Long before St. Thomas Academy exploded for a 11-0 victory against East Grand Forks in Friday's Class 1A semifinal, the teams were locked in a tight first period battle in which neither team's coach felt comfortable.
St. Thomas Academy rolls to final
March 9, 2013 at 4:58AM
Cadets co-head coach Greg Vannelli said his team and East Grand Forks were propelled by adrenaline and were "dead even" in terms of skating. Green Wave coach Tyler Palmiscno wasn't so sure.
"We were under pressure," Palmiscno said. "I don't know if anything was really working well for us but the longer the game stayed close, the better chance we had."
St. Thomas Academy's talented sophomore Tommy Novak dashed the Green Wave's dreams by giving the Cadets a 2-0 lead with 1 minute, 22 seconds remaining in the first period.
"It's fun to watch Tommy and see the plays he can make," Cadets senior defenseman Wyatt Schmidt said.
Said Palmiscno: "It wasn't good to give up a goal there and we weren't ready when the puck was dropped in the second period."
St. Thomas Academy, widely considered the state's best team regardless of class, crushed the Green Wave with six goals in the second period. Matt Perry and Schmidt each scored twice, with Schmidt adding two more goals in the third period.
"We didn't expect that but they're good and we weren't," Palmiscno said. Asked if a disparity in talent or a sense of intimidation doomed his team, Palmiscno replied, "All of the above."
Novak, Matt Perry and Gunnar Regan scored twice. Goaltender David Zevnik stopped all 12 shots he faced before leaving the game in the third period.
The St. Thomas Academy victory sets up a third consecutive championship game meeting with Hermantown. The puck drops at noon on Saturday.
"We've been preparing all year for this game," Regan said. "We're ready to go."
The Wild picked up Gustav Nyquist from Nashville, but still needs help for an injury-plagued roster.
