Photo Gallery: Minnetonka vs. Andover
So the business-like and methodical approach the Skippers’ wielded to persevere through the challenges associated with Hockey Day Minnesota, while systematically picking apart another team of superb skill, should surprise no one.
The Skippers, unbeaten and ranked all season at No. 1 in the Class 2A coaches’ poll, brushed aside the distractions, the media spotlight, the choppy ice conditions and an air-temperature of 15-below at puck drop to roll past No. 2-2A Andover 5-2 Saturday morning near the southern shore of Lake Bemidji.
The Hockey Day Minnesota victory, no matter how many people noticed, is just the latest for a Minnetonka (17-0-1, 1-0-0) team committed now only to improving.
“It’s mid-January, and what we learned last year was that you need to work the process out for the entire season, and to make sure you are finely tuned by getting exposed early on so that you can get better by March,” Minnetonka coach Sean Goldsworthy said. “We’re not getting caught in the moment right now, where we are at or whether we are undefeated...we’re just trying to get better. And I think we got better today.”
Minnetonka broke through with three goals in the final period to pull away from a previously unbeaten Andover team that brings high-end talent and balance. Five different Skippers finished on the goal sheet as Minnetonka simply wore down Andover with its incredible depth.
After a sloppy first period in which the players on both sides learned how to better handle a bouncing puck, neither side side too terribly disturbed by the conditions of the outside game.
Andover struck first on a short-handed goal by senior Nick Dainty, fed by Charlie Schoen, before Minnetonka answered less than a minute later with a power-play goal by Will Crull to pull the Skippers even.
In the second period, Minnetonka took the lead with another power-play goal, this time from senior captain Grant Docter, and the Skippers never trailed again. The Skippers were committed to moving the puck in the most direct way afforded, and it began to click.
“We just tried to keep it simple,” Docter said. “It was difficult to handle the puck, especially in the first two periods. By the third, we were able to adapt and play with our hands a little more.”
Once the Skippers got a handle on their ability to pass and move the puck, their transition and attack began to bloom. Puck movement and depth soon paid dividends for Minnetonka.
“We’re winning games by how we play at the end of periods,” Goldsworthy said. “Our depth wears on people.”
Minnetonka was 2-for-3 with the man advantage, while killing the only penalty issued its way.
Andover suffered its first loss of the season, and now looks to learn from it and apply the lesson moving forward.
“This is about the experience, not the result,” Andover coach Mark Manney said. “All 20 guys on our roster played, and everyone contributed. This is going to make us closer as a team.”
“It’s nice to see Tonka and get on the same ice with them,” he added. “I think our guys’ impression is that they are very good, but they are nothing to be afraid of.”
Minnetonka erstwhile will celebrate this one only about as long as the four-hour bus trip takes to head south to the Twin Cities. The Skippers know much more lay ahead.
“We’ve been playing ranked opponents all year,” Goldsworthy said. “We feel like we have one of the toughest schedules in the state, and we just started our Lake Conference schedule, so we just have to roll through our schedule and you get used to it. And we’re very fortunate to be able to play that kind of schedule all the time. We’re comfortable in this environment.”