2019 State Class AA Boys Hockey Tournament Preview

         2019 STATE CLASS AA BOYS HOCKEY TOURNAMENT QUARTERFINAL SCHEDULE
          (GAMES PLAYED THURSDAY, MARCH 7 AT XCEL ENERGY CENTER, ST. PAUL)

11:00:  White Bear Lake vs. Blaine (Seed 2)
  1:00:   Lakeville South vs. Eden Prairie (Seed 3)
  6:00:  Moorhead vs. Edina (Seed 1)
  8:00:  Duluth East (Seed 5) vs. St. Thomas Academy (Seed 4)

                                  EXAMINING THE FIELD
Hey fans, get ready to pack the Xcel Energy Center's green seats as the Class AA quarterfinals begin with the White Bear Lake Bears head to state for the 19th time against the second seeded Blaine Bengals.who head down Highway 65 for their 12th trip to St. Paul.  The Bears earned their trip down White Bear Way with a 3-2 win in the Section 4AA final  against perennial power Hill-Murray.  White Bear Lake has not brought home a championship trophy in their 18 previous trips to state.  It won't be easy against the Bengals, who have not lost a game since they fell to the Eden Prairie Eagles 7-6 on December 22.

And speaking of Eden Prairie, the Eagles are the third seed and are in the tournament for the 11th time.  They clinched their trip to the X with a 2-1  win over the Holy Family Catholic Fire.  Hopefully Casey Mittelstadt will be watching on prep45.com because his brothers John and Luke are playing on the varsity.  They will go against the Lakeville South Cougars, who were the fourth seed in Section 1AA and beat the top seeded Hastings Raiders and their city rival, the second seeded Lakeville North Panthers.  It's the fourth trip to the X for the Cougars and 14th for a team from the growing metropolis of Lakeville.  Can they beat another top seeded team.

Now to the evening session as the Moorhead Spuds are back at the X for their 16th trip to state but they have never won a state title.  The Spuds have seven second place finishes and it gets even tougher going up against the top seeded and top ranked team in Class AA the Edina Hornets.  The Hornets played Moorhead during the regular season, downing the Spuds 6-5 on December 27.  Since the calendar changed to 2019, Edina has gone 15-1-1, including a come from behind win against the Minnetonka Skippers that lofted the Hornets to the top of the Class AA rankings. It's the 38th trip to state for a team from edina.  Can they add another trophy to their crowded trophy case?

Concluding the Class AA quarterfinals is the fifth seeded Duluth East Greyhounds, making their 24th trip down I-35 against the St. Thomas Academy Cadets, who head to the X for the 12th time.  It's a battle featuring two outstanding coaches, Mike Randolph of the Greyhounds and Tom and Greg Vannelli of the Cadets.  The Brothers Vannelli are wrapping up their coaching career looking to win a Class AA title but first they will likely face the Hornets if they win.  They lost to Edina 6-2 December 28.  Is a rematch in the works?

Outstanding high school hockey coming up in the state tournament's 75th year.