Early Week Slate Breakdown: 4/17 - 4/19
First full week of game action so I will break out the slate breakdown/recaps into two separate posts. Mon-Wed and then Thu-Sat. Here are the games that are catching my eye or I am looking forward to in the first half of the week:
MONDAY
Monticello v Chisago Lakes - I am putting this one on here mainly as I am curious about where Chisago Lakes is at. They did lose some talented players to graduation but have been adamant to the DTA Crew that they are as good as ever. They have been trending up and a strong program over the past few years. Their schedule doesn’t help us much as they generally obliterate everyone they play. I think if we are seeing a CL team winning by 19-20 goals per game again, we can safely assume they will be a contender come sectional playoffs.
TUESDAY
Orono v BSM - Both teams played last week to some interesting finals. Orono played Minnetonka and lost 9-5. What seemed like a game Minnetonka was going to dominate was played to a 3-3 second half. Not really sure what happened and what that says about either team. BSM was missing some of their top guys and won 8-2 to Stillwater. Obviously, Stillwater is a top program, traditionally, but they did not look good and BSM never really ran away with it. I am curious on if BSM looks like the #1 team in this game and if Orono keeps it somewhat close, I think we could start viewing Orono as a team to watch.
Kennedy v Jefferson - One of my favorite rivalry games over the years. Jefferson had a tough first week playing two top 10 opponents. They held both of those opponents to 6 goals each. However, they only scored 2 and 5, respectively. I think Jefferson will be a good team as the season goes on and into 2024 but they still seem to be figuring some things out offensively, however, they were doing so against two traditionally good defensive teams. Kennedy dominated their first game against Breck and there are some pieces there. I think this is Jefferson’s chance to show that their offense will be just fine and I am curious to see how Kennedy’s scorers can do against Jefferson’s defense. I expect Jefferson to win this game but this one has been played close year after year.
Minnetonka v Lakeville North
As mentioned above, Minnetonka dominated against Orono in the first half, but the second half was competitive. Not sure if MTKA pulled starters or took the foot off the gas, but, LVN should be a more formidable foe. I think MTKA has all the pieces to be a top 7ish type team this year but it just seems like there are always more questions than answers with them - they have some elite poles and a couple elite midfielders on their team but I think the big question mark will be how they handle LVN face-off specialist Quinn Power. The Junior is probably in the top 3 in the whole state and LVN returned nearly their entire offense from a year ago. However, they are still fairly young with 3 of them being only sophomores. LVN graduated most of their defense so will be inserting a lot of new pieces there but they do return their senior goalie. LVN looks to be a team that will lean on their offense and F/O unit to take pressure off a new defense. If LVN is efficient on offense, they should dominate possession time.
Shakopee v Buffalo
A section 2 preview of two teams that are hoping to make their first run to the state tournament. Buffalo dominated their first game and looks to be picking up where they left off, offensively, from last year. I was a bit concerned about their losses at midfield, but, it did not seem to be a factor in the first game. They have a strong defense/goalie combined with two elite attackmen. If they can produce against Shakopee’s defense, I think that will answer a lot of questions about how good their offense actually is. Props to buffalo for beefing up their schedule this year and getting more competitive games on the schedule. Shakopee took care of Jefferson in game 1 in a low scoring “defensive battle” and then exploded for 19 goals against Chaska. I thought Chaska was a team that was going to be improved this year but I think they are missing a key piece at goaltender. Not a recipe for success against a team with one of the most prolific goal scorers in the state. If Shakopee wins this game, I think they are definitely in the top 5 in the next poll. If their defense neutralizes Buffalo’s offense, then there should be no question about their defense moving forward. This should be an awesome game
STA v Woodbury
First look at both of these teams. Last year this was an OT thriller and one of the better games of the 2022 regular season. I think STA is a sneaky team this year that returned quite a bit of their main contributors. Year 2 of the new coaching staff assuming they were able to build on last year’s integration of new culture, systems, etc. Woodbury lost a ton of production and a generational talent in Conor Hooley. There are supposedly a handful of guys who have “waited their turn” to step into contributing roles and this should be a great test out of the gate. I expect STA to have more chemistry and game experience to win this first meeting but we could see another rematch between these two teams come section playoffs.
WEDNESDAY
Cretin Derham Hall v White Bear Lake - two teams that are traditionally solid squads that seem to fly under the radar a bit each year. I think both teams have top end talent on their teams but also lack depth. I am very curious to see how this one plays out. Neither team has played yet so this should be a good look at both of them. WBL seems to always be an athletic, aggressive bunch which could give them the edge early in the season when teams are working through their systems. Being able to cause havoc and get transition opportunities should bode well for them. CDH’s goalie is awesome and has the potential to steal some possessions and neutralize some of WBLs run and gun style. CDH attack is fantastic and if they can get enough possession time, should be able to generate scoring chances.
Woodbury vs Irondale - a quick turnaround for Woodbury and another great test. I guess we will know more Tuesday night on how this one might shape up on the Woodbury side. Irondale is one of those teams that seems to have a lot of hype going into each season. Their coach has done a great job growing their program and does a fantastic job promoting their team/school with a unique culture. There have been handful of great players that have come out of Irondale in the last 4 years and I do expect them to be a solid team in 2023. Strong regular seasons have not transpired into a playoff success quite yet, but, with Stillwater looking to be “down” this year, they may have a small window in Section 4.
Farmington v Rochester Mayo - We will get our first look at Rochester Mayo on Monday but they are a team that has been built around their 2023 class. A group that played club together and pretty much started varsity together as freshman, are now seniors looking to bring them back to the state tournament. They are largely unknown in the sense that last year they dealt with a myriad of injuries and struggled to be competitive. They have a couple athletic poles and a great attackman. They also have an experienced FO/S that will bode well for them against better teams. Farmington, a section 1 foe, looks to be one of their tougher games this year so, it will be interesting to see how that goes. Farmington, is off to a 2-0 start with wins against Blake and Eastridge. While the meat of their schedule will come later in May, they do seem to be answering any questions about the loss of their top 3 goal scorers and dominant FO guy from a year ago. A lot of returning varsity players who are stepping into new roles. I think this Mayo game could be closer than people expect and these two teams could end up playing again in playoffs.
