News Tribune article, Cloquet Lumberjacks defeat Elk River, head to section finals Thursday:
Lumberjacks triumph in Johnson’s return
BY RICK WEEGMANNEWS TRIBUNE STAFF WRITER, Duluth News Tribune
Published Sunday, February 25, 2007
OK, so maybe it wasn’t quite Kirk Gibson limping to the plate in the World Series or Willis Reed lacing up his sneakers for the NBA finals, but Tyler Johnson’s unexpected appearance in the Section 7AA semifinals Saturday had the same effect for the Cloquet-Esko-Carlton boys hockey team.
Though admittedly playing tentatively in his first game back since breaking his collarbone against Hermantown on Feb. 1, Johnson scored the game-winning goal with 1:17 remaining in the third period as the Lumberjacks beat Elk River 3-1 at the DECC to move within one victory of the Class AA high school state tournament.
Top-seeded CEC (22-3-2) faces defending section champion Grand Rapids (16-7-4) at 7:30 p.m. Thursday at the DECC in a rematch of the 2006 final.
Johnson, a senior center who entered the game during a power play in the first period, was playing a regular shift by the time he picked up a loose puck near his own blue line, raced down the ice and wristed a shot past Tony Seibert to break a 1-1 tie.
“I was nervous. I was real tentative because I didn’t know what to expect when I got hit,” Johnson said. “But right now, I’m good to go.”
Senior forward Sever Lundquist scored his second goal of the period eight seconds later to sew up the come-from-behind win.
“Hockey’s a game of mistakes,” Elk River coach Tony Sarsland said. “They made plenty and we didn’t finish. We made two mistakes [and they capitalized].”
Johnson, the 2006 News Tribune Player of the Year, said he didn’t know he would play until shortly before game time. Coach Dave Esse, after consulting Johnson, his parents and orthopedic specialists, decided his star player was ready for action.
“If the game was tight or we were behind, he was going in,” Esse said of the Colorado College signee. “I would never jeopardize a player for one game. Tyler’s got his whole career ahead of him.”
But the sixth-ranked Lumberjacks were in need of an offensive spark. They had scored just 21 goals in the eight games since Johnson’s and other players’ injuries. Senior forward Riley Roe also returned Saturday, but the time off messed up the Lumberjacks’ line combinations.
“Since Christmastime, we’ve played every combo possible,” Esse said. “Not because we wanted to, but we had no choice because of injuries and sickness.”
CEC went 5-1-2 during that span, thanks to solid goaltending by Reid Ellingson. Ellingson was stellar again Saturday, posting 27 saves, but was caught off guard when Brandon Martell’s slap shot beat him up high at 11:33 of the second period.
The Elks (17-9-1) lost the lead when Lundquist pounced on the puck at the Elk River blue line and fired a well-placed shot past Seibert at 5:47 of the third period.
That set the stage for Johnson’s late-game heroics.
“It’s that second chance you get. You’re told your season is over because you broke a collarbone, but you always want that one opportunity to come back to play again,” Johnson said about returning to the ice. “And that’s what it was.”
Johnson’s teammates were confident he would come through.
“He’s a great player,” said Lundquist, who scored an insurance goal with 1:09 left on a nice feed from Justin Jokinen. “We play hard with or without him, but he’s one of those kids that every time he gets the puck there’s a chance it’s going in the net.”
Elk River 0-1-0—1
Cloquet-Esko-Carlton 0-0-3—3
First period — No scoring.
Second period — 1. ER, Brandon Martell (D.J. Foss, Mario Brant), 11:33.
Third period — 2. CEC, Sever Lundquist (Peter Allen), 5:47. 3. CEC, Tyler Johnson (David Brown, Justin Jokinen), 15:43. 4. CEC, Lundquist (Jokinen), 15:51.
Saves — Tony Seibert, ER, 23. Reid Ellingson, CEC, 27.
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