News post from the Rink Live
News post from the Rink Live...
excerpt:
ALEXANDRIA, Minn. — In the heart of central Minnesota, a faith-based prep hockey academy has its sights on developing a world-class program for high school students.
In Northstar Christian Academy’s inaugural season, the Knights went undefeated in the North American Prospects Hockey League and won its league championship.
Knights Win Inaugural NAPHL Prep Championship
The Northstar Christian Academy Knights won all 5 games at the NAPHL Prep Championship in Troy Michigan over the weekend to secure the 1st ever NAPHL Prep Championship. The Knights won all 8 regular season games and then 5 additional playoff games during the league Championship week-end. These 5 wins extended the Knights unbeaten streak to 25 games (22 wins and 3 ties).
After winning their first 3 preliminary games against St. Rita’s (CA), Lake Tahoe (CA) and Prairie Academy (SK), the semi-finals matched the Knights against the Fountain Valley Hockey School from Colorado. The game was hard fought with the Knights earning a 4-0 win. Key goals from forwards Jens Richards, Ben Casey and a pair from Zach Barros provided the offensive while Camdyn Barber earned the shutout between the pipes.
The finals matched the Knights against the Pilot Mound Buffaloes, a growing hockey Academy in Manitoba. The Knights combination of a powerful offensive and a tough defense was too much for the Buffalo as the Knights dominated in all phases of the game. An early goal by Ben Strinden allowed the Knights to settle in until Connor Kemp scored on a shorthanded breakaway to increase the lead to 2. Alexandria’s Truett Olson added a pair of goals along with Pine City Defenseman Logan Johnson to push the Knights lead to 5-0. Earning the shut out in net for the Knights was goalie Collin Soderholm.
The Knights will stay on the road and play 5 games at the University of Notre Dame this upcoming week-end including a key matchup against the Edge School from Calgary.
Alexandria, MN players Truett Olson and Jakob Stender
Knights Anderson recognized by NAPHL as top Defenseman after strong Showcase
Knights Junior Defenseman Luke Anderson broke out in December, doubling his previous three total points in league play in his first action this month and logging three straight multi-point showings along the way. The Northstar Knights continued to steamroll opponents in December, and Anderson was sure to get in on the action with three assists on Dec. 1, two more on the 2nd and a goal and an assist on the 3rd to nearly quadruple his previous production. Anderson’s goal on Dec. 3 also stood as the game-winner in a tilt against Pilot Mound. Luke’s strong play has helped the Knights win the regular season of the NAPHL Prep Division as well as the ProStock Invitational this season.
Knights Sweep Shattuck St. Mary’s U18 AAA Team
The Northstar Knights won their 20th and 21st games of the season this weekend as they sweep the AAA U 18 Shattuck St. Mary’s team in Faribault, MN. The wins extended the Knights unbeaten streak to 18 games, going 15-0-3.
Game 1 was a defensive battle that featured great goaltending by both teams. The Knights Camdyn Barber was perfect on the night stopping every shot that he faced. The Knights Talon Sigurdson broke a scoreless tie late in the 3rd period after picking off a pass in the slot and beating the Shattuck goalie cleanly. Knights forward Kayle Bocken provided the forechecking that led to the turnover in the high slot. The Knights defense was superb, limiting the scoring chances and preserving the 1-0 win.
Game 2 was just as hard fought as game 1 with solid goaltending and defense by both teams. Just like game 1, a strong forecheck led to the Knights first goal when senior defenseman Logan Johnson scored from the point to give the Knights a 1 -0 lead. After a PP goal to tie the game, the Knights battled hard to regain the lead. Late in the 3rd, the Knights scored on a powerplay to secure the win, when Senor Jackson Vercellono scored off a rebound shot by Senior Defenseman John Drury. Collin Soderholm was superb in the net for the Knights, making several saves in the last minute with the Knights on the penalty kill.
Knights defenseman Luke Anderson received the game puck after his strong defensive play on Sunday and fellow defenseman Logan Johnson received the Warrior award for the teams Warrior of the weekend.
The Knights will be on a 3 week break for the holidays and return to action on January 12 and 13 in Grand Forks against Pilot Mound.
Winning the ProStock Prep Tournament in Chicago!
Knights Win Prestigious ProStock Prep Invitational defeating Loyola Academy 4-0 in Final.
Knights Undefeated in last 16 games (13-0-3)
The first game of the tournament was a good test for the Knights as they faced off against the Saint Viator Lions. After an early Lions goal, Kayle Bocken (Monticello, MN) tied the game up for the Knights. The Knights were then able to establish their forecheck and were rewarded for their efforts as Connor Kemp (Placentia, CA) was able to give NorthStar a 2-1 lead after a nice pass from Talon Sigurdson (Sartell, MN). Ben Casey (Eagle River, AK) added the insurance on the powerplay on a nice pass for Kemp. The Knights penalty kill was stellar, killing off all 5 opportunities. Junior goaltender, Camdyn Barber (Portland, OR), shut the door after the opening faceoff posting 17 saves in the win.
The Knights second game ended in a 1-1 tie against another Illinois team, the Spartans of Glenbrook. The Spartans scored first but the Knights tied it in the 2 nd with a highlight reel goal by Junior defenseman Luke Anderson (St. Cloud, MN). Junior goaltender, Collin Soderholm (Monticello, MN), had a great performance, posting 22 saves in the win.
Game 3 saw the Knights play the tournament’s top ranked team, New Trier Green. Similar to game 2, the Knights went down 1-0 before battling back for a hard fought 1-1 tie as Kemp scored the equalizer off of a rebound. The Knights had their first big test on special teams, killing off four penalties in the 2nd period. Leading the way for the Knights on the PK were forwards, Kayle Bocken and Ben Casey, as well as Defensemen, Logan Johnson (Pine City, MN) and Christian Nichols (Alpharetta, GA). Junior netminder, Camdyn Barber stood on his head stopping 20 shots against Illinois best team.
