BHS: Around the Arenas 2
Rogers' goalie Johnny Preusse battles Bemidji's Jack Johnson
Bloomington Kennedy upended St. Paul Academy beating the Spartans 4-3 last Thursday. The result sets the stage for last Saturday opening game for this post. The SPA loss evens Section 4A rankings. Before Thursday, 4A looked like a battle between Mahtomedi and SPA. Saturday, two days later, it looks like a 5-way battle with South St. Paul, St. Paul Johnson, and Minnehaha Academy all within striking distance of SPA and Mahtomedi. Saturday in the IMAC Showcase (not Apple), Minnehaha Academy played Providence Academy at Blake at noon in a game that the Red Hawks should win and should roll. The second game Saturday was a Section 8AA battle between Bemidji and Rogers played at Rogers. Both teams trail unbeaten Brainerd in this early season. Bemidji is loaded with players who have played in the Minnesota Hockey High Performance Program the past four years. The third game in this post covers another IMAC Showcase game between Duluth Marshall and Blake. The two private prep schools hockey programs are struggling this year after years of dominance. The Hilltoppers have moved up to Section 7AA and in the early going have suffered through a string of close losses. The Bears have shared a similar fate losing close games to Thief River Falls and Orono. The final game covered is Elk River stepping into the Tiger’s den playing Blaine at Fogerty in a game that matches two unbeaten teams and two teams at the top of their sections in the early going (Elk River is #1 in 7AA and Blaine is #1 in 5AA). Saturday was a miserable day with rain, but ever the optimist, it was another nice December day for getting out and around to the arenas. December rain does not need to be shoveled.
Luke Notermann (behind Riley Tufte #27) scores on this play. Notermann's original shot is stopped by Elk River goalie Ben Meyers, but Notermann continued on pushing the attack to knock the puck loose behind Meyers. The 6'5" Tufte followed applying pressure on Meyers to prevent him from reacting to the sliding puck. The score put Blaine up 2-0 in Saturday's 5-2 win over the Elks.
On this play, Luke Notermann drives the net and Tufte closes the deal. Bengals lead 2-0.
Blake Bears hosted IMAC Showcase
The Independent Metro Athletic Conference was formed before the start of the 2014-2015 high school season. The IMAC consists of six prep schools (Blake, Breck, Minnehaha Academy, Providence Academy, Mounds Park Academy, and St. Paul Academy and Summit School). What is the difference between a prep school and a high school. In Minnesota, a prep school is a private school that prepares students primarily for college. Five of the six prep schools play hockey in the IMAC. Saturday at Blake Arena in Hopkins those five were joined by another prep school from the north, Duluth Marshall, as the IMAC schools put on a boys hockey showcase this weekend. Being the first showcase for the conference, it made sense to promote possibilities for student athletes who had made the decision to prepare for college and to showcase them at a single location. A scout should not have to worry about grades when watching potential players on ice. Being the first IMAC Showcase ever, YHH was there and covered two of the three of the games played in this post.
Minnehaha Academy
Minnehaha Academy entered the game with Providence with a solid 4-1-0 record that including a good win over Mound/Westonka and a disappointing loss to Minneapolis. That record put them in the mix for the #2 or #3 seed in the Section 4A playoffs and an easier path to state if they keep winning. The Redhawks have a senior defensive core. Four return this season. Senior Andrew Wolpert is joined by juniors Joel Lenhart, Elliot Dorow Hovland, and Jake Frisell. Both goalies return, senior Austin Butterfield and junior Justin Evenson. Evenson started the game with Providence. At forward, the Redhawks have a veteran line led by Senior Josh Radtke (last season’s scoring leader with 44 points/22 goals in 25 games. Radtke is a wing on a line centered by junior Alex Evenson (29 points/11 goals in 25 games). Alex Jordan (29 points/8 goals) plays wing with Radtke. Their second line is centered by sophomore Zack Puterbaugh with wings sophomore Cole Knutson and freshman Reed Bartelings. Sophomore Jack Bridgeman, who played for the Minneapolis Storm Bantam AA team is centering the Redhawks third line with sophomores Eli Smith and Vince Franzitta at wings. Clearly defense has to be a strength for Minnehaha Academy this season.
