CROOKSTON YOUTH HOCKEY REPORT – JANUARY 13-19, 2020

The Crookston Blue Line Club has released the Crookston Youth Hockey report for January 13-19.  The report and the players of the week are listed below – 

MITE WHITE
The mite white team played in Bagley this past Sunday. The team played their best game of the season this year. They all played the game of hockey, shooting the puck on net, crashing the net for rebounds, passing the puck to each other, and playing defense (protecting the house). We, as coaches, were very happy with how hard every player played and all the positive things they did.

Colton Gasper is our player of the week. Colton scored three goals on Sunday. He has proven himself all year by giving 100% every time he steps on the ice. Colton is a great asset on our Mite White team. He has the hardest and most accurate shot, great hands, and he can fly on the ice. Keep up the great work Colton!

MITE BLUE
The Mite Blue only had one game over the weekend, and it was a win in Bagley. The team did great spreading out, making passes, and playing their positions very well. As a group, we dominated in the offensive zone and had a lot of success. Every player on the Blue team scored during our 20-1 victory! Defensively, we back checked very well in our second full ice game. Davin Janek was our goalie for this week and did very well.

Jacob Biermaier is our player of the week this week. Jacob has started to use his speed over the last couple of weeks and is playing good hockey both ways. Jacob tallied two goals against Bagley but stopped 3 or 4 of Bagley’s chances defensively. Nice job, Jacob, and keep up the good work!

8U
The 8U player of the week is Jennika Reese.  Jennika is in her first year of hockey at 8U this year.  She has greatly improved by working hard, and bringing a positive attitude every day.  Keep up the good work Jennika!
We had our game last weekend canceled due to weather, and look forward to getting back into games this Saturday against TRF, and Sunday against EGF.

SQUIRT
The Squirt team only played Sunday at home against Bemidji. Our other scheduled games were canceled due to the weather. In the first period against Bemidji, Colin Trudeau started in net and did his part, making some great saves. Offensively we were unable to score and defensively had a hard time clearing the puck at times, and at the end of the first, it was 0-1.
In the second period, we had a lot more pep, and 8 seconds after the puck dropped Grant Funk was able to get our first point on the board and tie things up. Bemidji was able to score again 1:20 later after the puck stayed down in our defensive zone a little too long. Two minutes later, we were able to capitalize on a power play after Hudson Rick made a nice pass to Grant Funk, who buried the puck in the back of the net. Halfway through the 2nd period, we switched goaltenders as we usually do, now Tony Elbinger was between the pipes.
We headed to the locker room for a period break with 2-2 on the scoreboard. We had one period left to show who wanted it more, and the boys in blue and gold made it clear in the 3rd. The boys played a lot more hockey down in the offensive zone in the 3rd and had quite a few chances to score. We finally took the first lead of the game when Grant Funk was able to score a power-play goal. Bemidji was able to tie things back up with 2:43 left in the game. The Boys didn’t give up and kept working hard, and we were able to draw a tripping penalty with 1:43 left in the game, putting us on the power play for the rest of the game. With 43 seconds on the board, we were able to regain the lead with a goal from Camren Duncan, who was helped by the rest of the power-play unit. It was a great 4-3 win, and it all came from great teamwork and each individual doing their part to contribute to a great victory.

The player of the week for this week is goalie Colin Trudeau! Colin has tremendously improved since the start of the season. His hard work in practice has translated into games, and he came up with some big saves the last few weeks, including a shutout! In our game against Bemidji, Colin did his part, keeping the game close until the team started to gain momentum. Colin is doing excellent in this, his first year of squirt hockey! Congratulations Colin! YOU earned it!

10U
Last weekend we only played one game due to the storm.  We traveled to East Grand Forks 10U team on Sunday.  We had a very good second period and were rewarded with quite a few goals.  In the third period, some of the girls tried out playing different positions.  There was some nice passing going in the game.  We went on to beat EGF 11-2.  Scoring for us was:  Adley Vigness (4 goals), Sydney McDonald (2 goals), and Kira Daniels, Rilynn Aubol, Shyuh Burnette, Irelyn Trostad, and Madi Abrams each scoring a goal.  Good job girls.

PEEWEE B
We played in another tournament this past weekend, this time as the host team!  The weather kept everyone on their toes, but Friday afternoon, all teams continued into town for a great weekend of hockey. The boys opened up the tournament on Friday at 4 pm against the River East Royals (Canada).  The boys were amped up and ready to play, they came out hot scoring four goals in the first period, Crookston went on to win 9-1. Scoring for Crookston was Conner Hanson (4G, 1A), Gavin Aakhus (3G), Wyatt Marsyla (1G), Marcus Narvaez (1G) and Isaiah Donarski (3A).

The boys took the ice again on “Hockey Day Minnesota” (Saturday morning) against Park City West (Canada), it was a blustery day that looked like Minnesota both outside and inside the CSC, and there is nothing we’d rather be doing!  The game started back and forth, and neither team was able to find the back of the net. It took nearly 6 mins in the second period before David Dauksavage was able to get Crookston on the board (Assisted by Conner Hanson).  A couple of minutes later, Wyatt Marsyla found Isaiah Donarski, who notched the second goal for Crookston as they took a 2-0 lead into the second intermission.  Crookston came out hot in the 3rd period scoring three more goals as they went on to win 6-1.  Scoring in the 3rd period for Crookston was Jack Buhler (1G), Conner Hanson (1G), Masen Reitmeier (1G), Alex Mattson (1G), Isaiah Donarski (2A), Dexter Janek (1A).

