About 15 hours after losing the longest game in Minnesota high school hockey history, Lakeville North's girls' hockey team returned to the ice for Saturday afternoon's third-place game against Eden Prairie. The long night didn't have much effect on the Panthers' performance. Lakeville North held off Eden Prairie 3-2 at the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul. The Panthers lost the semifinal game against two-time defending state champion Minnetonka 4-3 in a game that took 113 minutes and 29 seconds, ended at 1:02 a.m. Saturday and received national attention on Saturday morning's editions of ESPN's SportsCenter program. Showing no signs of wear, Lakeville North grabbed a 2-0 first period lead on goals from Megan Skelly and Maddie McGlade. Back in net was goaltender Cassie Alexander, who stopped all nine Eden Prairie shots in the first period. Eden Prairie's Charly Dahlquist broke through with a goal at 11:16 of the second period. The Eagles would add another goal with 23 seconds left in the game, but Lakeville North had just scored on an empty net after Eden Prairie pulled its goalie seeking an offensive advantage.
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STAFF REPORTS
Analysis: Will the collective weight on the Timberwolves be lifted with another playoff run?
Things are heavier than usual around the team, starting with the overall moodiness of players and that effect on games.