Providence Academy
Providence's strength is in their defensive corps this season. Their defensemen are led by last season’s #3 scorer sophomore Jackson Sonderby (11 points/4 goals in 23 games). Senior Tyler Tessman returns as started Saturday with Sonderby. Junior Jack Hillen and sophomore Jacob Wickham were the second pair out on the ice at Blake. Tommy Wehman,a 6'2" sophomore is the fifth defenseman. All five played last season for the Lions. The Lions will need strength and experience in their defensive corps. Both Lion goalies (Bradley Koskie and Sam Ferraira) are freshmen. Providence’s top line is centered by last season’s #2 scorer, junior Colton Murphy with senior Blake Lucking and junior Ian Johnson at wing. The second line out has had a good early season. The line centered by returning junior Ben Sellman with sophomore Jake Giesler and freshman Zach Giesler at wings. The three are currently the top three scorers for Providence Academy (27 points/16 goals collectively). Jake Giesler is leading Providence Academy in scoring in the early season. Providence came out the winning by tying Minnehaha in Saturday’s game. That will help the Loins in the Section 5A rankings.
Minnehaha Academy's Alex Jordan (#15) and Josh Radtke (#11) turn towards goal scorer Alex Evenson (out of pic right) to celebrate taking a 1-0 lead. Note the ref making the call and getting the goal scorers number.
Minnehaha Academy ties Providence Academy 2-2
Providence Academy's Kole DeRosier (#26 left) is about to be congratulated after scoring to tie the game 1-1 in the second period.
The game started fast. Both teams played up tempo moving the puck. The top lines when matched, neutralized each other, when mis-matched tended to dominate play. It took the Redhawks six minutes to get the first goal of the game. Off a rush, winger Alex Jordan came up with the puck in the lower left face off circle and hit Alex Evenson in the high slot. Evenson beat goalie Bradley Koskie through the 5-hole to put the Red Hawks up 1-0. The opening period ended with Mnnehaha Academy leading 1-0 but trailing 16-15 in shots on goal. It was a wide open first period and the second period did not slow. This time it was Providence Academy getting the tying goal. Kole DeRosier’s shot from the lower left face off circle beat Redhawk goalie Justin Evenson to tie the game 1-1. Providence Academy again outshot the Minnehaha 15-14. The two teams had put 60 shots on net in the first two periods. Action slowed in the final period. The Redhawks’ Jordan scored a power play goal five minutes into the period; Providence’s Jacob Giesler scored the tying goal five minutes later. The Lions outshot the Redhawks in the third period 14-11. In all, 85 shots were put on net. Only four goals were scored for an overall save percentage of 95%. Both offenses had pressure and both goalies (Bradley Koskie and Justin Evenson) did their jobs; but where was the defensive corps for both teams?
Bemidji
Section 8AA is truly a Minnesota Twin Cities versus Northwestern Minnesota section (Section 7AA is Northeastern Minnesota versus Minnesota Twin Cities). The split of Northwestern and Northeastern Minnesota was really apparent in this Fall’s UMHSEL when three top Northeastern high schools (Duluth East, Hermantown, and Grand Rapids) formed the core of the Muscle Milk team that dominated UMHSEL play and gave USA Hockey’s U17 team fits one October weekend. Four Bemidji players (Chase Hartje, Nick Leitner, Brady Tatro, and Jack Johnson) ended up on the Luther’s Automotive team that had some great games including beating Shattuck/St. Mary’s Prep team 7-5 in regular season play. Hartje and Tatro were both selected last summer to attend USA National Development Camps. Saturday afternoon at Rogers all four showed up. Last season, Bemidji won Section 8AA. Leitner and Chase Hartje led the Lumberjacks defensive corps. Rocky Coplskey centered their top line at state with Tatro at one wing. Last season’s #2 center, Alex Pollock, is the other wing. The Lumberjacks’s second line is equally tough with Josh Lusby and Cole Hartje being centered Jack Johnson. All three are seniors. Johnson had a great fall season in the UMHSEL skating on the “band-aid” line with Thief River Falls’ Ethan Johnson and Crookston’s Doug Larson. Last year’s goal tenders are gone. Sophomore Matt Fitzgerald has been Bemidji’s main netminder in the early season backed by junior Carson Olson.
