Red Line's March report

[jk]

Red Line's March report included a lengthy report on the MN HS hockey tournament. The entire report is here:

http://www.usatoday.com/sports/hockey/colu...ne-report_x.htm

The fun excerpt is here:

Everyone in hockey circles loves the Minnesota state high school championships each March, and this year's tournament was filled with a number of quality NHL prospects, including potential 2005 first-rounder Brian Lee, who also was named the recipient of the prestigious Minnesota "Mr. Hockey" award during the tourney. Lee has been a man among boys all season and controls every shift with his remarkable poise and patience.

As for the action on the ice, senior forward T.J. Oshie was the top guy on everyone's Warroad Warriors radar screen. But RLR could make a very strong argument that defenseman Kyle Hardwick was Warroad's best all-around player during the club's run to the Class A tournament title, which was won in dramatic fashion: 4-3 in double overtime over Totino-Grace.

Hardwick is strong on his skates, has a great stride and always knows exactly when to jump up into the play. He scored twice during the tournament and has now joined the USHL's Lincoln Stars, where he'll play for the rest of this season and probably most of the next. In the title game's third period, he scored a power-play goal off a wicked blast he targeted top shelf, stick side from just inside the blue line.

Despite the impression Hardwick made, there's no question that Oshie was the Warriors' engine over the course of the season. Though he didn't dominate throughout the championship game, we were impressed that he grew stronger and exerted himself more as the match moved along.

And he saved his best for last. Deftly noticing a change in Totino-Grace's defensive alignment, he chose a different way of taking, and winning, an offensive-zone draw 11 minutes into the second overtime session.

"Their defense lined up differently for that draw than they had all game," said Oshie, who is Sioux Falls Stampede property and a North Dakota recruit.

"They'd been lining up behind their center, but this time, they lined up behind their wings along the boards. So I pushed the puck forward, then was able to pass it to Aaron Marvin."

For Oshie, the win was the culmination of an incredible family tale.

Oshie, who finished his senior season with 37 goals and a state leading 100 points, came to Warroad three years ago via Mt. Vernon, Wash., where he grew up and played most of his amateur hockey career. But as his grandfather and uncle had both skated for Warroad many years ago, Oshie was inspired to return to his ancestral hockey home for his sophomore season.

"This title feels just as great as the first," said Oshie, "but then again it might feel just a little bit better because this time we didn't lose all year."

Indeed, the Warriors finished the year a near-perfect 29-0-2.

***

As for the state Class AA championship, Academy of Holy Angels won the title game 6-4 over Moorhead. Despite his Moorhead side losing the state final for the second year in a row, centre Chris VandeVelde was really a "wow!" throughout the weekend.

He had eight shots, a goal and an assist in the Spuds' 4-1 semifinal win over Duluth East, and versus Holy Angels, he scored a goal and had two assists despite the Stars' attempt to stifle him and his offensive mates.

He has an incredibly long reach and is uncanny playing in traffic. When he got his skating legs going, he was nearly impossible to push off the puck, in an almost Keith Primeau

[DMT]

I would love to see Hardwick in a Sioux jersey as well.

[jloos]

Not mentioned in the pic are Matt Becker and Cory Loos

I think there is a very good chance Hardwick will be a Sioux in two years, same goes for Dru Fisher.