Here are some winners to declare as result of the hockey played throughout the Twin Cities this weekend at six arenas; Burnsville, Rosemount, Hopkins, the Super Rink, Eden Prairie and Edina.  At Burnsville, three squirt teams (Mahtomedi, Osseo-Maple Grove, and Edina White) along with Prior Lake put on quite a show playing in the Burnsville tourney championship round Sunday.  The squirt teams battled each other closely for the championship and demonstrated remarkable skill for the game.  At Rosemount, Sibley’s Bantam AA team rolled through the competition in Rosemount’s twelve team bantam AA/A tourney.   Hopkins’ peewee A tourney was won by Edina, but not before Johnson/Como/NSP pushed them with a four goal comeback in the last half of the game.  At the Super Rink, Woodbury won the tourney after edging Wayzata A in their semifinal game.  Rosemount won the Eden Prairie peewee AA tourney beating Edina AA in the semifinals and Chaska/Chanhassen in the finals making a case for being top ranked peewee AA team in the state this week.  At Edina, the Hornets’ varsity girls proved to be a winner beating Breck 5-2 Saturday night.

Two Big Winners

There were two big winners last weekend, Rosemount peewee AA and District 8.  Rosemount’s peewee AA’s won the Eden Prairie Peewee AA tourney in the narrowly.  They were tied in points with Stillwater in pool play, but had the edge in goal differential to take the #1 seed.  The Irish then edged Edina 2-1 in the semifinals and came back to beat Chaska/Chanhassen 4-3 in the championship game with a late third period goal.  Congratulations to the Irish; but also congratulations to District 8’s peewee A/AA teams.

District 8 is the second big winner this Thanksgiving season.  Based on Thanksgiving tourney results, D8 appears overall to have the stronger peewee A/AA teams in the early going this season.  Rosemount’s win lays the cornerstone for the bragging rights this month.  Woodbury AA beating Rogers 7-1 to win a 12 team peewee AA/A tourney at the Super Rink; Johnson/Como/NSP pushing Edina A in the championship game at Hopkins 12 team peewee A tourney; and D8 teams Eastview and Lakeville South making the Burnsville Peewee AA/A semifinals provides added proof.  The real question for D8 teams this season is can they beat District 2 teams in the combined peewee AA and peewee  A leagues?   

Burnsville PWAA/A Tourney

The Blaze have a good tourney every year at Thanksgiving hosting Squirt A, Peewee AA/A, and Bantam AA/A tourneys.  One of their keys to being successful is that the Burnsville Association shifts the size of the three tourneys based on interest.  This year they had two 12-team tourneys (Squirt A and Bantam AA/A) and one eight team tourney (Peewee AA/A).  For the 2013 Thanksgiving Day tourney, the Blaze hosted two 12-team tourneys (Peewee AA/A and Bantam AA/A) and an eight team Squirt A tourney.  The Blaze tourney opens the Wednesday before Thanksgiving and plays games Friday, Saturday, and Sunday.

Burnsville opened their Thanksgiving Day Tourney early playing six tourney games Wednesday evening.  That lets the turkey thaw.  Host Burnsville Association’s peewee AA team played Mahtomedi in the first Pool A game.  The Blaze defense failed them as the Zephyrs took a 4-1 lead in the first period.  Burnsville lost 6-2.  In other Wednesday openers, the Blaze Association matched their Bantam AA and Squirt A teams against the Mahtomedi Association’s Bantam A and Squirt A teams and lost those two games.  The Blaze squirts lost 8-0 and the Blaze Bantams lost 3-2.  In the second peewee AA/A tourney game Wednesday, Eastview AA beat White Bear Lake A 4-1 in the first Pool B game.  The Bears team showed discipline by playing good position hockey.  Eastview showed improvement from early November.  They would be tough to beat in the tourney.  

Friday, the Burnsville PWA tourney played a round of pool games.  Burnsville AA came back from their opening loss to Mahtomedi to beat Centennial A 9-2 and Mahtomedi edged a surprisingly tough Apple Valley team 6-4 in Pool A play.  In one of the more unusual plays of the tourney, late in the game trailing 5-4, Apple Valley pulled their goalie.  With 30 seconds left on the clock, a Mahtomedi forward picked up a loose puck along the right boards and beat the defense skating at an angle across ice towards the left corner of the Eagles’ zone.  An Apple Valley defender dove as the Zephyr went to shoot at the empty net.  The Eagle player went spawling on the ice with his stick outstretched and knocked the Zephyr down sending the puck to the left corner.  The Ref blew the whistle and pointed toward the goal, awarding Mahtomedi their sixth score.  The Ref called the Eagle for tripping, but waived off the Eagle having to sit in the box, awarding the goal.  In Pool B play, Lakeville South edged White Bear Lake A 2-1and Eastview beat Park-Cottage Grove 7-4.  After two days of play, Mahtomedi and Eastview were in the championship round.  They would be playing single games Saturday for seeding.  Burnsville, 1-1 in pool play, needed to beat Apple Valley to advance.  

