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High School Hockey | 2012-13 All-Area co-Players of the Year

Posted by: Feldman

The 2012-13 All-Area Boys Hockey Team is posted in the blog post directly below this one. If you can't scroll down to it, here's a link.

Now, the story on the 2012-13 All-Area co-Players of the Year:

• • • • •

Alex Funk and Jason Samuelson came to the Rochester Lourdes hockey team four years ago with big expectations.

They lived up to those right away.

The talented forwards combined for 57 points as freshmen and they only got better and better as their high school careers went on.

They wrapped up their Lourdes careers eight days ago, playing in their fourth Class A state tournament, where the Eagles placed sixth.

Funk and Samuelson nearly matched one another point-for-point throughout their careers and their senior seasons were no different. Funk finished with 82 points this season, while Samuelson had 81. They leave Lourdes as the top two scorers in program history — Samuelson with 226 points, Funk with 222.

They also leave as the 2013 Faceoff Blog All-Area co-Players of the Year.

"I wish they could have ended in a tie," Lourdes coach Josh Spaniol said of the duo's career point totals. "They're pretty special kids. They've been a part of our program for so long. They put themselves on the map in the state and helped our program get back to higher levels.
"Without those two, our program wouldn't be where it is."

Samuelson and Funk blew away the previous career points records at Lourdes. Sean Corfits held the record previously, with 172 career points, since his gradation in 1992. Samuelson passed him in early January and Funk followed soon after. They then continued to pull away and put up numbers that will be difficult to match.

To put their success into perspective: Corfits finished his entire varsity career with 172 points. Funk had 152 points and Samuelson had 151 total in their junior and senior seasons.

Funk finished his career with 114 goals and 108 assists. He will likely play in the North American Hockey League next season, but will also have a chance to attend some United States Hockey League camps this summer.

"He just works hard, he never backs down," Lourdes coach Josh Spaniol said of Funk. "He got hammered a couple of times against East Grand Forks (in a state tournament quarterfinal), but he didn't shy away. He's not afraid to take a hit or give a hit. That makes him such a competitive player.

Samuelson finished his high school career with exactly 100 goals and 126 assists. He'll play baseball at the University of Iowa, beginning next season.

"He's just a great kid on and off the ice," Spaniol said. "He'll be a great leader wherever he goes."

Both players will leave big holes to fill when practice starts in about eight months.

"We're just thankful to have had them in the program," Spaniol said. "We're lucky they chose to come to school at Lourdes, a great academic school. They'll be well-prepared for college. I'm thankful we were able to coach them for four years — they're very coachable kids. They got out of it exactly what they put into it."

FACEOFF BLOG ALL-AREA PLAYER OF THE YEAR
2013 — Alex Funk and Jason Samuelson (Sr., F, Rochester Lourdes)
2012 — Alex Funk, Jr., F, Rochester Lourdes
2011 — Rory Vesel, Sr., D, Rochester Lourdes
2010 — No POY (the inaugural All-Area Team didn't include a POY)

High School Hockey | 2012-13 All-Area Team

Here we go with the fourth annual Faceoff Blog All-Area Team. I'll lay out the selection process once again: We have seven teams in our coverage area (Century, JM, Lourdes, Mayo, Austin, Dodge County and Red Wing). We pick a Player of the Year, a First Team, Second Team and PUC (players under consideration -- our honorable mention). We don't try to make sure a player from every team is on one of the teams, we just put the guys who we feel have been the best players this season on the team.

The story on the Co-Players of the Year will be posted soon and will appear directly above this post in the blog.

So, that said, here we go with this year's All-Area Teams:

FIRST TEAM

F — Alex Funk, Sr., Lourdes (Co-Player of the Year; 46-36—82): The most complete forward in Rochester and arguably the most complete forward to come through Lourdes in the past five years, during its run of five straight state tournament appearances. Funk had eight hat tricks, 13 multi-point games. He had point streaks of 16 games and 11 games during his senior season. He'll play for sure in the NAHL next season, though he'll also get some looks at USHL camps this summer.

F — Jason Samuelson, Sr., Lourdes (Co-Player of the Year; 28-53—81): Samuelson, somewhat surprisingly, surpassed 50 assists this season. I say somewhat surprisingly because he has one of the heaviest and best shots in Section 1. He was one of the top scorers in the Upper Midwest Elite League last fall and carried over his strong play into the high school season. Samuelson will play baseball at the University of Iowa next season.

F — Nick Paulson, Sr., John Marshall (16-23—39): Paulson tied for fourth in scoring in the Big Nine Conference and led all of Rochester's Big Nine players in scoring. He did so on a team that missed three key players for nearly half of the season, making Paulson one of the only options for the Rockets offensively. He had at least one point in 21 of 25 regular-season games and had 12 multi-point games. Paulson had one hat trick, in a five-point game against Faribault on Jan. 15.

