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Sneaking quietly back into the forums, a bit belated, I begin this year's thread by taking a look back at last season's top scoring frosh list.

For 2013-2014

(Games Played if < 25) Goals-Assists (% of team goals involved in)
62 points
Jaxon Nelson, Luverne, F 26-36 (34%) – 8th Grade
50 points
Joey Anderson, Hill-Murray, F 21-29 (36%)
43 points
Bryceton Butkiewicz, Moose Lake, F (23) 25-18 (75%)
35 points
Ben Meyers, Delano, F 18-17 (38%)
Taylor Lantz, Greenway, F 14-21 (50%)
32 points
Carter Schmitz, LaCrescent, F 17-15 (29%)
30 points
Devlin McCabe, SPA, F 8-22 (29%) – 8th Grade
29 points
Chase Brand, Park Rapids, F (24) 13-16 (30%)
Cameron Buhl, South St. Paul, F 9-20 (38%)
27 points
Mitch Bourgerie, STMA, F 11-16 (26%)
Ryan Poehling, Lakeville North, F (24) 11-16 (23%)
25 points
Bauer Neudecker, St. Louis Park, F 12-13 (40%)
Dante Zapata, Achiever Academy, D 11-14 (25%)
24 points
Anthony Oliveto, Roch Mayo, F (24) 14-10 (20%)
Connor Beltz, River Lakes, F (23) 12-12 (42%)
Alex Jordan, Minnehaha, (24) 9-15 (22%)
23 points
Kevin Fellows, Prior Lake, F 12-11 (32%)
Cory Checco, Roch JM, F 11-12 (29%)
22 points
Matt Dahlseide, SPA, F 14-8 (22%)
Sam Huff, Maple Grove, F 8-14 (20%)
Bronson Mcleod, Robb Cooper, D 2-20 (23%)
21 points
Tucker Chapman, Roch Lourdes, F 11-10 (49%)
Dalton Agnes, Bag-Foss, D (21) 7-14 (64%)
20 points
Peter Johnson, Fergus Falls, F (23) 8-12 (32%)
Patrick Reddan, HFC, F (24) 7-13 (15%)
Ryan Pearson, Minnehaha, (24) 6-14 (18%)
Jake Carlson, Princeton, F 5-15 (16%)
Dalton Weigel, Breck, D (24) 5-15 (15%)
19 points
Isaac Westphal, LeS-HStP, F (24) 11-8 (16%)
Chase Schmitz, Red Lake Falls, F (24) 4-15 (19%)
Spencer Meier, Sartell, D 0-19 (20%)
18 points
Montana Streit, Roch Lourdes, F (23) 6-12 (42%)
17 points
Nic Leisen, Dodge County, F (23) 9-8 (19%)
Christian Larson, Bagley/Fosston, W (21) 8-9 (52%)
15 points
Eric Worre, Chanhassen, F (23) 11-4 (23%)
14 points
Jon Wenzel, Ely, F (19) 7-7 (33%)
Matt Anderson, HFC, D 3-11 (11%)
Brian Hurley, STA 3-11 (10%)
13 points
Dylan Criquet-Danielson, Marshall, D (23) 10-3 (16%)
12 points
Riley Bowman, SPA, F 5-7 (12%)
Jake Lundquist, Minnehaha, F (24) 4-8 (11%)
Jack Kelly, STMA, D 2-10 (10%)
Josh Strom, Andover, D (23) 1-11 (11%)
11 points
Keenan Johnson, Achiever Academy, F (24) 5-6 (11%)
9 points
Sam Esping, Chaska, F 3-6 (11%)
8 points
Alec Wonsmos, Woodbury, F 5-3 (14%)
Brendan Westbrook, Pine/Rush, F (24) 3-5 (13%)

And now for this season, 2014-2015:

No surprise who leads this season. Jaxon Nelson led all frosh scorers last season as an 8th Grader, and he will probably win this season also. That would make it 3 years in a row for a Luverne Cardinal to be the top-scoring frosh in the state following Chaz Smedsrud two years back.

