EGF's Adam Knopp Etches His Name In Crookston's New Hockey Facility As He Scores OT Winner .. Zack Lawdermilt Notches Hat Trick .. Useldinger 4 Points .. In Other Action .. Warroad Downs Duluth-Denfeld .. Kittson-Central Blanks Walker-H-A .. Marshall Nips TRF In OT .. All In Exciting Section 8A Action On Saturday, January 30, 2010

East Grand Forks Senior High’s Adam Knopp scored in overtime to spoil the opening of Crookston’s new hockey facility.   Zack Lawdermilt had three goals and one assist, while Jake Useldinger had two goals and two assists to pace the Green Wave.

CROOKSTON — East Grand Forks Senior High’s Adam Knopp scored in overtime to spoil the opening of Crookston’s new hockey facility.  Zack Lawdermilt had three goals and one assist, while Jake Useldinger had two goals and two assists to pace the Green Wave.

“It showed the character of our team with a big comeback win,” Senior High coach Cory Chupka said.
“That’s a big win for us."

“The line of Lawdermilt, Useldinger and (Cory) Mack played well tonight,” Chupka said. “Lawdermilt had a great goal on a 2-on-1 to tie it (in the third period).”

The Green Wave, who trailed 5-3 in the third period, received goals by Useldinger at 6:44 of and Lawdermilt at 13:19 of the final period.

Morgan Terpstra had two goals to lead Crookston.


First period — 1. EGF, Jake Useldinger 8:22; 2. C, Kolton Walker 8:53; 3. C, Morgan Terpstra (Alex Prudhomme, Walker) 15:15
Second period — 4. EGF, Zack Lawdermilt (Useldinger) :29; 5. C, Terpstra (Ryan Edevold, Ryan Bittner) 3:08; 6. C, Nick Regeimbal (Seth Heppner, Mark Bittner) 11:01; 7. EGF, Lawdermilt (Cory Mack) 14:44
Third period — 8. C, Seth Heppner (Regeimbal, Ryan Edevold) 3:41; 9. EGF, Useldinger (Lawdermilt) 6:44; 10. EGF, Lawdermilt (Useldinger) 13:19
Overtime — 11. EGF, Adam Knopp 2:29

Kittson County Central 10, Walker-Hackensack-Akeley 0

First period — 1. KCC, Markas Dahl (Brady Diamond, Craig Lindegard) 2:32; 2. KCC, Gabe Montoya (Lindegard) 13:15; 3. KCC, Lindegard (J.P. Mortenson, Dahl) 14:45; 4. KCC, Jeff Bergh (Dahl, Lindegard) 15:05; 5. KCC, Dahl (Bergh, Lindegard) 16:41
Second period — 6. KCC, Bergh 2:13; 7. KCC, Lindegard (Bergh, Montoya) 2:42
Third period — 8. KCC, Bergh (Tyler Hultgren, Chadd Nordine) 8:56; 9. KCC, Lindegard (Dahl, Montoya) 14:57; 10. KCC, Tyler Cosley (Dahl, Montoya) 15:36
Goalie saves — WHA: Micah Bank 15-2-x — 17, Evan Wilson x-16-17 — 33; KCC: Jackson Klein 3-5-3 — 11

Warroad 5, Duluth Denfeld 1
W: Brock Nelson (31) 1g, 3a, Adam Shaugabay (5)
W: Brett Hebel (17), David Nelson (2), Aaron Rasmusson (6)
W: Andy Foster 19 Saves | Win
DD: Keith Tomassoni (14)
DD: Zach Thompson 27 Saves | Loss

Duluth - Marshall 3, Thief River Falls 2  OT

Great Line-Up In Section 8A For Saturday, January 30, 2010 .. TRF & Warroad Continue The Duluth Series .. Walker-H-A Invades Kittson County .. EGF / Crookston Make History With Opening Of New Crookston Arena

Thief River Falls (8A) at Duluth Marshall (7A), 3:00 PM | MARS Lakeview Arena


Walker-Hackensack-Akeley (8A) at Kittson County Central (8A), 3:00 PM | Hallock Ice Arena


Warroad (8A) at Duluth Denfeld (5A), 4:30PM | Heritage Arena


East Grand Forks (8A)  at Crookston (8A) (GRAND OPENING), 7:30 P.M. | Crookston Arena

Crookston Schedules Fitting Foe For $15 Million Arena's 'Grand Opening' On Saturday, January 30, 2010 .. Courtesy Of Minnesota Hockey Hub Web Site

The fertile, windswept farm country in the far northern and western reaches of Minnesota isn’t just good for growing sugar beets. Some of the state’s finest hockey facilities have sprouted from the ground there, too.