D — Will Holtan, Sr., Mayo (10-15—25): Holtan, who had seven multi-point games from the blue line for the Big Nine champs, was one of the best two-way defensemen in the conference. Holtan was a key to Mayo's power play, too, and he was skilled at getting shots from the blue line, through traffic to the net. He went scoreless in five of the first six games, but then put up 24 points in Mayo's final 21 games.

D — Karl Krecke, Sr., Lourdes (8-20—28): The four-year varsity regular and two-year captain was the leading scorer among all defensemen in Rochester this season. Krecke was a rare two-year captain for the Eagles and played in four state tournaments. He was at his best late in the season, too, when he posted nine points in six postseason games.

G — Case Hansen, Sr., Mayo (21-6-0, 2.06 goals-against average, .908 save pct.): Hansen played all but seven minutes in goal for the Big Nine Conference champion Spartans, leading them to a 21-win season. It's the first time Mayo reached 20 victories since the 1999-2000 season. Hansen recorded three shutouts and allowed just 56 goals in 27 games. He stopped 555 of 611 shots, an average of 20.5 saves per game.


SECOND TEAM

F — Ryan Martin, Sr., Mayo (19-18—37): Martin, an equally good scorer and passer, led the Big Nine champs in scoring.

F — Adam Alcott, Sr., Mayo (15-21—36): Alcott, playing on a line with Martin all season, had at least one point in 21 of Mayo's 27 games.

F — Dalton Travis, Sr., Century (10-10—20): Travis was the leading scorer for a Panthers team that relied upon its top line quite heavily for offense.

D — Griff Slightam, So., Lourdes (9-13—22): Slightam can not only produce on offense, he was the most physical defenseman on the ice in most of Lourdes' games.

D — Tommy Fjelsted, Jr., Mayo (9-18—27): Like Slightam, Fjelsted has a great mix of offensive ability and physical play.

G — Jacob Garvey, Sr., John Marshall (12-11-0, 2.72, .904): Garvey did what the Rockets needed him to do — he got increasingly better as the season progressed.


PUC (Players Under Consideration)
FORWARDS
Sam Broman, Jr., John Marshall (11-20—31)
Tanner Dufault, So., Dodge County (15-24—39)
Ethan Larson, Sr., Austin (15-20—35)
Alex Rezansoff, Sr., Red Wing (14-14—28)
Sam Robinson, Jr., Dodge County (19-12—31)
Marcus Stoulil, Sr., Austin (23-16—39)

DEFENSEMEN
Jared Bromberg, Jr., John Marshall (2-18—20)
Alec McGinn, Sr., John Marshall (3-13—16)
Riese Zmolek, So., D, Century (8-3—11)

GOALIES
Rainer Londino-Green, Sr., G, Austin (6-16-0, 3.63, .898)
Eric Rohleder, Sr., G, Century (7-19-0, 4.22, .881)

Class A state hockey | EGF 3, Lourdes 2. FINAL SCORE

Posted by: Feldman

Good evening from the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul. The scheduled 8 p.m. Class A state quarterfinal game between Lourdes and East Grand Forks looks more like an 8:45-8:50 start now. I'll have in-game updates on Twitter (@PBFeldy) and I'll post all of the scoring plays here as they happen. 

You'll also fine full line charts for both teams below. 

TV: Charter digital cable channel 386 or prep45.com in Rochester. 

FIRST PERIOD

1. EGF, Kolton Aubol 15 (Dixon Bowen 22) 8:51. Bowen springs Aubol on a 1-on-0 breakaway. Burkel makes the first save on Aubol's attempt, but the rebound bounces right back to Aubol who flips into the top of the goal.

2. EGF, Aubol 16 (Tommy Hajicek 24) 12:58. Aubol finishes a perfect 2-on-1 after Hajicek feeds him with a cross-crease pass. Burkel had no chance. 

Shots on goal: EGF 18, Lourdes 5.

SECOND PERIOD

3. EGF, Hajicek 21 (Taylor Brierley 15, Eddie Eades 19) 15:08 (dp, ea). With a delayed penalty coming against Lourdes, EGF gets the extra attacker on the ice. Brierley feeds Hajicek with a cross-ice pass and Hajicek rips a wrister past Burkel glove-side.

4. RL, Alex Funk 43 (Jason Samuelson 49) 6:10. After an EGF turnover in its own zone, Samuelson zips a pass to Funk in the right circle. Funk snaps a wrist shot high past Lindstrom to snap the shutout.

5. RL, Griff Slightam 9 (Samuelson 50, Funk 32). Slightam rips a hard wrist shot from the slot that Lindstrom was late on, pulling Lourdes within a goal.

