Section 3 head coach Adam Welch said his team jelled starting on the first day of practice and its 25-8 scoring margin in the Ted Brill Great 8 tournament was evidence of that.
“Even in the first day of practice - it was amazing - they just gravitated together in their lines and played like a team, so we kept them together,” Welch said about the team which mostly kept players from the same high school teams on the same lines.
Cade Borchardt and his Burnsville teammates played a hand in Section 3’s opening three goals, a scoring run that helped boost the team to an 8-4 victory over Section 1 in the championship game Sunday afternoon at Doug Woog Arena in South St. Paul.
Borchardt’s older brother, Cole, was in an auto accident last year, and Cale used the incident as extra motivation in the offseason and to spur Burnsville to its first state tournament appearance since 2007.
“He’s the most important person in my life,” Cade said. “He was going to continue to play hockey, but after his accident, he’s unable to.
“Just being able to do it for him and having him at the games as my biggest supporter is awesome,” he added.
Cole was sitting on the glass for most of the game, a seat as close to the action as possible to watch Cade as he competed to hoist a trophy for the final time in his high school career.
Borchardt made his brother's dream come true, finishing the championship game with four primary assists. He set up his Blaze linemate, Erik Otto, for a goal just 14 seconds into the power play - the first man-advantage score Section 1 had allowed in the tournament.
“It’s what (Borchardt) does. He’s a playmaker and sets up guys like (Erik) Otto. He’s a great player and played that way all tournament,” Welch.
After registering three assists in the first half, Borchardt cooled in the second. However, Section 3 continued to get contributions from its skaters, including Luverne’s Chaz Smedsrud, who tallied three points after the intermission.
“I think the communication on the bench and off the ice was efficient,” Borchardt said. "We got pretty close to our linemates and team."
Proving itself as the deepest team in the three-day festival, Section 3 turned in a performance throughout the tournament that left its coaches with little to do.
“We had a lot of fun coaching, and by coaching I mean filling up water bottles and saying, "Good job,' ” Welch said.