March 30 issue by Let's Play Hockey

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FROM COLLEGE TO THE NHL

Volume XLV • Number 26 • Issue 1213

March 30, 2017

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Over 290 former U.S. college players have appeared in the NHL during the 2016-17 regular season

Photos: Mike Thill (Hellebuyck, Coyle, Johnson), Nick Wosika (Suter, Okposo, Guentzel)

By Kevin Kurtt Let’s Play Hockey Editor If you’ve watched nearly any NCAA sporting event on television in the past several years, you’ve seen the ad. You may even be able to recite the tagline: “There are 380,000 NCAA student-athletes, and just about all of them will be going pro in something other than sports.” It’s a noble campaign directed at educating the masses that most athletes in college will see their athletic careers come to an end at graduation.

In the world of NCAA hockey, the vast majority of players on the 60 Division I and 85 Division II/III men’s teams will not make the jump to the NHL, AHL, ECHL or any other of the various professional hockey leagues around the world. But for a select few, college hockey is merely a steppingstone to the bright lights of the NHL. In fact, according to our research, 292 players who have seen at least one regular season NHL game in 2016-17, honed their skills in college before making the leap to the professional ranks. That number repre-

sents 31 percent of all NHL players from the current season. In 2016-17, 47 former collegiate hockey players have made their NHL debut. Leading the list of former college players now in the NHL are standouts such as Winnipeg’s Blake Wheeler (Minnesota), Pittsburgh’s Phil Kessel (Minnesota) and Justin Schultz (Wisconsin), San Jose’s Joe Pavelski (Wisconsin), Montreal’s Max Pacioretty (Michigan), Columbus’ Cam Atkinson (Boston College), Calgary’s Johnny Gaudreau (Boston College), Buffalo’s Jack

Eichel (Boston University), Chicago’s Jonathan Toews (North Dakota) and Duncan Keith (Michigan State), Washington’s Kevin Shattenkirk (Boston University), Edmonton’s Cam Talbot (Alabama Huntsville) and Calgary’s Brian Elliott (Wisconsin). Through games of March 28, former college players stand as the 12th overall pointgetter (Wheeler), sixth overall goal scorer (Atkinson, Pacioretty), ninth overall assist Continued on page 1 6 16

INSIDE DA VE SCHWARTZ DAVE

JACK BLA THERWICK BLATHERWICK

ST. CLOUD STA TE STATE

JOSH LEVINE

UMD’s Hunter Miska is proving them wrong

Are you serious about a future in hockey?

Joe Meierhofer to retire as director of HBNHC

Developing grit in youth athletes

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March 30, 2017

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Proving them wrong

Let’s Play Hockey photo by Mike Thill

Minnesota Duluth goalie Hunter Miska is showing the naysayers that he’s certainly one of the nation’s top netminders

UMD freshman goalie Hunter Miska has backstopped the Bulldogs within two wins of their second NCAA title.

By Dave Schwartz Let’s Play Hockey Contributor For as long as he’s been stopping pucks, Hunter Miska has been doing it the hard way. “Yeah, it’s been kind of crazy,” Miska said by phone. Though he’d played hockey for years, he didn’t start playing goalie until he was 14 years old, but made the varsity his freshman season at North Branch High School. After two years there, he went to play for the U.S. National Development Program in Ann Arbor, Mich. Following that were three years of junior hockey (two years in Penticton of the BCHL and then a year with the Dubuque Fighting Saints of the USHL). After all of that, he finally reached his goal of making a college team at the University of Minnesota Duluth – a goal reached by having a tireless work ethic and a competitive spirit that never turns off. “My main focus is playing consistent. That’s the only way you’re going to get noticed - not playing hot every couple of games. You have to be good every game, night in and night out.” Miska said. “Even in practice you have to go in how you’re going to play in the game.” In every game during his freshman season at UMD, Miska has made his opponents

miserable with some eye-popping statistics. Going 26-4-5 with a 2.21 goals-against average, a .919 save percentage and five shutouts, last week he was the only underclassmen to be named as a finalist for the 2017 Mike Richter Award as the most outstanding goalie in NCAA Hockey, an honor and a season that has caught this always on-guard netminder a little off guard. “I knew it would be good, but I didn’t know it was going to be this good,” Miska said. “It helps having an older group that have gone through this experience before. And for me too, playing five years of juniors, it’s not like this is my first year away from home, so I know what it’s like.” That extra time in juniors also helped season him on the ice. “Oh, 100 percent. I think that you need time, especially as a goalie. You need time to get to Division I hockey,” Miska said. “That was my focus. There was no rush. I wanted to be playing where and when I can play every day, and you’re going to get more mature and more experience along the way.” Despite being successful at just about every level, it wasn’t that long ago that Miska was eligible for, and passed over by every team in the NHL Draft – twice. He’s done just fine since then and now has a number of teams knocking on his door interested in his services. And because he’ll be a free

agent when he does decide to make the jump (which will not be this year, he says), he’ll have a lot more suitors when he does. Still, when his two-year window closed to be snatched up by an NHL team, it stung just a little. “A little bit,” Miska said with a chuckle. “But now that the time has passed, I am actually really happy I didn’t get drafted. Honestly, because you have so many more options.” After the season he has had, plenty of teams are showing interest now, but Miska doesn’t like to go into specifics about which ones. In fact, with the ability he’s shown, he could easily boast about what he’s done and hold a grudge against the teams that passed him over. But that’s not his way. Always mild-mannered and polite, Miska understands why things worked the way they did. “They just want to see how you mature,”

Miska said. “Since I started so late, they’re like, ‘Oh, he’s had success now, but what is he going to do at the next level.’ So that’s why I left Penticton to go to Dubuque – to prove to myself that I could be a top goalie in a different league.” Even with all those credentials, there are those who still aren’t sure he’s living up to the hype. Despite being one of the top goalies in the nation and being a huge reason the Bulldogs are ranked No. 3 in the nation, and in the NCAA Frozen Four, he was not selected to the NCHC All-Rookie Team. Once again, the snub doesn’t bother him. “I use it as fuel to get better. At first I was a little surprised, but then I was just like, I am just going to keep proving these people wrong,” Miska said. “I’d rather be winning championships than personal awards.” The way Hunter Miska is going, he’ll be doing both for a very long time – regardless of what anyone thinks.

Delano goalie wins set of Brian’s gloves

Maria Manuel, a 12U A goalie from Delano, Minn., was selected to win a customized set of 17 ves during the 20 iK 8.0 glo or her GNET ed ffor itt as ffitt om Brian’s Cus ves fr 201 gloves GNETiK itted was Custt om Spor ts. She w from gloves glo Le t’s Pla t. PPaul aul on Mar 1 . Her name w as cchosen hosen fr om the hundreds of Let’s Playy Hoc Hockk ey Expo in SSt. Marcc h 111 was from goalies who had their shutouts posted on the Carroll Goalie School/Brian’s Custom Sports Shutout Wall online at www.letsplayhockey.com and each week in Let’s Play Hockey . Photo (l-r): Brad Johnson of Brian’s Custom Sports, Maria Manuel, Steve Carroll of Carroll Goalie School.

Our PPar ar tner artner tnerss

Let’s Play Hockey 13 7th Street S. Sauk Centre, MN 56378 phone: (320) 333-3279 E-mail: letsplay@letsplayhockey.com E-mail team articles, photos and scores to editor@letsplayhockey.com Founded in 1972 by Bob Utecht ISSN 0889-4795 Publisher Bryan Zollman • (320) 333-3279

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LET’S PLAY HOCKEY (LPH) is a newspaper devoted to covering all levels of hockey. LPH is published 29 times per year — once monthly in June, July, August and September; three times in October; and weekly November through April. Deadlines for news and camera-ready advertising are Mondays preceding each issue. Advertisements to be typeset must be in LPH office by the preceding Friday. All editorial copy, advertisements and photos remain the property of LET’S PLAY HOCKEY. LPH reserves the right to edit submitted stories and letters to the editor for length, grammar, punctuation and clarity. 29-issue subscription rates (U.S. funds): $60 one-year, third-class delivery $102 two-year, third-class delivery $105 one-year, first-class delivery $115 one-year, Canadian delivery

Assistant Editor Beth Kurtt Columnists Jack Blatherwick, John Hamre, Kevin Hartzell, Rob LaPrade, John Russo Contributors Jeff Hall, Tim Kolehmainen, Josh Levine, Mark Lichtenfeld, Kim McCullough, Andy Ness, Andrew Vitalis, Pete Waggoner Photography Mike Thill, Christine Wisch, Nick Wosika

Additional copies or back issues may be purchased by sending $3 to the LPH office. Send subscription inquiries, address changes and/or payments to: LET’S PLAY HOCKEY 13 7th Street S. Sauk Centre, MN 56378 or call (320) 333-3279 with questions. The opinions expressed in LET’S PLAY HOCKEY are not necessarily those of Let’s Play Hockey or Z Media, Inc., but of the individual columnists themselves. No articles or features may be reproduced without the permission of the publisher or the editor of Let’s Play Hockey. ©2017 Z Media, Inc. All rights reserved. LPH is online at www.letsplayhockey.com

March 30, 2017

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Inside Minnesota Hockey www.minnesotahockey.org Minnesota Hockey, an affiliate of USA Hockey, is the governing body of youth and amateur hockey in Minnesota and the premier developer of hockey players in the state. With over 67,000 registered players and coaches, it is the largest state governing body for amateur hockey in the United States.

CCM Minnesota Hockey High Performance programs kick off Friday Newly-formatted Ted Brill Great 8 and HP 16 & 17 Festivals open this weekend Minnesota Hockey, in conjunction with CCM and the Minnesota Hockey Coaches Association (MHCA), announced today the kickoff of the 2017 CCM Minnesota Hockey High Performance season beginning Friday, March 31. The CCM Minnesota Hockey HP programs are designed to train, develop and identify the best players in Minnesota and to provide top players from each district or section the chance to play with and against the best players in the state. The action kicks off this weekend with the Ted Brill Great 8 at Doug Woog Arena in South St. Paul and the High Performance 16 & 17 Festivals at Plymouth Ice Arena in Plymouth beginning Friday. For over 35 years, the Ted Brill Great 8 has provided high school seniors the opportunity to showcase their skills and abilities to coaches and scouts from junior, collegiate and professional teams. This year’s event has a new format. The tournament’s teams will consist of four teams selected from Senior players, and another four teams, referred to as HP 18’s, determined from Junior players born in 1999. The Senior and HP 18 teams will be formed according to paired high school sections (Sections 1 & 3, Sections 2 & 6, Sections 4 & 5 and Sections 7 & 8). Organized by the MHCA and Minnesota

Hockey, the Ted Brill Great 8 is designated as a national development program by USA Hockey. Players are evaluated by qualified personnel, and 40 are selected to represent Minnesota in the Boys’ CCM National Invitational Tournament April 20 through 23 in Plymouth, Minn. The HP 16 & 17 Festival kicks off this Friday and will wrap up with championship

games on Sunday. The top 54 boys and girls at each age level will be selected to participate in the Final 54 to be held April 20 – 23 with the boys playing at Plymouth Ice Cen-

2017 CCM Minnesota Hockey High Performance events Program CCM Ted Brill Great 8 Festival CCM HP 16 & 17 Festival CCM Boys HP Final 54/CCM NIT & Boys HP 15 Festival CCM Girls HP Final 54/CCM NIT & Girls HP 15 Festival CCM Boys & Girls HP 14 Festival CCM HP 15 & HP 14 Summer Girls Camp CCM HP 15 & HP 14 Summer Boys Camp CCM HP National Prep Camp CCM HP Model Camp CCM Dave Peterson Goalie Camp CCM HP Tier 1 Tryouts

Dates Location March 31-April 2 Woog Arena • South St. Paul March 31-April 2 Plymouth Ice Center April 20-23 Plymouth Ice Center April 20-23 Braemar Arena • Edina April 21-23 Duluth Heritage Center June 10-15 Natl. Hockey Center • St. Cloud June 17-22 Natl. Hockey Center • St. Cloud July 5-7 Schwan Super Rink • Blaine July 24-28 Mariucci Arena • Minneapolis August 3-6 Natl. Hockey Center • St. Cloud August (TBD) Various sites

ter and the girls playing at Braemar Arena in Edina. From those events, the top players will be chosen to represent Minnesota Hockey at a national festival/camp, sponsored by USA Hockey. The national camp will involve the top players from each of the USA Hockey districts and will be used to identify the top performers in each age group for possible opportunities to represent the United States at advanced levels of national and international competition. “We are very excited for an action-packed weekend featuring our state’s best high school hockey players,” said CCM Minnesota Hockey HP Director, Mike MacMillan. “The new format for the Ted Brill Great 8 has allowed us to highlight the top upperclassmen as they work toward the next chapter in their hockey careers. Each year, Minnesota produces the most Division 1 hockey players in the country and our CCM High Performance Programs provide the opportunity for those coaches and scouts to see our top players perform.” For official rosters and schedules of this weekend’s events, visit www.minnesotahockey.org. CCM Minnesota Hockey High Performance events for the top hockey players will continue throughout the spring and summer.

Duane Lindahl named Volunteer of the Month Congratulations to Duane Lindahl of the Cottage Grove Hockey Association (CGHA) on being named Total Hockey Volunteer of the Month! Lindahl has been involved with CGHA as a coach and volunteer for eight years, including serving as the Vice President for the past two seasons. Lindahl got his start with CGHA when his daughter joined the Girls 8U program. He volunteered to help coach and stayed with that group of girls for six seasons as they moved to higher levels of hockey. “He taught them respect, sportsmanship, a never give up attitude and fostered a true love of the game in each one of the girls

he’s coached,” said Amanda Alberts, whose daughter has played for Lindahl all six seasons. “The hard work of the girls and coaches were rewarded when the 12U B team earned a trip to the 2015 State Tournament in New Ulm.” Following that special 12U season, Lindahl stepped aside from the youth coaching ranks and re-directed his efforts. He took on a leadership role with CGHA, becoming the Vice President. While his new role brought new responsibilities and challenges, Lindahl continued to be an advocate for girls’ hockey, including playing a key role in helping the tournament committee

host CGHA’s first two all-girls hockey tournaments. Lindahl also took his coaching experience and applied it to introducing women in Cottage Grove to the game of hockey, as a part of a new C3 team in the Women’s Hockey Association of Minnesota (WHAM). “Many of us have never skated in an organized game, mostly pond hockey or playing around with our kids on the ice,” said Alberts, who went from having Lindahl coach her kids to being one of his players. “We are 18 women who fell in love with the game through our own children or nieces and neph-

ews.” “He has unselfishly given his time for the benefit of our children and the association. He continues to do so all while working full time, being a great dad and husband…He does what he does for the girls and to share his love of the game.” Minnesota Hockey and Total Hockey would like to thank Duane for everything he’s done to enhance the hockey experience for girls, women and all hockey players in Cottage Grove! It is volunteers like Duane across our state who make community hockey in Minnesota so special.

Playing smarter with Hockey Intelligym There’s little doubt about the fact that hockey is deeply woven into the fabric of life in the Stucker household. Minnesota teens Ben, 15, and Robbie, 18, clearly love and live the game. Both spent the past season playing for the St Thomas Academy Cadets. Coached by Tom Vannelli, the team won the Section 3AA Championship this year. St Thomas has a rich tradition of success in the state. Ben is 6’1 and just finished his sophomore season for the Cadets. He describes himself as a defensive-minded forward. Robbie is a 6’4, offensive defenseman. He’s just completed his Senior year and is rated as a solid prospect for this year’s draft by the NHL’s Central Scouting Bureau.

This season, St Thomas deployed a new tool called Hockey IntelliGym. IntelliGym is a software program used by USA Hockey to help players develop anticipation, hone decision making and improve spatial awareness. It’s helped the National Team Development Program (NTDP) gain worldwide acclaim. Since adopting IntelliGym, team USA has medaled in 23 of the last 24 international tournaments, winning 16 gold medals, and six IIHF U18 World Championship titles. The Stucker brothers really took to IntelliGym. “I felt IntelliGym really provided me with an up-top view of things,” said Robbie. “In particular, it helped me see opportunities to move the puck off the boards. Previously,

I had a tendency to try and force passes. As a result of the training, I got better at seeing developing opportunities to exploit. I also found the program helped me with my positioning without the puck.” Evidence to this is the fact that Robbie scored over 50 points this season as a Dman. Ben, the forward, also saw good gains on the ice after his cognitive training sessions with IntelliGym. “Like Robbie, I felt the program helped me see new ways to move the puck. It really helped with area passes and getting pucks into good places via the boards.” As busy young men juggling school and athletic commitments, the Stuckers’ time is precious. The good news was doing two

to three cognitive training sessions of about 30 minutes each, was not a problem for the Stuckers. “I actually found it was a great way to get warmed up for games,” said Ben. “I’d do the sessions before hitting the ice to help me get in the zone.” Robbie echoed this saying, “It really wasn’t hard to hit the goals set up by our coach who wanted us to do multiple sessions a week.” Playing smarter has helped the Stuckers. Robbie will play juniors next year before heading to Colorado College on a scholarship the following year. Ben has several more years at St Thomas and looks forward to furthering his game in that great environment.

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Are you serious about a future in hockey? Be the 1 percent. By Jack Blatherwick Let’s Play Hockey Columnist The Janssen Sports Leadership Center (website below) has great advice for young athletes who dream of playing college sports – or perhaps even making it to the pros. The short version is found in these three sentences (paraphrased): One hundred percent want to be successful. Ten percent take the time to form a good plan. One percent are willing to follow through every day for years. There are some sports where genetics play a limiting role. Basketball is just one example, because height really matters. But with all due respect to the super-talented hockey players I’ve observed and tested, genetics play a very small role in hockey potential. Practically anyone can play college hockey if you are passionate and start early enough. It’s not genetics, it’s factors like rink sense, creativity, read-react decisions, mental toughness, poise, confidence, stick skills, skating speed, quickness and agility. Oh, and the most important limiting factor in future success? Do you compete for loose pucks like your life depends on it? It does. Included in the 10 percent group are

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Natalie Darwitz was a one-percenter her entire life. She was a relentless rink rat on the ice, and trained off-ice hard enough and long enough to eventually captain the U.S. Olympic Team.

those who seek advice and perhaps take skating or shooting lessons – learn how to do it right. And note: The smartest plans include hours of pond hockey to improve skills and rink sense, plus skating-specific strength training off-ice, sprinting, jumping

and slide-board reps. But plans and lessons are NOT enough, any more than golf lessons would get you to the PGA Tour without hours of practice. A skating instructor can only get you started, even if there are many lessons over several

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months. Hockey camps and schools are only a start.You have to skate and skate and skate; and when you finish skating, and leave the ice, you must train those skating muscles until you can hardly walk. Ouch. Now that separates the dreamers from the achievers. That’s why the one percent is such an elite group, and that’s also why our sport allows practically anyone with enough passion, resolve and work ethic to overcome most hurdles. It happens all the time. The hardest workers pass right by talented players who fail to take advantage of their gifts. The 10-percent group is popular. In fact, it might swell to 50 percent. This group invests money in lessons, camps, schools and leagues – all of which are valuable. Heck, you have to play this game by the hour to be any good. It’s a game of experience. But to be a one-percenter, your investment starts where the 10-percenters don’t go. The rest is an investment of sweat. Recommended: http://ww.janssensportsleadership.com/ resources/janssen-blog/the-9-requirements-of-success-you-wont-win-withoutthem

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Officially Speaking: The Ol’ Boys Club As the 2016-17 season is finally behind us, OS is turning over this week’s column to a veteran Level 3. Naturally, due to the hard-hitting nature of the viewpoints expressed, the fellow official’s name has been redacted for his own protection. I’m a veteran official with 20 years of registration behind me. I do everything from mites to men’s, from house to high school, and I’m frustrated at the evolution of officiating, particularly the business side of the game. I grew up in the Midwest playing on a pond, if you’re able to picture that. We’d play on the lagoon all day. I played locally with a good bunch of the guys that I now call my fellow officials. Unfortunately, long gone are the days that we were friends, because suddenly, officiating is a business – a big business. Look, I was an assigner as well. I covered a few of the local rinks. It was way before the web and I was still using the rotary to make calls. I’d forgo the few bucks I’d normally pocket, so the guy helping to cover knew I appreciated it. But that was the 20th century. Now, it seems less like the brotherhood that it once was. Now, you are either in the Ol’ Boys Club (OBC) or you’re the outsider. I have ice in my veins, I travel to multiple rinks, I cover what I’m able, I love the game. Sadly, knowing that I’m no longer an OBC

Mark Lichtenfeld

Photo: Christine Wisch

member has me questioning my fellow officials’ integrity. It needs to be a commonwealth, it needs to be a one-person position, it needs to be taken away from the double-dippers. There needs to be a scale of what you’ll be paid. There should be a minimum $30 per game. And most important, open up the games far in advance so I can get a monthly schedule. Instead, games are held open for weeks without placement, then suddenly scheduled less than a week beforehand. Meanwhile, all my open requests during the month simply expire. Us veterans get

passed over for members of the OBC. That’s just wrong. Finally, is it me or does it seem like there should be term limits for the board? Thank you for allowing me to voice my opinion through OS and Let’s Play Hockey. OK, this official exemplifies the typical OS reader. The guy probably pays $125 in annual registration fees and expends over 10 hours of personal time just to get certified. And all for the privilege of being passed over by the OBC, according to this account. Clearly, I don’t know the specifics of this case, but regular readers get the general

idea. This guy refs because he loves the game, and hates being subjected to the business aspect of officiating. OS gets these letters all the time. Again, this is the guest referee’s column, not OS’s. So I’m only going to point out one further item of information for Let’s Play Hockey readers. It’s what Ron Hoggarth and Dan Marouelli told me a couple of weeks ago when we were discussing the current state of being an NHL official. “We’re just glad we came up when we did,” they told OS in unison. And that goes the same for most veteran USA Hockey officials. We’re just glad we came up in the 80s and 90s, which I think is this week’s guest official’s point. That’s why this guy asked to sound-off in OS. For today’s guest columnist, he’s a victim of circumstance – when it’s no longer about the love of the game. On a separate note, OS would like to give a much overdue thank you to AR Sports, the manufacturer of skate laces sold throughout the country (OS’s favorite brand). Earlier this year, OS purchased a set of laces with a missing tip. OS contacted AR Sports and they immediately responded by sending out three fresh packages of laces, plus plus, a hand-held skate edger! Very classy. Thank you, AR Sports. Questions and comments can be sent to editor@letsplayhockey.com, via Twitter @OSpeaking or through the Let’s Play Hockey Facebook page.

A high school goalie who deals with more than making saves Jackson Boline is a junior at Alexandria Area High School and a goaltender for the varsity team. He began skating when he was five years old and has continued from Mites to high school. On Nov. 1, 2016, Jackson and his family’s life changed dramatically. Jackson’s father, Patrick, who has played or coached for over 40 years, suffered a dissection of his aorta on Nov. 1, and was helicoptered to the University of Minnesota for emergency surgery. The surgery lasted 7-8 hours and was successful in saving Patrick’s life. This was Jackson’s favorite time of year with captain’s practice beginning and there were high expectations for the upcoming season. Jackson, on the other hand, was worried whether his father was going to survive post-surgery and the ongoing concern that his father would have significant or severe disability. The thought of the upcoming season quickly became secondary. Fortunately, Patrick recovered fully from surgery, which was considered a miracle by the surgical staff and any other physician who the family has consulted. During the follow-up testing, Patrick was found to have two more aneurysms in his iliac arteries which run down each leg. These findings led to the belief that there must be a genetic component involved with Patrick’s aneurysms. With all of this going on in Jackson’s life, he began the hockey season. Every season has its ups and downs, and this season was no different, but Jackson’s save percentage was .915 with a 2.10 goals-against average and four shutouts. Impressive statistics for a young man who had a lot on his mind. Jackson’s parents, having known that Jackson has a bicuspid aortic valve instead of what would be a normal tricuspid valve, the biscuspid valve has to work harder than the normal tricuspid valve, which can lead to leaking, which can then lead to a reduction in proper blood flow from his heart to

heavy weightlifting had to stop. There would be another test in six months, and if any more dilation occurred, hockey would be out as well. For the Boline family who had already had enough to deal with, now they had to talk to Jackson about the possibility of no hockey – a sport and lifestyle he has been involved in for over 12 years. Obviuosly, for Jackson’s parents and family, life was more important than hockey, but for a 17-year-old who already had a lot to deal with, he was reaching a breaking point. The next game was against rival Sartell-St. Stephen. Jackson’s dad could tell he was not his usual confident self and was fighting the puck. The score was 3-0 after the first period and Jackson’s coach pulled him before the second period. This was hard to take for Jackson who had not been Alexandria junior goalie Jackson Boline posted a 7-2-1 record with a 2.10 pulled from a game all season. goals-against average in 2016-17. He texted his mom after the the rest of his body. There is also a relation- game and told her he was scared. The stress ship between a bicuspid valve and a dila- threshold had been reached. Instead of a tion of the root, or the beginning of the aorta confident goalie, he began having doubts from the heart. This was the part of the aorta and worries that he had never had before. that became an aneurysm and ruptured in His coach told him he would have the start Jackson’s father. against East Grand Forks. Jackson again let Jackson went in for testing on Feb. 3, in three goals and his confidence appeared 2017. The test performed was a worse. He was devastated. echocardiogram. The cardiologist reported Playing goalie is hard enough, but to have the results, which included a dilation of the your mind not clear or focused can be very aortic root amd mild leakage of his bicus- difficult for the most seasoned professional pid valve. Jackson and his parents were to handle, much less a 17-year-old. Since shocked. They thought they were going to the first consultation, Jackson has had two receive a follow-up on his aortic valve, not a other physicians – a cardiologist and a vasaortic dilation. The cardiologist consulted cular specialist – tell Jackson’s parents that with the senior cardiologist who said that he is OK to play and that it would be worse Jackson could play goalie, but football and for him mentally if he did not play.