There’s the Gardens in Warroad, the Ralph in Thief River Falls and, opening on Saturday, Jan. 30, the CSC in Crookston.

The $15 million Crookston Sports Center replaces the old Crookston Civic and Sports Arenas and will be christened with a day of festivities, capped by the hometown Pirates boys hockey team taking on longtime rival East Grand Forks. 

“It’s huge, absolutely,” Crookston coach Jon Bittner said Thursday about the opening of the new arena. “Not only for our town, but for the entire area. 

“I was there last night with middle son and he was unbelievably excited. We haven’t even had a practice there yet.”

The new facility includes three ice rinks ringed by a quarter-mile walking track. The Pirates were to take the ice there for the first time there on Friday on one of the practice rinks. Saturday’s schedule of events also includes an afternoon girls game between Crookston and Lake of the Woods. The Pirates and Green Wave are scheduled to start at 7:30 p.m.

“I would expect we’ll have a packed house,” said Bittner, who estimated the main arena will hold about 1,800 to 2,200. “We’re lucky in that our fire chief is also a hockey fan.”

While the rivalry between Crookston and East Grand Forks doesn’t get the attention of, say, Roseau vs. Warroad, the two and often three annual matchups between the Pirates and Green Wave usually rank among the most fiercely contested in the state.

Crookston coach Cory Chupka agreed to move the original date of the game back to coincide with the CSC’s grand opening.

“We’ve done it one other time,” Chupka said. “We opened (Ralph Engelstad Arena) in Thief River Falls, too. These types of games are always a lot of fun.

“We’re proud and honored to be part of (Saturday’s) game and that opening. The guys are really looking forward to it.”

East Grand Forks beat Crookston 5-3 on Jan. 22 in the type of back-and-forth game that has become typical in the series. Crookston is 5-13-1 playing a schedule that includes several of the state’s top ten-ranked teams in Class A and AA. East Grand Forks, which plays a similar schedule, is 8-11-0.

“Every game we play against them, no matter whose record is what, it has always been an interesting game,” Chupka said. “It has been a great series.”

Many of the greatest games between the rivals separated by 22 miles of farmland were played in the Crookston’s original, barn-shaped arena. It was built in the 1930s as part of a government program designed to stimulate the economy. The second rink at the facility was added in the 1970s.

“I’m going to miss the oldest one,” Bittner said. “They used to have natural ice there over a dirt floor. Then they would put a wood floor over it and have roller skating and dances and weddings. The VFW and (American) Legion would hold meetings there.

“It’s quite a historic place.”

With the opening of the Crookston Sports Center, the doors to the old Crookston Civic and Sports Arenas were to be locked. The old facility sits in the Red Lake River flood plain and eventually will be torn down. As for the new arena, Bittner said the Pirates will take their time getting their new locker room set up.

“We are going to do it after the season is over,” he said. “We have one chance to do things right.”

Opening night against East Grand Forks isn’t a bad start.

Warroad's Nick Stoskoph & Brett Hebel Each Garner 3 Pts .. (G) Foster Earns First Win .. TRF's Micah Ranum Explodes For 2g, 1a .. Red Lake Falls Blanks Walker-H-A .. Visiting LOW Stops High Flying Panthers

Thief River Falls 4, Duluth Denfeld 1

TRF: Micah Ranum (18, 19) 2g, 1a, Riley Soderstrom (5), Brady Johnson (4)
TRF: Zane Gothberg 28 Saves | Win
DD: Levi Talarico (14)
DD: Zach Thompson 25 Saves | Loss

