While a pushed-beyond-capacity crowd at the Charles M. Schulz Highland Ice Arena slowly made its way toward the exit, an odd combination of smells emanated from the St. Thomas Academy locker room beneath the bleachers that had held 500 fans for the past few hours.

The scent of onions mingled with the olfactory notes of sweat and stale dressing room air that typically follow a hard-fought hockey game.  

“We’re eating salads and getting ready for tomorrow,” Cadets’ senior goaltender Atticus Kelly explained. “I put a little ranch on mine,” Kelly said of his own garden creation.

Greens, protein, and a little ranch was the Cadets’ reward after shutting out Cretin-Derham Hall on Wednesday night, blanking a Raiders’ squad that was coming off a 10-1 win over Holy Family Catholic in its previous battle.

With both teams racking up over 100 goals so far this season, the general consensus was a game that could light up the scoreboard. 

In reality, the Cadets (17-1-1) scored once in the first period and once in the second en route to a 2-0 win over the rival Raiders, extending their unbeaten streak to 18 games. 

The Cadets have not lost since a 5-4 overtime defeat at the hands of Minnetonka in the season-opener.  

“I think both teams understand that you’ve got to play both ends of the ice,” Cadets co-head coach Tom Vanelli said after the win of the unexpectedly low score, aided by the Cadets inability to capitalize on a five-on-three power play chance while carrying a power play success percentage of 39.7. 

“Honestly I’d almost rather have a five-on-four,” Vanelli said. “For some reason when everything gets laid in like that and passive, the guys are looking for something too cute."

There was nothing cute about the game’s first goal, as St. Thomas Academy senior forward Payton Matsui netted a bad-angle goal just 23 seconds into the opening frame, giving the Cadets a 1-0 lead that was padded by junior forward Nico Vega’s goal at the 11:17 mark of the second. 

Defensively, senior goaltender Atticus Kelly shut down the Raiders, ranked No. 5 in the latest Youth Hockey Hub Class 2A Staff Rankings, finishing the night with 27 saves to earn his second shutout of the season. 

Kelly’s biggest save of the evening came on a penalty shot awarded to Cretin-Derham Hall sophomore Nick Davison, a play that Kelly said he had no idea was coming. 

“I wasn’t really expecting him to make a move like that,” Kelly said. 

In addition to the packed house, the game featured over 20 players who suited up for either Sibley Area or the St. Paul Capitals youth programs, adding the element of familiarity. 

“It was just a barn-burner,” Matsui said. “(This) was the home rink for most of these guys growing up.”

The game was sold out by at least 5:20 p.m.

Cretin-Derham Hall has not beaten St. Thomas Academy since Jan. 28, 2014. 

The Cadets have outscored their opponents 50-5 in their last seven games.