International Falls’ boys hockey team won two recent home games by a goal and lost another at Bronco Arena by a wide margin against one of the top-rated teams in the state.

On Friday, the Broncos won a see-saw battle against Duluth Denfeld, 3-2.

“The kids played as hard as they could and came out with spirit and pride,” said Falls head coach Bruce Elson.

After a scoreless opening period, three goals registered on the scoreboard within 3 minutes of each other in the second period.

Denfeld scored first 4:30 into the second period on a goal from Brendan Johnson assisted by Ryker Holm and Jordan Buetow.

Falls tied the game less than a minute later on a power-play goal from Broc Friend assisted by Erik Lassila and Christian Kittelson.

The Broncos pulled in front 2-1 with 10:11 left in the second period on a Mason Meyer goal assisted by Lucas DeBenedet and Brett Musich.

Denfeld tied the game with 10:33 left in the third period on a goal from Buetow assisted by Johnson and Nick Thompson.

The Hunters’ Levi Talarico was called for boarding with 4:31 left to play to give the Falls a man advantage. The Broncos’ winning power-play goal came 18 seconds later when Musich scored assisted by Joel Skirten and Meyer.

Wes Gunnerson made 28 saves to record the win in goal as Denfeld outshot the Falls, 30-25.

“They had some great shots on net, and our goalie played well (Friday),” Elson said.

Hermantown 7, I. Falls 1

On Saturday, the Broncos stayed close with one of the top teams in the state through two periods, before Hermantown scored four times in the final period to win, 7-1.

“They’re a good team,” Elson said. “We didn’t play with as much passion or enthusiasm as the day before, and it showed in the score.”

It took only a minute after the opening faceoff for the Hawks to get on the scoreboard with a goal from Jared Kolquist assisted by Jared Thomas.

Falls scored its only goal with 13:11 left in the opening period when Musich found the net assisted by DeBenedet to tie the game at 1-1.

Hermantown took advantage of the power play to pull in front by two goals after two periods.

The Hawks’ Brian LaBlanc scored the first power-play goal with 6:34 left in the opening period, when Kittelson had 5 seconds left to serve in the penalty box for tripping.

Hermantown took a 3-1 lead when Bo Gronseth scored on a power play with 9:45 left in the second period.

“With a team like this, they’re 41 percent (successful) coming in (Saturday) on the power play, and that’s probably the best in the state...,” Elson said. “You’ve got to expect that they’re going to be on their game and put that puck on net.”

Kolquist recorded a hat trick as he made Hermantown’s first two goals in the final period.

After Wyatt Ulrich replaced Gunnerson in goal for the Broncos with 7:22 to play, the Hawks added two more goals from Jake Zeleznikar and Chris Benson.

For the game, Hermantown outshot the Falls, 40-18.

I. Falls 2, Virginia 1

The Broncos avenged a road loss from earlier this season by winning at home Tuesday night against Virginia, 2-1.

“It’s a huge win for the boys,” Elson said. “They worked hard all game long.”

Falls scored first on a power-play goal with 1:17 to play in the opening period when Meyer put in a goal assisted by DeBenedet.

The Blue Devils tied the game 3:58 into the second period on an unassisted goal by Derek Judnick.

With the score 1-1 late in the third period, Virginia went on the power play after Derek White was sent to the penalty box for a check from behind.

The Broncos were able to kill off the 2 minutes they were short-handed before Musich scored the winning goal with 1:14 remaining on an assist by Meyer.

The Blue Devils had one final opportunity to score when Kyler Schneider was called for tripping with 26.6 seconds remaining, but they were unable to score in the final seconds even after pulling their goalie, freshman Lucas Murray, to put six attackers on the ice.

“A penalty late in the game made it interesting at the end, but all in all, I thought we had a good game,” Elson said.

Gunnerson made 21 saves in goal for the Falls, compared to 24 for Murray.

The Broncos, who improved to 9-6, next host Greenway on Friday.

I. Falls 3, Denfeld 2

Denfeld 0 1 1 — 2

I. Falls 0 2 1 — 3

Hermantown 7, I Falls 1

Herm. 2 1 4 — 7

I. Falls 1 0 0 — 1

I. Falls 2, Virginia 1

Virginia 0 1 0 — 1

I. Falls 1 0 1 — 2