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Championship game for the most hyped section in recent memory. Both teams are coming off stellar wins in their semifinals. Eden Prairie has the lone decision between these two this year with their other meeting ending in a tie. Who goes to the X? I'll take EP 3-2, these seniors don't lose very often.

The winner of this game is my pick to win the whole thing. I'd like to see Wayzata win this game. It will be tough to shut down Rau and company, but Wayzata's first line may be the best in the state. My prediction: 3-2 Wayzata in o.t.

Having seen both teams play numerous times this season, I believe the keys will come down to goaltending and special teams. Both teams are loaded with talent and can match up in a 5 on 5 game. Here's my story lines I'm going to be watching:

1. Will Ford go step up again like he did as a sophomore and in the semi's against Tonka?

2. Will Dingman, who has filled in admirably for McIntyre, establish himself as the next super soph and send Wayzata back to the X?

3. As for special teams, both teams are dangerous on the pp. The Eagles PK has been average at best, but they held Tonka in check with an aggressive style and actually generated their best scoring chances, with the exception of the Rau goal, in the Tonka game.

The Olympic sheet at Mariucci may benefit Wayzata, since they play all of their home games on the big sheet.

My prediction:

EP - 4 (en)
Wayzata - 2

That's for you Freddy! Nice meeting you on Saturday....

I'm going with Wayzata. I've seen Eden Prairie twice this year and they haven't impressed me at all. If Wayzata brings their A game, I think it'll be curtains for EP

Eden Prairie by one.

Did any of you watch Wayzata play BSM on Sat night ? What a game !! Wayzata played their best game of year and Digmann was excellent.

In my mind the keys to the game for Wayzata will be:
Wayzata's top line needs to duplicate Saturday nights effort
Digmann needs to be sharp in goal and ready from the start
Wayzata needs to stay out of the box
Wayzata needs to play with the same level of intensity as Sat night
Wayzata needs to play a full 51 minutes

if Wayzata plays like they did on Sat night, then they will give EP a ride for their money. I will take the Trojans 4 to 3 in a close one.

GOPHERFAN119 wrote:Did any of you watch Wayzata play BSM on Sat night ? What a game !! Wayzata played their best game of year and Digmann was excellent.

In my mind the keys to the game for Wayzata will be:
Wayzata's top line needs to duplicate Saturday nights effort
Digmann needs to be sharp in goal and ready from the start
Wayzata needs to stay out of the box
Wayzata needs to play with the same level of intensity as Sat night
Wayzata needs to play a full 54 minutes

if Wayzata plays like they did on Sat night, then they will give EP a ride for their money. I will take the Trojans 4 to 3 in a close one.

If Eden Prairie plays the rest of the year like they did on Saturday night they'll win state.

Weekend_Warrior wrote:I'm going with Wayzata. I've seen Eden Prairie twice this year and they haven't impressed me at all. If Wayzata brings their A game, I think it'll be curtains for EP

Were you watching basketball again?

GF119:

there is only 51 minutes in a hs game. r u predicting OT?

blueblood wrote:GF119:

there is only 51 minutes in a hs game. r u predicting OT?

Good catch....corrected.

Overtime is a good possibility.

blueblood wrote:Having seen both teams play numerours times this season, I believe the keys will come down to goaltending and special teams. Both teams are loaded with talent and can match up in a 5 on 5 game. Here's my story lines I going to be watching:

1. Will Ford go step up again like he did as a sophomore and in the semi's against Tonka?

2. Will Dingman, who has filled in admirably for McIntyre, establish himself as the next super soph and send Wayzata back to the X?

3. As for special teams, both teams are dangerous on the pp. The Eagles PK has been average at best, but they held Tonka in check with an aggressive style and actually generated their best scoring chances, with the exception of the Rau goal, in the Tonka game.

The Olympic sheet at Mariucci may benefit Wayzata, since they play all of their home games on the big sheet.

My prediction:

EP - 4 (en)
Wayzata - 2

That's for you Freddy! Nice meeting you on Saturday....

Nice to meet you too Blue. Should be a very good night of hockey. As for predictions........I will leave that to the Mayans.

FREDFLINTSTONE wrote:As for predictions........I will leave that to the Mayans.

Couldn't find any Trojans on the Mayan pyramids.

32 votes and it's split down the middle...should be fun.

