White Bear Lake at Roseville 
December 21 (7:00 PM) 

This is the first of two meetings between the Bears and the Raiders. In the last few seasons, White Bear Lake has gotten the best of Roseville, but can the Raiders pull off a victory that makes the rest of the Suburban East Conference and Section 4AA take notice?

White Bear Lake is coming off a 6-0 rout of East Ridge. YHH recently interviewed White Bear Lake head coach Chris Anderson as part of their Rink of Fire podcast. The Bears are led by senior forward Nolan Roed (St. Cloud State commit, 9-2-11) and Dylan Buetow (4-4-8) as well as juniors Jack Stanius (3-4-7) and sophomore Tyler Lalonde (2-1-3) give White Bear Lake good scoring balance up front.

Defensively, junior Will Distad (3-7-10), sophomores Nate Celski (0-3-3) and Tanner Olsen (0-3-3) like to get involved offensively and are all capable puck movers. At goaltender, junior Leo Gabriel (.920 save percentage) has made most of the Bears' starts this season, but they have used senior Andy Mudgett (.824 save percentage) as well.

Roseville is coming off a 5-4 overtime loss to Stillwater. The Raiders are led at forward by seniors Charlie Arntzen (3-9-12) and Louis Arntzen (2-5-7), as well as juniors Billy Connelly (8-5-13), Jacob Villella (4-4-8) and 6'3" Jake Troska (4-4-8) carry the majority of the scoring for Roseville up front.

On defense, juniors Prentiss Maier (1-3-4), Riley Lackner (1-7-8), Collin Hites (1-6-7), and Jacob Elm (0-5-5) keep it simple in their end of the ice, but they are effective at limiting scoring chances. 6'3", 215lbs senior goaltender Dylan Keeley (.890 save percentage) is off to a strong start for the Raiders, but they have utilized sophomore Cooper Stevens (.884 save percentage) too.

Duluth East at Coon Rapids 
December 21 (7:00 PM) 

This should be an intriguing matchup of two clubs that used to be section foes before the MSHSL moved Coon Rapids out of Section 7AA and into Section 5AA. Can the Cardinals pull off the upset against the Greyhounds?  

Duluth East is coming off a 4-2 loss to Eden Prairie. The Greyhounds are led at forward by seniors Thomas Gunderson (6 goals, 6 assists, 12 points), Noah Teng (2-6-8), and Wyatt Peterson (2-5-7), as well as juniors Caden Cole (2-2-4) and Kyle Peterson (3-3-6) carry most of Duluth East's scoring.

On defense, senior Christian Hauser (0-1-1) and junior Brody Olson (0-1-1) lead an inexperienced blueline that has more than its share of struggles playing an always demanding Class AA schedule. Senior goaltender Kole Kronstedt (.852 save percentage) has started in most of Duluth East's games this season, but they have used fellow senior Drew Raukar (.944 save percentage) too.

Coon Rapids is coming off a 6-0 rout of Anoka. The Cardinals attack is led by seniors Tyler Barsness (6-6-12), Trenton Theisen (5-6-11), Ben Kish (1-4-5), Tristan Golen (4-2-6), and Eli Boden (3-7-10) as well as junior Cayden Alphin (5-4-9) give Coon Rapids plenty of firepower up front.

On defense, seniors Roan Bresnahan (5-9-14), Tanden Bush (1-3-4), and Zach Novak (0-3-3) provide experienced depth to the Cardinals' blueline. Senior goaltender Will Wagner (.918 save percentage) has made every start for the Cardinals this season.

Rock Ridge at Minneapolis
December 22 (4:00 PM) 

The Wolverines travel down from the Iron Range to Parade Ice Garden to play a hard-working Minneapolis squad. Last season, Minneapolis made the trip up north only to be beaten by Rock Ridge 5-3. Who will earn a victory this time now that the Wolverines have moved up to Class AA?

Rock Ridge feels confident after a 5-3 victory over St. Cloud Cathedral. The Wolverines are led at forward by seniors Kasey Lamppa (13-6-19) and Brant Tiedeman (4-3-7), juniors Levi Flatley (3-4-7) and Grady Dimberio (3-10-13), as well sophomore Caz Carlson (6-10-16) give Rock Ridge two solid scoring lines. The Wolverines' power play is effective, finding the back of the net at a 27.8% rate.

On defense, senior Sam Troutwine (2-4-6), juniors Derik Dahl (0-4-4), Aidan Rabideaux (0-4-4), and Easton Walters (1-2-3) use their size and reach to make it challenging to get into the middle of the ice in their end. Senior Ryan Rothfork (.924 save percentage) has been impressive in goal for the Wolverines.     

