Tuesday, December 30, 2008

HOLIDAY TOURNEY TIME .... (DAY 2) UPDATES OF ALL SECTION 8A SCORES AT VARIOUS ARENA'S ACROSS NORTHERN MINNESOTA

Hibbing Invitational (Hibbing Memorial, Hibbing)
Bemidji vs. Lakeville North, 3:00 PM
Chaska vs. Grand Rapids, 5:30 PM
Greenway vs. Hibbing/Chisholm, 8:00 PM

Hockeytown Hockey Classic XVI (The Gardens, Warroad)
Fargo North (ND) vs. Grafton/Park River (ND), 5:00 PM
Osseo vs. Warroad, 7:30 PM

“Home of Hockey” Holiday Showcase (Eveleth)
North Metro vs. Monticello/A/ML, 3:00 PM
Park Rapids Area vs. Irondale, 5:00 PM
Skills Competition, 7:00 PM
Kittson Central vs. Eveleth-Gilbert/ME, 8:00 PM

Northern Lakes Tournament (Breezy Point, MN)
Red Lake Falls vs. Bagley/Fosston, 12:00 PM
Morris/Benson Area vs. Northern Lakes, 3:00 PM

Ralph Engelstad Classic (Ralph Engelstad Arena, TRF)
Virginia/Mountain Iron-Buhl vs. St. Louis Park, 12:00 PM
East Grand Forks vs. Spring Lake Park, 2:30 PM
Crookston vs. Hermantown, 5:00 PM
Mansfield (TX) vs. Thief River Falls, 7:30 PM

Roseau Hockey Classic (Roseau Memorial, Roseau)
Alexandria vs. Lake of the Woods, 5:30 PM
Northfield at Roseau, 7:30 PM

Wadena-Deer Creek Tournament (Wadena, MN)
Walker-Hackensack-Akeley at Mora/H-F, 4:30 PM
Wadena-Deer Creek vs. Wahpeton (ND), 7:15 PM

Monday, December 29, 2008

HOLIDAY TOURNEY TIME .... UP TO THE MINUTE UPDATES OF ALL SECTION 8A SCORES AT VARIOUS ARENA'S ACROSS NORTHERN MINNESOTA


Hockeytown USA Hockey Classic XVI (The Gardens, Warroad)

Round-Robin Format:

Warroad 11, Fargo North 0 (GAME #1)

W: Brock Nelson Hat Trick, 5a; Brett Hebel 2g, 4a; Dane Shaugabay Hat Trick, 2a
W: Chris Sylvester 2g, 1a; Carson Gray 1g, 2a; Mickey Knox 3a; Michael Pieper 2 assists
W: Jason Goldsmith (G) Shut-Out (4) On Season / FN: Labernik (G) 20 Saves

Osseo 5, Grafton-Park River (ND) 2

Northern Lakes Tournament (Breezy Point, MN)

Round-Robin Format

Northern Lakes 8, Bagley/Fosston 1 (GAME #1)

NL: Sam Johnson 2 goals, Ben Kepner/Max Engen/Cody Chambers 1g, 1a ea
NL: Derek Jensen/Denver Monn/Joey Decent 1g ea, Justin Miska 3 assists
BF: Dillon Spray 1 goal
NL: Trey Flesch 18 Saves BF: Gavin Ross 55 Saves
Northern Lakes outshot Bagley Fosston 63-19

Red Lake Falls 3, Morris/Benson Area 3 TIE (GAME #2)

RLF: Luke Olsen 1 goal, 1 assist, Alex Derosier/Corey Schmitz 1 goal each
MB: Peter Lindblad 1 goal, 1 assist, Tyler Hansen/Sampsa Purojarvi 1 goal each
RLF: Zach Page 20 Saves MB: Will Johnson 48 Saves

RALPH ENGELSTAD CLASSIC (THIEF RIVER FALLS, MN)

Quarterfinals:

Virginia/MI-Buhl 10, Mansfield (TX) 0 (GAME #1)

V: Troy Nichols/Chris Westin/Chris Belobaba 2g, 1a ea, Gavin Nichols 2g
V: Josh Lundberg 1g, 1a, Garrett Hendrickson 1g, 2a
V: Will Lustig 10 Saves M: Aaron Peart 20 Saves/Kevin Scheer 17 Saves

East Grand Forks 4, St. Louis Park 3 (GAME #2)

EGF: Jake Useldinger GWG, 1 assist, Enrique Gutierrez 1g, 1a
EGF: Mac Useldinger/Cory Mack 1 goal each
SLP: Colin Petit 1 goal, 1 assist, Sean Robb/Marcus Voss 1 goal each
EGF: Kyle Storbakken 25 Saves SLP: Mickey Hills 28 Saves
EGF: Jake Useldinger scored the game-winning goal w/21 sec left in the 2nd period

Crookston 4, Spring Lake Park 0 (GAME #3)

Hermantown 3, Thief River Falls 2 (GAME #4)

Hermantown outshot Thief River Falls 36-18

HIBBING INVITATIONAL (HIBBING MEMORIAL ARENA, MN)

First Round

Chaska 7, Greenway 0
Grand Rapids 4, Lakeville North 2
Hibbing-Chisholm 5, Bemidji 1

HC: Aaron Jamnick 2 sh goals (1 3x5), 1a; Nick DeCenzo/Eric LaLiberte/Spencer Peratello 1 goal each
B: Max Hazelton 1 goal
HC: Nathan Tromp 17 Saves B: Jeremiah Graves 31 Saves

Roseau Holiday Classic (Roseau, MN)

Round-Robin Format:

Alexandria 6, Northfield 1
Roseau 8, Lake of the Woods 2


R: M Koenig 2 goals, Tyler Landman 1g, 2a; S Ohmdal/T Baumgartner/C Kostrzewski 1g, 1a ea, T Teserak/Z Johnson 1g each
LOW: J Westerlund & S Pepera 1 goal each
R: B Wrightsman (17M) 3 Svs of 5 / E Kvidt (34M) 12 Svs of 12
LOW: A Lyon 38 Saves

Wadena-Deer Creek Tournament (Wadena, MN)

Round Robin Format:

Mora/Hinckley-Finlayson 10, Wahpeton (ND) 1
Wadena-Deer Creek 11, Walker-Hackensack-Akeley 4


"Home of Hockey" Holiday Showcase (The Hippodrome, Eveleth, MN)

Quarterfinals:

Game 1: North Metro 4, Irondale 2
Game 2: Monticello/A/ML vs. Kittson Central - No Report
Game 3: Park Rapids Area 4, Eveleth-Gilbert/Mesabi East 1

Saturday, December 27, 2008

All (11) Section 8A Teams In Tournament Action Across The Northern Tier Of Minnesota On Monday, December 29, 2008


Hibbing Invitational (Hibbing Memorial Building, Hibbing, MN)

Chaska vs. Greenway, 3:00 PM
Grand Rapids vs. Lakeville North, 5:30 PM
Bemidji vs. Hibbing/Chisholm, 8:00 PM

“Home of Hockey” Holiday Showcase (The Hippodrome, Eveleth)

North Metro vs. Irondale, 4:00 PM
Monticello/A/ML vs. Kittson Central, 6:00 PM
Park Rapids Area vs. Eveleth-Gilbert/ME, 8:00 PM

Northern Lakes Tournament (Breezy Point Ice Arena, MN)

Bagley/Fosston vs. Northern Lakes, 12:00 PM
Morris/Benson Area vs. Red Lake Falls, 3:00 PM