Jackson continued to practice and played in one playoff game, posting a 15-save shutout in a 13-0 win over Wadena-Deer Creek. Jackson is regaining his confidence and never lost his exceptional work ethic. His courage and passion for the game he loves are an inspiration to many. Jackson helps coach younger goalies in the Alexandria youth association and passes the love of the game to younger players and wants them to know he will always be there for them. The Bolines want parents to know that if there is a history of murmurs or heart disease in your family, get a thorough examination to rule out any problems. Patrick Boline feels his aortic dissection was a blessing in disguise. Without it, Jackson would not have gone in and Jill Boline would not have had her bicuspid valve evaluated and found that she also has a dilatation of her aortic root. In addition, the Bolines want coaches and teachers to be aware of changes in a young person, whether it be on the rink or in the classroom. Ask and talk to parents. You never know what a young person might be going through. Jackson will be going through more testing this spring and summer. The Bolines hope for and pray for the best, but whatever the results, Jackson will continue to use what he has learned to live a full and happy life.

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March 30, 2017

A career promise Joe Meierhofer will retire as sole director of the Herb Brooks National Hockey Center By Natasha Barber

ible supporter of mine … to let me do this, because it’s demanding. There have been some super long weeks where I’m not around. I’m here. She’s been a big backbone for me, that’s for sure.”

ST. CLOUD, MINN. — As the St. Cloud State University men’s hockey team played their last period of the season earlier this month, another staple at the college was pondering the upcoming culmination of his own career at the Herb Brooks National Hockey Center. Sauk Rapids resident Joe Meierhofer will retire this May after 27 years as the first and only director of operations of the facility. “To be honest, it is a little premature for me to think about,” said Meierhofer, who is also SCSU’s Associate Director of Sports Facilities. “I’m trying not to count the days. I’ve lived a pretty cool life in this building. I’m super lucky to have been a part of it.” The start of a career Meierhofer’s experience with sports facilities began when he was a freshman in college playing baseball for SCSU. He took a job as a Zamboni driver at the Municipal Athletic Complex, before eventually starting a maintenance business which contracted services to the city of St. Cloud. At 20 years old, Meierhofer had over 40 employees working under his direction, from groundskeepers, pool maintenance personnel, concession workers and more. “I was working 65 hours a week and trying to take 12 full credits to be eligible to play baseball,” he said. “My life was full speed ahead.” After graduating in 1986 and marrying his wife Deb, Meierhofer sold his maintenance company and took a position as the MAC’s Sports’ Center Assistant Manager. The engineering tech major, who had an emphasis in aviation, had plans to one day become an airport manager. His plans changed. “Deb and I were on our way back from Duluth when we drove past the DECC — the Duluth Entertainment and Convention Center and ice arena where the Bulldogs play,” Meierhofer said. “I said to her as we were driving by, I think I would love to run a big building like that. I would love to run a big sports facility, ice arena like that.” Less than a week later, that opportunity arose. Construction of the National Hockey Center had already begun, and the university was searching for a director to run the arena. An SCSU alumnus and having worked at the MAC for ten years, Meierhofer’s connections with coaches and staff were plentiful. Herb Brooks, who would become the National Hockey Center’s namesake, and Craig Dahl, the university’s head hockey coach at the time, inquired as to why the former student had not applied for the po-

Joe Meierhofer will retire after 27 years of being the sole director of operations for the Herb Brooks National Hockey Center. Photo: Natasha Barber

sition. “I told them I didn’t have a shot,” Meierhofer said. “They told me I wouldn’t know unless I tried. So I did, and I got it.” According to Meierhofer, the school gave him the job because of a promise he made to them. “I promised them I’d never let this building get old,” he said. “That was my promise and that is why it still looks the way it does. Because I will do anything possible to not let this place get old. That’s just my thing, and anybody who works here goes along with that theme.” ear s, one da Twenty -se ears, dayy at a time enty-se -sevven yyear On Meierhofer’s first day, Oct. 1, 1989, he walked into a skeleton of a building. The frame of the hockey center was standing, but much of the construction still needed to be completed. All the staff needed to be hired, and accounting and scheduling systems needed to be organized. The first hockey game was scheduled for just over 10 weeks later on Dec. 16. Meierhofer, along with Brooks, Dahl and former SCSU Vice-president Bill Radovich, questioned whether they would make it. They all agreed they would. “That was as hard as a person could possibly push it. I went home every night, but I literally was here every day for six straight months, including Christmas,” Meierhofer said. “This building was the hype of the university in 1989. I was a young guy, and I knew from the moment we got in here, we had to go hard, hard, hard to kick this thing off right.” The Herb Brooks National Hockey Center has two Olympic-sized hockey rinks and houses 6,178 ticket-holders during a single game. It is the home ice of SCSU’s Huskies,

but has benefitted the surrounding skating community through rentals. It has hosted Olympic trials for both men and women, as well as the International Ice Hockey Federation Women’s World Hockey Championship. During the summer, it is home to weeks of hockey camps for USA Hockey and its affiliate Minnesota Hockey. In 2013, the building underwent a renovation and expansion which included club-level seating and a four-story atrium. Although there have been almost 10,000 days between that first Huskies’ home game and the final one of Meierhofer’s career on March 4, the director said his weeks and days are anything but routine. He is in charge of all aspects of operations in the building, except concessions and ticket sales. His season begins by hiring about 25 new employees each September because of the turnover of graduated seniors. Then, he attains security for each event, before installing the sheet of ice and continuing maintenance on rink equipment and the arena itself. “A lot of what I do is consult with staff. What do we need to paint? What do we need to change? What do I need to replace? Every day that’s what I need to think about. What can I change, replace or upgrade? And how am I supposed to pay for it,” Meierhofer said. There has been one person significant to Meierhofer’s success, who hasn’t been on his payroll. He credits his wife Deb, who is employed full-time by the St. Cloud Hospital, for juggling the schedules of his three athletic children — Brooks, Jacob and Kelly Jo — while he was busy with his job. “My wife doesn’t get enough credit for me being gone 30 of the 52 weekends a year,” Meierhofer said. “She had been an incred-

Keeping the promise comes with perks Work in the arena doesn’t stop for Meierhofer. On game days, he circles the building multiple times to make sure his facility is perfect. His office which overlooks the ice, looks like a traditional work space rather than an executive suite. Yet, his job does come with perks. Meierhofer has seen hockey’s finest skate on his ice before they were famous. He’s mentored multiple students. And at each home game, he lets the home team onto the ice. “I let the Huskies on the ice when it’s dark. That’s my thing. I stand down there on the bench and count down from 10 or 20. These guys are jacked up like a bunch of bulls coming out of a pen,” he said. “I never get sick of that. I never get sick of the lights dropping. And I never get sick of hearing the National Anthem when the lights are coming back up.” Meierhofer’s objectives haven’t changed from day one. “This is a big-time, Division I, high-caliber, national-level facility,” Meierhofer said. “The minute you start running it like a Division II facility, you fail. If you start thinking small, you go backwards. You can’t, you just can’t.” Although he says his intention to keep the facility looking its finest gets harder each day in the budget-cut world, he continues to do his best to hire and train team members who follow suit. As for what’s next? Meierhofer is looking forward to becoming a hockey fan. Rather than pacing the building, problem-solving next fall, he’ll be in seat 12, row 3, enjoying the game. Natasha Barber is the editor of the Sauk Rapids Herald newspaper, Minnesota’s oldest community newspaper. She is also a diehard Granite City Lumberjack and Minnesota Wild fan.

March 30, 2017

Let’s Play Hockey

www.letsplayhockey.com

USA Hockey, U.S. Women’s National Team reach agreement

Let’s Play Hockey photo by Mike Thill

USA Hockey and the U.S. Women’s National Team announced Tuesday night that they’ve reached an agreement that will result in groundbreaking support for the U.S. Women’s National Team program over the course of the next four years. The new deal is worth between $3.7 million and $4 million. All members of the U.S. Women’s National Team are guaranteed at least $2,000 per month and could earn up to $71,000 in non-Olympic years. National Team players will earn between $850,000 and $950,000 this year to be split equally, depending on the team’s performance in the upcoming World Championship. The women will split pool of between $950,000 and $1 million in other years of deal, depending on results. On top of enhanced earnings, the women stand to earn an additional $37,500 each for Olympic gold, $22,500 for silver and $15,000 for bronze. Under the new deal, the women will receive the same amenities as the men when it comes to travel and accommodations. The agreement ensures fans will see the U.S. Women’s National Team defend its gold medal in the 2017 IIHF Women’s World Championship on home ice. The event begins Friday (March 31) at USA Hockey Arena in the Detroit suburb of Plymouth, with Team USA facing Canada at 7:30 p.m. ET

The new four-year deal between USA Hockey and the Women’s National Team is worth between $3.7 and $4 million.

(live on NHL Network). The U.S. is expected to hold its first official practice on Thursday (March 30) at 3:15 p.m. ET at USA Hockey Arena. “Today reflects everyone coming together and compromising in order to reach a resolution for the betterment of the sport,” said Jim Smith, president of USA Hockey. “We’ll now move forward together knowing we’ll look back on this day as one of the most positive in the history of USA Hockey.”

“Our sport is the big winner today,” said Meghan Duggan, captain of the U.S. Women’s National Team. “We stood up for what we thought was right and USA Hockey’s leadership listened. In the end, both sides came together. I’m proud of my teammates and can’t thank everyone who supported us enough. It’s time now to turn the page. We can’t wait to play in the World Championship later this week in front of our fans as we try and defend our gold

medal.” “We look forward to the future with great anticipation,” said Dave Ogrean, executive director of USA Hockey. “This process has, in the end, made us better.” “I’m glad we could come together and reach an arrangement that will have a positive and lasting impact,” said Hilary Knight, veteran forward of the U.S. Women’s National Team. “This is an inspirational time and we’re excited to get back on the ice and represent our country.” “The action taken today is an important statement of USA Hockey’s commitment and support of our women’s national team program and female hockey overall,” said Donna Guariglia, treasurer of USA Hockey and former chair of USA Hockey’s Girls’ and Women’s Section. NOTES: The agreement includes the formation of a Women’s High Performance Advisory Group of former and current players from the U.S. Women’s National Team program, along with volunteer and staff leadership, to meet regularly to assist USA Hockey in efforts to advance girls’ and women’s hockey in all areas, including programming, marketing, promotion and fundraising. That is in addition to the focus on the grassroots hockey areas that volunteers of USA Hockey’s Girls’ and Women’s Section have been involved with for almost 30 years.

“It’s a great day for hockey” By Jack Blatherwick Let’s Play Hockey Columnist Bob Johnson’s famous quote – more importantly his passion for hockey – is the best description of the agreement reached on March 28, by USA Women’s National Team members and USA Hockey. The game is on. The preliminary round of the IIHF Women’s World Championships start Friday, and the feature game will be USA versus Canada. It may be the preliminary round, but the rivalry between these two teams, added to the creative playmaking and super-fast skating, make this a game no one should miss. This hockey is as creative and skillful as it is fierce. You will see a couple hundred passes, not a couple dozen. The women stood up courageously for fairness, demanding nothing more than to be compensated like the professionals they are. These are incredible athletes, with strength and speed test results that might shock you. They shocked me. Some can do 25 chin-ups, even 31 by one athlete! Some have skating test times that fall in the middle of NHL times. They train with uncommon passion, working on speed and explosive strength. This requires 3-4 hours daily, for workouts on and off the ice. When you add travel time, it

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is nearly impossible to support this lifestyle financially. So, of course they deserve adequate compensation, because this schedule is the only way to chase gold medals. They’ve also asked for constructive development opportunities for young girls, considering the $4 million that USA Hockey spends on two boys’ teams in the National Team Development Program. Molly Engstrom is a former U.S. Olympian who now plays in Sweden, and has earned a master’s degree studying the investment gap in men’s versus women’s development. She believes this agreement will be a wakeup call in Europe. It demonstrates to the men of the IIHF and various national federations that women are playing this game for real, and their development opportunities should be comparable to those for boys and men. Bob Johnson is smiling. This is truly a great day for hockey – for girls’ and women’s hockey around the world.

www.letsplayhockey.com

March 30, 2017

NAHL.com

INSIDE THE NAHL NAHL Alumni Update • All 16 teams in last weekend’s NCAA Regionals had at least one NAHL alumni on their roster. In total, 81 NAHL alumni were on the 16 rosters of teams that took part in the event. Following is a breakdown: Air Force: 20 Minnesota: 8 Denver: 7 UMass-Lowell: 7 Western Michigan: 6 Minnesota-Duluth: 5 North Dakota: 5 Ohio State: 5 Cornell: 3 Michigan Tech: 3 Providence: 3 Union: 3 Harvard: 2 Penn State: 2 Boston: 1 Notre Dame: 1 • Let’s Play Hockey and the Herb Brooks Foundation announced the five finalists for the 2017 Mike Richter Award, which honors the most outstanding goaltender in NCAA men’s hockey. The fourth annual award will be presented at the 2017 NCAA Men’s Frozen Four in Chicago. Three of the five finalists are alumni of the North American Hockey League. Michael Bitzer, Bemidji State University (Alexandria Blizzard, 2011-12) – The WCHA Player of the Year and an All-WCHA First Team selection, Michael Bitzer led the Beavers to the WCHA regular season championship while leading the conference in goals-against average (1.71), save percentage (.932), shutouts (6) and wins (22, tied with Michigan Tech’s Angus Redmond). A native of Moorhead, Minn., he posted a 2214-3 overall record and ranks first in the nation in goals-against average, games played (39), minutes (2355:22), tied for first in shutouts, third in save percentage and tied for seventh in wins. The junior netminder played in all but two games this season for the Beavers, allowing two goals or less 29 times. Bitzer stopped 30 or more shots in nine games this season, and posted a .930 or better save percentage in 20 games. A Hobey Baker Award top 10 finalist, Bitzer is an exercise science major at Bemidji State. Cal Petersen, University of Notre Dame (Topeka RoadRunners, 2011-12) – Cal Petersen backstopped the 12th-ranked Fighting Irish to within one point of a share of the Hockey East regular season championship while leading the conference in save percentage (.928) and shutouts (6), and earning First Team All-Hockey East honors. A native of Waterloo, he owns a 21-11-5 overall record and ranks tied for first in the nation in shutouts, fifth in saves (1,007), seventh in minutes played (2191:55) tied for ninth in save percentage, 12th in goalsagainst average and wins, and 19th in winning percentage (.635). The junior netminder has started every game and played all but 19 minutes this season for the Irish, allowing two goals or less 23 times. He has stopped 30 or more shots in 15 games this season and has posted a .930 or better save percentage in 16 games. A finalist for the Hockey East Player of the Year Award, Petersen has started 87 consecutive games, dating back to a 5-1 win over Maine on Feb. 7, 2015. A fifth-round pick (129th overall) of the Buffalo Sabres in the 2013 NHL Entry Draft, Petersen is a management consulting major at Notre Dame. Charles Williams, Canisius College (Owatonna Express, 2010-11) – The Atlan-

tic Hockey Player of the Year and an All-AHC First Team selection, Charles Williams led the Golden Griffins to their first AHC regular season championship while leading the conference in goals-against average (1.82), save percentage (.943), shutouts (6) and saves (1,016). A native of Canton, Mich., he posted a 21-7-5 overall record and ranks first in the nation in save percentage and shutouts, tied for third in goals-against average, fourth in saves and tied for 12th in wins. The graduate transfer netminder played in all but five games this season for the Griffins, allowing two goals or less 25 times. Williams stopped 30 or more shots in 15 games this season, including a career-high 46 in a 2-2 tie at Air Force on Jan. 14. The six-time AHC Goalie of the Week honoree posted a .930 or better save percentage in 21 games. A Hobey Baker Award top 10 finalist, Williams is a master’s degree candidate in sport administration at Canisius. • Former NAHL (Kalamazoo Jr. K-Wings) forward and Ferris State senior forward Chad McDonald, who helped lead the Bulldogs to a pair of NCAA tournament appearances in four years while also holding a 3.94 GPA, has been named the 2017 WCHA Student-Athlete of the Year. McDonald was a four-year contributor for the Bulldogs, helping Ferris State to a MacNaughton Cup as league regular-season champions, a Broadmoor Trophy as postseason champs and a pair of appearances in an NCAA tournament regional final. • The NHL’s Anaheim Ducks have signed center and former NAHL’er Mitch Hults (Janesville Jets, 2011-12) to a two-year entry-level contract. Per club policy, financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. Hults, 22, collected 20-34=54 points with 98 penalty minutes (PIM) in two seasons (76 games) with Lake Superior State of the Western Collegiate Hockey Association (WCHA). Hults was named to the All-WCHA Second Team in 2016-17 after leading in conference in assists (23) and ranking third in points (34). The 6-2, 205-pound forward was also named WCHA Player of the Month for October after earning 4-7=11 points in six games. • Former NAHL Commissioner and President Tom Anastos (1994-98) resigned as head coach of the Michigan State Spartans. Anastos was 78-122-24 in six seasons at Michigan State. He guided the Spartans to a berth in the 2012 NCAA tournament after going 19-16-4 in his first season behind the bench. In 2014-15, the Spartans posted a 17-16-1 record and finished second in the Big Ten regular-season standings.

2016-17 NAHL College Commitments Aberdeen Wings Andy Carroll Tucker DeYoung* Carson Dimoff Kevin Fitzgerald Trystan Isenhour Nicholas Jenny Logan Jenuwine Shawn Knowlton Matt Ladd Gage Mackie Josh Passolt* Gavin Payne* Andrew Sinard Joey Strada

Minnesota State Army St. Lawrence St. Cloud State Colorado College Robert Morris Western Michigan Air Force Colorado College Arizona State Western Michigan RPI Miami Arizona State

Amarillo Bulls Brandon Bussi Charlie Combs* Steven Ipri Bobby Kaiser* George Mika Coale Norris* Charlie Singerhouse Jeff Solow

St. Lawrence Bemidji State Mercyhurst Massachusetts Massachusetts Ferris State UW-River Falls Merrimack

Aston Rebels Evan Bell* Drew Blackmun Dom Garcia Dallas Gerads * Gvido Jansons Brennan Kapcheck Dustin Manz Shane McMahan Ryan Solomon Jensen Zerban

Merrimack Northeastern Arizona State Minnesota State Arizona State American Int’l Lake Superior State Minnesota State Northeastern Air Force

Austin Bruins AJ Drobot Tanner DuFault Jake Kucharski Justin Misiak Dan Petrick Jan Stefka

Maine St. John’s Providence Michigan Tech Northeastern American Int’l

Bismarck Bobcats Matthew Barry Tobias Fladeby Nick McKeeby Matej Murin Cameron Smith Will Ulrich Mitchell Walinski

Holy Cross American Int’l Western Michigan American Int’l Dartmouth Air Force Niagara

Air Force Air Force Clarkson UMass Lowell UW-Stevens Point Maine Air Force

Fairbanks Ice Dogs Robert Blueger Julius Marva Aaron McPheters

Lake Superior State Alaska-Anchorage Alaska-Anchorage

Janesville Jets Joey Abate Chris Dodero Colin Felix Jack Gates Kip Hoffman Adrian Holesinsky Michael Maloney Jakov Novak Cole Paskus Derek Schaedig Zach Solow Carson Vance* Blake Wareham

Wisconsin American Int’l Massachusetts Colorado College Alaska-Anchorage Maine Brown Bentley UMass Lowell Harvard Northeastern Western Michigan Canisius

Johnstown Tomahawks Filips Buncis Dalton Hunter Zac Robbins* Hayden Rowan

Arizona State Mercyhurst Connecticut Yale

Kenai River Brown Bears Lucas Carroll UW-Stout Jonathan Marzec UW-Stout Lone Star Brahmas Justin Addamo Alec Calvaruso Drake Glover Pete Kessel Simon Loof Max Prawdzik John Zimmerman

Robert Morris Colorado College Alaska Anchorage Holy Cross Merrimack Boston University Army

Minnesota Magicians Travis Brown Pierce Crawford* Hunter Lellig Vitaliy Novytskyy*

Michigan Tech Notre Dame Minnesota Duluth American Int’l

Minnesota Wilderness Ashton Calder Bradley Johnson* Luke Kania Western Michigan Nicholas Olczyk Lake Superior State Tristan Rostagno Aurora Tyler Vold Bowling Green Michael Zuffante

Brookings Blizzard Paul Cotter Chase Gamelin Jake Gwillim * Brandon Kruse Corpus Christi Ice Rays David Baskerville Nathan Bryer Cam Burggrabe Jake Durflinger * Cody Fleckenstein Logan Gestro Mason Krueger Dryden McKay* Tomas Vomacka

Canisius Mercyhurst Northern Michigan Denver Army Canisius Army Holy Cross Connecticut

Coulee Region Chill Jackson Charlesworth

Northern Michigan

Minot Minotauros Alex Adams Eric Dop Tyler Jeanson Reid Stefanson New Jersey Titans Nicholas Boyagian Todd Goehring Jordan Kaplan Oskar Stromberg

Lake Superior State Bemidji State Brown Colorado College Michigan Tech Bemidji State Bentley Air Force Bowling Green Colgate UMass Lowell Sacred Heart Sacred Heart Sacred Heart American Int’l

Northeast Generals Matt Demelis Cameron Smith Joe Vingi Tim Weinstein

Northeastern Dartmouth Suffolk Trinity

Odessa Jackalopes Jaden Anderson Jake Levin Ryan MacKellar Connor Wood Levin Wunder Cooper Zech Zach Zech

Lake Superior State Air Force UW-Stevens Point Alabama-Huntsville Alabama-Huntsville Alaska UW-Stevens Point

Shreveport Mudbugs Croix Evingson Eriks Zohovs

UMass Lowell UMass Lowell

Springfield Jr. Blues Aiden Beck Matthew Cassidy Jason Dhooghe * Fletcher Fineman Jordan Greenfield-Flemon Ryan Leibold Matt Long Grant Meyer * Garrett Nieto D.J. Petruzzelli Luke Picek Brian Rigali * Mike Robinson Jack Summers

Canisius Quinnipiac Wisconsin Union Norwich Army Canisius Canisius Lake Superior State Quinnipiac Aurora Connecticut New Hampshire Brown

Topeka RoadRunners Marshall Bowery John DeRoche Max Harper Brent Hill Michael Latorella Luka Maver * Quinn Preston * Brendan Rons Marcus Russell Trevor Zins*

Air Force Quinnipiac Air Force Maine Ohio State American Int’l Ohio State Michigan Tech Michigan Tech UMass Lowell

Wichita Falls Wildcats Austin Albrecht Jeff Baum* Jonathan Bendorf Kevin Charyszyn* Jared Dempsey Seamus Donohue Evan Moyse Aleksi Poikola Garrett Van Wyhe* CJ Walker

Massachusetts Providence RPI Clarkson Army Michigan Tech Ohio State Michigan Tech Army Minnesota State

Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Knights Joe Campolieto Union Dorian Dawson Brown Paul DeNaples Penn State Jacob Hamacher* RIT Zach Satalino* Lawrence Grant Valentine Miami * NAHL Alumni Robbie Beydoun* Colin Burston* Dakota Raabe* Tyler Rockwell

Michigan Tech Brown Michigan Michigan Tech

2016-17 NAHL Standings & Stats Central Division Team GP y Minot 56 x MN Wilderness 56 Aberdeen 56 Brookings 56 Bismarck 56 Austin 56

W 36 30 28 27 27 21

L 16 20 23 24 27 27

OTL 4 4 3 4 1 3

SOL 0 2 2 1 1 5

PTS 76 66 61 59 56 50

GF 183 179 173 180 176 171

GA 147 168 172 183 193 195

DIFF 36 11 1 -3 -17 -24

PCT 0.679 0.589 0.545 0.527 0.500 0.446

PIM 1075 847 1071 885 1244 999

East Division y Aston x Johnstown x New Jersey x W-B/Scranton Northeast

55 55 55 57 56

43 37 33 27 3

9 14 19 25 50

2 3 1 1 3

1 1 2 4 0

89 78 69 59 9

202 191 213 172 104

97 135 169 180 283

105 56 44 -8 -179

0.809 0.709 0.627 0.518 0.080

947 1541 1217 938 1438

Midwest Division y Janesville 54 x MN Magicians 56 x Fairbanks 57 Coulee Region 54 Springfield 56 Kenai River 57

39 29 30 28 25 12

11 21 24 24 27 43

0 3 2 2 3 2

4 3 1 0 1 0

82 64 63 58 54 26

205 168 170 194 159 115

136 156 159 196 171 218

69 12 11 -2 -12 -103

0.759 0.571 0.553 0.537 0.482 0.228

949 627 937 839 669 1210

88 73 67 64 52 48 41

187 177 162 168 157 159 162

133 133 140 175 181 193 214

54 44 22 -7 -24 -34 -52

0.746 0.664 0.609 0.582 0.473 0.429 0.373

1143 1046 1171 1442 1513 870 1208

South Division y Lone Star 59 43 x Shreveport 55 34 x Corpus Christi 55 29 x Wichita Falls 55 29 Odessa 55 22 Amarillo 56 19 Topeka 55 18 x - clinched playoff berth

Former Amarillo Bulls forward Hampus Gustafsson recorded his first professional point last week for the Hershey Bears in the AHL.