Saturday, Eastview lost to Lakeville South 4-2 and would have to await the outcome of the Lakeville South/Park-Cottage Grove game played later in the day.  Burnsville edged Apple Valley to claim Pool A’s #2 seed behind Mahtomedi.  South would beat PCG 5-1 to claim Pool B’s #1 seed.  Eastview took the #2 seed.  That set up Sunday championship finals with Eastview playing Mahtomedi and Lakeville South playing Burnsville. 

The fans attending the tourney Sunday morning were in for a treat.  Their attention was drawn to the Squirt A semifinal game being played in Burnsville Arena’s Rink 1.  As the crowd slowly amassed in stands and viewing spots around the arena, the tension build as Edina White and Mahtomedi squirts fought through three periods of good hockey.  The two teams were locked up in a semifinal game that saw the Zephyrs take a 1-0 lead in the first period; Edina come back to tie the game on a 5-on-3 power play in the second period.  After a scoreless third period, the game ended in a 1-1.  The game remained tied through the first overtime and was still tied with a minute left in the second overtime when Mahtomedi’s Ryan Chesley beat the Edina defense along the left boards.  Chesley cut to the left faceoff circle and put the puck in the net beating the goalie with a high right corner shot to win the game 2-1.  It was quite a game.  In Rink 2 next door, Osseo/Maple Grove won their semifinal game beating Prior Lake 3-1.  That set up a championship game between OMG and Mahtomedi won by OMG.  But the semifinal game between Mahtomedi and Edina got the fans attention and really had the arena roaring.  At these tourneys, a fan comes for one reason and gets amazed by the play of others.  

In Sunday’s Burnsville PAA/A Tourney semifinal games Burnsville edged Lakeville South 6-5 and Mahtomedi beat Eastview 5-3.  Mahtomedi’s Colin Hagstrom scored the opening goal unassisted, Maxwell Pieper scored the second goal to put the Zephyrs up 2-0 at the end of the first period.  Eastview came back with three second period goals (Joshua Eernisse, Caden Berg, and Ryan Quaintance scored) to take a 3-2 lead only to have Hagstrom tie the game 3-3 at the end of the second period.  The third period was an up and down game until the Blaze scored the game winner.  Burnsville edged Mahtomedi 4-3 in the championship game.  The Zephyrs’ loss to Burnsville broke a 12 game Mahtomedi winning streak.  

Hopkins Peewee A Tourney

Hopkins had a 12 team tourney that divided the field into four, three team pools.  Each team played two pool games.  Pool winners were matched in championship bracket; second place finishers were matched in a consolation bracket; and third place winners were matched in a bracket for ninth place.  Friday morning at the Minnetonka Ice Arena, Blaine A and Kennedy/Richfield A opened Hopkins peewee A tourney playing the first game in Pool A.  The Bengals won 3-2 with a late goal after Kennedy’s had tied the game 2-2 with a late third period goal to tie the game.  In the second game, Edina A exacted some revenge by beating Orono A 4-2 in Pool B.  Orono had beaten Edina in last year’s Hopkins tourney to eliminate the Hornets in bracket play.  Buffalo beat Eden Prairie A 7-0 in Pool C and Hopkins beat Northern Lakes Pool D 8-4.  In Friday’s second round of pool games, South St. Paul beat Blaine A 5-1 in Pool A, Orono beat Stillwater A 4-0 in Pool B, Buffalo beat Duluth East 6-1 in Pool C, and Johnson/Como/NSP beat Northern Lakes 8-2.  At the end of Friday’s games, only Buffalo had secured a spot in the championship round.

When the dust had settled Saturday, Buffalo, South St. Paul, Johnson/Como/NSP, and Edina had advanced to Sunday’s Championship round; Orono, Duluth East, Blaine, and Hopkins were in the consolation round; and Northern Lakes, Eden Prairie, Kennedy/Richfield, and Stillwater were in the bracket for ninth place.  Sunday, Stillwater A beat Eden Prairie A 2-0 for ninth place and Orono beat Blaine A 10-1 for the consolation title.  In the first semifinal game in the championship bracket, Edina A beat Buffalo 5-3 and in the battle for St. Paul bragging rights, Johnson/Como/NSP beat South St. Paul 4-2.  Edina edged Johnson/Como/NSP in the championship game 5-4. 

