Surprise Scorer Nets Powers' Unforgettable Championship Clincher
March 8, 2025
PLYMOUTH – Ethan Haley’s hockey season for Flint Powers Catholic could have ended in late January when he suffered a broken ankle.
“I thought I was going to miss more time than I did,” Haley said. “The doctor cleared me sooner, so it was very exciting to get back playing with everyone and going to practice every day.”
After missing only four games and a little more than two weeks, Haley rejoined the Chargers late in the regular season, putting him in a position to score one of the biggest goals in school history.
Haley’s shot from the right point 1 minute and 53 seconds into overtime gave Powers a 3-2 victory over Livonia Stevenson in the MHSAA Division 2 championship game Saturday at USA Hockey Arena.
It wasn’t a particularly hard shot, but the Chargers got traffic in front of the net, making it difficult for Stevenson’s goalie to track the puck.
“Before that, Coach said to get pucks on net, get pucks out of our zone, which we did,” Haley said. “I saw a guy on Cooky (Ayden Cook). He slid it down and passed it to me. I just shot it. I thank Parker (Bendall) for screening the goalie. He couldn’t see it.”
Haley, a sophomore defenseman, goes down in history as one of the more unlikely heroes to score an overtime winner in an MHSAA championship game.
It was his fourth goal in 22 games this season and the second in his last 19 games. He scored twice in the first three games.
“My role is definitely an energy guy, I would say,” Haley said.
The championship was the second for Powers over the last three seasons. The Chargers were perhaps the top program in Michigan not to win an MHSAA title until breaking through two years ago in their eighth appearance in a championship game.
Powers finally broke through that time when Mason Czarnecki scored on a breakaway with 4.6 seconds left in the third period, giving the Chargers a 3-2 victory over East Grand Rapids.
“It’s a lot different this time around,” Powers coach Travis Perry said. “The first time, it’d been 50 years of frustration, anger. I’d been coaching 17 years, and we lost a couple down here. That was really a monkey off our back. This one really solidifies our program. The biggest thing I told the guys is probably five years ago we came down here looking to compete, not just hoping to compete.”
The Chargers have only three holdovers from the team that was a Division 3 champion two years ago in seniors Andrew Parmentier, Brody Neelands and Andrew Burny. As sophomores, they learned how to win on a team that had 11 seniors and eight juniors.
“It feels like a dream,” Burny said. “We came here and made history twice. I wouldn’t have rather done it with any other group of guys.”
The Chargers finished with a 25-4 record and were ranked No. 1 in Division 2, but had to battle from behind in many of their games. The victory over Stevenson was their second in overtime during the playoffs, the other a 5-4 decision over Marquette in the Quarterfinals.
So, there was no panic when goals by Colin Stroble and Riley Rorabacher gave Stevenson a 2-1 lead with 12:53 left in the second period after Powers had taken an early 1-0 lead on a goal by Jack Johnson. There was no panic when Stevenson tilted the ice for most of the second, dominating puck possession.
Cook put Powers in a position to win in overtime when he tied the game with his 40th goal of the season with 6:45 remaining in regulation.
Stevenson (18-9-2) made a run to its first championship game since 2016 by winning its final five regular-season games, then four more in the playoffs. The Spartans lost four straight games prior to their winning streak, allowing 19 goals during that stretch.
Coach David Mitchell met with his four captains in early February, and they responded by leading Stevenson's late-season charge.
“We’ve all had our ups and downs, me included,” Stevenson senior forward Owen Hall said. “I just watched everyone on the team grow into the fine person they are today. I watched everyone grow on the team, even our coaching staff. It was successful, because we’ve grown so much over time. I couldn’t be more proud.”
For veteran Stevenson coach David Mitchell, it was gratifying to get the program back on the biggest stage. The Spartans made three Finals in four seasons from 2013-16, winning the 2013 Division 2 title.
“I told them they put Stevenson hockey, I don’t want to say on the map, because we’ve never really been off it,” Mitchell said. “But they got us back to the point we try to achieve to get to. I think they did that not only as players on the ice, but as a community. People like Mr. (Arnold) Muscat (Stevenson’s athletic director) and the Stevenson community not only made this an enjoyable ride, but made this a memorable one. It made it easier for us to get inspired to play for a bigger cause.”
PHOTOS (Top) Flint Powers Catholic players celebrate after clinching their championship with an overtime win Saturday. (Middle) The winning goal makes its way into the top corner of the Stevenson net 1:53 into overtime. (Below) Powers’ Ethan Haley (6) and Stevenson’s Riley Rorabacher chase a loose puck.
D2 Preview: 2019 Final 4 Back for More
March 11, 2020
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
Last year, we previewed the Division 2 Semifinal bracket by discussing the contenders’ familiarity with each other as three of four teams returned from the season before.
This year, the only change is that they probably know each other even better.
Reigning champion Hartland, runner-up Trenton and 2019 semifinalists Bloomfield Hills Brother Rice and Marquette all will be back at USA Hockey Arena again this weekend, with Hartland and Trenton actually having faced off for the past two Division 2 championships – both won by the Eagles. This time, they’ll see each other in a Semifinal on Thursday.
This weekend’s pairings are as follows:
Division 2 – Thursday
Hartland (19-6-2) vs Trenton (22-6-1), 5 p.m.
Bloomfield Hills Brother Rice (21-6-2) vs. Marquette (24-4), 7:30 p.m.
FINALS – Saturday
Division 2 - 11 a.m.
