U18 MN Blades Major Midget team

[SuperStar]

They are off to a good start. Playing some top end Major Midget teams

They Just got back from a Detroit Tourney. Made to the semi- finals of the U18 Motor City Madness Divison. 16 Teams.

Semi's: Belle Tire vs Honeybaked
Blades vs Victory Honda

1. vs Belle Tire - Lost 4-3
2. Vs D&D cycle - Won 6-2
3. vs Lansing - Won 4-3
4. vs Little Caesars - Won 2-1 in OT
5. vs Victory Honda - lost 5-2.
Played 5 games in 2.5 days. Ran out of gas the last day vs Victory Honda - who is a very good team. But overall did very well.

Week before they were in Wausau, WI for a 3 game showcase.

1. vs Lost 4-2 to Team Wisconsin from the Elite league in a penalty filled melee' - but it was a good game outside of the PIMS
2. vs Duluth Wings U18 team. won 6-2
3. vs Chicago Fury lost 3-1 but good game though

Also played The Jr Iowa Bulls Tier III junior team and beat them 6-3 in a exhibition game 2 weeks ago.

This team will get much better as they 'gel' more. Great hockey. Fun to Watch. Play in the Buc Bowl in Des Monies at the end of the month next - should be some very good Midgets Teams there.

[SWPrez]

Nice start to the fall season and a great schedule.

This is why I think the Blades is a better opportunity for seniors than playing in the Elite League. The Elite league wandered off of its purpose (providing a league to keep seniors around and provide seniors with exposure for post high school hockey opportunities...at least that was what their brochure said) several years ago and is now a recruiting tool for certain schools to provide underclassmen with the elite league exposure.

I think the Blades should have two teams of seniors and even host a tourney where some top Midget Major teams come to town to play. They should get a good taste of the hockey they will see after graduation which the Blades provides. Let the Elite league become an underclassman league.

[keepyourheadup]

I agree in principal but the Blades also have a history of playing favorites and inside politics. Either way its another way for minny kids to get exposure and thats a good thing!

[SuperStar]

Yeah I think its a great thing to have these guys playing. I am baffled that alot of these guys didn't get picked or even get a tryout for the Elite league

- But anyways very impressed with these guys so far. Working hard, great coaches, parents - Playing excellent competition - most games will be just as good than the Elite league Teams or Better - IMHO. Not all but most.

Taylor Karel - D Eagan
Connor Bump- D- Prior Lake
Mason Van Tuly - D- Champlin Park
Will Schwartz - D- Centennial
Drake Thomsen - D - MG
Jimmy Dolan - D - STA
Justin Crowell - D - Rosemount

Josh French - F - Hill Murray
Andrew Zerban - F - ER
Dallas Gerads - F - Blaine
Tristan Hazlett - F - Lakeville South
Drew Blackmun - F - SPA
AJ Klein - F - Tonka
Riley Argetsinger - F - EP
Colton Schmidt - F - EP
Bryce Plunkett - F - Champlin park
Tyler Johnson - F - Jefferson

LaCombe - G - Holy Family
Dupont - G - Lakeville North

[The Exiled One]

Nice start to the fall season and a great schedule.

This is why I think the Blades is a better opportunity for seniors than playing in the Elite League. The Elite league wandered off of its purpose (providing a league to keep seniors around and provide seniors with exposure for post high school hockey opportunities...at least that was what their brochure said) several years ago and is now a recruiting tool for certain schools to provide underclassmen with the elite league exposure.

I think the Blades should have two teams of seniors and even host a tourney where some top Midget Major teams come to town to play. They should get a good taste of the hockey they will see after graduation which the Blades provides. Let the Elite league become an underclassman league.

I don't know that the Blades is an alternative to Elite League, as it's probably even MORE political and/or difficult to get in to.

However, I do agree with your sentiment about the Elite League. It's purpose, IMHO, should be to keep kids in MHSHL and to create exposure for D1 schools. To that end, it should attempt to address all of the reasons why a kid might want to leave the MSHSL for other hockey opportunities. Many of the underclassmen who made it are NOT at risk of leaving.

In general, I think the Elite League players should include...

1) Any D1 committed player, regardless of class
2) USHL entry (not futures) drafted/protected players (not NAHL drafted... just too many)
3) Select 16 & 17 national camp invited players (could include a sophomore or two) but NOT the Select 15 national camp players
4) After those players, I defer to the wisdom of the masses, though I'll add that I think seniors should be given priority

For example, as talented as they are, I don't think Jonah Bischoff, Doug Larson, Austen Long, Nick Swaney, Michael Graham, or Tyler Jutting should be there. They can all play in Elite D this year. Sorry parents.

