Overtime Springs: Glenwood, Steamboat survive semis to meet for 4A hockey title

COLORADO SPRINGS – Sam Rosenberg had no idea where his shot went.

But, the senior defenseman quickly gathered in a puck Brady Luetke chipped out and sent it into the back of the net for the game winning goal as Glenwood Springs beat Summit 3-2 in overtime in the opening game of the Class 4A state semifinals at Ed Robson Arena on the campus of Colorado College.

“The forwards were just grubbing down low and the puck popped out to me,” Rosenberg said. “I just took a chance. I didn’t even see where the puck went. I just saw the net moving and everyone started cheering. I’ve thought about coming back here every day for the last two years.”

The Demons lost 1-0 to Cheyenne Mountain in the 2023 state finals and earned a trip back to Denver on Rosenberg’s goal and a stunning 11-second span in the second period that got Glenwood Springs back into the game. The Tigers held a 2-0 lead as Glenwood Springs headed to a power play that lasted all of two seconds.

Jacob Roggie won a faceoff and played the puck back to Wylon Deter who launched a shot through heavy traffic for a long-distance goal that cut the Tigers’ lead to 2-1 with 3:17 left in the second period.

Eleven seconds later, Roggie gathered his own rebound, tried to skate under the net and lost the puck to Beck Weatherred who snuck a wraparound past Matthew Tater for a 2-2 tie 3:06 before the second intermission. It was Weatherred’s second postseason goal.

“That definitely gave us momentum,” said Luetke who assisted on Rosenberg’s overtime game winning goal. “After those two goals we just never stopped. We just sometimes need a little spark. Our coach kept telling us, we just needed a quick goal.”

Even though the teams played a scoreless third period, Glenwood Springs coach Tim Lota said it was key to the outcome of the game. The Demons held a 45-28 edge in shots on goal.

Matthew Tater had 42 saves for the Tigers, Isaac Zevin recorded 26 stops for the Demons.

“I thought we gained momentum in the third period,” Cota said. “The shots were 8-7 after the first. But after two and three we were up 41-22. Their goaltender played great. We just kept peppering him.

“We just tried to simplify. Keep puck possession. Don’t turn pucks over and wait for the opportunity. Our defenseman played great. They’re very offensive minded. We didn’t want to over handle the puck or make too many passes. We did simple dumps and didn’t overthink things.”

Graham Schuman’s second goal of the playoffs got the Tigers on the board first with a goal at the 7:40 mark of the first period. An entry pass careened off the boards and the Demons couldn’t clear the zone. His wrister sailed past Zevin’s glove side.

In the second period. Eli Powers drifted below the circle, got the puck beneath the redline, drew a defender and found Owen Lewis on the wide side of an open net for a 2-0 lead at the 6:22 mark.

With the win, the Demons took rubber game between the two teams, they went 1-1 against each other in the regular season.

Frithsen strikes twice to send Steamboat Springs to program’s first title game

Angus Frithsen’s second goal of the game led Steamboat Springs to a 3-2, double overtime win in the second Class 4A semifinal.

The power play goal came with 5:58 left in the second overtime.

Steamboat Springs changed the course of the game in a 33-second span in the second period. With 38.4 seconds left in the second period, Jakob French slid a shot through the five hole as the Sailors tied the game at 1-1. Heck Stephenson had the primary assist as Gavin Wittlinger got the play started.

Just 33 seconds later, Steamboat Springs took a 2-1 lead on Frithsen’s goal. Stephenson assisted as well.

Pine Creek carried a distinct shots-on-goal advantage into the second period, which finally paid off after a scoreless first. Moments after Conley Polsgrove had a good scoring look, he chipped in a Riley Miltko pass from behind the net for a 1-0 lead with 3:12 left in the second period.

Jackson Smetana pounded a Emmett Smith pass into the back of the net as Pine Creek tied the game 2-2 at the 10:23 mark of the third period. Luke Jordan had the secondary assist as he won the faceoff.

Logan Hemmer’s first period penalty shot was saved by SSHS’s Jakub Ducklow. Nathan Considine saved 31 shots for the Eagles, Ducklow turned away 32 shots for the Sailors.