High School Boys, Section Playoffs

Class A Sections: Up for the taking

Posted on by Let's Play Hockey

 

Section 7A one to watch as teams vie for Saint Paul trip

by Dain Solberg, Let’s Play Hockey

Last season St. Cloud Cathedral emerged as the superior team in Class A, winning their second state title. They entered tis season as the top-ranked team in Class A, but other team emerged as frontrunners to unseat the Crusaders at the top of the class.

Section 7A was well represented in our rankings all season long with Cloquet/Esko/Carlton, Hermantown and Hibbing/Chisholm all spending time in the top 5 and at No. 1. But they will have to battle it out against each other to see who will represent perhaps the deepest section in the state.

And don’t count out Section 5A Monticello who also spent time atop the rankings. And Warroad in Section 8A is currently ranked No. 1 in our final season rankings.

As with any season, it’s all up for grabs as teams hit the ice with one goal in mind: making it to the X.

Here is a section-by-section look:

Section 1A

Seeds: 1. Northfield (BYE) 2. Waseca (BYE) 3. Rochester Lourdes/Dover-Eyota 4. Albert Lea 5. Dodge County 6. Winona 7. Austin 8. La Crescent-Hokah 9. Red Wing 10. Faribault
2024 Champion: Northfield
Northfield looks to be the favorite in section 1A with other contenders being No. 2-seed Waseca and No. 3 seed Rochester Lourdes/Dover-Eyota. The top-five teams in this section haven’t made the trip to Saint Paul in the past five years outside of Dodge County who fell to Gentry Academy in the 2021 MSHSL Class A Championship game, 8-1. This team was led by current Gopher and Mr. Hockey Finalist Brody Lamb.
The Raiders won the Big-Nine Conference Championship with a stellar 19-4-2 record and have been led by top scorers Will Cashin (27-29-56) and Ben Geiger (19-31-50). Junior defenseman Bridger Riley has 38 assists from the blue line to help lead the charge for the Raiders.  Northfield has five players with 30-plus points and should be the team to beat.
Waseca boasts a 20-3-2 record in the Big South Conference with leading point-getter Griffin Storey with 65 points. Their high-powered offense has lit the lamp 197 times this season, an average of almost eight goals per game. They have nine players averaging a point per game, and their defense and goaltending has been top-notch as well, allowing just 47 goals all season, less than two per game. They have been the benefactor of some lopsided double-digit wins and as section playoffs continue competition will get tougher. In their lone section loss they dropped a 3-2 battle with No. 3 seed Rochester Lourdes/Dover Eyota.
Rochester Lourdes/Dover-Eyota will look to make their first State Tournament appearance since 2012 when the Eagles fell to the East Grand Forks Green Wave in the quarterfinal round, 3-2 at Xcel Energy Center.
View Bracket: https://www.legacy.hockey/page/show/5630948-section-1a

Section 2A

Minneapolis secured the top seed in Section 2A. Johan Krasean leads the way for the 612 with 21 goals and 26 assists on the season. LPH PHOTO BY JEFF ANDERSON
Seeds: 1. Minneapolis 2. Delano 3. Orono 4. Providence Academy 5. Breck 6. Hutchinson 7. Mound-Westonka/Watertown-Mayer  8. Litchfield/Dassel-Cokato
2024 Champion: Orono
No. 1 seeded Minneapolis will be the favorite out of section 2A with the last state tournament appearance coming in historic fashion back in 2021 after defeating No. 2  Delano 3-1 in the section title game. The Tigers, who were defeated by Minneapolis in that section title game four years ago, have a five game win streak going into sections and will look to edge out Minneapolis for a spot at Xcel Energy Center. The No. 3 Orono Spartans are also a sleeper in this section boasting a 8-1-0 record against section opponents.
Minneapolis has totaled a 15-7-3 overall record as a member of the Tri-Metro Conference. The Minneapolis-Coop has been led by Johan Krasean (21-26-47). They have totaled 109 goals, which averages just less than three goals a game. Minneapolis has not lost to a section opponent during the regular season, beating Breck, Orono and skating to a tie against Delano.
Delano posts a 14-10-1 record in the Wright County Conference. Bryce Peterson leads the Tigers with 31  points (16-15-31). As a team Delano has recorded 99 goals in 25 games, averaging 3.20 goals a contest.  The Orono Spartans will look to make a return trip to the state tournament  The Spartans are led by Jackson Knight in points (28-28-56) and Trey Landa who  is second on the team with a 40+ point season(19-27-46).

