Game 1: Breck 8, Mankato West 0

The Mustangs got loose early and often in their quarterfinal victory, scoring twice in the first, three in the second, and three times in the third.

Senior forward Will Blake and Mr. Hockey finalist Chase Ellingson each scored hat tricks to pace the No. 2 seed Mustangs (25-3-1).

Blake’s hat-trick was pure, as he scored three goals in a seven-minute span of the second period to run the Mustangs’ lead to 5-0.

Junior forward Austin Heidemann and sophomore defender Nick Strom each scored a goal in the win, and Tyler Scott handed out three assists.

Between the pipes, Breck sophomore goaltender Linden Olness made 16 saves, while fellow sophomore Blaine Madson made one stop in eight minutes of third period action.

Senior goaltender Jackson Peterson made 27 saves for the Scarlets (15-12-2). 

Game 2: Thief River Falls 6, Princeton 1

The third hat trick of the afternoon session went to Thief River Falls’ Ethan Johnson, who was electric with his speed and smooth with his handles in the Prowler victory.

Johnson, a senior, brought his season goal total to 49 with his performance, and also tallied an assist for the Prowlers (23-6-0).

Junior defenseman Brendan Bushy, senior forward Riley Bakken and sophomore forward Aaron Myers added goals for the Prowlers, while Princeton’s junior forward Jake Oakes scored the lone goal in the second period for the Tigers (21-8-0).

The No. 3 seed Prowlers will now face Breck in the semifinals, a team they lost to 4-1 on on Dec. 5.  

Game 3: Hermantown 11, Litchfield/Dassel-Cokato 3

In a span of one minute and 47 seconds in the second period, Hermantown extinguished any fire the Dragons of Litchfield/Dassel-Cokato may have had.

The Hawks scored three times in under two minutes to stretch their lead from 3-2 to 6-2 after the Dragons had pulled within one goal.

Senior forward Cole Koepke scored four times for the Hawks and added two assists to lead the scoring barrage.

Junior forward Jesse Jacques scored twice, and junior forward Ryan Sandelin, junior defenseman Dylan Samberg, junior forward Parker Simmons, senior forward Brendan Baker and senior forward James Lindberg each netted one goal apiece to round out the scoring for the No. 1 seeded Hawks (25-2-1). Sandelin also had four assists.

Senior forward David Raisanen scored two goals for Litchfield/Dassel-Cokato (20-9-0), and fellow senior forward Jared Pedersen added a goal in the losing effort.

Game 4: St. Paul Academy/Summit School 4, St. Cloud Cathedral 2

In its first State Tournament appearance, St. Paul Academy out-shot the Crusaders from St. Cloud Cathedral 43-14 and scored a hard-fought 4-2 quarterfinal win.

Sophomore forward Devlin McCabe scored two goals, including the late game-winner. McCabe intercepted a clearing attempt by the Crusaders at the blue line, skated into the high slot and sent a rocket past St. Cloud Cathedral goaltender, sophomore Keegan Karki.

Junior forward Jack Johnston scored in the second period for the No. 4 seed Spartans (24-5-0), and senior forward Justin Jallen iced the game with an empty-net goal on a shot from the Spartans’ own zone.

Senior forward Logan Neu scored both goals for St. Cloud Cathedral (20-8-1), and Karki finished the game with 39 saves on 42 shots.

St. Paul Academy/Summit School will square off with State Tournament mainstay and No. 1 seed Hermantown in Friday’s semifinals at 1 p.m.

10 a.m. - Mankato West vs. Princeton

Noon - Litchfield/Dassel-Cokato vs. St. Cloud Cathedral 

11 a.m. - Farmington vs. No. 2 Stillwater

1 p.m. - Burnsville vs. No. 3 Wayzata

6 p.m. - Anoka vs. No. 1 Eden Prairie

8 p.m. - No. 5 Bemidji vs. No. 4 Grand Rapids

Photos by Nick Wosika