Friday night set the stage for the weekend as the 10U Gold Otters faced a very talented Roseville Silver team in a late night tilt in Sleepy Eye.  The 8:30pm game didn’t phase the Otters as they came out fast and didn’t look back.  

Milania Mannie got the Otters on the board early in the first period, netting an unassisted goal on the first shift of the weekend.  The score remained 1-0 until late in the second period when Harper Thielke crashed in, beating the goalie and putting the Otters up 2-0.  A little more than a minute later, Willow Glas added a marker giving the Otters a 3-0 lead, which would hold through the third period and a solid shut out effort offered by the defense of the Otters, anchored by netminder Quinn Hauck and the final score of 3-0.

Saturday proved to be a day of perseverance as the Otters began the day facing off against Hutchinson in a high scoring affair that would see the snow settle into a running time win for the Otters.  Willow Glas opened the first period scoring, picking up where she left off the night before just 11 seconds into the game taking the face off down ice, beating the goalie and giving the Otters the early lead.  That lead didn’t last long as Hutchinson quickly answered and tied the score less than a minute later.  The solid defense and aggressive forecheck stayed consistent as Charlie Cederberg put one past the Hutchinson netminder with an assist credited to Rue Koalska.  Both teams battled back and forth before the Otters took command late in the first period with two more goals in the last 3 minutes of the period.  Goals by Hadley Olson assisted by Mannie and Thielke and Koalska assisted by Cederberg, gave the Otters a 4-1 cushion going into the second.  The second period lamp was hot as the Otters tallied four more goals and the Hutch Tigers added 2 of their own in a back and forth affair which kept the scorers table busy.  Koalska completed her hat trick, notching two more goals and Mannie adding another goal and the period rounded out with Aja Robertson burying a perfect pass from Cederberg, giving the Otters a solid 8-3 lead going into the final period.  In the third, Hadley Olson capped off a hat trick of her own, adding two more goals to the Otter total and the running time finish ended with a 10-4 Otter victory.  

In the final round of pool play the Otters faced off against tournament pool favorite and host New Ulm/Sleepy Eye on their home Olympic Ice at the New Ulm Civic Center.  This game lived up to the hype as both teams entered 2-0 and the winner was guaranteed a shot at playing for the championship on Sunday.  Once again the Otters jumped out quickly, but this time it was Marianna Mannie with the early goal giving the visiting Otters the 1-0 lead.  Once again, this lead did not last long as NU/SE responded 30 seconds later and tied the game at 1-1.  Both teams continued to battle for a scoreless stretch before Harper Thielke notched an unassisted goal, tilting the advantage once again to the Otters leading 2-1 midway through the second period.  

The third period proved to be intense as Willow Glas scored early in the period only to see NU/SE immediately respond, keeping the game within reach at 3-2.  With both teams battling back and forth, Rue Koalska broke free and sniped a shot past the NU/SE goalie, giving the Otters some relief with 2:22 to go and Eyja Ollila sealed the deal by flipping a top shelf shot over the goalie in the final 40 seconds.  The 5-2 win guaranteed the 10U Gold Otters a seat at the table in the Championship on Sunday.

Championship Sunday saw the snow settle with district rivals Brainerd/Little Falls and Fergus Falls as the only two undefeated teams left in the 12 team pool.  This was an opportunity for revenge as the Otters fell 12-3 to the Flying Warriors in Brainerd back on December 11th for one of only three losses on the season.  This was a different scenario as hardware and pride were both on the line and both teams were poised for a fight to the finish on neutral ice.

Once again the pattern held true as the Otters jumped on the board first when Kenya Reinertson beat the goalie on a pass from Koalska, giving the Otters an early advantage.  The Flying Warriors wouldn’t go quietly, responding a minute later with a goal of their own, leveling the score at one goal apiece in the first.  The second period was a seesaw battle as Koalska sent a shot high blocker side and found the back of the net, giving the Otters a 2-1 advantage early in the period.  Brainerd/Little Falls answered a few minutes later, keeping the tension high in a tie game.  With 3:31 left in the Second, Hadley Olson busted one through the goalie on a shot assisted by Thielke, giving the Otters a 3-2 advantage.  

This score would hold for the majority of the third period and with a wild fury at the end of the third period, the Flying Warriors found the back of the net with 1:19 left in the game and pushed the game into overtime.  With a 5 minute 4 on 4 overtime period, the ice was open and opportunities were plentiful.  Both goalies stood tall but as the puck deflected into neutral ice, it was Willow Glass on a breakout down the right side and she fired a shot over the goalie’s shoulder tickling the twine and sealing the victory and the championship for the 10U Gold Otters.  Quinn Hauck made multiple key saves down the stretch, and played solid in net all weekend.

Head Coach Matt Koalska stated after the game that “Winning this tournament was great for the kids, but most importantly it was awesome to see how much they bonded and had fun as a team on and off the ice all weekend…the girls won’t remember the scores, they will remember the good times they had with their friends, that’s what it’s really all about.” 

The 10U B Gold Prairies Edge Dental Otters are coached by Matt Koalska and Jasey Olson and they improve to 20-3 on the season.