Ralph Engelstad Classic (Ralph Engelstad Arena, TRF)

Virginia/Mountain Iron-Buhl vs. Mansfield (TX), 12:00 PM
East Grand Forks vs. St. Louis Park, 2:30 PM
Crookston vs. Spring Lake Park, 5:00 PM
Hermantown vs. Thief River Falls, 7:30

Roseau Hockey Classic (Roseau Memorial Arena)

Northfield vs. Alexandria, 5:30 PM
Lake of the Woods at Roseau, 7:30 PM

Wadena-Deer Creek Tournament (Wadena Comm Center, MN)

Mora/H-F vs. Wahpeton (ND), 4:30 PM
Wadena-Deer Creek vs. Walker-H-A, 7:15 PM

Hockeytown Hockey Classic XVI (The Gardens Arena, MN)

Osseo vs. Grafton/Park River (ND), 5:00 PM
Fargo North (ND) at Warroad, 7:30 PM

Wednesday, December 24, 2008

Bemidji's Jesse Nemgar Nets GWG To Lift Lumberjacks Over Broncos; Crookston's Matt Grove Shut-Outs Panthers In Exciting Section 8A Action On 12/23/08

( Bemidji 3, International Falls 2 )

B: Jesse Nemgar GWG, 1 assist, Jared Bergquist 2 goals
IF: Josh Leinum 1 goal, 1 assist, Jacob Casareto 1 goal, Matt Youso 1 assist
B: Jeremiah Graves 27 Saves
IF: Mike Hart 16 Saves
B: Jesse Nemgar scored the game-winning goal w/49 seconds left (off his skate)

( Crookston 3, Park Rapids Area 0 )

C: Alan Mart/Nick Regeimbal/Michael Alwender 1 goal each, Seth Heppner 2 assists
C: Matt Grove Shutout 22 Saves
PR: Brady Yrjo 40 Saves

Tuesday, December 23, 2008

Class A State Rankings Courtesy Of FollowThePuck.com

Class A Rankings

FollowThePuck.com

2008-2009 Rankings
12/22/08


1. Little Falls (6A) 6-0-0
2. Warroad (8A) 7-0-0
3. Hermantown (5A) 7-0-0
4. St. Thomas Academy (4A) 5-1-0
5. Rochester Lourdes (1A) 5-1-0
6. Breck School (2A) 3-2-0
7. Thief River Falls (8A) 5-1-1
8. St. Cloud Cathedral (5A) 5-2-0
9. New Prague (1A) 4-2-0
10. Alexandria (6A) 3-2-0
11. South St. Paul (4A) 5-2-1
12. Mahtomedi (4A) 5-2-0
13. Hibbing/Chisholm (7A) 4-3-0
14. International Falls (7A) 4-3-1
15. Virginia/MI-B (7A) 5-3-0
16. Duluth Marshall (7A) 3-3-0
17. Red Wing (1A) 3-3-0
18. Duluth Denfeld (5A) 4-4-0
19. Totino-Grace (4A) 4-2-1
20. Albert Lea (1A) 4-1-0

On watch: Mankato West (1A) 4-2-0, Orono (2A) 2-4-0, Bemidji (8A) 4-3-0, East Grand Forks (8A) 4-3-0, Rogers (2A) 3-3-0, Hutchinson (3A) 5-0-0, Crookston (8A) 4-3-0, Spring Lake Park (4A) 3-2-0, Sartell-St. Stephen (6A) 2-3-0

East Grand Forks Nets Win Prior To Christmas Break; Gutierrez Explodes With A Hat Trick / 2 Helpers; LOW Shuts Out Prairie Center 4-0

(East Grand Forks 7, Red Lake Falls 2 )

EGF: Enrique (Henry) Gutierrez Hat Trick, 2a, Zach Srnsky & Jake Useldinger 1g, 1a
EGF: Tucker Poolman & Casey Ristau 1 goal each
RLF: Cody Hanson 1g, 1a, Adam Skala/Garrett Schmitz/Channing Sandberg 1g
EGF: Kyle Storbakken 23 Saves RLF: Zach Page 27 Saves

( Lake of the Woods Bears 4, Prairie Center 0 )

LOW: Josh Smart 1g + 2a; Jordan Hanson 1g; Shae Pepera 1g; Jalen Stay 1g
LOW: Goaltender Alex Lyon 1a; 12 saves

Monday, December 22, 2008

Section 8A Final Scores / Recaps From Ice Action On Saturday, December 20, 2008

( Crookston 3, Duluth Denfeld 2 )

C: Morgan Terpstra GWG, 1 assist, Alan Mart 2 goals
DD: Cody Hotchkin 1 goal, 1 assist, Josh Wentz 1 goal
C: Morgan Terpstra scored the game-winning goal with 13 seconds left in the 3rd
C: Matt Grove 42 Saves DD: Matt Messina 15 Saves

( St. Cloud Cathedral 6, Lake of the Woods 2 )

SCC: Jordan Palusky 2 goals, Alex Koopmeiners 1g, 2a, Nate Schmidt 1g, 1a
LOW: Travis Mollberg & Cody Hasbargen 1 goal each
SCC: Nick Maiers 17 Saves LOW: Alex Lyon 44 Saves

MISSING SCORES / POSTPONEMENTS

Walker-Hackensack-Akeley at Mora/H-F, 3:00 PM Mora Civic Center

Saturday, December 20, 2008

Final Scores / Recaps From Friday Night Hockey In Section 8A On December 19, 2008

( Bemidji 4, Fergus Falls 2 )

B: Max Hazelton 2 goals, 1 assist, Matt Hietala 1 goal, Jared Bergquist 1 goal
B: Brett Dokken 29 Saves

( Detroit Lakes 12, Walker-Hackensack-Akeley 4 )

DL: Tanner Lane 4 goals, 5 assists, Alex Phelps Hat Trick, 1 a
DL: Davis Johnson/Brett Provo 1g, 1aWHA: Jake Karst Hat Trick, 1 assist, Daniel Nelson 1 goal
DL: B Murphy 21 Saves WHA: Micah Bank 33 Saves

Park Rapids Area 6, Wadena-Deer Creek 2
Thief River Falls 2, International Falls 2
Warroad 10, East Grand Forks 3

Kittson Central at Fort Frances (no score reported)
Lake of the Woods at Prairie Centre Arena (no score reported)

Friday, December 19, 2008

Section 8A Games On Tap For Friday, December 19, 2008

Detroit Lakes at Walker-Hackensack-Akeley, 7:00 PM, Walker Comm Center
Fergus Falls at Bemidji, 7:30 PM, Nymore Arena
International Falls at Thief River Falls, 7:30 PM, Ralph Engelstad Arena
Kittson Central at Fort Frances (ON, CN), 7:00 PM, F.F. Mem Sports Centre
Lake of the Woods at Prairie Centre Area, 5:15 PM, Sauk Centre Civic Arena
Wadena-Deer Creek at Park Rapids, 7:30 PM, Park Rapids Comm Center
Warroad at East Grand Forks, 7:30 PM, EGF Civic Center

Section 8A Final Scores / Recaps From Action On Thursday, December 18, 2008

Courtesy of FollowThePuck.com:

( East Grand Forks 8, Devils Lake (ND) 2 )

EGF: Zach Srnsky Hat Trick, 1 assist, Gutierrez 2g, 1a, Mack 2g, M Useldinger 1g, 3a
DL: T Roed & T Hoffmeyer 1 goal each
EGF: Beau Scheving 15 Saves DL: J Janzen 30 Saves

