Continued: Minnetonka has enough to wiggle past Hopkins in OT

A spectator who parked about a quarter-mile from the entrance to Braemar Arena on Saturday before the Minnetonka vs. Hopkins boys' hockey Section 6AA semifinal exclaimed to a writer on his way to the rink, "This is the event."

It did not disappoint. Minnetonka, the No. 1 seed, defeated Classic Lake rival and No. 4-seeded Hopkins 4-3 in overtime, netting the winner a little more than three minutes into the extra session on standout Jake Gardiner's second goal of the game.

The goal ended an entertaining contest that saw Minnetonka build a 3-1 lead in the second period and outshoot Hopkins 52-26, only to have a pair of Royals sophomores almost steal the show.

Forward Archie Skalbeck, who gave the Royals a 1-0 lead in the first period, tied the score 3-3 midway through the third period. Meanwhile, Hopkins goalie Alex Fons turned away 48 shots and was nearly impenetrable except for a four-minute stretch early in the second period when Minnetonka scored all three of its regulation goals. In overtime, Fons robbed the Skippers' Paul Giel on a breakaway.

"I was thinking, 'Maybe it just isn't our night,'" Minnetonka coach Brian Urick said.

Moments later, however, Gardiner picked up the puck and scored on a wrist shot from the left faceoff dot. It brought a sense of relief to the Skippers, who split with Hopkins during the regular season and are attempting to navigate a loaded section. The top four seeds -- No. 2 Benilde-St. Margaret's and No. 3 Eden Prairie -- were all ranked in the top 11 of Class 2A.

"It doesn't get any easier from here," Urick said.

MICHAEL RAND

Benilde-St. Margaret's 6, Eden Prairie 5 (2 OT): Red Knights senior forward Steven Zierke had a wide-open net to shoot into early in the third period against the Eagles.

He missed that one but made up for it, and then some.

Taking a centering pass in between the faceoff circles from teammate Chris Student, Zierke fired the puck into the net at 3 minutes, 25 seconds of the second overtime, lifting Benilde-St. Margaret's into Wednesday's section final at Mariucci Arena.

Benilde's victory avenges last year's 7-4 section semifinal loss to the Eagles.

"A lot of history," Red Knights coach Ken Pauly said. "It was pretty nice to get this one, especially for the seniors."

Zierke's shorthanded goal capped a wild game that started with a 2-0 lead for Benilde-St. Margaret's and saw the Red Knights and Eagles eventually combine for five goals in the third period.

That included a sequence where Eden Prairie tied the score 3-3 thanks to a goal by Joe McQuillan with 12:27 to play, only to have Benilde-St. Margaret's retie the score six seconds later on Matt Bergland's second goal of the game.

BRIAN STENSAAS

Section 2 semifinals

Burnsville 4, Bloomington Jefferson 3 (OT): The cliché is that it's hard to beat a team three times in one season. In its semifinal against Bloomington Jefferson at Braemar Arena, Burnsville certainly didn't make that task any easier.

The No. 2-seeded Blaze spotted the No. 3 Jaguars a 3-0 lead. And by game's end, Burnsville's potent top line of Tyler Barnes, Adam Perisic and Jake Hendrickson had been kept off the scoreboard. But thanks to late heroics from forward Zack King, the Blaze defeated Jefferson in overtime.

Jefferson, which lost twice to Burnsville in Lake Conference play, dominated the first period en route to a 2-0 lead. The Jaguars' physical style gave the Blaze fits, a trend that carried over to the second period and a 3-0 Jefferson lead. But a late second-period goal off a skate deflection gave Burnsville a spark. Tony Anderson's unassisted goal 5 minutes into the third period cut the deficit to 3-2; with less than five minutes left in regulation, King tied it when he picked up a loose puck and buried a shot from close range.

In overtime, Zach May led King, streaking down the left side, with a perfect pass. King skated in and fired a low shot for the winner 3:32 into the extra session.

"Usually that comes from the top line," King said. "It was just a great play. I hope to keep it going."

MICHAEL RAND

Edina 6, Holy Angels 2: Marshall Everson had a hat trick, including the first two goals of the game, as the Hornets beat the Stars. Teammate Joe Gleason's power-play goal midway through the second period broke a 2-2 tie.

Section 4 quarterfinals

Hill-Murray 8, North St. Paul 0: Andy Singerhouse and Jeff Westerhaus each had two goals for the Pioneers, who scored five goals in the second period.

Roseville 5, St. Paul Johnson 2: The Raiders overcame an early two-goal deficit, scoring the final five goals. Adam Mueller scored two shorthanded goals in the comeback. He also had two assists.