2010s All-Decade Team and Awards
Posted: Tue Dec 31, 2019 9:32 am
Figured this would be a fun way to round out the decade.
I posted an all-decade team on Twitter here: https://twitter.com/KarlEastHockey/stat ... 2749544448
And a Duluth East all-decade team (would be fun to see other teams): https://twitter.com/KarlEastHockey/stat ... 5156475905
Looking at the all-decade team, the Class of 2014 really was loaded...and I didn't even include that year's Mr. Hockey, who was Avery Peterson. Poehling might be the biggest reach, but I felt compelled to add a North player. For similar reasons (wanting a Tonka player) I went with Glockner in goal, though I was tempted by Alex Lyon out of Lake of the Woods.
Some other stray all-decade awards:
Best Tourneys
AA:
1. 2012: Top seeds all go down
2. 2011: Great semi and final
3. 2018: Best 3-team field for the semis and final
Class A:
1. 2017: The year of the upset in Class A
2. 2010: Most open field in the semis and final
3. 2011: A couple good quarterfinal upsets and a great final
Best State Finals
AA:
1. 2011: Kyle Rau in 3 OT would be a top 3 final of all time
2. 2019: Edina's thriller with an unsung hero in the snow
3. 2016: Best regulation final, the Wayzata D takes down Casey Mittelstadt
Class A:
1. 2013: Bruce Plante, meet Tommy Novak
2. 2015: East Grand makes it 6 in a row for Hermantown
3. 2011: More OT Hermantown heartbreak
Best Teams
AA:
1. 2014 Edina: my possibly controversial take, but they thrashed the same North team that went undefeated the next year
2. 2015 Lakeville North: undefeated
3. 2018 Minnetonka
Class A:
1. 2013 St. Thomas Academy: arguably he best team in either class
2. 2016 Hermantown: the curse finally breaks; also could've won AA
3. 2014 East Grand Forks: see above
Best Teams of Destiny
AA:
1. 2017 Grand Rapids
2. 2012 Benilde: less of a shocker, but great storylines with Besse and Jablonski
3. 2015 Duluth East: didn't win it, but the run to get there was one for the ages
Class A:
1. 2019 Greenway: everything about why State hockey is special in a nutshell
2. 2017 MAML: Moose.
3. 2015 East Grand Forks: probably the only state final upset of any magnitude in Class A of the decade
Best lines:
1. Hain-Adams-McLaughlin, Grand Rapids
2. Poehling-Poehling-Poehling, Lakeville North
3. Moore-Labosky-Besse, Benilde-St. Margaret's
Class A:
1. Tweten-Bowen-Loven, East Grand Forks
2. Smith-Warner-Perbix, St. Cloud Cathedral
3. Troumbly-Lawson-Gernander, Greenway
(Class A picks here may suffer from my lack of attention to Class A early in the decade)
Best D pairs:
1. Luedtke-Docter, Minnetonka
2. Beaulieu-Moore, Duluth East
3. Any of Edina's D, 2018
(Someone really needs to help me on a Class A list)
Best goals:
1. Rau dive
2. Noah Cates spin-o-rama
3. Donte Lawson, Greenway over Hermantown
Biggest State upsets
AA
1. Duluth East over Edina, 2015 - biggest one ranking-wise
2. Lakeville South over Duluth East, 2012 - biggest one reputation-wise
3. Duluth East over St. Thomas Academy, 2015
A
1. MAML over Delano, 2017
2. Alexandria over Hermantown, 2018
2. East Grand Forks over Hermantown, 2015
Biggest section upsets
AA:
1. Wayzata over Edina, 2017
2. White Bear over Hill, 2011
3. Farmington over Lakeville North, 2016
I resisted the urge to pick yet another East 2015 upset here, but their win over Elk River was on par with these, ranking-wise. This is also doing this in terms of significance; we could do another list about things like Armstrong over Eden Prairie in 2012.
A:
1. Greenway over Hermantown, 2019
2. New Ulm over Luverne, 2015
3. Orono over Breck, 2014
Broader storylines:
1. The status of certain teams in Class A (St. Thomas in the first half of the decade; Hermantown in the second)
2. Early departure numbers stabilize, but transfers seem to increase in number and magnitude
3. Change in penalty rules and overall style of play following the Jablonski injury
Team of the Decade
AA
1: Edina: 4 titles, 8 Tourneys, the no-doubt winner
2. Eden Prairie: 1 title, 3 finals, 6 Tourneys
3. Duluth East: 8 Tourneys, 3 finals; most consistent after Edina, but couldn't win it all
4. Lakeville North: 1 title, 2 finals, 6 Tourneys
5. Hill-Murray: 6 Tourneys, 2 finals
6. Minnetonka: 1 title, 2 finals in 2 Tourneys
Class A:
1. St. Thomas Academy: won the most titles despite only being there for 4 years. 3 titles, 3 Tourneys
2. Hermantown: Most dominant start to finish but seems fitting they should be 2nd. 2 titles, 9 Tourneys
3. East Grand Forks: 2 titles, 5 Tourneys
4. Breck: 1 title, 2 finals, 6 Tourneys
5. St. Cloud Cathedral: 1 title, 4 Tourneys
6. Orono: 1 title, 2 Tourneys
Other takes and categories welcome!