( Thief River Falls 2, Bemidji 1 )

TRF: Lucas Dillon & Jesse Castle 1 goal each
B: Rylee Curb 1 goal, Maggert & Hietala 1 assist each
TRF: Zane Gothberg 29 Saves B: Jeremiah Graves 26 Saves

Thursday, December 18, 2008

Section 8A Games For Thursday, December 18, 2008

Devils Lake (ND) at East Grand Forks, 7:30 PM, EGF Civic Center
Thief River Falls at Bemidji, 7:30 PM, Nymore Arena

Section 8A Rankings Per FollowThePuck.com For December 18, 2008


1. Warroad | defeated Mound-Westonka, Orono, LOW, Hibbing, Greenway, Bemidji
2. Thief River Falls | defeated Totino-Grace, Blake, St. Paul Johnson
3. Bemidji | defeated East Grand Forks in OT, St. Cloud Apollo, Monticello
4. East Grand Forks | defeated Lake of the Woods & Park Rapids
5. Crookston | defeated Red Lake Falls, Kittson Central, and SP Johnson
6. Park Rapids Area
7. Lake of the Woods
8. Red Lake Falls
9. Kittson Central
10. Walker-Hackensack-Akeley
11. Bagley/Fosston

Wednesday, December 17, 2008

Red Lake Falls Eagles Soar To 6-2 Victory Over Kittson-Central & The Remainder Of Section 8A (Scores / Recaps) From Tuesday, December 16, 2008

Reports Courtesy Of Follow The Puck:

( Red Lake Falls 6, Kittson-Central 2)

Red Lake Falls defeated Kittson Central Tuesday night, 6-2. Five of the six goals were scored by three freshmen and one sophomore: Adam Skala (9) 2 goals, A Jahnke (9) 1 goal, 2 assists, Zutz (9) 1g, 1a, and Jahnke (10) 1 goal, 3 assists. Was it a fluke??? Against Bagley Fosston, 7-0: Skala 2 goals, Zutz 1 goal, 2 assists, and Glass (10) 4 assists. Still not convinced??? Against Wahpeton, ND, 8-0: Skala 4 goals, 1 assist, Schmitz 2 goals, Glass 4 assists. Could the Eagles be on their way up???

( Detroit Lakes 3, Park Rapids Area 2 )

DL: Tanner Lane, Nate Baker 1 goal, 1 assist, Ethan Brekke 1 goalPR: Tucker Coborn & Brandon Mickelson 1 goal each
DL: Andrew Friesen 31 Saves
PR: Brady Yrjo 26 Saves
DL: Tanner Lane scored the GWG with 1:45 remaining in the 3rd

( International Falls 4, Lake of the Woods 1 )

IF: Jace Baldwin 1 goal, 1 assist, M Bounds 2a, Little/Ruelle/Hofius 1 goal each
LOW: Joncarlo Westerlund 1 goal
IF: Mike Hart 29 Saves
LOW: Alex Lyon 30 Saves

( Warroad 7, Bemidji 1 )

W: Brock Nelson Hat Trick, Chris Sylvester 2 goals, D Shaugabay & T Larson 1g,1a ea
B: Will Bruestle 1 goal
W: Jason Goldsmith B: Derek Dudgeon

Saturday, December 13, 2008

Section 8A Scores (Recaps) For Games On Saturday, December 13, 2008

Bemidji 4, St. Cloud Apollo 3
East Grand Forks 5, Lake-of-the-Woods 0
Blake School 4, Crookston 2
Thief River Falls 9, St. Paul Johnson 1
St. Paul Saints 4, Park Rapids Area 2
Wadena-Deer Creek at Kittson Central (no score reported)
Warroad 8, Greenway-Coloraine 1

Section 8A Scores From Friday, December 12, 2008

Crookston 3, St. Paul Johnson 2
Ely/Babbitt 6, Walker-Hackensack-Akeley 4
Prairie Centre Area 7, Bagley/Fosston 0
Red Lake Falls 8, Wahpeton/Breckenridge (ND) 0
St. Paul Como Park 5, Park Rapids Area 3
Thief River Falls 5, Blake School 2
Warroad 5, Hibbing/Chisholm 0

Friday, December 12, 2008

Upcoming Section 8A Games This Weekend On December 12-13, 2008

Friday, December 12, 2008:

Blake School at Thief River Falls, 7:30 PM, Ralph Engelstad Arena
Ely/B-E/T-S at Walker-H-A, 7:30, Walker Comm Center
Prairie Area at Bagley-Fosston, 6:00 PM, Albert Kaiser Arena
Red Lake Falls at Wahpeton (ND), 7:00 PM, Sterns Sports Arena
St. Paul Como Park at Park Rapids, 7:00 PM, Park Rapids Arena
St. Paul Johnson at Crookston, 7:30 PM, Crookston Civic Arena
Warroad at Hibbing, 7:30 PM, Hibbing Memorial Building

Saturday, December 13, 2008:

Bemidji at St. Cloud Apollo, 1:00 PM, St. Cloud MAC Arena
Blake School at Crookston, 3:00 PM, Crookston Civic Arena
St. Paul Johnson at Thief River Falls, 3:00 PM, Ralph Engelstad Arena
St. Paul Saints at Park Rapids Area, 2:00 PM, Park Rapids Center
Wadena-Deer Creek at Kittson Central, 2:00 PM, Hallock Ice Arena
Warroad at Greenway-Colaraine, 4:15 PM, Hodgins-Berardo Arena

