| 2008-2009 Section 7AA Defending Champ - Cloquet/Esko/Carlton. Favorites - Duluth East, Elk River/Zimmerman. First Round: Anoka (8-17-1, #7 seed) defeated Cambridge-Isanti (9-15-2, #10 seed) 5-4 in overtime. The teams were knotted 3-3 after two periods before Anoka controlled the third period, outshooting Cambridge-Isanti 9-1; however, the Bluejackets pulled into a 4-3 lead after a goal from senior forward Jesse Orttel at 12:01. Anoka got a break when Cambridge-Isanti was whistled for a penalty at 15:28. In the final minute of regulation, with the Tornadoes on the power play, senior forward Jon Nikovics of Anoka fired in the tying goal, at 16:24. In overtime, the Bluejackets had some chances right away; but, Anoka came down ice and notched the game-winner, from junior forward Leo Breffle, at 1:33. Anoka outshot Cambridge-Isanti 27-25. For Anoka, senior forward Berkley Scott had 2 goals, 1 assist and Nikovics and senior forward Dustin Olson each had 1 goal, 2 assits. For Cambridge-Isanti, Orttel had 2 goals, 2 assists and junior forward Garrett D'Aigle had 1 goal, 3 assists. Goalies: Anoka - junior Matt Pinewski, Cambridge-Isanti - junior Wyatt Soderquist. Princeton (11-14-1, #9 seed) defeated St. Francis (19-7-1, #8 seed) 9-3 3eng. Princeton carried the play; but, St. Francis kept close, trailing 3-1 after one period and 5-3 after two. Junior forward Ryan Grove of the Tigers tallied at 2:13 of the third period giving Princeton a comfortable 6-3 margin. The Fighting Saints were forced to pull their goalie with three minutes remaining to try and create some offensive pressure; however, Princeton added three empty net goals in the final minutes. Princeton outshot St. Francis 59-35. For Princeton, junior forward Ian Robertson had 2 goals, 3 assists, junior forward Trever Forland had 1 goal, 3 assists, sophomore forward Sawyer Springman had 2 goals, 1 assist and senior forward Sam Grove and senior defenseman Steve Jorgenson each had 1 goal, 2 assists. For St. Francis, junior forward Joey Benik had 2 goals, 1 assist. Goalies: Princeton - freshman Ryan Carlson, St. Francis - junior Andy Benik. Quarterfinals: Duluth East (22-3-1, #1 seed) shutout Princeton (11-15-1, #9 seed) 10-0. Duluth East garnered four goals in the first and third periods. Senior goalie Matt Cooper of the Greyhounds logged the shutout. Duluth East outshot Princeton 35-9. For Duluth East, senior forward Sean Klun had 2 goals, 2 assists, sophomore defenseman Andy Welinski had 4 assists, and senior forward Max Tardy had 3 goals. Goalies: Duluth East - Cooper, Princton - freshman Ryan Carlson (first two periods) and junior Josh McClouth (third period). Elk River/Zimmerman (16-9-1, #2 seed) shutout Anoka (8-18-1, #7 seed) 6-0. Elk River/Zimmerman led 3-0 after one period. Freshman goalie Anders Franke recorded the shutout. Elk River/Zimmerman outshot Anoka 27-17. For Elk River/Zimmerman, junior forward Chad Hennum had 4 assists and senior forward Tony Nelson had 2 goals. Goalies: Elk River/Zimmerman - Franke, Anoka - junior Matt Pinewski. Cloquet/Esko/Carlton (6-18-2, #6 seed) upset Grand Rapids (11-11-4, #3 seed) 2-1. Grand Rapids dominated the action but could not score in the first period and picked up only one goal in the second period to lead 1-0 after two. Senior goalie Jordan Thompson of Cloquet/Esko/Carlton played an excellent game in net. The Thunderhawks outshot Cloquet/Esko/Carlton 20-3 in the third period; but, the Lumberjacks made their shots count. Senior forward Blake Abrahamson of Cloquet/Esko/Carlton scored at 5:51 and senior forward Colton Roy tallied at 13:16 which proved to be the game-winner. Grand Rapids pulled their goalie in the final minute but