(Games Played) Goals - Assists (% Involvement in Team Goals)
39 Points
Jaxon Nelson, Luverne (10) 18-21 (41%)
23 Points
Kasyn Kruse, Luverne (10) 12-11 (24%)
18 Points
Nick Harder, Luverne (10) 6-12 (19%)
12 Points
Jack Olsen, Lakeville South (6) 5-7 (67%)
11 Points
Laudon Poellinger, LaCrescent (10) 1-10 (25%)
8 Points
Orrin Grangroth, Litchfield (7) 4-4 (24%)
7 Points
Logan Wentworth, Fergus Falls (9) 3-4 (16%)
6 Points
Alex Donaldson, Kittson Central (7) 2-4 (15%)
Clayton Phillips, Edina (10) 1-5 (10%)
Dylan Mills, Hill-Murray (7) 0-6 (20%)
5 Points
Bergen Lundak, Albert Lea ( 8 ) 3-2 (22%)
Weston Schug, Becker-Big Lake ( 8 ) 2-3 (29%)
Jake Anderson, Mankato East (10) 2-3 (12%)
Ben Almquist, Holy Family Catholic (10) 1-4 (14%)
4 Points
Luke LaMaster, Duluth East (7) 2-2 (20%)
Carter Sullivan, The Marshall School of Duluth (6) 2-2 (11%)
Brady Ziemer, Holy Family Catholic (10) 1-3 (11%)
3 Points
Garret Worth, Duluth East (5) 3-0 (15%)
Jacob Erickson, Minneapolis Novas ( 8 ) 2-1 (10%)
Nick Mattila, Ely 8th Grade ( 8 ) 1-2 (21%) - 8th Grade
Jarrett Lee, Hibbing (9) 1-2 (9%)
Jarret Merschman, Bagley-Fosston (6) 1-2 (9%)
Sam Walker, Edina (10) 1-2 (5%)
James Marooney, Holy Family Catholic (10) 0-3 (8%)
2 Points
Tom Havnen, Fairmont (7) 2-0 (13%)
Levi Stauber, The Marshall School of Duluth ( 8 ) 2-0 (5%)
Matt Plieseis, LeSueur et al. (6) 2-0 (3%)
Matthew Gerzin, Ely ( 8 ) 1-1 (14%)
Mikey Anderson, Hill-Murray (7) 1-1 (7%)
Luke Krause, Lake of the Woods ( 8 ) 1-1 (13%)
Nathan Poolman, Lake of the Woods ( 8 ) 0-2 (13%)
Jarred Sipe, Lake of the Woods ( 8 ) 0-2 (13%)
Micah Roane, Chaska ( 8 ) 0-2
Alec Doran, Becker-Big Lake ( 8 ) 0-2
Nate Chamberlain, Irondale (7) 0-2
Nick Misson, Kittson Central (7) 0-2 (5%)

............. and still mucking through the M's.

This one's over. Looks like there's another freshman on Luverne with more than 20 points, and a third with 18.

Bonin2121 wrote:This one's over. Looks like there's another freshman on Luverne with more than 20 points, and a third with 18.

No kidding.

I started this thread several years ago, before the Luverne boys began to lead the list. What they have is a good hockey team in a weak region. But, more power to them; it's not their fault the other southern schools put mat-lickin', melon-punchin', and concussion-ball above ice hockey.

Dev McCabe at SPA has 11 points in 7 games (2G, 9A)

solongago wrote:Dev McCabe at SPA has 11 points in 7 games (2G, 9A)

Thanks dad )

I have now gone through all rosters, from Albert Lea to Worthington. If you didn't see your kid's name up until now, it was because I quit in the middle of the M's on Sunday.

For the record, Devlin McCabe was another high-scoring 8th Grader last season, and he shows up near the top of this list now as a Freshman. He had 4 goals and 4 assists in today's 11-0 St. Paul Academy whitewash of Chisago Lakes.

Luverne downed Totino-Grace 6-5 with Jaxon Nelson scoring 4 goals and assisting on 1. Nick Harder had an assist.