Section 8A Standings As Of December 11, 2008

Pos Team
vs. 8A





Overall






1A

2A

3A

4A

5A

6A

7A

1
Crookston
2-0-0





2-1-0






0-0-0

0-0-0

0-0-0
0-0-0
0-0-0
0-0-0
0-0-0
2
Warroad
1-0-0




3-0-0





0-0-0
2-0-0
0-0-0
0-0-0
0-0-0
0-0-0
0-0-0
3
Bemidji
1-0-0





2-1-0






0-0-0

0-0-0

0-0-0

0-0-0

0-0-0

0-0-0

0-0-0

4
Park Rapids Area
1-1-0




3-1-0





0-0-0
0-0-0
0-0-0
0-0-0
0-0-0
0-0-0
1-0-0
5
East Grand Forks
1-1-0




2-2-0





0-0-0
0-0-0
0-0-0
0-0-0
0-0-0
0-0-0
0-0-0
6
Lake of the Woods
1-1-0





2-2-0






0-0-0

1-1-0

0-0-0

0-0-0

0-0-0

0-0-0

0-0-0

7
Red Lake Falls
1-1-0




1-2-0





0-0-0
0-0-0
0-0-0
0-0-0
0-0-0
0-0-0
0-0-0
8
Thief River Falls
0-0-0




2-1-0





0-0-0
0-0-0
0-0-0
2-0-0
0-0-0
0-0-0
0-0-0
9
Bagley/Fosston
0-1-0




0-2-0





0-0-0
0-0-0
0-0-0
0-0-0
0-0-0
0-0-0
0-0-0
10
Walker-H-A
0-1-0




0-2-0





0-0-0
0-0-0
0-0-0
0-0-0
0-0-0
0-0-0
0-0-0
11
Kittson Central
0-2-0




0-2-0





0-0-0
0-0-0
0-0-0
0-0-0
0-0-0
0-0-0
0-0-0















0-0-0
3-1-0
0-0-0
2-0-0
0-0-0
0-0-0
1-0-0

Section 8A Scores From Thursday, December 11, 2008

Moorhead 7, Bemidji 1
Roseau 6, East Grand Forks 1

Thursday, December 11, 2008

Class A Rankings Week Of December 8, 2008

Courtesy Of Minnesota Boy's Hockey Website

1. Warroad 3-0-0
2. Mahtomedi 2-0-0
3. Duluth Marshall 2-1-0
4. St. Thomas Academy 1-1-0
5. Breck 2-2-0
6. Little Falls 3-0-0
7. St. Cloud Cathedral 3-1-0
8. Red Wing 1-2-0
9. Rogers 1-2-0
10. Virginia/Mountain Iron-Buhl 2-2-0
11. Thief River Falls 2-1-0
12. Totino-Grace 2-1-1
13. Alexandria 1-1-0
14. Orono 2-1-0
15. Hermantown 3-0-0
16. Duluth Denfeld 3-1-0
17. New Prague 2-2-0
18. Rochester Lourdes 1-1-0
19. South St. Paul 3-1-0
20. Albert Lea 2-0-0*
21. Spring Lake Park 1-2-0
22. St. Michael-Albertville 1-2-0
23. Mound-Westonka 1-2-0
24. Hibbing/Chisholm 3-2-0
25. Sartell-St. Stephen 1-1-0

Section 8A Scores From Tuesday, December 9, 2008

Crookston 10, Kittson Central 2
Northern Lakes 12, Walker-H-A 0
Park Rapids Area 5, Greenway 2
Red Lake Falls 7, Bagley/Fosston 0
Warroad 3, Lake of the Woods 0

Section 8A Scores From Saturday, December 6, 2008


East Grand Forks 6, Park Rapids Area 4
Northern Lakes 6, Red Lake Falls 0
Thief River Falls 6, Minnehaha Academy 1
Warroad 4, Orono 0
Mound-Westonka at Lake of the Woods
Ely/B-E/T-S at Bagley/Fosston

Section 8A Scores From Friday, December 5, 2008

Bemidji 6, Monticello/A/ML 2
Brainerd/P/P 3, Crookston 1
Orono 7, Lake of the Woods 3
Park Rapids Area 8, Walker-H-A 1
Thief River Falls 3, Totino-Grace 0
Warroad 4, Mound-West 2

Wednesday, December 3, 2008

Section 8A Game Final Scores On Tuesday, December 1, 2008

Northern Lakes 10, Bagley 0
Bemidji 3, E. Grand Forks 2 (F-OT)
Crookston 6, Red Lake Falls 3
Lake of the Woods 6, Kittson Central 1
Roseau 3, Thief River Falls 1

Monday, December 1, 2008

Welcome To The 2008-09 Section 8A Boy's Hockey Season

By: Timothy Oshie


As the leaves fall and the thermostat dips below 10 degrees, that's usually the sign that Minnesota high school hockey is right around the corner.

Tomorrow night, will mark the official opening of the 2008-09 season in Section 8A.

Here are the games featured on December 2, 2008:

Bagley-Fosston at Northern Lakes, 7:00 PM, Breezy Point Ice Arena

Bemidji at East Grand Forks, 7:30 PM, East Grand Forks Civic Center
Crookston at Red Lake Falls, 7:30 PM,. Cardin-Hunt Arena
Lake of the Woods at Kittson Central, 7:00 PM, Hallock Ice Arena
Thief River Falls at Roseau, 7:30 PM, Roseau Memorial Arena


Here are the games featured on Thursday, December 4, 2008:


Grand Forks Red River (ND) at East Grand Forks, 7:30 PM, EGF Civic Center



Here are the games featured on Friday, December 5, 2008:

Bemidji at Monticello-Annandale- Maple Lake, 7:15 PM, Moose Sherritt Arena

Crookston at Brainerd-Pillager-Pierz, 7:00 PM, Brainerd Civic Center
Mound-Westonka at Warroad, 7:30 PM, The Gardens Arena

Orono at Lake of the Woods, 7:00 PM, Baudette Arena
Thief River Falls at Totino-Grace, 7:00 PM, Parade Ice Garden

Walker-Hackensack-Akeley at Park Rapids, 7:00 PM, Park Rapids Center


Here are the games featured on Saturday, December 6, 2008:


East Grand Forks at Park Rapids Area, 4:00 PM, Park Rapids Comm Center
Mound-Westonka at Lake of the Woods, 3:00 PM, Baudette Arena

Northern Lakes at Red Lake Falls, 2:00 PM, Cardin-Hunt Arena

Orono at Warroad, 2:15 PM, The Gardens Arena

Thief River Falls at Minnehaha Academy, 2:00 PM, Minnehaha Arena



Thursday, August 7, 2008

2008 Oshie Sports Celebrity Golf Tournament Photo


From L to R Top Row: Barrett Wilson, Phil Lamoureux, Matt Jones, Brad Berry, Landon Wilson, Scott Hartnell, Erik Fabian

From L to R Kneeling: Jeff Bowen, Cary Eades, Dane Jackson, T.J. Oshie, Dave Hakstol, Chris Porter, Matt Smaby

Monday, April 7, 2008

Keeway Gaaboo .... A Symbol Of Pride For Fighting Sioux


For Immediate Press Release
Monday, April 07, 2008
Grand Forks, ND

Keeway Gaaboo … A Symbol Of Pride For Fighting Sioux

Boo-Zhoo (Hello) In Ojibwe Language

The journey of T.J. Oshie has many twists and turns along the beaten path since 1991.

From 1991-2002, Oshie was a member of the Seattle Jr. Hockey NW Admirals AAA Hockey Club who participated in the Pacific Coast Amateur Hockey Association, based in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.

For Oshie, it was a vision of things to come in his young career.

In the summer of 2002, Oshie traveled along with his family to attend the Hockeytown USA Hockey School in Warroad, Minnesota. When he left, he knew the Warroad H.S. Warriors were his destiny.

Prior to his arrival in 2002, Oshie, along with his father, Timothy, brother Taylor and sister, Tawni, each received their Ojibwe names from a spiritual elder named Joseph Big George, from the Buffalo Point Reserve in Canada. The Oshie’ met with Big George in a Pow-Wow a week earlier at the Buffalo Point. They presented him tobacco in his sacred bag located next to his spiritual drum. From there, Big George smoked the tobacco and dreamt of each of their names within a week. Oshie’ cousin, former NHL player, Henry Boucha, gathered family and friends to witness the sacred ceremony of the Oshie’ earning their namesakes in Ojibwe.

The ceremony had spiritual overtones to it as T.J. was given the Ojibwe name, Keeway Gaaboo, meaning in English translation, “Coming Home”. Little did Oshie realize he was following in the footsteps of grandfathers Richard and Buster Oshie, great-great- uncle Max Jones and great-uncle Max Oshie and the proud lineage to the Chief, Na-May-A-Poke, who is T.J.’s great-great-great grandfather. All were born and raised in Warroad, MN, and were hockey legends back in 1930’s and 1940’s. Boucha, a second cousin, later in 1972 became the first of the descendents to reach the National Hockey League.

A couple years later, cousin Gary Sargent became a member of the Los Angeles Kings and later the Minnesota North Stars before his retirement in 1983.