Billy Duma Alex Falconer Shane Kuzmeski Cale List Steven Quagliata Jacob Schmidt-Svejstrup Isaac Theisen

14 2 0 16 2 3 17 4 5 20 4 2 25 6 2 27 8 2 32 4 1 y - clinched divisioin

Leading Scorers PLAYER TEAM George Mika AMA Caleb Schroer COU Nick Bruce JHT Four players tied with 56 points

P F F F

GP 56 53 55

G 30 22 23

A 35 37 35

PTS 65 59 58

March 30, 2017

Let’s Play Hockey

www.letsplayhockey.com

Update

Silver Cup Championship underway After an incredible season of drama, the field is set for the 2017 NA3HL Silver Cup Championship, which will take place from March 29-April 2, at Canlan Ice Sports in Romeoville, IL. Eight teams have advanced to the season-ending event which annually crowns the NA3HL National Playoff Champion. When looking up and down the Silver Cup list of eight teams, one thing is for sure … it is anyone’s tournament. For a variety of reasons, there may not be one clear favorite to win the whole thing and

history has taught us that anything can and will happen at the Silver Cup. Seven of the eight teams that advanced by winning their divisional playoff championship, also won their division’s regular season title. The lone team that did not win their division’s regular season title were the Atlanta Capitals, who finished one win and two points back of Texas. Four of the eight teams have won a Silver Cup Championship heading into the event (Granite City Lumberjacks, Metro Jets, North Iowa Bulls and St. Louis Jr. Blues). In Pool A, the #1 Metro Jets face the #8 Granite City Lumberjacks, and the #4 St. Louis Jr. Blues taking on the #5 Atlanta Capitals. In Pool B, the #2 Binghamton Junior Senators take on the #7 Long Beach Sharks, while the #3 Yellowstone Quake face off against the #6 North Iowa Bulls. The eight divisional playoff champions will play a three-game round-robin format, followed by a semifinal and a championship game. A round-robin format with two pools will be implemented, with the top two teams in each pool advancing to the semifinals, where they will then cross over to play the other top two teams from the other pool. The winners of the semifinals will advance to the Silver Cup Championship game. Watch all the action live and in HD on HockeyTV.

NA3HL.COM @NA3HL NA3HL

Leading Scorers • Regular Season PLAYER TEAM P Martins Vitolins LGB F Oskar Lindberg LGB F Conor Landrigan BNG F Dominik Bogdziul BNG F Ryan Reifler BNG F Brandon Corey RCY F Tyler Uravage BNG F

GP 46 46 45 42 47 47 44

G 53 52 52 43 36 61 30

A 110 97 70 76 64 33 62

PTS 163 149 122 119 100 94 92

Defenseman Scoring • Regular Season PLAYER TEAM P Danny O’Donnell GFL D Ricky Regala LGB D Austin Azzinnaro MIS D Conor Cunningham NAS D Jacob Peterson TEX D Connor Busch MNE D

GP 47 46 44 46 47 33

G 20 14 9 13 15 13

A 46 47 47 37 32 33

PTS 66 61 56 50 47 46

Save Percentage • Regular Season PLAYER TEAM GPI Andrew Kormos MET 23 Kyler Ayers GFL 18 Salvatore Lauretta BNG 26 Steven Schmitt BNG 21 Jake Gwillim MET 21

MINS 1359 996 1531 1232 1196

W-L-OTL-SOL 23-0-0-0 15-0-1-0 26-0-0-0 18-1-0-1 21-0-0-0

GAA 0.93 1.33 1.72 1.85 1.35

SV% .959 .945 .941 .936 .935

Goals-Against Average • Regular Season PLAYER TEAM GPI Andrew Kormos MET 23 Kyler Ayers GFL 18 Jake Gwillim MET 21 Salvatore Lauretta BNG 26 Tyler Myers TEX 31 * bold indicates Minnesota native

MINS W-L-OTL-SOL SV% 1359 23-0-0-0 .959 996 15-0-1-0 .945 1196 21-0-0-0 .935 1531 26-0-0-0 .941 1837 24-5-1-0 .932 * More stats on NA3HL.com

GAA 0.93 1.33 1.35 1.72 1.83

Women’s Update WCHA.com •

@WCHA_WHockey •

WCHAWOMENSHOCKEY

WCHA in the pros update By Bill Brophy Megan Bozek was an NCAA champion at Minnesota and now she is a champion in the National Women's Hockey League (NWHL). Bozek had one goal and her defense helped back the goaltending of Brianne McLaughlin, who made 60 saves as the Buffalo Beauts stunned league champion Boston and with a 3-2 victory in the 2017 Isobel Cup final. Boston was the defending champion, only lost one game in the regular season and beat Connecticut in the playoff semifinals, but Bozek scored the first goal at the Tsongas Center in Lowell, Mass., and then McLaughlin took over. She took a 2-0 lead into the final period and, thanks to a Bozek-led defense that blocked 15 shots, held the high-powered Pride off the board until the final five minutes. After winning the Isobel Cup, the Beauts were honored at the Buffalo Sabres’ NHL game. Bozek’s championship capped a stellar week for the former Gopher, who was named the league’s Best Defender (as selected by the media) when the NWHL handed out its 2016-17 awards. She was one of three WCHA alumnae to earn year-

end honors, as former Wisconsin star Brianna Decker repeated as Most Valuable Player (as selected by the NWHL Players Association), while the media tabbed St. Cloud State alumna Katie Fitzgerald as Best Goaltender. Nineteen former WCHA players finished the 2016-17 season playing in the CWHL, while 16 competed in the NWHL. The Minnesota Whitecaps, an elite women’s hockey team made up of postcollegiate players, also has 22 former WCHA players – from seven league schools – on

its Minneapolis-based roster. It includes nine former Minnesota players (Rachael Bona, Hannah Brandt, Winny Brown, Katie Frischmann, Mira Jalosuo, Becky Kortum, Meghan Lorence, Chelsey Rosenthal and Kelly Seeler), four North Dakota alumni (Shelby Amsley-Benzie, Tanja Eischenschmid, Jocelyne LamoureuxDavidson and Monique Lamoureux-Morando) and four from St. Cloud State (Julie Friend, Carrie Holldorf, Meaghan Pezon and Haylea Schmid), two players from UMD (Jenny Potter, Casey Ambroz and Emma Stauber), and one each from Bemidji State (Stephanie Anderson), Minnesota State (Alli Altmann) and Wisconsin (Alex Rigsby). Seven members of the Whitecaps were on Team USA and won a gold medal at the Four Nations Cup. Here are the ex-WCHA players currently on professional team rosters, effective March 1. NWHL (16) Boston: Brianna Decker, Wisconsin;

Meghan Duggan, Wisconsin, Gigi Marvin, Minnesota; Hillary Knight, Wisconsin Buffalo: Megan Bozek, Minnesota; Lisa Chesson, Ohio State; Jordyn Burns, Minnesota; Amanda Leveille, Minnesota. Connecticut: Jordan Brickner, Wisconsin; Zoe Hickel, Minnesota Duluth; Meghan Huertas, Minnesota Duluth. New York: Courtney Burke, Wisconsin; Madison Packer, Wisconsin; Amanda Kessel, Minnesota; Milica McMillen, Minnesota; Katie Fitzgerald, St. Cloud State CWHL (19) Brampton: Laura McIntosh, Ohio State; Jenna McParland, Minnesota Duluth; Jocelyne LaRocque, Minnesota Duluth; Kaitlyn Tougas, Bemidji State Calgary: Sarah Davis, Minnesota; Haley Irwin, Minnesota Duluth; Blayre Turnbull, Wisconsin; Brigette Lacquette, Minnesota Duluth; Meghan Mickelson, Wisconsin; Jessica Wong, Minnesota Duluth. Montreal: Caroline Ouellette, Minnesota Duluth; Emanuelle Blais, Minnesota Duluth; Noemie Marin, Minnesota Duluth Toronto: Carolyne Prevost, Wisconsin; Kelly Terry, Minnesota; Natalie Spooner, Ohio State; Michela Cava, Minnesota Duluth; Danielle Gagne, Ohio State

March 30, 2017

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AAU JUNIOR HOCKEY Insider AAUICEHOCKEY.ORG • WSHL.POINTSTREAKSITES.COM

WSHL Playoff update – Division Semifinals WESTERN DIVISION #1 Long Beach def. #4 Las Vegas, 2-0; advances to play Valencia The Long Beach Bombers put any notion of them being rusty to rest, outscoring the Las Vegas Storm, 19-0, in a two-game sweep. Qualifying for the division final guarantees the Bombers, with the best regular season record in the WSHL, of a wild card spot in the Thorne Cup field. There is not a lot to say about this one. The Bombers posted a 10-0 win in Friday’s series’ opener. Robert Roslund was the only Long Beach skater to score more than once, denting the twine once in each period for a hat trick. Kiril Markevich had a goal and three assists, Jon Pichedwatana also dished out three helpers, and Domenic Bosetti stopped all 24 shots the Storm mustered in the game. Bosetti posted another 24-save shutout in a 9-0 Long Beach clincher. Anton Bowallius and Erik Fagerlein scored twice for the Bombers and Dante Mullin collected three assists. #2 Valencia def. #3 Ontario, 2-0; advances to play Long Beach Valencia’s Patrik Tondl scored an unassisted goal at 9:10 of the second overtime in Game Two to eliminate the Ontario Avalanche and send Valencia into the division finals. Ontario went out in two straight games, but they did not go quietly. Three goals in a span of 3:06 in the second period gave Ontario a 4-2 lead in Game Two. Joseph Hebert got the Flyers within a goal, but Joel Lundberg’s second tally of the game restored the two-goal Ontario lead at the second intermission. Dylan San Agustin and Dusan Olsa scored 29 seconds apart for Valencia early in the third period to tie things up, then Olsa scored again at 8:01, completing his hat trick and giving Valencia the lead back at 6-5. Ontario’s Alex Bouchard tied things back up with 3:29 left in regulation, sending the game to overtime. Owen Liskiewicz finished the game with 55 saves for Ontario – one more than Valencia’s Garret Kingsbury (54). The Flyers entered the third period of Game 1 protecting a 1-0 lead. Tondl gave them a two-goal lead, but Manuel Mancha struck back for the Avalanche, getting Ontario within a goal. Olsa scored to make it 3-1. Valencia and the Flyers made that hold up as the final. Kingsbury and Ontario’s Filip Subrt each made 39 saves. NORTHWEST DIVISION #1 Idaho def. #5 TTahoe, ahoe, 2-0; advances to play Butte Cobras Artur Pavliukov did what he could for the Tahoe Icemen, stopping 20 of 21 shots in the first period of Game 1, then making 23 more saves in the second period. The Idaho Jr. Steelheads eventually broke through, however, and posted a 13-2 win. John Deroche had a hat trick for the Jr. Steelheads while Hunter Lester (2-3-5) and Matthew Kindred (2-1-3) had two each. Both of Kindred’s goals were part of an eightgoal third period for Idaho. Lance Herning (1-5-6) and Jonathan Davidsson (1-3-4) also had big offensive performances. Nine different Jr. Steelheads scored in the 9-4 clincher, including Deroche, who also dished out three helpers. Idaho led 4-1 after 20 minutes, then watched as the Icemen cut their lead to a single goal, before putting their foot back on the pedal and

scoring the next five. #3 Butte def. #2 Southern Oregon, 2-0; advances to play Idaho The Butte Cobras pulled off an upset of the division semifinal round, winning two straight road games to run their winning streak at The Medford Mad House to five, and eliminate the Southern Oregon Spartans. A third-period goal by Butte’s Augusts Veidenbaums broke a 1-1 tie and held up as the deciding goal in a 2-1 win for Butte in Game 1. Jacob Rudloff gave the Cobras a 1-0 lead with just eight seconds left in the first period. Southern Oregon tied the game with the only goal of the second period – by WSHL goals’ leader Chris Seto. Butte’s Eric Ahlberg allowed just one of 38 shots to get past him. Eight different Cobras scored in Game 2, and Ahlberg made 39 saves, as Butte closed out the road sweep with an 8-3 win. Artsiom Puntus made it 3-0 Butte early in the second period, but the Spartans came back in front of their home fans to tie the game, 3-3. Seto notched the tying goal with 11:14 left in the third period. The bottom fell out for the home team at that point, however, as the visiting Cobras scored five times in a span of 6:34 post an 8-3 win. MOUNT AIN DIVISION MOUNTAIN #2 Colorado def. #3 Utah, 2-0; advances to play Ogden The Colorado Jr. Eagles defeated the

Utah Outliers in two straight games to advance to the Mountain Division final. In the process, the Jr. Eagles secured a berth in the six-team Thorne Cup field. If they drop the division final to Ogden, they will still advance in the Mountain Division champion spot with Ogden already in as the tournament hosts. Hunter Cooley’s second goal of the game, 11:58 into sudden-death gave Colorado a 5-4 win in Game 1. The Jr. Eagles had leads of 3-0 and 4-2, but the Outliers tied it up. Utah’s Jacob Hagstrom scored with 2:01 left in regulation to force sudden-death. Carter Dahl also scored twice for Colorado and Bogdan Khvatov had a pair for Utah. Marcus Rudhage’s 53 saves kept the Outliers in the game. Twenty of them came in the first period, preventing the Jr. Eagles from building an even bigger lead and burying the Outliers early. Braden Lajoie posted a 25-save shutout to backstop Colorado to a 3-0 series-clinching win. The Jr. Eagles scored one time in each period with Matthew Jung providing the first and third goals – the last one a back-breaking shorthanded marker early in the third period. Vincent Mastrandrea provided the other Colorado goal. #1 Ogden def. #4 Casper Casper,, 2-1; advances to play Colorado The Casper Coyotes pushed division champion and Thorne Cup host Ogden to a Game 3, but the Mustangs took care of business and moved on to the division finals. Ogden’s Zeke Zeier broke a 2-2 tie late in the second period of Game 1 and the Mustangs took a 3-2 lead into the third. Montell Greene gave Ogden their first two-goal lead just 32 seconds into the third and Corey Iapalucci closed out the scoring for a 5-2 final. Jonah Pearson scored both goals for Casper and Adam Andersson made 46 saves for the Coyotes. Vladimir Cibulka stopped 21 of 23 shots for the Mustangs. Casper built a three-goal lead late in the second period of Game 2 and held on for a 5-4 win to force a third and deciding game. Dmitry Kuznetsov scored twice for Casper and Andersson made 56 saves – 25 of them in the third period as Ogden pressed for the equalizer. Montell Greene had a goal, getting the Mustangs within one with 7:18 left in regulation, and added a pair of assists. Tyler Kupka’s goal with 4:19 left in the second period gave the Coyotes a 5-2 lead and held up as the game-winner. The third game was close for the first 30 minutes, with Ogden clinging to a 10 lead at the mid-way point of the second period, but Casper did not appear to have enough left in the tank after hanging with Ogden for the first two games and the floodgates finally opened. Three goals in the final 5:22 of the period made it 5-0 Mustangs after two periods and they rolled to a 91 win. Greene and Matus Spodniak each had two goals and an assist for Ogden while Cibulka handled 22 of 23 shots.

MID-WESTERN DIVISION #1 El Paso def. #4 Springfield, 2-1; advances to play Wichita The Springfield Express pushed the El Paso Rhinos back to the wall with a Game One win, but the division champion Rhinos came back to win two “must-win” games to eliminate Springfield and move on to the division finals. Springfield’s Nikita Sokov scored just 1:22 into sudden-death to give the Express a critical 5-4 win in Game 1. Filip Jansson scored with 12:41 left in the third period to give Springfield a 4-2 lead, but the Rhinos kept fighting back in front of their rabid fans. Evan Camba and Artur Laukaitis – his second of the game – scored for El Paso 1:43 apart to tie the game, 4-4. Laukaitis (2-2-4) figured in all four El Paso goals. Bailey Stephens made 49 saves in the game – 40 of them through the first two periods – to keep the Express ahead despite a significant shot advantage for El Paso. The Rhinos out-shot the Express, 256, in the second period alone. El Paso came back with a 6-3 win to force a third game. Laukaitis was again the driving force behind the Rhinos’ offense, scoring two goals and assisting on two more. His second goal gave the Rhinos a 4-1 lead with 11:36 left in the third period. The Express came back with goals from Dixon Whitehead and Mike Sauer to get within a goal, but El Paso responded with two late goals to close out the game. The Rhinos completed the comeback with a 6-2 win. Nikita Salnikov got the Express within a goal, at 3-2, with 1:42 left in the second period, but El Paso’s Evan Camba struck back just 28 seconds later to restore the two-goal lead for the Rhinos. Camba added two more goals in the third period for a 6-2 El Paso final. Jesse Vuorinen had a pair of goals for El Paso and Edelkoort turned aside 35 of 37 shots. #3 Wichita def. #2 Oklahoma City City,, 2-0; advances to play El Paso The Wichita Thunder kept their offense and their momentum rolling, scoring seven goals each night in a two-game sweep of the Blazers in Oklahoma City. Peter Cicmanec scored a hat trick and added an assist in a 7-3 Game one win. Oklahoma City took a 2-1 lead early in the second period, but the Jr. Thunder struck back with the next three goals, including Cicmanec’s first of the night. Wichita had just a one-goal lead heading into the third period, but the Blazers were not able to rally on home ice despite outshooting the Jr. Thunder, 16-7 over the last 20 minutes. Wichita scored three unanswered goals for the 7-3 final. Oskar Gullstrom (1-4-5) had a five-point night and Simon Sefcik picked up three assists in the game. The Jr. Thunder scored another seven goals and finished off the road series with a 7-2 win. Gullstrom scored just 32 seconds into the game to set the tone, then added another to put the Jr. Thunder up, 2-0. Wichita led 3-0 by the end of the first period and never trailed in their series-clinching win. Gullstrom finished the game with four goals for Wichita and Martin Trudman added a pair.

March 30, 2017

Let’s Play Hockey

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Rink Rats celebrate another successful season

UPDATE USPHL.com @USPHL USPHL

How the NCDC will benefit college-bound stars

By Kalli Funk Another great season of Rink Rats came to an end after a heat wave came through the Twin Cities in late January/early February. This winter, the Herb Brooks Foundation (HBF) provided learn-to-skate opportunities to 10 Minneapolis and surrounding suburb elementary schools. and two rinks on the east side of St. Paul. The Rink Rats showed great progress throughout the season, thanks to the help of the quality coaches that work with the HBF Rink Rats program. To celebrate another successful season, Rink Rats from various Minneapolis sites were invited to participate in the action of the Women’s WCHA Final Face-Off. The tournament took place at Ridder Arena the weekend of March 4-5. They were honored to be a part of the pregame ceremony and show off their own skills in a game during intermission. They finished off the day with autographs from former Olympians that played in the WCHA. From the east side, St. Paul Rink Rats celebrated their season with a trip to the Let’s Play Hockey Expo the weekend of March 10-11. Alongside the 40,000-plus hockey enthusiasts that attended the event, they visited the many hockey booths, participated in games, and got their pictures taken with the cardboard cutouts of the hockey greats. When they visited the Herb Brooks Foundation booth, they actually met a few hockey greats. Throughout the Expo, players from the 1980 Miracle On Ice team and other famous hockey players were at the HBF booth to sign autographs. The Rink Rats were happy they met Rob McClanahan

(pictured below) and Paul Broten. For a lot of the Rink Rats, it was their first time at the event and it opened their eyes to what hockey can do for them beyond Rink Rats. The Herb Brooks Foundation is very appreciative of all the support it receives from various sponsors. The St. Paul and Minneapolis Police Activities League (PAL) have been invaluable to the Rink Rats’ program, helping where needed and assisting the Rink Rats on and off the ice. Morrie’s Automotive Group provides transportation for the Rink Rats program and supplies the Rink Rats jerseys. HBF is very fortunate to have support from these groups. Looking ahead, Herb Brooks Foundation hopes to get spring and summer clinics going, thanks to the support from the Minnesota Wild Foundation. No dates have been set yet, but look for more information on www.herbbrooksfoundation.com in the coming weeks. Kalli Funk is the Rink Rats Program Director for the Herb Brooks Foundation. Herb Brooks Foundation’s mission is to grow the game of hockey. We strive to do this by following the words of Herb Brooks, “Give the game back to the kids.” The goal of Rink Rats is to expose kids to the game of hockey who otherwise would not be exposed or cannot afford to participate. For most of the participants, Rink Rats is their first opportunity to be involved in hockey.

By Joshua Boyd Pop quiz: What do Jack Eichel, Charlie Coyle and Jimmy Vesey have in common? We’ll give you a hint. It’s the same thing they have in common with Ryan Donato, Robert Carpenter and Danny Tirone. Come to think of it, those six share the same thing in common with Brady Fleurent, Tommy Besinger and Ross Olsson. The first trio of players are young NHL standouts. The second group include two high scorers and a top goalie in the NCAA Division I ranks. The third group are players who are among the top scorers of NCAA Division III hockey this season, including the nation’s scoring leader in Fleurent. What do they all have in common? They are all USPHL alumni, or alumni of USPHL member organizations. What is the USPHL? From the time that the United States Premier Hockey League announced its existence in 2013, the USPHL has worked tirelessly to build a complete development model for young hockey players aspiring to college hockey, and possibly beyond to the professional realm. The USPHL started off with a merger of long-standing Eastern Junior Hockey League teams and new NHL-affiliated/ owned teams. It has quickly expanded with different divisions, first welcoming in

teams from the former Empire Junior Hockey League, and later the now-dormant Minnesota Junior Hockey League and Northern Pacific Hockey League. In addition, the USPHL also formed the first full-season midget league in the East with divisions at 18U, 16U and even a 16U Futures Division. In 2016, the league initiated a bridge to its Midget and Junior programs by creating the High-Performance Youth Division, creating the first comprehensive cradle to college league in the United States. In short, the USPHL has always sought to provide a personalized development path for players of a wide array of backgrounds and with different dreams to get to the NCAA Divisions I, II and III, or the American College Hockey Association. And yes, there are those exceptional few who skate in “The Big Show,” the NHL. Intr oducing the USPHL of 20 17-1 8 Introducing 201 7-18 The USPHL of the last four years has been very successful with more than 1,000 college commitments across all of its divisions. For the 2016-17 season, 12 organizations had over 90 Division I committed players competing on their teams. In Division III, the 2017-18 roster of USPHL teams ranks by far first in Division III player development over the past five years. The USPHL has positioned itself for a revolutionary 2017-18 season that will see the league move up the rankings for player advancement to the college ranks, from NCAA Division I to ACHA Division 1. The USPHL will debut its tuition-free National Collegiate Development Conference later this summer. The USPHL Premier and Elite Divisions will return, now having Continued on page 28

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March 30, 2017

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Developing grit in youth athletes success, more so than natural ability2. Unlike solely skill-focused training, the development of hard work and perseverance is proven to provide our kids a better shot at successfully completing whatever task they ultimately endeavor to take on. That fact alone is reason enough to double-down on our efforts to teach athletes hard work.