We played again early Saturday afternoon against a tough 7 Oaks Raiders (Canada) team.  It was a hard-fought game from puck drop to the final horn, Isaiah Donarski gave Crookston a 1-0 lead when he beat the goaltender halfway through the 1st period.  7 Oaks was able to score twice the second period to take a 2-1 lead going into the 3rd period.  The 3rd period was intense, Crookston pulled the goalie with 45 seconds to play and maintained constant pressure, but couldn’t find the equalizer.  Crookston lost 2-1 and went to the semi-finals as the three seed after pool play.

The semi-final game came early on Sunday morning against St Boniface Seals (Canada), the Seals were a great hockey team that moved the puck very well.  Crookston struggled to get the puck out of their zone and create any offensive pressure.  The Seals had a 3-0 lead going into the 3rd period when Jack Buhler (Assisted by Donarski) was able to put Crookston on the board 3-1.  Crookston would ultimately lose 4-1 and found themselves in the 3rd place game once again.

The 3rd place game was against another 7 Oaks team (Canada), 7 Oaks jumped out to a 2-0 lead after one period.  Crookston was able to answer when Gavin Aakhus connected with Conner Hanson for a goal mid-way through the second period.  Crookston later tied it 2-2 when Wyatt Marsyla scored on a short-handed opportunity.  The wheels fell off for Crookston when 7 Oaks was able to score three goals in the last 3:27 of the second period.  Crookston lost 6-2 to take 4th place in the eight-team tournament.  The boys didn’t seem to have it this game, this was their 10th game in 7 days, and they ran out of steam.

Player of the Week – Jack Buhler.  We needed Jack to play forward for us this weekend, and he accepted the challenge head-on!  He worked hard in the offensive zone and was in a position to bury the puck in 2 crucial moments of this tournament.  His defensive skills came in handy on the backcheck as he showcased his ability to be a two-way player.  Great work this weekend, Jack, keep up the hard work!

12U
Mother Nature gave the girls a day off this past weekend!  Instead of the scheduled four games, only one game was played on Sunday, January 19.  The 12UA team hosted the 12U Bemidji Lumberjacks, for their 2nd meeting this season.  The Pirates came ready to play and started the game off with a quick goal by Emma LaPlante (assist to Paige Abrahamson).  Twenty-four seconds later, Miryah Epema (assists to Karena Longoria & Jojo Wallace) scored again for the Pirates, and just 21 seconds after that, Jojo Wallace secured a goal of her own!  The Pirates were up 3-0, just under 4 minutes into the game.  Bemidji called a timeout, and their play shifted after that.  The girls held their own, played well, and had a total of 13 shots on the Bemidji goalie in the 1st period.  Bemidji was able to secure one goal in the first, making it 3-1 at the end of the period.

In the 2nd period, Bemidji scored first, after 11 minutes of play.  They had more shots on net that period than the Pirates, as the Pirates were on the penalty kill for much of the period.  Bemidji scored with a little under 6 minutes left in the 2nd period, making the game 3-2.  Pirate Ashlyn Bailey (assist to Karena Longoria) scored towards the end of the period, making it 4-2 at the end of the 2nd period.

In the final period, both teams went scoreless for the first 15 minutes!  Ashlyn Bailey scored with just under 2 minutes left in the period on a power play, and breakaway.  Jojo Wallace (assists to Georgia Sanders & Addie Fee) secured her 2nd goal in the game, with just 21 seconds left in the game.  The final score was 6-2, with the Pirates securing the district win.  Julia Buhler was in net for the Pirates, and had 19 saves on the game!

This next week, Crookston has five games as follows:
The 12UB faces Grand Forks B on 1/20 at 7 p.m. at the CSC in Crookston.
The 12UA team has the following games this week:
1/23 vs. Grand Forks A at 7:15 p.m. @ the CSC in Crookston.
1/24 @ Moorhead at 5 p.m. @ the Cullen Hockey Center in Moorhead.
1/25 @ West Fargo at 1:30 p.m. @ the Coliseum Arena in Fargo.
1/26 vs. Warroad at 10:30 a.m. @ the CSC in Crookston

Player of the Week – JoJo Wallace.  JoJo had a big game against Bemidji with two goals and an assist. She a very strong positionally and works hard every shift. JoJo has an awesome attitude and is a great teammate. JoJo is a forward on a line with Miryah E. and Karena L.

BANTAM
The Crookston Bantams had two games this week. On Sunday, Crookston traveled to Roseau and won 4-1. Scoring for Crookston was Brekken Tull, Carter Trudeau, Jackson Reese, and Jayden Steinbrink. Assists went to Reese(2), Trudeau, Riley Helgeson, and Kadin Edwards. Jackson Dauksavage turned away 18 shots.
On Monday, Crookston dropped a close one to Grand Forks 5-4. Goals for Crookston came from Brekken Tull, Carter Trudeau(2), and Kadin Edwards. Assists went to Trudeau, Reese, Dalen Korynta(2), Edwards, Koda Donarski, Steinbrink, and Brekken Tull.

Players of the Week – Carter Trudeau and Blake Melsa
Carter has been playing some great hockey lately, and it is showing up on the scoreboard. This past weekend he had three goals and two assists. Carter is a great center who isn’t afraid to grind away in the corners and play physical. Carter comes to practice each week, ready to work his hardest and improve each day. Keep up the great work, Carter!
Blake is one of the defensemen on our Bantam team this season. Blake has improved tremendously on both sides of the puck this year. He has started to find his offensive side scoring a couple of goals for Crookston in the last few weeks. On the defensive side of the puck, Blake is doing a much better job with his gap control, defensive positioning, and physical play. We look forward to Blake’s continued improvement. Keep up the great work!