Friday, March 20, 1998
March News I
'Great 68' Set For this Weekend
Starting Friday March 20, the top 68 high school seniors in Minnesota -- selected by the Minn. High School Hockey Coaches Assoc. -- face off at 7:30 pm in both Moorhead and South St. Paul. The series, formerly called the High School All-Star Maroon and Gold Series, continues on Saturday with Friday's losers meeting at 6 p.m., followed by Friday's winners at 8 p.m.
Northeastern, Colorado College Get Goalies
Jason Braun of the Green Bay Gamblers (USHL) has committed to Northeastern University. Braun, a 19-year-old from Fruitport, Michigan, posted a 17-23-4 record with a 2.97 gaa and .896 save percentage this season. This is his second year in the USHL. Last year, as a member of the Clark Cup champion Lincoln Stars, Braun was named playoff MVP. (For the record, Marc Robitaille, Northeastern's #1 goaltender, is currently a sophomore.)
Sioux City goaltender Jeff Sanger has committed to Colorado College, becoming the seventh USHL player to commit to CC. Sanger, a 19-year-old from Madison, Wisconsin, posted a 2.54 gaa and a .919 save percentage this season. He also led the USHL in wins (25) and shutouts (4). (Current CC goaltenders are Jason Cugnet, a sophomore, and Colin Zulianello, a freshman.)
Braun's teammate at Green Bay, Doug Christiansen, has committed to Union. Christiansen, also 19 years old, is a 6-4, 220 lb.defenseman from Elm Grove, Wisconsin. Christiansen has 3 goals, 11 assists, and 148 penalty minutes in 49 games this season.
Omaha Lancers center Neil Breen, the fifth-leading scorer in the USHL (27-38-65), has committed to Quinnipiac College. Breen a 5-10, 195 lb. 19-year old from Spokane, Washington, played with the Nanaimo Clippers (BCHL) before coming to Omaha.
Dubuque forward Josh Kern, the league's seventh-leading scorer (29-35-64), has committed to Mankato State. Kern, a 20-year-old from Anchorage, Alaska, also has 174 penalty minutes this season.
Lannon and Two Others Commit to U.S. Under-18
The National Team Development Program tryouts are over in Ann Arbor, and so far three players have commited to the program. Included among this trio is St. Paul's superb freshman defenseman Ryan Lannon. Defenseman Andrew Downing of Grand Rapids (MN) HS and center David Steckel of the Milwaukee Petit Selects AAA also will don the red, white, and blue next season.
Osaer Headed to Ferris St.
Waterloo Blackhawks netminder Phil Osaer has commited to Ferris St. Osaer boasts a 3.07 goals against average to go along with a 12-20-2 record. The native of Livonia, Michigan played last season for Detroit Little Caesar's. "Phil has an outstanding mental makeup and physical skills for an 18 year old," explained Blackhawks' head coach Scott Pionk.
Dube Headed to UNH
Former Kimball Union forward Chris Dube will walk-on at UNH next season. Dube currently plays for the Des Moines Buccaneers in the USHL. At 6-2/195, Dube adds size to UNH's recruiting class.
What a Difference a Year Makes
By this time last year, Jeff Jackson, Bob Mancini, and Greg Cronin had spoken to the top 80's and 81's about coming to Ann Arbor to join the inaugural National Team Development Program. Some players jumped at the opportunity, while others -- Brooks Orpik, Jeff Jillson, and David Inman, to name just a few -- decided to stay where they were. The program was new, after all, so some resistance was expected.
This year, though, it's been totally different. Recently, Bob Mancini, the program's director of player personnel, began phoning players -- mostly 82's -- to invite them to the tryout camp running from Friday to Sunday in Ann Arbor. Of the first group of 40 invited, 38 said they'd be there.
Mancini's pleased, but not totally surprised.
"Once the program actually started," he said, "We knew it would take off. Our players have made tremendous improvement since arriving here. They -- and their parents, too -- have been our greatest ambassadors. They've spread the word."
He'll be a Huskie
Rich Spiller, who graduated from St. Paul's and has spent the last two years with the Lincoln Stars (USHL), has commited to Northeastern. Spiller, a 6'2",195 lb. offensive defenseman, can skate -- he has a long, smooth stride -- and carry the puck. In 49 games for Lincoln this season, he's the team's top-scoring defenseman (10-17-27). He also has 73 penalty minutes.
