Blue Ox rally to tie game in waning seconds, triumph in shootout
With goaltender Brett Holmer on the bench, pulled for an extra skater, the Blue Ox rallied to score with 16 seconds left in the third period Sunday at Plymouth Ice Center.
Pushed through 17 minutes of overtime, Holmer stopped three of five in the shootout, following 38 for the game as the Blue Ox shocked Shattuck-St. Mary’s 4-3 to clinch the Tier 1 U15 district championship.
“Our team did all the little things today,” coach Roger Mischke says. “We were resilient on pucks and back pressured. It was a tremendous effort.”
Maxwell Roby (Brainerd), Thomas Schroeder (Moorhead), and Kellen Murphy (Roseau) all scored in the shootout frame, while Schroeder, Sam Sterle (Grand Rapids) and George Peterson (Hermantown) netted goals in regulation to drive the Blue Ox.
Peterson’s goal came in the third as the equalizer, assisted by Schroeder and Murphy.
It was a strong way to finish after torrid start for the Blue Ox, who took 2-0 lead after little more than 10 minutes.
“We wanted to try to set the tempo and be really physical,” Mischke says. “We’re a bunch of blue collar kids from up north, and we wanted to show them a little bit of our style of hockey.”
Shattuck-St. Mary’s played with the lead for the final nine minutes after rallying to three straight goals to start the third. Andrew Fan (Eagle River, AK), Ian Duffy (Chester Springs, PA) and Jack Larrigan (St. Louis, MO) scored in succession for SSM.
The Blue Ox , comprised of teams from Districts 11, 12, 15 and 16 from northern Minnesota, advance to the national tournament in Plymouth, MI next April 1-6. - Drew Herron
Blue Ox goalie Brett Holmer finished with 38 saves and stopped three of five in the shootout to help the Blue Ox to a 4-3 win over Shattuck-St. Mary's Sunday. Photo by Drew Herron
Blue Ox forward Thomas Schroeder finished with a goal and an assist in the team's 4-3 shootout victory over Shattuck-St. Mary's. Photo by Drew Herron