Total shots on goal: EGF 33, Lourdes 12.

THIRD PERIOD

Total shots on goal: EGF 34, Lourdes 13.

* * * 

LINE CHARTS

LOURDES EAGLES (20-8-0)
FORWARDS
7 Jason Samuelson - 20 Alex Funk - 4 Ben Weir
10 Griffen Buck - 2 Montana Streit - 5 Cody Cossette
17 Kane Carstens - 15 Mason Carstens - 16 McKay Carstens
6 Lee Brandrup - 9 Tucker Chapman - 19 Luke Morrey
DEFENSEMEN
12 Karl Krecke - 21 Griff Slightam
11 Nathan Roth - 3 Dakota Streit
14 Lars Anderson - 18 Nick Roth
GOALIE
1 Jack Burkel
30 Andrew Ellingson 

EAST GRAND FORKS GREEN WAVE (22-3-3)
FORWARDS
14 Kolton Aubol - 17 Tommy Hajicek - 9 Dixon Bowen
18 Brandon Loven - 29 Grant Loven - 19 Tanner Tweten
21 Rayce Martin - 10 Nick Ranten - 7 Nick Korynta
4 Luke Bieto - 22 Dallas Dragich
DEFENSEMEN
6 Colton Poolman - 12 Tye Ausmus
16 Taylor Brierley - 27 Eddie Eades
26 Nathan Peabody - 15 Trevor Selk
28 Ryan Pecka
GOALIES
31 Tanner Lindstrom
30 Josh Weber
35 Garrett Lieberg 

Section 1A Final | Lourdes 6, Mankato West 1. FINAL SCORE

Posted by: Feldman

(NOTE: In order to see updates, you'll have to keep refreshing this page; it won't do it automatically, I don't believe.)

Welcome to the Rochester Rec Center for the Section 1A boys hockey championship game. Lots of storylines with this one.

I'll post goal summaries here and random notes during each period of tonight's game between No. 2 seed and No. 15-ranked Mankato West (22-5-0) and No. 1 seed and No. 7-ranked Rochester Lourdes (19-8-0). I'll also have updates on Twitter (@PBFeldy)

FIRST PERIOD

No scoring.

SECOND PERIOD

1. RL, Alex Funk 39 (Karl Krecke 15, Jason Samuelson 47) 5:38. Great pressure by Lourdes on a power play leads to Funk being left alone in the left circle. Rips a wrist shot short side. LOURDES 1, WEST 0

2. RL, Griff Slightam 8 (Funk 31) 7:24. Funk carries the puck around behind the net and feeds Slightam, who blasts one past Spiess. LOURDES 2, WEST 0

3. RL, Funk 40 (Samuelson 48, Krecke 16) 13:04. Samuelson lets a shot go from near the point, Funk with a great tip in front to re-direct it past Spiess.

THIRD PERIOD

4. RL, Funk 41 (unassisted) 1:03. Lourdes buzzes again on the opening shift of the period and Funk scores from close range to complete the hat trick.

5. RL, Funk 42 (Krecke 17) 9:02 (pp). Funk puts home a pass from Krecke for his fourth goal of the game, Krecke's third assist.

6. MW, Ryan Jutting 5 (Max Mettler 19) 11:07. Jutting puts West on the board on the first shot on goal against Andrew Ellingson, who replaced Jack Burkel with 6:42 to go.

7. RL, Luke Morrey 1 (Slightam 12) 12:10 (dp). With a delayed penalty coming against West, Lourdes gets the extra attacker on the ice and Morrey notches his first goal of the season. 

* * * 

STARTERS
WEST (22-5-0)
G 33 Jake Spiess (10-4-0, 2.35 GAA, .908 save pct)
D 15 Scott McKissick (3-30--33) -- 24 Max Mettler (4-18--22)
F 3 Nick Campbell (17-32--49) -- 9 Galt Goettl (21-28--49) -- 7 Derek Frentz (38-32--70)

LOURDES (19-8-0)
G 1 Jack Burkel (7-4-0, 3.10, .886)
D 12 Karl Krecke (8-14--22) -- 21 Griff Slightam (7-11--18)
F 4 Ben Weir (15-10--25) -- 20 Alex Funk (38-30--68) -- 7 Jason Samuelson (26-46--72) 

 

* * * 

PRE-GAME NOTES

* Lourdes is going for a fifth consecutive section championship and fifth consecutive state tournament trip, something a Rochester team has never accomplished

* Lourdes is playing in its sixth consecutive Section 1A championship game. The last team to beat the Eagles in a section final? Mankato West in 2008. That was the Ricky Litchfield-Corey Leivermann team that put up ridiculous point totals.

