Hockey continued Sunday with a full schedule of games as the Upper Midwest High School Elite League played it's last round of Week 3 games, the U18 Tier 1 teams played a round of games, and the U16 teams played a Sunday round of games.  Separate stories will be posted on the Showcase UMHSEL and U16 games.

The Magic has a great start 

The NAHL season opening Showcase was played over four days at the Super Rink in Blaine MN.  For the 24 NAHL teams, the Showcase concluded with Saturday’s games.  The Minnesota Magicians won three of four games played.  They won their first two games beating Lone Star 3-2 Wednesday and the Wichita Falls Wildcats 5-4 Thursday.

The Magicians’ Brady Heppner opened Thursday's game against the Wildcats with a shorthanded score on a breakaway down the slot.  Heppner ended the game scoring the winning goal with three minutes left on the clock.  On his first goal, Heppner put a shot on Wildcat’s goalie David Zevnik/Lakeville MN leg pad and hung with the puck as Zevnik slid into the net.  He scored when the puck slid of the pad into the net.  It was a neat goal pinning the puck and letting the goalie slid it in the net.  Heppner’s second goal won the game won the game for the Magicians.  Wichita Falls’ Alex Falconer/Kohler WI and Kevin Charyszyn/Jamison PA led the Wildcats scoring.  Charyszyn posted 3 points/2 goals in the game.  In addition to scoring a shorthanded goal, the Magicians scored two power play goals giving them a +3 on five penalty situations.

On a roll Friday against Odessa, the Magicians took a 3-1 into the third period only to lose 5-4.  Jack Christensen scored twice, Lukas Laub scored once.  Goalie Chris Amsden/St. Peter MN got an assist on Christensen’s third goal.  The Jackalops’ Derek Brown/Peoria AZ, Kenny Hausinger/Anchorage AK, and Razmuz Waxin-Engback/Sodertalje SWE went on a four goal third period scoring spree to hand the Magicians their first loss of the season.  Waxin-Engback got the winning goal.

Saturday, the Magicians beat the Bismarck Bobcats 4-2 to end the Showcase with a 3-1 record.  A good Showcase is a sign of good things to come this season.  Magic Men Nathan Krusko/Alpharetta GA and Tony Uglem/Moorhead MN each scored a goal and got an assist.  Krusko scored the winning goal.  The Bobcats’ Cullen Willox/Eagan MN scored twice for Bismarck.  Willox leads the Bobcats in scoring with 5 points/4 goals.  Jens Vaughan Ahrens/Wayzata was in the nets for the Magicians.  Arhens had a terrific third period shutting down the Bobcats by making 18 stops.

The Magicians name makes for some good headlines.  For Wednesday’s win, the headline could read “the Magicians dim the Lone Star 3-2”; and for Thursday “the Magic Men make the Wildcats disappear 5-4”, and for Friday, “the Jackalops pull the Magic out the Hat 5-4”.  But YHH couldn’t think of one for the Bobcats.  Suggestions are welcome.  If it is used, the author or authors get the “byline” in the next Magician's story.

NAHL Midwest Division Summary

After the first two days at the Showcase, the Midwest Division looked tough for this coming year with the Magicians, the Minnesota Wilderness and the Coulee Region Chill winning their first two games.  Friday, the top four teams in the Midwest Division lost.  Besides the Magicians losing to Odessa, the Wilderness lost 3-0 to Wichita Falls, Coulee Region lost 4-3 to Lone Star, and Fairbanks lost 5-2 to Rio Grande Valley.  Only bottom dwelling Kenai River won, beating Amerillo 4-3 in overtime.

Saturday, the Magicians and the Wilderness bounced back with wins and are now tied for the top of the Midwest Division with identical 3-1 records.   The MN Wilderness (based out of Cloquet MN) won their second game of the season beating Corpus Christi 1-0 Thursday at the Showcase.  Wilderness goalie Ryan Anderson/Roseau got his second shutout win of the season stopping 20 IceRay shots.  Anderson was in the nets for Wednesday’s 6-0 win over Rio Grande Valley and started Friday's against Wichita Falls.  The Wilderness went with the hot goalie.  They lost 3-0 lost to Wichita Falls.  This time, Anderson gave up two early first period goals and Minnesota ran into a hot goalie in Austin Shaw and was zeroed.  Last March, Anderson led Roseau to the Class AA State Consolation Title posting a 22-8-1 record on the season.

Saturday, the Wilderness beat Brookings 4-3 in a battle between two Minnesota goalies, the Blizzard’s Justin Ketola/Esko Mn and the Wilderness’ Brock Kautz/Rochester MN.  Tyler Cline/Blaine MN and Ivan Chukarov/Des Moines IA are leading the Wilderness in scoring (4 points each) after the opening week of play.

Fairbanks bounced back from Wednesday’s 6-5 shotout loss to Wichita Falls to beat Amarillo 5-2 and played well.  Centennial’s Ryner Gorowsky and Adam Anderson figured in the Ice Dogs first three goals.  Ryner Gorowsky and Anderson played for Centennial at last March at the Xcel in the Class AA state tourney.  Ryner’s brother Hans Gorowsky played defense for the Ice Dogs Robertson Cup Champs last season.  Hans posted 32 points/10 goals in 54 games.  Ice Dog goalie Patrick Munson/Hugo MN was in the nets for the Fairbanks win.  Munson posted a 17-17 record giving up an average of 2.1 goals a game while stopping 91% of the shots on net for the Ice Dogs last season.  Munson played at the Xcel in the 2013 Class AA tourney for Centennial.

