Waconia wins BIG

[droppinhattysince99]

Waconia beats Mankato east 8-2. Firstyear team wins big like this its gotta be a big confidence booster for the program. Anyone see the game? Who all scored?

[hshckfan08]

Mankato East gets blown out by first year team Waconia 8-2. How does that happen, Isnt Mankato supposed to be good or is that the other Mankato team?

Did anyone see this game? Any thoughts?

You're thinking of Mankato West, who went to state last year and gave Marshall a run for their money. Ended up losing to little falls in the consolation championship

[scarlethockey33]

Yeah, mankato east just got completely dismantled piece by piece. But you probably are thinking of Mankato West because Mankato East is just not good this year....

[WayOutWest]

Waconia beats Mankato east 8-2. Firstyear team wins big like this its gotta be a big confidence booster for the program. Anyone see the game? Who all scored?

Mankato WHO?
Come on.
A first win is a good thing, but I'll save the celebration for the day they beat someone of substance.
I still see some very lean years for these guys, forthcoming.

[TheIceGuy]

WayOutWest..... I see Waconia has won 5 games in a row.... That is quite an accomplishment considering they are a first year HS program that has never had an ice arena until this year..... Why are you so Anti - Waconia ??

[WayOutWest]

WayOutWest..... I see Waconia has won 5 games in a row.... That is quite an accomplishment considering they are a first year HS program that has never had an ice arena until this year..... Why are you so Anti - Waconia ??

Oh, I'm not anti-Waconia. I just haven't seen much, yet. The recent win over Providence was nice, but they haven't hit the meat of their schedule yet. The upcoming games against Mound, Orono, and St. Cloud Cathedral, should be a better barometer on where they are truly at.

"1st year program" is a little disingenuous, since they were a coop with Holy Family until this year, but it is true that this is the first year on their own.
Waconia is a bit odd, when it comes to hockey. They have the high school numbers such that they should be fielding teams comparable to an Orono or a Mound, but the supporting hockey program doesn't seem to be generating much interest. There is no JV program, and one Bantam team. Hockey just hasn't taken off in the Waconia area. The hope is that the new arena will generate more interest, but that has yet to be seen.

Anti-Waconia? Never. But I think the hockey association needs a bit of an upgrade, if there is ever to be success at the high school level.

[gophs099]

I see that waconia and holy family have relatively the same record. Which of the teams has done better since their split?

[Teak]

Yeah, Waconia seems to be doing okay, but I dug a little deeper. I have been tracking freshmen and Charlie Klos of Waconia is one of them. He appears to be on the second line. Correct me if I'm wrong.

First Line
Smothers-Leivermann-Eiden, points: 18, 18, 15 respectively

Second Line
Noeldner-McAvoy-Klos, points: 5, 5, 4

Now, one of those might be a defenseman, but the point is that it looks like Waconia has basically ONE line scoring. This doesn't bode well for the season, and especially the sectional playoffs.

It is nice to see newer schools competing, and we hope that they can build the program up.

[WayOutWest]

I see that waconia and holy family have relatively the same record. Which of the teams has done better since their split?

Thus far, it looks fairly even. HF hasn't played the meat of their schedule yet, either. The big showdowns between the two schools will occur on 1/16 and 2/10.

[TheIceGuy]

I think it is safe to say that Waconia Is stronger on the first line, with Holy Family having the edge with balance and goaltending. (Waconia's goaltender is out with a broken collarbone). Both teams are young... Both teams should have a difficult time getting to double digit wins. At the same time, both programs are excited to have their own programs.

[WayOutWest]

Yeah, Waconia seems to be doing okay, but I dug a little deeper. I have been tracking freshmen and Charlie Klos of Waconia is one of them. He appears to be on the second line. Correct me if I'm wrong.

First Line
Smothers-Leivermann-Eiden, points: 18, 18, 15 respectively

Second Line
Noeldner-McAvoy-Klos, points: 5, 5, 4

Now, one of those might be a defenseman, but the point is that it looks like Waconia has basically ONE line scoring. This doesn't bode well for the season, and especially the sectional playoffs.

It is nice to see newer schools competing, and we hope that they can build the program up.

I believe you have a couple of defensemen in your second line, but the point is accurate. The team is not very deep at all. There is a significant dropoff after Smothers, Eiden, Lievermann. The latter two are seniors, as well, so there will be some significant room for backfilling after this season.
Unfortunately, there are low numbers coming up, for the next few years, as well. (you don't see decent numbers until you hit Pee-Wees) Waconia may be playing a 9th grader in goal, next season.
I wouldn't expect to see much from this group for another 3 years, at which point they may have the numbers enough to be competitive.