* This is West's first appearance in the section final since they won it in 2008.

* Lourdes has at least three players who will play in their fourth section title game tonight: D Karl Krecke, F Jason Samuelson and F Alex Funk. Lourdes D Griff Slightam is playing in his third section final as just a sophomore.

* Samuelson and Funk continue to set themselves miles apart from everyone else on Lourdes' all-time scoring list. Sean Corfits, a '92 Lourdes grad, entered this season with the all-time points lead (172), but Funk and Samuelson have left him and everyone else in their ice shavings. Samuelson has 217 career points, while Funk has 208. 

* Both teams have a 70-point scorer. West's Derek Frentz has 38-32--70 this season, while Lourdes' Samuelson has 26-46--72. Funk (38-30--68) is close.

* West has two more players on the verge of topping 50 points: junior forwards Nick Campbell (17-32--49) and Galt Goettl (21-28--49).

* If Saturday's section semifinals are any indication, odds are this game will hinge on special teams and who can stay out of the box. As I noted in my preview to the game in Tuesday's Post-Bulletin, there were a total of 15 goals scored in Saturday's two section semifinal games. Eight of those goals were scored on special teams (seven power-play goals, one short-handed). 

* * *

AROUND THE STATE

There are four other section championship games being played tonight. I'll try to provide updates on those games here and on Twitter (@PBFeldy) as much as possible. Those other section finals tonight are:

Section 3A: No. 4 seed Marshall vs. No. 6 seed Hutchinson (at Gustavus Adolphus College)
Section 7A: No. 1 Duluth Denfeld vs. No. 2 Duluth Marshall (at Amsoil Arena, Duluth)
Section 2AA: No. 1 Edina vs. No. 3 Burnsville (Mariucci Arena, Minneapolis, 6 p.m.)
Section 6AA: No. 1 Benilde-St. Margaret's vs. No. 3 Wayzata (Mariucci Arena, 8 p.m.) 

In Section 5AA, there are a pair of semifinal games being played tonight at the State Fair Coliseum:
* No. 1 seed Blaine vs. No. 4 Champlin Park (6 p.m.)
* No. 2 Centennial vs. No. 3 Maple Grove (8 p.m.) 

This Week in High School Hockey | Jan. 15

Posted by: Feldman

First, if you weren't at the Mayo-Century game on Saturday night, and you haven't seen the video of Mayo sophomore Logan Haskins' second goal of the game (it's pinged around Twitter for two days), here it is. I highly recommend watching if you haven't yet.

DODGE COUNTY WILDCATS
Last week: 1-0-1; beat New Ulm, 5-3; tied Richfield, 3-3.
Season: 5-10-2 overall.
What happened: The Wildcats lost to New Ulm by four goals on Dec. 27. Last Tuesday, the Wildcats turned it around and beat the Eagles by two. While this New Ulm team isn't as strong as some of its state-tournament teams of recent seasons, this was still a nice 'W' for Dodge County. If nothing else, it should provide some confidence for the young players on the team. In the 3-3 tie against Richfield on Saturday, the 'Cats discovered they have a little depth at goalie, as Joe Biwer made his first varsity start and stopped 36 shots.
This week: Thursday, vs. St. Paul Highland Park (7:30 p.m.).

RED WING WINGERS
Last week: 0-2-0; Lost at Chanhassen, 4-2; lost at Holy Angels, 7-1.
Season: 0-12-1 overall, 0-3-1 Missota Conference.
What happened: The Wingers struggles on both ends of the ice continued as conference play got into full swing. Red Wing has allowed 19 goals, while scoring just five, in its past three games. The Wingers' best shot at a win might come next Tuesday, when it plays host to Shakopee.
This week: Tonight, at New Prague (7:15 p.m.); Thursday, vs. Chaska (7 p.m.).

ROCHESTER CENTURY PANTHERS
Last week: 0-2-0; lost at Albert Lea, 2-1; lost to Rochester Mayo, 7-1.
Season: 2-12-0 overall; 1-6-0 Big Nine Conference.
What happened: While Century was outshot, 34-20, at Albert Lea, it was in the game until the final buzzer. Eric Rohleder made 32 saves to keep the Panthers in the game, as he has done a number of times this season. Century played a solid first 16 minutes against Mayo, but the Spartans scored twice in the final 45 seconds of the first period for a 3-0 lead, then Mayo's depth took over as it controlled the remainder of the game. ... The good news last week for Century was the return of sophomore defenseman Riese Zmolek, who was back in game action nearly three weeks ahead of schedule. Zmolek had missed the entire season to that point after suffering a broken ankle last fall.
This week: Tonight, vs. Owatonna (7:30 p.m., Rec Center); Thursday, at Benilde-St. Margaret's (7 p.m., St. Louis Park Rec Center).