However, Tweten, Bender, Zimmer, and Joey Anderson should all be able to play Elite League based on my other criteria.

There are some juniors I could also probably make a case for excluding, but just looking at the six sophomores I named, would offering an Elite League roster spot to any of the 19 seniors who left early have kept them around? We'll likely never know. Also, are there seniors who are D1 caliber NOT playing in the Elite League this year? Odds are, yes, possible one or two.

This is all my opinion, and I know that there are plenty of others that differ on this board.

[OnFrozenPond]

Nice start to the fall season and a great schedule.

This is why I think the Blades is a better opportunity for seniors than playing in the Elite League. The Elite league wandered off of its purpose (providing a league to keep seniors around and provide seniors with exposure for post high school hockey opportunities...at least that was what their brochure said) several years ago and is now a recruiting tool for certain schools to provide underclassmen with the elite league exposure.

I think the Blades should have two teams of seniors and even host a tourney where some top Midget Major teams come to town to play. They should get a good taste of the hockey they will see after graduation which the Blades provides. Let the Elite league become an underclassman league.

I don't know that the Blades is an alternative to Elite League, as it's probably even MORE political and/or difficult to get in to.

However, I do agree with your sentiment about the Elite League. It's purpose, IMHO, should be to keep kids in MHSHL and to create exposure for D1 schools. To that end, it should attempt to address all of the reasons why a kid might want to leave the MSHSL for other hockey opportunities. Many of the underclassmen who made it are NOT at risk of leaving.

In general, I think the Elite League players should include...

1) Any D1 committed player, regardless of class
2) USHL entry (not futures) drafted/protected players (not NAHL drafted... just too many)
3) Select 16 & 17 national camp invited players (could include a sophomore or two) but NOT the Select 15 national camp players
4) After those players, I defer to the wisdom of the masses, though I'll add that I think seniors should be given priority

For example, as talented as they are, I don't think Jonah Bischoff, Doug Larson, Austen Long, Nick Swaney, Michael Graham, or Tyler Jutting should be there. They can all play in Elite D this year. Sorry parents.

However, Tweten, Bender, Zimmer, and Joey Anderson should all be able to play Elite League based on my other criteria.

There are some juniors I could also probably make a case for excluding, but just looking at the six sophomores I named, would offering an Elite League roster spot to any of the 19 seniors who left early have kept them around? We'll likely never know. Also, are there seniors who are D1 caliber NOT playing in the Elite League this year? Odds are, yes, possible one or two.

This is all my opinion, and I know that there are plenty of others that differ on this board.

I agree almost 100% with this approach.

It is funny that Elite D is looked at so negatively. Just a couple years ago, the league included Tommy Vanelli, Teemu Kivulhame, Jake Jackson, Connor Hurley, Steven Spinner, Mason Bergh, Willie Brown, Zach Glinke, Jack Ramsey, Chase Perry, Willie Benjamin, David Zevnik, etc. It is not a graveyard for weak players.

[koolio]

Very nice roster. U18 Blades is a great option perhaps aside from the travel, missed school/events etc. Nice showing in Motown. Good things ahead.



Taylor Karel - D Eagan
Connor Bump- D- Prior Lake
Mason Van Tuly - D- Champlin Park
Will Schwartz - D- Centennial
Drake Thomsen - D - MG
Jimmy Dolan - D - STA
Justin Crowell - D - Rosemount

Josh French - F - Hill Murray
Andrew Zerban - F - ER
Dallas Gerads - F - Blaine
Tristan Hazlett - F - Lakeville South
Drew Blackmun - F - SPA
AJ Klein - F - Tonka
Riley Argetsinger - F - EP
Colton Schmidt - F - EP
Bryce Plunkett - F - Champlin park
Tyler Johnson - F - Jefferson

LaCombe - G - Holy Family
Dupont - G - Lakeville North[/quote]

[Granttenn]

Funny stuff..

To the guy who said "For example, as talented as they are, I don't think Jonah Bischoff, Doug Larson, Austen Long, Nick Swaney, Michael Graham, or Tyler Jutting should be there. They can all play in Elite D this year. Sorry parents."

Just an update: other than some guy from the Colorado Rampage (who only play 1 weekend in the Elite League), The leading scorer after the first weekend (3 games) is Nick Swaney..... Wonder how he would have done in the Elite D league? Might have held his own:)

[The Exiled One]

The leading scorer after the first weekend (3 games) is Nick Swaney..... Wonder how he would have done in the Elite D league? Might have held his own:)

I'm sure he would have, but it doesn't change my view. He could finish the season with the scoring lead and it wouldn't change the value proposition of the Elite League as an alternative to leaving for juniors. If you think the value proposition is something other than that, please, do share.