Eden Prairie is the heavy favorite and probably the best team in the state, but I'm rooting for the blue and gold.

Eden Prairie - 4
Wayzata - 3

One of the best matchups in a section final in a while.

At least we can all agree on one thing, it ought to be a close one.

Will this game have a live video feed?

I thought last year's final matchup between Tonka and EP was a great one, and it was close until late in the second. I think this one will be the same, with EP coming out on top. When Ford is on, he's great, and he's been on their past 2 games. I don't think there's a stronger set of D than EP. That said, the firepower of Wayzata should keep them in the game, until the guns cool and EP runs away with it.

Nice, fast first period. One of the nicest periods I've seen in a HS game in terms of the quality of hockey. Few whistles, quality passes, big hits, nice moves by attacking forwards. EP with a slight edge in puck control but that's probably only due to their 2 PPs.

Is it just me or is EP looking a little flat footed? (not including their 1st line)

PuckU126 wrote:Is it just me or is EP looking a little flat footed? (not including their 1st line)

And yet they still win.

4-3 win for EP

fitting end

Rau gets the GW

Congrats EP

With that goal and his other game winners this year... Rau = My. Hockey

The Mayans knew what they were talking about.

Impressive win for the Eagles. 6AA has been a war all year long, but from start to finish they've been the team with the slight edge. A big part of that has to do with star players who step it up under the bright lights, and Rau sure did that tonight. EP thorougly deserves its trip to state, and by coming out of this section, I think they deserve the top seed.

Another fine season for Wayzata goes for naught. They had some very good flashes; the second line really elevated their game and made them more than a one-trick team tonight. If Lucia sticks around they'll be a force again next year, though.

What a game!!!!!! I felt after that classic I had to come on here and post. It was my first time seeing both teams and I was very impressed. I realized as the game wore on that EP had the depth but Wayzata's top line was VERY dominant. I found myself pulling for Wayzata and was disappointed with the outcome. I know there can be biased opinions on here but mine is only from an outsiders perspective. I was excited to see Rau as I've heard so much about him. He did impress me but CAMERANESI to me is the superior player with a higher ceiling. I myself played at a high level so it sometimes takes a lot to impress me, well Cameranesi did just that. How does Lucia not land this kid and let him walk to UMD????? Great shot, vision, speed, first step, and is tougher than Rau in the corners and tight spaces. This is where my problem lies with Lucia, I would be suprised if Rau is a better D1 player than him. I have no idea which route these two are taking but my guess is UMD makes him play 1 year of juniors and Rau goes straight to college...I think we know what route will help a college teams success. I think it's for a change and tell the Don to walk....figure it out! Lastly, Mario Lucia is another fine talent and it will be interesting to see what happens with him....just my thoughts, and a great night of High School Hockey!

topcheese9 wrote:What a game!!!!!! I felt after that classic I had to come on here and post. It was my first time seeing both teams and I was very impressed. I realized as the game wore on that EP had the depth but Wayzata's top line was VERY dominant. I found myself pulling for Wayzata and was disappointed with the outcome. I know there can be biased opinions on here but mine is only from an outsiders perspective. I was excited to see Rau as I've heard so much about him. He did impress me but CAMERANESI to me is the superior player with a higher ceiling. I myself played at a high level so it sometimes takes a lot to impress me, well Cameranesi did just that. How does Lucia not land this kid and let him walk to UMD????? Great shot, vision, speed, first step, and is tougher than Rau in the corners and tight spaces. This is where my problem lies with Lucia, I would be suprised if Rau is a better D1 player than him. I have no idea which route these two are taking but my guess is UMD makes him play 1 year of juniors and Rau goes straight to college...I think we know what route will help a college teams success. I think it's for a change and tell the Don to walk....figure it out! Lastly, Mario Lucia is another fine talent and it will be interesting to see what happens with him....just my thoughts, and a great night of High School Hockey!

If you followed at all this year you'd know that Rau is the better player - no question. Cameranesi played well the first half of the season, then faded a bit. Rau played consistently at the top all year and has the stats to back it. Also, Lucia made Cameranesi a better player... Rau makes everyone else around him better. Don knows this quite well - he's watched Cameranesi closely all year long as he's been linemates with Mario. If you were to give the Don the option of the 2 players, the right decision would be to take Rau - which is already done.

Good job on this one for sure Don.