All Semifinals and Finals will be viewable live per subscription basis on MHSAA.tv, with live audio available on MHSAANetwork.com. Click for a full schedule of this weekend's games plus full results as they come in.
BIRMINGHAM BROTHER RICE
Record/rank: 21-6-2, No. 2
Championship history: Five MHSAA titles (most recent 2017), two runner-up finishes.
Coach: Kenny Chaput, fourth season (76-30-8)
League finish: First in Michigan Interscholastic Hockey League North.
Best wins: 9-1 over No. 7 Lake Orion in Regional Final, 6-1 over No. 10 Plymouth, 3-0 over No. 3 Trenton, 4-2 over No. 4 Hartland, 4-2 over Division 1 No. 3 Brighton, 5-2 and 2-1 over Division 1 No. 1 Detroit Catholic Central, 3-1 and 7-3 over Division 1 No. 6 Orchard Lake St. Mary’s.
Players to watch: Nick Marone, sr. F (32 goals, 16 assists); DJ Dixon, sr. F (18 goals, 32 assists); Ryan Murphy, sr. F (22 goals, 36 assists); Nick Dippre, sr. D (6 goals, 16 assists).
Outlook: This will be Brother Rice’s fourth-straight Semifinals, and the Warriors are looking to break through for their first championship game appearance since winning the 2017 title. Talented veterans are showing the way, including Marone, a first-team all-stater last season, and Dixon after making the all-state second team in 2019. They are only two of a variety of scoring threats, including senior Dylan McNulty (10 goals, 10 assists) and junior Max Brown (10, 17) among 12 players total with 15 or more points. If Rice can get past Marquette in the Semifinal, it beat both of the teams it could see in the championship game during the regular season.
HARTLAND
Record/rank: 19-6-2, No. 4
Championship history: Division 2 champion 2018 and 2019, runner-up 2013 and 2014.
Coach: Rick Gadwa, ninth season (188-59-12)
League finish: Second in Kensington Lakes Activities Association West.
Best wins: 6-3 over No. 10 Plymouth, 4-3 over No. 9 Canton, 4-2 over Division 1 No. 7 Howell, 5-1 over Division 1 No. 6 Orchard Lake St. Mary’s.
Players to watch: Andrew Larson, jr. F (14 goals, 8 assists); Dakota Kott, sr. D (10 goals, 17 assists), Adam Pietila, jr. F (22 goals, 17 assists); Kieran Carlile, sr. F (9 goals, 22 assists).
Outlook: The path to a possible third-straight championship has seen Hartland outscore its four postseason opponents by a combined 24-5, with a 3-2 Regional Final win over Davison the only game decided by a goal. The Eagles graduated some serious star power after last season’s title, but opened this winter with six straight wins and also have defeated four of the top six ranked teams in Division 3. Kott earned an all-state honorable mention last season.
MARQUETTE
Record/rank: 24-4, No. 5
Championship history: Five MHSAA titles (most recent 2008), two runner-up finishes.
Coach: Doug Garrow, seventh season (125-56-12)
League finish: Third in Great Lakes Hockey Conference.
Best wins: 5-2 over No. 6 Traverse City Central in Quarterfinal, 7-1 over No. 7 Lake Orion, 4-2 over No. 9 Canton, 4-0 over Division 3 No. 1 Calumet.
Players to watch: Gaetanno Cammarata, sr. F (17 goals, 19 assists); Cooper Anderson, sr. F (13 goals, 16 assists); Dylan Baldwin, jr. F (13 goals, 14 assists); Jakob Peterson, sr. D (12 goals, 25 assists).
Outlook: Marquette is enjoying its winningest season under Garrow, which has included its third Regional title under his leadership and now second-straight trip to the Semifinals. The Redmen have won 14 of their last 15 games, their lone defeat during that time to Hancock before coming back to then finish the regular season with a 3-1 win over Division 3 No. 6 Houghton. Cammarata earned all-state honorable mention last season and is the leading scorer of seven with double-digit goals. In addition to those mentioned above, junior Ansel Frost has 10 goals (and 19 assists), junior Evan Kroll has scored 13 and sophomore Cole Ranta has 11. Goaltenders Liam Beerman, a freshman, and junior Brennan Hakkola have split time nearly evenly in net and posted a combined 1.44 goals-against average.
TRENTON
Record/rank: 22-6-1, No. 3
Championship history: Fourteen MHSAA titles (most recent 2014), eight runner-up finishes.
Coach: Chad Clements, sixth season (113-54-7)
League finishes: Third in MIHL South, first in Downriver League.
Best wins: 5-1 over No. 1 Livonia Stevenson in Quarterfinal, 4-2 over Division 1 No. 6 Orchard Lake St. Mary’s, 3-2 and 2-0 over Division 3 No. 2 Grosse Pointe South.
Players to watch: Joey Cormier, sr. G (1.66 goals-against average, .941 save %); Nick Millhorn, sr. F (18 goals, 13 assists); Hunter Allen, jr. F (16 goals, 25 assists); Ethan Holt, sr. F (20 goals, 19 assists).
Outlook: After back-to-back runner-up finishes, Trenton is aiming to send 11 seniors out with the program’s first championship since 2014. The Trojans defeated top-ranked Stevenson to get back to USA Hockey Arena, and they own a 3-3 tie against Hartland from early this season. Trenton also has one of the state’s finest in net, as Cormier was an all-state second-teamer as a sophomore and made the first team last season. Holt joined him last year, making the first team at forward.
PHOTO: Marquette's Joseph Luke (14) deflects a shot past the Escanaba goalie during a December win. (Photo by Cara Kamps.)