2020 STATE CLASS AA BOYS HOCKEY TOURNAMENT QUARTERFINAL PREVIEW
(Games played Thursday, March 5 at Xcel Energy Center, St. Paul)
11:00: Maple Grove vs. Blake (Seed 2)
1:00: Lakeville South vs. Eden Prairie (Seed 3)
6:00: St. Thomas Academy vs. Andover (Seed 1)
8:00: Hill-Murray (Seed 5) vs. Moorhead (Seed 4)
Examining the field: After a day of Class A quarterfinal action, it's the Class AA schools turn to play as the Xcel Energy Center's green seats are filled with fans watching a pretty balanced field. First up is the Maple Grove Crimson, one of two Northwest Suburban Conference teams in the field. The Crimson were the number two seed in Section 5 and beat the Blaine Bengals after losing two games to them during the regular season to advance to their third state tournament. The Blake Bears make their sixth trip to St. Paul and their first as a Class AA school after years of competing in Class A. Blake beat the Benilde-St. Margaret's Red Knights in the Section 6 final on a penalty shot. Can they advance to their first state title game after going 4-9 in their first five trips to state?
Rounding out the afternoon session are two teams who head to the X on six game winning streaks, the Lakeville South Cougars and the third seeded Eden Prairie Eagles. This is not a rerun, the two teams played each other in the same bracket last year with the Eagles winning 3-2 in triple overtime. Not only has Lakeville South won six straight games, they won 11 of their last 12. The Eagles were the number two seed in Section 2 as head coach Lee Smith guided his 12th team to the state tournament. Is another marathon game possible?
Heading to the evening session and to quote a Ralph Kramden line from the classic sitcom The Honeymooners "Whoa, what a surprise!" The surprise team is the St. Thomas Academy Cadets, who were the fifth seed in the Section 3 tournament and defeated the top seeded Rosemount Irish They have not lost a game since January 30 when they were beaten by the Hill-Murray Pioneers 3-2. Now it gets even tougher for the Mendota Hieights based school as they battle the top seeded Andover Huskies. Two weeks ago, the girls hockey team won the Class AA state title by ending the Edina Hornets three year title run. Now it's the guys turn to try to bring another trophy to the growing Anoka County metropolis. Can they do it? Get a spot in the trophy case ready custodians.
A pair of perennial powers wrap up the day's quarterfinal festivities as the fifth seeded Hill-Murray Pioneers face the fourth seeded Moorhead Spuds. The Pioneers, under the veteran leadership of Bill Lechner are in their 30th state tournament and are looking for their first Class AA title since 2008. The Spuds have made their 17th trip to St. Paul but they have never brought a championship trophy up I-94 to the Fargo-Moorhead area. It's a rematch of the February 15th game where the Pioneers beat the Spuds 4-3. Who will come out on top?
That's the state tournament preview. Get ready for four days of exciting Minnesota high school hockey.
No comments:
Post a Comment