Rogers
Rogers is off to a good start this season. The Royals return five of their top 10 scorers from last season including seniors #1 Dustin Schoepke (34 points/9 goals in 24 games) and #2 Vinny Billing (26 points/12 goals in 25 games). Saturday, Schoepke centered a line with seniors Matt Larsen and Travis Limoseth at wings. Billings was on a line with junior Jordan Fischer and senior Jake Moss. The Royals defensive corps is led by senior Nolan Walker. Matt Becker, Sam Libke, Jac Mateja, Sophomore David Bauer and ninth grader Nate Thelen complete the defensive corps. Johnny Preusse, who played goalie for Monticello/Annadale/Maple Lake’s peewee A team at the 2012 Peewee A State Tournament, was in the nets for Rogers.
Bemidji's Jack Johnson goes after the rebound in the Lumberjacks 7-3 win.
Chase Hartje (#24) blistered this shot by Royal's goalie Johnny Preusse to put Bemidji up 1-0 in the first period.
Bemidji beats Rogers 7-3
In the game Saturday, in the opening minutes of play, Bemidji’s passing game was off. They were skating in “over drive” and their hands were stuck in second gear. It resulted in the speedy Royal forwards beating the Bemidji defense out of the Rogers half of the ice. As a result, the Royals could beat the Lumberjack defense and get pressure on or around the Bemidji net. That changed. With eleven minutes to play in the first, a Lumberjack rush resulted in the shot from the right face off circle bouncing off the crossbar and left post and out into the left face off circle. The no goal double piper resulted in Bemidji picking up the pace. Bemidji got the puck low in the Royals’ zone and constantly sustained pressure on the Royals net. The Royal forwards could not breakout. The game became a game of “beat the goalie”. In the first period, Preusse did his job stopping 15 of 16 shots often from less than ten feet. Chase Hartje got the only Bemidji score beating Preusse with a blistering shot from the right face off circle hitting the upper left corner of the net. The Lumberjacks led 1-0 after the first period.
Three goals were scored in the first two minutes of the second period. After that the dust had settled until Rogers trailed 3-1 and then cut the score in the last two minutes of play to 3-2. Bemidji’s Jack Johnson scored twenty three seconds into the period. Fifty seconds later, Royals defense man Nolan Walker scored from the right point to cut the Loggers lead to 2-1. Forty seconds later, Alex Pollock scored to build the lead back to 3-1. Pollock’s score came off a hard pass from Brady Tatro. Tatro’s hard pass came after he drew the Royals defense towards him opening up the weak side for Pollock’s one-timer goal. Rogers cut the lead to 3-2 late in the second period on a Jordan Fischer goal. Pruesse’s play in the net was keeping the Royals in the game. The Lumberjacks outshot the Royals 15-9 in the period and 31-17 overall.
In the first five minutes of the final period, Bemidji scored three times to put the game away. Johnson scored in the first minute of play, Copiskey scored thirty seconds later, and Cole Hartje scored at the five minute mark. Bemidji led 6-2. Then for the next six minutes of play, six penalties were called. The play became ragged, a mixture of power plays and whistles before Tatro got the final score. Bemidji won 7-2. Johnson got two goals and an assist in the game; Pollock and Copiskey each scored a goal and got two assists. All posted three points for the game. Bemidji is the team to beat in Section 8AA this year. Rogers left Blaine in Section 5AA by joining Section 8AA. Somehow trading the Bengals for the Lumberjacks does not seem like a fair trade.