I posted an all-decade team on Twitter here: https://twitter.com/KarlEastHockey/stat ... 2749544448
And a Duluth East all-decade team (would be fun to see other teams): https://twitter.com/KarlEastHockey/stat ... 5156475905
Looking at the all-decade team, the Class of 2014 really was loaded...and I didn't even include that year's Mr. Hockey, who was Avery Peterson. Poehling might be the biggest reach, but I felt compelled to add a North player. For similar reasons (wanting a Tonka player) I went with Glockner in goal, though I was tempted by Alex Lyon out of Lake of the Woods.
Some other stray all-decade awards:
Best Tourneys
AA:
1. 2012: Top seeds all go down
2. 2011: Great semi and final
3. 2018: Best 3-team field for the semis and final
Class A:
1. 2017: The year of the upset in Class A
2. 2010: Most open field in the semis and final
3. 2011: A couple good quarterfinal upsets and a great final
Best State Finals
AA:
1. 2011: Kyle Rau in 3 OT would be a top 3 final of all time
2. 2019: Edina's thriller with an unsung hero in the snow
3. 2016: Best regulation final, the Wayzata D takes down Casey Mittelstadt
Class A:
1. 2013: Bruce Plante, meet Tommy Novak
2. 2015: East Grand makes it 6 in a row for Hermantown
3. 2011: More OT Hermantown heartbreak
Best Teams
AA:
1. 2014 Edina: my possibly controversial take, but they thrashed the same North team that went undefeated the next year
2. 2015 Lakeville North: undefeated
3. 2018 Minnetonka
Class A:
1. 2013 St. Thomas Academy: arguably he best team in either class
2. 2016 Hermantown: the curse finally breaks; also could've won AA
3. 2014 East Grand Forks: see above
Best Teams of Destiny
AA:
1. 2017 Grand Rapids
2. 2012 Benilde: less of a shocker, but great storylines with Besse and Jablonski
3. 2015 Duluth East: didn't win it, but the run to get there was one for the ages
Class A:
1. 2019 Greenway: everything about why State hockey is special in a nutshell
2. 2017 MAML: Moose.
3. 2015 East Grand Forks: probably the only state final upset of any magnitude in Class A of the decade
Best lines:
1. Hain-Adams-McLaughlin, Grand Rapids
2. Poehling-Poehling-Poehling, Lakeville North
3. Moore-Labosky-Besse, Benilde-St. Margaret's
Class A:
1. Tweten-Bowen-Loven, East Grand Forks
2. Smith-Warner-Perbix, St. Cloud Cathedral
3. Troumbly-Lawson-Gernander, Greenway
(Class A picks here may suffer from my lack of attention to Class A early in the decade)
Best D pairs:
1. Luedtke-Docter, Minnetonka
2. Beaulieu-Moore, Duluth East
3. Any of Edina's D, 2018
(Someone really needs to help me on a Class A list)
Best goals:
1. Rau dive
2. Noah Cates spin-o-rama
3. Donte Lawson, Greenway over Hermantown
Biggest State upsets
AA
1. Duluth East over Edina, 2015 - biggest one ranking-wise
2. Lakeville South over Duluth East, 2012 - biggest one reputation-wise
3. Duluth East over St. Thomas Academy, 2015
A
1. MAML over Delano, 2017
2. Alexandria over Hermantown, 2018
2. East Grand Forks over Hermantown, 2015
Biggest section upsets
AA:
1. Wayzata over Edina, 2017
2. White Bear over Hill, 2011
3. Farmington over Lakeville North, 2016
I resisted the urge to pick yet another East 2015 upset here, but their win over Elk River was on par with these, ranking-wise. This is also doing this in terms of significance; we could do another list about things like Armstrong over Eden Prairie in 2012.
A:
1. Greenway over Hermantown, 2019
2. New Ulm over Luverne, 2015
3. Orono over Breck, 2014
Broader storylines:
1. The status of certain teams in Class A (St. Thomas in the first half of the decade; Hermantown in the second)
2. Early departure numbers stabilize, but transfers seem to increase in number and magnitude
3. Change in penalty rules and overall style of play following the Jablonski injury
Team of the Decade
AA
1: Edina: 4 titles, 8 Tourneys, the no-doubt winner
2. Eden Prairie: 1 title, 3 finals, 6 Tourneys
3. Duluth East: 8 Tourneys, 3 finals; most consistent after Edina, but couldn't win it all
4. Lakeville North: 1 title, 2 finals, 6 Tourneys
5. Hill-Murray: 6 Tourneys, 2 finals
6. Minnetonka: 1 title, 2 finals in 2 Tourneys
Class A:
1. St. Thomas Academy: won the most titles despite only being there for 4 years. 3 titles, 3 Tourneys
2. Hermantown: Most dominant start to finish but seems fitting they should be 2nd. 2 titles, 9 Tourneys
3. East Grand Forks: 2 titles, 5 Tourneys
4. Breck: 1 title, 2 finals, 6 Tourneys
5. St. Cloud Cathedral: 1 title, 4 Tourneys
6. Orono: 1 title, 2 Tourneys
Other takes and categories welcome!