[Shinbone_News]

Even though the Blades Major Midget thing seems to have become the best place for Elite League misses and political casualties to go, I think it's very cool that they play out of state as much as they do. Very few Minnesota kids get to play Detroit, Chicago, and Boston teams -- it's eye opening and cool to pit our best against theirs.

I wish the Elite League would do more of this -- refreshing to see Colorado Rage and Chicago Fury on the sked this year, but they should get other Tier 1 AAA teams in for every weekend. Heck, those teams are used to driving or flying every weekend for games and they'd probably be glad to stop over in MSP to test their mettle.

It's true that Minnesota kids don't have to travel far for a good game at the highest levels. That's certainly a blessing. But we can get pretty insular here too.

[BP]

Even though the Blades Major Midget thing seems to have become the best place for Elite League misses and political casualties to go, I think it's very cool that they play out of state as much as they do. Very few Minnesota kids get to play Detroit, Chicago, and Boston teams -- it's eye opening and cool to pit our best against theirs.

I wish the Elite League would do more of this -- refreshing to see Colorado Rage and Chicago Fury on the sked this year, but they should get other Tier 1 AAA teams in for every weekend. Heck, those teams are used to driving or flying every weekend for games and they'd probably be glad to stop over in MSP to test their mettle.

It's true that Minnesota kids don't have to travel far for a good game at the highest levels. That's certainly a blessing. But we can get pretty insular here too.

Agreed.....I'd love to see Mission, CYA, The Detroit teams to come in every weekend.

[SuperStar]

Both the 18U and 16U blades came away Buc Bowl Champs in Des Moines this weekend. I only saw the last part of the 16U Champ game that went into overtime vs Long Island Gulls...The 16U won 6-5 in OT.

The 18's had a very exciting and excellent finish as well. Beat NJ Rockets in triple OT- seven man shootout. 3-2 final- Great game!

Little recap on the games:

1. Beat the Jersey Hitman 7-3. Andrew Zerban light it up for 2g & 4a...Kid was on Fire.

2. Beat NJ Rockets 6-1. Good Game- The Blades were just clicking on all cylinders.

3. Beat Omaha U18's 4-3 - Another good game - Fun to watch. Good size on both teams - Gritty, Tough game.

4. Beat Marquette Electricians 9-0. The Electricians were way in over their heads all weekend. They didn't belong in this tourney'.

5. Championship - Beat NJ Rockets 3-2 in Triple OT - 7 man Shoot out- Great game! The Rockets came to play and get revenge and they did but the Blades were too strong. Excellent goaltending on both sides. LaCombe came up big on the shootouts and OT to preserve the win and Bryce Plunkett from Champlin Park with a sweet move/dangle to score on the shootout - Fun Game!

The Rockets beat the Chicago Fury to get to the Champ game. Another fun and Hockey filled weekend for the Blades... Out to Chicago and maybe another trip to Detroit coming up in the next month.

[SuperStar]

The U18 team finished up a the fall season this weekend in Chicago with a 3 game showcase vs U18 Team Illinois and U18 Chicago Mission twice..

Games recap:

1. Lost 5-0 vs U18 Team Illinois. This would be a game they want back! After a long Friday night drive, they played at 8am Sat. Morning..I think they need to sleep in a little more..But they battled hard, but couldn't get much offense going.

2. Lost 2-1 to the U18 Mission. 9:15pm Sat night game. Alot of back and forth action..The Blades had 3 x 5 min minors called on them and several other penalities...The refs were horrible....But they got there legs and almost pulled it out- The whole team played great. Great goaltending on both ends.

3. Won 4-2 to the U18 Mission. Sunday noon game. And it was awesome! Great game. Goaltending was excellent for the Blades. Were outshot pretty good, but they got the scoring going and came out with a victory.

***Weekend before they hosted the Duluth U18 Wings team at Augsburg and beat them 13-0 and 4-1.

It was a great season. Very good hockey. Got to play several different top midget teams and I think the final record was 13-6. And from what I was told, several of the players have gained alot of attention from NAHL & USHL scouts. Alot of exposure- which is a good thing! College and Junior Scouts at every game.

I hope the U18/U16 Blades continues to get stronger with more exposure...It is a great alternative to the Elite League - Most games just as good if not better competition.

