Few things to discuss this week, and we’ll get to some thoughts on the UMD hockey teams in a bit.
First, we’ve reached one of the worst times of the year for online local sports conversation. What should be a joyous occasion — the grand tradition known as the Minnesota boys’ state hockey tournament is next week — is, once again, clouded by cries of unfair behavior by programs, along with whining about people being required to pay to consume content online.
The latter of those two is more of a constant in our society. Like, do you people work for free? Because we don’t. Anyway …
8 THOUGHTS
1. On Friday, the Duluth News Tribune published an op-ed by Scott Pionk, who is a titan of local hockey is currently is putting together a hockey program at Stella Maris Academy, which is set to add the sport now that it has a high school. Pionk, a former member of Hermantown’s hockey board and a father of five, has coached the sport and run an offseason hockey camp for a long time. If you follow hockey in the Twin Ports, you know the Pionk name.
Pionk took Hermantown’s varsity program to task in his op-ed for not making the move to Class AA, despite its long-standing dominance of Section 7A and Class A as a whole.
The current playoff system is a disaster. Hermantown is making a joke of it and laughing all the way to the bank. Its current schedule boasts 13 Class AA opponents. Versus local teams in either class, this season’s aggregate score is 52-5. This coming on the heels of Hermantown blanking its three local opponents 30-0 in last season’s playoffs.
2. Let’s be clear: Scott Pionk is more than qualified to write a piece on this topic. His family moved to Hermantown in 2000. We’ve seen Pionk family members like Nate, Neal, and Aaron all star in a Hermantown jersey. Nate played college hockey at St. Scholastica, Neal at UMD, and Aaron is committed to Minnesota State Mankato. Neal is in the NHL with the Winnipeg Jets and doing quite well for himself.
Scott coached in the USHL and more recently worked with the Proctor high school program before taking the Stella Maris gig, with the Sentinels set to start playing in 2023-24.
Scott Pionk is qualified, undoubtedly, and he has every right to feel the way he feels. While I feel compelled to share some thoughts on the topic here, by no means am I trying to pretend my way to think is the only one.
3. I have a lot of concerns over the constant rabble-rousing regarding Hermantown and Class AA. Let’s talk about a few of the main arguments.
–> They are largely unchallenged in Section 7A. Pionk is correct that Hermantown’s games against other teams in the section regularly end in running time. That would change, for sure, if playing in Section 7AA with the likes of Duluth East and Andover.
But that’s not Hermantown’s problem. Let’s take a look at Hermantown’s state tournament results over the last few trips, discounting 2021 because of the COVID issues that forced Hermantown to basically play its JV at state.
2022
New Prague W, 5-1
Alexandria W, 7-1
Warroad W, 3-2
2020
Monticello W, 7-1
St. Cloud Cathedral W, 6-2
Mahtomedi L, 3-2 OT
2018
Monticello W, 4-2
Alexandria L, 6-1
2017
Luverne W, 3-2 OT
St. Cloud Cathedral W, 6-5 OT
Monticello W, 4-3 2OT
Two titles in four trips, three wins coming in overtime, a blowout loss (deceiving score, no doubt, with some late empty net shenanigans), and, yes, some blowout wins. But nothing here would tell you that Hermantown is nearly as far ahead of fellow Class A contenders as it is its Section 7A rivals.
–> Their schedule is Class AA heavy. Yes, it is. But these Class AA teams are willing to play Hermantown, even though it does the Double-A teams no favors in the computer rankings to play Class A opposition. Says a lot about the Hermantown program, if you ask me.
I have said previously that I think it’s reasonable to suggest some sort of limitation on how much Double-A opposition a Class A team should be allowed to play. But I don’t know how you do this, especially when you look at conferences that are largely drawn for geographic purposes, used for multiple sports, and often contain schools of different sizes. I also don’t know who it benefits.
Teams are free to schedule their games however they want, once their conference commitments are taken care of. If that were to change, how would you do it, and for what other sports would it apply? We have district scheduling in football for a reason, and I’m not a fan of blowing up a system that appears to be working in that sport.
It feels like this is an issue that’s fun to bring up, but there’s no real easy solution to it, nor is there any consensus that we actually have a problem here.