(Games Played) G - A (% Involvement in Team Goals)
44 Points
Jaxon Nelson, Luverne (11) 22-22 (44%)
23 Points
Kasyn Kruse, Luverne (10) 12-11 (24%)
19 Points
Devlin McCabe, St. Paul Academy ( 8 ) 6-13 (46%)
Nick Harder, Luverne (11) 6-13 (19%)
16 Points
Jonah Bergstrom, PineCity/RushCity (10) 4-12 (36%)
12 Points
Jack Olsen, Lakeville South (6) 5-7 (67%)
11 Points
Jamie Warrick, Simley (10) 1-10 (31%)
Laudon Poellinger, LaCrescent (10) 1-10 (25%)
9 Points
Jordan Linder, Proctor ( 8 ) 5-4 (30%)
Matt Gellerman, South St. Paul ( 8 ) 2-7 (29%)
8 Points
Chad Nordean, North Shore (7) 6-2 (24%)
Orrin Grangroth, Litchfield (7) 4-4 (24%)
7 Points
Logan Wentworth, Fergus Falls (9) 3-4 (16%)
6 Points
Alex Donaldson, Kittson Central (7) 2-4 (15%)
Griffin Ness, Wayzata (10) 1-5 (15%)
Clayton Phillips, Edina (10) 1-5 (10%)
Dylan Mills, Hill-Murray (7) 0-6 (20%)
5 Points
Cole Jacobs, Providence Academy (7) 4-1 (18%)
Bergen Lundak, Albert Lea ( 8 ) 3-2 (22%)
Weston Schug, Becker-Big Lake ( 8 ) 2-3 (29%)
Jake Anderson, Mankato East (10) 2-3 (12%)
Ben Almquist, Holy Family Catholic (10) 1-4 (14%)
4 Points
Jackson Priebe, Waseca (9) 2-2 (11%)
Luke LaMaster, Duluth East (7) 2-2 (20%)
Carter Sullivan, The Marshall School of Duluth (6) 2-2 (11%)
Ryne Mohrman, Providence Academy ( 8 ) 1-3 (14%) 8th Grade
Jacob Wickham, Providence Academy ( 8 ) 1-3 (14%)
Brady Ziemer, Holy Family Catholic (10) 1-3 (11%)
Jackson Sonderby, Providence Academy (7) 0-4 (14%)
3 Points
Garret Worth, Duluth East (5) 3-0 (15%)
Riley Dvorak, St. Louis Park (7) 3-0 (10%)
K’Andre Miller, Minnetonka ( 8 ) 2-1 (14%)
Jacob Erickson, Minneapolis Novas ( 8 ) 2-1 (10%)
Nick Mattila, Ely 8th Grade ( 8 ) 1-2 (21%) - 8th Grade
Jarrett Lee, Hibbing (9) 1-2 (9%)
Jarret Merschman, Bagley-Fosston (6) 1-2 (9%)
Sam Walker, Edina (10) 1-2 (5%)
James Marooney, Holy Family Catholic (10) 0-3 (8%)
2 Points
Tom Havnen, Fairmont (7) 2-0 (13%)
Levi Stauber, The Marshall School of Duluth ( 8 ) 2-0 (5%)
Matt Plieseis, LeSueur et al. (6) 2-0 (3%)
Philipp Weltin, Mound-Westonka (9) 2-0
Hank Nagel, Mound-Westonka (9) 1-1
Matthew Gerzin, Ely ( 8 ) 1-1 (14%)
Mikey Anderson, Hill-Murray (7) 1-1 (7%)
Luke Krause, Lake of the Woods ( 8 ) 1-1 (13%)
Jeron Hirschfeld, St. Cloud Cathedral (7) 1-1
Billy Wengler, St. Paul Highland Park (7) 1-1
Gabe Nelson, St. Paul Highland Park (7) 1-1
Nathan Poolman, Lake of the Woods ( 8 ) 0-2 (13%)
Jarred Sipe, Lake of the Woods ( 8 ) 0-2 (13%)
Micah Roane, Chaska ( 8 ) 0-2
Alec Doran, Becker-Big Lake ( 8 ) 0-2
Nate Chamberlain, Irondale (7) 0-2
Nick Misson, Kittson Central (7) 0-2 (5%)
Gavin Orr, Mora-Milaca-H-F (6) 0-2 8th Grade
Reese Kaehler, St. Francis (7) 0-2
Carl Fish, St. Paul Johnson (9) 0-2
Aden Kovala, Winona (9) 0-2
Anthony Fogelman, Worthington (11) 0-2

Look closely at the 2-point scorers; next update I will move up the point list a bit and leave off the bottom.

Updating through early games played Wednesday, 31 December.

Luverne took second place in the Schwans Cup Open Division, beating Winona 11-3 and Spring Lake Park 4-3, but dropping to Bloomington Kennedy 3-2 in the championship match. For the three games, freshmen Jaxon Nelson (g, 5a), Kasyn Kruse (g, a), and Nick Harder (3g, a) all picked up points.

Bloomington Kennedy's David Beacom scored his first varsity goal in the same tournament, in a 3-2 win over Minnehaha Academy.

(Games Played) G - A (% Involvement in Team Goals)
50 Points
Jaxon Nelson, Luverne (14) 23-27 (43%)
25 Points
Kasyn Kruse, Luverne (14) 13-12 (21%)
23 Points
Nick Harder, Luverne (14) 9-14 (20%)
20 Points
Devlin McCabe, St. Paul Academy (10) 6-14 (39%)

For games through Saturday, 3 January:

Luverne knocked off New Ulm 8-1 with frosh Jaxon Nelson (2g, 2a), Kasyn Kruse (g, a), and Nick Harder (g, a) scoring 50% of the goals.

St. Paul Academy beat St. Paul Johnson 5-1 with Dev McCabe assisting on 3 goals.

Jamie Warrick had 3 assists in Simley's 7-3 win over Cambridge-Isanti.

In a 3-2 loss to Waseca before Christmas, Laudon Pollinger was involved in both La Crescent goals (g, a).

Chad Nordean leads North Shore (Silver Bay, Two Rivers) in goal scoring and notched a hat-trick (3g, a) in their 13-1 slaughter of Legacy Christian.

In the Granite City Classic, Jackson Sonderby scored 2 goals for Providence Academy in a 3-1 win over Monticello et al.

