As game time to Tuesday’s Colorado high school hockey championship approached, the lines outside the Pepsi Center stretched about 100 yards back from the door, a sign of the state’s continued growth and interest in the sport.
And inside the arena, it was who asserted control over the burgeoning prep hockey landscape once again, as the No. 1 Raiders won their fifth state championship with a 2-0 victory over No. 3 .
The first period featured back and forth pressure and some crowd-rousing checks by both teams, with no shots on goal through the first six-plus minutes. Regis Jesuit maintained slight control of the tempo, but Valor Christian appeared to gain an edge when Anders Erickson was called for interference.
But instead, it was Regis Jesuit who used the penalty to seize more momentum, as Connor Kilkenny netted an unassisted, short-handed goal on a breakaway following an Eagles turnover to make it 1-0 with 4:44 to play.
“It was a big momentum shifter,” Kilkenny said. “It got the crowd going, it got us going — it set the tone for the rest of the game, I think.”
Valor Christian, playing without leading scorer Luke Wheeler because of an injury suffered in the semifinal win over Monarch, nearly responded when Luke Lonneman crossed over a couple Raiders defenders and sent a backhanded shot that flew high past the net with under 20 seconds to play.
Overall, the Raiders outshot Valor Christian 6-1 in the first as the Eagles struggled to find creases in a defense headlined by Nolan Sargent and Sergio Padilla.
“Defensively, our goal was to play in the offensive zone and not allow their skill players to convert while they were in our zone,” Regis Jesuit coach Dan Woodley said. “Our attacks were very sharp, and we very infrequently let them carry the puck to our net.”
In the second, the Raiders continued to control the pace. First, Colin Walsh clanked a shot off the post. Then, a few minutes later at the 10:40 mark, Kale Lone casually wristed home a power-play goal off assists from Kilkenny and Justin Lico to make it 2-0.
Regis Jesuit took that advantage into the third, where Valor Christian would have its glimpses offensively but the Raiders were clearly intent on not having a final period letdown as happened in last season’s 2-1 setback to Monarch at DU.
“We talked in the locker room. Obviously, I won a state title as a sophomore and I lost as a junior, so I knew there was every possibility that we could blow the lead because they’re a really good team,” Kilkenny said. “We just had the mind-set of getting everything deep and playing defensively.”
Senior goalie Max Harlan made a number of impressive stops, including a couple flashy kick saves, in the instances the Eagles pushed up the ice with an advantage down the stretch of the third.
Regis Jesuit senior goalie Max Harlan, who had 11 saves in Raiders' title victory, discusses holding off Valor attack in 3rd period, atmosphere in arena tonight and more
— Kyle Newman (@KyleNewmanDP)
With the win, the Raiders capped off the first perfect season in program history, while the Eagles — who were making their first title appearance — finished 20-3 under third-year coach George Gwozdecky.
“This team developed from August until now, and really came into their own,” Woodley said. “They put a championship season as their number one goal — everybody was pushing for it — and to go do it in 23-0 fashion is unbelievable.”
We've got a little more work left to do this season as we head to Minny for USA Nationals in two weeks.
— RJHS Hockey (@RJHSHockey)
