Ely’s Pee Wee hockey team made the most of their home ice advantage and will move on in the postseason.
The Pee Wees beat Rock Ridge B1 6-4 on Sunday night to earn the second seed out of the Iron Range district for the upcoming regional playoffs.
Ely will move on to a tournament in Roseau Feb. 27-March 1, with a berth in the state tournament on the line.
The Ely Pee Wee team consists of players from fifth through eighth grades and has racked up more than 25 wins this winter.
The Ely Arena was home to last weekend’s Iron Range District Pee Wee B event, and six teams battled for two playoff berths.
After drawing a firstround bye, the second-seeded Ely team played Rock Ridge on Saturday and prevailed 8-5.
That set up a title game showdown with Grand Rapids Orange on Sunday, and the visitors pulled away for a 6-2 win.
But Ely had one more chance to qualify through the elimination bracket, and again Rock Ridge stood in the hosts’ way.
Again, Ely did just enough and pulled off the 6-4 win to gain the second regional berth. For the weekend, Connor Macho led the future Timberwolves with eight goals and four assists.
Nixon Levens added four goals with two assists and Hayden Engen contributed two goals and three assists.
Oliver Kochendorfer faced 81 shots while playing all three games in goal.
Ely is set to take on Hallock in a Feb. 27 regional matchup, slated for 6 p.m. at Roseau.
