Minnesota Boys' High School Hockey Tournament: Class AA Quarterfinals - Session 4 Gamethread

Game 7

Lakeville South Cougars vs. Duluth East Greyhounds

Start Time - 6:00 PM

Lakeville South has to stay out of the box. Giving the Greyhounds extra powerplay opportunities will end in disaster. Duluth East's powerplay run at about a 45% efficiency, so keeping Lakeville can't be giving away the man advantage. The Cougars also have to focus on playing smart defense. The Hounds are one of the best passing teams in Class AA, so if Lakeville South finds themselves out of position, Duluth East will cash in.

Duluth East has to keep Justin Kloos under control. The Greyhounds will want to make the depth of Lakeville South beat them. The Greyhounds will probably have Trevor Olson and Nate Repensky on the ice whenever Kloos is out, putting him up against the best two-way forward and strongest defensman on the team. If Kloos isn't a major factor in this game, then East should be able to wrap this one up.

Game 8

Benilde-St. Margaret's Red Knights vs. Edina Hornets

Start Time - 8:00 PM

The Red Knights have to use their skating. They're not a physical team that wants to get into a slugfest with Edina. Benilde is a better skating team than Edina, and they need to use that edge to their advantage. Edina is going to try to bottle up Benilde and take away a lot of the center of the ice, so Benilde will have to use their speed and passing to open up lanes against Edina.

For Edina, the key lies in winning small battles. The Hornets have to be aggressive on loose pucks and corner battles. If the Hornets can play physically tough and hard in corners, they might force Benilde back on their heels. Edina does have some good talent, but not nearly the caliber players that the Red Knights boast. Playing north-south hockey with Benilde probably doesn't end well for Edina. The Hornets better bring their lunch pails, because they're going to have win a blue-collar hockey game.

Class AA bracket found here.

TV coverage is on Channel 45 locally.
Live streaming online HERE.
Radio coverage is on 106.1 tonight, 107.5 for Friday and Saturday.