Section 3A

Seeds: 1. Luverne (BYE)  2. Mankato West (BYE) 3. New Ulm 4. Mankato East/Loyola 5. Minnesota River 6. Marshall (BYE) 7. Worthington 8. Windom Area 9. Redwood Valley 10. Fairmont
2024 Champion: New Ulm
No. 1 seeded Luverne will look to get back to St. Paul since 2016-17 when the Cardinals fell to Hermantown 3-2 in the Wednesday Class A quarterfinal matchup. Historically, Luverne was a power in 2014 when the Cardinals had the likes of former Gopher captain and current member of the Boston Bruins organization Jaxon Nelson. This season, Luverne has posted a stellar 19-4-2 record with a perfect record over Section 3A opponents. They have totaled 155 goals, and have two 20-plus goal scorers in Maddux Domagala (32-34-66) and Landyn Lais (23-35-58). Luverne averages just over six goals per game.
Another Contender is the No. 2 seeded Mankato West Scarlets. MWHS will look to return to the State Tournament for the first time since the 2015-16 season, where the Scarlets fell to Breck School in the State quarterfinal round, 8-0. Mankato West has two players beyond the 30-point mark. This includes Jakobe Tosch (11-24-35) and Keaton Dorzek (7-26-33), MWHS has posted a regular season record of 11-12-2 and have averaged 2.84 goals a contest and total a 71-64 edge in goals over opponents this season.
No. 3 New Ulm boasts a 11-12-2 overall record and will look to make a return trip to Xcel Energy Center, the Eagles dropped a quarterfinal matchup to the No. 2 seeded Warroad Warriors a season ago, 8-1. New Ulm totals 100 goals this season, where the Eagles average exactly four goals a game. New Ulm has three players over the 30-point mark in 2024-25. This includes Hunter Larson (19-19-38), Carson Uecker (20-15-35) and Brody Norby (15-18-33).

Section 4A

Even with just eight wins on the season, Mahtomedi can never be counted out due to the tough schedule they play during the season. LPH PHOTO BY JEFF ANDERSON
Seeds: 1. Chisago Lakes, 2. Mahtomedi, 3. Southwest Christian, 4. St. Paul Academy and Summit School 5. Simley 6. St. Paul Highland Central 7. South St. Paul 8. Bloomington Kennedy
2024 Champion: Mahtomedi
No. 1 seeded Chisago Lakes will look to break up Mahtomedi’s pattern of arriving to the Class A State Hockey Tournament. The Zephyrs have been to the tourney the past eight seasons including securing a spot in the state title game back-to-back years in 2023 and 2024. Meanwhile, Chisago Lakes has not made a trip to St. Paul since the 2013-14 season. The Wildcats average 4.12 goals a game and have been led by two 40-point scorers in Jacob Kletti (18-25-43) and Max Bobrowski (18-22-40).
No. 2 Mahtomedi has posted a record of 8-15-2, a bit of a misnomer since they play a plethora of AA teams. The Zephyrs have gone 2-0 against section opponents this season with wins over South St. Paul and Simley. They have just 65 total goals, averaging 2.60 goals per game, which is low historically for Zephyr squads. The good news is they have several players contributing, including Devin O’Donnell (11-12-23), Laken Decker (9-7-16), Winston Wright (9-6-15), Brock Gutterman (4-11-15), Will Seevers (6-8-14), Ryker Dunbar (2-9-11) and Cody Loida (3-8-11).
No. 3 Southwest Christian/Richfield holds an overall 9-14-2 record. The Stars have one section win against Simley, 6-3 and have three scorers who have had 30-point seasons. This includes Tate Hardacre (18-19-37), Paul Hornor (15-21-36), and Bennett Breuer (15-21-36).

