No. 1 Edina at No. 2 Hill-Murray
7:30 p.m., Saturday, Jan. 11
At Aldrich Arena, Maplewood
MN Hockey Hub Spotlight Game

Edina, the defending state champion, seemed vulnerable at season’s start. The Hornets graduated a strong defensive corps and goaltender Willie Benjamin, while leading scorer Cullen Hurley left school early. But a program as deep as Edina’s never rebuilds.

Coach Curt Giles just plugged in the next generation of stars such as sophomores Kieffer Bellows, Garrett Wait, Casey Dornbach and Ryan Zuhlsdorf. Meanwhile, returning veterans Miguel Fidler, Cullen Munson, Tyler Nanne and Dylan Malmquist have all stepped into a leadership role. Fidler, the son of former North Star Mike Fidler, leads the Hornets with 11 goals and 25 points in 15 games after scoring just eight last winter.

Combined with the play of goaltender Andrew Rohkohl, who backed up Benjamin last year, the Hornets now appear almost bulletproof. Rohkohl made 36 saves in Edina’s 4-2 victory over Hill-Murray in the championship game of the Schwan Cup Gold Division last month.

The Pioneers mirror Edina’s dominance closely. It seems no matter what coach Bill Lechner loses from year to year, he has Hill-Murray in the championship discussion at season’s close. 

After losing three of its top four scorers and Brimsek Award finalist John Dugas in goal, Hill-Murray was ranked No. 1 until falling to the Hornets last month. Mitch Slattery was expected to lead the way and he has with seven goals and 19 points, as has freshman Joey Anderson, who already committed to the University of Minnesota-Duluth. But contributions from last year’s third and fourth liners such as Josh French (10 goals, 18 points) and Zach Mills (nine goals, 11 points) has powered the Pioneers.