Losing its top five scorers from 1990–91, the formerly high-scoring Lakers would need to find a sway to get over the postseason hump that had seem them bow out in the national quarterfinals two years in a row.
Stepping into the breach was freshman Brian Rolston, the 11th overall pick in the 1991 NHL Entry Draft and probably the most heralded prospect ever to appear in a Laker uniform.
Lake Superior was able to balance out their adequate road swings with stifling defense at home; only twice did the Lakers give up more than three goals at the Norris Center but timely offense allowed them to win both games.
That poor home series also could not have come at a worse time; having lost both games at Michigan the week before Lake State was in a dogfight with their southern rivals for the top spot in the CCHA.
The Lakers then earned a much-needed 3 points on the road against Western Michigan while the Wolverines all but ended the Spartans hopes with a sweep at the Joe Louis Arena.
With their next series against bottom-feeding Ohio State the Lakers had hopes that they could end their road woes but instead the team produced its worst defense efforts of the season, surrendering 15 goals in the two games and dropping five points behind the Wolverines, guaranteeing Michigan the CCHA championship.
Not wanting to drop even further back, Lake Superior showed their mettle by taking both games against Western Michigan to finish one point ahead of the Spartans (who held the tie breaker) and lock up the second seed in the CCHA tournament.
Tournament MVP Darrin Madeley stole the show, holding the conference's top offensive team to a single goal en route to the Laker's championship.
Wisconsin added a power play marker before the end of the first and Lake Superior, who had had trouble scoring at times during the season, were hoping that the game wasn't already out of hand.
Wisconsin was forced to pull their goaltender but an empty-net goal by Jay Ness salted away the game and gave Lake Superior their second national championship.
To make matters worse, Wisconsin's participation was later vacated for unrelated violations by team members[7] leaving the 1992 championship one of the most mired in controversy in NCAA history.
Regardless of Wisconsin's response, Paul Constantin, who had started the laker's comeback in the second period, was named the tournament MOP and joined Darrin Madeley, Mark Astley and Brian Rolston on the All-Tournament team.