Stillwater senior Devin Cates has seen teammate Simon Sagissor score plenty of big goals for the Ponies. 

“Oh, yeah,” Cates said after the third-seeded Ponies upended second-seeded White Bear Lake 3-2 in double overtime in Wednesday’s Class 2A, Section 4 semifinal at Aldrich Arena in Maplewood. “He’s a goal scorer. That’s what he does.”

Cates said Sagissor’s goals typically are the kind that showcase speed, skill and stickhandling. Highlight-reel stuff.

But a no-look backhand shoveled through the goalie’s five-hole?

That’s not Sagissor’s style. But in double overtime, with players running on fumes and the pressure all but stifling … well, style doesn’t count for much.

“Nothing special,” Saggisor said about the goal, his 13th of the season. “Really, I think the puck just popped out in front of the net. I don’t even remember exactly how. But I just saw it and decided to backhand it in.”

Ho hum. Dramatic victories in the section playoffs are becoming commonplace for the Ponies. 

Wednesday’s stunning win over No. 9-ranked White Bear Lake was the fourth straight one-goal section playoff triumph for Stillwater. Three of those went to overtime or beyond. Last year the Ponies stunned the Bears 2-1 in overtime in the section semifinals before trumping that win with a 2-1 whodunnit over perennial section powerhouse Hill-Murray. The pattern continued for Stillwater in last Saturday’s section quarterfinals, as the Ponies needed overtime to beat Tartan 3-2.

“Crazy,” Sagissor said about the emotions of winning yet another heart-taxing playoff game. 

The victory propels the Ponies (19-8-0) into Friday’s section championship game at 7 p.m. at Aldrich Arena against Hill-Murray, the section’s No. 1 seed. The Pioneers are ranked No. 3 in the state.

“I don’t know, just relief I guess more than anything right now,” a happy but emotionally drained Stillwater coach Matt Doman said about his reaction to seeing Sagissor’s backhander go in.

Stillwater’s trip to the state Class 2A tournament last year was the first in the program’s history. This is hardly a veteran team, however. Jackson Cates, the team’s leading scorer, is a junior. Noah Cates, the team’s second-leading scorer, is a sophomore. Workhorse defenseman Jesse Bjugstad is also a sophomore. Two more sophomores, Matthew Stanton and Luke Manning, are top scorers.

With all that youth, Doman said there was an adjustment to the playoffs needed in that quarterfinal victory over Tartan. It took longer than he would have liked to get the victory, but maybe gutting out an overtime win wasn’t such a bad thing.

“The more times you are in that position and you succeed, and even the times that you don’t, it helps you the next time that you are there,” Doman said. “Especially with our team. We have so many kids that are young.”

Junior forward Simon Sagissor swatted a loose puck into the net with 7 minutes, 16 seconds left in double overtime on Wednesday night at Aldrich Arena in Maplewood as No. 3 seed Stillwater secured a 3-2 upset victory over No. 2 White Bear Lake in the Class 2A, Section 4 semifinals.

The victory propels the Ponies (19-8-0) into Friday’s section championship game at 7 p.m. at Aldrich Arena against Hill-Murray, the section’s No. 1 seed. The Pioneers are ranked No. 3 in the state.

Sagissor’s goal, a low shot that squirted between the leg pads of White Bear Lake sophomore goaltender Rob Parenteau, was his 13th of the season. The section semifinal upset win over White Bear Lake was the second in as many seasons for Stillwater, which beat the Bears 2-1 in overtime last year.

An apparent Stillwater goal with 9.5 seconds left in the opening overtime was waived off, as the puck entered the net after the whistle had blown. The net had been dislodged during the scrum surrounding Parenteau, causing the whistle.

Stillwater junior Mathias Hoefferle forced overtime when his shot from the right of Parenteau dribbled into the goal with 2:46 left in regulation.

Senior forward Tom Giller scored a goal and added an assist for the Bears (21-6-0), who beat Stillwater twice in the regular season.

Parenteau finished with 26 saves for White Bear Lake while Josh Benson had 27 for the Ponies.

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