Eagles toppled by Tonka in section semifinal

Hopes were high. And so were expectations for the Eden Prairie boys hockey team on Saturday afternoon.

Coming off an impressive 6-2 win over Holy Family Class 2A Section 2 quarterfinal round, the Eagles knew they would face their biggest challenge of the season in a semifinal matchup with the defending state champions.

Minnetonka, undefeated and ranked No. 1 in the state, stood between Eden Prairie and a chance to compete for a trip to the state tournament.

Unfortunately for the Eagles, Tonka lived up to their billing, coming away with a 4-1 victory on neutral ice at Braemar Arena in Edina.

“We were happy with our effort,” Eden Prairie head coach Mike Terwilliger said. “I thought our guys played really hard. Obviously, after the first few times we played, we had to make a few adjustments. We felt like our guys did a good job with the adjustments.”

Minnetonka was an immovable obstacle for Eden Prairie this season, defeating the Eagles 4-0 on Jan. 20 and 6-0 on Jan. 15. Terwilliger said the Eagles saved their best performance for Saturday’s section semifinal.

“Out of the three times we played, we thought this is the best we played them all year by far,” he said.

The Skippers jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the first period with goals from Brayden Thompson and Javon Moore. They added a third in the second period with a goal from Ashton Schultz.

“We generated more zone time this game than we had, and then we had more shots and a few more opportunities,” Terwilliger said. “We had a couple of good chances on rebounds that we didn’t quite finish off. That could have really made a difference.

“And on a few rushes, we got a little cute and didn’t get the puck to the net, but they have a really good goalie, too, and he made some nice stops.”

At 10:10 of the third period, Eden Prairie senior defenseman Dylan Vornwald put the Eagles on the board with assists to Rio Treharne and Chase Klute.

But the Eagles had no answer for Minnetonka’s high-powered attack. The Skippers scored one more in the third on Eden Prairie senior goaltender Isaiah Paulnock, who had 31 saves in the game.

Paulnock capped off an exceptional year with a 2.33 goals against average and a .912 save percentage with four shutouts.

Eden Prairie had five minor penalties to Minnetonka’s one, with three coming in the third period, making it difficult for the Eagles to mount a sustained comeback.

“We talked about how it would have been nice to have a few more power plays on our end and trying to stay out of the box, and that is always a big thing,” Terwilliger said.

With the win, Minnetonka moves on to play fifth-ranked and No. 2 seed Chanhassen, a team the Skippers defeated in the section final game last season on their way to a state title.

Meanwhile, the Eagles finished the season with an overall record of 17-9-1 and a Lake Conference mark of 5-5-1. They were ranked 10th in the Star Tribune Class 2A poll at the end of regular season play.

“We were proud of all our seniors,” Terwilliger said. “We had a really tight-knit, close team. And that started with them.”

Terwilliger commended the players for their team chemistry, cohesiveness and support of one another throughout the season. 

“It was a really hard-working group every day,” he said. “And again, it starts when you’ve got ten seniors; it starts with them, so we’re gonna miss them a lot.”

Editor’s note: EPLN photographer Rick Olson contributed to this story.