Warroad 6, Duluth Marshall 2

First period — 1. D, Jude Peterson (Dane Morin, Josh Wentz) 1:56; 2. W, Aaron Rasmusson 2:08; 3. W, Brett Hebel (Nick Stoskopf) 11:08; 4. Stoskopf (Adam Shaugabay) 11:41
Second period — 5. W, Stoskopf (Brock Nelson, Hebel) :37; 6. W, David Nelson (Hayden Timm) 12:31
Third period — 7. W, Brandon Pearson (Hebel) 2:08; 8. D, Morin (Jake Bushey, Wentz) 8:14
Goalie saves — W: Andy Foster 3-11-10 — 24; D: Brian Anderson 6-11-4 — 21

Red Lake Falls 11, Walker-Hackensack-Akeley 0

Lake of the Woods 2, Park Rapids Area 1

Wadena-Deer Creek vs. Crookston (NO REPORT)

Classic Match-Ups Tonight In Section 8A .. TRF & Warroad Venture To Duluth Proper .. Plus (3) Pivotal Games For Section Seedings In LOW vs. Park / WHA vs. RLF .. Plus Wadena @ Crookston .. The Action Heats Up In The Northland

Lake of the Woods (8A) at Park Rapids Area (8A), 7:30 PM | Park Rapids Comm Center

Thief River Falls (8A) at Duluth Denfeld (5A), 7:30 PM | Heritage Arena

Wadena-Deer Creek (6A) at Crookston (8A), 7:00 PM | Crookston Civic Arena

Walker-Hackensack-Akeley (8A) at Red Lake Falls (8A), 7:00 PM | Cardin-Hunt Arena

Warroad (8A) at Duluth Marshall (7A), 7:30 PM | MARS Lakeview Arena

Crookston Rolls An 8-Ball On Wadena .. Terpstra, Mercil, Prudhomme Each Tally 2 .. EGF Nips GF Red River (Useldinger Hat Trick) .. Bagley Falls To Greenway In Section 8A Action 1/28/10

Crookston 8, Wadena-Deer Creek 0

C: Morgan Terpstra (14, 15) 2g, 1a, Zach Mercil (3, 4), Alex Prudhomme (1, 2)
C: Nick Regeimbal (5), Connor Morgan (1)
C: Nick Biermaier 9 Saves | Shutout Win
WDC: Dylan Isola 26 MIN, 22 Saves on 28 Shots | Loss
WDC: Tyler Muehler 25 MIN, 20 Saves on 22 Shots


Greenway 7, Bagley/Fosston 3

G: Adam Mendoza (26, 27, 28, 29, 30) 5 goals
G: Mendoza had a Pure Hat Trick in the 1st | Natural 4 w/ 3 in the 1st, 1 in the 2nd
G: Nick Adams (14) 1g, 4a, Jordan Finkbone (1) 1g, 2a
G: Erikur Arnason 21 Saves | Win
BF: Dillon Spray (15) 1g, 1a, Cade Young (4), Tal Iverson (11)
BF: Gavin Ross 20 Saves | Loss

East Grand Forks 3, Grand Forks Red River (ND) 2

EGF: Jake Useldinger Hat Trick (Natural)

All (10) Section 8A Teams In Action Last Night .. Hat Tricks By Brock Nelson, Sam Coborn, Kyle Kanten, Micah Ranum .. TRF Knocks Off Previously Unbeaten EGF In Section 8A Rivalries

Warroad 5, Crookston 1
W: Brock Nelson (28, 29, 30) Hat Trick, Nick Stoskopf (9) sh, Brett Hebel (14)
W: Dillon Thompson 23 Saves | Win
C: Ryan Bittner (2)
C: Nick Biermaier 30 Saves | Loss

First period — 1. W, Brock Nelson (Carson Gray) 5:00; 2. W, Nick Stoskopf 12:24; 3. W, Nelson (Gray) 14:58

Second period — 4. W, Nelson (David Nelson) 1:52
Third period — 5. C, Seth Heppner (Ryan Bittner, Nick Regimbal) 2:13; 6. W, Stoskopf (Brett Hebel, Brock Nelson) 4:24
Goalie saves — W: Shawn Storey 7-7-x — 14, Dillon Thompson x-x-6 — 6; C: Nick Biermaier 8-10-8 — 26

