Mahtomedi's Nikolai Dulak (9) sends a pass across the ice during Friday night’s game against South St. Paul. Dulak had a goal and two assists in the Zephyrs’ 5-1 victory over the Packers in Roseville. Photo by Jeff Lawler, SportsEngine
For Nikolai Dulak and Colin Hagstrom, section finals always end with a championship in their favor.
Dulak and Hagstrom are the lone seniors on the Mahtomedi boys’ hockey team who have been on the team each of the past four years to capture four consecutive Class 1A, Section 4 titles. The latest came with a 5-1 victory over South St. Paul on Friday at Roseville Ice Arena.
For Dulak, who assisted on the first two goals before adding an empty-netter, the section title gets better every year.
“I actually said that before the game started,” Dulak said. “It gets better every single time.”
Mahtomedi's Grant Dardis (3) gets around a South St. Paul defender during Friday night’s Class 1A, Section 4 final. The Zephyrs defeated the Packers 5-1 to advance to next week’s state tournament. Photo by Jeff Lawler, SportsEngine
In a section tournament full of upsets, top-seeded Mahtomedi made sure it didn’t fall victim to the same fate.
The Zephyrs defeated South St. Paul 5-1 on Friday at Roseville Ice Arena to win their fourth consecutive Class 1A, Section 4 championship.
Mahtomedi took a quick 2-0 lead in the first period with a power-play goal from senior Colin Hagstrom and a shorthanded goal from Blake Hansen for his third of the season and the third shorthanded tally of the year for the Zephyrs.
Junior Ethan Peterson scored two goals -- his eighth and ninth goals of the season to give Mahtomedi 3a 4-1 lead. Senior Nikolai Dulak had two assists and an empty-net goal.
Mahtomedi (20-8-0) returns to state for a 12th time and fifth in the past six years.
South St. Paul senior Jayce Schauer scored in the second period for the sixth-seeded Packers (12-12-4) in their first section final appearance since 2008. It was the first goal Mahtomedi allowed to South St. Paul in their three meetings this season; the Zephyrs won all three games against their Metro East Conference rival.
Check back later for more on the game.