St. Paul hangs on in 5-4 thriller 

The boys from the capital city blasted out to a 5-1 lead midway through the second period, then squandered the advanatge as Marshall scored twice in the second and again with 3:48 to go in regulation to pull within one at 5-4. Despite the Tiger barrage late in the game, the Caps hung on for a 5-4 win to earn their fifth victory in six contests. 

Anderson pitches Lumberjack Cup shutout

18 times, the Rogers Royals threw shots at the Moorhead net, and 18 times, Olen Anderson turned them away.

The netminder finished with an 18-save shutout in the 4-0 win for the Spuds, earning Player of the Game honors. Anderson's play ratcheted up as the game wore on, especially in the final stages of the third period, as the Spuds went a perfect 3-for-3 on the penalty kill in the final eight minutes of regulation.

Von Bokern takes the lead among skaters 

It took Colton Von Bokern all of two periods to take the top spot among all Lumberjack Cup skaters across all levels, as the speedy Shakopee forward racked up five goals and an assist in the Sabres' win over St. Cloud. Three of Von Bokern's five tallies came in the second period, as the Sabres pulled away from the Huskies for the victory. 

Leafbirds win 19th consecutive game 

With a 6-1 win over Stillwater on Friday afternoon, Osseo-Maple Grove picked up its 23rd victory of the season and its 19th in a row. The No. 1 team in the state according to the computerized NOW Rankings were led in total points by Leo Starkey, who had three assists. 

Maruk's heroics lift Chaska/Chanhassen 

Owen Maruk decided Friday morning would be the perfect time to covert the snipe of his life. 

With 2:27 to play in regulation, Maruk ripped a shot into the upper-90 to give his Stormhawks the eventual game-winner in a thrilling 3-2 victory over White Bear Lake. Hopefully, Owen saves a little shot power for this afternoon's tilt with Osseo-Maple Grove. 

Anoka keeps on spinning 

This year's Anoka Peewee A squad might offer the most hope to the Halloween Capital of the World since the 2016 boys' high school team that made a run to the Class AA State Tournament, or the 2003 team that won the program's only state title. 

The Tornadoes pulled off the overtime win on Friday morning, escaping a plucky Des Moines group after surrendering three goals in the third period to watch a 4-0 lead evaporate before the extra session. 

Still six days before Christmas, the Peewee A Tornadoes have already eclipsed last year's win total of 15, and currently have a record of 18-1-2 while outscoring opponents 115-32 in the process. 

Roux dishes five in Mahtomedi victory 

A 7:45 AM puck drop did nothing to slow down Mahtomedi's Emmett Roux. The crafty forward handed out five assists in the Zephyrs' 7-2 win over Rogers in the Peewee B opening round, including helpers on the Zephyrs' first three goals. For the moment, Roux is the tournament's leading scorer with his five total points. 

Kramer tallies tourney's first hat trick 

Scoring one-third of your team's goals in a 9-0 win? Not a bad start for Kayson Kramer. Kramer scored twice in the first to spot the Spartans a 6-0 lead over White Bear Lake, then added his third goal in the second period to help cement the win. As of 9:23 AM, Kramer has the lone hat trick across all Lumberjack Cup games. 

Peewee B 

Four teams have advanced through bracket play to the Peewee B Division semifinals, which will be played on Saturday afternoon and live-streamed by Youth Hockey Hub. 

Orono will take on Chaska/Chanhassen in a battle of clashing styles, as the high-flying Spartans duel with the defensive-minded Stormhawks. The Spartans trounced White Bear Lake 9-0 and Grand Rapids Orange 5-1 in their first two games, and are led in scoring by Kayson Kramer and Sam Ward, who each have six points. 

Chaska/Chanhassen Gold gutted out wins over Brainerd 4-3 and Mahtomedi 3-2 on Friday to earn its place in the semifinals. Lukas Hromatka leads the Stormhawks in scoring with three goals through two games. 

Friendly foes Edina and Minnetonka will go head-to-head in the other semifinal. Bryce Morgan paces the Hornets in scoring with four goals and six points, and the Hornets enter the game after blanking Blaine 6-0 and edging Stillwater 4-2. Defense is the name of the game for the Skippers after opening wins over Des Moines 5-1 and Centennial 4-0. Stanton Cossalter and Carter Osberg each have three points for the Skippers, and Espen Jacobson has allowed just a single goal in two contests. 