The other members of the Oshie lineage include Kaa-Kaa-Gee-Sick, the medicine man who lived to be 120 years old before his death in 1968; Little Thunder (Boucha’s direct lineage); and Laughing Mary, the only daughter to A-Osh-A-Wash, the original Chief of the Warroad Band of Chippewa Indians from the mid-1800’s.

His grandfather, the late Richard Oshie, had passionately spoke about the Warroad mystique and subsequently interested the younger Oshie with his stories and depictions of one of Minnesota’s most storied hockey programs.

After the passing of the elder Oshie in 2001, T.J. visualized Warroad, Minnesota, as being his opportunity of a lifetime to proudly don the Warrior crest on his new jersey. After the two-week camp in Warroad, Oshie ventured back to Washington, to officially prepare him for his next journey in his young hockey career, to play for the Warroad Warriors.

Once there, he made the most of his opportunity leading the fabled Warrior hockey program to three, consecutive Minnesota State High School Hockey Tournaments from 2003-05. In those three seasons, Oshie would capture two, Minnesota Class “A” titles and earn All-Tournament Team honors each season. In the 2005 championship tilt, he set up teammate Aaron Marvin while diving on his stomach for a loose puck just after a face-off. The play was in the second overtime session versus Totino-Grace of Fridley and led to the game winning goal by Marvin. The play personified Oshie’ character, so much, that the St. Louis Blues selected him as their 2005 NHL 1st round draft choice.

Next for the young Oshie was entering the University of North Dakota as a true freshman later that summer and become a member of the Fighting Sioux Hockey Family.

The young Oshie solidified his worth of why he was a St. Louis Blues draftee. And it didn’t take long either. After garnering a goal and assist versus Miami (Ohio) in his first game, he would go on to earn 45 points in the very difficult Western Collegiate Hockey League and secure a spot on the WCHA’s All-Rookie Team.

With the lineage that dates back to the early settler’s era of Minnesota, it’s clear that T.J. Oshie is the symbol of Native America for both the Warroad Warriors and the University of North Dakota Fighting Sioux. Even though the Sioux were opponents to the Chippewa’s around Warroad’s River and the southern shores of Lake-of-the-Woods, the lineage of Oshie’ ancestry remains strong and forthright.

Oshie will take his Fighting Sioux into battle this Thursday, April 10, 2008, with the hopes of capturing a NCAA Men’s Hockey championship. He will be one of twenty-five dedicated young men to proudly wear that coveted Fighting Sioux sweater and battle the likes of Boston College, Michigan and Notre Dame.

And if you listen very closely at the Pepsi Center in Denver, Colorado, the site of the 2008 NCAA Frozen Four Men’s Hockey Championships, this weekend, you might just hear the battle cry’s of Oshie’ proud heritage. Mind you, this time as a member of the Fighting Sioux, and not as a proud Warroad Warrior.

Miigwetch Niigee (Many Thanks My Friends) In Ojibwe Language

Wednesday, March 12, 2008

2008 All - Northwest Conference Selections

Courtesy of Northwest Conference Headquarters:

The following players have been selected to the All Northwest Conference Team. The players were selected on a vote from the Conference Coaches.

Goalies:
Scott Lindegard Kittson Central
Alex Lyon LOW

Defense:
Nolan Knott RLF
Kyle Horntvedt LOW
Jalen Stay LOW
Nick Lindegard Kittson Central

Forwards:
Danny Usiski LOW
Casey Cardinal RLF
Jon Carlo Westerland LOW
Craig Lindegard Kittson Central
Kellen Albrecht Kittson Central
Lukas Dahl Kittson Central

Coach of the Year: Scott Younggren Kittson Central
Assist. Coach of the Year: Jason Olson Kittson Central

2008 All - Mariucci Conference Team Selections


Courtesy of Mariucci Conference Headquarters:

The following players have been selected to the All - Mariucci Conference Team. The players were selected on a vote from the Conference Coaches.

Goalie:
Michael Lee Roseau
Matt Grove Crookston

Defense:
Aaron Ness Roseau
Ben Ammerman Moorhead
Spencer Johnson Thief River Falls
Tai Larson Warroad

Forwards:
Bryce Ravndalen Warroad
Dustin Moser Roseau
Ben Nelson Roseau
Nick Oliver Roseau
Joe Becker Moorhead
Nick Thielen Moorhead

Coach of the Year: Scott Oliver Roseau
Assistant Coach of the Year: Andy Lundbohm Roseau

2008 All - Section 8A Team Selections

Courtesy of Section 8A Hockey Headquarters:

The following players have been selected to the 8A All Section Team. The players were selected on a vote from the Section Coaches.

Goalie:
Alex Christiansen East Grand Forks
Matt Grove Crookston

Defense:
Spencer Johnson Thief River Falls
Kody Vizenor East Grand Forks
Tai Larson Warroad
Kevin McMorrow Park Rapids
Curtis Tolle Park Rapids
Mark McDonald Warroad

Forwards:
Zach Lehrke Park Rapids
Bryce Ravndalen Warroad
Jake Useldinger East Grand Forks
Jeremy Hahn Warroad
Joey Wikoff East Grand Forks
Dane Shaugabay Warroad
John Grabanski East Grand Forks
Danny Usiski Lake of The Woods
Lukas Dahl Kittson Central

Coach of the Year: Pete Stanke - Park Rapids
Assistant Coach of the Year: Derek Lehrke - Park Rapids

Sunday, March 9, 2008

MINNESOTA STATE CLASS A HOCKEY: Warroad Earns 3rd Place With OT Thriller Over St. Cloud Cathedral

Courtesy of Grand Forks Herald:

By: Kevin Fee, Staff Writer

ST. PAUL — Warroad had strong incentive in the third-place game at the Minnesota state Class A boys hockey tournament.

The Warriors wanted to end the season with a win, and they also wanted to top last year’s fourth-place state finish.

Mission accomplished.

Dane Shaugabay scored in overtime to lift Warroad to a 2-1 victory against St. Cloud Cathedral in the tournament’s third-place game Saturday morning in the Xcel Energy Center.

Shaugabay’s goal came at 3 minutes, 38 seconds. The junior tipped a teammate’s shot from the point through the legs of Cathedral goaltender Nick Maiers.

Warroad ended its season at 24-7. St. Cloud Cathedral finished at 23-7-1.

Cathedral thought the game-winner might have been knocked in with a high stick. But the officials thought otherwise.

“From what I could see it wasn’t a high stick,” Warroad co-coach Bruce Olson said. “They thought it was a high stick. It looked like it was right even with his waist.”

Shaugabay has a nose for the net.

“I just kind of tipped it, and it went through the goalie’s five-hole,” Shaugabay said.

The teams traded second-period goals to set up the finish.

Bryce Ravndalen scored for the Warriors just 55 seconds into the second on a power play. Then T.J. Poganski tied it at 5:52 on an unassisted goal.

“We started a little slow, but as the game went on I think we got better and better,” Shaugabay said.

Senior Garrett Corneliusen received the start in goal for Warroad after Jared Paquin played the first two games. Corneliusen was solid, making 16 saves.

Maiers finished with 19 stops.

Olson was pleased his team’s performance at state.

“We played three very good games,” he said. “I think we represented Section 8A quite well.”

Ravndalen was named to the all-tournament team and also won the Class A Herb Brooks Award. It goes to the player in the tournament who possesses all the characteristics, values and traits that exemplify those of the late Herb Brooks, who coached the U.S. Olympic hockey team to a gold medal in 1980.

Warroad’s Mark McDonald also made the all-tournament team.

