Roseau vs. Warroad 
7:30 p.m., Thursday, Jan. 12

Roseau versus Warroad is arguably the best rivalry in all of Minnesota high school sports. These two hockey-mad communities are separated by 20 miles on Hwy. 11 and have seen their teams battle since 1945.

Roseau has Polaris Industries, the county name and courthouse, while Warroad has Marvin Windows and the Lake of the Woods. Together, the two communities of a combined 4,500 people have produced dozens of professional hockey players, with many prominent alumni on current NHL rosters.

The rivalry reignites Thursday night at the Warroad Gardens, where the Warriors hope close the gap in a series that the Rams lead with a 97-67 all-time mark.

Roseau is trending upward with a 10-game winning streak that includes victories over section-mates Moorhead, Bemidji, Brainerd and St. Cloud. The red-hot Rams (10-3, 2-1), ranked No. 19 in the Class 2A coaches' poll, are at nearly a plus-2.5 goal differential (4.85 goals for to 2.46 goals against) with solid individual play offensively from seniors Brandon Lund (11-11-22) and Bryden Stoskopf (14-18-32).

Warroad has battled inconsistency all season, demonstrated by the Warriors’ opening weekend of the new year. They posted a 4-0 win over Detroit Lakes on Jan. 6 and followed it with a 3-0 loss to Fergus Falls the next day. 

The Warriors (4-8-1, 0-3) are upside down in their goal production (2.92 goals for to 3.15 goals against) and have fallen to 0-3-1 in one-goal games.

Senior forward Beau Wilmer (10-8-18) leads Warroad in scoring.