20 mark of the first. Jake Donahue was given an assist.

Team Mass held a 9-3 shot edge in the first, but TW would outshoot Mass 27-21 the rest of the way.

TW came out strong in the second period and was rewarded when Hunter Scott grabbed a rebound on the low left side, skated across the slot and slid the puck just past goalie Zach Rondeau's outstretched left skate. The goal came at 4:29, with assists to Dau and Alexander Dahl.

Nineteen seconds later, Team Mass grabbed a turnover and went in on a 2-on-1. Cashman's pass to Alex Holland resulted in a goal and a 3-3 tie at 4:48 of the second.

Not to be outdone, Evan Janssen roared down the right side and ripped a hard wrister that beat Rondeau on the stick side just under the crossbar at 5:25. Karl Andersen earned a helper on the play.

TW scored its first of a trio of third period goals at 3:37 when Cody Dixon's slapper from the left point beat new goalie Stephen Burgoyne just inside the left post for a 4-3 lead. Connor Johnston and Janssen each got helpers on the play.

The pace was breakneck the rest of the period, but the only scoring came on empty-netters by Navin (16:19) and Dahl (16:35). Dau earned his playmaker on Navin's goal.

Soley played a solid game and stopped 27 of 30 shots, while Rondeau (12) and Burgoyne (12) combined for two dozen saves for Team Mass.