Duluth East at Wayzata
2:30 p.m., Saturday, Nov. 29

Speaking of possible state tournament previews, there are multiple Saturday games that fit that bill, including No. 9-2A Duluth East visiting No. 3-2A Wayzata. Both return strong teams with star power in several possible preseason Mr. Hockey candidates.

Duluth East has advanced to the state tournament six consecutive seasons, but it’s a run that could be in jeopardy.

Section 7 is tough and the Greyhounds will have a different look than in past years. Gone are the playmaking defenseman of past tourney teams such as Meirs Moore, Andy Welinski, Nate Repensky and Phil Beaulieu.

This year’s ‘Hounds are less experienced on the blue line, but what they do have is veteran coach Mike Randolph, who always seems to get the best out of his teams. Duluth East also has a potentially potent offense that includes the Altmann brothers (senior Nick and junior Ashton) and senior Brian Bunten.

Wayzata will be a good defensive test for East’s offense. Coach Pat O’Leary has his Trojans playing a tight defensive game that resulted in just 1.3 goals against per game last year. But what hurt Wayzata was a lack of goal scoring in big games. It’s up to juniors Max Zimmer, Mark Senden, Luke Paterson and Billy Duma to improve upon their sophomore seasons.