Mahtomedi coach Jeff Poeschl knows how his team scores, and he knows the physical toll the Zephyrs’ playing style can take on the body. 

“Most of our goals tonight were scored within a five-foot radius of the crease, and that’s where we’re gonna score,” Poeschl said in the aftermath of his Zephyrs’ 6-0 drubbing of New Ulm in the Class 1A State Tournament quarterfinals. “If we’re going to be successful, we need to get to those dirty areas of the ice where you get pounded, and you get punished, but you also get rewarded.”

Sophomore J.D. Metz is the perfect catalyst for Mahtomedi’s lunchpail identity.

The recent convert to forward after playing the team’s first 20 games on defense banged home a pair of goals within Poeschl’s preferred five-foot radius, sparking the Zephyrs to their dominant victory. 

“I think we started off a little slow, (it) took us a little while to get going,” Metz said. “Once we started getting more guys to the net, I think that’s when we started going (in the right direction).”

Senior forward Tom Paradise also scored two goals for the Zephyrs (22-6-1), with fellow seniors Joe Paradise and Kory Pilarski adding one goal each in the win.

Poeschl said that the Mahtomedi upperclassmen’s willingness to share the ice and the limelight with the team’s younger players is critical for overall team emotional health. 

“We have great leadership from our seniors, and I think their leadership allows the younger guys to perform,” Poeschl said. “When you have seniors that are threatened by the younger players, a lot of times they might push them down,” Poeschl continued. “Our seniors have done a great job enabling our younger players.”

Senior goaltender Jack Raymond made 49 saves in the loss for New Ulm (17-9-1), routinely stopping the first two (or three, or four) shots before the overwhelming pressure of the Mahtomedi attack capitalized on a loose puck. 

“They had three or four whacks at a few of them,” New Ulm coach Ryan Neuman said after Raymond mentioned he could have done a better job controlling rebounds. “(Jack) was frustrated after the first period, but I said (to him) you can make two, three saves and they got a fourth one past you.”

With the win, the top-seeded Zephyrs advance to the Class 1A semifinals for the second straight season.