Got to play in some great venues. Sears center in Chicago, Wells Fargo Center in Des Moines (where the Wild AHL team plays), The gated Little Ceasars rink in downtown Detroit was something too.... Good job Fellas and excellent job by the coaches!

[urban iceman]

The U18 team finished up a the fall season this weekend in Chicago with a 3 game showcase vs U18 Team Illinois and U18 Chicago Mission twice..

Games recap:

1. Lost 5-0 vs U18 Team Illinois. This would be a game they want back! After a long Friday night drive, they played at 8am Sat. Morning..I think they need to sleep in a little more..But they battled hard, but couldn't get much offense going.

2. Lost 2-1 to the U18 Mission. 9:15pm Sat night game. Alot of back and forth action..The Blades had 3 x 5 min minors called on them and several other penalities...The refs were horrible....But they got there legs and almost pulled it out- The whole team played great. Great goaltending on both ends.

3. Won 4-2 to the U18 Mission. Sunday noon game. And it was awesome! Great game. Goaltending was excellent for the Blades. Were outshot pretty good, but they got the scoring going and came out with a victory.

***Weekend before they hosted the Duluth U18 Wings team at Augsburg and beat them 13-0 and 4-1.

It was a great season. Very good hockey. Got to play several different top midget teams and I think the final record was 13-6. And from what I was told, several of the players have gained alot of attention from NAHL & USHL scouts. Alot of exposure- which is a good thing! College and Junior Scouts at every game.

I hope the U18/U16 Blades continues to get stronger with more exposure...It is a great alternative to the Elite League - Most games just as good if not better competition.

Got to play in some great venues. Sears center in Chicago, Wells Fargo Center in Des Moines (where the Wild AHL team plays), The gated Little Ceasars rink in downtown Detroit was something too.... Good job Fellas and excellent job by the coaches!

This poster seems to have an axe to grind with the Elite League. Maybe their "Little Superstar" didn't make the cut so then post all the wins the Blades have and make excuses for the losses

[Nuts&Bolts]

Surely we have a dad promoting the greatness of the Blades complaining about the "Elite" league but at least he was connected enough to get his kid on the Blades team. Of those listed on the Blades roster several times in this post my thought is probably only Zerban and Hazlett (LN not LS) got robbed maybe Bump. I'll skip providing commentary on who from the "Elite" league they should have been able to replace but no surprises.

[Sartellcelly]

I have no child playing hockey anywhere in Minnesota, so allow me to give an unsolicited view:

The U18 Blades should be included as a team in the Elite League. It's better than inviting non-Minnesota rosters from Chicago, Colorado and elsewhere. I believe the Blades' rosters have been strong in recent years enough to hold their own. I doubt this will happen, though, because then you would have 17 or so Minnesotans in the league -- and competing credibly -- after being told by the Elite League that they are not good enough. So, it really comes down to the feelings (ego, etc., pick your word) of the Elite League leadership. If that's not the case, why is it not a good idea to have a Blades team rather than a squad from states that don't even border Minnesota?

[SuperStar]

Children, Children...Please. It is a open public forum about Minnesota High School Players..If you don't like it, don't read it.

1. Do I have a kid on the team? YES.
2. Do I have a axe to grind with the Elite league? No.
3. Do I like posting about how good MN High Schools players are doing? Yes
4. Did my little superstar not make the Elite League? No he didn't

BUT if you poster's that reacted negatively to what other MN High School players are doing outside the Elite League - I HAVE A SOLUTION!

How about you PM me and we can get together and I can show you in person my "axe grinding capabilities" - so to speak...

Otherwise I have a great suggestion: "Stick it up your _____"

[hockeyfan893]

Just wanted to step in here and voice my support for SuperStar.

1) The thread is aptly titled U18 MN Blades Major Midget Team. Any person who decides to click on this thread should expect to see information pertaining to the team, the games they play, the role of AAA hockey, etc. If it is not your desire to observe such information, do not open the thread.

2) The best information about a particular team often comes from sources who are involved with or close to said team. In many cases, this information is presented or obtained by parents. That said, one must always be aware of potential biases. Thus it is important to evaluate the content of what was said, which brings me to my third point:

3) SuperStar was not using this thread as an outlet to voice support for his own kid. His recaps of the games and travel were, in my humble opinion, both objective and informative. He also did not bring up any truly personal issues in with the Elite League. Rather, he voiced a relatively common opinion about the Elite League's increasingly political nature that many other users on this forum have voiced repeatedly, regardless of affiliation.

