skip navigation

Flint Powers Catholic hockey team enters Wednesday's quarterfinals ready to make final playoff push

By Ross Maghielse, 09/18/13, 8:00PM EDT

Share

FLINT, MI -- On the heels of winning its 30th regional title in school history, the Flint Powers Catholic hockey team is now looking to take the next step that has eluded it in since 2010.

The Chargers are two wins away from playing for the Division 3 state championship Saturday at Compuware Arena in Plymouth -- which they last reached in 2010 before losing to Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook Kingswood.

The next hurdle is Wednesday’s quarterfinal game against East Grand Rapids at the Summit Sports and Ice Complex in Dimondale.

Powers Catholic has reached at least the quarterfinals the past six seasons and has been eliminated in the quarterfinal round the last two years. In total, the Chargers have lost seven state title games.

“We have three goals every year,” Powers Catholic coach Travis Perry said. “We want to win our league, win our regional and then win the last three games of the season and get a state championship.”

This Chargers team -- boasting a 21-5-1 record and No. 5 ranking in Division 3 -- is a group Perry thinks may be the one to get over the hump.

“This group has played one of the toughest regular season schedules we’ve had since I’ve been here,” Perry said. “Three of our five losses were in overtime and we’ve faced a lot of tough competition. I think in previous years we kind of got lulled by our own success, reaching the final four in three straight years at one point, and the focus wasn’t where it needed to be.

“Right now, we’ve got a really focused group of kids that understands this opportunity isn’t a guarantee every year. They’re looking to make the most of it.”

All five of the Chargers’ losses came against elite opponents, with two of them against top-tier teams from Ohio. In addition to being battle-tested, Perry said this year’s Powers Catholic team is the deepest he’s had during his six seasons as head coach.

“We have the most balanced scoring that our program has had probably in at least the last decade,” said Perry, a 1997 graduate of Powers. “This is the first year I can remember where nobody was a 50-point scorer. Some people think that’s a bad thing, but I think it really gives us great balance. We’ve got 10 guys who have at least 20 points on the season and nobody with more than 36.”

Junior Garrett Gormley leads the Chargers with 21 goals and 15 assists. He scored twice and provided one assists in the Chargers’ 9-3 regional championship victory over Mount Pleasant Saturday, March 2.

A big addition to this year’s team has been the return of senior goalie Casey Korhonen, who missed last season after undergoing two hip surgeries. Korhonen has a 17-5 record in net with nine shutouts and a 1.45 goals against average.

“That’s been huge for us,” Perry said. “In terms of numbers, Casey is putting together one of the best seasons for a goalie in our program’s history. If we do finish it off this year, he’ll be a big reason why.”

East Grand Rapids has put together an up-and-down 15-11-1 campaign but the Pioneers have gotten hot at the right time. They beat Mattawan 4-3 in overtime March 2 to advance to Wednesday’s quarterfinal.

A win by Powers Catholic Wednesday would put the Chargers in the semifinals against either Houghton or Sault Ste. Marie Friday at Compuware Arena. No. 1 seed Cranbrook Kingswood is the heavy favorite to advance to Saturday’s state championship game from the other side of the bracket.

Contact Ross at rmaghiel@mlive.com and follow him on Twitter @Maghielse.