Section 5A

Joey Gillespie helps lead the defending champion Crusaders with hopes of returning back to St. Paul. LPH PHOTO BY BRYAN ZOLLMAN
Seeds: 1. Monticello (BYE) 2. Cathedral 3. Little Falls 4. Pine City Area 5. Sauk Rapids-Rice 6. River Lakes 7. Princeton 8. Becker/Big Lake 9. Mora-Milaca
2024 Champion: Cathedral
No. 1 Monticello have been battling for State Tournament bragging rights with St. Cloud Cathedral since the 2019-20 when the Moose knocked off the Crusaders to punch their ticket to the “X”, Monticello went on to fall to Hermantown 7-1 in the Wednesday quarterfinal matchup. This season, the Moose post a stellar 21-3-1 record and compete in the Mississippi 8 Conference. Monticello has totaled 114 goals this season, averaging 4.56 goals a contest. Meanwhile, the Moose have three scorers over the 40-point mark, the leading-point getters are Landen Scherber (23-34-57), Ashton Stoll (17-25-42), Nicklas Nelson (11-31-42).
No. 2 St. Cloud Cathedral posts an overall record of 15-8-2 and is a member of the Granite Ridge Conference. The Crusaders advanced to last season’s State High School Hockey Tournament, where they claimed the Class A State Title in a 3-1 regulation battle against the top-seeded Hermantown Hawks. Cathedral has scored 95 total goals and averaged 3.80 goals per game. The Crusaders have a high-powered offense with two 30+ scorers which are John Hirschfield (22-40-62) and Joey Gillespie (18-34-52)
No. 3 Little Falls holds an overall 14-7-4 record, and competes in the Granite Ridge Conference alongside section foe, No. 2 St. Cloud Cathedral. Little Falls has not advanced to the State High School Hockey Tournament since the 2020-2021 season after the Flyers fell in the State semifinal game to the state runner-up Dodge County, 4-1.  This season, Little Falls has netted 77 goals, and averaged just under four goals a game. The Flyers have a speedy top line with two players over the 30 point mark, this includes Nicholas Stevens (14-19-33) and Hayden Johnson (7-23-30).

Section 6A

Northern Lakes is the top seed in Section 6A and is a top-10 tam in the LPH Rankings. LPH PHOTO BY JASON SORIA
Seeds: 1. Northern Lakes, 2. Alexandria Area 3. Fergus Falls 4. Breckenridge 5. Prairie Centre Area 6. Willmar 7. Morris Benson Area 8. Wadena-Deer Creek
2024 Champion: Alexandria Area
No.1 Northern Lakes has been led by first-year legendary head coach Mike Randolph. The Lightning will look to make the Class A State Hockey Tournament since the 2020-21 season when they fell to the eventual State Champion Gentry Academy 8-0 in the Tuesday quarterfinal matchup. This season, Northern Lakes averages just under four goals per game (3.92). Northern Lakes bolsters forwards Drew Paulbeck (29-17-46) and Jerome Martin (13-15-28). The Lightning finished the season with an overall record of 16-8-1 and are a member of the Granite Ridge Conference with 5A foes St. Cloud Cathedral and Monticello.
No. 2 Alexandria Area looks to make back-to-back appearances in the State Hockey Tournament after falling to Hermantown, 6-0 in last year’s quarterfinal matchup. The Cardinals have a 12-13-0 record and are a member of the Central Lakes Conference. Alexandria Area has totaled 77 goals, where they average just under four goals a game (3.08), the Cardinals return two top-scores in Grady Olson (7-22-29) and captain Brody Berg (16-6-22).
No. 3 Fergus Falls will look to make their first State Hockey Tournament appearance in the past five years. The Otters post an overall record of 12-13-0 and are a member of the Central Lakes Conference. Fergus Falls averages 3.96 goals per contest and have tallied 99 goals in the 2024-25 campaign. The Otters are led by three 20+ point-getters Michael Schmidt (19-32-51), Aiden Schake (19-25-44) and Jack Welde (10-27-37). Fergus Falls skated to two 5-3 games against No. 2 Alexandria where they dropped both in narrow fashion.

