Minnesota Peewee & Bantam AA Champions Crowned

Youth Hockey Hub Photo

As we head full steam ahead toward USA Hockey National Championships at the end of March – and just days after hockey-rabid Minnesota crowned its high school state champions in front of nearly 20,000 fans – the younger generation got its chance to shine in the State of Hockey during the weekend of March 13-15. 

After a one-week break following regional tournaments that featured 37 divisions playing at 32 venues across Minnesota, state youth hockey champions were crowned during the weekend at six different age levels.

While state tournaments were held for 14 different classifications across the six age groups, with more than 100 teams competing in 10 different communities, our focus was on the next generation of Minnesota high school stars who were playing for Bantam and Peewee AA championships. 

CLICK HERE for complete Minnesota State Tournament information 

Peewee and Bantam AA Boys teams got back on the ice Friday, March 13, after a one-week hiatus while the Minnesota high school tournament played out. The Minnesota Peewwee AA State Tournament was held at All Season Arena in Mankato, while the Bantams played in Sartell at Scheels Athletic Complex. 

Games began at mid-day Friday and continued through Sunday afternoon, March 15.

CLICK HERE for LiveBarn webstream viewing information. 

Peewee AA action began at 1 p.m. EDT March 13 when Osseo-Maple Grove, No. 1 in our Week 25 MHR Minnesota Peewee AA Rankings, took on the fifth-ranked Woodbury Predators. The puck dropped on the Bantam tournament at the same time, with the top-ranked Minnetonka Skippers facing off against third-ranked Woodbury. 

Eight teams competed for state titles in both age groups, with start times for Friday's opening-round games staggered every two hours. Winners advanced, while losing teams dropped into a consolation bracket. Semfinals were scheduled for 1 and 5 p.m. EDT Saturday in both tournaments, with the championship games slated for 3 p.m. Sunday. There were third-place games for teams that lost in the semifinals Sunday at 1p.m. 

 

CLICK HERE for the Peewee AA Bracket and links to other game into

CLICK HERE for the Bantam AA Bracket and links to other game into

 

Minnseota State Peewee Tournament Participating Teams

Week 25 MHR Minn-Kota Rankings

#1 Osseo-Maple Grove

#2 Edina Hornets

#3 Chaska-Chanhassen Stormhawks

#8 Andover Huskies

#4 Minnetonka Skippers 

#13 East Grand Forks

#19 Duluth-East Greyhounds

 

Minnesota Peewee AA First Round Games - March 13

All games at All Season Arena in Mankato; all times Eastern

Game 1: Osseo-Maple Grove 8, Woodbury 5

Osseo-Maple Grove trailed, 4-2, after two periods, but got a pair of goals in a 29-second span early in the final frame en route a six-goal third-period explosion and an 8-5 victory. McCoy O'Leary and Easton Hanson got the fireworks started in the final frame, with Hanson also scoring later in the third before Lincoln Kolin scored twice, his third and fourth goals, to seal the victory. Vinny DeFazio tallied once and dished out three assists, while Kolin and Hanson totaled five and four points, respectively. Winning goalie Finn Carrithers made 20 saves. Braden Boomer, Bjorn Newman, Brock Schiltgen, Mason Unklesbay and Asher Van Liere scored for Woodbury.

 

Game 2: Andover 5, East Grand Forks 0

Game 2 also featured a third-period barrage of goals, with Andover scoring five times in the final frame to break a scoreless tie and pull away for the victory. Christian French scored twice in slighlty more than two minutes before Luke Talbot buried a pair of goals in six seconds and Eiljah Stalberger concluded the scoring. Logan McCann stopped all 29 shots he faced to earn the shutout. 

 

Game 3: Edina 5, Duluth East 2

Edina opened the game with four goals spanning the first two periods to take control before Henry Crist and Benjamin Lewis pulled Duluth East within two enterinng the final frame. Henry Zavoral was the fifth different Edina player to score, sealing the victory with 13:04 left in the game. Charles Hansen, Jack Podratz, Jack Allgood and Rafael Veilleux scored the other Edina goals, while Blake Goter made 14 saves to earn the win in goal. Duluth East netminder Easton Lehr faced 51 shots, stopping 46 to keep his team in the game. 

 

Game 4: Minnetonka 3, Chaska-Chanhassen 2

The Skippers scored once in each period and held on for the 3-2 wiin despite being outshot, 35-26. Graham Olson made 33 saves to backstop his team to the victory, with Emery Starkey, Rowan Orpen and Gavin Odam each scoring once. Odam and Orpan also contributed one assist each. Noah Schneider scored a pair of second-period goals for Chaska-Chanhassen. 

 

Minnesota Peewee AA Semifinals - March 14

Game 5: Osseo-Maple Grove 8, Andover 2

Osseo-Maple Grove scored four times in the first period and buried six of the game's first seven goals to cruise into the state championship game. Lincoln Kolin had another big game for the winners, recording a hat trick and a helper, with Rocco Brooks scoring twice and Vinny DeFazio notching a goal and two assists. Leo Starkey dished out a pair of helpers, and Jaxon Lyon made 23 saves to earn the victory in goal. Christian French had a goal and an assist for the Huskies. 