Minneapolis is coming off a 4-3 overtime loss to Robbinsdale Armstrong/Cooper. At forward, Minneapolis is led by seniors Ozzie Snodgrass (9-9-18), Cooper Cirone (2-5-7), Jackson Retterath (1-3-4) and John Bebler (3-11-14) as well as juniors Nick Anderson (6-4-10), Matthew Walsh (3-4-7) and Johan Krasean (6-4-10) as well as sophomore Eli Milinkovich (1-10-11) are as hard-working as they are skilled.

On defense, seniors Bodie Dahl (2-4-6), Isaac Andersen (0-1-1), and junior Maverick Knoke are physical and dictate the pace of play. Minneapolis has split starts at goaltender between senior Mike Shroat (.908 save percentage) and junior Adam Lybeck this season.  

Warroad at East Grand Forks 
December 22 (7:30 PM) 

To say these two teams are rivals is putting it mildly. You know you have a good rivalry when fans happily make the over two-hour drive just because they want to make a presence in their rival's arena. Which of these Section 8A powerhouses will come out on top?

Warroad is coming off a 5-1 victory over Totino-Grace. Warroad is led at forward by seniors Carson Pilgrim (North Dakota commit, 9-10-19) and Murray Marvin-Cordes (5-8-13), as well as junior Taven James (7-9-16), giving the Warriors steady firepower up front. The Warriors' power play is dangerous, lighting the lamp at a 42.9% rate.

On defense, seniors Ryan Lund (7-7-14) and Will Hardwick (0-2-2), as well as sophomores Broden Hontvet (0-9-9) and Mason Reed (0-1-1), will help Warroad lock things down defensively while also taking chances to chip in offensively. Senior Ben Norris (.889 save percentage) has started in every game for Warroad this season.    

East Grand Forks is coming off a 7-5 victory over Grand Forks-Red River (ND). The Green Wave is led at forward by seniors Brock Schultz (4-10-14), Landon Jamieson (6-6-12), and Jace Fore (4-4-8), juniors Jace Van Eps (4-3-7) and Hunter Varnson (4-3-7) as well as sophomore Braden Overgaard (2-1-3) lead a group that has good scoring balance through its top two lines.

On defense, senior Grady Magner (4-6-10), as well as juniors Nick Corbett (1-2-3) and Judd Pesch (0-3-3), help keep the Green Wave on the attack by helping East Grand Forks transition quickly from defense to offense. East Grand Forks' penalty kill has been a source of confidence, shutting down opposing power plays at a 94.7% rate.

At goaltender, the Green Wave have split starts between seniors Lucas Wavra (.865 save percentage) and Thomas McMahon (.841 save percentage) this season.

St. Cloud Cathedral at Delano 
December 23 (12:00 PM) 

This is an intriguing clash of two Top 10 Class A teams that play demanding schedules to prepare themselves for what they hope is a long run to the State Tournament. Can the Crusaders topple the Tigers when they travel to Delano?

St. Cloud Cathedral is coming off a 5-3 loss to Rock Ridge. The Crusaders are led at forward by juniors John Hirschfeld (4-14-18), Joey Gillespie (8-7-15), and Jaeger Wood (1-2-3) as well as seniors Andrew Dwinnell (7-12-19), Landon Swenson (2-2-4) and Cole Hwang (3-3-6) provide St. Cloud Cathedral solid scoring punch through its top two lines.

On defense, seniors Ben Petroske (1-1-2) and Vince Gebhardt (2-2-4), as well as talented sophomore Griffin Sturm (2-5-7), are workhorses on St. Cloud Cathedral's back end, stifling scoring chances and helping the Crusaders stay on the attack. Senior goaltender Nick Hansen (.924 save percentage last year) was injured last week, so the Crusaders will lean on sophomore Blake Kayser to carry the goaltending duties. 

Delano is coming off a 5-4 win over Minneapolis. The Tigers are led at forward by senior Teague Collings (2-4-6) and Jake Heinzen (2-0-2), as well as juniors Joseph McCabe (0-3-3), Bryce Peterson (3-1-4) and Mason Hargarten (3-4-7) are starting to find their groove.

On defense, senior Brayden Coppin (0-3-3) and Vinny Cappelleri (1-3-4), as well as juniors Aaron Halonen (0-3-3) and Markus Kangas (2-0-2), keep play safe, stay-at-home game. Senior Ethan Englemann (.888 save percentage) has carried most of the goaltending duties this season for the Tigers.