There’s something about Grand Rapids.

It’s something that head coach Trent Klatt can’t put into words, and frankly, he doesn’t have to.

The Thunderhawks earned a second consecutive trip to the Class AA State Tournament with a thrilling 3-2 win over Duluth East in double overtime, with senior forward and captain Micah Miller tallying the winning goal on a seemingly innocent shot far from prime scoring territory.

“This group of players is something special,” Klatt said after the win as his players joyfully posed for pictures around him on the Amsoil Arena ice. “They have an attitude about them, where they’re just winners,” Klatt continued.

Miller embodies that winning sentiment.

The Thunderhakws’ leading scorer used last season’s state tournament run to third place as his own personal stage, vaulting him into the 2016-2017 campaign where he currently leads Grand Rapids in scoring with 41 assists and 64 points.

“That kid is a better person than he is a hockey player, believe it or not,” Klatt said of Miller. “He’s an unbelievable person and I couldn’t be happier for him to get that goal.”

The game-winner is Miller’s second of the season, having lifted the Thunderhawks (20-7-1) to a 1-0 win over Wayzata on the road on Feb. 3.

All three of the Grand Rapids wins in the extra session have come as the visiting team, a stat that plays well as the Thunderhakws make the trek 190 miles to St. Paul.

"Our whole mentality in overtime was just get pucks to the net, and (my shot) happened to go in,” Miller said, adding that team-wide determination played just as much of a role in the victory. “Everybody in this locker room wants it as much as the next, so we kind of build off that,” Miller said.

Junior forward and Minnesota commit Blake McLaughlin gave Grand Rapids a 1-0 lead early in the first period, snapping a Miller rebound past Duluth East’s Kirk Meierhoff before Ryder Donovan knotted the score 1-1 for the Hounds.

Meierhoff finished the game with 45 saves for the Greyhounds (18-9-1).

The teams again traded goals in the second frame, with defenseman Michael Heitkamp capitalizing on a Grand Rapids power play, and the Hounds’ Garrett Worth answering almost 12 minutes later.

With three wins in the section playoffs, and new life with a state tournament berth, the Thunderhawks can spit out the sour taste of losing that pained their palates after finishing out the regular season's last four games with a 1-3 mark.

“They just don’t like losing,” Klatt said. “They hate losing, and they always seem to find a way to win,” Klatt continued. “They just have it inside them.”