 

Game 6: Minnetonka 7, Edina 5

Minnetonka outgunned Edina, 4-3, in the third period, with Emery Starkey potting three of the Skippers' four goals to lead his team into the state title game. Hank Walvatne also scored during the decisive period, and Jack Stevens assisted on two of the goals after scoring twice in the second period. Brady Doan potted the other Minnetonka goal, with Bennett Sklader notching one of his three assists on that first-period marker. Greyson Odam stopped 34 shots to pick up the win in goal. Jack Podratz led Edina with two goals and an assist, while Charles Hansen also tallied twice. 

 

Minnesota Peewee AA Championship - March 15 

Game 7: Osseo-Maple Grove 1, Minnetonka 0

It was a tournament that featured a lot of goals, but the goalies and defense took center stage in the state championship game. Graham Olson kept the Skippers close, finishing with 42 saves, but red-hot Lincoln Kolin managed to beat him with his eighth goal of the weekend in the second period as Osseo-Maple Grove claimed the Peewee AA title. Jaxon Lyon stopped all 20 shots he faced at the other end of the ice to earn the shuthout, and Vinny DeFazio assisted on Kolin's game-winning goal. 

 

Minnseota State Bantam Tournament Participating Teams

Week 25 MHR Minn-Kota Rankings

#1 Minnetonka Skippers 

#2 Moorhead Spuds

#3 Woodbury Predators

#4 East Grand Forks

#6 Andover Huskies

#7 Spring Lake Park/Coon Rapids

#9 Prior Lake-Savage Lakers

#19 St Michael-Albertville Knights

 

Minnesota Bantam AA First Round Games - March 13

All games at Scheels Athletic Complex in Sartell; all times Eastern

Game 1: Minnetonka 3, Woodbury 2 (OT)

Colton Nash scored with 9:09 left in overtime to give Minnetonka the victory after both teams scored in the final 30 seconds of regulation. Nash put the Skippers up, 2-1, with 30 seconds left, but James Miller tallied 10 seconds later to force the extra period. Charles Pohl opened the scoring for Woodbury with 40 seconds left in the opening period, but Dean Stevens tied it with 43 seconds left in the middle frame. All four goals scored in regulation came in the final 43 seconds of a period. Stevens also assisted on both of Nash's goals, and Cooper Corona was the winning goalie. 

 

Game 2: Moorhead 8, Andover 5

The Spuds scored four unanswered goals in the third period to turn a 5-4 deficit into an 8-5 victory. Owen Kraft led the Moorhead offensive surge, finishing the game with four goals and an assist, while Cameron Coulter added two goals and two assists and Tate Bergeson contributed 1-3-4. Tarq Anderson made 21 saves to record the win in goal. Wyatt Hagadine had a pair of goals and two helpers for Andover, with Chase Berlin recording 1-2-3. 

 

Game 3: East Grand Forks 9, SLP-CR 4

Brock Stauss scored a remarkable six goals and dished out an assist, with Jace Magner handing out five helpers as East Grand Forks rolled into the semifinals. Jaxson Wakefield added a goal and two assists for the winners and Mason Auger contribured two assists, while Porther Schmaltz and Jaxton Boespflug scored once each. 

 

Game 4: Prior Lake-Savage 6, STMA 3

Rylan Maher scored late in the second period and Austin Clark scored first in the final frame to rally STMA from two goals down, but Henry Nordby and Jack Laurel each responded less than two minutes later to regain control for Prior Lake-Savage in an opening-round win. Tate Ulrich concluded the scoring with a shorthanded empty-net goal with 2:38 left. Nordby also scored in the second period, with Joseph Volp and Jakob Bodin also tallying. Bodin added two assists, and Blake Pickens earned the victory in goal with 19 saves. Mason West potted the other STMA goal. 

 

Minnesota Bantam AA Semifinals - March 14

Game 5: Moorhead 7, Minnetonka 6 (OT)

Moorhead rallied to score four third-period goals, overcoming a 5-2 deficit and forcing overtime when Wyatt Olson scored twice in the final 45 seconds. Olson's second goal came with four seconds left, and he completed the Superman show by netting the overtime game-winning goal with 8:36 left in the extra session. Owen Kraft dished out four assists on the day for the Spuds, with Cameron Coulter contributing two goals and an assist and winning netminder Tarq Anderson making 25 saves. Dean Stevens scored twice and dished out an assist for the Skippers, while Leyton Dewing contributed 1-2-3 and Gavin Coccimiglio dished out three helpers. 

 

Game 6: Prior Lake-Savage 4, East Grand Forks 3

Dax Didion's goal with 7:08 left in the game proved to be the game-winner after Henry Nordby tied the game in the final minute of the second period for PLS. Joey Kokoschke and Tate Ulrich also scored for the winners, with Ulrich assisting on Nordby's goal and Dalton Schwarze contributing a pair of helpers. Blake Pickens earned the win in goal with 23 saves. Brock Stauss, Jace Magner and Beau Boushee scored for East Grand Forks, and Stauss also picked up an assist. 

 

Minnesota Bantam AA Championship - March 15 

Game 7: Prior Lake-Savage 3, Moorhead 1

Prior Lake-Savage scored once in each period, with three different players recording goals, and Blake Pickens stopped 31 shots to lead his team to the championship. Joseph Volp, Henry Nordby and Tate Ulrich scored for PLS, with Volp and Ulrich each also dishing out an assist. Brody Elliott scored for Moorhead with 13:32 left in the second period to tie the game at 1, but Nordby responded by scoring with 2:41 left in the middle frame and Ulrich netted an insurance goal in the third.