Minnesota HS Sections 4AA Final, #1 Hill Murray Pioneers, vs #3 White Bear Lake Bears
#1 Hill Murray Pioneers skated to a victory and punched their ticket to the X Center with a 5-0 win over the #3 White Bear Lake Bears.
Neutral Zone was in attendance for the game between #1 Hill Murray, Pioneers vs #3 White Bear Lake, Bears in the 4AA section finals at Aldrich ice arena. The fans were out tonight. Aldrich arena was already packed and sold out by 6:00 pm for the 7:00 pm game. These two teams met the previous year (2020/2021 season) for the section 4AA Championship with Hill Murry winning by the same score of 5-0.
Starting in goal for the White Bear Lake, Bears, Nick Pettman #30 (G, R, 5’11”, 157, White Bear Lake Bears, 01/01/2004) and for the Hill Murray Pioneers Jack Erickson #33 (G, L, 6’1″, 171, Hill Murray HS, 09/28/2004). The tension in the building was running high awaiting the puck drop. The Pioneers were off and running from the start, pushing the pace of the game. In comparison, the Bears came out and played a very physical game in hopes of trying to slow the game down and shake the pioneers off their game. However, Leo Gruba #11 (D, 6’2″, 200, Hill Murray HS, 12/14/2003) was able to slip a hit and was off to the races resulting in the first goal of the game; just 2:40 into the period. Gruba moved down the right side of the ice and fired a blistering shot on the net that beat the Bears goalie on the left side. The pace of the game was heightened, and the Pioneers started to play their own physical game to offset the Bear’s aggressive attack. The Bears had their best scoring chance of the first period with a rocket shot that ricocheted off the post on a shot by Nick O’Brien #35 (D, L, 6’0″, 185, White Bear Lake Bears, 01/01/2003). A fantastic save followed by Nick Pettman after Hill Murray grabbed the puck in the neutral zone and headed on a 2 on 1. It had been a back-and-forth game with both teams settling into the game. Two penalties were called in the first; one for each team. The Bears would be the first to start on a power play, but only to see the Pioneers capitalize with a blocked shot by Leo Gruba who head manned the puck to Jack Senden #27 (F, R, 6’1″, 194, Hill Murray HS, 10/17/2003.) Jack grabbed the puck out mid-air and streaked down the ice for an insane deke resulting in a short-handed goal.
The start of the second period would see the Pioneers starting with a power play. The Bears were able to kill off the power play with Nick Pettman making some key stops to keep the game within sight. The Bears would see a great scoring chance with a great pass from Joe Belisle #6 (D, L, 5’10”, 155, White Bear Lake Bears, 06/06/2005) to the fast flying Tyler Kotzmacher #26 (F, R, 6’0″, 165, White Bear Lake Bears, 04/05/2004). Tyler moved down the ice with precision and dodged a few Hill players along the way. With a long leading toe drag that the Hill defenseman bit on; Tyler was able to go in alone for a shot on net but missed the bar by a few inches. The second, period momentum would shift in the direction of the Pioneers as the Bears ended up taking four penalties. One of which turned into a 5 on 3 for the Pioneers. Dylan Godbout #17 (F, L, 5’11”, 183, Hill Murray HS, 05/05/2004, Wisconsin) was able to snipe down low with assists to Brady Ingebritson #15 (F, R, 5’8″, 130, Hill Murray HS, 11/29/2004) and Nathan Hardy #10 (F, L, 6’0″, 175, Hill Murray HS, 11/10/2003) to make the score 3-0 in favor of the Pioneers. The Pioneers would put up 17 shots this period but were only able to find the back of the net once because of the stellar play of goalie Nick Pettman. There was some quality defense played by Grady Gallatin #2 (D, L, 6’3″, 180, White Bear Lake Bears, 06/07/2004) and Michael Delaney #22 (D, L, 6’2″, 185, White Bear Lake Bears, 01/01/2004) who both rose to the challenge and slowed the Pioneers down. WBL was still in the game as they went into the locker rooms.
With the start of the third period the Bears came out hard, hoping to to save their season. The Bears were attacking the Pioneers and playing very physical, resulting in the Pioneers not getting anything going. The Bears capitalized by using Aiden Welch #10 (F, R, 6’2″, 200, White Bear Lake Bears, 05/27/2004) and his speed. He was able to gain the zone multiple times and get some quality shots on net. The Bear’s power would not result in any goals but had a few quality scoring opportunities. With these opportunities we started to see Jake Erickson, the Pioneers goalie, slowly become the star of the game; making point-blank stops from Tyler Kotamacher and others. With one mistake by the Bears, the Pioneers were able to score at 13:55 in the third. Brendan Bonin #6 (F, R, 5’8″, 161, Hill Murray HS, 03/17/2004) scored assisted by Anthony Madigan #7 (F, L, 5’6″, 158, Hill Murray HS, 03/09/2004). While the game pressed on the Bears would not give up and kept fighting. They were still finding ways to get pucks to the net and a few more great scoring chances only to find the brick wall of Jack Erickson. The Bears would again go on the power play, and the results were the same as their first, controlling the play of the game and quality shots only to be stopped by Jack Erickson. The Pioneers would find one more goal for the night scoring at 16:15 with a goal from Logan Hensler #2 (D, R, 6’1″, 177, Hill Murray HS, 10/14/2006) on an assist from Marcus Kaufman #16 (F, R, 6’1″, 185, Hill Murray HS, 03/19/2004). This game would end the season for the Bears. Overall, a well-played game by both teams tonight. Good luck to the Hill Murray Pioneers in the Minnesota State High tournament next week.
The next game for the #1 seeded Hill Murray Pioneers will be vs (random draw) Lakeville South 03/10/22 -6:00 pm @ the Xcel Energy Center.
Three Stars
- Jack Erickson– Hill Murray
- Jack Senden– Hill Murray
- Leo Gruba– Hill Murray
Photo Credit: Dan Hickling/Hickling Images