I have yet to see any reasonable objections raised to SuperStar's thread or his analyses within. Let's keep the ad-hominem attacks to a minimum.

Edit: Spelling and such.

[koolio]

For future years, the U18 Blades should be the additional/eighth team invited to play in the Elite League Playoff. Why not?! Or perhaps the Elite D regular season winner rather than an invite team from the league. It's playoff hockey this weekend and I expect the D League Team to get steamrolled by SE and every team it faces. Can't help but think the U18 Blades offers a more intriguing and competitive playoff match up.

I have no child playing hockey anywhere in Minnesota, so allow me to give an unsolicited view:

The U18 Blades should be included as a team in the Elite League. It's better than inviting non-Minnesota rosters from Chicago, Colorado and elsewhere. I believe the Blades' rosters have been strong in recent years enough to hold their own. I doubt this will happen, though, because then you would have 17 or so Minnesotans in the league -- and competing credibly -- after being told by the Elite League that they are not good enough. So, it really comes down to the feelings (ego, etc., pick your word) of the Elite League leadership. If that's not the case, why is it not a good idea to have a Blades team rather than a squad from states that don't even border Minnesota?

[karl(east)]

I have yet to see any reasonable objections raised to SuperStar's thread or his analyses within. Let's keep the ad-hominem attacks to a minimum.

This.

However, I would recommend that people who feel they've been attacked direct their complaints to me or one of the other admins. (This tends to be more effective than threats of fights in parking lots. )

Back to the topic at hand now, please.

[oldschoolpuckster]

I do not think that the Blades should play in the e-league playoffs. They have a great schedule and they seem to be doing just fine on their own.

Most (all) of these kids were all cut from the e-league for one reason or another so why woould they want to go "join" the end of the year tournament? Nothing to prove.

There are so many ways to "get noticed" and the Blades, e-league, d-league, etc... who cares how you get there. Based on the Blades strong history as a great program, they don't need the e-league to help promote their players.

IMHO the only reason "everyone" thinks the e-league is the best way to showcase talent is because that is all MN has had for offseason HS players. Now the landscape is changing and there are some other great places to play (Blades, Tier 1, etc..) and get these kids some more "exposure".

I have been a scout for years and I can guarantee that I have never gone to any game just to see "who stands out in a crowd". I always have a list of players to watch and write a report on. I can only remember two times (over 18 years of scouting) that I saw a player that I didnt have any info on, get on my radar and make an impact at the next level.

My point being...if your kid is good enough, he will be in "the system" and have a chance. There are a ton of kids that "make it" never having played a shift in the e-league. Granted, alot of top kids do play in the e-league (without question) and make it. There are a lot of great players there. Scouting a player takes years of data and research. I would like to see a kid play 20-30 times before I am ready to make a recommendation on him.

Remember, its just summer hockey. It gets scouted, but not nearly as often as the winter season.

[MNHockeyFan]

I have been a scout for years and I can guarantee that I have never gone to any game just to see "who stands out in a crowd". I always have a list of players to watch and write a report on.

Who develops and then gives you the list of players? I would imagine that to get on said list at some point a player would have to "stand out in a crowd" and someone - if not you - takes notice and puts that player on "the list". And as older players move on there needs to be a constant stream of new players that stand out (to somebody) and they get put on the list.

[oldschoolpuckster]

Without getting into "pages" of details. I would say that the majority of lists start from central scouting. (not the end all source, but a very good one)
Most players "get on it" as Bantams. Scouting is a (fairly) well oiled machine. Not a lot of suprises. I would say that more kids fall off the list, than climb on the list.
There is definitly kids out there that are hidden gems or late bloomers but generally speaking, by HS, the good prospects are well known and hevily recruited by the top programs.

Make no mistake, mine is definitly not the "end all" opinion. Just years of doing this job and years of seeing the same trends in players that "make it".

[JSR]

Without getting into "pages" of details. I would say that the majority of lists start from central scouting. (not the end all source, but a very good one)
Most players "get on it" as Bantams. Scouting is a (fairly) well oiled machine. Not a lot of suprises. I would say that more kids fall off the list, than climb on the list.
There is definitly kids out there that are hidden gems or late bloomers but generally speaking, by HS, the good prospects are well known and hevily recruited by the top programs.

Make no mistake, mine is definitly not the "end all" opinion. Just years of doing this job and years of seeing the same trends in players that "make it".

That is probably true in MN where the breadth and depth of talent is such that it allows that and it allows for so many good players... but from my experience in other states the trend is a bit different where the list doesn't really start until they are juniors in high school (so a couple years older than bantams)