Cathedral Comes Up Short in State Championship; Hirschfeld Misses Out on Mr. Hockey Honor

(KNSI) – Heroics in the last minute of regulation weren’t enough in St. Cloud Cathedral’s bid to repeat as Class A boys’ hockey state champions on Saturday.

The East Grand Forks Green Wave dictated play early, outshooting the Crusaders 11-8 in the first period. They solved Cathedral goaltender Keaton LaGrande about halfway through the second. Cooper Hills slammed a rebound in, assisted by Jace Panzer and Tucker Lovejoy. That looked like it might hold up as the only tally of the contest.

Even as Cathedral ramped up the shots and scoring opportunities, they couldn’t light the lamp. The equalizer came from Bo Schmidt with only 47 seconds remaining. He was assisted by Caden Johnson and Mr. Hockey finalist John Hirschfeld.

The game headed to overtime, with the Green Wave limiting Cathedral to one shot on net. East Grand Forks knocked home the winner at the 10:46 mark of the extra frame for the 2-1 victory.

Hirschfeld had hoped to take home the most coveted individual honor in Minnesota prep pucks at a banquet in St. Paul on Sunday as a consolation. He was the only the second Cathedral player to ever be named as a finalist for Mr. Hockey. Hirschfeld was passed over in favor of Moorhead’s Mason Kraft.

In 30 games, Hirschfeld recorded 25 goals and 55 assists, leading the Crusaders in points. He was one of the most prolific scorers in all of Minnesota. He is committed to the University of Vermont Catamounts for next season.

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