The Quarterfinals saw the Knights outplay the Stevenson Patriots, winning 7-2 and advancing to the semi-finals. NorthStar came out flying as forward, Nate Albers (McKinney, TX) sniped short side off of a great lead-pass from defenseman, Jakob Stender (Alexandria, MN). With a jolt of energy, the flood gates were opened as Sophomore, Jens Richards (Detroit Lakes, MN), scoring a natural hat-trick. Additional goals by Albers, Joey Dosan (Bloomington, MN), and Talon Sigurdson rounded out the Knights scoring.
The semi finals was a rematch of the 1-1 tie with New Tier and the 2 nd time was just as close. After going down 1-0 early in the first, Nate Albers fired a laser onto the far pad of the New Trier's goaltender giving a juicy rebound for Bryce Swalve (Sioux City, IA) to knock home, yet Swalve was dragged down before he could score. On the ensuing powerplay, Joey Dosan evening the score at 1 on a nice tip in front of the net. The game would remain 1-1 until Connor Kemp knocked in a rebound for another game winning goal. Knights defensemen John Drury (Thousand Oaks, CA) and Tyler Ryder (Grand Rapids, MI) anchored a defensive wall against the blitzkrieg of New Trier offense. Rounding out the wall was goalie, Camdyn Barber, who posted a impressive 24 saves. The Knights would hold on to the lead beating the state's #1 ranked team by a score of 2-1.
The championship game against Loyola, the defending Illinois State Champions was all Knights. The Knights came ready to play as the DVR line (Dosan, Vercellono, and Richards) each scored one of the first 3 goals to provide all the offensive the Knights would need. The Knights added a late goal when Truett Olson (Alexandria, MN) created a turnover allowing Kemp to score from a near impossible angle. The Knights went on to claim the championship of the Pro Stock Hockey Prep Invitational with a 4-0 win over
Loyola Gold. Junior forward Connor Kemp won the Warrior award in recognition of his
fierce play this past week-end in all 6 Knights games.
The Knights travel to Farbault, MN to play the U18 Shattuck St. Mary’s team on Saturday and Sunday.
MN Hockey Magazine Features Northstar Knights...
Check out the recent article in the Minnesota Hockey Magazine on the Northstar Sports Complex and the Knights program. Amazing to see how the Lord has moved to open up the doors for this team to perform this year. http://online.fliphtml5.com/aotas/kxvi/index.html#p=46
Knights Roll in Blaine, Win all 4 Games
The Northstar Knights extended their unbeaten streak to 10 games (9 wins and 1 tie) by sweeping all 4 games this past weekend at the NAPHL Showcase in Blaine, MN.
The Knights continued their dominance in league play, winning all 3 NAHL Prep games to finish out the regular prep season 7 and 0. They will play for the league Championship in Troy Michigan January 19-21.
Game 1 on Saturday was against fellow unbeaten Lake Tahoe Academy of California. After a close first period, the Knights pulled away due in part to the first ever “Hat Trick” by Knights junior forward Ben Casey (Eagle River, AK). Senior Defenseman Logan Johnson (Pine City, MN) and Junior Defenseman Luke Anderson (St. Cloud, MN) each had 3 assists for the Knights in the win.
Game 2 on Saturday night was the closest battle for the Knights as they beat the Geneva Cyclones 18U team by a score of 4-3. Senior Co-Captains Jackson Vercellono (3 goals) and Joey Dosan (3 Assists) lead the way while Junior Goalie Collin Soderholm was super in the win. Senior Defenseman Christian Nichols (Alpharetta, GA) and Junior Center Ben Oakland (Boise, ID) assisted on Senior Defenseman John Drury’s (Thousand Oaks, CA) 2nd period tic tac toe passing play that was one of the top highlights of the night.
Games 3 and 4 were all Knights as they dominated St. Mary’s of California 10-0 and Pilot’s Mount of Alberta 11-1. Against St. Mary’s, Sophomore Forward Jens Richard (Detroit Lakes, MN) led the way with 1 goal and 3 assists while 2 juniors tallied their 1st goals of the year, Zach Barros (Dallas, TX) and Truett Olson (Alexandria, MN). Junior Goalie Chris Brown (Reading, PA) earned the shutout. Against Pilot Mound, Joey Dosan (3 Goals), Kayle Bocken (Monticello, MN) 2 goals and 1 assist, Talon Sigurdson (Sartell, MN) 3 assists, Jakob Stender (Alexandria, MN) 1 goal, 3 assists and Jackson Vercellono (1 goal, 3 assists) lead the offensive onslaught for the Knights.
The Knights travel to Chicago, Illinois this week-end to participate in the 200x85 Pro Stock Invitational before wrapping up the first half of the season against Shattuck St. Mary’s in Faribault December 15 and 16.
League Honors for Richards
18U Prep Apex Peak Performer (Offense) – Jens Richards, Northstar Academy
No Prep skater found twine more than Richards in October, as the Detroit Lakes, MN native potted five tallies in four games to go along
with three assists as he put up points in every game. Richards posted a pair of three-point efforts at the showcase to help his team to a
perfect 4-0-0 record. On Oct. 19, Richards scored in Northstar’s first game before scoring two goals and helping out another in a win
over Prairie. He notched an assist on the 20th, and again scored twice while assisting another goal on the 21st to bring his four-game
total to 5g-3a-8pts in four outings.
More from the NORTH AMERICAN PROSPECTS HOCKEY LEAGUE here:
OCT_ShowcasePrepPeakPerformers