MONROE — Already riding the best start in program history, the Badger South-leading Cheesemakers co-op turned in another solid victory Jan. 7, defeating Monona Grove 5-2 at SLICE.

“This is the first time we have beaten MG, and MG is a really good team. For us to take this step, that helps us take the next one,” Monroe coach Barry Einbeck said.

It didn’t take long for Monroe (12-1, 4-0) to show the Silver Eagles (4-5-1, 2-4) that this year was no fluke. 

In the opening minutes on even strength, Payton Stauffacher took control of the puck in the Monroe defensive zone, flipped forward to Hayden Roth, who sent the puck up ice to Blaze Janecke. Monona Grove defenseman Ethan Johnson slipped, and Janecke flew passed him to set up a 1-on-1 with goalie Andrew Gilbertson. Janecke then used a short deke to light the lamp with just 2:44 gone by in the game.

Janecke’s night wouldn’t end there — the sophomore from Warren recorded a hat trick.

“There’s a lot of potential there and he got rewarded tonight for going into some of the dirty areas. He went to the front of the net and scored some goals, but he took a beating, too,” Einbeck said. “He worked really well with Cade and Hayden. He’s been working with them now for about a week, and I think his game has just gotten better playing with those two guys.”

Janecke moved into the role in the week prior, partly because forward Cooper Dreyfus was on vacation. 

“I’m glad that I got the chance to step it up. I used my opportunity to the fullest and ended up with three goals,” Janecke said. “I’ve learned a lot from Barry. He’s a pretty good coach and knows quite a bit about hockey. It’s really helped me step up my game and improve.”

The Cheesemakers never let up in the period, controlling the puck much of the time. Even when Monroe defenseman Jared Dillon went into the box for a hooking minor, the Silver Eagles couldn’t find a way to strike even.

“It was a very nice start to the game; both lines came out really well. Cade Janecke’s line came out strong and wouldn’t give them any space; and Ryan Molitor’s line came out strong and just went after them. I think we just set the tone coming out fast and hard and taking up space,” Einbeck said.

A loose puck escaped through neutral ice and Molitor gained control and pushed up ice. Molitor was brought down in the offensive zone but never quit fighting.

“I was just trying to go down there and put a move on — it didn’t work at all and I fell over. I just had to put it on net, because we were on a penalty kill and had nobody back there. I at least had to throw it on net — and it just went in,” Molitor said.

The Warren junior forward connected with the puck while swinging the stick while on his backside and put it past Gilbertson in one of the team’s most eye-popping goals of the season.

“We’re on a penalty kill and he’s been on the ice for 30 or 40 seconds, so I was yelling at him to come off the ice — and then he goes down and scores from the seat of his pants. Sometimes the coaches don’t know everything; but his effort was great,” Einbeck said of the unassisted shorthand score. “We talked to our kids about that — about not being perfect and working really hard and competing every shift.”

The 2-0 lead stood into the first intermission and for just 62 seconds after — that’s when Hayden Roth pushed in a rebound to make it 3-0. Stauffacher and Dillon were credited with assists.

Blaze Janecke then scored back-to-back goals, the first on a power play and the second off a rebound less than 90 seconds later. That put Monroe up 5-0. The Cheesemakers outshot Monona Grove 23-1 in the second period and went into the second intermission all smiles.

“We wanted to keep racking up the score, because there’s always that chance of them coming back. We focused all game right until the end,” said Molitor, who added that winning a state championship in football this past fall has helped him on the ice. “Last year we had a decent season — it wasn’t our best, but it boosted our confidence. The feeling of winning (state), the knowing what it takes with the practice hours and everything that it takes to put in to get those wins — that carried over.”

Monroe let up a bit in the third — able to afford to do so thanks to the large lead. The Silver Eagles scored two in the frame but couldn’t get any closer.

“It wasn’t the start we wanted — we came out a little flat. With a 5-goal lead we got a little complacent and they came back on us,” Einbeck said.

Heath Bear finished with 19 saves for Monroe. Bear is now second in the state in wins (12), trailing Verona’s Kaden Grant by one.

Roth had three assists and a goal on the night, while Stauffacher added three assists. Dillon had two assists.

Roth is now tied for fourth in the state in goals (19) and tied for seventh in total points (37). Stauffacher, a defenseman, is tied for sixth in assists (20) and is tied for ninth in points (34).

“I think we have some really good kids on this team. With the right direction and their work ethic, it’s kind of the-sky’s-the-limit right now. I think they see their effort and hard work has led to some success, and I think it’s contagious and they want to keep doing it,” Einbeck said.

The fun doesn’t stop there, as the Cheesemakers have just started running into the meat of the schedule with three games against co-conference leaders McFarland and Edgewood coming before the end of the month.

The home game against McFarland (9-2, 4-1) was set for Jan. 9. The rest of the schedule for January sees a home game Jan. 14 against Oregon (4-6-1, 2-2, then a Jan. 16 nonconference game at Beloit Memorial (2-10), followed by two games against Edgewood (9-4, 4-0) Jan. 21 and 27, with home games against Viroqua (2-8) and Sauk Prairie (7-2) thrown into the mix.

“The meat of the schedule is coming in now,” Einbeck said. “We talked about this before Christmas — we’ve done well the first half, but we have big conference games coming up and we want to make sure we play really well. It’s going to be an interesting month for us.”