ROCHESTER JM ROCKETS
Last week: 0-3-0; lost at Owatonna, 6-2; lost to Eastview, 3-1; lost to Austin, 3-2.
Season: 3-11-0 overall; 2-5-0 Big Nine.
What happened: JM led Owatonna after one period, 2-1, and trailed 3-2 after two, but the Huskies scored three in the third period to pull away. The Huskies scored all three of their third-period goals in a span of 69 seconds, in the final five minutes of the game. ... JM responded with one of its best games of the season, falling to Eastview in a close game. Eastview won the Kiwanis Festival in Rochester two weeks ago, putting up seven goals on Mayo in the title game. JM goalies Jacob Garvey and Patric Sadecki combined to limit the Lightning to three goals on 41 shots.
This week: Tonight, at Faribault (7:30 p.m.); Thursday, at Albert Lea (7:30 p.m.); Saturday, at Rochester Mayo (7:30 p.m., at Graham Arena I).

No. 7 ROCHESTER LOURDES EAGLES
Last week: 3-0-0; beat Mankato West, 3-2; won at New Ulm, 7-3; beat Delano/Rockford, 6-5, OT.
Season: 10-4-0 overall.
What happened: Lourdes scored a big win -- in terms of seeding for the Section 1A tournament -- when it beat West last Tuesday. The win likely locked up the No. 1 seed in the section playoffs for the Eagles, barring a disastrous stretch to close the regular season. The victory against Delano/Rockford was a big one, mentally. Lourdes hadn't fared so well in its past couple outings against ranked teams, so to beat one -- on a goal in the final 30 seconds of OT -- is a big boost. The Eagles still need to improve in the defensive zone; they've played six games in January and have allowed a total of 24 goals in those games.
This week: Saturday, at Duluth Marshall (3 p.m.).

ROCHESTER MAYO SPARTANS
Last week: 2-0-0; won at South St. Paul, 3-2, OT; won at Rochester Century, 7-1.
Season: 11-4-0 overall; 6-0-0 Big Nine Conference.
What happened: The win at SSP was a big one for the Spartans, who had lost a pair of one-goal games against hot goalies the weekend before (against Hibbing and Virginia). The victory against Century showed off Mayo's depth. They received at least one goal from their top three lines, scored two power-play goals and a short-handed goal. The Spartans have nothing but conference games remaining on their schedule. They control their own destiny in the chase for the Big Nine title, but there are still 10 games remaining.
This week: Tonight, vs. Winona (7:30 p.m., Graham I); Saturday, vs. John Marshall (7:30 p.m., Graham I).

High School Hockey Rewind | Week 1

Posted by: Feldman

The first week-plus of the boys high school hockey season is in the books and it was a mixed bag for Rochester and area teams. Rochester teams Mayo and John Marshall went 1-1, Century went 0-2 and Lourdes went 0-1. As for the area teams, Dodge County is 1-3, Red Wing is 0-3.

That's a combined 3-11 among the six teams in our circulation area, but those records aren't all as bad as they may seem.

ROCHESTER CENTURY
Last week: 0-2-0. Lost to Farmington, 6-0; lost to Tartan, 4-0.
Season: 0-2-0 overall, 0-0-0 Big Nine Conference.
What happened: Yes, Century was outscored 10-0 in two games. Yes, Century was outshot 44-13 and 52-15 in those two losses. Reason to panic? Definitely not. The Panthers have 23 games left in the regular season. This is a team that will get better as the season goes on. They're running a lot of young guys and first-year varsity players out there and they've played two pretty good teams. The loss to Farmington was not nearly as lopsided as the score indicates. Farmington led just 1-0 entering the third, then scored five times in the third, including four times in the last 6:35 (the last three of those on a five-minute major penalty against Century). And one really bright spot: Senior goalie Eric Rohleder is playing well. He made 38 saves in the opener and 48 against Tartan. That's a good start for a guy who had seen minimal varsity experience coming into the season.

ROCHESTER JOHN MARSHALL
Last week: 1-1-0. Lost to Farmington, 4-3. Won at St. Paul Johnson, 6-2.
Season: 1-1-0 overall, 0-0-0 Big Nine Conference.
What happened: I really believe this JM team can challenge for a Big Nine title. Why? It has two quality scoring lines and four veterans on the blue line (two, as has been noted multiple times here and in print, are brand new to the position). The Farmington score was a bit of a surprise, and it could ultimately play a factor in the seedings for the Section 1AA tournament, but keep in mind that JM played its first two games without starting goalie Jacob Garvey. That said, Patric Sadecki played well in his first two varsity starts, making a total of 49 saves. His early-season playing experience will be a benefit as the season goes on. His nerves will be gone. He's played two full varsity games. ... JM doesn't play again until Saturday, when it opens Big Nine play at home against Mayo. The one thing I know coach Jay Ness wants to develop is some consistent scoring from the second line. The Rockets got a little of that against Johnson, but they'll need more than just Gavin Sandwick, Nick Paulson, Jared Bromberg and Sam Broman to score on a regular basis.