could not come up with the equalizer. Grand Rapids outshot Cloquet/Esko/Carlton 44-15. For Cloquest/Esko/Carlton, Abrahamson and Roy each had 1 goal. For Grand Rapids, senior forward Austin Anderson had 1 goal. Goalies: Grand Rapids - senior AJ Underwood, Cloquet/Esko/Carlton - Thompson. Forest Lake (9-15-2, #5 seed) defeated Andover (11-13-2, #4 seed) 3-2 in two overtimes. Andover led 2-1 after two periods and held that advantage until the final minute of regulation. At 16:06, senior defenseman Dan Fick of Forest Lake scored to tie the contest, 2-2, and send the game to overtime. In the first overtime, Andover outshot the Rangers 7-5 but neither team could score. In the second overtime, senior forward Kyle Jensen of Forest Lake notched the game-winner, at 8:36. Andover outshot Forest Lake 43-38. For Forest Lake, Jensen and Fick each had 1 goal, 2 assists. For Andover, junior forward Taylor Portner had 1 goal, 1 assists. Goalies: Forest Lake - senior Paul Moberg, Andover - junior Matt Ray. Semifinals: Duluth East (23-3-1, #1 seed) defeated Forest Lake (9-16-2, #5 seed) 3-2 in overtime. Duluth East dominated the play; but, senior goalie Paul Moberg of Forest Lake was exceptional in net. The Greyhounds outshot the Rangers 23-4 in the first period; but, Forest Lake notched the only goal for a 1-0 lead after one. The teams exchanged tallies in the second period before senior defenseman Alex McLean of Duluth East netted a power play goal from the top of the left circle, at 1:40 of the third period, to knot the contest, 2-2. The Greyhounds contined to force the offensive action; however, the remained tied and headed for overtime. In overtime, after a faceoff in the Forest Lake end, the puck was deflected to junior forward Jayce Paulseth of Duluth East, just outside the crease, who slid in a low shot to the stick side for the game-winner at 4:21. Duluth East outshot Forest Lake 57-22. For Duluth East, McLean and Paulseth each had 1 goal, 1 assist and senior forward Max Tardy had 2 assists. For Forest Lake, senior forwards Derek Harrison and Kyle Jensen each had 1 goal, 1 assist. Goalies: Duluth East - senior Matt Cooper, Forest Lake - Moberg. Elk River/Zimmerman (17-9-1, #2 seed) defeated Cloquet/Esko/Carlton (6-19-2, #6 seed) 6-1. Elk River/Zimmerman netted the first three goals of the game, two from senior forward CJ Pullar, to claim a 3-0 lead in the second period. The Elks tacked on three tallies in the third period including two more from Pullar. Elk River/Zimmerman outshot Cloquet/Esko/Carlton 32-20. For Elk River/Zimmerman, Pullar had 4 goals and junior forward Levi Lutz had 3 assists. For Cloquet/Esko/Carlton, sophomore Jack McFarlane had 1 goal. Goalies: Elk River/Zimmerman - freshman Anders Franke, Cloquet/Esko/Carlton - senior Jordan Thompson. Final: Duluth East (24-3-1, #1 seed) defeated Elk River/Zimmerman (17-10-1, #2 seed) 4-1. Duluth East dominated the game, outshot Elk River/Zimmerman in the first period 11-1, and took a 1-0 lead when junior defenseman Derek Forbort drilled a slap shot from the top of the left circle, at 8:17. In the second period, the Greyhounds outshot the Elks 18-3 and added a second goal while they were shorthanded when Forbort sent a long pass to senior forward Max Tardy who scored on a backhander at 4:35. In the third period, Duluth East notched a pair of goals for a 4-0 bulge before Elk River/Zimmerman added a late power play tally. Duluth East outshot Elk River/Zimmerman 42-10. For Duluth East, Forbort and Tardy each had 1 goal, 2 assists. For Elk River/Zimmerman, junior forward Chad Hennum had 1 goal. Goalies: Duluth East - senior Matt Cooper, Elk River/Zimmerman - freshman Anders Franke. |