Upper Midwest High School Elite League
2007 Elite League season underway
The Upper Midwest High School Elite
League opened its 2007 season on Sept. 8-9, with games at the St. Louis Park Rec Center and the Kohl Center on the University of Wisconsin campus in Madison.
As expected, Team Southwest stormed out
of the gates with a strong showing in the first week of play. Led by an
eight-point weekend by University of North Dakota recruit Danny Mattson (Holy
Angels) and a six-point performance from University of Wisconsin recruit Jake
Gardiner (Minnetonka), Team Southwest posted a 7-5 win over Great Plains, a
14-1 rout of Norway’s under-17 national team and a 7-5 victory over North.
By virtue of scoring 28 goals on the
weekend, Team Southwest boasts six of the Elite League’s top 17 scorers.
Mattson leads the way with totals of 2-6--8, followed by Gardiner (3-3--6), and
Edina’s Joe Gleason (2-4--6), Anders Lee (4-1--5), Matt Leer (2-3--5)
and Marshall Everson (1-4--5).
In addition, Gardiner, Gleason and Minnetonka’s Anthony Raiola (2-2--4) give
Southwest three of the top four scoring defenseman in the league. Grant Narveson (Fargo South) of Team Great Plains was the only
other Elite League defenseman to notch four points on the weekend (0-4--4).
Team Southwest’s goaltender Derrick Caschetta (Edina) leads the
league with a .952 save percentage and a 1.00 goals-against average.
While Team Southwest surprised no one
with its outstanding play in week one, Team Wisconsin posted a surprising 2-0-1 start to the season with wins over
Northeast (4-3) and Southeast (5-4), and a 3-3 tie against Northwest.
Team Wisconsin’s 2-0-1 showing suprised many
considering the 2006 team finished the season with a 3-14-4 overall record.
Leading the way for Wisconsin in the scoring column was Wausau West senior Nate Condon (4-1--5) and Catholic Memorial junior Jeff Costello
(2-3--5). Goaltender Andrew Martin of Stoughton played in two of Wisconsin’s three games, compiling a .878 saves percentage and a 3.02 goals-against average.
Scouting the Elite League
A record number of junior, college and
professional scouts descended on St. Louis Park and Madison for the first week of play in the Elite League. Between the
two venues, over 40 scouts from across the hockey spectrum were represented to
witness the faceoff of the 2007 season. According to
league sources, over 20 scouts from National Hockey League teams were on hand.
With the Elite League heading to the New Hope Ice Arena for the next two weeks
of game action, more and more scouts are expected to be on hand.
An eventful weekend for Nick Oliver
Team Great Plains forward and St. Cloud State recruit Nick Oliver had quite a lead-up to his Elite League
debut. On Friday, Sept. 7, Oliver was the leading tackler for his Roseau High School football team’s 27-6 win over East Grand Forks. Following
the game, Nick and his father Scott, the Rams’ head hockey coach, took to the
road for the seven-hour drive to St. Louis Park for Nick’s first Elite League contest.
Along the way, the Olivers
hit a deer near Park Rapids, putting Nick’s league debut in jeopardy. Minnesota
Nice prevailed, however, as Scott’s old wrestling
coach provided a car for the Olivers, ensuring that Nick
would make it to St. Louis Park in time.