Park Rapids Area 13, Walker-Hackensack-Akeley 0
PR: Sam Coborn (23, 24, 25) Hat Trick |1ps|, 3a
PR: Kyle Kanten (10, 11, 12) Hat Trick, 3a
PR: Tucker Coborn (25, 26) 2g |1sh|, 1a, Ian Johnson (11) 1a, 1a
PR: Kevin McMorrow (11) 1g, 1a, Jeff Sharp (1) 1g, 1a
PR: Corey Odland (1), Frank Moren (2)
PR: Ryan O'Mara 8 Saves | Shutout Win
WHA: Micah Bank 43 Saves | Loss

Moorhead 6, Roseau 2
M: Quinn Buckellew (10, 11), Brandon MacLeod (7, 8)
M: Ben Doda (2), Braden Rahman (6) sh
M: Logan Marks 26 Saves | Win
R: Travis Connell (8), Adam Knochenmus (15)
R: Ethan Kvidt 31 Saves | Loss

First period — 1. M, Doda (Brenk) 14:57; 2. M, Buckellew (Henry) 12:04; 3. R, Connell (Hedlund) 5:24; 4. M, Rahman (unassisted) 2:24; 5. R, Knochenmus (Omdahl) 1:18
Second period — 6. M, MacLeod (Oxton) 6:07
Third period — 7, M, Buckellew (Melquist, Henry) 10:40; 8. M, MacLeod (Kraemer, Rahman) 10:20
Goalie saves — M: Marks 6-4-16 — 16; R: Kvidt 6-19-6 — 31

Thief River Falls 6, East Grand Forks 4

TRF: Micah Ranum (15, 16, 17) Hat Trick, 1a
TRF: Ryan Crosson (4, 5), Mathew Audette (6) 1g, 2a
TRF: Zane Gothberg 15 Saves | Win
EGF: Jake Useldinger (17, 18) 2g, 2a, Tucker Poolman (4), Zach Lawdermilt (15)
EGF: Hunter Aubol 24 Saves | Loss

First period — 1. EGF, Jake Useldinger (Casey Ristau) :12; 2. TRF, Micah Ranum (Drew Erickson) 3:33; 3. TRF, Ranum (Matt Lindquist) 15:43

Second period — 4. EGF, Tucker Poolman (Useldinger, Adam Knopp) :58; 5. EGF, Useldinger 15:17; 6. TRF, Ryan Crosson (Lindquist, Ranum) 16:51
Third period — 7. EGF, Zack Lawdermilt (Hunter Mero, Useldinger) 3:50; 8. TRF, Crosson (Evan ose, Ranum) 4:32; 9. TRF, Ranum 7:50; 10. TRF, Matt Audette (Riley Soderstrom, Lindquist) 9:14
Goalie saves — EGF: Hunter Aubol 7-17-6 — 30; TRF: Zane Gothberg 11-6-2 — 19

Kittson-Central 3, Lake of the Woods 0

Second period — 1. Kittson County Central, Gabe Montoya (Markas Dahl, Jeff Bergh) 2:58
Third period — 2. KCC, Bergh (Montoya, Craig Lindegard) 2:30; 3. KCC, Dahl (Lindegard, Montoya) 16:24
Goalie saves — KCC: Alex Chaput 31; LOW: Luke Clifford 24

Red Lake Falls 4, Bagley/Fosston 1

First period — 1. RLF, Robbie Glass (Andrew Jahnke) 1:59; 2. B, Nelson Papke (Dillon Spray) 3:52; 3. RLF, Glass (Jahnke) 9:24; 4. RLF, Garrett Schmitz (Joe Berberena) 11:16; 5. RLF, Berberena (Cody Hanson) 14:51
Goalie saves — RLF: Zach Page 16; B-F: Gavin Ross 37

Every Game Becomes Important .. The Quest For Section 8A .. Games On Tap For Tuesday, January 26, 2010 .. The Weather Is Freezing .. The Section Is Heating Up

East Grand Forks at Thief River Falls, 7:30PM | Ralph Engelstad Arena

Lake of the Woods at Kittson-Central, 7:00 PM | Hallock Ice Arena

Red Lake Falls at Bagley/Fosston, 7:00 PM | Albert Kaiser Arena

Walker-H-A at Park Rapids, 7:30PM | Park Rapids Comm Center

Warroad at Crookston, 7:30PM | Crookston Civic Arena

Crookston (8A) at East Grand Forks (8A), 7:30PM | East Grand Forks Civic Center

A very pivotal game in Section 8A section seedings .. coupled with TRF's 2-1 victory over the Warroad Warriors last night .. the hunt for the #1 seed is now in the hands of the East Grand Forks Green Wave .. Warroad has dropped two games (vs. EGF / TRF) .. and TRF with one loss .. and Warroad with two losses.