No. 8-ranked ROCHESTER LOURDES
Last week: 0-1-0. Lost at No. 1-ranked St. Thomas Academy, 8-1.
Season: 0-1-0 overall.
What happened: What happend is, a Lourdes team that had about six or seven guys with just a few days of practice under their belts, ran into the top-ranked team in the state, and the defending Class A state champ. The Eagles know they have to be patient this year and they'll have some ups and downs early in the season. A half-dozen or so guys just returned to practice last week after making a run to the state football championship game. Thinking back to 2010, when Lourdes won the state football title (and had a handful of players miss the first two-plus weeks of hockey practice), it took until mid-January before they really began clicking on all cylinders. We'll have a better idea of where this team is at right now after the upcoming week, when it goes to New Prague (Tuesday), and plays host to Chanhassen (Thursday) and No. 5-ranked St. Cloud Cathedral (Saturday).

ROCHESTER MAYO
Last week: 1-1-0. Lost to Lakeville North, 3-0. Won at Faribault, 4-2.
Season: 1-1-0 overall, 1-0-0 Big Nine Conference.
What happened: The Spartans are one of the favorites to win the Big Nine and a big reason why is senior goalie Case Hansen. He was sharp last week, stopping 30 shots against North and 18 against Faribault. Mayo managed just 14 shots against North, but I know at least one of the Spartans' top forwards was feeling ill that day, plus they had four or five sophomores playing in their first varsity game. Plus, North is always one of the top teams in Section 1AA and has generally put up six, seven or more goals against the Rochester teams (North beat Mayo 12-1 last season). Mayo's win at Faribault was a bit disjointed without a lot of five-on-five time. Still, the Spartans will want to make more of a statement in their next three games, all against teams expected to be in the top half of the Big Nine: Thursday at Mankato West, Saturday at John Marshall and Dec. 11 against Owatonna.

DODGE COUNTY
Last week: 1-3-0. Lost to Faribault, 3-2; lost at Minnehaha Academy, 5-2; lost to Waseca, 4-3 (OT); won at Austin, 9-7.
Season: 1-3-0 overall.
What happened: The Wildcats are 1-3-0, but could just as easily have two or three wins. They led Faribault entering the third period, but gave up the game-winning goal with just 1:33 to go after taking a penalty 21 seconds earlier. Against Waseca, Dodge County had a 3-2 lead late in the third, after a seemingly momentum-changing short-handed goal by Stefan Rechtzigel with 7:13 to go. Waseca tied it 59 seconds later, then won 50 seconds into OT. The 'Cats offense broke out on Saturday, with seven players scoring at least once. Their defense wasn't as sharp as it had been, though, allowing seven goals and 37 shots on goal. ... Dodge County plays host to Winona on Tuesday in a game that could have a big impact on the seedings for the Section 1AA playoffs.

RED WING
Last week: 0-3-0. Lost at Buffalo, 5-1; lost at Hudson (Wis.), 5-3; lost at South St. Paul, 3-1.
Season: 0-3-0 overall; 0-0-0 Missota Conference.
What happened: No need to panic, Wingers fans. Just think back to two years ago, when Red Wing started 0-9-0. That team made it all the way to the Section 1A semifinals and pushed Rochester Lourdes in a 4-2 loss. So far, it looks like this year's team needs to figure out how to be a third-period team. The Wingers have been tied or trailing by just one goal entering the third period of all three games so far. Eight players have at least one point so far for the Wingers, so they know they don't have to rely on one or two guys to do all the scoring. ... The Wingers play four of their first five games on the road, including games this week at North St. Paul (Thursday) and Fergus Falls (Saturday).

High School Hockey | A trip around the Rochester rinks

Posted by: Feldman

Our annual boys hockey season preview is scheduled to come out in Saturday's paper, but the family Feldman is heading out of town for T'giving, so I made my trip around Rochester today and stopped at practices for all four Rochester teams.

Without getting too much into the info that will appear in Saturday's preview, here are some initial thoughts and notes after visiting with each coach and team. I'll go in the order of the practices I stopped at:

ROCHESTER MAYO

They won't say it, but reading between the lines, I sense a lot of optimism about where this season could lead for the Spartans. They've lost the Big Nine Conference championship by one point each of the last two seasons and they seem determined to not let that happen this season.

