Feature Story

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Lumberjacks making their move

By Brian McDonough

Winners of three in a row, the Granite City Lumberjacks are starting to make a push up the congested Minnesota Junior Hockey League standings.

“Not only were those wins big in terms of picking up points, but guys are coming together as a team,” said Lumberjacks coach Cale Finseth, whose team improved to 19-15-4. “They’ve bought into everything we’ve been working on and have started to believe in each other.”

After wins over the Twin Cities Northern Lights and the Minnesota Flying Aces in which they scored 14 goals in the two games, the Lumberjacks kept the offensive coming last week with an 8-1 triumph over the Lights on Tuesday.

Kent Kirby tallied two goals and an assist in the win, while Tyler Wahl added a goal and two assists. Between the pipes, Justin Lochner turned aside 22 shots.

“The guys have showed up to play,” said Finseth. “They work hard for the whole 60 minutes and do the small things that win hockey games. They’ve started to play more physical and are taking care of the D-zone.

“That and the line combinations have been working; each line has a specific responsibility and they’ve been doing their job.”

With Granite City’s top-three scorers - Wahl, Tyler Sura and Brady Borer - providing much of the offense all season, newcomers Kirby and Sean Kenny, who also scored in Tuesday’s win over Twin Cities, have wasted no time finding the scoresheet with consistency.

Kirby, a 19-year-old from St. Louis, had seven points (six goals) in his first six games with the team, while Kenny, an 18-year-old Reno, Nev., native, had five goals for seven points in his first eight games.

“They’ve been two great additions to our team,” said Finseth. “Kent is a mature older player that works hard and understands the game of hockey. Sean is a young explosive player who has been well coached in the past.”

The Lumberjacks have also been helped recently by strong goaltending from the duo of Lochner and Tyler Venne.

“You’re not find two goaltenders who work harder than Tyler or Justin,” said Finseth. “They come to practice with a purpose of getting better and the desire to move on.

“Tyler and Justin practice with the team in the morning and then practice at night with our goalie coach. These guys understand the dedication it takes to make it to the next level.”

Finseth also credits his captains, Sura among them, and his junior veterans for helping his club develop a team-oriented enviroment.

“I explained to the team that I’ve laid the foundation, but they’re the ones who need to continue to work hard and self-manage each other,” said Finseth. “They’ve started to hold each other accountable for their play and have bought into their individual roles.

“The players are always making strides to improve; they practice with the same intensity as they do on game day.”

The coach has seen constant improvement since September, and, with a month left in the regular season, he’s counting on that to continue as the postseason nears.

“We need to be running on all cylinders when the playoffs start,” said Finseth. “We need to stay healthy and continue to win hockey games.”

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