Don't discredit the Green Wave .. they stopped Warroad's dominance of Section 8A as the Wave downed Warroad, 2-1, behind Hunter Aubol's incredible goaltending performance.

On the flip side, the Crookston Pirates always seem to hang around down the stretch in Section 8A .. Coach Jon Bittner will have the boys clicking on all cylinders.

Bennies Pick: EGF (5-3)

Red Lake Falls (8A) at Lake of the Woods (8A), 7PM | Baudette Arena

Kittson County Central (8A) at Wahpeton/Breckenridge (ND), 6:30PM | Sterns Sports Arena

Thief River Falls Knocks Off #4 Ranked Warroad .. Micah Ranum Nets GWG Midway Thru 3rd .. Takes Over Section 8A Standing .. CROX Upends Fargo South

CROOKSTON 4, FARGO SOUTH 1

First period — 1. C, Ryan Edevold (Seth Heppner, Nick Regeimbal) 5:23; 2. C, Morgan Terpstra (Zach Mercil, Alex Edevold) 11:17; 3. FS, Jake Pawlik (Peter Orson) 11:55

Second period — 4. C, Regeimbal (Heppner, Austin Proulx) 6:45; 5. C, Heppner (Ryan Edevold, Regeimbal) 9:03

Goalie saves — C: Nick Biermaier 11-10-5 — 26; FS: Scott Buchholz 8-7-10 — 25

THIEF RIVER FALLS 2, WARROAD 1

First period — 1. W, Brock Nelson (Brett Hobel) 6:00; 2. TRF, Micah Ranum (Ryan Crosson, Evan Ose) 16:57

Second period — 3. TRF, Ranum (Riley Soderstrom) 7:23

Goalie saves — TRF: Zane Gothberg 5-11-4 — 20; W: Shawn Storey 6-5-11 — 22

Walker-Hackensack-Akeley @ Bagley/Fosston - NO REPORT

Forgotten Star of the Northwest .. Kittson-Central's Craig Lindegard .. Courtesy Of MN Hockey Hub Web Site

Q and A with Kittson Central's Craig Lindegard

By: Tim Kolehmainen

Tucked up in the far Northwestern corner of Minnesota is the tiny town of Hallock, home to some of the best farming soil in the nation, a view that seemingly goes on forever and one of the top boys’ high school hockey goal-scorers in the state.

Through the first 13 games of his senior season, Kittson Central sniper Craig Lindegard has already ripped in 25 goals to rank second in the state, tied with Detroit Lakes’ Tanner Lane and eight behind St. Francis’ Joey Benik.

It isn’t just a one-year explosion either. Lindegard led the Bearcats in scoring as a junior and a sophomore. Yet most hockey fans have never heard of him.

It’s definitely a case of out-of-sight, out-of-mind regarding Lindegard. If pushing the speed limit, it still takes a lonely six-hour drive to get to Hallock from the Twin Cities. Residents of Hallock don’t consider a drive to the big cities to be a trip in that direction. Nope. The nearest big city is Winnipeg, Manitoba, just two hours by car.

That disconnect between the heart of Minnesota high school hockey and the far Northwest (outside of the Roseau-Warroad corridor) has kept Lindegard out of the spotlight. Even so, his accomplishments are becoming increasingly difficult to ignore.

This past week, the Breakdown spoke to Lindegard about his scoring exploits, the hockey atmosphere in Kittson Central and whether he has any prospects to play collegiately.

Breakdown: Kittson Central isn't known as a hockey power (football more so) and most certainly doesn't get a lot of statewide recognition, so can you tell me what the atmosphere is like at a Bearcats' game? How do the communities support hockey?

Lindegard: We have some diehard fans -- it’s how we’ve kept hockey alive in our town and school. We don’t always have a huge group of students because most of our games are the same nights as basketball games, but the ones that like hockey are always there to cheer us on, and in some of our close games it gets really wild! We even get a few former players’ parents at our away games. So even though we don’t get a lot of recognition or media, our community supports us. That’s the way it is in a small town.