Henkel an Engineer
The wait is over. 6-2/180 center Jim Henkel of the New England Coyotes has given a verbal commitment to play for RPI next season. Henkel had been talking with New Hampshire, too. Earlier, Providence had showed interest.
News From Lowell
USHR's 1998 New England Prep School Tournament MVP Dan Fontas will be joining his older brother Mark at UMass-Lowell next season. All year we touted Cushing's talented "Kid Line" -- freshman left wing Ben Murphy, sophomore center Kurt Wright, and sophomore right wing Brian Doherty -- but this weekend Fontas and junior linemates Jeremy Wilson and Brad Nizwantowski carried the Penguins to the title. Fontas figured in all five Cushing goals on the weekend, and scored the game winners in both contests.
One player who won't be in a Lowell uniform next season is freshman T.C. Harris. Harris will take a year to play junior hockey. His off-ice behavior has been pretty good, relatively speaking, but it's hoped that a year of junior hockey will give him some added maturity.
Everett High and Joe Giantonio
Last week, we mentioned that Everett (Mass.) High had put themselves in a no-win situation by lodging an official protest with the MIAA in the wake of their exclusion from the Mass. 1A tournament. The selection committee clearly felt that Everett, 15-3-2 in the regular season, enjoyed a weaker schedule than most of the teams selected above it, and thus dropped them to the Division I tournament. Coach Don Concannon called his team's exclusion an "outrage."
Then they went out and lost on Tuesday (Mar. 3) to Matignon, 4-0, an ignominious ending to a good season. What Matignon did was totally shut down Joe Giantonio, Everett's 30-goal scorer. Giantonio, a 6-2/185 lb. right-shot center is an intriguing player. He's not DI, but he easily could be with another year and some concentrated coaching. And since he's only an '80, he has time on his side. He's an excellent student, and if he'd gone to a top prep school he'd likely be a money guy now. Giantonio's been accepted at Holy Cross for the fall, though he's looking at other schools, too.
Mills Commits to Merrimack
Last week, Thayer defenseman Brad Mills made a verbal commitment to Merrimack College. Vermont also showed interest, but Mills chose Merrimack -- after receiving assurances that the program would be in good hands.
The Wait, Part 27
It's March and there's still no word from the Jeff Jillson camp. We've heard that it's down to Michigan or Notre Dame, but the Jillson family tends to take a long time making decisions. Last year, when the Under-18 team was seeking Jillson, they, too, were forced to play the waiting game.
We're expecting a college decision shortly from Avon Old Farms forward Matt Hussey. Last week, the PG from Minnesota visited Wisconsin. Providence is in the hunt, and RPI weighed in with an offer as well.
Choate's Matt Weber has reportedly narrowed his college choices to either Ohio State or Colorado College. Earlier in the season, Weber turned down a full-boat offer from RPI.
Junior Coyotes center Jim Henkel is mulliing over offers from RPI and UNH. His teammate, Joe Carpenter, has committed to Holy Cross.
Roseau, Bloomington Jefferson, Anoka and Duluth East Move on
Yesterday (Mar. 5), a goal by junior Phillip Larson gave Roseau a 4-3 OT win over Edina. Bloomington Jefferson drubbed Owatonna, 8-0. Anoka edged White Bear Lake, 2-1. #1 ranked Duluth East beat Hastings, 5-4. Five different players scored for East, while Hastings linemates Jeff Taffe and Dan Welch both had a goal and two assists. One scout reports that Taffe is the tournament's best prospect, and Red Wing's Johnny Pohl the tournament's most overrated prospect. Of Pohl, there's no question that he has great mitts, but to get around big surfaces, his skating still needs improvement.
Tonight's AA semifinal game times at the St. Paul Civic Center: Bloomington-Jefferson vs. Duluth East, 7:05 pm; Anoka vs. Roseau, 9:45 pm.
No Surprise Here
Red Wing High School center Johnny Pohl has been named as Metro Player of the Year. Pohl, who'll be going to the U in the fall, is Minnesota's all-time scoring leader with 367 points in four years.