Warroad 2,
St. Cloud
Cathedral 1, OT
Key play: Dane Shaugabay’s game-winning goal.
Key player: Bryce Ravndalen, 1 goal.

Saturday, March 8, 2008

2008 1st Annual Hockeytown USA Section 8A / 8AA Hockey Classic



Contact:
Brian EricksonWarroad Memorial Arena Association
218-386-1430 (ext. 1224)
Email: brianeric@marvin.com
NEWS RELEASE

HOCKEYTOWN HOCKEY CLASSIC SECTION 8 ALL-STAR ROSTERS RELEASED

WARROAD MN, March 5, 2008 – The 1st Annual Hockeytown Hockey Classic Section 8 All-Star Game will be held at The Gardens arena on Tuesday, March 11, 2008. The event will include both a girl’s and a boy’s game and will feature the Section 8A all-stars competing against those from Section 8AA. The event organizers are excited to announce the final rosters (please see below). Headlining the event will be Sarah Erickson (Bemidji), 2008 Ms. Hockey winner, and Zach Lehrke (Park Rapids) and Drew Olson (Brainerd), 2008 Mr. Hockey finalists. The girl’s all-star game will begin at 6 p.m. and the boys will follow at 8 p.m.





































Wednesday, March 5, 2008

LIVE BLOG FROM XCEL ENERGY CENTER IN ST. PAUL: Warroad Dominates Litchfield, Earns 4-0 Victory To Advance To Semi's vs. Duluth Marshall

PERIOD 3 RECAP:

By: Timothy Oshie
Publisher

Warroad, who has won Class A titles in 1994, 1996, 2003 and 2005, looked like a veteran, tournament-tested team on this day as they dominated from start to finish.

The Warriors held a 3-0 lead coming into the final period and extended that to 4-0 on a rebound goal by sophomore, Brock Nelson. It was Nelson' 14th goal on the season and first in the state tournament. Pieper and Knox each picked up an assist to give them a pair of helpers.

Warroad displayed a "Warrior style" type of defense once again that the state tournament committee has came to love. In the last five appearances, Warroad has only given up (5) goals in the last five quarter-final games ('03 4-1 over Fergus Falls; '04 1-2 OT loss to Orono; '05 6-1 over Albert Lea; '07 3-1 over Albert Lea; '08 4-0 over Litchfield/D-C).

For Warroad, making their 19th appearance in the winter classic builds it's character with team defense.Senior goaltender Jared Paquin, steered aside all 10 shots and earned his 17th win on the season (17-3-0). He now has 5 shut-outs in the last 6 games.

Warroad peppered Lucas Johnson with 39 shots.Warroad will face the Marshall School Hilltoppers of Duluth in the Class A semi-finals on Friday morning at 11 a.m. at the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, Minn.

For a full recap / boxscore / real time stats please log on to:

http://mshsl.org/mshsl/showgameinfo.asp?game=285426

BLOG UPDATE FROM ST. PAUL: Warroad Extends Lead To 3-0 On Mark McDonald Blast

PERIOD 2 RECAP:

By: Timothy Oshie
Publisher

Warroad jumped out of the gate to start the second period of play from the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul.

Senior blueliner, Mark McDonald, scored on a 55-foot blast from the right point to push Warroad's lead to 3-0 just 2:22 into the second stanza. McDonalds goal was assisted by Micky Knox and Brock Nelson. John Hellquist provided the screen and jumped out of the way of the puck just before McDonalds blast went top shelf of "grandma's cookie jar". It was McDonalds second goal in three games with his ovetime game-winner over Thief River Falls in 2OT last Saturday night.

McDonalds goal was the second power-play tally for Warroad.

The Warriors outshot Litchfield 15-5 in the second period and have a 27-8 bulge for the game.

BLOG UPDATE FROM ST. PAUL: Warroad Uses Brawn To Lead 2-0 After One @ The Xcel



PERIOD 1 RECAP:

By: Timothy Oshie
Publisher


Warroad is known for Walleyes, Windows and Hockeysticks. Now, you'd have to also use phrases like "Main Street Bullies" to the addage as Warroad used grit and toughness in the first period of play against Litchfield.

The Warriors jumped out to a 1-0 lead on a Jeremy Hahn tip-in goal off the blast from Eric Milbridge. Hahn located himself in the mid-slot right and redirected the puck past Lucas Johnson to open the scoring for Warroad. Hahn also scored the first goal of the 2007 MN State High School Tournament against Albert Lea. Junior Dane Shaugabay also assisted on Hahn's tally as he whistled a pass to Milbridge off a Litchfield turnover.

Late in the opening stanza, senior winger Andy Pelland leveled a Litchfield Dragon defender but ended up taking the brunt of the collison. Play was stopped as Pelland gathered his senses at center ice.

Moments later, senior captainBryce Ravndalen took a Michael Pieper pass behind the Warroad cage and went in untouched as he weaved between several Dragon defenders. As he approached the goal mouth, Ravndalen juked and jived and shot the puck five-hole to beat Johnson. Pieper was the lone assist as the goal came at :08.4 left in the opening period.

Warroad outshot Litchfield 13-3 in the opening frame.

MINNESOTA STATE CLASS A HOCKEY TOURNAMENT: Work pays off for Warriors

Courtesy of Grand Forks Herald

By: Virg Foss, Special To The Herald

There are reasons why Warroad High School has won four Minnesota state hockey championships and 18 Section 8A titles, including five of the last six.
For starters, the players grow up in a town that bills itself as “Hockeytown USA.” That's clue No. 1.
“Every boy in town pretty much goes out for the hockey team,” said Warroad star senior forward Bryce Ravndalen. “It's our main sport. All the best athletes play hockey.”
That they do, and they play it well.
The Warriors (22-6) go after their first state title since 2005 on Wednesday, when they play Litchfield/Dassel-Cokato in the quarterfinals of the Minnesota state Class A tournament in the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul.
It's a team with big goals and a heavy heart. Former Warroad High School player Greg Knox died unexpectedly in Texas on Feb. 23 at age 37, just over a year after his young son was killed in an all-terrain vehicle accident.
Greg Knox was the uncle of Warroad forward Micky Knox, who sandwiched two trips to Texas to first see his ailing uncle, then attend his funeral, around playing in the Section 8A tournament.
As a show of support, his teammates are wearing decals with the names of Greg Knox and his son, Wade, on their helmets, as they begin state tournament play.
Walk into the Warroad Gardens and you'll see banners honoring Warroad's 18 section titles and four state crowns. It's an everyday reminder to the Warroad players of today of the great history and tradition of the program. “The history is all over ýPage=001 Column=004 Loose,0004.04þthe rink,” Ravndalen said.
The links to the past can be found in the present. Warroad forward Brock Nelson, for example, is the grandson of Warroad's Billy Christian, a star on the gold medal 1960 U.S. Olympic hockey team.
Warroad co-coach Bruce Olson once coached at rival Roseau High School, which is defending its state Class AA title at state this week. In his second year as co-coach with Albert Hasbargen in Warroad, Olson finds something special with Warroad's hockey players.
“The kids here are a tough, gritty bunch and they don't question anything you tell them as a coach,” Olson said. “There's no outside influence from the parents or the community, so you're free to make the decisions necessary for the betterment of the team. The best way I can say it is that our kids work hard, and they listen. As a coach, I never feel like I'm walking on egg shells. The kids come first.”
Ravndalen and his teammates buy into that. “What the coaches say goes,” Ravndalen said.
Warroad concludes every practice with 20 minutes of conditioning drills. It's not fun, but it's vital to Warrior success.
The extra work paid off in a 2-1 double-overtime victory over Thief River Falls in the Section 8 semifinals. “That's what won us that game,” Ravndalen said. “Thief River guys were beat, and we were still pounding away.”
After that game, Olson said several Warroad players came up to him and thanked him for putting them through the ordeal of the strenuous conditioning drills all season.
It's a program good enough over the years that four current NCAA Division I players (T.J. Oshie, UND; Kyle Hardwick, Bemidji State; Eric Olimb, Nebraska-Omaha; and Aaron Marvin (St. Cloud State) are products of Warroad High School hockey and members of the 2005 state championship team.
Dennis Fermoyle was co-coach at Warroad High School in 2005. Now, he coaches the junior varsity team and instructs the Warroad goalies, a position he once played.
“When I coached at Roseau, I always wondered why Warroad's goalies were always so good,” Olson said. “Watching Fermoyle work with them, I can see why. He keeps them calm and cool.”
Jared Paquin has taken over as No. 1 goalie for Warroad.
The Warriors have given up just one goal in their last five games. “When I first saw him play, I thought, ‘Boy, does he have a long way to go,'" Olson said. “He's become a very good goalie, thanks in large part to working with Dennis Fermoyle.”
Maybe the successful program stems from the great tradition established by players and coaches of the past. Maybe it comes from the gritty kids of today who listen to their coaches and pay the price of success.
Whatever it is, it works for Warroad - and has for a long time.

