Hartland's depth too much for Stoney Creek in hockey quarterfinals

Bill Khan, Livingston Daily
·3 min read

MACOMB — Rochester Hills Stoney Creek has been a different hockey team since adding two high-powered forwards at midseason, making a surprise run to the state Division 1 quarterfinals.

Peter Halonen scored two first-period goals for Hartland in an 8-2 victory over Rochester Hills Stoney Creek in the state quarterfinals.
Peter Halonen scored two first-period goals for Hartland in an 8-2 victory over Rochester Hills Stoney Creek in the state quarterfinals.

Hartland, meanwhile, has been a constant near the top of the state rankings.

The Eagles were able to shut down Stoney Creek’s dynamic duo of Brandon Hilton and Carson Cagigal to win 8-2 in a state quarterfinal Saturday afternoon at Suburban Ice.

Hilton didn’t get on the scoresheet, while Cagigal had an assist on the power play.

Hilton, a Michigan Tech commit, had 25 goals and 14 assists in 16 games since playing his first game on Jan. 13 after a stint in the United States Hockey League. Cagigal had 11 goals and 19 assists in 19 games since playing his first game Dec. 27.

Unranked Stoney Creek upset sixth-ranked Lake Orion in regionals and gave Hartland a game for one period. The Cougars were 13-3 with Hilton in the lineup before Saturday after starting 7-4-1 without him.

Tyler Masters scored on a breakaway 2:41 into the game to give the Cougars the early lead. After Peter Halonen scored twice and Eli Sturos once to put Hartland up 3-1, Colin Wrobel scored on the power play with 54.4 seconds left in the period to get Stoney Creek within a goal.

Ian Kastamo, Jack L’Esperance and Sturos broke it open with second-period goals. Defenseman Braden Pietila finished off Stoney Creek by scoring twice in the third.

“That Brandon Hilton kid and a couple other players who came from AAA for them, they have some talent and they have a grit about them that was impressive,” Hartland coach Rick Gadwa said. “Really, it’s just being able to slip a few in through their goaltender through traffic is what changed that.

“Games are funny and can go either way. They were one of those teams you just never know at this point in the season. It’s one of those teams who can nip you. Anyone can if you’re not up to the challenge.”

Hartland will play archrival Brighton in the state semifinals at 7:30 p.m. Friday at USA Hockey Arena in Plymouth. Teams will be seeded in the semifinals for the first time, with the top seed playing the fourth and the second playing the third. Top-seeded Detroit Catholic Central and fourth-seeded Grand Rapids Forest Hills Central will meet at 5 Friday.

“We’ll get magic on ice when you talk about Brighton-Hartland," Gadwa said. "It’s already a pressure-packed situation for our two programs just getting there any of these past years. Now, we have to do it against each other. It’s just really cool. It’s going to be must-see hockey, for sure. I expect a lot of Livingston County will be there and others from the outside. It’ll be a great day of hockey.”

Contact Bill Khan at wkhan@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter @BillKhan.

This article originally appeared on Livingston Daily: Hartland's depth too much for Stoney Creek in hockey quarterfinals