Fairbanks lost 5-2 to Rio Grande Valley Friday and in Saturday’s re-match of last year’s playoff championship series, Austin beat the Ice Dogs soundly 9-4 out shooting Fairbanks 46-22.  Nine different Austin forwards scored for the Bruins.  Fairbanks led 3-1 halfway through the second period before Austin scored four times in six minutes to put the game away.

Coulee Region beat Rio Grande Valley 6-3 Thursday posting their second win of the Showcase.  Adam Lovick/Centennial is leading the Chill in scoring in his second season in the NAHL.  Lovick figured in all five Chill goals in their their 5-2 win over Odessa Wednesday and added a goal and an assist in Thursday game.  Chill defenseman Sean Lang/Apple Valley scored a goal and had an assist against Odessa.  Chill goalie Adam Carlson/Edina got the win Thursday.  The Chill were looking good, but lost their last two Showcase games 4-3 to Lone Star and 3-2 to Aberdeen in a shootout.    

Kenai River lost their first two Showcase games 5-2 to Corpus Christi and 3-2 Lone Star 3-2.  After beating Amarillo, Kenai lost to Topeka 7-1.  The Brown Bears out shot their first two Showcase opponents 54-47 despite losing both games.  Zach Quinn, the Brown Bears returning goalie, got the win in the nets for the Amarillo game.

Individual League Leaders

Derek Brown/Odessa leads the league in scoring after the first week of play.  Brown had an amazing 11 assists in the first five Jackalop games and scored once to post 12 points.  Brown had 4 assists in the Jackalops win over the Magicians.  Soo Goalie Jack Berry/Soo leads the goaltenders.  The goaltenders are ranked by average goals scored per game.  Berry has 0.43.  Berry gave up a single goal in seven periods of play at the Showcase.  Andrew Lindgren/Eagan, Jake Kielly/Eden Prairie, Ryan Anderson/Roseau, Jens Vaughan Ahrens/Wayzata, and Zach Driscoll/Eastview are ranked in the top 10 goalies.

Numbers

Minnesota had 110 players (15 goalies) out approximately 500 players on the 24 NAHL teams at this year’s Showcase.  At last year's Showcase, 113 Minnesota players (8 goalies) were on the NAHL rosters.

“Hell On Wheels”

Those familiar with the popular TV series, know that head of the security guard in the drama is called “the Swede” played by a 6’5” tall Christopher Heyerdahl.  The Brookings team put on an entertaining show at the Showcase and was one of the more fun teams to watch play.  They went 2-2 playing tough defense that had four Minnesota players (TJ Samec/St. Thomas Academy, Alex Copa, Joe Nathe/Fergus Falls, and Zach Kramer/Hermantown), a Texan (Nick Nitta) and a tall Swede Kristoffer Brun.  Between the tall Swede and the tough defense, it felt like a re-run of “Hell on Wheels”.

Hunter Sheperd/Grand Rapids was in the nets for Bismark for two of the Showcase games.  After getting blitzed by the Soo 7-0, Sheperd came back to beat Janesville Saturday morning 4-1.

The Centennial Connection       

Centennial High School has made the Class AA state tourney and has had some outstanding hockey players come through the Centennial Association’s program.  The problem is there is no Minnesota town called Centennial.  The players graduating post their home address as towns such as Lino Lakes MN.  The Fairbanks Ice Dogs have four former Centennial players on their roster (Hans and Ryner Gorowsky, Adam Anderson, and goalie Patrick Munson).  Munson played at the Xcel in the 2013 Class AA tourney for Centennial.

Fairbanks lost 5-2 to Rio Grande Valley Friday and in Saturday’s re-match of last year’s playoff championship series when the Ice Dogs play Austin, Austin beat the Ice Dogs soundly 9-4.  Adam Lovick is a top scorer for the Coulee Region Chill and Kenai River’s defenseman Will Schwartz played for Centennial’s Class AA entry last March.

What is Next?

NAHL hockey continues with Kenai River staying in town to play two games against the Magicians Friday and Saturday (7:15 PM and 7:05 PM) at the Richfield Arena.  The Brown Bears are coming out of the Showcase on the down side going 1-3.  The 7-1 loss to Topeka Saturday evening at the Showcase was a tough loss.  Kenai River’s offense has yet to mesh and their defense played well in the early Showcase game, but failed in the last game surrendering 39 shots on net.

Fairbanks remains in Minnesota, but heads north to Cloquet to take on the Wilderness Friday and Saturday night.  Both games start at 7:05 PM.  Coulee Region travels to Brookings for two games but they have to be looking ahead to Thursday, October 16 when Fairbanks returns to the upper Midwest to play a three game series with the Chill.  That series could drive the Ice Dogs down in the standings.  After leaving Minnesota next weekend (and traveling 3400 miles home), the Ice Dogs will play four games in 10 days at their Big Dipper Arena, and then travel 3500 miles southeast to play the Chill four days later.