Hibbing/Chisholm at St. Cloud Apollo
7:15 p.m., Friday, Jan. 29

Two outstanding goalies square off Friday night at the Municipal Athletic Complex in St. Cloud, as Apollo's Nick Althaus and Hibbing/Chisholm’s Ryan Ullan collectively hold the state lead in the major three goaltending categories of wins, save percentage and goals-against average.

And their teams aren’t too bad either, as this non-section, nonconference meeting features the No. 3-1A Eagles hosting the No. 4-1A Bluejackets.

Althaus' 1.05 GAA leads the state and is about 25 percentage points ahead of the next best and 40 better than Ullan’s impressive 1.45 GAA.

Althaus also leads the state in save percentage with a .946 mark that is 11 points higher than Ullan’s .935, which places him sixth overall.

But entering the week, nobody has more than Ullan’s 17 wins, with Althaus just two behind.

Apollo (15-2-0) has been outstanding all season, scoring an average of 4.41 goals per game while allowing 1.06. The penalty kill is firing at a state-best 98.6 percent, while the power play is more than efficient at 32.4 percent. 

The Eagles are led by three seniors in forwards Gino Lucia (14-22-36) and Brandon Bissett (13-16-29) and defenseman Tanner Breidenbach (10-21-31).

Hibbing/Chisholm (17-1-0) has been nearly flawless in terms of wins this season, except for one loss to No. 12-2A Grand Rapids.

The Bluejackets average 4.89 goals per game, and junior defenseman Scott Perunovich, a Minnesota-Duluth recruit, has amassed 38 assists and 10 goals for 48 points through 18 games.