PRIOR LAKE VS. #2 CRETIN-DERHAM HALL

Two fresh faces meet in the first AA quarterfinal and will provide a fun clash of star power versus a deep machine. They have no recent history with each other.

Prior Lake (18-10, #17, 4-seed in 2AA)

First State appearance

Key section wins: 4-2 over #15 Eden Prairie, 7-4 over #14 Chaska

The Lakers emerged from a crowded Section 2AA to claim their first Tourney trip on the backs of a strong senior class and the player who has emerged as the Mr. Hockey frontrunner, Alex Bump (19). Bump’s strong play down the stretch helped rescue what had been a stumbling start to the season, and his longtime linemates Will Schumacher (24) and Sam Rice (9) give them serious offensive firepower. Riley Dueber (8) gave a nice added punch in sections, and this team will likely need more of that to go toe-to-toe with the deeper teams in this Tourney.

Jackson Anderson (4) piled up big points on defense, though beyond him, they can be a little suspect in back in front of goaltender Trevor Boschee (1). That leaves them with some of the longest odds in the Tourney, but they have the senior stars and the momentum to keep rolling here.

Cretin-Derham Hall (24-3, #1, 1-seed in 3AA)

State appearances: 4 (last in 2009)

Championships: 1 (2006)

Key section win: 3-0 over 3-seed Eastview

The Raiders, though not far above the rest, have been the top-ranked team in the state for much of the season and finally busted back through to their first Tourney in 13 years.

This strong-skating squad may be the most balanced of any in the field. Drew (22) and Jake (18) Fisher are their top scorers, but things get pretty interchangeable here, with Jake Sondreal (16), Luke McCarthy (2), and Attila Lippai (15) all piling up at least a point per game this season. Simon Houge (8) and Zach Sondreal (6) headline a mobile, puck-moving defense that allows them to play keep-away and smother the opposition.

They also have an ace in the hole in Marko Belak (30), a Frank Brimsek Award finalist in goal. The knock on this team is their schedule; they haven’t faced a top ten opponent in over two months, so we’ll see how these tournament newcomers hold up under the bright lights, though against that backdrop Prior Lake is a pretty favorable draw.