Super Rink Peewee A Tourney

This Super Rink Peewee AA/A Tourney had a twelve team field divided into three, four team pools.  In Pool 1, MAML A, St. Louis Park AA, Eagan AA, and Rogers were matched.  MAML had a minor upset in the opening tourney game beating the Orioles 4-3, but the second pool game between Rogers and Eagan settled the pool championship.   The Royals edged the Wildcats 2-1 and won the pool.  The Wildcats came back with wins over MAML and St. Louis Park, but could not catch the Royals.  In Pool 2, Mounds View won the opener beating Champlin Park 4-1.  The Mustangs tied STMA 4-4 setting up a pool championship battle with OMG A won by Mounds View 3-2.  In Pool 3, Woodbury and Wayzata A tangled for the pool championship.  Both opened with 4-1 wins (Woodbury beat Andover A 4-1 and Wayzata A beat Roseville 4-1) and both won their second pool games (Woodbury beat Roseville 11-1 and Wayzata beat Andover A 2-0).  But going into Saturday’s game playing each other, Woodbury had the tie breaker.  The third pool game ended in a 2-2 tie.  Woodbury won Pool 3.  The three pool winners were seeded along with the fourth best team in pool play.  The top two seeds met in Sunday’s Championship game and seeds #3 and #4 played for third place.   Rogers got the #1 seed and Woodbury AA the #2 seed.  Mounds View got the #3 seed and Wayzata A got the #4 seed.  Woodbury beat Rogers 7-1 for the championship and Mounds View won third place.

Rosemount BAA/BA Tourney

The Rosemount Bantam A tourney divided the 12 teams entered into four pools of three teams with each team playing two pool games, then being seeded, and playing two bracket games.  Tartan A, Rosemount AA, and Delano A were placed in Pool A; Osseo-Maple Grove A, Buffalo AA, and Luverne A were placed in Pool B; Pool C had Apple Valley A, Rochester AA, and Stillwater A; and in Pool D there were Duluth East A, White Bear Lake A, and Sibley AA.

Eight pool games were played Friday, Rosemount AA and Delano beat Tartan in Pool A; Buffalo AA tied Osseo-Maple Grove A and Luverne by identical 3-3 scores in Pool B; in Pool C, Stillwater A and Rochester AA beat Apple Valley A; and in Pool D White Bear Lake A beat Duluth East A 5-2 and lost to Sibley AA 9-4.

Saturday Delano beat Rochester A 4-3 to advance to Saturday Evening’s championship semifinals as the Pool A winner.  Rosemount went to the consolation bracket and Tartan dropped into bracket play for ninth place.  Luverne tied OMG A 3-3 in Pool B.  All three Pool B games ended in 3-3 ties forcing the tie breaker to be least penalty time served.  Buffalo had the least and went to the championship round.  The Bison drew Delano in the first semifinal game; Osseo-Maple Grove came in second and drew Rosemount in the consolation bracket; and Luverne (with at least three 10 minute misconduct penalties) played Tartan in the ninth place bracket.

In Pool C, Rochester AA beat Stillwater A 6-1.  Rochester AA ended up in the championship bracket; Stillwater A in the consolation bracket; and Apple Valley in the bracket for ninth place.  Sibley AA blitzed Duluth East A 11-0 in the final pool game of the tourney.  The Warriors ended up in the championship bracket playing Rochester AA; White Bear Lake A played for the consolation title, and Duluth East A played for ninth place.

Saturday evening, Delano beat Buffalo in a battle of neighboring rivals 3-2 to advance to the championship game Sunday.  Sibley beat Rochester AA 4-2 in the second semifinal.  The Rosemount Bantam A title matched Delano A against Sibley AA.  In the #2 Seeds bracket, Rosemount AA beat OMG A 8-1 and White Bear Lake A beat Stillwater A 3-1.  In the #3 Seeds bracket, Tartan edged Luverne 1-0 and Apple Valley A beat Duluth East A.  Sunday, Sibley AA beat Delano  5-2 for the championship; Rosemount AA won the #2 Seeds bracket; and Apple Valley won the #3 Seeds bracket.  

Eden Prairie PAA Tourney

The Eden Prairie Peewee AA tourney is a true AA tourney.  Sixteen peewee AA competed for the Eagles’ “First Test of the Best” tourney title.  The teams were divided into four, four team, pools.  Host Eden Prairie was in the North Pool with Jefferson, St. Cloud, and Wayzata.  It was an evenly matched pool with three of the six games ending in ties and two ending in one goal differences.  Wayzata beat St. Cloud 5-2 in the opening pool game for both teams.  Wayzata followed that win with a 4-3 victory over Jefferson and a 3-3 tie with the host Eagles to take the pool.  St. Cloud finished second.  The South Pool matched Chaska/Chanhassen, Andover, Lakeville North, and Minnetonka.  In the pool’s opening game, Chaska and Andover tied 2-2 and both teams went on to beat North and Minnetonka.  Chaska beat North 9-0 and Tonka 7-3; Andover beat Tonka 3-2 and North 6-1.  Chaska advanced on goal differential to the championship round; Andover took second and advanced to the consolation round.