Breakdown: You've almost equaled last year's victory total already ... what has been the key to a successful start to this winter?

Lindegard: Yeah, we’ve had a great season so far. The key has been the hard work put in by all teammates and the chemistry we have on the team. We have many underclassmen, in fact we have an eighth grader who starts, so it’s important for us older ones to make them feel comfortable as they come from Pee Wees to JV and varsity.

Breakdown: What is the key to continuing that forward and making some noise in the Section 8A playoffs?

Lindegard: Right now we seem to be in a little bit of a slump, but we can pick it up and get back on track. As far as making it very far in the Section 8A playoffs, we don’t really look that far ahead. Normally we play the play-in game and then go up against Warroad or Thief River Falls, but anything can happen.

Breakdown: Is it tough to have a powerhouse like Warroad, who seemingly always has a stranglehold on the section? How do you get up for a game against a team like the Warriors?

Lindegard: We don’t have a problem getting up for the big games like Thief River Falls, East Grand Forks, Crookston and such because it is just a rush to have a close game with the better teams. If we don’t get up for those games we’d get killed.

Breakdown: What has it been like playing for a new coach, Scott Klein? What does he bring to the program?

Lindegard: He works us hard and gets the most out of everyone. We all have a lot of respect for him and he has made it fun this year. He’s also good at talking to us and telling us what we do wrong and what we need to do to get better.

Breakdown: Give me a short scouting report on yourself as a player. What are your strengths and what allows you to be such a goal-scorer?

Lindegard: My strength is my ability to put the puck in the net and set up my teammates. I have a good sense for the game. I attribute that to the off-season shooting I’ve done since I was two years old in my basement and garage year round. My older brother was a goalie so I played against him a lot. I also feel I got some talent from my grandpa, Jerry Lindegard, who played for the Minnesota Gophers from 1946 to 1949. My dad was also a good player. He was the “top of the league player” for the Hallock Bruins, a team in a semi-amateur Canadian league.

Breakdown: What kind of training do you do for hockey, both in- and off-season?

Lindegard: I trained hard last summer in a local weight and conditioning program with our football team. During the season I’m just working on maintaining that level and getting in better cardiovascular shape so I can contribute more.

Breakdown: Can you tell us one unusual thing about yourself that others may not know?

Lindegard: I really don’t have any ritual or superstitious things. I shoot left-handed because I had an infection (salmonella) in my elbow when I was six years old. It ate away the bone and cartilage so after seven surgeries and a bone graft I can no longer use my right hand for most sports. So I’m left-handed for throwing, shooting, batting and golfing.

Breakdown: Have you been getting attention for playing hockey at the next level? Have you made any decisions on where you'll be playing next winter?

Lindegard: No, I haven’t gotten much attention at the next level. I had a little contact with a junior team last summer after a tryout and just recently again, too. I think the big disadvantage of coming from a small town is that you don’t get any publicity or recognition. Most scouts look at the larger teams like Roseau, Warroad, Thief River Falls and such where there are several good players. We aren’t a powerhouse program, but I feel I’ve had a good high school career. I’ve thoroughly enjoyed my hockey days in Hallock and I’m hoping for some more wins -- and then for the opportunity to get on a team at the next level and hopefully land on a college team in the future.

Breakdown: What's the best part of playing high school hockey and why?

Lindegard: I just like playing hockey, it’s my favorite sport and it’s really fun.

Mariucci Conference Standings As Of January 20, 2010 .. Roseau Tops The List While Warroad Is (1) Game Behind .. Click On Team To Go To Updates

• Team	PTS	GP	W	L	T	Overall
  Roseau (No. 7 AA)	10	6	5	1	0	13-2-1
  Warroad (No. 4 A)	8	5	4	1	0	13-2-0
  Thief River Falls (No. 7 A)	4	5	2	3	0	11-4-0
  Bemidji	4	5	2	3	0	11-6-0
  Moorhead	4	3	2	1	0	5-6-2
  East Grand Forks	2	4	1	3	0	6-10-0
  Crookston	0	4	0	4	0	3-11-1