Sunday, March 2, 2008

Minnesota State Class "A" Boy's High School Hockey Tournament @ The Xcel Energy Center

Quarterfinals:

Location: Xcel Energy Center, St. Paul, MN

Date: March 5th, 2008

Upper Bracket:

Game 1: #2-Ranked Duluth Marshall vs. Mankato West, 11:00 AM
Game 2: #3-Ranked Warroad vs. Litchfield/Dassel-Cokato, 1:00 PM

Lower Bracket:

Game 3: #1-Ranked St. Thomas Academy vs. Little Falls, 6:00 PM
Game 4: #4-Ranked St. Cloud Cathedral vs. Blake School, 8:00 PM

Semifinals:

Locations: Xcel Energy Center, St. Paul and Mariucci Arena

Consolation Bracket:

Date: March 6th, 2008
Game 5: Loser Game 1 vs. Loser Game 2, 10:00 AM, Mariucci Arena
Game 6: Loser Game 3 vs. Loser Game 4, 12:00 PM, Mariucci Arena

Championship Bracket:

Date: March 7th, 2008

Game 7: Winner Game 1 vs. Winner Game 2, 11:00 AM, Xcel Energy Center
Game 8: Winner Game 3 vs. Winner Game 4, 1:00 PM, Xcel Energy Center

Finals:

Date: March 8th, 2008

Championship:
Winner Game 7 vs. Winner Game 8, 12:00 PM, Xcel Energy Center

Third Place Game:
Winner Game 5 vs. Winner Game 6, 9:00 AM, Xcel Energy Center

Consolation Game:
Loser Game 5 vs. Loser Game 6, 10:00 AM, Mariucci Arena

Friday, February 29, 2008

MINNESOTA SECTION 8A HOCKEY: Warroad Captures 6th Section 8A Title This Decade; Defeat EGF 2-0


Photos and story courtesy of Grand Forks Herald:

By: Kevin Fee, Herald Staff Writer

Warroad co-coach Albert Hasbargen couldn't confirm whether it was his team's fifth title in the past six years.

“I don't know, you'll have to look that up,” Hasbargen said.

The other Warrior co-coach, Bruce Olson, wasn't sure, either. He just knew it was two in a row.


Alex Christiansen stops Brett Hebel's shot

Bryce Ravndalen stretches for the puck

Brett Hebel looks at the Warriors second goal

Like their neighbor to the west down Minnesota Highway 11 did a night earlier in the same Ralph Engelstad Arena, the Warriors repeated as a section hockey champion Thursday night.


The Warriors scored two power-play goals in a span of 1 minute, 43 seconds and received 25 saves from Jared Paquin to defeat East Grand Forks Senior High 2-0 in the Section 8A boys hockey final.

And, yes, it is five titles in six years. Thief River Falls' title in 2006 interrupted the Warrior string. Senior High was looking for its first section title since 2002, when it defeated Warroad.
The Warriors take a 22-6 record into the state tournament, which begins Wednesday in St. Paul. They join neighbor Roseau, which plays in the state Class AA tournament beginning next Thursday in St. Paul.

MORE:
http://www.grandforksherald.com/articles/index.cfm?id=68957&section=sports

Thursday, February 28, 2008

The Section 8A Title Tilt At The Ralph Engelstad Arena


By: Timothy Oshie
Publisher

History will be made tonight as the 64th Section 8 (A) Champion will be crowned at the Ralph Engelstad Arena in Thief River Falls, Minnesota.

The first Section 8 champion was the Thief River Falls Thieves in 1945, and the inaugural Minnesota State High Hockey School Tournament held in the old St. Paul Auditorium. TRF lost a heartbreaker to the Eveleth Golden Bears, 4-3, in the championship tilt which jump started Eveleth's dynasty as we now know it.

Next came the Roseau who captured the 1946 and 1947 Section 8 titles and won it all in 1946 with a decisive, 6-0 victory over Rochester. In 1947, the Roseau lost in the championship game, 2-1, to St. Paul Johnson. In 1946, Roseau was known as the Green Wave and were led by Rube Bjorkman notching a hat trick in a 6-0 shutout win over Rochester. Bjorkman later went on to represent the United States in the 1948 and 1952 Winter Olympics games.

Warroad was the next to capture Section 8 as they marched to St. Paul in 1948 with their tandum of Chippewa Indian players Max Oshie, Buster Oshie, Albert Angus and Sam Gibbons. The Warriors would lose to Eveleth, 8-2, in the '48 championship game. The following year in 1949, Warroad once again captured the hearts of the Twin Cities but could only garner a Consolation Championship without the services of Max "Chief" Oshie to graduation.

The history of Section 8 hockey is deep and rich with legendary names who've planted the footsteps. Now, these kids tonight will try to put their names in the history books and march to the drum of Section 8A championship game participants.

The Legends of Section 8 are staples of every town and village in northern Minnesota. Player profile displays hanging in the lobbies of each arena and banners displayed from the rafters.

Tonight, the communities of East Grand Forks and Warroad will proudly display and wear those beautiful jerseys, hats, sweatshirts, jackets and other garments as face-paint (or perhaps body paint) will cover their skin. This coveted event called the Section 8A championship game is held in late-February of every hockey season since 1945. Tonight, each of these two communities will cheer on their beloved (Green Wave and Warriors) to the final horn.

In the end, one team will emerge and one team will not. It has been said that the greatest feats climbed always followed adversity. Tonight, Section 8A will showcase it's top teams in a vicous battle to earn the title. In the end, each athlete will leave with the memories, the comradery and the desire to be the best.

I'd like to extend my personal congratulations to the East Grand Forks Green Wave and Coach Cory Chupka's fantastic staff. The Green Wave, most recently, represented Section 8A in the 1998, 1999, 2001 and 2002 Minnesota State H.S. Championships. Also to Jim Scanlan, Athletic Director of East Grand Forks who was the mastermind behind those four Section 8A titles and state appearances.