In the East Pool, Edina swept their three opponents beating OMG 6-0, Elk River 5-3, and Blaine 3-0 to advance to the championship round.  Edina played a very steady game, setting up well in their opponents’ zone in winning their three games.  Blaine took second place and advanced to the consolation round.  In the West Pool, Rosemount opened with a 6-0 win over Forest Lake and Stillwater beat Prior Lake 2-0.  When the Irish tied the Ponies 5-5 in the next pool game, Stillwater lost the edge on the tie breaker.  They needed a big win over Forest Lake and the Ponies got it beating the Rangers 8-1; but Stillwater also needed Prior Lake to beat or keep their game with the Irish close.  The Lakers did neither, losing 6-2.  Rosemount advanced to Sunday’s championship round; Stillwater went to the consolation round.

Chaska/Chanhassen beat Wayzata AA 9-0 in the first championship semifinal game played Sunday morning.  Rosemount edged Edina 2-1 in the second game.  In the championship game, Rosemount jumped out to a 2-0 lead early in the first period and after the CCers had tied the game 3-3 early in the third, scored to win 4-3.  

Some Observations

Eight of the 12 teams entered in the Eden Prairie Tourney play in the combined District 6/District 3 peewee AA league this year.  Edina leads the league by a single point, Minneapolis is second.  The Storm, Burnsville, and St. Louis Park were the only teams not playing in Eden Prairie.  Minneapolis did not play over the Thanksgiving Holiday; Burnsville won their tourney; and St. Louis Park played in the Super Rink tourney.

Burnsville peewee AA team and bantam AA teams won their tourneys, but Mahtomedi had their squirt A, peewee A, and bantam A teams playing in the championship round Sunday at Burnsville.

Luverne’s Bantam A team played a tough physical game at Rosemount led by three YHH Top 50 picks; Declan Beers, Trey Roberts, and Ben Serie.  Declan Beers was this corner of YHH’s top peewee A player last season playing for the Luverne Association’s peewee A team. Beers looks stronger, Roberts is definitely taller, and Serie plays smarter.  In a way, Luverne is reminiscent of early 1990’s bantam A hockey teams, half of the Cardinals had just taken off their football cleats and strapped on skates.  The Cardinal size and power was startling after seeing them play as smaller peewees going against bigger peewee teams.

Rosemount has nine returning players from last year’s team that finished second to Sibley in D8’s peewee A league and were eliminated from state tourney chase by Chaska/Chanhassen in the East Regional 4-2 last March.  Last year’s team lost some tough games in the last period including the lost to the Hawks in the regional.  When Chaska tied this year's game 3-3 early in the third period the Irish acted as if someone stole their pot of gold.  They came storming back to dominate play and win 4-3 in the late stages of the game.

Last year's Rosemount peewee AA team had a big wing, Kyle (Moose) Heffron.  This year, they have a big team led (in size) by an even bigger defenseman Kyle Heffron.

Eight Sibley Bantam AA players played on the Association’s peewee AA team that lost in the semifinals of the state AA tourney to Rochester Red 3-2.  Saturday evening at Rosemount, the Warriors beat Rochester Red 4-2.   

Burnsville’s peewee A team opened their tourney with a loss to Mahtomedi and came back to beat the Zephyrs in the championship game; the Blaze team is improving.  St. Paul’s Johnson/Como/NSP team peewee A team that almost upended Edina A in the Hopkins Tourney with a strong comeback after being down early 4-0, is another strong team.

For those looking ahead, Mahtomedi Association’s peewee A team is a clear favorite to return to the Peewee A State Tourney next March.  The Zephyrs are likely to advance as one of the three D2 peewee A teams to the East Regional.  Most of the East Regional competition for the two tickets to the state will be from the other two D2 seeds and the three D10 seeds (Andover A, North Branch and Anoka currently lead the D10 peewee A league).  D11 peewee A teams (there will be two to round out the field) are struggling.

Edina’s peewee A’s will have a harder road to make the state.  They are in the West Regional providing they make it out of an always tough District 6 playoffs The competition at the West Regional this year comes from District 3 and District 5.  District 3 is loaded With top peewee A teams that will get better; but don’t overlook River Lakes coming out of D5.

District 8 will send three peewee A teams to the South Regional this year.  The three D8 entries join three from District 9 and two from District 4.  The District 8 playoffs may determine who gets to state this year, but don’t overlook teams like Mankato out of D9 and Luverne out of D4.