It starts with an established goalie — senior Case Hansen — and very good depth up front. Mayo's all-senior top line of Ryan Martin, Adam Alcott and Max Whitney has shown it is capable of scoring, and senior Tommy Hanson could be a big scorer this season, too. Mayo will have three lines — 10 forwards, really — that will rotate and all can provide some scoring.

We can't leave out top returning d-men Will Holtan and Tommy Fjelsted because I don't want to get checked by either of those guys. They'll provide toughness and offensive ability from the blue line. That's a good combination to have.

Watch out for: Mayo's all-sophomore line; it could will a key group for the Spartans by the end of the season.

Opener: Nov. 27, vs. Lakeville North, Graham Arena I

• • •

ROCHESTER LOURDES

Don't be surprised if the Eagles don't hit their stride until after the calendar hits January.

They're missing 10 guys right now, two out with injuries and eight who are on the Eagles' football team that will play for a state championship this Saturday. The good news: A lot of young guys and borderline JV/varsity players are getting a chance to impress the coaches and possibly earn a spot on the varsity roster.

Even if the Eagles had their full roster right now, they would need some time to figure out line combinations. Nothing's set in stone, including who will play on the top line with vets Jason Samuelson and Alex Funk. It could be Ben Weir, could be Griffen Buck, could be one of the three Carstens brothers, could be someone else.

Lourdes will have a good battle for the top goalie job, too, as senior Andrew Ellingson and sophomore Jack Burkel — a transfer from Red Wing — will both get their chance early in the season to seize the job.

Watch out for: Eighth-grader Tucker Chapman, a forward and a transfer from Texas, who could stick on the varsity from the get-go and play significant minutes. ... The Eagles again have a stacked schedule, including games against both defending state champions (St. Thomas Academy and Benilde-St. Margaret's).

Opener: Dec. 1, at St. Thomas Academy, 7:30 p.m.

• • •

ROCHESTER CENTURY

The Panthers are in a different spot than they're accustomed to: They have a lot of young players and will use the regular season to build toward the playoffs. Their goal won't be to come storming out of the gate.

That said, the Panthers still have some skilled guys leading the way, particularly forwards Hayden Ashworth and Dalton Travis. Ashworth excelled as a sophomore last season, while Travis, now a senior, was arguably the team's best forward in the final weeks of the season.

Senior Matt Sturchio is the only defenseman back with a lot of varsity experience. Sophomore Riese Zmolek is in that category, too, but he likely won't be able to start skating until sometime in January after suffering a broken ankle nearly two months ago.

Watch out for: A good battle for the starting goalie job. Senior Eric Rohleder is the only goalie with varsity experience. He'll be pushed by sophomores Max Andrist, Joey Pundt and Carter Downs.

Opener: Nov. 29, vs. Farmington, 7:30 p.m., Rochester Rec Center

• • •

ROCHESTER JOHN MARSHALL

The Rockets lost a lot of exprience, particularly on the blue line. And that's where they'll be looking for help early on. In fact, at least two veteran forwards — Alex Lovett and Jared Bromberg — have volunteered to make the switch to the blue line. That will hurt JM's forward depth, but there's still enough returning talent up front that JM could be in the mix for the Big Nine title deep into the season, as it was a year ago.

Senior Jacob Garvey will be looked to to hold down the fort in goal. Junior Patric Sadecki will also get some chances.

Watch out for: The Rockets' top line of Gavin Sandwick, Nick Paulson and Sam Broman. Those three are together right now and have clicked well in scrimmages and practices. They'll be relied on for a lot of offense as JM looks to develop some other lines behind them.

Opener: Nov. 27, vs. Farmington, 7:30 p.m., Rec Center.

High School Hockey | Samuelson to play in Bauer NIT

Posted by: Feldman

Lourdes forward Jason Samuelson will do something this weekend that no player from a Rochester high school has done in a few years -- play in the Bauer National Invitation Tournament at New Hope Ice Arena. 

Samuelson, a senior, was picked to be on Team Minnesota Red, one of two all-star teams made up of the top players from the Upper Midwest Elite League. 

The Bauer NIT is an annual tournament that pits eight teams -- including two all-star teams made up of players from the UMEL, a fall league that gives Minnesota's top high school players a place to gear up for the season.

Samuelson and Team Minnesota Red will face a tough test right off the bat tonight, when they play the tournament opener against a Norway Under-18 team at 5:15 p.m.

The entire Team Minnesota Red roster can be found here. 

The 2012 NIT bracket can be found here.

Lourdes coach Josh Spaniol told me that Eagles senior forward Alex Funk likely would have been picked to play on one of the two Minnesota teams, but he is battling an injury and has not played for several weeks. Spaniol said he thinks Funk will be ready to go when high school practices begin on Nov. 12.

