St. Thomas Academy vs. Hill-Murray
7:30 p.m., Thursday, Jan. 5

St. Thomas Academy begins the new year having finished second to Edina in the Schwan Cup Gold Division tournament last week.

The No. 5-2A Cadets average 4.27 goals for while allowing just 1.82, and their special teams is killing penalties at nearly 90 percent, key reasons why St. Thomas Academy is 8-2-1 overall and 3-0 in Metro East Conference play. Forwards Ray Christy (9-8-17) and Willie Reim (7-11-18) have done the bulk of the scoring for the team.

Hill-Murray seems to skate up or down to the level of its competition, which has provided some inconsistent results. The No. 10-2A Pioneers (6-1-3, 2-0-1) can compete with top-tier teams, as shown by a 2-2 tie with No. 4-2A Eden Prairie in the Gold Division quarterfinals on Dec. 29, and a victory in Thursday's game would prove Hill-Murray is among the state's elite

Senior Brock Bremer (7-8-15) leads the offense, with sophomore center Ben Helgeson (6-7-13) also playing a steady roll in points production. Emmet Nath leads the Pioneers with nine goals.