AA QF - #7 Lakeville South vs. #2 Moorhead

[karl(east)]

#7 LAKEVILLE SOUTH VS. #2 MOORHEAD
6:00 Thursday
Two recent Tourney regulars meet in the same time slot where they collided for a memorable game last season, when South stunned the state by jumping out to 3-1 and 4-2 leads before the Spuds roared back and won 7-4. They did not meet during the regular season.

Lakeville South (14-11-3, #21, 2-seed in 1AA)
State appearances: 9 (two in a row)
Key section win: 3-1 over #24 Farmington

It’s been a tumultuous season for the Cougars, who saw head coach Josh Storm placed on administrative leave in January; they are now guided by old hand Kurt Weber, whose Justin Kloos-led Cougars pulled a huge upset and finished third at State back in 2012. St. Thomas commit Carter Ernst (15) is their unquestioned star, though senior Calvin O’Reilly (24) and sophomore Roan Zielie (6) both had 20-goal seasons, and they have some depth up front thanks to Colby Olsen (11) and Justin Olson (22). Gavin Lafferty (7) is their big producer from the defensive side. Keaton LeGrande (30), who helped carry St. Cloud Cathedral to a second place finish in Class A a season ago, is in net. Their performance over the course of the season was pretty consistent, as they shrugged off an early section loss to Farmington to handle the Tigers in the second meeting and the section final, but they haven’t beaten a top ten caliber team and will need to find another level to rein in the Moorhead offense.

Moorhead (24-3-1, #4, 1-seed in 8AA)
State appearances: 22 (2 in a row)
Championships: 1 (2025)
Key section win: 5-1 over #20 Elk River

The defending champs are back for more, and though there were a couple of bumps along the road this season, they look every bit the contender for a repeat. No team in the field comes close to matching the arsenal of offensive weapons the Spuds have at their disposal. 75-point scorer Tyden Bergeson (23) and Brandon Mickelson (4), who has a bonkers 59 points from the blue line, are probably the two frontrunners for Mr. Hockey, but they are only the tip of the iceberg. Junior Mankato commit Zac Zimmerman (7) and UMD commit Max Cullen (11) are forces. Joey Cullen (6) may be the best sophomore in the state, and Evan Wanner (20), who would be a star on any other team, quietly puts himself in position for some big moments. There are some questions on the back end, though, where sophomore Drew Kortan (27), Zak Devig (15), and Drew Simonich (3) will need to lead the way in covering when the offense surges forward and protect Will Arnold (31) in net. Their tendency to give up some goals against good teams is an area to watch since that’s not always a great formula for a wannabe state champion, but they alone in this field have the ability to just overpower anyone.