On the other side, my personal congratulations to the Warroad Warriors, who've captured Section 8A titles in 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2004, 2005 and 2007. Congrat's to co-Head Coaches Albert Hasbargen and Bruce Olson for another great season. Also, to a very good friend, Assistant Coach Dennis Fermoyle, who stepped back into the program after retiring in 2006. Warriors hockey is complete again with Coach Fermoyle behind the bench.

The history books will be re-written this evening at the Ralph Engelstad Arena in Thief River Falls.

Enjoy the game, and like the famous "Badger" Bob Johnson once said, "It's A Great Day For (Section 8A) Hockey."

Tuesday, February 26, 2008

MINNESOTA SECTION 8A BOYS HOCKEY TOURNAMENT: Offensive Explosion As EGF Knocks Off Park Rapids To Advance To Championship Game

Courtesy of Grand Forks Herald:

By: Tom Miller, Herald Staff Writer

Forward Zach Lehrke is Park Rapids' all-time leading scorer, the highest goal-scorer in the state and one of 10 finalists for the Minnesota Mr. Hockey award.

But on Monday, it was East Grand Forks Senior High's team that put on an offensive show.

The Green Wave, highlighted by a five-goal second period, coasted to an 8-3 win over Park Rapids in the Section 8A boys hockey semifinals in Ralph Engelstad Arena.

Senior High heads to the section championship for the first time since 2002. The Green Wave face Warroad at 7 p.m. Thursday in the title game in Thief River Falls.

Park Rapids dropped to 24-3, while the Green Wave improved to 12-12-1.

"We haven't been to the final since 2002, so it's pretty big," said Casey Ristau, who had two goals and an assist.

Park Rapids, the No. 2 seed in the section, hadn't allowed more than five goals all season. Senior High, though, showed early on that it could score against the Panthers.

Senior High defenseman Casey Wood dumped the puck into the zone along the right boards. Michael Lukkason got to the puck behind the net and poked it over to Ristau, who also was in back of the goal. Ristau quickly grabbed the puck and put it in the net on his backhand for a power-play goal at 2 minutes, 58 seconds of the first period.

Ristau struck again less than two minutes later. From behind the net, Henry Gutierrez found Ristau close in at the left faceoff circle. Ristau's blast beat goalie Mark Smith for a 2-0 lead at 4:31.

"It was a big key to get those first two goals," Senior High coach Cory Chupka said. "Park Rapids pressed us early, but we were able to weather that. You could see the guys get excited."

From there, the Wave cruised.

Senior High scored five times in the second period to build a 7-2 lead. Jake Useldinger, Macauley Useldinger, Lukkason, Cody Grassel and John Grabanski all scored in the period.
Lukkason finished with two goals and an assist.

MORE:

http://www.grandforksherald.com/articles/index.cfm?id=68562&section=sports

EGF SENIOR HIGH 8, PARK RAPIDS 3

First period - 1. EGF, Casey Ristau (Michael Lukkason, Casey Wood) 2:58; 2. EGF, Ristau (Henry Gutierrez, Macauley Useldinger) 4:31

Second period - 3. PR, Bill Winkler (Derek Ricke) 3:40; 4. EGF, Jake Useldinger 4:04; 5. EGF, Macauley Useldinger (Alex Lind, Vizenor) 7:05; 6. EGF, Michael Lukkason (Ristau, Zak Aubol) 7:48; 7. PR, Zach Lehrke (Curtis Tolle) 12:17; 8. EGF, Cody Grassel (J. Useldinger) 15:30; 9. EGF, John Grabanski (Joey Wikoff, J. Useldinger) 16:08

Third period - 10. PR, Kevin McMorrow (Lehrke) 1:44; 11. EGF, Lukkason 3:16

Goalie saves - EGF: Alex Christiansen 7-9-5 - 21; PR: Mark Smith 9-10-7 - 26

Monday, February 25, 2008

New Section 8A Bracket Board Warroad vs. EGF For Championship (Click To Enlarge)


Park Rapids Standout, Zach Lehrke Among Minnesota Mr. Hockey (10) Finalists


Courtesy of Park Rapids Enterprise:

By: Vance Carlson

Zach Lehrke continues to reach milestones as a member of the Park Rapids-Menahga boys hockey team.

The senior forward became the all-time leading scorer in the history of the boys hockey program earlier this season.

On Monday, Lehrke was named as one of 10 finalists for the 24th annual Mr. Hockey Award. Lehrke becomes the first Park Rapids hockey player to receive that distinction.

Park Rapids’ Zach Lehrke (26) was named as one of 10 finalists for the 2008 Mr. Hockey Award. The award will be presented March 9 in St. Paul.

The Mr. Hockey Award is given to the outstanding senior high school hockey player in the state of Minnesota and is selected by a panel of National Hockey League scouts, Division I college coaches and selected media members from around the state.

So far this season, Lehrke has 46 goals and 35 assists for 81 points. That is a single-season scoring record for the Panthers, breaking Tyler Lehrke’s 79 points during the 2003-04 season. Zach Lehrke’s 46 goals so far has shattered the single-season record he shared with his older brother of 34 and his 35 assists are approaching the school record of 45 set by Tyler Lehrke in 2003-04.

Lehrke is currently the top goal scorer in the state and is second in total scoring, trailing Mankato West’s Ricky Litchfield by one point and sitting three points ahead of Little Falls’ Beau Hanow-ski. Litchfield has 28 goals and 54 assists for 82 points while Hanowski has 37 goals and 41 assists for 78 points.

With his 81 points this season, Zach Lehrke has 194 in his career. Tyler Lehrke held the previous record with 192 career points, which included 89 goals and 103 assists. Zach Lehrke holds the school record with his 105 career goals and is second with his 89 career assists.

The other finalists for the Mr. Hockey Award are Tyler Barnes of Burnsville, J.T. Brown of Rose-mount, Cory Fienhage of Eastview, Jake Gardiner of Minnetonka, Joe Gleason of Edina, Justin Jokinen of Cloquet, Aaron Ness of Roseau, Drew Olson of Brainerd and Jake Youso of International Falls.

The 24th annual Mr. Hockey Awards Banquet will be held on Sunday, March 9 at noon at the Star Tribune Grand Ballroom at the River Centre in St. Paul. The Minnesota Wild and Acceleration Minnesota are co-sponsors of the Mr. Hockey Awards Banquet. The Mr. Hockey Award is hosted by the Minnesota Minutemen.

Other awards that will be presented at the banquet are the Frank Brimsek Award for the state’s top senior goaltender, the John Mariucci Awards for the Class A and Class AA coaches of the year, and the Cliff Thompson Award for the “Old Timer Coach” of the year.

Previous Mr. Hockey Award winners are Tom Corske (1985), George Pelawa (1986), Kris Miller (1987), Larry Olimb (1988), Trent Klatt (1989), Joe Dziedzic (1990), Darby Hendrickson (1991), Brian Bonin (1992), Nick Checco (1993), Mike Crowley (1994), Erik Rasmussen (1995), Dave Spehar (1996), Aaron Miskovich (1997), John Pohl (1998), Jeff Taffe (1999), Paul Martin (2000), Marty Sertich (2001), Gino Guyer (2002), Nate Dey (2003), Tom Gorowski (2004), Brian Lee (2005), David Fischer (2006) and Ryan McDonagh (2007).

For tickets to the banquet, contact Yvonne Feldkamp at (763) 422-9708 or mrhockeybanquet@aol.com. Individual tickets for the event are $25.