Samuelson and Funk both played for Team Southwest during the regular season in the Elite League. Team SW tied for first place with Team Northwest. Samuelson finished as the team's second leading scorer, with 26 points, one behind Edina's Bo Brauer. Funk finished fifth on the team with 20 points.

Samuelson had a goal and an assist last Sunday when Team SW beat Team Northwest for third place in the UMEL postseason playoffs. 

Near as I can tell, Samuelson is the first player from a Rochester high school to play in the NIT since 2006 (unless Mayo's Charlie Thauwald did so). Lourdes' Brandon Bahnemann, and Century's Joe Knoepke and Garrett Grimstad played in the NIT in 2006.

Rochester native Tyler Vesel is also playing in the NIT, for Faribault Shattuck St. Mary's. Vesel is off to an outstanding start for SSM, leading the powerhouse team in points (21) and goals (10). 

Shattuck (11-2-3 overall) plays its NIT opener at 8:15 p.m. tonight against Michigan U-18. The Sabres then travel to Calgary next week for a pair of games against the Calgary Edge School, followed by a weeklong trip (Nov. 17-25) to Salzburg, Austria, for the Salzburg Red Bulls Tournament.

NIT semifinal games are set for 11:15 a.m. and 1:45 p.m. on Saturday, with the championship game scheduled for noon on Sunday.

High School Hockey | Funk, Samuelson among Elite League leaders

Posted by: Feldman

With two weeks remaining in the Upper Midwest High School Elite League regular season, a pair of Rochester Lourdes forwards are among the top 10 in scoring.

Seniors Jason Samuelson and Alex Funk (it's weird to call those two seniors, since we've been watching them since they were freshmen) have helped Team Southwest to a 10-2-3 record through 15 games, good for second place in the UMHEL.

Funk is third in the league in scoring, with 20 points (9-11--20) in 13 games played. He is second on Team Southeast, behind Edina's Bo Brauer, who has 21 points.

Samuelson is tied for seventh in the league in scoring, with 18 points (7-11--18) in 14 games played. He is fourth on the team, behind Brauer, Funk and Dan Labosky (19 points) of Benilde-St. Margaret's. Samuelson had four points in three games last weekend, while Funk -- who leads Team Southwest with three power-play goals and one short-handed goal -- had one point in two games. 

Team Southwest has six games remaining, beginning with a 9 a.m. game Saturday against Team Northeast at New Hope Ice Arena.

Boys high school hockey practice begins in 33 days! Teams can get going on Monday, Nov. 12.

Lourdes opens its season at St. Thomas Academy on Saturday, Dec. 1. The Eagles' first home game is Thursday, Dec. 6, against Chanhassen.

Hockey | NAHL Showcase to feature 129 Minnesotans

Posted by: Feldman

The Austin Bruins begin their 2012-13 North American Hockey League season in just more than 24 hours. All 24 NAHL teams will converge on the Schwan Super Rink in Blaine for the annual junior hockey showcase.

The Bruins open their season at 1:45 p.m. Wednesday against Amarillo (Texas). Here's my Bruins/Showcase preview from today's Austin P-B print edition. By the way, Bruins coach Chris Tok had some nice things to say about former Rochester John Marshall forward Zach Johnson. Tok mentioned Johnson as one of three young forwards who have stuck out in camp so far. Tok said Johnson has done a nice job at center, opening up space for his linemates and setting them up for scoring chances.

Here's a link to the Showcase website, where you can find schedules and Internet broadcast information.

According to Let's Play Hockey, this year's Showcase will feature 129 players from Minnesota, including five from Rochester -- Johnson and Drew Anderson (Century) from the Austin Bruins; goalie Brock Kautz (Century) from the Janesville (Wis.) Jets; defenseman Rory Vesel (Lourdes) from the Bismarck Bobcats; and defenseman Alec Brandrup (Lourdes) from the Coulee Region Chill (Onalaska, Wis.). Another former standout Big Nine Conference/Section 1 forward, Eric Carlson of Albert Lea, will play for Janesville this season.

Janesville will face Austin on Saturday, the final day of the Showcase, at 7 p.m. Vesel and Brandrup both play for Central Division teams, so they'll play in and against Austin often during the regular season.

Here's a link to Let's Play Hockey's list of the 129 Minnesotans who will play in the Showcase.

The Showcase is well-attended by college coaches and scouts, and professional scouts. This year's Showcase will feature far more than just the 24 NAHL teams. There will be 36 teams from the North American Prospects Hockey League competing at the Tier I 18U major midget level and 16U midget minor levels. Eight teams from the Upper Midwest High School Elite League will play this weekend, too, as will all six 18U midget major teams from the Tier I High Performance Hockey League (Compuware, CYA, Honeybaked, Little Caesars, Mission and Team Illinois).