Photo by Samantha Davis. Marshall’s Jacob Allen fights past Irondale defenders and chases the puck down in the second period Friday evening at the Red Baron Arena in the home opener. The Tigers fell 5-2 and will play Morris today in the second day of the weekend tournament.

MARSHALL — In its home opener and on the first day of the Thanksgiving Classic Weekend Tournament, the Marshall boys hockey team fell to Irondale, who plays in Class AA, 5-2 Friday evening at the Red Baron Arena. Blake Grimsley and Jacob Johnson scored the Tigers’ goals, both of which came in the final minutes of the third period. 

“I thought it [the team’s performance] was pretty good,” Marshall head coach Michael Weiss said. “We had some lapses in the [defensive] zone that cost us. But, after that first period, we were able to get some things going and get a few scoring chances.”  

Both Irondale and Marshall entered the night 0-1 after dropping their respective season openers. The Tigers fell to Chisago Lakes on Tuesday 7-1, with the goal made by Johnson, where the Knights fell to Woodbury 6-0. 

In addition to Marshall’s goals, Johnson led with six shots on goal attempts, followed by Tyler Welsh with three. Goalie Nathan Lenz finished the game with a .848 save percentage, saving 28 shots. 

Overall, Irondale had 33 shots on goal attempts to Marshall’s 20. No major penalties were given during the game to either team. 

“We just want to keep building and getting better with each game,” Weiss said. “I thought today we were better than we were earlier this week, so that’s good. It’s early in the season, so we just got to keep building, keep getting better and show up every day to improve.”  

The Tigers fought some early struggles in the beginning of the first period. Despite finding their footing about midway through and becoming more aggressive at the net, Irondale claimed an early 2-0 lead heading into the first intermission. 

Irondale had five shots on goals before Marshall could get one, but that’s when the Tigers began to find more control. 

Johnson had three shots on goal, followed by a pair each from Jacob Allen and Noah Myhre. 

The Knights had 15 total shot attempts to Marshall’s nine. 

After Irondale found the net first at the 6:28 mark, Marshall responded with three straight shots, but none of the attempts were successful. The Tigers also had a few instances of getting called offsides, portraying another challenge that needed to be assessed. 

After a close call by Allen, Irondale got its second goal with just over six minutes to go in the period. 

“We told them [after the first period] that we had to take care of the puck a little bit more,” Weiss said.

“When we have opportunities to get it out, we need to make sure that we’re getting it out and get down to the other end and play some offense.” 

The second period looked better for Marshall, and held the Knights to just six shots on goal attempts while the Tigers had seven. 

Again, Johnson was getting good looks at the net. But, Irondale’s fast and attentive defense across the board, besides the goalie, continued to protect the ice in their favor. 

Marshall appeared more aggressive throughout the entire second period and was limiting Irondale’s offensive looks. However, the Knights were able to slip one more in as the period was winding down to go to create a 3-0 lead. 

The beginning of the third period was all Irondale as it didn’t allow many opportunities for Marshall to go on a run, despite another few good looks. 

The Knights hit two more goals back-to-back in the first two minutes of the period, both of which were originally blocked by Lenz off his shin, but were tapped back in. 

Although it was too late in the game for a complete rally back, Grimsley skated down the ice himself one-on-one with the goalie and safely put the puck inside the net with just over a minute to go.

Seconds later, Johnson scored a goal as well. 

“We’ve played two really good teams off the start. A couple losses, but I think we learned a lot about ourselves and what we need to improve on to keep getting better,” Weiss said. “I think that once we get to our section and conference schedule, that’s going to help us out a lot.” 

The Tigers are looking to make an even bigger stride forward this season after finishing their 2023 campaign 16-12 overall, and booking a spot in the Section 3A Championship where they fell to New Ulm 4-2.  

This year, Marshall holds an experienced roster led by 10 seniors. 

“It’s a very senior heavy group. We always lean on our seniors a lot to be the leaders and the examples for our younger kids,” Weiss said. “They’re going to play big roles on this team, and we hope to have a good season for them.”  

Marshall will next play again today in the second day of the weekend tournament against Morris-Benson Area, also in Class A, at 1:45 p.m. for third place. 

MBA is currently 0-1 on the season after falling to Pine City on Friday in the tournament. 

“It’s a quick turnaround and you just got to clear your head and get ready for the next game, and work to keep getting better,” Weiss said.