As Totino-Grace forward Sam Hentges skated on a breakaway with less than five minutes remaining in a close game, one thought popped into his head.

“Just put the puck in the net this time,” Hentges recalled.

The junior put the puck on his backhand, flicked his stick and roofed the rubber off the back crossbar and in, tallying the eventual game-winning goal for the Eagles.

Hentges' goal, a shorthanded effort coming with just 4:34 remaining in a tight contest, helped propel Totino-Grace past Luverne 7-6 Thursday afternoon at the Brooklyn Park Community Center.

“When your top line can produce, it takes a lot of pressure off the defense and the whole team," Eagles coach Mark Loahr said.

There was plenty of pressure on the defense Thursday, as Luverne shot the puck 33 times on net, scoring on six of them. Jaxon Nelson, a sophomore forward and University of Minnesota commit, led the Cardinals — and state — in scoring with 26 goals entering the game.

Nelson couldn’t find the back of the net against Totino-Grace, but he did notch two assists.

The trio of Ryan Johnson, Cam Fagerlee and Hentges leads the Eagles in scoring. The three have been playing together for years, dating back to youth hockey at Irondale.

Now, they play as a unit for the Eagles, leading the team in scoring and single (triple)-handedly beating ranked teams such as Luverne.

Prior to Thursday’s matchup, that top line struggled to put the puck in the net, Loahr said.

That wasn’t the case against the Cardinals, who are No. 11 in the Class 1A coaches' poll.

“They get [chances] every game, so scoring really makes a difference,” he said. “Hopefully that gives them some confidence because they haven’t always scored on those chances. Today they went in.”

A full 51-minute effort is what Johnson credits for the victory. If the Eagles play a full game, they’ll be able to win close games — something the team has struggled with to begin the season.

Totino-Grace started the year with back-to-back 3-2 losses to East Grand Forks and Thief River Falls and lost another close game to Armstrong/Cooper 4-3 on Dec. 17.

Clinging on to a one-goal lead late in the third period, Johnson knew his team wouldn’t let history repeat itself.

“It’s all about motivation,” Johnson said. “That’s what we had today.”

On the ice, the line’s New Year’s resolution is to play better defense — positioning, backchecking, blocking shots and the like.

Off the ice, the three student-athletes said they want to do better in school.

“Get all my homework done,” Johnson said.

Fagerlee looked at his linemates and smiled.

“Yeah, get good grades,” Fagerlee added with a smirk.  

Alright, gentlemen. Classes resume Monday.

First Report

Totino-Grace scored four first-period goals and held onto a late lead to defeat Luverne 7-6 Thursday afternoon at the Brooklyn Park Community Center.

Led by first-liners Cam Fagerlee, Sam Hentges and Ryan Johnson, the Eagles (5-5-0) scored seven goals to upset Luverne. That top line was responsible for five of Totino-Grace's seven goals, including the eventual game-winner, which came with 4:34 left to play in the game.

Fagerlee and Johnson each totaled two goals and Hentges converted on a late breakaway to score the winning goal. Hentges also recorded three assists in the game.

The Cardinals (9-3-0), ranked No. 11 in the Class 1A coaches’ poll, couldn’t overcome a two-goal deficit in the third period and dropped their third game of the season.

Luverne forwards Kasyn Kruse and Nick Harder each scored two goals. Jaxon Nelson, the state’s leading scorer, was kept off the scorer’s column but notched two assists in the effort.

Luverne came within a single score four times but never had the lead or tied the game after the first Totino-Grace goal.

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