Anden Marceau had other ideas however, as he won a loose puck from about 15 feet out and blasted a shot into the right side of the net with 48 seconds left.

The Wildcats survived a scoring chance by the Blue Devils in the final seconds, allowing them to advance with a thrilling 3-2 victory.

“I just found a loose puck sitting there, shot it and scored it,” Marceau said of the game winner. “Unreal.”

Not only was Thursday’s match-up a tight battle, it also served as a rubber match between the teams that split their meetings in the regular season. Alpena took leads of 1-0 and 2-1 in the contest, but the Blue Devils answered quickly each time. However, they were unable to knot things up in the final moments after Marceau’s late goal.

Courtesy Photo/Ben Murphy The Alpena hockey team celebrates its 3-2 regional semifinal win.

“It’s amazing, that’s playoff hockey at its finest and we just found a way to pop one in there at the end and hung on,” Alpena coach Chris Limback said. “(Sault) had a couple great chances in the last 30 seconds, but we were fortunate to withstand their pressure and now we have a chance to move on.”

Alpena (4-11-1 overall) scored its first goal about seven minutes into the contest. Ben Nowak controlled the puck from behind the net, dished it off to an open Cam Young, who blasted it in for the 1-0 lead. Jack Rea also had an assist on the play.

It took a little more than two minutes for the Blue Devils to respond. Aaron Kogan received the puck on a breakaway, put a move on Wildcat goalie Collin Lightfoot in front of the net, and sent it in.

The Wildcats also killed off a pair of key Sault power plays. The first came in the final minutes of the opening period, while the second, a five minute major, came in the early stages of the second period. Alpena clamped down each time however, keeping the Blue Devils from getting any quality scoring chances.

“When you can kill off a five-minute major it is an understatement in saying that is a huge part of the game,” Limback said.

Courtesy Photo/Ben Murphy Alpena's Blaise Keller looks to pass the puck.

With 8:40 to play in the period, Lightfoot managed to snag a blistering shot from about 20 feet out, and he made another save moments later as he saw the puck flying through traffic to get his body on it.

With 4:42 to play in the second period, Marceau corralled a puck near the boards. He skated towards the front of the net, tapped a soft backhand shot, that managed to slip off the goalie’s skate and skid past the line for a 2-1 lead.

Sault responded 41 seconds later, as Kogan scored his second goal of the night, blasting a shot into the top shelf, making it 2-2.

Scoring chances remained fairly even from there, although the Blue Devils increased their offensive pressure in the latter stages of the third period. Lightfoot managed to make several key saves in about a five-minute span however, allowing Marceau to score his game winner; which was assisted by Jack Steinke and Gavin Hamp.

“We had a chance in the slot and if you give Marceau a chance in the slot to score, he is going to score,” Limback said. “His first one, it just kind of slid in the five hole, not the best shot but it looks the same in the paper the next day. We just have to work on throwing pucks at the net.”

The Wildcats pulled their goalie for the extra skater in the final 30 seconds, allowing them to amp up their offensive pressure for one final barrage. Lightfoot made one more save in the waning moments, and a Sault pass in front of the net was just off the mark of an opener skater, ending the threat as time expired.

“At the end there, we just had some puck luck,” Limback said. “(Sault) had a couple great chances, but it just bounced off their stick and we were fortunate to come away there because it felt like it was going to overtime.”

Alpena returns to Tawas on Saturday to take on Gaylord in the regional championship. The Wildcats hope to earn their first regional title since 2019.

“I thought our forecheck today was great and we jumped out early and we were skating well,” Limback said. “We just have to bear down a little bit, we gave them a couple free ones on their two goals. That is something we have to rectify come Saturday.”