- Here are the past winners:
- 1985: Tom Chorske, Minn. Southwest
- 1986: Scott Bloom, Burnsville and Jim Carroll, Edina
- 1987: John Manthey, Anoka
- 1988: Tom Pederson, Bloomington-Jefferson
- 1989: Trent Klatt, Osseo
- 1990: Craig Johnson, Hill-Murray
- 1991: Darby Hendrickson, Richfield
- 1992: Brian Bonin, White Bear Lake
- 1993: Nick Checco, Jefferson
- 1994: Mike Crowley, Jefferson
- 1995: Richie Anderson, Elk River
- 1996: Shawn Pogreba, St. Paul Johnson
- 1997: Dan Carlson, Edina
The Metro All-Star teams have also just been announced:
- First Team:
- F -- Johnny Pohl, Sr., Red Wing
- F -- Dave Hergert, Sr., Bloomington-Jeff.
- F -- Dan Welch, Jr., Hastings
- D -- Ryan Johnson, Jr., Anoka
- D -- Tim Horst, Sr., South St. Paul
- G -- Mike Johnson, Sr., Minnetonka
- Second Team:
- F -- Lee Brooks, Sr., Jefferson
- F -- Jerrid Reinholz, Sr., Anoka
- F -- Jeff Taffe, Jr., Hastings
- D -- Sam Cornelius, Sr., Edina
- D -- Mark Nenovich, Sr., Wayzata
- G -- Blaine Garner, Jr., St. Agnes/St. Bernard's
- Third Team
- F -- Jake Flemming, Fr., Osseo
- F -- Pat O'Leary, Sr., Robb. Armstrong
- F -- Tim Olson, Sr., White Bear Lake
- D -- Jace Anders, Sr., St. Louis Park
- D -- Zach Scribner, Sr., Hill Murray
- G -- Brad Moore, Sr., Lakeville
Orpik Feature on ESPN Today (Mon. March 2)
ESPN will feature Thayer defenseman Brooks Orpik on its "Scholastic Sports America" program today (3/2/98) at 3:30 pm EST. Over the years, SSA has featured numerous prep standouts including Cushing's Tom Poti and Hotchkiss' Matt Herr. Last year they chronicled Canterbury's drive to the New England title. Since most people will read this after the fact, we will attempt to find out when the program will be replayed later in the week.
NEPSIHA All-Star Selections
The New England Private School Ice Hockey Association has named their regional all-star teams for divisions I and II.
Division I West
- G-Jason Lefevre, Hotchkiss '98
- D-Niko Dimitrakos, Avon Old Farms '98
- D-David Schneider, Westminster '98
- F-Don Richardson, Canterbury '98
- F-Joe Mastronardi, Choate '98
- F-Brett Nowak, Hotchkiss '99
Division I East
- G-Greg Berard, Andover '98
- D-John Cronin, Nobles '99
- D-Peter Metcalf, Cushing '98
- D-Brooks Orpik, Thayer '98
- F-Dan Casella, Lawrence Academy '98
- F-Jeff Giuliano, St. Paul's '98
- F-Mike Maturo, Belmont Hill '98
Can't argue too much with these selections, except perhaps the omission of Thayer winger Jack Baker. With that in mind, we at the USHR have been busy compiling our own end of the season superlatives. They'll be coming in short installments beginning tomorrow afternoon and running throughout playoff week.
Division II West
- G-Mark Gugliazza, Williston Northampton '98
- D-Tripp Donelan, Brunswick '98
- D-Matt Donoghue, South Kent '98
- F-Marc Cavosie, Albany Academy '99
- F-Steve Levac, Millbrook '99
- F-Jon Grabie, Williston Northampton '99
- F-Eric Bratcher, Wilbraham and Monson '98
Division II East
- G-Brian Gagne, North Yarmouth Academy '98
- D-Zach Antonucci, Holderness '98
- D-Ryan Locke, New Hampton '98
- D-Kyle MacIsaac, Middlesex '98
- F-R.J. Longchamps, Groton School '98
- F-David Manning, Holderness '98
- F-Josh Prudden, Pingree '98
An Upset at the Gut
It took 13 years and 29 tries, but Burlington High School finally beat Bellows Free Academy-St. Albans -- and they did it in the State Championship game, taking a 1-0 decision..
