Minnesota boys hockey state tournament: Class 1A quarterfinals roundup
There were three one-sided games and a thriller in the nightcap of Class 1A. Tap here for game updates, stories and more from Xcel Energy Center.
The Minnesota Star Tribune
March 7, 2024 at 8:38PM
Tap on the game of your choice for updates and the final summary when completed.
Class 1A quarterfinal results
To see the game summary, tap on the final score.
Game 4 / 10:56 p.m.
Mahtomedi pushes past Orono
Mahtomedi scored three goals in a span of 2:50 of the third period to defeat Orono 5-2 in the final Class 1A quarterfinal Wednesday.
Gene Wegleitner won a faceoff and manuevered the puck around Orono goalie Peyton Anderson at 11:11 for the game-winner.
Wegleitner’s effort came mere seconds after Mahtomedi’s Jake Hodd-Chlebeck had tied the score 2-2 with a rush up the right side and a bad-angle shot that slipped past the Orono goalie at 10:53.
Mahtomedi’s Samuel Harris and Hodd-Chlebeck added empty-net goals for the final score.
Orono (20-9) had taken a 2-1 lead over Mahtomedi (18-11) when Brooks Fegers tipped in a shot by Joey Mugaas from the point at 8:45 of the third period. The goal was originally waved off because of a high stick, but the play was reviewed and the goal allowed.
The folks who set the schedule for the first day of the tournament can say they saved the best matchup for last.
At least, the most even.
Through the first period and change, there were more crunching hits than clever plays, more poke checks than rushes up ice.
The first crack in either team’s shell came when Orono’s Jackson Knight was called for the game’s first penalty midway through the second period.
Mahtomedi took advantage of the first real advantage for either team. Will Wright won a faceoff, drawing it back to Max Strecker, who whistled a shot past Orono goalie Peyton Anderson for a 1-0 lead at 8:31.
Orono matched its counterpart barely two minutes later in very similar fashion.
Strecker was called for kneeing as he stretched to attempt a hip check at center ice.
Orono took just 14 seconds to get the equalizer. Joey Mugaas used two Mahtomedi players as screens and blew a high wrist shot past Zephyrs goalie Charlie Brandt.
The teams went into the second break tied 1-1, each with a power-play goal and with just two shots on goal separating them.
Game 4′s three stars
Gene Wegleitner, Mahtomedi forward: Scored what proved to be the game winner off a face with 11:11 left.
Jake Hodd-Chlebeck, Mahtomedi forward: Had two goals — the tying one and an empty-netter.
Joey Mugaas, Orono defenseman: Running the point on the power play, he tied the game 1-1 at 10:40 of the second period and added an assist.
Game 4′s key numbers
5: Goals in the final 6:15 of the game.
23: Seconds separating Mahtomedi’s game-clinching empty-net goals.
JIM PAULSEN
Game 3 / 8:08 p.m.
Hermantown pulls away from Alexandria
Top-seeded Hermantown held a one-goal lead for about half the game in its quarterfinal matchup against unseeded Alexandria. But with near-constant offensive-zone pressure in the second period, it was only a matter of time before the Hawks extended their lead.
Hermantown scored three second-period goals on the way to a 6-0 win over Alexandria in the first quarterfinal of Wednesday’s evening session at Xcel Energy Center.
Junior defenseman Henry Peterson made it a 2-0 game only four seconds into his team’s first power play about halfway through the second period. He added his second goal with 1:29 left until the second intermission when his shot from the high slot deflected off an Alexandria player on the way to the net. Peterson, with a four-point game, also had the second assist on sophomore A.J. Francisco’s ninth goal of the season only 35 seconds later, pushing Hermantown’s lead to 4-0 through two periods.
Charlie Marchand scored off a rebound in front about five minutes into the third period to make it 5-0. River Freeman made it 6-0 late in the game.
