SUPERIOR — It wasn’t easy for Hermantown against Superior Tuesday at Wessman Arena, but somehow the Hawks got it done and, to them, that was the important thing.
Through two periods the Hawks shot Superior 34-8, but somehow still trailed by a goal.
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Finally, after peppering Superior goaltender Hunter Sidorowicz with shots for two periods, Mick Martalock tied the game early in the third.
Then after the teams spent eight minutes in a 1-1 deadlock, Hermantown's Ford Skytta picked up a pass from River Freeman.
“River was behind the net, he just saw me out front,” Skytta said. “He got it to me, I picked my corner and put it there.”
Skytta added another empty-net goal in the 3-1 win over the Spartans, but this was the most difficult test they’ve had in their current five-game win streak, which includes wins over three top 10 teams in Class A, including reigning state champion St. Cloud Cathedral, Warroad and Hibbing/Chisholm.
The Hawks didn’t come out the way they wanted Tuesday in the first period. Not only was Sidorowicz playing well, Tyler Olson slipped a puck past Hermantown goalie Evan Sundell midway through the period to give the Spartans a stunning 1-0 lead.
The Hawks allowed Superior “hope,” according to coach Pat Andrews, and once they had hope, everything for Hermantown became “a struggle.”
The Hawks haven’t come out with the intensity they need in a number of games this season. Hermantown hasn’t played terribly in games against Proctor, Duluth Marshall or Rock Ridge, but they haven’t played with the “purpose” Andrews has been asking for all season.
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“We have not won one of these games this year against a team that you should win — we’ve tied or lost,” Andrews said. “They’re down a goal going into the third and they got it done this time, which is good for these guys.”
Skytta said the first period was “one of the rougher periods of the year,” but the response was there on Tuesday, even in the second period.
“Our rebound in the second was great,” he said. “It didn’t really show on the scoreboard, but I thought we totally dominated that period. We carried that over to the third period and that started going in the net.”
There were a number of opportunities for scores late in the first and early in the second, but Hermantown couldn’t get a good stick on the puck to get it in the net.
“Those chances that slip by, 90% of the time it’s because you’re not going there expecting a rebound or you’re not going there with your stick on the ice expecting the pass,” Andrews said.
There were at least six missed opportunities, according to Andrews, because a player went to the net with his stick at his waist.
The Hawks also hit at least four pipes in the course of the scoreless first two periods.
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Sidorowicz gave the Spartans a chance to get their biggest win in years against the top-ranked team in Class A. The defense and penalty kill was also strong for Superior. Hermantown was 0-for-4 on the power play and Sidorowicz finished with 42 saves.
“They were giving up the shots that we wanted to give up from the perimeter, the sides and the short angles,” Spartan coach Rob Downs said. “Sid was reading that really well, then we made an adjustment, but Sid was just seeing the puck really well right now.”
Hermantown (12-4-3) will play at St. Thomas Academy at 6 p.m. Friday in Mendota Heights.
Superior (4-13-1) will play at Proctor at 7 p.m. Thursday at the Aspirus St. Luke’s Sports and Event Center.
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