Eden Prairie has an answer when it comes to defending physically bruising forwards. The Eagles don’t let them into their defensive zone. 

“We’re really good laterally with our players,” Eden Prairie assistant coach and defensive specialist Steve Olinger said after his Eagles shut down Duluth East defensively en route to a 4-1 win on Saturday afternoon at the Eden Prairie Community Center. 

“We make it hard for people to get over the blue line,” Olinger added. 

Junior forward Nolan Sullivan scored twice for the Eagles in the win, with junior defenseman Nicky Leivermann and junior forward Hunter Johannes scoring one goal each.

Senior forward Ash Altmann scored the lone goal for the Greyhounds (6-7-0). The No. 2-2A Eagles (12-2-0) are not particularly big on defense, and Olinger says that his players have learned not to unnecessarily tangle with an opposing player.  “What we’ve taught them is to make sure that they’re not trying to engage (opposing) players all the time,” Olinger explained.

Part of Eden Prairie’s defensive philosophy is that defensemen are not limited to only clearing pucks and blocking shots, but are encouraged to join the offensive rush—when its appropriate. “We just have to make sure that he jumps up at the right time,” Olinger said of Nicky Leivermann, who scored a goal on Saturday and is the usual Eagle defender joining the forward push. 

Olinger added that Leivermann’s judgment of when to move up and when to hang back is part of his learning process as a player. “As part of his maturity, he’s learning to jump up at the right time,” Olinger said. 

Leivermann’s penchant for offense (he has four goals and 19 points this season) may come from his lacrosse experience, where he’s totaled 50 goals in two seasons at the varsity level for the Eagles. 

“I play attack in lacrosse and I’m more of an offensive guy, so it’s the opposite of hockey,” Leivermann said. Leivermann added that the skills learned in lacrosse sometimes benefit him on the ice. “It comes in handy when I want to bring the puck up and use my stick skills.