Warroad boys hockey defeats Hibbing/Chisholm 5-4 in overtime to win Class 1A championship
Mooney Shaugabay scored the game-winning goal one minute into overtime, giving the Warriors their first title since 2005.
The Minnesota Star Tribune
All across the tear-stained ice, Warroad’s players and coaches had stories to tell, but some were too choked up to speak.
The head coach, the senior star and the backup goalie who became this tournament’s accidental hero, all were celebrating something that hadn’t happened for Warroad in 21 years.
Trailing Hibbing/Chisholm by a goal in the Class 1A boys hockey championship game, Warroad tied it with 46 seconds remaining in regulation.
Then, one minute into overtime, Mooney Schaugabay slammed home the game-winner by the side of the net, giving Warroad a 5-4 win on Saturday, March 7, at Grand Casino Arena.
An announced crowd of 10,518 – a record for the Class 1A title game – watched Warroad earn its first state championship since 2005. The devastating loss extended a state championship drought for Hibbing that stretches to 1973.
“I had a good feeling when we tied it, when we pulled the goalie because I’ve been on the other side of that before,” Warroad coach Jay Hardwick said.
This was Hardwick’s 14th season as Warroad’s coach, and he had lost in the championship game in 2022 and 2023.
Schaugabay, the senior star, had shared a moment with Hardwick on Feb. 26, as the team celebrated a section championship.
“I gave him a hug,” Schaugabay said. “I was like, ‘Let’s go get this one for you, because we’ve been through too much.’”
It looked like another heartbreak for the Warriors, who had built a 3-1 lead, only to see top-seeded Hibbing strike for three third-period goals, the last one coming with 3:45 remaining.
With the goalie pulled, Broden Hontvet took a shot from the point, and Warroad senior Gavin Andersen redirected it where it couldn’t be stopped, right into the net.
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Overtime meant it was still up for grabs, but Hibbing’s players had just had the wind kicked out of them.
“Right before they scored [the tying goal], we had a four-on-two rush and the shot just missed the net,” said Hibbing’s Mr. Hockey candidate Tate Swanson. “If that’s couple inches closer, we’re the state champs.”
Then there’s Warroad senior goalie Patrick Kennedy. He thought he’d be on the bench for the state tournament, but starting goalie Finn Hanson injured his back during the section final.
In this state championship game, Kennedy wound up making 43 saves, including 22 in the second period.
“If you ever wanted to Cinderella story, there it is,” Hardwick said. “… I mean, he played unbelievable the whole tournament. Especially that second period. I don’t even know how he made some of those saves.”
This Warroad team had so much to say, so much to tell. And they had a six-hour bus ride home to do it.
“It’ll be a short bus ride,” Hardwick said. “It’s going to be a lot of fun when we get home. I’m sure there will be a fire truck there for us and the police and everyone else.”
About the Author
Joe Christensen
Strib Varsity Enterprise Reporter
Joe Christensen is our Strib Varsity Enterprise Reporter and moved into this position after several years as an editor. Joe graduated from the University of Minnesota and spent 15 years covering Major League Baseball, including stops at the Riverside Press-Enterprise and Baltimore Sun. He joined the Minnesota Star Tribune in 2005.
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