The last time the two teams met, February 5th, the Panthers came away with a 7-1 victory.  However, the game on Valentine’s Day was for the winner to move on and the other to say goodbye to the 2012-13 hockey season.  Reedsburg/Wisconsin Dells earned the right to play in the regional finals with a 10-0 victory over Sparta/Mauston on Tuesday evening in Wisconsin Dells.

The game started at a fast pace with both teams racing up and down the ice.  RWD lit the lamp first at 4:17 of the first period.  Cortland Maxfield found a rebound and placed the shot on goal, but Julian Grosskopf made the save.  Unfortunately, the Panthers were unable to clear the puck and Maxfield shot the rebound into the back of the net for a 1-0 lead.  The Panthers did not hang their heads and battled back quickly.  Taylor Trapp and Michael Berghefer assisted on Dylan Campbell’s goal at 4:52 of the first period.  RWD’s Austin Schyvinck was called for interference with 9:51 left in the first, but West Salem was unable to capitalize on the opportunity.  West Salem’s Hunter Meyer was called for head contact with 3:28 remaining, but the Panthers were able to kill the penalty.   Grosskopf finished the period with 7 saves, while Arneson had 13 saves for RWD.

The second period found both teams taking the ice and playing as hard as they started the game.  RWD was called for Too Many Men on the Ice with 11:19 remaining in the second period.  Once again RWD killed off the penalty.  West Salem’s Berghefer was called for interference with 4:29 left in the period.  One second after killing this penalty, Hunter Meyer was called for roughing and RWD went on the power play.  Matt Olson scored a power play goal with an assist from Cortland Maxfield with 1:08 left.  RWD’s Arneson collected 11 saves, while Grosskopf had 12 saves for West Salem.

Neither team was backing down in the third period.  RWD’s Colin Scanlon was called for interference at 4:27 of the period.  However, RWD executed their penalty kill for the third time this evening.  Neither team was able to find the back of the net.  Then with 1:37 left in regulation, RWD’s Sean Teske was called for boarding and the Panthers went on the power play.  West Salem called a time out.  The Panthers pulled their goalie and brought on the extra attacker.  RWD attempted to clear the puck.  Hunter Meyer kept the puck from going over the blue line and in the offensive zone.  Meyer tried dumping the puck on net, where Bryce Dejno was battling Scanlon in the low slot for position.  The puck went off Dejno and was deflected to the backdoor.  Trapp was in position and placed the puck in the net with 11.8 seconds showing on the clock to tie the game.  Grosskopf had 5 saves in the third period and Arneson had 8 saves.

After the three minute break, overtime started.  Trapp scored the overtime goal with an assist from Cody Greene.  Arneson made 4 saves in overtime, while Grosskopf had none.  Arneson finished the game with 30 saves, while Grosskopf had 31 saves for West Salem.

The most difficult part of the state tournament is knowing only one team finishes the season with a win.  Many seniors finish the season with a loss and many times we say “It’s a shame someone had to lose”.  The game Thursday night in West Salem was one of those games.  The game could have gone either way with a bounce of the puck.  West Salem won and earned the right to play Onalaska in the sectional semi-finals.

RWD says goodbye to six seniors from their varsity hockey team and four of them captains:  Kodiak Shelton; Hunter Christensen; Tony Horzewski; Jesse Greenwood (C); Cortland Maxfield (C); Matt Olson (C) and Colin Scanlon (C).  It has been a pleasure to watch them grow and turn into fine young men over the past several seasons.

I take a quote from Colin Scanlon’s Facebook from after the game:  “15 years of playing the game and it’s over.  I just want to thank all the teammates thoughout the years and especially this year.  Because without these teammates, this year, my senior year, wouldn’t have been as special.  Thank you.”

I believe the quote entails how many of us feel towards the seniors on every team.  As we say farewell and wish you well on the next chapter of your life, we want to thank you for the memories you have given us through the years.