Daily Dish 5.9
Another 20 game slate last night with some interesting scores:
Eagan 16 v Rosemount 15: We thought maybe the Eagan v Armstrong game was going to be a good old fashioned shootout, and while it was high scoring, last night’s game vs Rosemount ended up being the high scoring affair that we were thinking of. A traditional south suburban clash, both the Irish and Wildcats were coming in hot, but, I’ll be honest, I expected this game to be a lot lower scoring than it was. Each team traded runs and dominant quarters, the wildcats owned the 1st and 3rd while the Irish owned the 2nd and 4th. Maybe there is something about which side of the field you are on at Rosemount? Nonetheless, what an exciting game. The game was tied at halftime 8-8, and the Wildcats held 5 goal leads twice in which the Irish were able to close and tie the game. Senior, Keenan Wilson scored his 2nd game winning goal in two games with just seconds remaining to give the Wildcats the 16-15 victory. The SSC conference is just a battleground right now with everyone beating up on each other. All teams should be battle tested come sections
Centennial 8 v Blaine 7: A section 7 clash that was much closer than expected. Blaine has been good defensively this year and has been able to stay close in games. They do have a solid face off guy and a good goalie which definitely gives them a chance in any game. Centennial has played a ton of one goal games this year and found a way to squeak this one out in overtime. Section 7 is not so much a one horse race like it used to be, a lot of these teams have proven to be able to hang with each other. This should make for an exciting section tournament in a few weeks.
Eden Prairie 7 v Orono 5: Another close, low scoring game, between both of these teams which seems to be their M.O. Eden Prairie has shown they are strong defensively. Aside from Lakeville North putting up 12 on them… they have held all of their opponents to single digits this season. They have found enough offense to win games and sit at 4-2. They are just a sneaky team in section 2. I don’t think they are dominant but a scrappy group that will be a tough out in playoffs. Orono, man, what a tough go this season. In their last 4 games, they have two losses in overtime and a now a 2 goal loss. They are right there but just can’t get the monkey off their back! I will say, however, that Orono is a much improved team this year and been looking a lot better than many have expected. If they get a good chunk of their team back next year, they could be a team to watch. They are a few goals away from being 5-2 this year.
Rogers 7 v Elk River 6: The Elks, coming off a huge battle and OT loss to Moorhead find themselves with another one goal loss to the Royals of Rogers. Not sure if this was a trap game hangover from their big game with Moorhead or not, but, I felt like ER was moving in the right direction. I didn’t see this game and would be curious on how it went. The Elks took a lot of penalties against Moorhead and it cost them. Sure, it’s great to be physical, but, at a certain point, you have to weigh the risk on being man down the whole game. Rogers, after forfeiting the first game (weird?) and starting the season 1-4, have now won 3 in a row to get back to .500. Nice turnaround for them. The Elks are still a viable challenger in section 8 but need to regroup after two close losses.
Woodbury 7 v Mahtomedi 1: Woodbury continues to just grind away wins. They aren’t going to light the world on fire with their offense, but, they are just so methodical and disciplined. If they can get an early lead or keep the game close… they are extremely tough to play against. The only game they struggled was when Eagan jumped out on them and Woodbury was forced to play a faster pace than they like and they do not have the firepower to play that way. Still, they are a team that wins face offs, plays defense and controls the ball. Impressed with their new identity this season. Mahtomedi on the other hand is in a free fall. A team I personally thought would be really good this year just seems to have issues scoring goals despite having supposedly a top face off guy in the state. I’d assume they have the ball quite a bit? I haven’t been able to see much of them, but, in the game against STA, it looked like they had no interest in being there.
Maple Grove 16 v Totino-Grace 8: This game was one that was going to tell us a lot about both of these teams. I’ll start with Maple Grove… coming off a tough loss to a top team in Chanhassen, they responded with a dominant conference win. Maple Grove is the real deal and has a lot of athletes. The upcoming game against Armstrong should be a great one (as well as a potential rematch in sections?). Coach Ficken has done a great job continuing the up-trend for that program after Weichert’s departure this season. Totino Grace, a team that I love this season because they just love to score goals, met their match finally. Totino seems to be a middle of the pack team that relies heavily on two top guys: Gillard and Kaiser. They crush weaker opponents, but, in games against better teams they struggle. They seem to have no issue scoring, but, the defense has had a hard time in their big games vs Armstrong and MG. Still, a great turnaround for the eagles from last season and I still love their offensive firepower, but, they will need to prove themselves in a couple of the upcoming big games vs Blaine and Centennial.
Tri-Mac 13 v Moundsview 9: Moundsview… after all the hype I gave them for their win against Irondale, they have struggled in their last few games… I feel like I Jinxed them. Tri-Mac is having a nice season, they are another team that LOVES to score goals, but, they play a very weak schedule. They were 7-7 last year and are already 5-1 this year. Scoring goals in the high teens every game. They have two tougher opponents coming up against Blake and Mound Westonka so we will see where they truly are. They have been crushing weaker teams… but this win against Moundsview is pretty solid for them. Senior Joey Stolpstead has 48points this year, so, definitely a player to watch! Moundsview has three big games coming up against Woodbury, Cretin and Stillwater. I think this is a good chance for them to rebound and get a big win on an already great turnaround from a year ago. They do get a lot of their players back next year, so, maybe this is the start of something good for them heading into 2024
