There might not be a team in the state that will head into the new year with a stronger wind at its back than will Rosemount.

In the span of three days, the Irish cut down two schools ranked in the top 5 in Class 1A, settled its record at .500 and laid claim to the Silver Division title at this year’s Schwan Cup.

Not a bad way to end the calendar year for a team that entered the week with more question marks than victories. The new year might just be starting to show some promise and potential for the Irish.

“We’re coming together a lot better now, and we are having a great time,” sophomore forward Grant Horsager said. “Now, we are playing with a lot more confidence and belief of what we are capable of.”

Horsager made sure the Irish would leave the tournament on a high note when he rifled a wrist shot past the far glove side of Mahtomedi goalie Will Swanson just 1 minute, 1 second into overtime. The goal gave Rosemount a 3-2 victory and sealed the tournament title while injecting the Irish with an unquantifiable amount of confidence.

“We played well in groups of five, and that resulted in a win,” Rosemount coach Brad Stepan said afterward. “When we want to do things the right way, good things usually happen for us.”

The Irish got the scoring started midway through the first period when Peyton Norder tallied an even-strength goal, sending Rosemount into the first intermission with 1-0 lead.

The second period tilted Mahtomedi’s way as the Zephyrs got two quick goals from their leading scorer, Luke Ponser, and it looked as if the Irish's hopes at another upset were fading.

Things grew even more serious at the close of the second period and beginning of the third for Rosemount, which was forced to kill a five-minute major penalty.

But when Mahtomedi took the ice in the third with a little more than three and a half minutes remaining on the power play, the Zephyrs booted the puck around carelessly and never were able to properly set things up.

“We wanted to keep it simple,” Horsager said. “Block shots and clear the puck. Keep it simple.”

The five minutes came and went, leaving the Irish unharmed and provided a pivotal point in the game.

“We needed to set the tone, even if we didn’t score,” Mahtomedi coach Jeff Poeschl said of the power play. “We needed to set the tone by getting pucks to the net, and have good puck movement and high intensity. We didn’t do any of that. We fumbled the puck for three and a half minutes, and it was almost a relief to get things back to 5-on-5. That is exactly what we didn’t want to happen.”

As the game went along in the third period, Rosemount tightened the lid on the Zephyrs’ developing chances and charted the course the rest of the way.

That is the formula the Irish likes to stick with.

“The defensemen are the core of our team,” Stepan says. “Four of the five guys we have back there are returning seniors, and they are the heart and soul of our team.”

The tying goal came 4:22 into the third period when Brendan Olson converted a wraparound to give the Irish new life.

Down the stretch, the longer Rosemount hung around, the more likely the upset became.

“They are playing with an awful lot of confidence right now,” Poeschl said of Rosemount. “They capitalized on their opportunities and played good defense in their zone, so my hat’s off to them.”

The loss drops Mahtomedi’s record to 8-3, while Rosemount evens its record at 5-5 and hopes for bigger things to come in January and beyond.

“As a team, we are really developing,” Horsager says. “We are still not the best team we can be, but we are getting there, and we will continue to get better and better as the season goes along.”


Forward Garret Jagoe had two assists for the Irish. Photo by Nick Wosika

First Report

Grant Horsager buried a wrist shot one minute into overtime to lift Rosemount over Mahtomedi 3-2 and clinch the Schwan Cup Silver Division championship Wednesday at Ridder Arena.

The Irish reached the final after a 3-2 upset victory over Breck, Class 1A's top-ranked team, in semifinal action Tuesday and kept the momentum going into the tournament final, where they defeated a top 5-ranked team for the second time in as many nights. The Zephyrs are No. 4 in the Class 2A coaches' poll.

Rosemount jumped out to an early lead in the first period, then allowed two unanswered goals in the second before tying the game with 4 minutes, 22 second left in the third.

In the overtime period, the Irish quickly ended things on their first full rush up ice.

Rosemount, which came into the tournament with a losing record, settles up at 5-5 heading into the new year while Mahtomedi dropped to 8-3.

Luke Posner scored twice for the Zephyrs, pushing his team-leading goal total this season to 12. He also has 22 points to his credit.


Junior Luke Posner scored both Zephyr goals in the loss. Photo by Nick Wosika

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