WARRENDALE — Serra Catholic had a window of opportunity. Mars goalie Christian Knapp slammed it shut.

Once the Planets weathered the storm, the rout was on.

Mars killed off three second-period penalties before scoring two goals in a 49-second span to seize complete control of an 8-2 victory over the Eagles in the Penguins Cup Class A hockey quarterfinals on Wednesday night at Blade Runners Ice Complex.

Trailing 2-0 in the second, Serra Catholic enjoyed a 5-on-3 advantage for a 1:47 stretch and had another power-play chance later in the frame.

“We had a rough second period,” said Mars coach Steve Meyers. “They got us in penalty trouble; we kind of fell into some of their traps.”

Knapp and the rest of the Planets never wavered.

Serra Catholic (12-12) fired quality shots at the net, but Knapp continually turned the Eagles away, including a pair of beautiful glove saves from point-blank range.

“I was definitely in the zone,” said Knapp. “Once you get a couple of shots on the power play, you start to get in the groove and I really believe that during that 5-on-3, that's when I hit my stride.”

Knapp made 14 of his 27 stops in the second period.

“Christian Knapp was unbelievable out there,” said Serra Catholic coach Brian Boehm. “Your best penalty killer is always your goalie and that's what he was for them.”

“Christian stood on his head,” said Meyers. “He played great.”

As the second penalty kill came to a close, Ian Houk-Graves sent the puck fluttering from blue line to blue line and connected with Nick Berteotti, who cashed in on the breakaway for his second of three goals in the game.

Just 49 seconds later, Nick Makozy made it 4-0 off an assist from Reed Salada.

“Getting the two there at the end of the second period was huge,” said Meyers. “You get a little momentum swing when you get that big kill and then to score that goal right after, it lifted us.”

The Planets (18-3-1) initially struck when Kyle Thomas stuffed home a rebound off a blast from Michael McCann with 4:12 remaining in the first period.

Berteotti extended the lead to 2-0 with 13:52 left in the second frame on a well-placed pass in front of the net from Ed Schwadron.

“Our goal was to come out and jump on them early,” noted Meyers.

Jon Henschel broke through for the Eagles (12-12) with 9:17 to go. However, he was sent to the penalty box for taunting and Makozy quickly restored the four-goal cushion on the ensuing power play.

Frustration seemed to boil over for the Eagles, who committed 10 penalties in the final 7:06 of the game. Henschel's fifth penalty resulted in an early exit and he will serve a suspension to start next season.

“We play hard man, that's all I can tell you,” said Boehm. “I always tell my guys to play hard and play physical and they do.”

Mars took advantage, as Craig Mazzotta, Berteotti and Trevor Tisdale all tacked on goals with a man advantage and the cushion bloated to 8-1.

Meyers didn't attribute the physical play to bad blood between the squads.

“I've got a lot of respect for Brian. I really don't think of them as a rival,” he said. “It is what it is. It's another part of the game and you just try to protect your guys as much as you can.”

Serra Catholic's Tyler Speis rounded out the scoring during a scrum in front of the net as Knapp's helmet popped off.

Mars finished with a 47-29 advantage in shots on goal and Serra Catholic goalie Chen Pesecreta had 39 saves. Salada and Owen Vasbinder tallied two assists apiece for the Planets.

The Eagles' loss marked Boehm's final game as Serra Catholic coach. He resigned due to a recent move to West Virginia.

“It's real hard. ... I envisioned myself being here 20 years, but just like I teach them, life takes you to different places,” said Boehm, who took over the program in 2006. “You don't get to choose your path all the time. I always thought I knew what I'd say when the time came, but you never do.”

Mars will face either Freeport — which plays at 6:15 p.m. today against Kittanning at the Belmont Ice Complex — or Westmont Hilltop in the Penguins Cup semifinals on Monday.