Back at Blake Arena in Hopkins, the IMAC Showcase continued with Duluth Marshall playing host Blake. The Hilltoppers made it to the Xcel for the Class A state tourney the two years before Hermantown joined Section 7AA in 2013-2014. Marshall has lost twice in Section 7A finals to Hermantown the last two seasons 6-2 and 4-0. For the 2015-2016 season, Marshall has moved up to Class AA. They exchange Hermantown and Hibbing this year for Duluth East and Elk River. But this year has been an unusual and unexpected struggle. Last season at this time, the Hilltoppers were 7-0. They had scored at an average of 5 goals a game and beat Blake 5-0. This season, after 7 games, they are 1-6 and are averaging 2+ goals a game. The Hilltoppers have lost to Benilde-St. Margaret’s, Cloquet, Minnetonka, Hermantown, Blake, and Proctor. Their top line is centered by freshman Keelan Golat with two senior wings Tyler Peterson and Peter Lenz. Marshall’s second line of junior center Troy Shold with freshman Carter Sullivan and sophomore Levi Stauber at wings has been the goal producers collectively scoring nine goals. Lane Krenzen has been one of the best defensemen in high school hockey for a number of years. A senior this season and always the “table setter” Krenzen leads the Hilltoppers in scoring with 12 points all assists. Both Hilltopper goalies, Makaio Goods and Cullen Mudrak, are seniors this year. Mudrak was in the nets Saturday.
Blake plays Class A hockey as do the other prep schools in the IMAC. They came into Saturday’s game with a disappointing 2-3 record losing to Delano, Orono, and Thief River Falls. The losses to Delano and Orono hurt the Bears chances for a high seed in Section 2A. With Kennedy and Minneapolis threatening, Section 2A is not Breck and Blake only race this season. Worst the Bears were trending down while archrival Breck was trending up and leading in Section 2A. Blake has a veteran team returning from last season’s team that struggled posting a 9-17-1 record. Their top line is centered by senior Edmund Chute, last season’s #4 scorer. Chute centers two sophomore wings Sasha Shogren and Charlie Ankeny. Johnny Ferguson centers the #2 line with two sophomore wings Bennett Hawley and Jackson Saunders. The third line has senior Kevin Ahn at wing with junior Eric Elftmann at center. Senior Tyler Kossila is third member of Ahn’s line. Junior Johnny Hartfiel, last season’s #3 scorer has been moved to defense from wing. He joins seniors Crey Bankes and Eric Stolt and junior Jake Borgida. Two sophomore goalies, Andrew Dietrich and John Broucek complete the Blake line-up. Dietrich was in the nets Saturday.
Blake's Jackson Saunders has just leaped to bat the puck downward enough to pass by Marshall goalie Makaio Goode's glove and downward into the net to tie the game 1-1.
Blake's Jackson Saunders (#7) scores to tie the game 1-1 in the second period.
Blake beats Duluth Marshall 3-1
Blake and Duluth Marshall battled to a scoreless tie at the end of the first period. Missed power plays and tight checking defined the opening period. The Bears drew a tripping penalty in the first fifteen seconds of play. The Hilltoppers’ power play never got going and that penalty was killed by the Bears. Both team’s offense struggled over the next ten minutes of play. Blake had one good shift, but each team had problems organizing the attack. Marshall drew a roughing with four minutes to play. This time Blake’s power play never rolled. The period ended 0-0 with Duluth Marshall leading 6-5 in shots on goal. The second period opened with a Blake penalty three minutes into the period. This time the Hilltoppers’ power play was effective in moving the puck getting five shots from all directions on net in the first ninety seconds. The fifth by Carter Sullivan hit the back of the net to put Duluth up 1-0. Duluth Marshall picked up the pace after that and for the next five minutes dominated the play with their quickness beating the Blake forwards on races and puck movement. With seven minutes left in the period and the Bears in possession of the puck, a Bear forward took a shot from near the blue line. Jackson Saunders in the slot leaped and reached with his glove to knock the puck down. The path flight changed slightly downward clearing the goalie’s blocker and flying into the net. Saunders got credit for the score to tie the game. The game momentum changed and five minutes later, Sasha Shogren got the game winner. The second period ended with the Bear leading 2-1, but trailing 21-15 in shots on goal. Marshall up the pressure in the final period, outshooting the Bears 15-6, but the Hilltoppers could not beat Dietrich in the net. The game ended 3-1.
