Photo by Jake Olson New Ulm’s Bodey Hagberg flips the puck past Fairmont goaltender Brandon Hector during the second period of Thursday night’s contest at Martin County Arena.

By Jake Olson

sports@nujournal.com

FAIRMONT – The New Ulm boys hockey team scored four goals in each of the opening two periods to power past Fairmont 11-1 during Thursday night’s contest at Martin County Arena. Seven Eagles individuals recorded goals, with Brody Norby leading the charge after completing his hat trick late in the third period.

New Ulm outshot the Cardinals 49-13. Fairmont goaltender Brandon Hector finished his outing at the net with 38 saves, 16 of which came in the second period.

“They’re just a good team,” Fairmont co-head coach Paul Carlson said in reference to Thursday night’s opponent. “They always play at a high level and know how to move the puck.”

Carlson’s running mate, Fairmont co-head coach Scott Nuss, commented on New Ulm’s ability to pass the puck being one of its biggest strengths. Nuss was impressed with the Eagles’ ability to move the puck quickly and swiftly over the ice without missing a step.

This was displayed almost immediately in the opening two minutes of the contest. New Ulm’s Mason Buegler and Kayden Klein were on the receiving end of two precise passes from their teammates, flicking powerful shots at the net and giving Hector a sense of their aggressive style.

The Eagles finally took advantage of the puck possession second later. Carson Uecker captured the Braxton Rahe pass from the right side of the ice, sliding in between white Fairmont jerseys before rattling the post for the game’s first score.

Fairmont countered this with impressive defense for a lengthy six-minute stretch. The Cardinals limited New Ulm’s time of control while also letting off a handful of looks towards the Eagles’ netminder, Colton Anderson.

New Ulm broke the streak when Hunter Larson did it all by himself for an unassisted goal with eight minutes on the scoreboard. This opened the floodgates for two more late-period Eagles scores from Norby and Bodey Hagberg, elevating the visiting team’s edge to 4-0 going into break.

The Eagles kept peppering pucks towards Fairmont’s defense to begin the second period. Despite Hector harnessing the first seven shots sent his way, the senior tender couldn’t stop Hagberg breaking away from center ice. Hagberg used the open space to slice close to the net before flipping the puck up and in for another score.

Two more scores were added to New Ulm’s scoreboard at the 13 minute mark of the period from Uecker and Norby. Uecker dished the puck to Norby from behind the net before getting the favor returned thirty seconds later at center ice. One more score from Melvin Sellner off a Norby assist put the lead to 8-0 four minutes later.

“They can all skate with their head up,” Carlson said. “When they make a pass, it’s on a teammate’s blade. They aren’t wasting opportunities and don’t make a lot of mistakes.”

Fairmont’s lone goal came at the eight-minute mark of the second period. It was a nifty hockey play stemming from puck possession in New Ulm, as Klay Beemer dumped a pass off to Gavin Kester, who capitalized on the chance by ringing it through the net. Carlson called this score a beautiful hockey play.

“That’s what we are trying to get them to do more often, but it just wasn’t quite there [tonight],” Nuss said.

The late momentum was unable to sustain heading into period number three. Goals from Jaxon Saenz and Norby in the opening two minutes of the final 17 minutes gave the Eagles a 10-1 cushion. Rahe added one more four minutes later after taking advantage of a Dayton Draper power-play penalty for tripping.

Fairmont (5-9) is set to host La Crescent-Hokah this Saturday at 2 p.m. in Martin County Arena. New Ulm (12-6) will go to Albert Lea next Tuesday.