The Hawks grabbed a 1-0 lead four minutes into the contest when they capitalized on an odd-man rush into Alexandria’s zone after a Cardinals player fell at neutral ice. Hermantown senior Evan Gunderson left the puck for senior Josh Kauppinen in the slot, and Kauppinen fired the puck in the net for his 13th goal of the season.
Alexandria had a couple of nice scoring chances in the first period, especially in the final two minutes of the period. The Cardinals crashed the net but were unable to bury the puck.
Alexandria senior goaltender Brady Metcalf kept the score close for a while, making point-blank saves early in the second period. Metcalf, despite allowing six goals, made 37 saves.
Hermantown (19-8-2) is in search of its second state title in three seasons and fifth overall. The Hawks have only one loss this season to Class 1A opponents, having lost 4-1 to another semifinalist, Warroad, on Jan. 13.
After a runner-up finish in 2018, Alexandria took fourth place in 2022 and lost in last year’s consolation final to St. Cloud Cathedral. The Cardinals (18-10-1) reached the state tournament for a third consecutive season after outscoring opponents 24-1 in their section tournament.
Game 3′s three stars
Henry Peterson, Hermantown defenseman: Factored into all three second-period goals for a four-point game. It’s his second multi-goal game of the season (Jan. 16 vs. Hibbing/Chisholm).
River Freeman, Hermantown forward: Scored a goal and had two assists.
Dane Callaway, Hermantown goalie: Made 16 saves for his sixth shutout of the season and school-record-tying 15th career shutout.
Game 3′s key numbers
17: State quarterfinal victories for Hermantown in its 20 tournament appearances. The Hawks lost in 1994 (4-3 to Warroad), 1999 (3-2 in overtime to Benilde-St. Margaret’s) and 2021 (7-3 to Dodge County, with mostly a JV Hermantown squad in the first tournament since COVID-19).
4: Shots on goal in the final two periods for Alexandria, after the Cardinals put 12 shots on goal in the first period.
20: Goals this season for Hermantown junior River Freeman, who leads his team in goals and assists.
HEATHER RULE
Game 2 / 3:29 p.m.
St. Cloud Cathedral rolls against Northfield
St. Cloud Cathedral got out of the gates quickly, scoring a goal just 18 seconds int, then scored four in a row over the last period and a half to pull away from Northfield for a 5-1 victory in the second Class 1A quarterfinal Wednesday in the boys hockey state tournament.
When a loose puck slid into the Northfield end, Raiders goalie Max Frank’s clearing attempt went directly to Cathedral leading scorer John Hirschfeld, who knew exactly what to do with it. His quick wrister that beat Frank.
Northfield wasn’t down long. Senior forward Cayden Monson carried the puck behind the Crusaders’ net, walked it out the other side, turned and lifted a shot top-shelf, over goalie Nick Hansen’s left shoulder at 3:56.
It remained tied until well into the second period, much of the play taking place at center ice as neither team was able to generate sustained puck possession.
Cathedral elected to play a more conservative style, countering Northfield’s attempts to force the action. It paid off when Ben Petroske deflected a shot from the blue line by Thomas Rosenkrans in front of the net, then knocked it in as it slid free. The goal gave the Crusaders a 2-1 lead at 9:28.
They cashed in a little more than a minute later on a power-play goal by Joey Gillespie from the top of the left faceoff circle at 10:28.
Cathedral took a 3-1 advantage into the second intermission. The Crusaders had 10 of the last 11 shots on goal during the period, while Northfield generated little offense.
The Crusaders’ power play proved dangerous once again early in the third period when Griffin Sturm, running the point, fed Andrew Dwinnell just outside the left side faceoff circle. Dwinnell converted a one-timer and St. Cloud Cathedral led 4-1 at 6:29.
Gillespie bumped the lead to 5-1 when he took a feed from Hirschfield, stepped around a Northfield defender and tucked the puck in the net at 11:31.
Game 2′s three stars
John Hirschfeld, St. Cloud Cathedral center: Scored 18 seconds into the game. Added three assists and won 19 of 25 faceoffs.