Section 7A

Cloquet/Esko/Carlton spent time as the top-ranked team in Class A and are in perhaps the toughest section in both classes heading into section play. LPH PHOTO BY JEFF ANDERSON
Seeds: 1. Cloquet Esko-Carlton (BYE) 2. Hermantown 3. Hibbing/Chisholm 4. Proctor 5. International Falls 6. North Shore 7. Greenway Area  8. Moose Lake Area 9. Ely/Tower Soudan
2024 Champion: Hermantown
No. 1 Cloquet Esko-Carlton will look to make their first State Hockey Tournament appearance since the Cory Millen Era. The Lumberjacks have a 18-7-0 overall record and are a member of the Lake Superior Conference. CEC has two players surpassing the 40-point club. This includes Niko Gentilini (19-31-50) and Grady Knutson (28-16-44). The Lumberjacks total 104 goals and average just under five goals a game (4.16).
No. 2 Hermantown is always the favorite within section 1A, having carried the section for several years. The Hawks are set to make the tournament if they can get past No. 1 Cloquet Esko-Carlton, but the difference is they are no-longer that No. 1 seed with a target on their back. The Hawks are no strangers to big games playing nearly a “AA” schedule. Hermantown totals 76 goals in 25 games and averages 3.04 goals a contests. The Hawks also have three scorers over 20 points — River Freeman (23-12-35), Bradford Skytta (10-17-27) and Henry Peterson (4-19-23)
No. 3 Hibbing/Chisholm will look to be a sleeper in this year’s Trek to the X with a legit shot as the Bluejackets have posted a superb 16-9-0 record. Hibbing last saw the Xcel Energy Center in 2010 when they were led by Adam Johnson and Nick DeCenzo in a championship game against the now section foe the Hermantown Hawks. Hibbing/Chisholm has recorded a stellar 112 total goals, where the Bluejackets average just under five goals a contest (4.48), Hibbing is led by the offensive starpower of Tate Swanson (15-35-50) Cole Swanson (13-25-38) and Ethan Sundvall (13-25-38)

Section 8A

Seeds: 1. Warroad 2. East Grand Forks 3. Red Lake Falls 4. Detroit Lakes 5. Thief River Falls 6. Crookston 7. Bagley/Fosston 8. Park Rapids 9. Kittson County Central 10. Lake of the Woods
2024 Champion: Warroad
No. 1 Warroad posts a 18-6-1 record and is a member of the Mariucci Conference. The Warriors advanced to the State Tournament a season ago where they fell to St. Cloud Cathedral in the State Semifinal round. Warroad has totaled 92 goals, and averages just below four goals a game (3.68), Warroad has a potent offense with returners Taven James (22-33-55), Ryan Shaugabay (16-33-49), and Broden Hontvet (8-29-37).
No. 2 East Grand Forks will look to get back to “The Tourney” for the first time since the 2018-19 season, where the Green Wave fell in the State semifinal matchup against St. Cloud Cathedral, 6-2. EGF has 63 goals in 25 games, the Green Wave averages 2.52 goals per game. Offensively, the team is led by three 20+ point-getters in Hunter Varnson (6-18-24), Cooper Hills (6-16-22), and Tucker Lovejoy (14-8-22).
No. 3 Red Lake Falls will look to beginhttps://www.legacy.hockey/page/show/5622558?referrer_id= a Cinderella story and knock off two of the State’s blue-bloods in Class A. The Eagles are a member of the Northwest Conference Red Lake Falls has a 21-4-0 overall record. The Eagles total 156 goals, while averaging just below seven goals a game (6.24), Offensively Red Lake Falls are led by three scorers over 40 point, Gavin Girdler (34-30-64), Brock Seeger (8-48-56) and Kegan Schmitz (17-32-49).