2024-02-14 04:01:29
FARGO — The Fargo North boys hockey team scored two first-period goals, then rode a solid defensive effort to a 4-0 victory over West Fargo Sheyenne in the North Dakota East Region Boys Hockey Tournament quarterfinals on Tuesday at John E. Carlson Coliseum.
The No. 3 seed Spartans advanced to face the No. 2 seed Grand Forks Central in the semifinals on Friday, Feb. 16, at Purpur Arena in Grand Forks. The No. 6 seed Mustangs play No. 7 Fargo Davies in a Loser Out game on Friday at Purpur.
State qualifier games and the region championship game are Saturday, Feb. 17, at Purpur Arena.
North and Sheyenne more or less traded shots through the first 10 minutes of Tuesday’s game and Sheyenne outshot North 34-31 overall. But North generated better looks on the offensive end and the Spartans aggressively defended the Mustangs, blocking shots and passing lanes, poking pucks off sticks and clearing the zone effectively. Sheyenne skaters were greatly limited in the space they had to work with.
North finally broke through when Owen Branson scored at 12:10 of the first period, just 40 seconds into a power play, on assists from Ray Walen and Liam Olson. It didn’t take North long to double that lead.
The Spartans’ Caleb Briggeman fired home a shot from the top of the circle at 14:04 of the first on an assist from Samuel Fritel. North took a penalty with about 51 seconds left in the first period and while Sheyenne had a few good chances it couldn’t connect before the period ended. North killed the final 1:09 of the power play opening the second period.
Just minutes after the kill, North made it 3-0 on a crisp, tape-to-tape passing play in the slot, with Walen on the right hitting Branson in the middle. Branson dropped the puck to Max Watson near the left post and he scored at 3:53 of the second.
Sheyenne got a puck past North goalie Parker Dosch that hit a pipe with about six minutes left in the second and it gave the Mustangs some pep. But North once again kept pucks out of its net.
The Spartans scored their fourth goal when a loose puck behind the Sheyenne net was sent out into a crowd in front of goalie Jadon Beeter. A couple of whacks later North’s Jack Amundson got the puck home at 10:24 on assists from Colby Hanson and Olson.
Sheyenne pulled Beeter with 3:33 left in the game but Dosch and the North defense were able to fend off a couple good Sheyenne chances to at least break up the shutout.
Beeter stopped 27 of North’s 31 shots and Dosch made 34 saves.
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