Gone green: Edina surges to its 14th boys hockey championship
Top-seeded Edina edged state tournament newcomer and second-seeded Chanhassen 2-1 in the Class 2A boys hockey state tournament championship game Saturday at the Xcel Energy Center.
The victory is No. 14 all-time for Edina/Edina East. A pair of teams with 25 victories battled to win the all-important 26th victory of the season
The blade of Chanhassen senior Tyler Smith's stick redirected a puck shot by Ben Curtis for the game's opening goal scored at 10:10 of period two. The Storm kept up the pressure, outshooting Edina 14-5 for the period. Senior forward and Mr. Hockey award finalist Gavin Uhlenkamp produced nine shots on goal through the game's first 34 minutes — most among skaters for either team.
The pressure Edina experienced was akin to Rochester Century/John Marshall's undoing in the quarterfinals. Co-head coach Matt Erredge complimented Chanhassen (25-6) as a relentless, hungry team. But the Storm only managed one goal despite dominating the second period.
Grand Rapids coach Grant Clafton had a similar view of Edina (26-4-1) after the Hornets' semifinal victory Friday.
"The make their own breaks," Clafton said. "They work for what they get, and you can't take that away from them."
Sure enough, Edina's "Robbie and Bobby" show scored the next two goals. Junior defenseman Robbie Hoch's shot from the point beat goaltender Kam Hendrickson clean at 3:12 of period three. Tie game.
The Hornets took a 2-1 lead as senior forward Cowan scored on the power play at 10:05 of the third period.
Little was revealed in the first period of mild action. Chanhassen's Andy Earl had the best scoring chance for either team. But his shot toward Edina senior goalie Joe Bertram when the goalie had his back turned didn't bounce how Earl had intended.
The game's three stars
Bobby Cowan, Edina forward: Scored a go-ahead goal only 11 seconds into a power play in the third period with a shot from the top of the circle.
Robbie Hoch, Edina defenseman: Tied the game early in the third period with his third goal of the season.
Tyler Smith, Chanhassen forward: Broke a scoreless tie by tipping a shot right in front of the net for his 14th goal of the season and third of the tournament.
The game's key numbers
1: Power-play goal for Edina, which turned out to be the game-winner.
24 Goals this season for Edina's Bobby Cowan, which led his team. Seven of his goals, including the winner on Saturday, came on the power play.2-1: The final score in back-to-back Class 2A state championship games.
