The Three Key Door For Sartell-St. Stephen
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Every team in the state, whether it is a defending state champion or a struggling squad, starts their season out with a door that stands between them and success. Nonetheless, every team is just as capable of unlocking their potential…
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Continue ReadingEvery team in the state, whether it is a defending state champion or a struggling squad, starts their season out with a door that stands between them and success. Nonetheless, every team is just as capable of unlocking their potential through an interwoven combination of skill, strategy, leadership, and coaching. In this new series kicking up here for Prep Hockey, I will be taking a look at the three keys each and every team in the state needs to open up the door that stands between them and a great year by their unique standards. Today, I’ll be covering the defending Central Lakes conference champions, Sartell-St. Stephen.
Key #1: Noah Hacker Noah Hacker 5'9" | Goalie Sartell | 2024 State MN
Yep, this guy is a whole key to success on his own, so for lack of a better title, I put his name at the top of the keys. Noah Hacker Noah Hacker 5'9" | Goalie Sartell | 2024 State MN is Sartell’s returning goalie and one of the top Class of 2024 puck snatchers in the state. Through 27 games between the pipes, he had a 17-7-3 record, a stellar .920 save percentage, and four shutouts, all numbers that earned him an All-Conference selection in 2022-2023. On tape, the 6 foot, 175 pounder is great at both extending his body to snag well placed shots and turtling up to cover the puck after any hard slapshot that could take an errant bounce. Hacker’s stellar reaction time and positioning in net means he always has a chance to save a shot, and this type of play is greatly appreciated by his defense, as they were always working hard to keep Hacker unscathed. His best game of last season had to be against Warroad, where when facing one of the best attacks in the state, he saved 42 of 43 Warrior shots en route to a 1-1 tie that wouldn’t have been possible without this stellar performance in the net. Hacker has one more year in the Sabre blues, and it should be one worth watching.
Key #2: Finish Out Close Contests
Although this seems rather on the nose, the Sabres had their fair share of winnable games that they fumbled down the wire last year in spite of their great season. A few that come to mind include a close loss against Brainerd, ties versus Warroad, St. Cloud, and Alexandria, and an inability to beat Moorhead, who defeated them in both the regular and postseason. Although this might sound nit-picky, I do firmly believe that Sartell could have escaped all of these games with victories, and their record would have looked a lot different if they did. These games that came down to the final horn were usually lost or tied because of a lapse in only one aspect of the Sabres’ game, which means it is a very fixable issue. For example, in their loss against Brainerd, Noah Hacker Noah Hacker 5'9" | Goalie Sartell | 2024 State MN ‘s save percentage was 100 points lower than his season average, and this uncharacteristically bad game was a big part of the reason the Sabres fell 5-3. Inversely, Hacker nearly put together a shut out against Warroad’s powerhouse of an attack, but the Sabre offense was lackluster, and due to this, they only picked up a 1-1 tie rather than a morale boosting upset victory. The fact that Sartell was never blown out of the water, even in their worst losses of last season, is a good sign, and if they can close out games better this coming winter, their record should see an improvement.
Key #3: Get Baylor Stebbins Baylor Stebbins 5'11" | Forward Sartell | 2024 State MN Help in the Offensive Zone
Baylor Stebbins Baylor Stebbins 5'11" | Forward Sartell | 2024 State MN was Sartell’s top scorer in 2022-2023, racking up 42 points off of 20 goals and 22 assists on his way to receiving All-Conference honors. However, Stebbins biggest supporters on the offensive end, Forward Elliot Testa and Defenseman Sterling McCabe, have both graduated, leaving gaping holes in the Sabre attack. Although Stebbins is returning for another season, he is the lone All-Conference skater that is back, meaning it may be hard for him to replicate his production without the other award winners from last season. All things considered, this means if Stebbins and Sartell want to have a successful year, they’re going to go to the drawing board to figure out who will replace Testa and McCabe. After taking a glance at their roster, I’d say Anthony Colatrella and Carter Bollinger are best suited to step up and give Stebbins some much needed backup. Colatrella’s 36 points was good for third on the team, and Bollinger’s 12 was second among defensemen, with McCabe being the only one ahead of him. Both these guys will likely have increased roles this coming season, which means they should both see increased production on the offensive end as well.
What Lies Behind the Door: Sartell’s 17-7-3 record paired with a Section 8AA semifinal exit is a good, but admittedly not great season on paper. The team struggled to close out games, were inconsistent on the offensive and defensive end at times, and didn’t make it very far in the playoffs. Nonetheless, this is one of those teams that I believe is much better than their record implies, and if they can piece together a squad of a similar caliber to their 2022-2023 roster, I think they could be in the running for a Section Title.