Gentry Academy’s full-speed-ahead offense doesn’t have a governor, which means there’s no situation imaginable in which the Stars aren’t consumed with scoring goals.

Attack. Attack. Attack.

“We really would be lying if we said we were a defense-first team,” Gentry Academy co-head coach Billy Hengen said after the No. 2 seed remained unbeaten with an 8-0 victory over unseeded Northern Lakes (18-4-0) on Tuesday in a state Class 1A quarterfinal at Xcel Energy Center.

Senior forward Damon Furuseth scored three goals for Gentry Academy (17-0), including two in the first period that helped settle the Stars’ nerves. 

“Yeah, we were nervous,” Furuseth said. “It is always nice to get the first one and relax a little bit.”

Furuseth’s shorthanded breakaway goal that opened the scoring foreshadowed one of the most rare occurrences in hockey: a 3-on-0 shorthanded rush that epitomizes Gentry Academy’s go-for-broke approach.

With Gentry Academy killing a penalty in the second period, three Stars players raced into the Northern Lakes’ zone with no Lightning players, other than goaltender Adler Hoagland, in front of them. Junior defenseman Connor Brown completed the series of tape-to-tape passes by scoring to put the Stars ahead 6-0.

“The boys have taken shorthanded goals to a level I have never seen,” Hengen said. “I don’t think they can do anything that will surprise me anymore.”

The running time (six-goal lead or larger in the third period) victory was Gentry Academy’s 14th of the season. The Stars, playing in the state tournament for the first time, have outscored their opponents 153-16.

“Their defense play like forwards,” Northern Lakes coach Craig Larson said. “You can’t practice for some of the things they do.”

Senior forward Damon Furuseth scored three goals as No. 2 seed Gentry Academy cruised to an 8-0 victory over unseeded Northern Lakes on Tuesday in the first Class 1A state tournament quarterfinal at Xcel Energy Center.

The running time (six-goal lead or larger in the third period) victory was Gentry Academy’s 14th of the season. The Stars have outscored their opponents 153-16.

Furuseth scored twice in the first period. His first goal came shorthanded on a breakaway, as he chipped the puck past a Northern Lakes defenseman at the blue line and beat Lightning goaltender Adler Hoagland with a deke and shot between his leg pads.

Furuseth took advantage of a Northern Lakes turnover in the high slot on his second goal. With a screened Hoagland on the ice trying to get a view of the puck, Furuseth's shot found the upper right corner to make it 2-0. Furuseth completed his hat trick on a second-period power play, skating down the slot untouched before firing a hard shot past Hoagland.

Furuseth has 15 goals this season, third most on the team.

The victory keeps Gentry Academy, ranked No. 1 in the Class 1A coaches’ poll, unbeaten at 17-0. The last unbeaten team to win a Class 1A title was Hermantown in 2007. Lakeville North went unbeaten to win the 2015 Class 2A title. Gentry Academy and Lakeville South (18-0-2) in Class 2A are the unbeaten teams in this year’s tournament. 

Northern Lakes (18-4-0) received a superb performance from Hoagland, a senior who made 25 saves, including several on breakaways and odd-man rushes. Many of those Grade-A chances came while the Gentry Academy was shorthanded.

The Stars’ Conner Brown scored in the second period to complete a rarely seen 3-on-0 shorthanded rush, making the score 6-0.

Nick Sajevic had two goals, while Caden Miles and Zach Reim also scored for Gentry Academy. Stars goaltender Alex Timmons, one of three finalists for the Frank Brimsek Award that goes to the state’s top senior goaltender, made 17 saves for his third shutout this season.

Senior Jeremiah Smythe relieved Hoagland late in the third period and stopped six of seven shots.

Gentry Academy, in its third season playing at the Minnesota State High School League varsity level, is a charter school in Vadnais Heights with about 100 students. 

Northern Lakes, making its first state tournament appearance, is a Brainerd-area co-operative consisting Aitkin, Crosby-Ironton, Pequot Lakes and Pine River-Backus high schools.

Check back later for more on the game.