Lumberjacks dominate in first playoff game

The Cloquet-Esko-Carlton boys hockey team used an age-old recipe to put together a 4-1 victory over Grand Rapids in their Section 7AA hockey quarterfinal matchup Tuesday night in Cloquet. That recipe included solid goaltending from Owen Carlson, timely scoring and a tenacious penalty kill in the third period.

Landon Langenbrunner scored an important goal for the 'Jacks just 3:40 into the opening period - with assists going to Gavin Rasmussen and Mason Langenbrunner - giving CEC a quick 1-0 lead.

"I think that goal helped relieve the pressure from what happened to us last year against Duluth Marshall," said CEC head coach Shea Walters after the game. "It also helped spark the momentum in our favor."

That momentum carried through for CEC when junior Derian Durand scored his first varsity goal at the eight-minute mark of the first period on an assist by Cole Ketola.

"He was due for a goal. He and that line have been playing really well for us lately," Walters said. "Cole (Ketola) made a great play on the forecheck and made a great pass to him in the slot. It was a huge deal to be up 2-0 after one period."

CEC was outshot in the opening period 14-10, but Carlson stood strong between the pipes and kept the Thunderhawks off the scoreboard.

The Lumberjacks scored the only goal of the second period with just 17 seconds left when Kade Bender slid a pass over to Landon Langenbrunner, who ripped a wrister past Grand Rapids goalie Carter Clafton, giving CEC a 3-0 lead. The goal was scored just moments after CEC had killed off a penalty.

"Often times when you kill off a penalty the momentum swings in your direction," explained Walters. "It was also big because the goal came so late in the period that it really gave us a boost of confidence."

The third period featured fractured play by both teams mainly due to repeated trips to the penalty box.

"We had several penalties to kill off in a row and the entire third period was one big penalty kill for us," Walters said. "The only positive off that is we were killing really well and taking time off the clock by icing the puck."

The puck luck ended when Maccrea Murphy scored for the Thunderhawks at 9:51 on the power play, cutting the Lumberjacks' lead to 3-1. However, the 'Jacks responded quickly when Gavin Rasmussen scored less than a minute later to build the CEC lead back up to a three-goal margin with Christian Galatz and Landon Langenbrunner assisting.

"We took their best crack and lived through it. To score at that point really sealed the deal for us," Walters said.

A huge key in the win was the play of the penalty kill and Carlson's performance between the pipes. Carlson finished with 31 saves on 32 shots for CEC.

"In the playoffs you need good goaltending and we got that," Walters said. "He was exceptional and we know if we get that again we will have a lot of success."

Walters was equally complimentary about his penalty-killing units.

"Our kill was a huge factor in getting the win," Walters said. "We were gritty, pressured the puck and we were willing to get in the shot lanes. That is a winning combination for a great penalty kill."

The win sets up a showdown with the section No. 2 seed, the Duluth East Greyhounds, who have beaten CEC twice this year, including a 2-1 overtime score a month ago and a couple weeks ago when East won 2-0 at Northwoods Credit Union Arena. The game will be played at 2 p.m. Saturday afternoon at Amsoil Arena in Duluth and can be heard locally on WKLK-FM 96.5.