Elk River's Jack Perbix scores for the Elks
Ben Meyers makes one of 32 saves for Elk River Friday
For six weeks, high school teams hit the ice and practice in their Summer Training Programs (STP). In addition to skating, players will lift and train to get bigger and faster for the coming season. Most high school coaches use the STP to evaluate younger players to see if they are ready for the high school game and juggle lines to find combinations for the Winter season.
On Friday we took in a few games at Plymouth Ice Center featuring six local high schools. Minnetonka took on Eden Prairie in a rematch of last year's Section 6 final. Wayzata played Elk River and Maple Grove faced EP. Hopkins is the other school involved, but we did not see the Royals play.
The speed of the games were good, but as expected, play was a little sloppy at times. In game 1, EP did not need extra time to hand Tonka a 6-1 loss. In the second game, ER got a goal from Freshman Jack Perbix to beat host Wayzata 1-0 and EP outlasted Maple Grove 5-2.
Cole Lawrence, Eden Prairie - scored three goals against Tonka. Great athlete who has really improved the last six months.
Luke Paterson, Wayzata - explosive skater who makes everyone around him better.
Ben Meyers, Elk River - athletic goalie that never seemed to get rattled.
Hunter Johannes, Eden Prairie - hard worker, who seemed to be very opportunistic around the puck.
Eden Prairie will likely be one of the top three teams next season. Their size and experience is top notch and they have two players (Michael Graham and Casey Mittelstadt) that can score in bunches.
Elk River and Wayzata will both be top 10 teams this year and likely challenge in section play, but both will have some great teams (and demons) to slay if they are to punch a ticket to Xcel.
Casey Mittelstadt scores for EP