ROSEAU RAMS TOO STRONG FOR PIRATE GIRL’S HOCKEY IN A 9-1 WIN

The Roseau Rams showed off their speed, passing, and strength, defeating the visiting Crookston Pirates 9-1 at the Ram Center in Roseau. Although the score might not indicate it, Crookston didn’t play all that bad, but didn’t have an answer for a team that has high talent and it is hard to see the difference between their three lines.

First Period
Roseau started out for about the first three minutes in the Crookston end, moving quickly, passing as quick and right on the stick, but the Pirates held them to the outside and didn’t allow many shots. About that three minute mark and Crookston having sent three lines out, they realized what they had to do. Even though you played an emotional game last night, beating Fergus Falls in overtime, you have
to step it up a bit in speed, be aggressive and get in their lanes and disrupt their play.
Roseau did score first about five minutes into the game when Ginevra Johnson was able to find a rebound and knocked it in for a 1-0 lead. Crookston would counter with their only goal of the game when last night’s hero with the goal in overtime, Nora Peterson, had a loose puck find her in the slot, and she rifled it past the Rams goalie, Josie Johnson, to make it a 1-1 game with just under six minutes to go in the period. Roseau would counter about a minute and a half
later when eighth-grader Payton Remick let go a shot from the left circle of the Pirate goal that seemed to surprise Crookston goalie Kailee Magsam to regain the lead for the Rams and a 2-1 lead, which is how the first period ended. “I’m not sure if coming off such an emotional win last night against Fergus Falls and then making a two-hour bus trip up here was a reason, but we took a while to play the
type of game we have to against a very good team like Roseau,” said Crookston head coach Tim Moe. “I liked the way we fought back, but you waste so much energy in your defensive zone and when you finally get the puck out to the neutral zone you don[t have much left in the tank to take in the offensive zone. I was happy though to be trailing just by one after the first period.” How did the Pirates respond in the locker room after the first period” “We just reminded them about the things that have made us successful, taking their hands, getting
in their lanes,” said Moe.

Second Period
It was a lapse of just over three minutes when Roseau put together three goals with six minutes to go in the second period. Senior Mariah Huglen was able to get about the third rebound from Magsam and get it past Kailee, then senior Sophie Helgeson sniped a blistering shot from on the top the circle and finished off by junior Memphis Mertens with a rebound and the game was blown open as the Rams took a 5-1 lead. Crookston started the period off with about the same amount of step and speed that Roseau had to start the game. Crookston took a
couple penalties in the period, the only three of the game thus far and the Pirates did an admiral job of killing off all the penalties with Reese Swanson and Morgan Nelson causing problems for the Rams to get to the net. Roseau did have the puck in the Crookston zone for quite a bit of time and not scoring until later, but suddenly the shots were reflection how the game was going with Roseau outshooting the Pirates 14-4 in the second period. “I think the thing is that they were just stronger than us,” said Moe, “We might have been in pretty good position and tried to use our sticks to knock the puck away and they’d go right through it. It’s like an arm tackle in football and this is what I’m going to take away the most from this game, is the strength they had.”

Third Period
The Rams scored early as Mariah Huglen scored again followed by one of the best Class AA players in the state, Sophie Helgeson who scored her second as well and it turned into running time. The Rams scored a couple more goals to make it 9-1, the last a short-handed one as time ran out. “It was good to play a team like this at this time of the year,” said Moe, “they have a lot of seniors and juniors, they play a AA schedule and need to be good, so they work hard. We’ve heard all the time of the Helgeson girls, Huglen, and others. When they get a chance to bury the puck they do. It was nice to see it from our perspective so we can hopefully prepare for that if we do get the opportunity to play Warroad in the playoffs.” Crookston did have some chances when Roseau would come once in a while cough up a puck at center ice or inside their own blue line, and it would start to appear the
Pirates would have a breakaway with some of their fastest skaters, Peterson and Swanson, but Roseau with their speed would cut them off at the pass. “Roseau recovered so well, when you thought it was going to be something at the red line or their blue line, but they would catch us. That was probably the effect of us not having a lot gas being in the defensive zone so long” said Moe. It wasn’t the night
Crookston wanted for sure but, “we never gave up,” said Moe, “we fought hard to the end. I talked to the Roseau coaches and they said the score was an indication of what the game actually showed and they were really impressed on how our kids worked, so we can hang our hats on that a little bit. You’d rather have the win, but our kids worked hard today.”

The Pirates had a couple injuries, one to captain Aleah Bienek who went hard in the boards and will be examined tomorrow while goalie Kailee Magsam took a shot to the chest in the first period and appears to alright. “We’ll have a light practice tomorrow and take Sunday off and get ready for our big game at Detroit Lakes on Monday,” said Moe.

Crookston is now 7-9-1 on the season and will finish off the regular season on Monday night taking on Section 8A foe, Detroit Lakes on the road. If the Pirates should be Detroit Lakes for a second time on Monday, they very possibly would get the number three seed, since East Grand Forks has lost to Detroit Lakes. Warroad is certainly the number one seed and Thief River Falls the two seed, while Crookston or East Grand Forks are hoping for a three seed and Detroit Lakes is thinking a win Monday, might help their chances to move up, hence the importance of the game at Detroit Lakes Monday! East Grand Forks has games against two AA teams, at Roseau on Monday and at Moorhead on Thursday. Detroit Lakes has Crookston on Monday and hosts Thief River Falls on Friday. Thief River Falls has International Falls tomorrow and hosts Warroad on Monday and at Detroit Lakes on Friday.
Roseau is 11-3-1 now on the year and all three losses have come to Warroad, 7-1, 3-1 and 6-3. The Rams hosts East Grand Forks Monday, hosts Warroad again for a fourth time this year on Thursday and then finishes their regular season with a Section 8AA game at Brainerd.

1st Period
12:09 – Roseau – Ginevra Johnson (Tianna Espe, Payton Remick)
5:45 – Crookston – Nora Peterson (9)  unassisted
4:21 – Roseau – Payton Remick (Jordyn Bergstrom)

2nd Period
6:08 – Roseau – Mariah Huglen (Memphis Mertens, Kate Helgeson)
4:06 – Roseau – Sophie Helgeson (Jordyn Bergstrom)
3:57 – Roseau – Memphis Mertens (Kate Helgeson, Sophie Helgeson)

3rd Period
1:24 – Roseau – Mariah Huglen (Kate Helgeson, Memphis Merten)
5:55 – Roseau –  Sophie Helgeson (Kate Helgeson)
14:37 -Roseau –  Celine Stroot  (Ginevra Johnson, Sophie Helgeson)   (SH)
16:27 – Roseau –  Jordyn Bergstrom (Molly Jensen, Tianna Espe)