Section 8A/AA displayed the depth of talent in Minnesota high school hockey as they captured the Reebok Minnesota Hockey Ted Brill Great 8 title this past weekend.  Five different players scored goals as they cruised to a 5-1 win over Section 4A/AA.

Many times in Minnesota the spotlight tends to stay focused on the powerhouse programs in Class AA like Edina, Eden Prairie, Wayzata or private school programs like Hill-Murray or Benilde-St. Margarets, but every once in a while, we are reminded what makes this the State of Hockey. The Section 8A/AA team rang that bell again this past weekend. 

Featuring a roster with 12 players from Class A (no other team had more than eight), including players from lesser known programs like Crookston, Red Lake Falls and St. Cloud Tech, Section 8A/AA stormed Wakota Arena and put on a clinic on how to play team defense.  The team held opponents to less than 25 shots and two or fewer goals in all three of their games, a feat accomplished only twice by the other seven teams combined.

“Obviously our D-corps was really solid with the two East Grand Forks kids, Eddie [Eades] & [Taylor] Brierley,” said Section 8A/AA coach Andy Lundbohm.  “I thought the [Chris] Pohlkamp kid was outstanding. I thought [Adam] Pancoast had a great week, and of course, the two Warroad kids were fantastic.”

“Also, we had wonderful goaltending. They were real big back there and made some real key saves at certain times, but I think it started with our forwards making a point of coming back extremely hard.”

The stingy defense and hard-nosed back check was something the players talked about amongst themselves coming into the games, especially after an injury provided Cody Brumbaugh, a goalie from Park Rapids, a last second opportunity to participate.

“He hadn’t skated since the end of the season,” said Isak Bergland, a forward from Thief River Falls that led the team with six points on the weekend. “We just thought we would come back hard and help the goalies out so that was huge.”

The all-around team effort defensively paid off as Section 8A/AA moved past Section 6A/AA in the quarterfinals 3-2. Then, they knocked off their fellow north team, Section 7A/AA, by a score of 5-2 in the semifinals.  That set the stage for a match up in the final against Section 4A/AA.

From the drop of the puck, the championship was easily the most intense and physical game of the tournament. Two of the biggest hits came from the same player on the same shift and set the tone for the rest of the game.

“I think the two hits that Pohlkamp had in the second period completely turned the game around,” said Lundbohm, who was named the Section 8AA Coach of the Year after leading Roseau to the State Tournament. “He has done that to our players [in Roseau]. It was real nice to see him explode into a couple of other players.”

Asked if the physicality was a result of a rivalry between the North and South, Lundbohm was quick to recognize the pride the players have coming from their northern teams but attributed most of the intensity to the desire the players have to compete.

“A lot of northern pride – Section 8 – we wanted to come down and represent,” said Lundbohm. “I think it means the world for these guys to be recognized in their section, by the different coaches of the section to vote them into this thing.  It’s a special honor.”

“I know these kids. I coached against them. I think they all have that ability to play with that edge. It was just natural for that to come out down here.  Put a puck on the ice, and they are going to play with an edge. That’s just the type of players we have in the section right now.”

Evidently, the depth of competitiveness and talent in Section 8A/AA extends beyond the perennial powers of Roseau, Moorhead and Warroad, proving again, that it’s the ability of smaller programs to produce high quality players that makes Minnesota such a hockey hotbed.  

The Ted Brill Great 8 has provided high school seniors the opportunity to showcase their skills and abilities to coaches and scouts from junior, collegiate and professional teams for over 30 years.  The three-day tournament is organized by the Minnesota High School Hockey Coaches Association and Minnesota Hockey. It is designated as a national development program by USA Hockey and continues to play a vital role in player development and exposure in Minnesota.