Andover coach Mark Manney played high school hockey in a Spuds uniform and considers Moorhead his hometown. So the quarterfinal matchup Thursday in the Class 2A quarterfinals of the boys’ hockey state tournament pitting his Huskies and the Spuds will be tough, he said.

Besides Manney’s connection with Moorhead, Andover assistant coach Brett Barta and Moorhead head coach Jon Ammerman grew up best friends and defensive partners playing for the Spuds, finishing as Class 2A runners-up in 2004 and 2005. Manney and Ammerman chat on the phone a couple of times a week during hockey season, Manney said.

“The kids know the connection between us and Moorhead, and they kind of relish the chance to maybe give it to the Spuds just to help us out,” Manney said. “On the other side … Jon, I’m sure, says, ‘These guys will have bragging rights for a year on me, so don’t let them take that.’”

Moorhead, seeded fourth, defeated fifth seed Andover 6-1 in early December, a game that Manney described as tighter than the score indicated.

2020 champ Hill-Murray is back

This marks Hill-Murray’s 32nd state tournament berth, only a couple shy of Roseau’s 34 state trips for most in the state. But Hill-Murray will actually play in its 31st state tournament this year.

Hill-Murray didn’t get the chance to defend its Class 2A title in last year’s tournament, instead forfeiting its quarterfinal game against Wayzata. The Pioneers were exposed to COVID-19 during their section final against White Bear Lake. Some Hill-Murray players even filed a lawsuit against the Minnesota State High School League seeking to be allowed to play but were unsuccessful.

The Pioneers are back this year, though, with a No. 1 seed next to their name. They’ll face last year’s 2A runner-up, Lakeville South, in its fourth straight state trip, this time with new coach Josh Storm.

Gunderson finds his role with Maple Grove

Junior Landen Gunderson obviously stands out on the stat sheet as Maple Grove’s leading scorer with 19 goals and 72 points on the top line. But in his third year on the team and third state tournament, his excitement revolves around playing a much bigger role than in his freshman year.

“I think it’s a lot more fun being able to control your team and lead your team through it,” Gunderson said.

Crimson coach Todd Bergland recalls Gunderson wanting that leadership role as a freshman and seeing how far he’s come.

“He’s the guy that’s commanding ice and wants it,” Bergland said. “It’s finally here for him. He’s responded so well. He’s become an incredible leader. I just can’t say enough about how much he’s progressed and become the leading force behind this team.”

The Crimson opened the season in a Thanksgiving-weekend tournament with a 6-5 overtime loss to Edina. The victory for the Hornets jump-started their season with a six-game winning streak. Edina is familiar with the rest of the Class 2A tournament field, having faced every other team except Andover. The Hornets are 4-3 against the rest of the field this season, splitting two games with Hill-Murray in February.

Prior Lake is the newcomer

Only one program is brand new to the state tournament stage: unseeded Prior Lake. The Lakers were seeded fourth in Section 2 and knocked off defending Class 2A state champion Eden Prairie before beating Chaska 7-4 in the final. Prior Lake senior Alex Bump scored four goals against Chaska in a packed Braemar Arena with a large contingent of Prior Lake fans.

The feeling of knowing he and his teammates made the state tournament was an “unreal feeling,” Bump said.

“To make history, it’s a pretty cool feeling,” Bump said. “I was just jacked.”

Coach Joe Pankratz said he wasn’t happy with the four seed in the section tournament, but the team used that as motivation, posting “No. 4 seed” on the dry-erase board for the players to rally around. They love the underdog role headed into state, too, he said.

“If somebody wants to overlook us, I think we’ll be able to surprise them a little bit,” Pankratz said.

While Prior Lake has played good hockey over its past 17 games, its seeded opponent, Cretin-Derham Hall, has an 18-game winning streak. The Lakers are making a tournament debut as a program, but the Raiders haven’t been to the X in a while either, since 2009. Players on both teams, each with a Mr. Hockey finalist, will need to manage the big stage.