Daily Dish 5.17
This season is bonkers. The parity between all of the teams in the top 20 is crazy. Sure, it will most likely be your big dogs at the end of the year, but, it has been fun seeing upsets and great games all season long. Last night had some crazy ones:
The Valley 8 v Farmington 7: Another really close SSC game. Obviously, a first hand account of this game, I thought it was a competitive game but both teams left a lot on the table. Both teams will probably have a lot of moans and groans watching this game back with some easy plays that were missed. Nonetheless, The Valley continues to find a way to win games in the SSC and Farmington is close but not quite able to close out some of these better SSC teams. Both teams are capable of winning their section if they play to their potential.
Shakopee 15 v Lakeville North 6: This was probably the surprise of the night… I think with Shakopee’s loss to the valley in OT and their loss to Moorhead - they sort of slipped into oblivion as far as “top team discussions” were concerned. However, they are still a very good squad. I watched this game on replay and I was noticeably impressed with how disruptive the Shakopee poles were. Lakeville has been shredding teams offensively but Shakopee made life uncomfortable for them. They weren't able to razzle-dazzle and Shakopee turned this into more of a game of physical 1v1 matchups. Shakopee also did a good job at the X. Their face-off guy is no slouch, but, Lakeville has been electric in that regard. Shakopee took away their best asset, early offense, and was able to get possessions by DOMINATING ground balls and forcing Lakeville to play a game physicality vs finesse. Tip of the cap to Shakopee. Lakeville did not have their best day, but, they are still a very good team and will take a lot from this game, I would believe.
Buffalo 12 v Minnetonka 11: Surprise score #2 here. I didn’t see this game so I can’t comment a ton, but, this is by far Buffalo’s biggest win of the year and second year in a row they beat Minnetonka in OT. Must just be a team they matchup well against. I am surprised Buffalo scored 12 on the skippers’ defense. Mtka defense is solid and buffalo has been struggling to score goals against good teams. Maybe the Bison figured some stuff out. Maybe tonka is hitting that May slump again like they did last year. I think their next games will be huge for both teams. Tonka to get back on track and Buffalo to keep the momentum rolling.
BSM 13 v Chanhassen 8: Surprise score #3 of the night. This game was not competitive at all. BSM dominated from the first whistle. It wasn’t until late in the game when backups were going in that Chan climbed back to make this a more respectable score. BSM is just on another level - they don’t make a lot of mistakes and they have the depth to press all game. Chanhassen is a very good team and have some top individual players, but, their lack of midfield depth hurt them in this game. Their defense played fine considering how much defense they had to play and when their attackmen got the ball they did find a way to score, but, between the boxes, BSM had a huge advantage. Will be interesting to see how both these teams move forward from here, Red Knights look like they are finally dialing some things in… Chanhassen will regroup and is still a very good team - maybe we will see some adjustments to personnel to help beef up the midfield depth.
Maple Grove 8 v Eden Prairie 6: This game turned out exactly as I expected. Close, low scoring, grinder. Both teams are defensive first, athletic teams. They have been able to slow down some powerful offenses enough to stay in games all year. I think Eden Prairie is the best 4-5 team in the state right now - they have stayed close with pretty much everyone. Maple Grove just continues to find a way to win. They are a tough team and have a solid foundation to work with. Will they be able to beat BSM in sections? I don’t know. They athletic strength of their team maybe gives them a shot, but, it’s going to be tough. Nonetheless, they are having a great season and are battling everyone.
Hill-Murray 6 vs Mahtomedi 5: Surprising score #4 on the night. Mahtomedi just beat Eden Prairie on Saturday 8-2. This was EP’s worst loss of the season (despite having played Edina, LVN, Mtka) so I was thinking maybe the Zephyrs are back! Wrong. Hill-Murray with a massive section/conference win to help their case in the seeding meeting. Hill-Murray had some hype this season of being a team to watch out for. It hasn’t quite transpired, but, maybe this was the start of a little end of season run for them?? I think Section 4 could be a wild one.
Prior Lake 14 v Eagan 8: Not surprised PL won but I am surprised that it was by a 6 goal margin. Eagan has been making games with everyone this year and has one of the better face-off guys. I thought they’d give PL some fits, but, from watching this game, PL stayed disciplined on the defensive end… they pressured the ball and took away easy outlets making Eagan panic quite a bit offensively. No official stats up yet for PL, but, they did have a good shooting night scoring 14 goals on 25 SOG.
