2021-2022 Surprise Teams
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This high school hockey season has brought much parody in both classes. In Class A, Hermantown and Warroad are the clear top two teams and should be the favorites to meet each other in the title game. However, after these…
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Continue ReadingThis high school hockey season has brought much parody in both classes. In Class A, Hermantown and Warroad are the clear top two teams and should be the favorites to meet each other in the title game. However, after these two teams, we having been seeing many new teams in the top 10 this season. These are teams who haven’t had much recent success and in some cases, reaching the top 10 for the first time ever. I am going to feature three of those teams and analyze the top players from each.
Detroit Lakes | Section 8A | Mid-State Conference
The Lakers of Detroit Lakes have probably been the biggest surprise in all of high school hockey, holding a record of 16-4 so far. Better yet, two of their losses came in the first two games of the season and they are currently riding a 7 game winning streak. They have proven that they can hang with any team in the section, having close battles with the top dogs in Warroad and East Grand Forks. They also have some impressive wins over Thief River Falls and Fergus Falls. Now let’s meet the players who have helped propel Detroit Lake’s impressive season…
Spencer Bergman | Senior | Forward
Bergman is having himself another nice season as he is once again the leading point scorer for the Lakers with 43 so far. Spencer’s biggest performance probably came vs Fergus Falls, where he tallied 1 goal and 2 assists in a 6-3 victory. Bergman is a player that was not included in our recently updated Class of 2022 Player Rankings and he has shown us that he probably does deserve a spot on that list.
Jordan Fields | Senior | Forward
Fields is another senior on Detroit Lakes who is having a pretty solid season. Jordan’s stat line looks like this so far: 13 goals, 24 assist, for a total of 37 points. Fields most impactful performance probably came in the Lakers last game vs Brainerd, where he notched 1 goal and 1 assist in a 2-0 victory. Jordan is another player who was not included in our updated rankings for the senior class and he is proving us wrong with a monster season.
Tyler Kludt Tyler Kludt Forward Alexandria | 2023 State MN | Junior | Forward | Prep Hockey #127 ’23’s
Tyler Kludt Tyler Kludt Forward Alexandria | 2023 State MN is another player with a pretty impressive stat line so far this season. He has 9 goals and 18 assists and is 3rd when it comes to points on the team. The 11th grader’s best performance came versus Prairie Center, where he totaled 5 points in an 8-0 contest. Larson is a player to look out for in the next year and might move up in our next version of the Class of 2023 Player Rankings.
Cambridge-Isanti | Section 5A | Mississippi 8 Conference
The Bluejackets are another surprising team in Class A. With a record of 16-4-1, they have greatly exceeded expectations this season. Just like Detroit Lakes, two of Cambridge’s losses came in the first two game of the season and have won every game but three since. Their signature wins came versus Little Falls, Chisago Lakes, and Monticello. With most of the teams in Section 5A being pretty even, I feel like this team has a legitimate shot to make the state tournament, which would be their second trip in program history. The last trip came all the way back in 1992. Now I am going to go through the top performers and provide an analysis on each…
Adam Puder Adam Puder 6'2" | Defense Blaine | 2023 State MN | Junior | Forward | Prep Hockey #141 ’23’s
Adam Puder Adam Puder 6'2" | Defense Blaine | 2023 State MN has been the star on this Bluejacket team this season. In 21 games, Overby has tallied 12 goals and 14 assist. Finn actually had a pretty slow start out of the gate, not having a point in his first four games. But, after the uninspiring start by the junior, he has been red hot ever since. There is only one game since that stretch where he did not tally at least one point. His biggest goal defiantly came vs Little Falls in overtime, which was a defining victory for his team. Overby has been a special player and just remember, he’s only a junior on this fairly young Cambridge-Isanti team.
Will O’Donovan | Sophomore | Forward
O’Donovan is another underclassmen on the Bluejackets who has contributed mightily as a 10th grader. Will is second in points behind Overby with 24 total. O’Donovan has two games where he tallied 3 points in fairly close games and numerous 2 point games. Will is not in our Class of 2024 Player Rankings, which were recently released right here on Prep Hockey. 50 players were ranked in the first edition and more will come in the next update. This sophomore of Cambridge-Isanti will defiantly be considered come that time!
Jaxon Sibell | Freshman | Goaltender
Goaltender Sibell of the Bluejackets is off to a stellar start to his high school career between the pipes and he is only a freshman. With a record of 13-2, GAA of 2.07, and SV% of .922, the young goaltender looks like he is in veteran form. Very impressive numbers so far and he’s a huge reason why Cambridge-Isanti is having so much success this season. In the matchup vs Little Falls, Jaxon stopped 45 of 48 shots in the Bluejackets 4-3 overtime victory. If this team is going to make a run this season, Sibell will need to keep up his play in the crease and he is showing no signs of slowing down going into the postseason.
Minneapolis | Section 2A | Independent
Out of the three teams featured in this article as “surprise teams”, Minneapolis has probably made the biggest splash this season. With a record of 16-4-1, the team from the big city has many big wins, including victories over Alexandria, Totino-Grace (4-1), Orono, and Delano. This is one of the best Minneapolis teams we have seen in awhile and I could seriously see them making a run come section playoff time. They have proven themselves numerous times now and also have a handful of players in our Prep Hockey rankings who we are going to meet now!
Jack Hanson | Senior | Forward | Prep Hockey #65 ’22’s
Jack Hanson has led the charge for Minneapolis this season and has tallied a whopping 38 points so far. Hanson has come up big for his team in numerous games, including major contributions in wins over Providence Academy, Alexandria, and Totino-Grace earlier in the season. Jack has a huge opportunity in hand to help lead this Minneapolis team to the promise land, Downtown St. Paul and the Xcel Energy Center. They’ve performed very well within Section 2A and we will see what unfolds in the next couple weeks.
Zander Zoia Zander Zoia 5'7" | Defense Minneapolis | 2022 State MN | Senior | Forward | Prep Hockey #90 ’22’s
Zander Zoia Zander Zoia 5'7" | Defense Minneapolis | 2022 State MN is another Senior on this Minneapolis team who is having a monster campaign. Zoia has tallied 27 points this season and contributed with at least a point in all of the big section and marquee Class A matchups. This senior class at Minneapolis has proven to be a strong one and it could possibly be their year to make a run if they can put it all together in the playoffs. Right now, Minneapolis is eyeing up the #1 seed in that section and have a great chance to capture the top seed if they can take care of business in the last couple games.
Alex Lamont Alex Lamont Goalie Minneapolis | 2022 State MN | Senior | Goaltender | Prep Hockey #103 ’22’s
Alex Lamont Alex Lamont Goalie Minneapolis | 2022 State MN is a huge reason why Minneapolis is off to such a potent start this season. Lamont holds a record of 16-4-1, GAA of 1.90, and a SV% of .911. As a coach and teammate, those are the type of numbers you want to see in your goaltender. For Alex, it has been nice that he hasn’t faced a ton of shots in key games within the section, but he still had to be very sharp as his team has played in some close contests. Overall, I’m very excited to see what happens in Section 2A and I think it’s going to be a fun section to watch. I can tell you one thing, I will be keeping a close eye on this team and don’t be surprised to see them make a run.