By Josh Levine Let’s Play Hockey

Let’s Play Hockey photo by Mike Thill

Developing grit in youth athletes is probably one of the toughest tasks a coach and parent can try to take on. There isn’t an easy solution and understanding where a player should be at in terms of mental toughness, grit and competitiveness. Plus, it is hard to measure. Because players have different personalities and develop at different rates, knowing how to respond to them is especially hard. Some athletes are born day one ready to fight anyone that challenges them – others are on the fast track to work as diplomats and therapists. A motivational technique that might be needed with one player is likely to have no effect or a negative impact on another. So, how do we teach kids to be resilient and mentally tough? How do we get a player that would rather watch the play to engage in it? First, we need to realize that for most youth athletes, they genuinely think they are going as fast and hard as they can. If we belittle kids by telling them, “You’re not working hard!” when they think they are and feel as if they are doing everything they can to work hard, the message can cause them to shut down. In their heads, they’re thinking, “I’m trying as hard as I can and dad still thinks I’m not. I’m tired of hearing that I need to work hard. I’m going to start ignoring him.” Imagine a Navy SEAL watching the average adult go through a workout or a tough day at the office. It wouldn’t surprise anyone if the adult thought he or she was going “all in” while the SEAL thought the workout or effort on the job was sub-par. Almost everyone, including myself, is in a state of learning when it comes to hard work and mental toughness. Can you imagine how offended we would be if someone told us we were “lazy” or “lacked a hard work ethic” (even if we know that we can push ourselves more)? Second, we cannot expect to see players learn how to work harder and develop grit if they are going through monotonous and year-round training. Consider a Russian

Tests that measure grit are some of the best predictors for future success, more so than natural ability. 1

study from the 1950s that challenged one group of children to stand as long as they could, while a second group was simply asked to pretend they were soldiers on guard at their posts. The first group (monotonous, mundane training) lasted two minutes. The second group lasted 11! When you hear complaints that kids don’t know how to work hard these days, perhaps we should take a look at how our sports have been structured. What if our obsession with drills and structure is contributing to kids lacking mental toughness and grit? I’ve witnessed this numerous times as a coach. Do a drill lacking in competitiveness and play with eight-year-olds and then try one that has those elements and you’ll see a major difference in work ethic. Finally, we need to empower youth athletes for them to intrinsically develop grit. Very few will learn it by being yelled at. When an athlete understands that a coach or trainer cares about them and is genuinely invested in their well-being, they are far more likely to listen. Then, if we provide athletes with goals that require slightly more effort than they currently provide and they put in the work, we have hit the jackpot! The kids make the connection and their intrinsic motivation lights up – “I shot 500 pucks and my shot is better. What if I shoot 2,000? I can’t even imagine how much better I’ll get.”

Video game I've spent the most time on

Gavin McNeil Apple Valley Squirt C

Will Ingemann Wayzata PeeWee AA

Easton Kurtt Chaska/Chanhassen Mini-Mite West Gold

NHL 17

NHL Legacy Edition

Minecraft

As coaches, parents and trainers, what is more motivating than working to help youth athletes develop grit, perseverance and mental toughness? Tests that measure grit are some of the best predictors for future

Nurture Shock by Po Bronson & Ashley Merryman, Page 166 2 https://www.nytimes.com/2016/04/ 10/education/edlife/passion-gritsuccess.html Josh Levine is the Assistant Coach of the Bloomington Jefferson Girls Varsity Hockey team, owner of The Fortis Academy and founder of fortishockey.com. Follow Fortis on Facebook and Instagram facebook.com/ thefortisacademy and Instagram.com/ thefortisacademy.

“Miracle” event to feature all 12 Minnesotans on the 1980 team For the first time since 1980, all 12 Minnesota members of the 1980 U.S. Olympic Hockey Team will appear together at a public event in Minnesota. The group will sign autographs and pose for photos at Fan HQ’s Rock N Jock Expo on Saturday, April 8 from 10:30 a.m. - 2 p.m. The Rock N Jock Expo will take place at the Hopkins Center for the Arts in downtown Hopkins (1111 Mainstreet). “We are extremely excited to offer fans in The State of Hockey the opportunity to meet all 12 Minnesota members of the Miracle on Ice,” said Fan HQ owner Shaun Hagglund. “This group hasn’t appeared together in their home state since they won the gold medal almost 40 years ago.” The 1980 Miracle Team members will appear in two sessions: 10:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. Dave Christian

Steve Christoff Rob McClanahan Mike Ramsey Buzz Schneider Eric Strobel 12 – 2 p.m. Bill Baker Neal Broten John Harrington Steve Janaszak Mark Pavelich Phil Verchota Admission to Rock N Jock Expo is free. Autograph and photo tickets are limited and available at Fan HQ stores in Ridgedale and Eden Prairie Centers, online at FanHQStore.com or by calling 952-5456460.

______ is forbidden in my house

Favorite ice cr eam flavor cream

Favorite player in the NHL

Rollerblading

Mint

Auston Matthews

Minnesota North Stars

Braden Holtby

Minnesota North Stars

Swearing

Strawberry sherbet

Vanilla

Patrick Kane

Want to be featured in Under the Helmet? E-mail your name and team/level to editor@letsplayhockey.com. Players chosen to participate will receive a short e-mail survey.

Best team logo in hockey

Old School Skating Goldy

March 30, 2017

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From college to the NHL continued from page 1

Let’s Play Hockey photos by Mike Thill

assist scorer (Keith), top overall plus/minus performer (Ryan Suter) and fifth-ranked rookie scorer (Zach Werenski). Breaking down the list of 292 players by college sees Boston College, Michigan and North Dakota lead the way with 21 players each, followed by Wisconsin (19), Minnesota (18), Boston University (17), Miami (12) and Denver (11). Nearly 33 percent of the NHLers who played college hockey spent all four years in school, with 70 percent staying at least three years on campus. Twenty-five percent of the former college players who played in the NHL this year were undrafted free agents. In the NHL, it sure seems some teams are more likely to sign, trade or draft for a college-bred player than others. In fact, 16 NHL teams had 10 or more college-bred players on the ice this season, led by the Pittsburgh Penguins (18), Boston Bruins (17) and New Jersey Devils (17). Naturally, the state of Minnesota is wellrepresented among the college-to-the-NHL players. Of the 292 players, there are 45 native Minnesotans, including six who made their NHL debut this season. A look at the NHL rosters of the last 17 seasons also shows that college hockey play-

The Minnesota Wild’s Charlie Coyle (Boston University) and Zach Parise (North Dakota), and the Washington Capitals’ Matt Niskanen (Minnesota Duluth) each played college hockey before making the jump to the NHL.

ers are gaining a stronger foothold in the league. According to our research, 210 players who saw at least one regular season NHL game in 1999-2000 played college hockey before making it to the big leagues. In following seasons, that number has con-

College hockey alums in the NHL (since 1999-2000)

tinued to grow (see graph) to the 2013-14 season’s high mark of 305, a 45-percent increase from 1999-2000. The number of colleges providing players to the NHL has similarly grown over the past 13 seasons, from 39 in 1999-2000 to a

high of 49 this season. Along the same lines, the number of Minnesotan NHL players who also played college hockey has grown over the last 17 seasons. In 1999-2000, there were 25 collegeto-the-NHL Minnesota natives. The last 10 seasons has seen 40 or more. And the numbers will only continue to grow as nearly 100 players have signed pro contracts since the conclusion of their 2016-17 college seasons. During the 201617 college hockey season, there were nearly 200 players whose rights were owned by an NHL franchise. In addition, the NHL Central Scouting Service’s rankings for the 2016 Entry Draft list 97 current or future college players. Phil Housley was the rare hockey player to make the quantum leap from high school to the NHL. Countless Canadians take the Major Junior route before making the jump to the pros. European players compete in the numerous leagues throughout the continent in hopes of some day earning a spot on an NHL team. But for 292 NHL players, college was the path to take. Thanks to College Hockey, Inc. (collegehockeyinc.com) for additional data.

Minnesota native college hockey alums in the NHL (since 1999-2000)

Signed, sealed & delivered Area players who have signed pro contracts

Former college hockey players Erik Haula (Minnesota/Minnesota Wild), Anders Lee (Notre Dame/N.Y Islanders) and Brock Nelson (North Dakota/N.Y. Islanders).

College hockey teams represented in the NHL (since 1999-2000)

Player

Pos.

Class

College Team

Pro Team

Hometown

Jake Bischoff

Sr.

Minnesota

N.Y. Islanders (NHL)

Grand Rapids

Brock Boeser

So.

North Dakota

Vancouver (NHL)

Burnsville

Sean Flanagan

Sr.

Minnesota State

Reading (ECHL)

Kindersly, SK

Brendan Harms

Sr.

Bemidji State

Florida (ECHL)

Steinbach, MB

Mitch Hults

So.

Lake Superior State San Diego (AHL)

Stoughton, WI

Michael Huntebrinker F

Sr.

Minnesota State

Reading (ECHL)

Chesterfield, MO

Michael Kapla

Sr.

UMass Lowell

New Jersey (NHL)

Eau Claire, WI

Justin Kloos

Sr.

Minnesota

Minnesota (NHL)

Lakeville

Luke Kunin

So.

Wisconsin

Minnesota (NHL)

Chesterfield, MO

Vinni Lettieri

Sr.

Minnesota

N.Y. Rangers (NHL)

Excelsior

Maria Lindh

Jr.

Minnesota Duluth

Djurgårdens (SDHL)

Stockholm, SWE

Chris Nell

Jr.

Bowling Green

N.Y. Rangers (NHL)

Green Bay, WI

Charlie O’Connor

Sr.

Bemidji State

Toledo (ECHL)

Elk Grove Village, IL

Vince Pedrie

So.

Penn State

N.Y. Rangers (NHL)

Rochester

Matt Pohlkamp

Sr.

Bowling Green

Toledo (ECHL)

Lake City

Parker Reno

Sr.

RPI

Toledo (ECHL)

Edina

Sam Rothstein

Sr.

Colorado College

Rapid City (ECHL)

Minnetonka

Eric Schurhamer

Sr.

Maine

Manchester (ECHL)

St. Paul

Tommy Schutt

Sr.

Quinnipiac

Manchester (ECHL)

Chanhassen

C.J. Smith

Sr.

UMass Lowell

Buffalo (NHL)

Richfield

Luc Snuggerud

Jr.

Omaha

Chicago (NHL)

Eden Prairie

Ben Storm

Sr.

St. Cloud State

San Antonio (AHL)

Laurium, MI

Daniel Tedesco

Sr.

St. Cloud State

Wichita (ECHL)

Maple, ON

March 30, 2017

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From College to the NHL (2016-17 season) Name Kevin Bieksa Andrew Cogliano Patrick Eaves Ryan Garbutt Nic Kerdiles Ryan Kesler Kalle Kossila Josh Manson Brandon Montour Mason Raymond Corey Tropp Chris Wagner Kevin Connauton Alex Goligoski Josh Jooris Clayton Keller Jamie McBain Noel Acciari David Backes Austin Czarnik Matt Grzelcyk Jimmy Hayes Danton Heinen Torey Krug Sean Kuraly John-Michael Liles Zane McIntyre Kevan Miller Dominic Moore Riley Nash Rob O’Gara Tim Schaller Drew Stafford Frank Vatrano Erik Burgdoefer Jack Eichel Hudson Fasching Taylor Fedun Brian Gionta Derek Grant Jake McCabe Matt Moulson Casey Nelson Kyle Okposo Evan Rodrigues Cole Schneider Matt Bartkowski Alex Chiasson Brian Elliott Johnny Gaudreau Garnet Hathaway Mark Jankowski Chad Johnson Patrick Brown Phil Di Giuseppe Justin Faulk Noah Hanifin Brett Pesce Jaccob Slavin Lee Stempniak Matt Tennyson Spencer Abbott Scott Darling John Hayden Vincent Hinostroza Duncan Keith Tanner Kero Tyler Motte Nick Schmaltz Jonathan Toews Trevor van Riemsdyk Rene Bourque Joe Colborne J.T. Compher Cody Goloubef A.J. Greer Rocco Grimaldi Erik Johnson Matt Nieto Patrick Wiercioch Cam Atkinson Jack Johnson T.J. Tynan Zach Werenski Stephen Johns Curtis McKenzie Jamie Oleksiak Greg Pateryn Patrick Sharp Devin Shore Justin Abdelkader Jared Coreau Danny DeKeyser Luke Glendening Jimmy Howard Nick Jensen Dylan Larkin Drew Miller Gustav Nyquist Dan Renouf Robbie Russo Riley Sheahan Ben Street Matt Benning Drake Caggiula Mark Fayne Eric Gryba Matt Hendricks Jujhar Khaira Mark Letestu Jordan Oesterle Tyler Pitlick Dillon Simpson Cam Talbot

P D F F F F F F D D F F F D D F F D F F F D F F D F D G D F F D F F F D F F D F F D F D F F F D F G F F F G F F D D D D F D F G F F D F F F F D F F F D F F D F D F D F D D F D D F F F G D F G D F F F D D F F D F D D F F F D F D G

College Bowling Green Michigan Boston College Brown Wisconsin Ohio State St. Cloud State Northeastern Massachusetts Minnesota Duluth Michigan State Colgate Western Michigan Minnesota Union Boston University Wisconsin Providence Minnesota State Miami Boston University Boston College Denver Michigan State Miami Michigan State North Dakota Vermont Harvard Cornell Yale Providence North Dakota Massachusetts RPI Boston University Minnesota Princeton Boston College Michigan State Wisconsin Cornell Minnesota State Minnesota Boston University Connecticut Ohio State Boston University Wisconsin Boston College Brown Providence Alaska Boston College Michigan Minnesota Duluth Boston College New Hampshire Colorado College Dartmouth Western Michigan Maine Maine Yale Notre Dame Michigan State Michigan Tech Michigan North Dakota North Dakota New Hampshire Wisconsin Denver Michigan Wisconsin Boston University North Dakota Minnesota Boston University Denver Boston College Michigan Notre Dame Michigan Notre Dame Miami Northeastern Michigan Vermont Maine Michigan State Northern Michigan Western Michigan Michigan Maine St. Cloud State Michigan Michigan State Maine Maine Notre Dame Notre Dame Wisconsin Northeastern North Dakota Providence Boston University St. Cloud State Michigan Tech Western Michigan Western Michigan Minnesota State North Dakota Alabama Huntsville

NHL Team Anaheim Anaheim Anaheim Anaheim Anaheim Anaheim Anaheim Anaheim Anaheim Anaheim Anaheim Anaheim Arizona Arizona Arizona Arizona Arizona Boston Boston Boston Boston Boston Boston Boston Boston Boston Boston Boston Boston Boston Boston Boston Boston Boston Buffalo Buffalo Buffalo Buffalo Buffalo Buffalo Buffalo Buffalo Buffalo Buffalo Buffalo Buffalo Calgary Calgary Calgary Calgary Calgary Calgary Calgary Carolina Carolina Carolina Carolina Carolina Carolina Carolina Carolina Chicago Chicago Chicago Chicago Chicago Chicago Chicago Chicago Chicago Chicago Colorado Colorado Colorado Colorado Colorado Colorado Colorado Colorado Colorado Columbus Columbus Columbus Columbus Dallas Dallas Dallas Dallas Dallas Dallas Detroit Detroit Detroit Detroit Detroit Detroit Detroit Detroit Detroit Detroit Detroit Detroit Detroit Edmonton Edmonton Edmonton Edmonton Edmonton Edmonton Edmonton Edmonton Edmonton Edmonton Edmonton

Name Nick Bjugstad Michael Matheson Kyle Rau Reilly Smith Paul Thompson Thomas Vanek Ben Bishop Jonny Brodzinski Nic Dowd Derek Forbort Tom Gilbert Kevin Gravel Matt Greene Paul LaDue Alec Martinez Teddy Purcell Jonathan Quick Nick Shore Jeff Zatkoff Pat Cannone Charlie Coyle Zac Dalpe Christian Folin Erik Haula Gustav Olofsson Zach Parise Nate Prosser Mike Reilly Jordan Schroeder Ryan Suter Alex Tuch Jason Zucker Daniel Carr Bobby Farnham Brian Flynn Joel Hanley Ryan Johnston Torrey Mitchell Al Montoya Max Pacioretty Jeff Petry Zach Redmond Anthony Bitetto Matt Carle Matt Irwin Craig Smith Trevor Smith Colin Wilson Harry Zolnierczyk Beau Bennett Mike Cammalleri Blake Coleman Andy Greene Seth Helgeson Keith Kincaid Nick Lappin Ben Lovejoy Jon Merrill Kyle Palmieri Blake Pietila Kevin Rooney Steve Santini Cory Schneider Karl Stollery Miles Wood Travis Zajac Stephen Gionta Nick Leddy Anders Lee Scott Mayfield Brock Nelson Adam Clendening Tanner Glass Kevin Hayes Steve Kampfer Chris Kreider Ryan McDonagh Cristoval Nieves Brandon Pirri Brady Skjei Brendan Smith Derek Stepan Jimmy Vesey Casey Bailey Mike Borowiecki Mike Condon Ryan Dzingel Andrew Hammond Max McCormick Buddy Robinson Viktor Stalberg Kyle Turris Chris Wideman Tommy Wingels Shayne Gostisbehere Matt Read Chris VandeVelde Josh Archibald Nick Bonino Ian Cole Matt Cullen Brian Dumoulin Jake Guentzel Carl Hagelin Ron Hainsey Phil Kessel Chris Kunitz Steve Oleksy Carter Rowney Chad Ruhwedel Bryan Rust Justin Schultz Conor Sheary David Warsofsky

P F D F F F F G F F D D D D D D F G F G F F F D F D F D D F D F F F F F D D F G F D D D D D F F F F F F F D D G F D D F F F D G D F F F D F D F D F F D F D F F D D F F F D G F G F F F F D F D F F F F D F D F F D F F D F D F D F D

College Minnesota Boston College Minnesota Miami New Hampshire Minnesota Maine St. Cloud State St. Cloud State North Dakota Wisconsin St. Cloud State North Dakota North Dakota Miami Maine Massachusetts Denver Miami Miami Boston University Ohio State UMass Lowell Minnesota Colorado College North Dakota Colorado College Minnesota Minnesota Wisconsin Boston College Denver Union Brown Maine Massachusetts Colgate Vermont Michigan Michigan Michigan State Ferris State Northeastern Denver Massachusetts Wisconsin New Hampshire Boston University Brown Denver Michigan Miami Miami Minnesota Union Brown Dartmouth Michigan Notre Dame Michigan Tech Providence Boston College Boston College Merrimack Boston College North Dakota Boston College Minnesota Notre Dame Denver North Dakota Boston University Dartmouth Boston College Michigan Boston College Wisconsin Michigan RPI Minnesota Wisconsin Wisconsin Harvard Penn State Clarkson Princeton Ohio State Bowling Green Ohio State Lake Superior State Vermont Wisconsin Miami Miami Union Bemidji State North Dakota Omaha Boston University Notre Dame St. Cloud State Boston College Omaha Michigan UMass Lowell Minnesota Ferris State Lake Superior State North Dakota UMass Lowell Notre Dame Wisconsin Massachusetts Boston University

NHL Team Florida Florida Florida Florida Florida Florida Los Angeles Los Angeles Los Angeles Los Angeles Los Angeles Los Angeles Los Angeles Los Angeles Los Angeles Los Angeles Los Angeles Los Angeles Los Angeles Minnesota Minnesota Minnesota Minnesota Minnesota Minnesota Minnesota Minnesota Minnesota Minnesota Minnesota Minnesota Minnesota Montreal Montreal Montreal Montreal Montreal Montreal Montreal Montreal Montreal Montreal Nashville Nashville Nashville Nashville Nashville Nashville Nashville New Jersey New Jersey New Jersey New Jersey New Jersey New Jersey New Jersey New Jersey New Jersey New Jersey New Jersey New Jersey New Jersey New Jersey New Jersey New Jersey New Jersey N.Y. Islanders N.Y. Islanders N.Y. Islanders N.Y. Islanders N.Y. Islanders N.Y. Rangers N.Y. Rangers N.Y. Rangers N.Y. Rangers N.Y. Rangers N.Y. Rangers N.Y. Rangers N.Y. Rangers N.Y. Rangers N.Y. Rangers N.Y. Rangers N.Y. Rangers Ottawa Ottawa Ottawa Ottawa Ottawa Ottawa Ottawa Ottawa Ottawa Ottawa Ottawa Philadelphia Philadelphia Philadelphia Pittsburgh Pittsburgh Pittsburgh Pittsburgh Pittsburgh Pittsburgh Pittsburgh Pittsburgh Pittsburgh Pittsburgh Pittsburgh Pittsburgh Pittsburgh Pittsburgh Pittsburgh Pittsburgh Pittsburgh

Name Scott Wilson Justin Braun Ryan Carpenter Aaron Dell Paul Martin Danny O’Regan Joe Pavelski Kenny Agostino Pheonix Copley Brad Hunt Carter Hutton Wade Megan Colton Parayko Zach Sanford Jordan Schmaltz Jaden Schwartz Paul Stastny J.T. Brown Cory Conacher Erik Condra Jason Garrison Alex Killorn Matthew Peca Andrej Sustr Luke Witkowski Brian Boyle Tyler Bozak Jake Gardiner Matt Hunwick Zach Hyman Curtis McElhinney Ben Smith James van Riemsdyk Richard Bachman Alex Biega Brock Boeser Ben Hutton Joseph LaBate Jayson Megna Ryan Miller Drew Shore Jack Skille Troy Stecher Chris Tanev Michael Zalewski Riley Barber Jay Beagle Paul Carey Taylor Chorney Aaron Ness Matt Niskanen Brooks Orpik T.J. Oshie Nate Schmidt Kevin Shattenkirk Daniel Winnik Kyle Connor Andrew Copp Connor Hellebuyck Brian Strait Mark Stuart Brandon Tanev Jacob Trouba Blake Wheeler

P F D F G D F F F G D G F D F D F F F F F D F F D D F F D D F G F F G D F D F F G F F D D F F F F D D D D F D D F F F G D D F D F

College UMass Lowell Massachusetts Bowling Green North Dakota Minnesota Boston University Wisconsin Yale Michigan Tech Bemidji State UMass Lowell Boston University Alaska Boston College North Dakota Colorado College Denver Minnesota Duluth Canisius Notre Dame Minnesota Duluth Harvard Quinnipiac Omaha Western Michigan Boston College Denver Wisconsin Michigan Michigan Colorado College Boston College New Hampshire Colorado College Harvard North Dakota Maine Wisconsin Omaha Michigan State Denver Wisconsin North Dakota RIT RPI Miami Alaska Anchorage Boston College North Dakota Minnesota Minnesota Duluth Boston College North Dakota Minnesota Boston University New Hampshire Michigan Michigan UMass Lowell Boston University Colorado College Providence Michigan Minnesota

NHL Team Pittsburgh San Jose San Jose San Jose San Jose San Jose San Jose St. Louis St. Louis St. Louis St. Louis St. Louis St. Louis St. Louis St. Louis St. Louis St. Louis Tampa Bay Tampa Bay Tampa Bay Tampa Bay Tampa Bay Tampa Bay Tampa Bay Tampa Bay Toronto Toronto Toronto Toronto Toronto Toronto Toronto Toronto Vancouver Vancouver Vancouver Vancouver Vancouver Vancouver Vancouver Vancouver Vancouver Vancouver Vancouver Vancouver Washington Washington Washington Washington Washington Washington Washington Washington Washington Washington Washington Winnipeg Winnipeg Winnipeg Winnipeg Winnipeg Winnipeg Winnipeg Winnipeg

bold indicates Minnesota native italics indicates player made NHL debut in 2016-17 292 players (47 made NHL debut in 2016-17) 45 Minnesotans (6 made NHL debut in 2016-17) 166 Forwards • 105 Defensemen • 22 Goalies

Colleges Represented in the NHL Boston College Michigan North Dakota Wisconsin Minnesota Boston University Miami Denver Maine Notre Dame Michigan State St. Cloud State Colorado College Massachusetts New Hampshire Providence UMass Lowell Western Michigan Brown Minnesota Duluth Ohio State Harvard Michigan Tech Northeastern Omaha

21 21 21 19 18 17 12 11 10 10 9 8 7 7 6 6 6 6 5 5 5 4 4 4 4

Union Vermont Bowling Green Dartmouth Minnesota State RPI Yale Alaska Bemidji State Colgate Cornell Ferris State Lake Superior State Princeton Alabama-Huntsville Alaska Anchorage Canisius Clarkson Connecticut Merrimack Northern Michigan Penn State Quinnipiac RIT

4 4 3 3 3 3 3 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1

College Players on NHL Teams

Pittsburgh Boston New Jersey Los Angeles Minnesota Detroit Anaheim Buffalo N.Y. Rangers Vancouver Edmonton Ottawa Washington Chicago Montreal Compiled by Kevin Kurtt. Through games of March 28, 2017. For changes or additions, e-mail editor@letsplayhockey.com.