–> Bruce Plante said St. Thomas Academy should move up. Yeah, he did. Ten years ago. He’s fishing now. Leave him alone, and stop holding his words and beliefs against other people.
–> Hermantown recruits. I’m in no position to say one way or the other. But at this point, does anyone at the top of the heap not recruit? Hell, we just watched Gentry Academy win the girls AA title over the weekend, and one of its players thanked her parents and family in California.
Open enrollment has gone crazy in all Minnesota high school sports, and hockey is not immune. It’s a larger issue, but at this point it feels like anyone complaining about one school doing it is just mad because that school did a better job than they did.
4. I have other concerns. Chief among them is this: Once we’re done guilting Hermantown into moving up when its enrollment is basically half the cutoff line for mandating a school play up, who’s next?
Warroad? Mahtomedi? St. Cloud Cathedral? Orono? How about East Grand Forks, which has produced a few Division I talents while winning multiple Class A titles over the years?
I can assure you that it isn’t going to stop. The online mob will come for someone in Class A who has the utter audacity to be good at playing hockey and developing kids.
The Class A tournament is growing. The field is becoming more and more competitive. Attendance has spiked over the last decade, especially on semifinal Friday, which has delivered some fantastic hockey. If we keep pressuring those dominating Class A to move up, all it does is water down Class A. It doesn’t make anything better.
We aren’t going back to a one-class tournament. And moving a bunch of good Class A teams to Class AA won’t create the illusion of one.
5. Ultimately, how about letting these folks run their programs? If Duluth Denfeld and Rock Ridge want to move up to Class AA, good luck to them. I hope they get everything out of it they want. If Cloquet/Esko/Carlton wants to cease opting up to Class AA, that’s okay, too. I hope it works out for them.
Hermantown has an unbelievable outdoor facility. They have an amazing culture that kids want to be a part of. They produce Division I hockey talent left and right. Basically, this is a model program in either class. They aren’t breaking any rules.
Appreciate it. Enjoy it. And, if you’re into that sort of thing, pull hard for the storybook upset. Sometimes, it’s more fun if you have someone to root “against.”
6. UMD ran into trouble on Saturday night. The Bulldogs didn’t work hard enough in the defensive zone, didn’t get great goaltending, turned the puck over too often, fell behind, and ran into a red-hot Miami goalie Ludvig Persson.
It’s a problematic recipe that we’ve seen too many times this season, which is why UMD is locked into a losing record in league play, and locked into a road series to open the NCHC playoffs next week.
“Couple of bad goals, turnovers,” said UMD coach Scott Sandelin. “Now you’re chasing the game. Had some opportunities throughout the game. It’s the story of the year, right?”
51 shots on goal, 50 of them stopped by Persson. Miami blocked 18 shots, which doesn’t count the ones that were deadened but actually got to Persson. The RedHawks were committed, and UMD couldn’t crack the code after falling behind for good.
7. No way around it: That’s a bad loss. Miami hadn’t won a game in 2023. The RedHawks are already locked into last place in the league. And while credit should be given to that team’s leadership for the effort we’ve seen from them the last few weekends, there’s no way of avoiding the fact that this was a bad loss for UMD.
The Bulldogs had won three straight. They’d shown some signs of real life in the second half, even in games they lost. But on Saturday night, UMD faded after starting fast but failing to take the lead, didn’t execute its offense, and a third-period shot of desperation wasn’t enough to get the Bulldogs back in the game.
Tough way to end the home season.
8. Before we go, congratulations to UMD women’s standouts Ashton Bell and Emma Soderberg, who were named finalists for WCHA individual awards on Monday. Bell is up for Defender of the Year with Ohio State’s Sophie Jaques and Wisconsin freshman standout Caroline Harvey, while Soderberg is a finalist for Goalie of the Year with Skylar Vetter of Minnesota and Saskia Maurer of St. Thomas.
The record-setting Soderberg was named the WCHA Goaltender of the Month for February after conceding two (2) goals in four (4) games in the month. She posted a .983 save percentage in February, setting UMD records for shutouts in a single season (11) and career (22).
UMD faces Ohio State in the WCHA Final Faceoff semifinals Friday in Minneapolis.
Have a good week, all. Enjoy the high school playoffs!
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