The game's lone goal came when junior forward Leighton Johnson backhanded home a rebound off BFA goaltender Jon Malboeus midway through the second period. The game's story, though, was Burlington senior goaltender Matt Desautels, who picked a good day to come up with the game of his life.
For the record, the last time Burlington beat BFA was December 11, 1985. After that Burlington went 0-27-1 until Saturday's win.
BFA, which won seven state titles in the 70's and four in the 80's, has gone 1-4 in Div. I championhip games this decade.
For Burlington HS, it was their first state title since 1985, and third overall.
Mass. Super Sunday Results
In Massachusetts Super 8 action on Sunday, #4 seed BC High edged #5 Billerica, 5-4; #6 seed Reading trounced #3 Arlington, 8-0; #2 seed Archbishop Williams beat #7 Arlington Catholic; #1 seed Catholic Memorial made custard of St. John's Prep, 13-1.
As always, the Super 8 is a double-elimination affair. That means the losers will be playing each other on Tuesday at the Big, Sterile Building Above North Station (we don't do free advertising for banks) and the winners will meet at the same venue Thursday night.
There's Division I action tonight at BC, with Belmont meeting Acton-Boxboro at 6 pm, and Melrose meeting Winchester at 8:15 pm.
NYA Repeats as Maine State Champions
North Yarmouth Academy, behind two goals and one assist from sophomore defenseman Nick Meintel, beat Lewiston HS in the state Class A championship game Saturday night at the Central Maine Civic Center in Lewiston.
Minnesota High School Quarterfinal Pairings
CLASS A
Here are the matchups for Wednesday March 4 at the St. Paul Civic Center: Red Wing (24-1) vs. East Grand Forks (19-5-1), 12:05 pm; Hermantown (20-4-1) vs. Fergus Falls (13-11), 2:45 pm; Mahtomedi (19-6-1) vs. Eveleth-Gilbert (19-6), 7:05 pm; St. Louis Park (15-9-1) vs. Mound-Westonka (21-4), 9:45 pm.
BEST BET: Red Wing, led by John Pohl, Minnesota's all-time career point leader, is the team to beat. However, they'll be facing highly-ranked East Grand Forks in the noon game, and an upset is possible. East Grand Forks is on an emotional high after winning the Section 8A Championship in their home arena, beating favored Warroad, 5-4 in the second OT. It will be the school's first trip to the state tournament in 16 years. With East Grand Forks still suffering from the effects of last year's floods, the town's outpouring of support for their high school hockey team has been latched onto by the media. One Minneapolis paper is carrying the story today -- expect the Twin Cities TV stations to follow suit.
CLASS AA
Thursday March 5 at the St. Paul Civic Center: Owatonna (15-9-1) vs. Blommington-Jefferson (23-2), 12:05 pm; Hastings (22-1-2) vs. Duluth East (22-3); 2:45 pm; White Bear Lake (16-9) vs. Anoka (20-3-2), 7:05 pm; Edina (21-4) vs. Roseau (20-4-1), 9:45 pm.
BEST BET: The top quarterfinal matchup looks to be Hastings, tops in its league, vs. Duluth East, the top team in the state. Hastings has one loss all year. It came the week after Christmas, when their three top players -- forwards Jeff Taffe and Dan Welch; defenseman Ben Tharpe -- were all in Kitchener, Ont. with a US Select-16 squad. Their opponent, Duluth East, has three losses on its record, but two are forfeits incurred when forward Rheese Carlson, who'd played in the USHL in the fall, failed to resubmit his guardianship forms (Carlson was quite quickly cleared to play, but the losses stood.) With Carlson up front, Pat Finnegan and Nick Angell on the blue line, and Adam Coole in net, Duluth East is the team to beat. However, the setup is right for an early exit.
The nightcap on Thursday pits a farming community on the Manitoba border (Roseau) vs. a wealthy suburb of Minneapolis (Edina). By the time the puck's dropped, Edina will have had eight days of rest between games. They deserve a break. At Mariucci Arena on Wednesday, in the longest-ever Minnesota high school game, it took Edina six OT's to dispatch Eden Prairie, 3-2.
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