18 17 17 14 13 13 12 12 12 12 11 11 11 10 10

St. Louis Colorado Carolina Tampa Bay Toronto Winnipeg Calgary Nashville Dallas Florida San Jose Arizona N.Y. Islanders Columbus Philadelphia

10 9 8 8 8 8 7 7 6 6 6 5 5 4 3

March 30, 2017

2016-17 Minnesota-Grown Pros

National Hocke eague Hockeyy LLeague Name Josh Archibald David Backes Jake Bischoff Nick Bjugstad Brock Boeser Justin Braun Jonny Brodzinski J.T. Brown Dustin Byfuglien Taylor Chorney Matt Cullen Patrick Eaves Hudson Fasching Justin Faulk Derek Forbort Jake Gardiner Tom Gilbert Alex Goligoski Jake Guentzel Seth Helgeson Matt Hendricks Nick Jensen Erik Johnson Justin Kloos Joe LaBate Nick Leddy Anders Lee Vinni Lettieri Paul Martin Jamie McBain Ryan McDonagh Brock Nelson Aaron Ness Matt Niskanen Kyle Okposo T.J. Oshie Zach Parise Vince Pedrie Tyler Pitlick Nate Prosser Kyle Rau Mike Reilly Nate Schmidt Jordan Schroeder Brady Skjei Derek Stepan Mark Stuart Chris VandeVelde Blake Wheeler Goalie Zane McIntyre

Pos. F F D F F D F F D D F F F D D D D D F D F D D F F D F F D D D F D D F F F D F D F D D F D F D F F Pos. G

Hometown Brainerd Spring Lake Park Grand Rapids Blaine Burnsville Vadnais Heights Ham Lake Burnsville Roseau Hastings Moorhead Faribault Burnsville South St. Paul Duluth Deephaven Bloomington Grand Rapids Woodbury Faribault Blaine Rogers Bloomington Lakeville Burnsville Eden Prairie Edina Excelsior Elk River Faribault Arden Hills Warroad Roseau Virginia St. Paul Warroad Bloomington Rochester Centerville Elk River Eden Prarie Chanhassen St. Cloud Prior Lake Lakeville Hastings Rochester Moorhead Plymouth Hometown Thief River Falls

The ECHL Team Pittsburgh Boston N.Y. Islanders Florida Vancouver San Jose Los Angeles Tampa Bay Winnipeg Washington Pittsburgh Anaheim Buffalo Carolina Los Angeles Toronto Washington Arizona Pittsburgh New Jersey Edmonton Detroit Colorado Minnesota Vancouver N.Y. Islanders N.Y. Islanders N.Y. Islanders San Jose Arizona N.Y. Rangers N.Y. Islanders Washington Washington Buffalo Washington Minnesota N.Y. Rangers Edmonton Minnesota Florida Minnesota Washington Minnesota N.Y. Rangers N.Y. Rangers Winnipeg Philadelphia Winnipeg Team Boston

GP 5 68

G 2 17

A 0 19

Pts 2 36

48 3 76 2 60 75 17 66 73 10 68 75 75 18 76 35 9 40 43 39

6 2 4 0 2 12 1 12 28 0 16 2 9 1 5 11 1 4 3 1

5 0 9 0 3 36 4 16 18 1 19 13 27 4 26 14 0 3 6 13

11 2 13 0 5 48 5 28 46 1 35 15 36 5 31 25 1 7 9 14

13 74 74

0 11 28

0 30 17

0 41 45

75 3 76 74 2 72 65 62 64

4 0 5 17 0 4 19 32 17

20 0 35 23 0 33 26 21 20

24 0 40 40 0 37 45 53 37

31 37 24 17 56 34 76 77 37 76 77 W 0

8 1 2 1 2 4 5 16 1 6 23 L 4

3 4 1 0 13 7 33 36 1 6 45 GAA 3.97

11 5 3 1 15 11 38 52 2 12 68 SV% .858

GP 32 60 25 21 21 31 68 56 9 28 13 55 23 4 66 4 27 57 23 33 40 29 64 27 7 52 29 44 13 2 57 67 67 47 50 48 64 52 39 48 25 48 5 12 45 57 29 W 5 22 24 18 20 18

G 1 16 4 4 2 0 14 25 0 4 0 1 2 0 1 0 6 7 2 21 2 6 6 1 1 9 4 9 2 0 6 8 20 10 5 9 2 1 9 5 6 0 0 0 2 3 1 L 10 17 13 4 16 9

A 8 13 3 1 4 3 44 22 3 3 2 11 8 0 7 0 4 12 8 21 6 5 11 5 2 13 9 13 4 0 29 10 32 9 12 13 18 14 13 20 12 5 2 2 5 21 1 GAA 3.51 2.62 2.72 1.99 2.31 2.87

Pts 9 29 7 5 6 3 58 47 3 7 2 12 10 0 8 0 10 19 10 42 8 11 17 6 3 22 13 22 6 0 35 18 52 19 17 22 20 15 22 25 18 5 2 2 7 24 2 SV% .883 .913 .910 .932 .924 .895

American Hocke eague Hockeyy LLeague Name Mark Alt Josh Archibald Tyler Barnes Joey Benik Stu Bickel Paul Bittner Travis Boyd Jonny Brodzinski Michael Brodzinski Tony Cameranesi Ryan Carter Chris Casto Cody Corbett Willie Corrin Jack Dougherty Joe Faust Hudson Fasching Steven Fogarty Tom Gilbert Jake Guentzel Seth Helgeson Caleb Herbert Justin Holl Nick Jensen Adam Krause Danny Kristo Joe LaBate Mario Lucia Ben Marshall Nick Mattson Jamie McBain Phil McRae Travis Morin Peter Mueller Aaron Ness Jim O’Brien Zach Palmquist Ethan Prow Kyle Rau Mike Reilly Jordan Schroeder Nick Seeler Luc Snuggerud Brett Stern Hunter Warner Andy Welinski Eddie Wittchow Goalie Mac Carruth Charlie Lindgren Alex Lyon Zane McIntyre Alex Stalock Adam Wilcox

Pos. D F F F D F F F D F F D D D D D F F D F D F D D F F F F D D D F F F D F D D F D F D D D D D D Pos. G G G G G G

Hometown St. Paul Brainerd Eagan Andover Chanhassen Crookston Hopkins Ham Lake Ham Lake Plymouth White Bear Lake Stillwater Lakeland International Falls St. Paul Bloomington Burnsville Edina Bloomington Woodbury Faribault Bloomington Tonka Bay Rogers Hermantown Eden Prairie Burnsville Plymouth Mahtomedi Chanhassen Faribault Apple Valley Brooklyn Park Bloomington Roseau Maplewood South St. Paul Sauk Rapids Eden Prarie Chanhassen Prior Lake Eden Prairie Eden Prairie Lino Lakes Eden Prairie Duluth Burnsville Hometown Shorewood Lakeville Baudette Thief River Falls South St. Paul South St. Paul

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Name Seth Ambroz Tyler Barnes Joey Benik Michael Brodzinski Tony Cameranesi Cody Corbett Willie Corrin Justin Crandall Randy Cure Ben Danford Derek Docken Joe Faust Danny Fick Kyle Follmer Connor Gaarder Aaron Gens Caleb Herbert Christian Horn Derik Johnson Tristan King Adam Krause Ben Marshall Brandon Martell Nick Mattson Will Merchant Charlie Mosey Logan Nelson Matt Pohlkamp Ethan Prow Parker Reno Taylor Richart Sam Rothstein Charlie Sampair Eric Scheid Kevin Schulze Eric Schurhamer Tommy Schutt Brett Stern Zach Tolkinen Tommy Vannelli Dane Walters Ryan Walters Sam Windle Eddie Wittchow Goalie Keegan Asmundson Adam Carlson Riley Gill Eric Hartzell Zane McIntyre Kent Patterson

Pos. F F F D F D D F D D D D D D F D F F D F F D D D F F F F D D D F F F D D F D D D F F D D Pos. G G G G G G

Hometown New Prague Eagan Andover Ham Lake Plymouth Lakeland International Falls Lakeville Bloomington Stillwater Northfield Bloomington Marine on St. Croix St. Paul Edina Baudette Bloomington Plymouth Bloomington Elk River Hermantown Mahtomedi Elk River Chanhassen Eagan Prior Lake Rogers Lake City Sauk Rapids Edina Blaine Minnetonka St. Paul Blaine White Bear Lake St. Paul Chanhassen Lino Lakes Lino Lakes Minnetonka St. Paul Rosemount Osseo Burnsville Hometown Inver Grove Heights Edina Northfield White Bear Lake Thief River Falls Plymouth

Team Cincinnati Allen Norfolk Allen Orlando South Carolina Brampton Reading Wichita Orlando Toledo Idaho Wheeling Fort Wayne Atlanta Allen Idaho Rapid City Reading Greenville Wheeling Atlanta Indy Indy Idaho Elmira Rapid City Toledo Wheeling Toledo Utah Rapid City Alaska Missouri Wheeling Manchester Manchester Wheeling Missouri Atlanta Toledo Rapid City Utah Manchester Team Tulsa South Carolina Allen Fort Wayne Atlanta Wichita

GP 52 20 29 19 41 13 37 60 50 51 4 64 67 40 33 24 13 17 64 50 26 27 55 57 64 51 49 3 1 7 48 4 39 45 63 8 3 45 57 39 53 67 25 14 W 2 8 28 7 0 6

G 9 7 14 1 15 3 8 19 1 6 0 13 3 4 8 2 4 2 7 11 9 3 1 1 20 4 12 1 0 0 7 2 3 9 12 1 0 6 3 0 14 27 0 1 L 1 11 7 7 1 6

A Pts 3 12 12 19 15 29 4 5 12 27 7 10 14 22 32 51 8 9 14 20 2 2 25 38 12 15 9 13 7 15 4 6 4 8 6 8 12 19 21 32 15 24 14 17 13 14 15 16 27 47 15 19 21 33 1 2 2 2 2 2 13 20 3 5 10 13 9 18 44 56 2 3 0 0 18 24 6 9 14 14 15 29 38 65 4 4 8 9 GAA SV% 2.26 .919 2.97 .895 2.24 .935 3.41 .888 1.99 .931 4.25 .878

Team Fayetteville Macon Columbus Roanoke Knoxville Macon Team Peoria Columbus Roanoke Pensacola

GP 15 36 42 51 48 49 W 1 5 3 10

G 5 9 3 6 18 13 L 0 11 11 6

A 8 8 18 29 25 16 GAA 1.96 3.44 3.50 2.27

Pts 13 17 21 35 43 29 SV% .913 .905 .900 .920

Team Danville Berlin

GP 52 15

G 33 8

A 30 11

Pts 63 19

Team Vail Vail Vail Team Pikes Peak

GP 16 1 19 W

G 1 0 5 L

A 12 0 6 GAA

Pts 13 0 11 SV%

GP 48 47

G 6 20

A 27 37

Pts 33 57

GP 28 19

G 20 1

A 31 4 GAA 2.08

Pts 51 5 SV% .917

GP 36 53 32 39 54

G 3 3 3 11 2

A 21 10 17 27 20 GAA 3.87

Pts 24 13 20 38 22 SV% .900

GP 28 38

G 7 11

A 18 27

Pts 25 38

Southern Professional Hocke eague Hockeyy LLeague Team Lehigh Valley W-B/Scranton Rockford Bakersfield San Diego Cleveland Hershey Ontario San Jose Toronto Iowa Providence Hershey Toronto Milwaukee Texas Rochester Hartford Hershey W-B/Scranton Albany Texas Toronto Grand Rapids W-B/Scranton Charlotte Utica Iowa Providence Rockford Tucson Bakersfield Texas Providence Hershey San Antonio Iowa W-B/Scranton Springfield Iowa Iowa Iowa Rockford W-B/Scanton Iowa San Diego Springfield Team Rockford St. John’s Lehigh Valley Providence Iowa Syracuse

Name Christian Horn Matt Johnson Zach Loesch Nick Schneider Berkley Scott Matt Summers Goalie Troy Davenport Brandon Jaeger James Kruger John McLean

Pos. F F D D F F Pos. G G G G

Hometown Plymouth Stillwater White Bear Lake Maplewood Anoka Savage Hometown Inver Grove Heights Champlin Minnetonka Eagan

Federal Hocke eague Hockeyy LLeague Name Justin Brausen Cole Gunner

Pos. F F

Hometown Little Canada Richfield

Mountain West Hocke eague Hockeyy LLeague Name Andy Canzanello Joe Rectenwald Noah Warshawsky Goalie Ben Hause

Pos. D F F Pos. G

Hometown Rochester Duluth St. Paul Hometown Woodbury

Asia LLeague eague Ice Hocke orea) Hockeyy (China/Japan/South K Korea) Name Casey Borer Adam Estoclet

Pos. D F

Hometown Minneapolis Orono

Team Nippon Daemyung

Australian Ice Hocke eague (Australia) Hockeyy LLeague Name Michael Dorr Mike McMahon Goalie Troy Davenport

Pos. F D Pos. G

Hometown Roseville St. Paul Hometown Inver Grove Heights

Team Perth Melbourne Team Melbourne

Erste Bank Eishocke Eishockeyy Liga (Austria/Italy/Slo (Austria/Italy/Slovvenia) Name Brian Connelly Max Everson David Fischer Brett Olson Kevin Wehrs Goalie Jeff Frazee

Pos. D D D F D Pos. G

Hometown Bloomington Edina Apple Valley Duluth Plymouth Hometown Burnsville

Team Dornbirn Bolzano Klagenfurter Salzburg Villach Team Ljubljana

Alps Hocke eague (Austria/Italy/Slo Hockeyy LLeague (Austria/Italy/Slovvenia) Name Nate DiCasmirro Derek Eastman

Pos. F D

Hometown Rosemount St. Paul

Team Jesenice Gherdëina

Statistics through games of March 28, 2017 (not including postseason games). Compiled by Kevin Kurtt. For changes or additions, e-mail editor@letsplayhockey.com.

2016-17 Minnesota-Grown Pros

WSM Liga (Czech Republic) Name Ben Walker

Pos. F

Hometown Edina

Elite Ice Hocke eague (United Kingdom) Hockeyy LLeague Team Ceske Budejovice

GP 16

G 3

A 10

Pts 13

GAA 5.50

SV% .914

Danmarks Ishocke Ishockeyy Union (Denmark) Goalie Trevor Tabaka

Pos. G

Hometown Grand Rapids

Team Odense

Pos. D F D

Hometown Plymouth Edina Edina

Team Lahden Jukurit Helsinki

GP 55 60 46

G 2 15 3

A 8 23 5

Pts 10 38 8

Team Gap Rouen Gap Dijon

GP 8 44 40 40

G 0 5 12 11

A 5 10 16 5

Pts 5 15 28 16

GP 45 34 52 51 52 46 52 21 49 22 42 51

G 8 2 6 6 2 4 21 3 11 0 5 2

A 30 3 17 16 12 10 13 3 23 4 9 8

Pts 38 5 23 22 14 14 34 6 34 4 14 10

Saxoprint Ligue Magnus (France) Name Ryan Bullock Matt Hussey Christian Isackson Patrick White

Pos. D F F F

Hometown Eden Prairie Plymouth Pine City Grand Rapids

Deutsche Eishocke Eishockeyy Liga (Germany) Name Rob Bordson Tim Conboy Kurt Davis Gabe Guentzel Tim Hambly Jake Hansen Ben Hanowski Mike Hoeffel Drew LeBlanc Steve Slaton Matt Smaby Barry Tallackson

Pos. F D D D D F F F F D D F

Hometown Duluth Farmington Plymouth Woodbury White Bear Lake White Bear Lake Little Falls North Oaks Hermantown Plymouth Minneapolis St. Paul

Team Fischtown Düsseldorf Düsseldorf Augsburger Krefeld Schwenningen Augsburger Fischtown Augsburger Fischtown München Berlin

Deutsche Eishocke Eishockeyy Liga 2 (Germany) Name Connor Gaarder Mike Hoeffel Steve Slaton Goalie Keegan Asmundson

Pos. F F D Pos. G

Hometown Edina North Oaks Plymouth Hometown Inver Grove Heights

Team Lausitz Crimmitschau Bad Nauheim Team Frankfurt

GP 6 27 17

G 2 11 0

A 0 8 2 GAA 4.20

Pts 2 19 2 SV% .829

Hometown Mahtomedi Roseville Edina

Team Wedemark Selb Sonthofen

GP 43 44 8

G 38 26 2

A 37 36 0

Pts 75 62 2

Team Macau

GP 15

G 19

A 16

Pts 35

Oberliga (Germany) Name Charlie Adams Michael Dorr Charlie Taft

Pos. F F F

CIHL HK (Hong K ong) Kong) Name Whitney Olsen

Pos. F

Hometown Eagan

MOL Liga (Hungary) Name Drew Olson

Pos. D

Hometown Brainerd

Team Budapest

GP 10

G 2

A 4

Pts 6

Team West Auckland

GP 15

G 15

A 15

Pts 30

Team Manglerud Stavanger Team Lørenskog

GP 31 45

G 17 24

A 4 41 GAA 1.98

Pts 21 65 SV% .920

GP 57 60 51 57 58 52

G 17 20 13 22 18 6

A 36 20 37 14 25 7

Pts 53 40 50 36 43 13

GAA 2.56

SV% .918

A 24 24 2 14

Pts 28 30 3 17

New Zealand Ice Hocke eague (New Zealand) Hockeyy LLeague Name Mario Mjelleli

Pos. F

Hometown Faribault

Get Ligaen (Norwa y) (Norway) Name Peter Lindblad Mark Van Guilder Goalie Jeff Jakaitis

Pos. F F Pos. G

Hometown Benson Roseville Hometown Rochester

Kontinental Hocke eague (Russia) Hockeyy LLeague Name Brandon Bochenski Chad Rau Dan Sexton Ryan Stoa Jeff Taffe Clay Wilson

Pos. F F F F F D

Hometown Blaine Eden Prairie Apple Valley Bloomington Hastings Sturgeon Lake

Team Barys Astana Kunlun Nizhnekamsk Moskva Bratislava Cherepovets

Tipsport Liga (Slo (Slovvakia) Goalie Eric Hartzell

Pos. G

Hometown White Bear Lake

Team Nitra

Swedish Hocke eague (Sweden) Hockeyy LLeague Name Jack Connolly Cade Fairchild Taylor Matson Ben Youds

Pos. F D F D

Hometown Duluth Duluth Mound Maple Grove

Team Rögle Rögle Rögle Leksands

GP 52 50 31 44

G 4 6 1 3

Hocke Hockeyyettan (Sweden) Name Sam Coatta

Pos. F

Hometown Minnetonka

Team Visby/Roma

GP 40

G 11

A 10

Pts 21

Hometown Inver Grove Heights

Team Kalmar

GAA 4.14

SV% .872

Hometown Edina

Team Borås

GP 9

G 1

A 3

Pts 4

Team Biel-Bienne SCL Tigers

GP 45

G A 2 13 injured

Division 2 (Sweden) Goalie Troy Davenport

Pos. G

Division 3 (Sweden) Name Owen Osborn

Pos. F

National League A (Switzerland) Name Mike Lundin Jordy Murray

Pos. D F

Name Zack Fitzgerald Michael Forney Andy Sertich Goalie Joe Fallon

Pos. D F D Pos. G

Hometown Duluth Thief River Falls Coleraine Hometown Bemidji

Team Sheffield Belfast Nottingham Team Dundee

GP 47 49 51

G 2 15 5

A 12 24 20 GAA 3.37

Pts 14 39 25 SV% .896

Team Buffalo Buffalo New York Boston New York Buffalo

GP 17 15 8 16 18 6

G 9 0 0 4 3 0

A 3 2 0 10 6 1

Pts 12 2 0 14 9 1

Team Planegg

GP 22

G 6

A 10

Pts 16

Team Sundsvall/Timrå Djurgårdens Sundsvall/Timrå

GP 21 24 21

G 2 0 1

A 1 2 9

Pts 3 2 10

National Women’s Hocke eague Hockeyy LLeague

Liiga (Finland) Name Ben Blood Zach Budish Joe Finley

March 30, 2017

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Hometown Apple Valley Faribault

Pts 15

Name Corinne Buie Jordyn Burns Morgan Fritz-Ward Gigi Marvin Milica McMillen Anne Schleper

Pos. F F F D D F

Hometown Edina Chanhassen Lakeville Warroad St. Paul St. Cloud

Elite Women’s Hocke eague (Europe) Hockeyy LLeague Name Natalie Berg Hillary Crowe

Pos. D F

Hometown Minnetonka Eden Prairie

Team Vienna Salzburg

Frauen-Bundesliga (Germany) Name Caitlin Hewes

Pos. D

Hometown Stillwater

Riksserien (Sweden) Name Amanda Arbogast Delaney Middlebrook Lexi Slattery

Pos. F D D

Hometown Virginia Minneapolis Hugo

Swiss Women’s Hocke eague A (Switzerland) Hockeyy LLeague Name Hayley Opperman

Pos. D

Hometown Wayzata

Team Zurich

Minnesota Whitecaps Name Rose Alleva Shelby Amsley-Benzie Lauren Barnes Rachael Bona Lindsey Brown Julie Friend Kalli Funk Meghan Lorence Marley McMillan Jenny Potter Haylea Schmid Emma Stauber Allie Thunstrom

Pos. D G D F G G F F F F F D F

Hometown Red Wing Warroad Burnsville Coon Rapids Mounds View Minnetonka Roseville Mounds View St. Paul Edina Oak Grove Duluth Maplewood

Name Alli Altmann Stephanie Anderson Ashley Birdsall Hannah Brandt Winny Brown Katie Frischmann Becky Kortum Lisa Martinson Meaghan Pezon Chelsey Rosenthal Kelly Seeler Amy Stech

Pos. G F F F D F F D F D F F

Hometown Eagan North St. Paul Duluth Vadnais Heights Roseville Rochester Minnetonka St. Louis Park Eden Prairie Roseville Eden Prairie Duluth

Minnesota College Products in the Pros (non-Minnesotans) Name Nic Dowd Jason Garrison Kevin Gravel Erik Haula Brad Hunt Phil Kessel Kalle Kossila Casey Nelson Mason Raymond Matt Read Thomas Vanek

Pos. F F D F D F F D F F F

College St. Cloud State Minnesota Duluth St. Cloud State Minnesota Bemidji State Minnesota St. Cloud State Minnesota State Minnesota Duluth Bemidji State Minnesota

NHL Team Los Angeles Tampa Bay Los Angeles Minnesota Nashville Pittsburgh Anaheim Buffalo Anaheim Philadelphia Florida

GP 67 69 46 66 9 75 1 11 4 62 62

G 5 1 1 13 1 22 0 0 0 10 16

A 15 8 5 10 4 43 0 0 0 9 30

Pts 20 9 6 23 5 65 0 0 0 19 46

Name Joe Basaraba Wade Bergman Ivana Bilic Teddy Blueger Megan Bozek Phil Brewer Aaron Brocklehurst Michela Cava Jaroslav Cesky Mike Connolly Brendan Cook Tim Daly Brad Denney Tyler Elbrecht Austin Farley Sean Flanagan Justin Fontaine Jordan George Markus Gerbrandt Bryce Gervais Matt Geurts Andrew Gordon Kevin Gravel Kirsti Hakala Brendan Harms Zoe Hickel Carrie Holldorf Brock Hooton Meghan Huertas Brad Hunt Mike Huntebrinker Radoslav Illo Danny Irmen Geoff Irwin Mira Jalosuo Jeff Jubinville Jon Jutzi Amanda Kessel Kalle Kossila Mike Krieg J.P. Lafontaine Brady Lamb

Pos. F D D F D F D F F F F D D D F D F F F F D F D D F F F F F D F F F F D F D F F D F F

College Minnesota Duluth Minnesota Duluth Bemidji State Minnesota State Minnesota Bemidji State St. Cloud State Minnesota Duluth Augsburg Minnesota Duluth Bemidji State St. Cloud State Saint Mary’s Minnesota State Minnesota Duluth Minnesota State Minnesota Duluth Bemidji State Bemidji State Minnesota State St. Olaf St. Cloud State St. Cloud State Minnesota Duluth Bemidji State Minnesota Duluth St. Cloud State St. Cloud State Minnesota Duluth Bemidji State Minnesota State Bemidji State Minnesota Minnesota State Minnesota Bemidji State Minnesota State Minnesota St. Cloud State St. Thomas Minnesota State Minnesota Duluth

Team Idaho (ECHL) Fischtown (GER) Connecticut (NWHL) W-B/Scranton (AHL) Buffalo (NWHL) Tulsa (ECHL) Vienna (AUT) Toronto (CWHL) Oxford (UK) Straubing (GER) Dresden (GER) Utah (ECHL) Danville (FHL) Manchester (ECHL) Björklöven (SWE) Reading (ECHL) Bakersfield (AHL) Fischtown (GER) Sarpsborg (NOR) Chicago (AHL) Alaska (ECHL) Linköping (SWE) Ontario (AHL) Zürich (EWHL) Florida (ECHL) Boston (NWHL) Minnesota Whitecaps Fischtown (GER) Connecticut (NWHL) Chicago (AHL) Reading (ECHL) Missouri (ECHL) Ingolstadt (GER) Sydney (AUS) Minnesota Whitecaps Budapest (HUN) Orlando (ECHL) New York (NWHL) San Diego (AHL) Wheeling (ECHL) Toledo (ECHL) Augsburg (GER)

GP 66 52 8 45 16 57 52 24 25 52 52 54 49 63 36 4 59 46 43 53 17 50 6

G 19 4 0 6 5 11 5 6 10 9 29 9 6 6 9 0 11 10 19 11 0 8 0

A 25 20 4 20 5 21 20 8 26 39 18 26 32 13 5 0 27 9 16 6 2 16 2

Pts 44 24 4 26 10 32 25 14 36 48 47 35 38 19 14 0 38 19 35 17 2 24 2

3 12

1 1

0 5

1 6

49 9 23 2 49 52 7

15 1 9 0 9 19 4

20 3 20 1 13 18 5

35 4 29 1 22 37 9

39 40 8 58 52 51 52

16 2 4 12 3 12 7

24 9 14 32 13 15 21

40 11 18 44 16 27 28

Continued on page 20

Statistics through games of March 28, 2017 (not including postseason games). Compiled by Kevin Kurtt. For changes or additions, e-mail editor@letsplayhockey.com.