The Elks went into the tigers' den stretching before they lost 5-2 to the Bengals
In the night cap, Blaine beats Elk River 5-2.
The strategy was apparent for both teams five minutes into the opening period of the game between two unbeaten, Blaine and Elk River. Each had a top line. Blaine’s Riley Tufte, Luke Notermann, and Alex Penn had amassed 42 points/18 goals in the five game played going into Saturday’s game. They were at 50 points/22 goals coming out of Saturday’s game. The Elks countered with Jensen Zerban, Max Michaelis, and Nate Horn. The problem for the Elks was to match Blaine top line with their top line. With the home team getting the last change on face offs, it was not an easy thing to do at Blaine’s Fogerty Arena. But it was not the face offs that made the difference in Saturday’s game, it was the disappearance act the Bengals pulled as the Blaine bench manipulated Tufte and Notermann’s appearance on the ice. They had more illusions of now you see them and now you don’t then Houdini.
Blaine's Luke Notterman goes for the rebound hard.
It took seven first period minutes of illusions triggered by Tufte’s short 30 second shifts followed by being dropped off the bench and seemingly appearing out of nowhere. Both Tufte and Notermann made appearances that caught the Elks with their third line out and the puck in the Elk’s zone. Ten seconds later, Tufte beat the Elks defense rolling down the left boards and blistered a shot into the lower right hand corner for the opening goal of the game. He scored unassisted. Blaine led 1-0. A minute later, Luke Notermann beats the Elk River defense on a race to the puck just inside the Elk’s blue line center. Notermann solo shot is stopped the Elk’s goalie Ben Meyers but Notermann continues on knocking the puck loose behind Meyers. As the puck is sliding into the net just inside the left post, Tufte following Notermann continues the attack. Meyers came close to making the stop. The puck trickled by the left post. With under ten seconds left to go in the period, Notermann beat the Elk’s defense behind the Elk’s goal and made a neat pass to the slot. Tufte, coming off the bench full stride buried the one-timer for the Elks third goal of the period. The first period ended with the Elks leading 3-0 but trailing the Elk’s in shots on goal 11-6. The rest of the game was anticlimactic. Notermann set up Blake Nastrom to put Blaine up 4-0 halfway through the second period. Elk River behind goals by Jack Perbix and Jensen Zerban rallied to cut the lead to 4-2. With less than a minute left to play in the third period, Tufte scored his third goal of the game for a hat trick. Blaine led 5-2 and won the game 5-2 after a scoreless third period. The Elks outshot Blaine 5-2.
Notes
1. Prep School? What is the difference between a prep school and a high school. In the UK, it is a private school for kids 7-13 years old or a private elementary school. In the USA, it is a private school that prepares students primarily for college.
2. Hospitality: A special thanks to the Blake Athletic Director and Staff for the hospitality and accommodations extended to YHH on Saturday.
3. Bemidji “Landing”:Nine of the top ten Lumberjack scorers from last season are back at the “landing” to “turn” another season’s load of logs. From this perspective and what was seen at Rogers, in a hockey sense”, Bemidji players are not Lumberjacks. They play like a precision crew.
4. One to watch: Goalie Johnny Preusse started his third game for the Royals after playing jv last season. The 6’1” Preusse faced 45 shots on goal against the Bemidji but lacked defensive support on the rotation of the puck to the weak side. Preusse has faced 116 shots in his first three games and has stopped 91% of the shots on goal.
5. One to root for: Roseau is off to a miserable start this season posting a 1-4-1 record and at the bottom in Section 8AA. The Rams should get better.
6. Two that a fan has to see play: Go watch Blaine. Tufte and Notermann play a great game. They take on Benilde-St. Margaret's Tuesday night at the St. Louis Park Rec Center.
Elk River goalie junior Ben Meyers looks for the puck around the Blaine screen.
The puck is a blurr on this Riley Tufte shot.
Riley Tufte scores on this shot.