Grand Rapids Thunderhawks advance to Section 7AA title game at Amsoil Arena

Top-seeded Grand Rapids Thunderhawks shut out Forest Lake 5-0 at Amsoil Arena in Duluth to advance to the Section 7AA title game Thursday with a 7 p.m. puck drop, moving the Thunderhawks to a reported 14-12-1 and their sixth straight win. Multiple regional accounts list the win as a 5-0 semifinal victory over Forest Lake; one outlet reported a different opponent and score, a discrepancy outlined below.

The semifinal opened scoreless as Grand Rapids goalie Luke Sherlock and Forest Lake goalie Zachary Schnabel each played strong in the first period, with Sherlock finishing the game with 25 saves. Four minutes into the second period, senior Jameson Duell skated in and fired a shot that was stopped but Dylan Clayton knocked in the rebound for the game’s first goal.

About six minutes later Alexander Salisbury tried it from just in front of the blue line and the puck flew into the net for a 2-0 lead. Shortly after that Salisbury rifled another shot from deep that was deflected; Owen Kastendick redirected the play to make it 3-0 before the third period.

Grand Rapids added two third-period goals, one from Nathan Garski and another from Ander Rajala, to close the game at 5-0, a margin that sources say puts the Thunderhawks one victory away from qualifying for the state tournament.

The Thunderhawks arrived at the semifinal on the back of a dominant quarterfinal performance. Grand Rapids overwhelmed Northern Edge 11-0 in the Section 7AA quarterfinal, firing 70 shots on net. Nate Garski, wearing number 19, and Will Miskovich, number 21, combined for four goals and three assists in that 11-0 win, with Miskovich scoring in the third period and celebrating the goal alongside Garski.

Bracket and scheduling details are consistent across outlets: all Section 7AA semifinal games were played Saturday at Amsoil Arena, and the title game is scheduled for Thursday at 7 p.m. Fox21 reported Grand Rapids’ semifinal puck drop was 12:05 p.m. Saturday and Duluth East vs Rock Ridge was slated for 2:00 p.m. However, Northern News Now published an alternate account that listed a 6-2 Grand Rapids victory over Rock Ridge and reported Andover beating Duluth East 4-1, projecting a Grand Rapids-Andover final. WDIO, Fox21, and the Duluth News Tribune align on the Forest Lake 5-0 result; Northern News Now is the outlier in the packet of reports.

Duluth News Tribune quoted Clafton reflecting on missed opportunities, saying, "If Seth scores on one of his five breakaways, it might be a different game," and added, "For the most part, I thought we played pretty well. There were points where it was good and there were points where we got a little bit on our heels. We’ve got to avoid that."

Northern News Now noted Grand Rapids is looking for its first trip to the state tournament since 2022 and its first state title since 2017. Published accounts disagree on the semifinal opponent and final score; official Section 7AA results and the game box score will determine Thursday’s official matchup and final statistics. Photo credit: Jamey Malcomb.