March 30, 2017

Let’s Play Hockey

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2016-17 Minnesota-Grown Pros Ryan Lasch Oliver Lauridsen Matt Leitner Maria Lindh Sam Lofquist Ian Lowe Jamie MacQueen Dylan Margonari Brandon Marino Graeme McCormack Bryan McGregor Johnny McInnis Matt McKnight Aaron McLeod Garrett Milan Sarah Moe Hanna Moher David Morley Evan Mosey Kael Mouillierat Jimmy Mullin Casey Nelson Andreas Nödl Dylan Nowakowski Charlie O’Connor Evan Oberg Travis Oleksuk Brance Orban John Parker Ruslan Pedan Andrew Peterson

F D F F D F F F F D F F F F F F F F D F F D F F F D F F F D D

St. Cloud State St. Cloud State Minnesota State Minnesota Duluth Minnesota Bemidji State Bemidji State Minnesota State Bemidji State Bemidji State Minnesota Duluth Minnesota State Minnesota Duluth Bemidji State St. Cloud State Gustavus Adolphus Bemidji State St. Cloud State Minnesota State Minnesota State Minnesota State Minnesota State St. Cloud State St. Scholastica Bemidji State Minnesota Duluth Minnesota Duluth Bemidji State Bemidji State Bemidji State Gustavus Adolphus

Bern (SWI) Jokerit (KHL) Springfield (AHL) Djurgårdens (SWE)

46 48 11

13 3 0

25 6 3

38 9 3

Nizhny Novgorod (KHL) 43

4 8 10 11 20 4 4 12 24 34 10

9 13 13 6 44 18 12 8 48 42 10

13 21 23 17 64 22 16 20 72 76 20

3 11 4 4

12 19 4 10

15 30 8 14

4 12 5 2 4 14 9 15 0 0

10 19 3 1 7 19 14 15 3 3

14 31 8 3 11 33 23 30 3 3

Wichita (ECHL) 57 Berlin (GER) 51 South Carolina (ECHL) 32 Brampton (ECHL) 66 Sarpsborg (NOR) 45 Brasov (HUN) 11 Reading (ECHL) 47 Bietigheim (GER) 51 Herne (GER) 44 Edinburgh (UK) 47 Minnesota Whitecaps HV71 (SWE) 31 Lillehammer (NOR) 28 Rockford (AHL) 36 Luleå (SWE) 47 Kalamazoo (ECHL) Rochester (AHL) 48 Vienna (AUT) 54 Cincinnati (ECHL) 26 Toledo (ECHL) 3 Lacombe (ChHL) 16 Bolzano (ITA) 51 Székesfehérvár (HUN) 51 South Carolina (ECHL) 55 Sochi (KHL) 33 Sollefteå (SWE) 33

Matt Pope Ryan Potulny Matt Prapavessis Cam Reid Brad Robbins Garrett Roe Jay Rosehill Patrick Russell Tyler Scofield Mike Seidel MacGregor Sharp Tim Stapleton Ben Storm Adam Sundqvist Peter Szabo Dan Tedesco Kelly Terry Phil Tesoriero Cory Ward Sam Warning Riley Weselowski Goalie Matt Climie Matt Dalton Mathieu Dugas Dan Dunn Ryan Faragher Drew Fielding Kasimir Kaskisuo Amanda Leveille Stephon Williams

F F D F F F D F F F F F F D F F F D F F D Pos. G G G G G G G G G

Bemidji State Minnesota Bemidji State St. Cloud State Bemidji State St. Cloud State Minnesota Duluth St. Cloud State Bemidji State Minnesota Duluth Minnesota Duluth Minnesota Duluth St. Cloud State Concordia (MN) St. Cloud State St. Cloud State Minnesota Minnesota Crookston Bemidji State Minnesota Bemidji State College Bemidji State Bemidji State Bemidji State St. Cloud State St. Cloud State St. Thomas Minnesota Duluth Minnesota Minnesota State

Tohoku (JPN) 46 Linz (AUT) 35 Greenville (ECHL) 65 Utah (ECHL) 35 Tours (FRA) 21 Linköping (SWE) 49 Braehead (UK) 40 Bakersfield (AHL) 60 Rosenheim (GER) 47 Norfolk (ECHL) 11 Vienna (AUT) 52 Spartak Moskva (KHL) 22 San Antonio (AHL) Örnsköldsviks (SWE) 25 Rostock (GER) 16 Wichita (ECHL) 2 Toronto (CWHL) 24 Roanoke (SPHL) 40 Manchester (ECHL) 63 Quad City (ECHL) 63 Rapid City (ECHL) 67 Team W Straubing (GER) Anyang (KOR) Saint-Georges (LNAH) Innisfail (ChHL) Utah (ECHL) 17 Adirondack (ECHL) 8 Toronto (AHL) 3 Buffalo (NWHL) 4 Bridgeport (AHL) 6

33 12 7 8 15 16 4 7 25 2 22 1

35 17 27 21 16 21 18 9 30 1 19 6

68 29 34 29 31 37 22 16 55 3 41 7

0 5 0 6 1 15 23 2 L

4 9 0 6 8 19 29 16 GAA 3.11 1.68 3.52 3.39 3.09 3.33 1.34 4.34 3.02

4 14 0 12 9 34 52 18 SV% .908 .939 .900 .899 .899 .900 .955 .890 .892

15 6 0 2 13

Statistics through games of March 28, 2017 (not including postseason games). Compiled by Kevin Kurtt. For changes or additions, e-mail editor@letsplayhockey.com.

Chicago Dogs: UMD heads to NCAA Frozen Four The third time is indeed the charm. After falling in the regional title game in each of the past two seasons, the University of Minnesota Duluth finally got over the proverbial hump last Saturday night. The Bulldogs became the first team to punch its ticket to the 2017 NCAA Frozen Four by taking down Boston University 3-2 in overtime in the West Regional final in Fargo, N.D. Sophomore center Adam Johnson scored on the power play just 1:57 into the extra session to seal the deal as he and the Bulldogs qualified for the national championship event for the fifth time in program history -- and the first time since they won it all back in 2010-11. “I’m excited for our team and our program, but even more so for our seven seniors who have seen us suffer tough defeats in regional finals the last two years,” said UMD head coach Scott Sandelin, whose Bulldog fell 3-2 to Boston University in the 2015 Northeast Regional title game. “So to have the opportunity to go to Chicago and get to the Frozen Four is pretty exciting for all of us. The No. 1 seeded Bulldogs, who will head to the NCAA Frozen Four (which will be held at the United Center on April 6 and 8), on a seven-game winning streak and having

UMD is headed to its fifth NCAA Frozen Four and first since winning the national championship in 2011.

gone unbeaten in 18 of their last 19 outings (15-1-3). They’ll also be armed with a 27-6-7 overall record and their most regular season victories in 13 years. Clayton Keller backhanded in a shot 7:59 into the opening period to give Boston University (24-12-3) a 1-0 lead, but UMD senior left winger Alex Iafallo answered with 17.3 seconds to go before the first intermission on a wraparound for his 19th goal of the season. Rookie right winger Joey

Anderson, who picked up a pair of assists in UMD’s 3-2 overtime victory over Ohio State University in Friday night's semifinals, gave the Bulldogs their first lead of the evening at 11:38 of the third period when he banged in his own rebound. The 2-1 advantage held up for just a little over five minutes before Patrick Harper whistled in a wrister from the left faceoff dot. The No. 2 seeded Terriers, which needed two

overtimes to oust the University of North Dakota one day earlier in the West Regional opener, outshot the Bulldogs 13-7 in the third period and 24-23 on the night. They also took the final two penalties of the game, the last of which came 1:39 into sudden death, which Johnson needed just 22 seconds to capitalized on. “I took a one-timer and the shot got blocked,” said Johnson. “I was fortunate enough to get it back on the wall and I saw an opening. I just tried to fake a shot and get that guy to bite and shoot it by him. I found the corner and it was a good feeling.” Freshman Hunter Miska, who was named the West Regional Most Valuable Player, finished with 22 saves after making a careerhigh 40 stops one night earlier. He was joined on the six-member All-Tournament Team by Anderson as well as teammates Willie Raskob (a Northeast Regional All-Tournament Team pick in 2015) and senior Alex Iafallo. Iafallo turned his seventh straight two-point night, having assisted on Johnson's game-winner, while extending his career-high scoring streak to 13 games. “This is incredible,” said Iafallo. “The last two years we came short and this year we didn't, so it feels absolutely phenomenal.”

Sixteen area players earn All-America honors MEN’S DIVISION III First Team East G - Evan Buitenhuis, Hamilton (Burlington, ON) D - Stephen Johnson, Oswego (Mississauga, ON) D - Cody Smith, Norwich (Hudson, MA) F - Stephen Collins, Geneseo (Pittsford, NY) F - Brady Fleurent, New England (Biddeford, ME) F - Colin Larkin, UMass Boston (Waterford, MI)

West G - T.J. Black, St. Norbert (Wheaton, IL) D - Cory Dunn, Adrian (Trenton, MI) D - Rory Vesel, Augsburg (Rochester, MN) F - Lawrence Cornellier, UW-Stevens Pt, (Machesney Park, IL) F - Jack Lewis, Lake Forest (London, ON) F - Patrick Moore, UW-Eau Claire (Grand Rapids, MN)

Second Team East G - Brett Kilar, New England Coll. (Coto de Caza, CA) D - Tyler Bishop, UMass-Boston (Ramsey, NJ) D - Logan Day, Endicott (Seminole, FL) F - Dominik Gabaj, Nazareth (Bratislava, Slovakia) F - Jory Mullin, Neumann (Cartwright, MB) F - William Pelletier, Norwich (St. Jean Chrysotome, QC)

West G - Benjamin Myers, St. Thomas (Wauwautosa, WI) D - Sean Campbell, St. Norbert (Holt, MI) D - Mitch Hall, Hamline (St. Cloud, MN) D - Gianni Mangone, Marian (Calgary, AB) F - Trevor Boyd, Adrian (Muskegon, MI) F - Nate Flynn, Augsburg (Hastings, MN) F - Thomas Williams, St. Thomas (Alexandria, MN)

ThirdTeam East G - Mike DeLaVergne, Buffalo State (Pawling, NY) D - Carl Belizario, Hobart (Dorval, QC) D - Ayrton Valente, Plattsburgh (Woodbridge, ON) F - Tommy Besinger, Endicott (Milton, MA) F - Trevor Fleurent, New England (Biddeford, ME) F - Kenny Neil, Oswego (Clarenville, NL)

WOMEN’S DIVISION I First Team G - Ann-Renee Desbien, Wisconsin (LaMalbaie, PQ) D - Megan Keller, Boston College (Farmington Hills, MI) D - Lee Stecklein, Minnesota (Roseville, MN) F - Cayley Mercer, Quinnipiac (Exeter, ON) F - Kelly Pannek, Minnesota (Plymouth, MN) F - Lara Stalder, UMD (Lucerne, Switzerland)

Second Team G - Kassidy Sauve, Ohio State (Whitby, ON) D - Savannah Harmon, Clarkson (Downers Grove, WI) D - Jenny Ryan, Wisconsin (Victor, NY) F - Sarah Nurse, Wisconsin (Hamilton, ON) F - Annie Pankowski, Wisconsin (Laguna Hills, CA) F - Brooke Webster, St. Lawrence (Aurora, ON)

WOMEN’S DIVISION III First Team East G - Sam Walther, Hamilton (Gambrills, MD) D - Erin Brand, Plattsburgh (Long Beach, NY) D - Kim Tiberi, Norwich (Raleigh, NC) F - Kayla Meneghin, Plattsburgh (Clifton, NJ) F - Sarah Schwenzfeier, Norwoch (Hingham, MA) F - Melissa Sheeran, Plattsburgh (Schaghticoke, NY)

West G - Amanda DiNella, Gustavus (Oakbrook Terrace, IL) D - Paige Johnson, UW-River Falls (Marshfield, WI) D - Kelly O’Sullivan, Adrian (Inverness, IL) F - Kathryn Larson, St. Thomas (Shoreview, MN) F - Kristin Lewicki, Adrian (Moundsville, WV) F - Dani Sibley, UW-River Falls (Monticello, MN)

Second Team East G - Camille Leonard, Plattsburgh (Oakville, ON) D - Megan Crandall, Plattsburgh (Fullerton, CA) D - Carly Watson, Middlebury (Montpelier, VT) F - Alison Butler, St. Anselm (Danvers, MA) F - Alex Toupal, Amherst (New Brighton, MN) F - Jessica Young, Middlebury (Mission Hills, KS)

West G - Angie Hall, UW-River Falls (White Bear Lake, MN) D - Kayla Griffith, Lake Forest (Woodbury, MN) D - Sydney Smith, Adrian (Sarnia, ON) F - Carly Moran, UW-River Falls (Winona, MN) F - Kaylyn Schroka, Adrian (Belleville, MI) F - Sarah Shureb, Adrian (Livonia, MI)

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March 30, 2017

Let’s Play Hockey

Alexandria 12U A wins state consolation championship

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Osseo/Maple Grove 12U B Black takes second at State

Bottom row (l-r): Riley Nyberg, Brooke Stender, HaileeAnn Bailey, Lauren Maras, Jordan O’Kane, Keely Christensen, Hanley Block, Peyton Boesl. Top row (l-r): Elise Patience, Ali Castle, Lauren Rebrovich, Ella Westlund, Makenna Aure, Kaci Trosvig. Coaches: Derek Trosvig, Jeff Patience, Steve Block, Chris O’Kane

The Alexandria Cardinals 12U A team did what only a few teams get to do – ended their year on the final day of the season with a victory, by winning the Minnesota Hockey 12U A State Tournament consolation championship. In the quarterfinals, Alexandria and Edina faced off for their first and only meeting of the year. The game was extremely competitive as both teams transitioned the puck quickly up the ice in a fast-paced “run and

gun” style game from start to finish. In the end, the luck of St. Patrick’s Day favored the green of Edina who prevailed 3-0. Alexandria next battled to a 4-2 victory against Osseo/Maple Grove in the consolation semifinal round. Alexandria concluded its season by winning the consolation championship with a 4-1 victory against Stillwater. It was a very successful season for Alexandria who finished with a final record of 36-6-1.

Edina Junior Gold A finishes second at State

Edina Junior Gold A finished their terrific 35-3-5 season with a second-place finish in the State Tournament. Over the season, goalies Sam Balow and Will Eckland held their opponents to only 43 goals over the 24-game regular season, while the explosive offense led by centers Frank Delaney, Connor Luther, Macs Balcer and Will Schaidler contributed 59 goals. Strong defense by seniors Jason Sarp, Jackson Slaney, Nolan Anderson and Jack Stedman, and juniors Ben Perunovich and Landon Tselepis took a lot of the pressure off the goalies. Forwards Ben Illies, Andy Kromer,

Mason Jones, Max Page, Alek Bakke, Parker Wakefield, Ryan DeVoe and Ben Anderson contributed the remaining 137 goals. Every player on the team finished with double-digit points over the season, making it a full and complete team effort. In the State Tournament, they gained a large lead over St. Louis Park in game one, then squeaked out a 1-0 win over Blaine in the semifinal game. Despite their 3-2 loss in the State Championship game to Minnetonka, these boys are truly champions.

The Osseo/Maple Grove 12U B Black team finished as state runner-up in the 2017 Minnesota Hockey State Tournament. The team started out strong Friday afternoon against Champlin/Coon Rapids with an end-to-end rush and goal from defenseman Jordyn Borsch. A gritty offensive zone goal from Faith Kreye and the gamewinner from Kaitlyn Carroll gave OMGHA a 3-2 win over the fifth-ranked squad. The reward for advancing to the semifinal round on Saturday was a match-up against top-ranked and tournament favorite, Cloquet. Coming into the semifinal game, the girls skated with extreme confidence and drive as they faced the top-ranked juggernaut. Mia Fagerlee notched the first goal just minutes into the first period, putting Cloquet on their heels, but the offensive attempts from Cloquet’s top line did not relent. Time after time the OMGHA defensemen (Borsch, Aster Devick, Alexa Hanrahan and Tessa Strand) and strong backchecking shut them

down. Later in the first period, Madison Soukup carried through the neutral zone, broke through both defensemen, and ripped a top right corner goal past the goalie. OMGHA found themselves up 2-0. With relentless offensive pressure at the net, Gwyna Marcaccini was also able to overcome their goalie for the third first period goal. Goalie Paige Allen continued to hold Cloquet at bay and notched a spectacular shutout. After this amazing 3-0 win over Cloquet, the determined squad from OMGHA skated hard against their own Division 3 rivals, Wayzata Blue, in the championship game, but fell one goal short with a 1-0 loss. Both goalies, Danielle Key and Allen, played amazing games over the weekend to keep advancing the team to the final game. Congratulations to the Osseo/Maple Grove 12U B Black team on a great accomplishment in becoming the second best team in the state!

Mound Westonka takes third at PeeWee A State Tournament

Players: Ben Ludowise #1, Tyler Those #4, Alec Hruby #5, Drake Whitmore #6, Max Krebsbach #8, Michael Doshan #9, Jackson Studebaker #10, Cooper Kantola #11, Kaj Odash #12, Drew Swanson #13, Lance Nemecek #14, Nick Blood #15, Harry Moen #30. Head Coach: Ross Carlson. Assistant Coach: Cody Zambrano.

The Mound Westonka PeeWee A team beat Sartell 5-2 in the opening game of the Minnesota Hockey State Tournament but lost a heartbreaking game to Edina 3-2 in overtime in the semifinals on Saturday. They came back on Sunday for the seventh meeting against Osseo/Maple Grove this season. The evenly-matched teams had gone

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2-2-2 during the season with Mound Westonka winning the District 3 championship against OMG and OMG winning the Regional championship against Mound Westonka the following week. The White Hawks tipped the odds in their favor, winning the third place state championship 54 in overtime.

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March 30, 2017

Let’s Play Hockey

At Stick it to Cancer hockey tournament April 7-9, players are playing for a higher cause By Barclay Kruse National Sports Center Chief Communications Officer As surely as spring comes to the National Sports Center in Blaine, an early April weekend at the Schwan Super Rink will go pink. For the 19th straight year, female hockey teams will take the ice and play for a higher cause. The annual Stick it to Cancer hockey tournament, set for April 7-9, will draw both youth and adult female teams to play for a championship, but more importantly, to raise funds to fight breast cancer. “Hockey’s a very competitive sport,” says tournament director Kristina King. “When you play hockey, your goal is to win the championship, to win the game. A tournament like this ties in a greater purpose, and gives people a bigger perspective on life.” Over the nearly two decades the tournament has been held, a total of $763,000 has been donated to breast cancer research. For most of those years, the beneficiary has been the Masonic Cancer Center at the University of Minnesota, and this year’s donation will go to the same organization. “It’s rewarding to see people come together for a cause,” says King. “They’re still playing a competitive sport, but the most important aspect isn’t winning the game, it’s helping people raise money, or to honor people who have passed away.” King first played in the tournament on her 10-year old team, but like many young players, she had to grow into an understanding of the importance of the cause. “I remember a lot of pink,” she says. “But at that age I didn’t really understand the big picture. You’re still young, you’re still learning. But when I was 16, I lost my aunt to breast cancer, and that changed everything for me.” The personal connections to those lost to breast cancer, and also to survivors, reaches to nearly everyone at the tournament. “One of our talking points is that one out of every eight women will contract breast cancer,” says King. “If you look at my high school team (King coaches at Centennial High School,) with 33 kids, that’s four out of the 33 who will possibly develop breast cancer. It could be any of us. It could be an eight-year old kid playing on the ice, or a 40year old woman.” Several years ago, tournament organizers started naming the competition divisions after family and friends of players who passed away from cancer, a poignant touch that has been embraced by the participants. New nominations are accepted every year, so the division names change every year. King said nominations are still being accepted. To make a nomination, please contact Kristi King at kking@superrink.org. Provide the name, together with your background

story. Stick it to Cancer organizers have set an ambitious fundraising goal for the next two years. “Our goal is to bring our total donation up to $1 million by 2018,” she says. “To get to that goal, we need everyone to be a part of it. Not just hockey players, but community members. “We need money, we need donations, we need supporters.” Funds come from several sources. Teams are encouraged to fund-raise extra donations on their own, and many teams take up the challenge to win the fund raising race. The perennial fundraising challenge winner is the team from the Olson Fish Company Elks, in Elk River. This year, the Elks are playing with two teams, both at the U19 level. For the Elks’ players, the Stick it to Cancer tournament is an annual tradition; many have been playing since they were 10 year olds. “If you ask the players, this is the most fun they have all year,” says team leader and coach Chris Dorff. “They always have fun. They know they can make a difference, and they rally around each other as teammates, but also to help each other raise funds.” For Dorff, it’s personal. His wife was well into a 13-year battle with breast cancer, when he first saw the tournament advertised in Let’s Play Hockey. “I called Cheryl (Blaker, the tournament registrar) and learned the tournament was full,” Dorff recalls. “But we were in the next year, and every year since.” The Elks raised $19,400 last year, easily winning the fund raising challenge. Dorff’s wife lost her battle with cancer last August, so this year’s tournament will mean even more. He has three

daughters, and addresses the issue directly. “I don’t want my daughters to have to go through this.” “The players always rallied around our family,” he says. “That’s one of the things we’ll talk about in the locker room, because my wife was a big part of this. The girls won’t need a lot of additional inspiration. They love playing hockey, and they’ll have fun because they always do.” The Elks’ players solicit donations from neighbors, family and friends - business con-

nections, too. Dorff is president of the Olson Fish Company, North America’s largest purveyor of herring and lutefisk. He notes that one of his suppliers in Norway has made a sizable donation. “He lost his mother to breast cancer, and made a donation,” says Dorff. Another unique aspect to the tournament is that the referees and supporting officials work for free, essentially donating their fees to increase the cancer donation. “It’s amazing that you have referees who get $50, $60 a game, and they donate that to the cause,” says King. “It’s really touching. A lot of people want to do it for the cause, whether it’s for their wives or mothers, or daughters one day.” A silent auction will raise additional funds. Tournament registration is still open, and King is hoping to eventually have 48 women’s teams and 48 youth girls’ teams. Divisions are offered for girls’ U8 up to U19, and for women’s A, B, C and College. When teams arrive this year, there will be several new features. Games will start Friday evening, but for the first time, all teams will take a break to participate in an “Opening Ceremony” at 1:30 p.m., on Saturday. The ceremony will be followed by a Celebrity Game at 2:45 p.m., on Saturday. King, who played college hockey at Bethel University, is well connected within the women’s hockey world. “We’re working to recruit as many division I college players as we can for the Celebrity Game,” King says. Here is a video of the 2016 Stick it to Cancer tournament, including a segment of the tournament staff taking a tour of the Masonic Cancer Center at the University of Minnesota, to see how the donated funds are being used: https://www.youtube.com/ watch?v=s2zOCZPeJ44 For more information on the tournament, including registration: http:// www.nscsports.org/page/show/1591005stick-it-to-cancer-hockey-tournament

