Thief River Falls girls’ hockey has lost about a dozen varsity players, according to their coach Whitney Restemayer, since their state tournament run in 2015. Despite that, the Prowlers still have plenty of scoring depth. 

“The biggest thing is trying to figure out line combos and chemistry,” Restemayer said. “I think we’re all pleasantly surprised with how well the year’s been going.” 

The Prowlers are off to a 12-3 start and are ranked No. 5 in Class 1A in the state coaches' poll. They rattled off another victory Monday night, beating East Ridge 4-1 in the quarterfinals of the Schwan Cup Gold Division at the National Sports Center in Blaine. 

Going 2-for-3 on the power play was perhaps one of the most telling stats of the night. The power play is something the Prowlers have changed around quite a bit lately, Restemayer said. 

“We’re kind of just now getting in our groove a little bit,” she said. “We haven’t been doing so hot on it, but it’s getting better.” 

After a scoreless first period, the Prowlers took control early in the second, starting the period with a 5-on-3 opportunity and registering a couple shots. As the subsequent 5-on-4 power play was about to expire,Thief River Falls got on the board via senior defenseman Hannah Enge’s second goal of the season. Senior forward Madison Poole (15 assists) and Grace Bergland (nine) orchestrated the goal. 

From there, it was all about pressure from the Prowlers. Midway through the second period, eighth-grader Shelby Breiland got through the defenders and broke for the net, resulting in another power play goal.

Senior defenseman and joint-leading scorer Callie Fagerstrom got a shot through from the point just 12 seconds into the man advantage to make it 2-0. 

The Raptors responded by pressuring hard in the third period, even hitting a crossbar, but it was the Prowlers who scored the next goal to go up 3-0. 

Poole, who had a two-point night, crashed the net and put the puck upstairs to give her team some breathing room. 

“Tessa (Jorde) passed it up to me… and it was just tape to tape, then just flicked it in,” Poole said. 

A 3-0 game is obviously much different than a 2-1 contest, so Poole acknowledged how important that goal was for her team. 

They’ve already been in games like this one before, Coach Restemayer said, where they’ve been up by two goals but then the opponent comes back to make it 2-1 and then 2-2. 

“We try to eliminate that, letting them back in the game,” Restemayer said. 

That third goal turned out to be much-needed, because it was just a few minutes later that East Ridge sophomore forward Katie Flynn scored to make it 3-1. However, the Raptors couldn't muster any more offense and the Prowlers added an empty netter with four seconds left. 

Callie Fagerstrom and senior forward Kora Torkelson each tallied a goal and an assist in the game and lead the team with 31 points each. Torkelson leads the goal scoring with 17 while Fagerstrom has a team-high 18 assists. 

Thief River Falls (12-3, 6-1) will face Proctor/Hermantown in the semifinals on Tuesday in Blaine. Puck drops at 7:30 p.m. East Ridge (8-5, 4-3) will play Spring Lake Park/Coon Rapids in the consolation bracket Tuesday afternoon for a 2:30 p.m. puck drop. 

Thief River Falls used the power play to spark its 4-1 victory over East Ridge in the Gold Division quarterfinals of the Schwan Cup on Monday night at the National Sports Center in Blaine. 

The Prowlers, ranked No. 5 in the state coaches' poll, took control early in the second period, using special teams to their advantage. They started the period with a 5-on-3 opportunity, registering a couple shots. As the power play was about to expire, Hannah Enge scored her second goal of the season for Thief River Falls. Madison Poole (15 assists) and Grace Bergland (nine) orchestrated the goal. 

For the rest of the period, the Prowlers went to work pressuring the Raptors goaltender, Chloe Heiting. Midway through the period, Shelby Breiland got through the defenders and broke for the net, leading to another Thief River Falls power play goal. 

The Prowlers' leading scorer Callie Fagerstrom got a shot through from the point just 12 seconds into the man advantage. The Prowlers were 2-for-3 on the power play in the game. 

East Ridge came out pressuring hard in the third period, even hitting a crossbar, but it was the Prowlers who scored the next goal to go up 3-0. Poole crashed the net and put the puck upstairs for a cushion. 

A couple minutes later, the Raptors got on the board with a rebound goal from Katie Flynn to make it 3-1. Thief River Falls scored an empty netter in the final moments. 

In goal, Raptors junior Chloe Heiting made 23 saves. Senior goaltender Mariah Nelson stopped 21 shots for the Prowlers. 

Thief River Falls will face Proctor/Hermantown in the semifinals on Tuesday in Blaine. Puck drops at 7:30 p.m. East Ridge will play Spring Lake Park/Coon Rapids in the consolation bracket Tuesday afternoon for a 2:30 p.m. puck drop.