Griffin Sturm, St. Cloud Cathedral defenseman: Offensive-minded defenseman finished with three assists and five shots on goal.
Nick Hansen, St. Cloud Cathedral goalie: Saved 19 of 20 shots and shut out Northfield for the game’s final 47 minutes, 4 seconds.
Game 2′s key numbers
17-0-1: Season record for St. Cloud Cathedral goalie Nick Hansen.
3-2: Score of St. Cloud Cathedral’s early season overtime victory against semifinals opponent Warroad.
54: Assists this season by John Hirschfeld, most in the state.
JIM PAULSEN
Game 1 / 1:20 p.m.
Warroad routs New Ulm
Warroad scored only once in the first period, but the offensive firepower of the No. 2-seeded Warriors showed 15 seconds into the second period. It resulted in a five-goal outburst that propelled Warroad to a 8-1 victory over unseeded New Ulm in the first Class 1A quarterfinal Wednesday afternoon at Xcel Energy Center.
Senior winger Murray Marvin-Cordes scored three times, while senior Carson Pilgrim and sophomore Dominic Anthony each scored two goals. Defenseman Will Hardwick assisted on the first three goals of the second period.
Pilgrim, a Mr. Hockey finalist, beat the goaltender off the rush with his shot 15 seconds into the second period to give the Warriors a 2-0 lead. About midway through the period, Anthony converted a Michigan goal to make it 4-0. The play was reviewed and determined to be a good goal.
Warroad (24-5-0) made it 6-0 by the second intermission with goals 32 seconds apart from senior defenseman Ryan Lund and another from Pilgrim. Marvin-Cordes completed his hat trick in the third period with a breakaway, shorthanded goal.
It was a quiet start to the game for the Warriors, who scored with less than six minutes remaining in the first period. Marvin-Cordes chased down a puck in the offensive zone, resulting in an initial shot on goal from linemate Pilgrim. The puck popped out in front to Marvin-Cordes, and he fired a nifty backhander into the net for the 1-0 lead.
New Ulm had a power-play opportunity for the final two minutes of the first period, but the Warriors defense stifled the Eagles.
The loss is only the second for New Ulm since mid-January. The Eagles (23-6-0) entered the tournament on an 11-1 run. Warroad shut down a New Ulm team that came in averaging 5.71 goals per game. Warroad outshot New Ulm 37-6. Junior defenseman Talan Helget made it a 7-1 game in the third period.
Game 1′s three stars
Murray Marvin-Cordes, Warroad forward: Scored his second hat trick of the season (Dec. 29 vs. Providence Academy) and had two assists, tying his season high with five points.
Carson Pilgrim, Warroad forward: Scored two goals and had one assist.
Dominic Anthony, Warroad forward: Scored a pair of goals, including a Michigan goal in the second period.
Game 1′s key numbers
0: Wins in the state quarterfinals for New Ulm. The program is 0-13 at state in seven trips.
8: Goals in a game ties the season-high mark for Warroad. The Warriors defeated Crookston 8-0 on Jan. 11.
11: Goals this season for Dominic Anthony, after he scored a Michigan goal in the second period.
2004: The last time Warroad lost a state quarterfinal game, a 2-1 overtime loss to Orono. Warroad is 9-0 in state quarterfinals since then.
HEATHER RULE
Semifinals
FRIDAY
Tickets, TV
Ch. 45 will stream all three rounds for free and will televise the semifinals and championship games. Link to the streams and find other details on how to watch here. Tickets to the event range from $13 to $20 and are available at mshsl.org/tickets.
. . .
More coverage
The Star Tribune will be publishing stories and other content related to these state championship games and more this week. Keep up by checking startribune.com/preps each day. Thank you for reading and subscribing.
Tournament information
Six players plus head coach Garrett Raboin and assistant coach Ben Gordon are from Minnesota. The tournament’s games will be televised starting Monday.