Stick it to Cancer Celebrity Game players Jersey Color and # Pink # 2 Pink # 3 Pink # 4 Pink # 5 Pink # 6 Pink # 7 Pink # 8 Pink # 9 Pink # 10 Pink # 11 Pink # 12 Pink # 13 Pink # 14 Pink # 15 Pink # 16 Pink # 30 Black # 2 Black # 3 Black # 4 Black # 5 Black # 6 Black # 7 Black # 8 Black # 9 Black # 10 Black # 11 Black # 12 Black # 13 Black # 14 Black # 15 Black # 16 Black # 30 Black # 31 Referees

Name Allie Duellman Kalli Funk Angela Zevnik Sami Reber Hannah Brandt Rachael Kelly Kristin Huber Margo Lund Sadie Lundquist Katie Frischman Becky Kortum Megan McCarthy Chelsea Witwicke Sara Bustad Sierra Smith Cassi Carpenter Lisa Martinson Marley McMillan Lauren Barnes Elsa Bruestle Hanna Brodt Gina McDonald Paige Jahnke Brittny Ralph Steph Anderson Haylea Schmid Alecia Anderson Diana Karozous Ellie Sitek Callie Dahl Meghan Lorence Shyler Sletta Jorie Walters Kellie Dineen Madison Kolls

College Attended Bemidji State St. Cloud State Saint Anselm Harvard Minnesota / Team USA Bemidji State Bemidji State New Hampshire Bemidji State Minnesota Minnesota St. Cloud State Lindenwood Minnesota State Minnesota Wisconsin-Stevens Point St. Cloud State Dartmouth Minnesota State Union St. Cloud State Harvard Penn State Minnesota Duluth Bemidji State / Team USA St. Cloud State St. Cloud State St. Cloud State St. Cloud State St. Cloud State Minnesota Minnesota Wisconsin Vermont Minnesota Duluth

Tournament Calendar

March 30, 2017

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2016-17 Let’s Play Hockey Tournament Calendar All invitational tournaments held in Minnesota must first go through a district tournament coordinator before being sent to the Vice President of tournaments, Tim Sweezo, for final approval. The list below is of Minnesota Hockey tournament coordinators for each district. Please call them if you need information about a certain tournament. District 1, Tom Mickus (651) 489-3394; District 2, Jake Reinseth (651) 336-8243; District 3, Chad Nicholls (952) 544-0808; District 4, Kris Hohensee (507) 360-6787; District 5, Jeff Carlen (320) 274-3509; District 6, Cory Townsend (612) 940-6675; District 8, Zac Dockter (612) 735-9703; District 9, Troy Marquardt (507) 384-7386; District 10, Mark Osmondson (612) 747-8308; District 11, Clark Coole (218) 728-8000; District 12, Craig Homula (218) 744-5566; District 15, Aaron Erickson (701) 367-0090; District 16, Mark Elliott (218) 766-4433; Senior Women, Nancy Wefler (763) 537-7837. Tournament entrants from outside Minnesota, North Dakota, and South Dakota, be informed that Minnesota, North Dakota, and South Dakota Squirt, Peewee, and Bantam youth teams will likely have some players up to six months older than the USA Hockey age guidelines for those classifications. Minnesota, North Dakota, and South Dakota are using a July 1 age cut-off date while USA Hockey is using a January 1 age cut-off date. If you are concerned about this issue, you should contact the tournament director immediately to determine whether or not you should register for the tournament.

MARCH 2017 31-2 Blaine, MN: AAA Opener, AAA Boys Open 2009/08, 2007, 2006, 2005, 2004, 2003, 2002, 2001; Contact randy@northlandhockeygroup.com or visit www.aaatournaments.com 31-2 Crookston, MN: 2003 Boys, 14U Girls; Contact Elliot Bates (218) 4700423 or crookstonhockey@gmail.com. Online registration available at crookstonbluelinehockey.com 31-2 Sioux Falls, SD: AAA Opener, AAA Boys Open 2004, 2003, 2002, 2001; Contact randy@ northlandhockeygroup.com or visit www.aaatournaments.com

APRIL 2017 6-9 Twin Cities, MN: Ignite the Ice Tournament, Boys AAA 2009-2002; Call (952) 920-8826 or visit www.unitedaaahockey.com 7-9 Alexandria, MN: Alexandria Blizzard 2017 Hockey Fest, Boys 2008; Contact Matt Johnson at matt@alexandriablizzard.com or visit www.alexhockeyfest.com 7-9 Blaine, MN: Stick It To Cancer, Women’s A, B1, B2, B3, C1, C2, C3 and Girls Youth U8 Open, U10 Tier 1 &2, U12 Tier 1 & 2, U14 Tier 1 & 2, U 16 Tier 1 & 2, U 19 Tier 1 & 2; Contact Kristi King (763) 785-5649 or kking@superrink.org or visit www.superrink.org 7-9 Crookston, MN: 09/10, 8U Girls; Contact Elliot Bates (218) 4700423 or crookstonhockey@gmail.com. Online registration available at www.crookstonbluelinehockey.com 7-9 Duluth, MN: Battle By The Bay Girls AAA, 8U, 10U, 12U, 14U, 16U; Contact Marc Franta (651) 775-9076 or mfranta@live.com or visit www.northernstorm.net 7-9 Sioux Falls, SD: AAA Opener, AAA Boys Open 2009/08, 2007, 2006, 2005; Contact randy@ northlandhockeygroup.com or visit www.aaatournaments.com 7-9 St. Cloud, MN: AAA Opener, AAA Girls Open 10U, 12U, 14U, 16U; Contact randy@ northlandhockeygroup.com or visit aaatournaments.com 7-9 Twin Cities, MN: Early Trailblazer AAA Tournament, Boys 2003-2009; Contact dan@midwesthockey.net or (763) 225-7320 14-16 Scarborough, ON: 46th Annual Shamrock Select Hockey Tournament, Tyke to Under 21, HL, Select, MD; Contact (877) 702-5701 or (905) 827-3541 or weekendhockey.email@ gmail.com or visit www.weekendhockey.com 20-23 Twin Cities, MN: 22 nd Minnesota Meltdown AAA Tournament, Boys Invite and Open 2008-2002, Girls AAA 10U, 12U, 14U, 16U, 19U; Contact Eric Knutsen (952) 920-8826 or eric.knutsen@showcasehockey.com or visit www.showcasehockey.com.com 21-23 Alexandria, MN: Alexandria Blizzard 2017 Hockey Fest, Boys 2007; Contact Matt Johnson at matt@ alexandriablizzard.com or visit www.alexhockeyfest.com

21-23 Chicago, IL: Chicago Cup Tournament Series: Chicago Spring Classic, Squirt through Midget: House, B, A, AA, High School Varsity & JV; Contact MYHockeyTournaments (855) 898-4040 or jbabin@ myhockeytournaments.com or visit myhockeytournaments.com 21-23 Crookston, MN: Boys 2007; Contact Elliot Bates (218) 4700423 or crookstonhockey@gmail.com. Online registration available at www.crookstonbluelinehockey.com 21-23 Green Bay, WI: Cheese Cup, U16, 2002, 2003, 2004; Contact Jay Boxer (920) 403-2000 or jboxer@ netnet.net or visit www.cornerstoneicecenter.org 21-23 St. Cloud, MN: Mountain Dew Blast, AAA Boys Open 2009/08, 2007, 2006; Contact randy@ northlandhockeygroup.com or visit www.aaatournaments.com 21-23 St. Louis, MO: Mite/Squirt/PeeWee/Bantam/ Midget, AA/A/B/House; Register online at www.ultimatetournaments.net or contact John (630) 336-6160 27-30 Madison, WI: Capitol City Cup, AA/A/B Boys U18, U16, Bantam, PeeWee, Squirt, AA/A/B Girls U16, U14, U12; Register online at www.capitolcitycup.com 27-30 Twin Cities, MN: Shock Doctor Shootout, Boys AAA 2009-2002; Call (952) 920-8826 or visit www.unitedaaahockey.com 28-30 Alexandria, MN: Alexandria Blizzard 2017 Hockey Fest, Girls U12; Contact Matt Johnson at matt@ alexandriablizzard.com or visit www.alexhockeyfest.com 28-30 Crookston, MN: 10U Girls, 12U Girls; Contact Elliot Bates (218) 4700423 or crookstonhockey@gmail.com. Online registration available at crookstonbluelinehockey.com 28-30 Moorhead, MN: Elite AAA Showcase, Girls 19U & 16U; Contact admin@rivercityhockey.com or register at www.rivercityhockey.com 28-30 St. Cloud, MN: Mountain Dew Blast, AAA Boys Open 2005, 2004, 2003; Contact randy@ northlandhockeygroup.com or visit www.aaatournaments.com

MAY 2017 4-7 Madison, WI: Capitol City Cup, AAA U15, 02, 03, 04, 05, 06, 07; Register online at www.capitolcitycup.com 4-7 Twin Cities, MN: Stars and Stripes Hockey Tournament, Elite and Open, Boys U16, 03, 04, 05, 06, 07, 08, 09, 10, Girls U8, U10, U12, U14, U16 Tier 1 & 2; Contact Steve Mularky (952) 746-9033 or stevem@mnmadehockey.com or visit www.mnmadehockey.com

5-7 Alexandria, MN: Alexandria Blizzard 2017 Hockey Fest, Boys 2006; Contact Matt Johnson at matt@alexandriablizzard.com or visit www.alexhockeyfest.com 5-7 Blaine, MN: Mountain Dew Blast, AAA Girls Open 10U, 12U, 14U, 16U, Boys Open 2001; Contact randy@northlandhockeygroup.com or visit www.aaatournaments.com 5-7 Crookston, MN: Boys 2004; Contact Elliot Bates (218) 4700423 or crookstonhockey@gmail.com. Online registration available at www.crookstonbluelinehockey.com 5-7 Grand Forks, ND: Boys 05, Boys 06; Register at www.reahockeyacademy.com 5-7 Green Bay, WI: Cheese Cup, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008; Contact Jay Boxer (920) 403-2000 or jboxer@ netnet.net or visit www.cornerstoneicecenter.org 5-7 Nashville, TN: Music City Tournament Series: Nashville Spring Classic, Squirt A, PeeWee A, PeeWee AA, Bantam A; Contact MYHockeyTournaments (855) 898-4040 or jbabin@myhockeytournaments.com or visit myhockeytournaments.com 12-14 Blaine, MN: Walleye Chop, Men’s A,B,C,D, Novice, 40-plus, 50-plus, Women’s A, B, C; Contact Brandon Koontz (763) 717-3210 or bkoontz@superrink.org or visit www.superrink.org 12-14 Crookston, MN: Boys 2005; Contact Elliot Bates (218) 4700423 or crookstonhockey@gmail.com. Online registration available at www.crookstonbluelinehockey.com 12-14 Grand Forks, ND: Boys 03 Elite, Boys 03 Open, Boys 04 Elite, Boys 04 Open; Register at www.reahockeyacademy.com 12-14 St. Louis, MO: Mite/Squirt/PeeWee/Bantam/ Midget, AA/A/B/House; Register online at www.ultimatetournaments.net or contact John (630) 336-6160 12-14 Twin Cities, MN: Spring Stampede AAA Tournament, Boys 2002-2009, U16, U18; Contact dan@midwesthockey.net or (763) 225-7320 18-21 Twin Cities, MN: MN Independent AAA Hockey Classic, Boys Invitational and Open 18U, 16U, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, Girls AAA 19U, 16U, 14U, 12U, 10U, 8U; Contact Bob Capra (952) 920-8826 or rwcapra@msn.com or visit www.eastonaaa.com 19-21 Alexandria, MN: Alexandria Blizzard 2017 Hockey Fest, Girls U10; Contact Matt Johnson at matt@ alexandriablizzard.com or visit www.alexhockeyfest.com 19-21 Chicago, IL: Chicago Cup Tournament Series: MYHockey Tournaments Spring Classic, Squirt through Midget: B, A, AA, High School Varsity & JV; Contact MYHockeyTournaments (855) 898-4040 or jbabin@ myhockeytournaments.com or visit myhockeytournaments.com

Tournament Calendar

www.letsplayhockey.com 19-21 Crookston, MN: Boys 2006; Contact Elliot Bates (218) 4700423 or crookstonhockey@gmail.com. Online registration available at www.crookstonbluelinehockey.com 19-21 Grand Forks, ND: Boys 07, Girls 10U, Girls 12U, girls 14U; Register at www.reahockeyacademy.com 19-21 Sioux Falls, SD: ChampZ Cup, 2003-2007; Contact Arianne Zieske (605) 359-4059 or Arianne@legendhockey.com. Register at www.legendsi.com 19-21 St. Cloud, MN: Mountain Dew Blast, AAA Boys Open 2002; Contact randy@northlandhockeygroup.com or visit www.aaatournaments.com 19-21 Twin Cities, MN: Mountain Dew Blast, AAA Boys Open 2009/08, 2007, 2006, 2005, 2004, 2003; Contact randy@northlandhockeygroup.com or visit www.aaatournaments.com 26-28 Duluth, MN: Female Elite Prospects, 16U & U19 AAA girls; Contact Kevin Mudrak at (218) 522-1375 or kmudrak@yahoo.com or visit www.mnfemalehockey.com

JUNE 2017 1-4 Duluth, MN: Battle By The Bay Boys AAA, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007/08; Contact Carissa Haala (218) 590-6246 or haala01@hotmail.com or visit www.northernstorm.net 2-4 Alexandria, MN: Alexandria Blizzard 2017 Hockey Fest, Boys 2005; Contact Matt Johnson at matt@ alexandriablizzard.com or visit www.alexhockeyfest.com 2-4 Crookston, MN: Boys HS, Girls HS; Contact Elliot Bates (218) 4700423 or crookstonhockey@gmail.com. Online registration available at crookstonbluelinehockey.com 8-11 Rapid City, SD: Rushmore Cup, Minor Squirts, Major Squirts, Mino PeeWees (Boys 10U, 12U); Contact dave@northlandhockeygroup.com or visit www.northlandhockeygroup.com.com 9-11 Alexandria, MN: Alexandria Blizzard 2017 Hockey Fest, Boys HS; Contact Matt Johnson at matt@ alexandriablizzard.com or visit www.alexhockeyfest.com 10-12 Twin Cities, MN: Girls Shock Doctor Shootout, Girls AAA U10-U19; Call (952) 920-8826 or visit www.unitedaaahockey.com 15-18 Blaine, MN: International Hockey Cup. Boys’ AAA, 02-08/16U/18U, Contact Spencer Arvold at (763) 7173234 or sarvold@superrink.org or visit www.superrink.org 15-18 Rapid City, SD: Rushmore Cup, Major PeeWee, Minor Bantam, Major Bantam (Boys 12U, 14U); Contact dave@northlandhockeygroup.com or visit www.northlandhockeygroup.com.com 23-25 Blaine, MN: NHG Cup, AAA Boys Open 2009/ 08, 2007, 2006, 2005, 2004, 2003, 2002, 2001; Contact randy@northlandhockeygroup.com or visit www.aaatournaments.com 23-25 Maple Grove, MN: NHG Cup, AAA Girls Open 10U, 12U, 14U, 16U, 2001; Contact randy@ northlandhockeygroup.com or visit aaatournaments.com 23-25 Sioux Falls, SD: Wings & Sauce Toss, 2003-2007; Contact Arianne Zieske (605) 359-4059 or Arianne@legendhockey.com. Register at www.legendsi.com

AUGUST 2017 3-6 Blaine, MN: International Hockey Cup, Girls AAA Tier 1 & 2, U8, U10, U12, U14, U16, U19; Contact Kristi King (763) 785-5649 or kking@superrink.org or visit www.superrink.org 3-6 Twin Cities, MN: 3rd State of Hockey Showdown AAA Tournament, Boys Invite and Open 2008-2002; Contact Eric Knutsen (952) 920-8826 or eric.knutsen@showcasehockey.com or visit www.showcasehockey.com.com 4-6 Alexandria, MN: Alexandria Blizzard 2017 Hockey Fest, Boys 2002; Contact Matt Johnson at matt@alexandriablizzard.com or visit www.alexhockeyfest.com 4-6 Sioux Falls, SD: Combat Cup, Boys Open 2009/ 08, 2007, 2006, 2005; Contact Randy Peake (763) 744-8610 or randy@northlandhockeygroup.com or visit www.aaatournaments.com 11-13 Blaine, MN: Double Bender, Mens B, C, C2, D; Contact Brandon Koontz (763) 717-3210 or bkoontz@superrink.org or visit www.superrink.org 11-13 Eden Prairie/Chaska, MN: Breakaway Bash, 2003 through 2009 and U12 & U10; Contact Tara (952) 2216459 or tournaments@breakawayhockey.net or visit www.breakawayhockey.net 11-13 Twin Cities, MN: Combat Cup, Boys Open 2009/ 08, 2007, 2006, 2005, 2004, 2003, 2002, 2001; Contact Randy Peake (763) 744-8610 or randy@northlandhockeygroup.com or visit www.aaatournaments.com 11-13 Twin Cities, MN: Combat Cup, Girls Open 10U, 12U, 14U, 16U; Contact Randy Peake (763) 744-8610 or randy@northlandhockeygroup.com or visit www.aaatournaments.com th 17-20 Twin Cities, MN: 14 Easton Cup AAA Tournament, Boys Invite and Open 2008-2002, Girls AAA 10U, 12U, 14U, 16U, 19U; Contact Eric Knutsen (952) 920-8826 or eric.knutsen@showcasehockey.com or visit www.showcasehockey.com.com 18-20 Sioux Falls, SD: Combat Cup, Boys Open 2004, 2003, 2002, 2001; Contact Randy Peake (763) 744-8610 or randy@northlandhockeygroup.com or visit www.aaatournaments.com 24-27 Twin Cities, MN: MN Summer Finale AAA Hockey Classic, Boys Invitational and Open 18U, 16U, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, Girls AAA 19U, 16U, 14U, 12U, 10U, 8U; Contact Bob Capra (952) 9208826 or rwcapra@msn.com 25-27 Twin Cities, MN: Summer Round Up Tournament, Boys 2002-2009, U16, U18. Girls U10-U16; Contact dan@midwesthockey.net or (763) 225-7320

SEPTEMBER 2017 29-1 Blaine, MN: Red Solo Hockey Cup’ Men’s and Women’s, Men’s B, C, C2, D, Women’s B1, B2, B3, C1, C2, C3; Contact Brandon Koontz (763) 717-3210 or bkoontz@superrink.org or visit www.superrink.org

JULY 2017 7-9 Alexandria, MN: Alexandria Blizzard 2017 Hockey Fest, Boys 2004; Contact Matt Johnson at matt@ alexandriablizzard.com or visit www.alexhockeyfest.com 7-9 Blaine, MN: Double Bender Men’s Adult, Men’s B, C, C2, D; Contact Brandon Koontz (763) 717-3210 or bkoontz@superrink.org or visit www.superrink.org 14-16 Alexandria, MN: Alexandria Blizzard 2017 Hockey Fest, Girls HS. Contact Matt Johnson at matt@ alexandriablizzard.com or visit www.alexhockeyfest.com 15-16 Blaine, MN: Patriot Cup 3v3, Cross ice 3 v 3 games, Mites 5&6, Mites 7&8, Squirt A & B, PeeWee A & B, Girls 8U/10U/12U; Contact Spencer Arvold (763) 717-3234 or sarvold@superrink.org or visit www.superrink.org 21-23 Alexandria, MN: Alexandria Blizzard 2017 Hockey Fest, Boys HS; Contact Matt Johnson at matt@ alexandriablizzard.com or visit www.alexhockeyfest.com 21-23 Duluth, MN: Northern Exposure AAA Hockey Tournament, 2000/01, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008; Contact Kasey Yoder (651) 432-1840 or kaseyyoder@ gmail.com or visit www.northernexposureaaahockey.com 21-23 Lacrosse, WI: Chill Classic @ Green Island Ice Arena, U16 (00, 01, 02). U18 (98, 99, 00); Contact Shelly LaPlount at slaplount@crchill.com or register at crchill.com, under Jr. Chill AAA click on the Chill Classic Tab 22-23 Blaine, MN: Patriot Cup STP Festival, Boys and Girls Tier 1 (varsity) and Tier 2 (JV, Bantam, U15); Contact Kristi King for girls (763) 785-5649 or kking@superrink.org or for boys contact Rob Loftus (763) 717-3895 or rloftus@superrink.org or visit www.suerrink.org 23-25 Sioux Falls, SD: Legend Cup, 2003-2007; Contact Arianne Zieske (605) 359-4059 or Arianne@legendhockey.com. Register at www.legendsi.com 28-30 Alexandria, MN: Alexandria Blizzard 2017 Hockey Fest, Boys 2003; Contact Matt Johnson at matt@ alexandriablizzard.com or visit www.alexhockeyfest.com

NOVEMBER 2017 17-19 Blaine, MN: All-American Girls, Youth Girls 10UA, 10UB, 12UA, 12UB, 15U; Contact Kristi King (763) 785-5649 or kking@superrink.org or visit www.superrink.org Note: To list your tournament in this calendar, simply contact Let’s Play Hockey at (320) 333-3279. No portion of the tournament calendar may be copied, reproduced, or transmitted without written permission from Let’s Play Hockey and its publisher. Tournament entrants from outside Minnesota, North Dakota, and South Dakota, be informed that Minnesota, North Dakota, and South Dakota Squirt, Peewee, and Bantam youth teams will likely have some players up to six months older than the USA Hockey age guidelines for those classifications. Minnesota, North Dakota, and South Dakota are using a July 1 age cut-off date while USA Hockey is using a January 1 age cut-off date. If you are concerned about this issue, you should contact the tournament director immediately to determine whether or not you should register for the tournament.

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March 30, 2017

Minneapolis 15U B upsets OMG to take third in state

Front: Senia Golisek. First row (l-r): Molly Taylor, Anna Omdahl, Grace Conroy, Zarah O’Brien, Margo Laux, Payton Sundberg, Lillian Selberg. Second row (l-r): Coach Haley Estes, Coach Erick Kyllonen, Lilah Kyllonen, Moira Daley, Lily Andersen, Meghan Wendorf, Ellie Wells, Coach Steve Wendorf, Coach Bill Conroy.

The Minneapolis Storm 15U B team defeated Osseo/Maple Grove 3-2 in a thrilling game on Sunday, March 19 to take home the third-place trophy at the Minnesota Hockey State Tournament. The Storm began the tourney against No. 2 seed Armstrong/Cooper and jumped to an early lead three minutes in with a squeaker between the post and the goalie. The Storm extended the lead early in the second period with some excellent passing and a top shelf shot over the glove side. Armstrong got one back a few minutes later, cutting the lead to a single goal. However, a power play late in the second gave Minneapolis another two-goal cushion. With under two minutes remaining, Armstrong pulled their goalie, but the Storm controlled play and scored on the empty net to seal the victory 4-1. The excellent team play would continue through the weekend. In game two, Minneapolis faced powerhouse (and eventual champ) Anoka-Rogers. After much back and forth, Anoka scored halfway through the first period on a lucky dribbler thru the knees. The second period went scoreless as both teams played a fast, controlled game. The Storm started the third period in a fury and tied it up within three minutes on a slick defensive steal in the AR zone. Unfortunately, the celebration was short lived as AR scored twice in rapid succession almost immediately afterwards. Despite an extra skater in the waning minutes, AR’s defense proved too tough, defeating Minneapolis 3-1. In the third-place game, Minneapolis faced Osseo/Maple Grove after they were upset by Rochester in the second round. This was the fourth meeting this season and the Storm were hungry for a victory. A tight back-and-forth affair, OMG scored first on a power play halfway through the first period.

