John Stark-Hopkinton makes Molnar's goal stand to beat Monadnock-Fall Mountain in D3 boys hockey final

MANCHESTER - Paul Molnar's game-winning goal wasn't supposed to happen that way.

The puck was supposed to get some air under it. Instead, the shot by the John Stark-Hopkinton senior stayed on the ice.

Monadnock-Fall Mountain goalie Isaac Jasinski, who had stopped everything the General Hawks had thrown at him through two periods, got a pad on the shot.

But instead of turning it aside, the puck bounced into the net, giving top-seeded John Stark-Hopkinton a 1-0 win over No. 2 Monadnock-Fall Mountain in the Division III boys hockey championship game Saturday at SNHU Arena.

Brett Patnode picked up an assist on the goal and Jameson Bourque made 17 saves to help the General Hawks (20-1) win their second D3 title in a row.

"It was kind of a fluke," Molnar said of his goal, which came 46 seconds into the third period. "I actually whiffed on it. It was right on the ice and it bounced off his pad and into the side of the net. That’s how it went in. That proves shots on net though, right?"

The score helped John Stark-Hopkinton settle down for the rest of the period, even when the Huskies (17-4) threw everything they could at Bourque and the General Hawks in the final two minutes.

"They definitely brought it all (Saturday), they definitely gave it all they got, and it showed," Bourque said. "Their goalie played phenomenal, kept it to one, and that was a big part of the game."

Jasinski finished with 27 saves after the Huskies had lost to the General Hawks by scores of 6-0 and 5-4 during the regular season.

But this time around, Monadnock-Fall Mountain was able to play the game on its terms, much to the chagrin of John Stark-Hopkinton coach Denis Kolehmainen.

"There were points where it got sloppy," Kolehmainen said. "That’s their game, they play a sloppier game. They flip the puck out, hopefully one guy gets it and takes it down the ice. We fell into that same trap, we were doing the same thing. It threw us off a little bit.

"They’re opportunistic. They get that one opportunity and then they snipe a goal on you."

While the General Hawks controlled play early in the game, each team had quality chances in the first period, particularly late. Nolan Sauer was able to break in alone on Jasinski, but shot the puck right into the goalie's chest with about a minute left in the period.

Seconds later at the other end, Chris Boucher and Justin Joslyn got into the John Stark-Hopkinton end on a two-on-one, but Joslyn's deflection went over the goal. The Huskies had a chance to ram the puck in at the post after that, but Bourque kept it out.

With time running out, Molnar had a breakaway chance, but couldn't get a good shot off before being pushed behind the Monadnock-Fall Mountain goal.

Early in the second, Monadnock-Fall-Mountain's Eric Chase sent a shot on goal that Bourque tried to catch with his glove, but the puck popped out and went over the goal.

With a little more than two minutes left in the period, a bad turnover by the Huskies at their own blue line gave Tyler Scordo a chance, but his wrister was gloved by Jasinski. Scordo had another chance in the final seconds of the period, as Benny Madden found him open right in front of the goal, but his one-timer was stopped by Jasinski to keep it scoreless.

"We put it right in his gut, we put it right in his glove," Kolehmainen said. "We didn’t put it in the right spots. We had a wide-open shot halfway through the period and hit the post."

Molnar broke the tie 46 seconds into the third period, as his shot from the left circle got between Jasinski and the near post to give the General Hawks a 1-0 lead.

Monadnock-Fall Mountain nearly got the goal right back, as Boucher sent the puck across the crease to Jermiah Bickford, but Bickford's shot hit the outside of the net.

John Stark-Hopkinton almost made it a two-goal game late in the third with a pair of two-on-ones for Molnar and Sauer, but both times, Jasinski made the save. The Huskies pulled Jasinski with 1:28 left in the game and kept the puck in the General Hawks' end until the final seconds, but couldn't capitalize.

"I knew I had to keep playing and make sure I had confidence and not get too scared or nervous," Bourque said. "I knew that no matter what, after (Saturday), it was over. This was where we wanted to be and now we’re champs. It’s something to be excited about. To get the last one on the last day of the year is big."