Peewee A 

Like the Peewee B Division, the Peewee A’s are also slogging through bracket play, and four teams - Woodbury, Cloquet, Chaska/Chanhassen, and Anoka have slugged their way into the semifinals. 

Woodbury thumped Rogers 9-0 and polished off Minneapolis 4-1 on Friday, and will take on Cloquet in the semifinal round. Leonard Hannahan leads the Reds with five points, followed by Bruxly Scofield and Marta Tikhnenko with four points each. Cloquet also picked up a shutout in its first game on Friday, clearing Waconia 6-0 before downing Spring Lake Park/Coon Rapids 6-3. Easton Eckenberg and Berkeley Leno have combined for seven goals and 11 points. 

Chaska/Chanhassen eked out one-goal wins over White Bear Lake (3-2) and Osseo-Maple Grove (2-1) en route to the semifinals. Crosby Beumer leads the Stormhawks in scoring with three points, all assists. Anoka has also played a pair of thrillers in the early rounds, hanging on for dear life in a 5-4 win over Des Moines Red and a 3-2 victory over Minnetonka. Ryan Roof has four goals and five points for the Tornadoes, while Wyatt Schmidt tallied a hat trick in the win over the Jr. Bucs. 

Peewee AA 

Pool A 

Osseo-Maple Grove and Prior Lake currently lead Pool A with identical 2-0 records, setting up a dynamic showdown for 7:00 AM on Saturday. The Leafbirds outscored Stillwater and Rogers by a combined 17-2 on Friday, led by Vinny Defazio’s two goals and six points. On the other hand, Prior Lake went to the mattresses with Rogers and Stillwater, beating the Royals 8-6 and the Ponies 5-3. With three goals and five points, Caleb Leathers leads the Lakers in scoring. 

Pool B 

White Bear Lake is in the driver’s seat in Pool B, beating Omaha 8-1 and Mankato 6-4 on Friday. The duo of Johan Fondrk and Bode Fuller is the current scoring leaders with five points apiece for the Bears, who will face Eden Prairie on Saturday morning.

Pool C 

At 2-0 with wins over Orono and Shakopee, Rochester is all but guaranteed a spot in the semifinals, as the Spartans and Sabres are tied for second in the pool with 1-1 records. The Mustangs will take on 0-2 St. Cloud on Saturday, and are no doubt expecting another productive outing from Layne Adams. Adams leads the Mustangs with four goals and five points through two games. 

Pool D 

After shaking off Mahtomedi 8-4, Cottage Grove finds itself leading the (wolf) pack in Pool D with a 2-0 record. Prior to the win over Mahtomedi, the Wolfpack edged Grand Rapids 5-4. The electric trio of Jack Atkin, Brody Harris, and Jackson Lysne is tied atop the team’s scoring leaderboard with four points each. 

Bantam A 

Pool A 

Chaska/Chanhassen topped White Bear Lake 5-3 and Rogers 3-1 to earn the top spot in Pool A…for now. A date with 1-1 Cloquet looms for Saturday. Caleb Thorp is the scoring leader for the Stomrhawks with a goal and four points. 

Pool B 

Arguably the tournament’s odds-on favorite, Mankato holds a 2-0 record and the upper hand heading into Saturday’s games. The Mavericks beat New Prague and Moorhead by identical 5-1 scores on Friday, paced by Tucker Dickerman’s four goals and six total points. 

Pool C 

After squeaking past Marshall 3-2 on Friday night, Detroit Lakes slides into the cockpit for Pool C, just ahead of St. Paul and Rochester, which are both 1-1 after the tournament’s first day. The Lakers shut out Rochester 6-0 in their first game on Friday, and are led in scoring by Wyatt Hunter (three goals, five points) and Sam Schlauderaff (two goals, five points). 

Pool D 

Waconia held off a late barrage from Woodbury for a 4-3 win to earn a 2-0 record after the first day of competition, as the Wildcats pulled off one-goal wins over the Predators and Wazyata in their first game of the day. With a goal and two assists, Jens Nelson leads Waconia in scoring with three points.