However, Minneapolis came out fired up in the second period, scoring within the first two minutes. Despite having half the number of skaters, the Storm held OMG in check, killing two more penalties with outstanding performances from the defense and goalie Senia Golisek, who also stopped multiple breakaways. With the game tied to start the third, Minneapolis was relentless in their pressure, outshooting OMG 12-5 and getting the goahead on their second power play of the game. With under two minutes remaining and the faceoff in the Minneapolis zone, OMG pulled their goalie. The Storm won the draw and powered through the OMG defense to get the empty net. This would prove crucial as OMG scored with one minute remaining. Minneapolis won the final draw and controlled play, keeping OMG from pulling their goalie again to win the third-place trophy. Coach Wendorf summed up the season as follows: “In both our wins (at State), we had two girls skate up the ice with a tantalizing empty net to seal the victory. As both approached the red line, they could have muscled their way through traffic to get a shot off and no one would have noticed. Both times, without hesitation, they dished to a teammate instead who scored. That was our entire season right there. That was our TEAM.”

March 30, 2017

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Prior Lake Junior Gold 16U takes Osseo/Maple Grove Bantam AA third at state tournament finishes second at State

Team members members: #1 Ethan Haglund, #2 Jeremy Johnson, #3 Zachary Garrison, #4 Kyle Peterson, #5 Grant Meagher, #6 Will Condon, #7 Peter Aufmuth, #8 Ignat Bakay, #9 Riley Rose, #10 Noah Johnson, #11 Jackson LeJeune, #12 John Leffler, #13 Nick Weatherford, #14 Jack Fitterer, #15 Max Christopherson, #16 Corey McNally, #17 Corey Johnson, #18 Davis Peterson, #19 Riley Bachinski, #20 JJ Benson, #21 Kyle Haeg, #31 Brandon Lucas. Student Coach: Luke Beaty. Assistant coaches: Darrell Peterson, Brendan Rose. Head Coach: Troy Christopherson.

Congratulations to the Prior Lake Savage Hockey Association Junior Gold 16U team for their third-place finish at State which is not an easy feat when over half the team was just returning from spring break. This is only the second year the PLSHA has had a Junior Gold 16U team. The philosophy of the program is to keep players playing. Have fun, yet be held accountable while doing so. We all know, for many young kids growing up in Minnesota, hockey is a way of life and when they strap on their skates for the first time, that quickly leads to dreams of playing at the varsity level. With limited spots on a varsity team, often that dream is cut short. That is where Junior Gold comes in.

Junior Gold hockey was created nearly 30 years ago and has grown into a league of 80-plus teams – all full of players who are bound by their love for the game. The decision to stick with it or walk away isn’t easy. Players that play Junior Gold will tell you it’s the camaraderie with their teammates, the smiles, life lessons and realization that when you don’t make the high school team that hockey isn’t over. The PLSHA Junior Gold 16U team finished the regular season ranked No. 2 with a season record of 20-2-2, and overall record of 36-6-2. Prior Lake finished second in the Wayzata JGB tourney, third in the Hudson 16U tourney and tournament champions in the JGB tourney.

White Bear Lake Junior Gold A earns state consolation title

Fir ow (l-r): Dustin Goeltl (#9), Isaiah Hedberg (#17), Orion Knutson (#35), Ben Belisle (#30), Dylan Olson Firsst rrow (#20). Second row (l-r): Luke Krueger (#12), Jack Rapheal (#15), Alex DeLaRosa (#5), Ike Anderson (#7), Joe Sarne (#10), Will Moris (#2), Casey Reif (#18), Michael Kruse (#11), Andrew Foss (#3), Coach Terry “Harley” Greene. Third row (l-r): Coach Sean FitzPatrick, Coach Dan Schwartz, TJ Gerard (#22), Sam Yobbie (#24), Denton Anderson (#16).

Congratulations to the White Bear Lake (WBL) Junior Gold A (JGA) team on winning the Minnesota Hockey JGA State Tournament consolation championship. Bouncing back from an initial defeat on Friday by the reigning State Champion Minnetonka Warriors, the WBL Bears defeated No. 6 seed Lakeville by a score of 4-2 on Saturday. WBL’s Casey Reif (unassisted) initiated scoring 28 seconds into the game. Building on that momentum, the Bears added two additional first period goals from both Dustin Goeltl (A – Denton Anderson) and Isaiah Hedberg (A - D. Anderson, A – Ike Anderson). Lakeville benefited from efforts by Hunter Nelson and Brennen Fink to net a pair of third period goals, but the Bears ulti-

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mately solidified the lead with a final goal from WBL’s Sam Yobbie (A – D. Anderson). In Sunday’s Consolation match-up against No. 5 seed Stillwater, the Bears again jumped to an early lead, this time with scoring from TJ Gerard (A – Hedberg). WBL increased their lead with scoring from Reif (unassisted), Michael Kruse (A – Dylan Olson, A – Goeltl) and I. Anderson (unassisted). Stillwater’s two goals in the second and third periods from Ryan Berg and Ben Borman, respectively, were unable to spark their team to overcome the Bears lead. En route to the consolation title, the Bears were led in net by Orion Knutson and Ben Belisle, respectively.

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The Osseo/Maple Grove Bantam AA team showed great resiliency as they fought their way to a second-place finish at State. Their journey wasn’t easy. The team scratched and clawed through a decidedly strong region, defeating South St. Paul, Andover (OT) and finally Minnetonka to claim their ticket to State. There, the games and competition were equally as exciting. The Leafbirds battled Cloquet through quadruple overtime to advance to semis. They then went on to claim a single overtime victory over favored

Stillwater to advance to the championship game, where they fell to White Bear Lake 52. In addition to the priceless memories, highlights of the weekend included the opportunity to play in the new Red Baron Arena in Marshall, Minn. With its state-of-the-art HD video scoreboard, spectators and fans were treated to instant replays and period highlights. In addition, all games were live streamed and commentated for at-home viewing.

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Let’s Play Hockey

March 30, 2017

Lessons from a 12-year-old lefty By Chris Gernentz Sunday, March 19, 2017. My son wanted some good-ol’ bonding time, so we went to watch hockey. I know, imagine that! We arrived at the Minnesota Hockey PeeWee B1 State Tournament championship game between Moorhead Black and Edina. The game was 1-0 Edina after two. Tight game, this should be fun to watch. As the third period started, Edina scored quickly, then again, then again and before you knew it, the game was in Edina’s hands. Nothing new, as Edina tends to do this to a lot of teams, but I had to wonder, how did the game go two periods with one goal, then all of a sudden it was 4-0? Enter 12-year-old, Oliver Judd, the 4-foottall, left-handed netminder for the Moorhead Spuds. As a retired goalie myself, a son who was a goalie, and now as a goalie coach, I tend to notice, evaluate and more than likely perseverate on one position – the goalie! I first noticed Oliver wasn’t very tall, and then noticed he was a leftie. These two things generally are knocks against a goalie at any age. Well, maybe not the leftie part. At this point in the game, goalies usually start to crumble, let alone during the state title game. But I soon found out why the game was only 1-0 after two – it was Oliver! His play was beyond his years, his movement was fluid, athletic and attacking, something I love to see and always teach. Not only does this style of play lend itself to keeping a goalie mentally in the game, but it also tends to be far more exciting to watch. C’mon, who likes boring? This day, Oliver stopped 29 of 34 shots, faced constant pressure and numerous grade-A scoring chances, almost an onslaught as they call it. But there was something Oliver did that you can’t teach, coach or mentor. You hear coaches talk all the time about the one single thing great athletes possess. Sure, grit, size, intelligence and skill all play into it, but the one thing we cannot teach, and frankly is now missing from most sports is – PMA! Wait, PMA, what the…? Positive Mental Attitude – it’s that “it” factor that stands out to coaches, scouts and fellow players. Many try to maintain it, but it is very difficult to do so. PMA is keeping your head in tough situations, calm nerves during adversity and most of all, the recognition of those around you. With enough selfishness to sink the Titanic on the ice, field or courts these days, it’s very nice to see today, even if it’s rare. The greats all have PMA. Think of any of them. Do you see them slam their sticks in frustration? Do you see them yelling at fellow players? Do you see them turn away from a coach, coaching? NO. These players recognize the game is not about them and that it takes all of those on a team to be successful! So what was it that Oliver did that caught my eye? I had already noticed him patting his overly tired players on the butt after long exhausting stints in his zone. He would make a point to thank a kid who helped him rid loose pucks. He even thanked the ref! He was tired, but he was still having fun, he was working his ass off and making memories with his friends. Part of me wondered if he was doing it more for them and his fans than for himself. You could tell he wanted to win, you could tell losing was not in his DNA, and on this day, he had to swallow a bitter pill, but he was doing it by leaving everything on the ice! It was what Oliver did after the game that really caught my attention; actually my son noticed it first. As Edina closed out a 5-1 win, the celebration was on, hog pile and all. But as I turned my attention to center ice, there was Oliver, not hanging his head, not in tears, not banging his stick on

Moorhead PeeWee B1 Black was backstopped by goaltender Oliver Judd (center).

anything he could find. Instead, Oliver was at center ice tapping his stick on the ice congratulating Edina on a win, a win that was never really in question as the third period unfolded. For all intents and purposes, Oliver should have been crying, after all, he did everything he could and he just lost the PeeWee B1 state title game. Nope, his PMA kicked in and he did what we as parents, coaches and scouts all wish to see – respect

for those around you! His PMA was even rubbing off on his teammates as they joined in a celebratory stick tap for the Edina Hornets. It was probably the most amazing thing I saw all season, and I watch a lot of hockey from the youth to the high school levels. There’s one more thing Oliver did that made me want to adopt him. Once the celebration was over, the teams aligned themselves on the blue lines for the awards

ceremony. Many kids had dropped their sticks, gloves and helmets between the blue and red line on the Moorhead side. Well, Oliver decided that was not classy, so he picked up those helmets, sticks and gloves and moved them behind the blue line so to keep them from being in anyone’s way. Seriously? Did I just see this? It was not surprising that when his name was called, he got a hero’s cheer! After the game, I decided I needed to let Oliver know what he is doing is rare. So as he skated off the ice, final pictures were done and season over, I walked up to him and introduced myself. He initially had the look of “Stranger Danger,” but I told him that I would take him any day on my team and that I don’t remember the last time I saw a goalie with such a great attitude. “Keep it up, Oliver,” I said. He looked at me, with a bit of a tear (he is human!) and said, Thank you. Not thanks … thank you – it means so much more when said correctly! I Googled Oliver after the game. Apparently, I need to see this kid play more. He is consistently on the Youth Hockey Hub Shutout board, was up for Player of the Year last season, has tweeted videos of amazing saves and more importantly, has a bright future in the net. Remember little Oliver Judd the Dynamo Spud! Thank you, Oliver, for indulging me in the greatness of the game!

March 30, 2017

Let’s Play Hockey

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NCDC continued from page 14 clearer mission statements. The 2017-18 Premier and Elite Divisions will welcome well-established junior programs, the Northern Cyclones, Boston Bandits, Connecticut Nighthawks, New Jersey Rockets, Hartford Jr. Wolfpack and New Hampshire Jr. Monarchs. The league’s midget programs will expand their competitive schedule through the formation of a new league affiliate member system. One thing that will not change in the USPHL’s fifth season – there will be fast, physical hockey by players determined to become the best players they can be prior to reaching their college destinations. Some will enter the USPHL as Division I prospects, others will commit to Division I schools while playing in the USPHL. Hundreds will commit, as they are already, to NCAA Division II and III, and ACHA schools, where they will receive outstanding educations at some of the nation’s best colleges, while continuing to create memories to last a lifetime on and off the ice with new teammates. The National Collegiate Development Conference This new tuition-free division of the USPHL will be geared toward players who are already committed to NCAA Division I teams, or those who can achieve NCAA Division I commitments. The NCDC will be a division of 11 teams, some being longtime USPHL members and others migrating from another junior league. These 11 teams are in five states, ranging from southern New Hampshire to its western boundary of Rochester, N.Y. With two league members, New Jersey marks the southern frontier of the league. With all of its leagues and divisions concentrated in a small geographic footprint, the USPHL minimizes travel time to away games and causes minimal disruption to players’ schooling and training. The extra time spent at home allows for better rest and recovery after games, and more time to devote to school, family and life outside the rink.

How to get there: Existing Players Players currently playing for an organization that will be part of the National Collegiate Development Conference can – for lack of a better term – remain where they are. Players in these organizations are already considered as members of that organization as “organizational assets.” In other words, if a player skated this year for the New Jersey Hitmen’s 16U team, or the P.A.L. Islanders’ Elite team, they are automatically protected by the parent NCDC club, and they do not need to be drafted or tendered. Futures Draft The first big moment for the NCDC, in addition to the formal announcement of its creation in December, was its Futures Draft on Jan. 31. Over six rounds, each of the 11 members selected players born in 2001 and 2002 for those seasons beyond 2018, giving each team future prospects that no other NCDC team can sign to a tender over the next year. These are not under-the-radar players the USPHL is drafting, either. The NCDC is looking to be one of the top junior leagues, talent-wise, in the United States in 2017-18 and well into the future, as judging by the talent selected in the Futures Draft. Anthony Cipollone, a draft pick of the New Jersey Hitmen, is an ’02 already committed to the University of Vermont for 2020-21. The Northern Cyclones selected Braden Doyle, an ’01 committed to the Boston University Terriers for 2020-21. Tender signings The NCDC allows its teams to sign players to tenders. These tenders also protect players, disallowing other NCDC teams to sign them before a team’s 2017-18 tryouts. Some tenders already have their NCAA Division I plans in place, giving immediate legitimacy to the NCDC and its mission. Jay Cote, a future teammate of Cipollone as a fellow UVM commit, was an early tender signing for the Islanders Hockey Club. Since the start of the new year, the NCDC teams have been extremely busy signing the top talent that they began recruiting even months before the NCDC was announced. “We’re probably going to recruit through

Stillwater Junior Gold 16U finishes second at State

tenders, camps, and recruit about 15 guys from the team we have this year,” said the Hitmen’s Toby Harris. “I talked to a midget [team] operator, and he said that many of the junior teams in his area ‘get comfortable and feel complacent,’ and he told me the fact that we’re doing this will raise the level of junior hockey across the U.S., because the other tuition-free leagues must do more.” Tr youts and Draf Draftt As of Feb. 23, seven NCDC teams had announced their tryouts for their National Collegiate Development Conference teams. Players can go to Pre-Draft tryouts, and work towards a selection by a NCDC team in the USPHL Draft, set for May. Pre-Draft tryouts are spread out from mid-March to late April and players can – if they so choose – attend multiple tryouts to try and increase their chances of a draft selection. Players selected in the NCDC Draft will then be able to attend the Main Camps of the teams that drafted them, in hopes of landing a roster spot for 2017-18. All tryout dates for the USPHL’s NCDC and other divisions can be found online at www.usphl.com/tryouts. USPHL Premier and Elite Divisions The 2017-18 USPHL Premier Division will be geared towards players who are collegebound hockey players, both athletically and academically, within the next two years. This will also serve as the top league in which players can develop into NCDC players. The Elite Division in 2017-18 will be geared towards players who are either college-bound, both athletically and academically, or who will be developing into Premier and NCDC Division players in the future. The final alignment for the 2017-18 season has not yet been determined for either division. The Premier Division will, however, have a footprint stretching from the Upper Midwest to the Southeastern, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern U.S. states. As was true for the USPHL in its 2016-17 season, this footprint (and the footprint of the USPHL Premier especially) will closely mirror the footprint of NCAA men’s hockey. The USPHL has the advantage of operating its teams within a short drive of NCAA colleges to bolster the recruitment of its play-

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Back row (l-r): Ryan Gipson, Sam Johnson, Max Riemenschneider, Head Coach Jay Adams, Ian Stratmoen, Henry Mapstone, Jack Whitcomb, Assistant Coach Eric Wedel, Nolan Larson, Rayce Johnson, Assistant Coach Glen Johnson. Front row (l-r): Mason Michalski, Jake Caywood, Charlie Whitehead, Frank Madsen, Logan Jordan, Ben Carle, Derrick Quaderer, Parker McNamara, Tom Buckrey.

The Stillwater Junior Gold 16U hockey team completed a very successful season by claiming second place in the State tournament held March 17-19 at Braemar Arena in Edina. The Ponies compiled a 193-2 regular season record, good for third place in the end-of-season 16U standings, on their way to compiling an overall record of 35-7-2. Their achievements included win-

ning the 40th annual John E. Reimann Tournament in Edina and the Hudson 16U Raider Cup. At State, the Ponies defeated Eden Prairie in the quarterfinals and Prior Lake in the semifinals before falling in the championship game. The team was coached by Jay Adams, Glen Johnson and Eric Wedel. Team Manager was Tracy Riemenschneider.

ers, and that will never change. Affiliate Program Even if you’re not drafted into a NCDC team, there is still hope that you will see NCDC action, as early as the inaugural 2017-18 season. Each National Collegiate Development Conference program has signed affiliate agreements with three teams in the USPHL Premier and Elite Divisions for the coming season. Each NCDC team and its affiliates can work together in many ways: each USPHL Premier team will have the right to send a minimum three of its players to its NCDC affiliate for camps and games during the season; coordination of scouting and tryout camps in addition to year-round player procurement communication; tryout and player movement agreements are in place at the league level to benefit each NCDC team and its affiliates. The Premier and Elite Division teams will feature open tryouts. A coach, scout or other hockey operations’ personnel from each team’s NCDC affiliate will be present at these practices, allowing for Premier and Elite teams to be immediately scouted for the tuition-free top level. The Path to College Hockey The USPHL has constructed this new framework to create one path to college hockey. This could mean you’re headed for the University of North Dakota (NCAA Division I) or the University of Oklahoma (ACHA Division 1). College hockey comes in many different levels and in many different places. But the USPHL – from the NCDC to the Premier to the Elite – has the coaching, developmental resources and high-end competition to send you where you can play the game you love and get a great education. Need more information? The USPHL can always be found at its online home, USPHL.com, which has news, features, stats, etc., for all of its Divisions. On Facebook, “Like” the United States Premier Hockey League. The USPHL is on Twitter: @USPHL.

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March 30, 2017

Let’s Play Hockey

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March 30, 2017

Let’s Play Hockey Rankings

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key.com. outh hoc key rank er? Send an e-mail tto o edit or@le tspla yhoc Want tto o be a yyouth ranker? editor@le or@letspla tsplayhoc yhock hock

HS BOYS AA FINAL 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20

GRAND RAPIDS Moorhead Eden Prairie Holy Family Catholic Lakeville South St. Thomas Academy Maple Grove Hill-Murray Stillwater Area Centennial Edina Elk River/Zimmerman Lakeville North Duluth East Minnetonka Prior Lake White Bear Lake Roseau St. Michael-Albertville Wayzata

HS BOYS A FINAL 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20

BANT AM AA BANTAM FINAL 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20

WHITE BEAR LAKE Osseo/Maple Grove Stillwater Blaine Moorhead Lakeville South Cloquet Eden Prairie Minnetonka Andover St. Cloud Edina Centennial South St. Paul Wayzata Minneapolis Eastview Elk River Rosemount Rochester

MINNETONKA BLUE Stillwater Prior Lake/Savage Lakeville Eden Prairie Minnetonka Black Elk River Blaine Centennial Black St. Thomas Academy

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20

BANT AM A BANTAM FINAL 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20

JUNIOR GOLD 16U FINAL 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

HERMANTOWN Monticello/A/ML Delano Breck St. Cloud Cathedral Northfield Mahtomedi East Grand Forks St. Paul Academy Alexandria Greenway Hibbing/Chisholm Sartell-St. Stephen St. Paul Johnson Totino-Grace Minneapolis Minnehaha Academy Orono Blake Luverne

HS GIRLS AA FINAL

EDINA Orono Greenway MAML Alexandria Osseo/Maple Grove Chaska/Chanhassen Park Cottage Grove Duluth East Eveleth-Gilbert East Grand Forks Owatonna Albert Lea Minnetonka Northfield Roseville JCNSP Coon Rapids St. Paul Capitals River Lakes

EDINA Osseo/Maple Grove White Bear Lake Blaine

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20

BANT AM B1 BANTAM FINAL 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20

GIRLS 19U FINAL 1 3 2 4

EDINA Blaine Eden Prairie Hill-Murray Maple Grove Minnetonka Cretin-Derham Hall Elk River/Zimmerman Centennial Farmington Forest Lake Chaska/Chanhassen Eastview Roseau White Bear Lake Lakeville South Brainerd/Little Falls Mounds View Grand Rapids/Greenway Hopkins/Park

EDINA GREEN Edina White Orono Elk River Minnetonka St. Cloud Red Buffalo Lake of the Woods St. Peter/Le Sueur Eagan Moorhead Black Morris/Benson Grand Rapids Bemidji Brainerd Mahtomedi Sauk Rapids Forest Lake Litchfield/D-C Eveleth-Gilbert/ME Gold

ANDOVER Osseo/Maple Grove Edina Green Minnetonka Black Rochester Wayzata Blue Proctor/Hermantown Blaine Grand Rapids Eden Prairie

JUNIOR GOLD A FINAL

BLAKE Breck St. Paul United Warroad Delano/Rockford Proctor/Hermantown Northfield Alexandria Mound Westonka East Grand Forks Red Wing Princeton Hibbing/Chisholm Thief River Falls New Prague Moose Lake Area Hutchinson Fergus Falls South St. Paul Mahtomedi

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

MINNETONKA Edina Wayzata Blaine White Bear Lake Stillwater Lakeville St. Louis Park Centennial Eden Prairie

JUNIOR GOLD B FINAL 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

MOORHEAD Elk River Wayzata Blue Edgcumbe St. Thomas Academy Bloomington Jefferson Minnetonka Black Eastview Edina Green Orono

PEEWEE AA FINAL 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20

GIRLS 15U A FINAL 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

HS GIRLS A FINAL

CHASKA/CHANHASSEN Osseo/Maple Grove Wayzata Woodbury Edina Lakeville South Andover Stillwater Moorhead Hermantown Prior Lake/Savage Eastview Lakeville North Mahtomedi St. Cloud Champlin Park Eden Prairie Roseau Hastings Sibley

GIRLS 15U B FINAL 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

ANOKA/ROGERS Rochester Minneapolis OMGHA Black Armstrong/Cooper Litchfield/D-C Blaine/SLP Sartell Minnetonka Edina

NCAA D-III MEN FINAL 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

NCAA D-III WOMEN FINAL 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

PEEWEE A FINAL 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20

JCNSP Edina Mound Westonka Warroad Osseo/Maple Grove Sartell Litchfield/D-C Duluth Denfeld Dodge County Mounds View/Irondale Forest Lake Minnetonka Tartan Bloomington Jefferson Alexandria Spring Lake Park St. Paul Capitals Little Falls Inver Grove Heights Thief River Falls

EDINA Andover North Wright County Alexandria Anoka/Rogers Stillwater Osseo/Maple Grove Roseau Orono/Westonka Eastview

2018 Let’s Play Hockey EXPO March 9 & 10

PLATTSBURGH Adrian Gustavus Adolphus Norwich UW-River Falls Emira Middlebury St. Thomas Lake Forest UW-Eau Claire

PEEWEE B1 FINAL 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20

GIRLS 12U A FINAL 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

NORWICH Trinity St. Norbert Adrian UW-Stevens Point Hamilton Endicott Oswego Hobart Augsburg

EDINA GREEN Moorhead Black Edina White Red Lake Falls Elk River Grand Rapids St. Peter Stillwater Mounds View/Irondale Farmington Sartell Blue Waconia Woodbury Black OMGHA Black St. Cloud Red Crookston Chaska/Chanhassen STMA Gold Forest Lake Morris/Benson Silver

GIRLS 12U B FINAL 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

WAYZATA BLUE OMGHA Black Inver Grove Heights Luverne Cloquet Coon Rapids/CP Buffalo Litchfield/D-C Hibbing/Chisholm Edina Black

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