With a go-ahead power play goal by senior captain Will Murvich and by far the best game of senior goaltender Nate Scullon’s high school career, the fearless Flivvers performed the unimaginable Tuesday evening, shocking Division 3 No. 6 Marquette 2-1, in a nail-biting and thrilling Great Lakes Hockey Conference contest that no one in attendance will soon forget.

Scullon, simply refusing to give in, was sensational in net, stopping 45 shots from a relentless Sentinel attack, as the Flivvers (6-4-0) managed their two goals on just 22 shots and held on for their first victory over Marquette since the 2017-18 season when the Flivvers went 16-7-1. That team, which featured Murvich’s older brother Nick as a leading scorer, swept the Sentinels in a pair of one-goal battles that season.

“The guys didn’t quit,” an ecstatic Flivvers head coach Greg Wadge said. “That’s just a big win, a huge win for our program!”

Murvich’s go-ahead goal came with 9:24 to play in regulation, on a power play. Wadge said the Flivvers made a switch on the power play to move Murvich down low, swapping with junior Jonah Doenier who went up top. It was Doenier who fired the initial shot from between the circles up high, and Murvich was there out front, falling to the ice chest first to free up the puck from under a Marquette defender and muscle in the rebound for his eighth of the season. Murvich got to his knees as the puck went in and quickly popped up in celebration with his linemates.

Kingsford senior goaltender Nate Scullon makes a glove save during the second period against Marquette Tuesday evening at Mountain View Ice Arena. Scullon stopped 45 shots.

“We probably had three or four good scoring opportunities,” Wadge said. “(Assistant coach) Dennis (Murvich) made a good call about swapping Murv and Jonah. Jonah has a good shot, a little rebound there for Murv, yeah, I thought the guys were just fantastic.”

“Going into it, everyone just assumed we were going to lose,” Scullon commented. “I just wanted to give it my all and see what happens. Once we got the lead, I just wanted to play my heart out and long as I could.”

And he did just that, withstanding a barrage from the frantic Sentinels over the game’s final few minutes to lock down his biggest victory in a Maize and Blue sweater. A final faceoff in the Flivver zone with a half dozen seconds to play was batted around out in front of the net briefly and finally swept out toward neutral ice as the clock expired. A jubilant celebration then erupted around Scullon.

A total team effort from start to finish, backed by Scullon’s gem, the Flivvers fell behind 1-0 when Marquette senior Trey Savola connected just seconds into the game’s first power play with 3:00 to go in the first.

But it would be nothing but frustration from there for Marquette, as the Flivvers’ defense and penalty kill more than rose to the occasion. Kingsford had to fight off a second power play just 30 seconds after the first goal, and then again denied the Sentinels’ power play in the second period when a puck that scooted toward the Flivver bench during a line change led to an unfortunate too many men on the ice call.

Kingsford senior captain Will Murvich gets to his knees after poking in a rebound for the go-ahead score during the third period against Marquette Tuesday evening.

The momentum really shifted after that key penalty kill though, as sophomore Casey Clisch, who is suddenly emerging as a true breakaway threat on the Flivvers second line, took advantage of a 2-on-1 and fired low from the right circle to beat Marquette senior netminder Paker Nevenhoven for his eighth goal of the season with 3:25 to go in the middle period.

“That was a nice goal, picking the low corner,” Wadge said. “Man, the guys were good tonight, real good. All three lines played well and when we got the third line out there, they did what they were supposed to do.

“Scully was just fantastic between the pipes. He was legit tonight.”

The Flivvers dressed just one goalie for the game with sophomore Alex Hemgren unavailable for the contest due to a holiday travel commitment.

“I thought Nate stepped up big time with Alex being gone and being our only goalie,” senior alternate captain Jake Deuter said. “I was so happy for him. It was just a great game. It was a whole team effort. It shows we can play with anyone and we shouldn’t be underestimated.”

Doenier finished with two assists. Along with the setup for the game-winner, he and sophomore Trinton Paynter helped feed the streaking Clisch on the equalizer in the second.

Marquette held a 14-5 edge in shots in the final period. They pulled their goalie for the man advantage with more than 2:00 left to play, desperately looking to force overtime. A roughing call with 1:40 to go led to a faceoff in the Sentinel zone and forced Nevenhoven back in net briefly, but he soon vacated as the final dramatic moments all unfolded on the Flivvers’ end with every Kingsford fan in attendance anxiously holding their breath and silently counting down each tick of the clock.

Even when the final buzzer sounded, it seemed sort of unbelievable what had just occurred for a team which hasn’t had a winning season in five years. In their only meeting a season ago, Marquette steamrolled to a 6-1 victory.

“We came out here, kind of expecting a loss, you know,” Murvich said. “But seeing Nate step up and show everybody that we’re a good team, and we have a good goalie, go out there and make some great saves, it’s just great. I love to see that for our team. It’s a great morale booster. Kind of showing that we can play with these great teams. We came out and scored two goals against a great team and only gave up one. That showed us that we can play with anybody. It’s a great feeling.”

There’s a lot of hockey season yet to go, but this season’s team sealed a memory and is proving to be a fun group that doesn’t know the meaning of the word quit. Coach Wadge and his assistants talk frequently about the positive atmosphere in the locker room and overall demeanor of the team.

“This is the most fun I’ve had in a long time,” assistant coach Murvich said. “It’s a special group of kids. They are respectful and willing to take coaching. I just love them.”

The Flivvers, now winners of four of their last five since a 2-3 start, head to Rhinelander for a pair of non-conference games early next week, facing Medford on Monday and the Hodags on Tuesday.