54 Points
Jaxon Nelson, Luverne (15) 25-29 (43%)
27 Points
Kasyn Kruse, Luverne (15) 14-13 (22%)
25 Points
Nick Harder, Luverne (15) 10-15 (20%)
23 Points
Devlin McCabe, St. Paul Academy (11) 6-17 (41%)
18 Points
Jonah Bergstrom, PineCity/RushCity (13) 4-14 (31%)
Jamie Warrick, Simley (13) 3-15 (35%)
14 Points
Jack Olsen, Lakeville South (9) 6-8 (67%)
13 Points
Chad Nordean, North Shore (10) 10-3 (24%)
Laudon Poellinger, LaCrescent (11) 2-11 (28%)
12 Points
Matt Gellerman, South St. Paul (11) 4-8 (33%)
11 Points
Jordan Linder, Proctor (13) 6-5 (26%)
10 Points
Orrin Grangroth, Litchfield (9) 4-6 (20%)
8 Points
Logan Wentworth, Fergus Falls (12) 3-5 (13%)
Dylan Mills, Hill-Murray (11) 1-7 (20%)
7 Points
Jackson Sonderby, Providence Academy (11) 3-4 (21%)
Alex Donaldson, Kittson Central (12) 3-4 (12%)
Griffin Ness, Wayzata (13) 2-5 (15%)
Clayton Phillips, Edina (13) 1-6 (10%)

Updating for games played through Friday, 9 January:

Luverne squeaked past Fairmont 12-0 with three frosh putting up big numbers:
Jaxon Nelson (4g, 2a), Nick Harder (5 goals!), and Kasyn Kruse (2a).

Devlin McCabe assisted on 2 goals as St. Paul Academy beat Breck 3-1. Considering recent history, I'm thinking that this is an upset.

Jack Olsen assisted on 2 goals for Lakeville South in a narrow 5-4 loss to White Bear Lake.

In a 5-4 OT win over Eveleth-Gilbert, Chad Nordean of North Shore scored 2 goals and assisted on 2.

(Games Played) G - A (% Involvement in Team Goals)
60 Points
Jaxon Nelson, Luverne (16) 29-31 (44%)
30 Points
Nick Harder, Luverne (16) 15-15 (22%)
28 Points
Kasyn Kruse, Luverne (16) 14-14 (20%)
25 Points
Devlin McCabe, St. Paul Academy (12) 6-19 (42%)
19 Points
Chad Nordean, North Shore (12) 13-6 (30%)
Jamie Warrick, Simley (16) 3-16 (31%)
18 Points
Jonah Bergstrom, PineCity/RushCity (15) 4-14 (28%)
17 Points
Jack Olsen, Lakeville South (12) 7-10 (45%)
13 Points
Laudon Poellinger, LaCrescent (13) 2-11 (24%)
Matt Gellerman, South St. Paul (13) 4-9 (28%)
11 Points
Jordan Linder, Proctor (15) 6-5 (25%)
Orrin Grangroth, Litchfield (11) 4-7 (20%)

I am more impressed with Jack Olsen's 17, than any of the above. jMO! Sorry Card fans!

Bluelightspecial wrote:I am more impressed with Jack Olsen's 17, than any of the above. jMO! Sorry Card fans!

Agreed. LS plays a way tougher schedule than any other team noted above.

I mean, REALLY, let's shut down the A schools. AA is the *only* thing worth following, eh?

danglingnsnipen15 wrote:

Bluelightspecial wrote:I am more impressed with Jack Olsen's 17, than any of the above. jMO! Sorry Card fans!

Agreed. LS plays a way tougher schedule than any other team noted above.

They also have a larger pool of students (players) to draw from. It's all relative. Why diss the small schools? They play other small schools. Do they need to beat the Chicago Blackhawks before getting any respect?


The same inane comments come up every season.

Teak wrote:

danglingnsnipen15 wrote:

Bluelightspecial wrote:I am more impressed with Jack Olsen's 17, than any of the above. jMO! Sorry Card fans!

Agreed. LS plays a way tougher schedule than any other team noted above.

They also have a larger pool of students (players) to draw from. It's all relative. Why diss the small schools? They play other small schools. Do they need to beat the Chicago Blackhawks before getting any respect?


The same inane comments come up every season.

Not dissing anyone. Just saying that Jack Olsen's point output is more respectable IMO.

Nelson will commit D1 before him, though. The Gophers have passed on the Hanowskis and Festlers and Beniks too much to skip him if he's legit.

Bonin2121 wrote:Nelson will commit D1 before him, though. The Gophers have passed on the Hanowskis and Festlers and Beniks too much to skip him if he's legit.

Nelson kid is the real deal big strong kid plays the game at a very high level. He will play D1 hockey if he doesn't go to the WHL first where is looks to be a top 10 draft pick in their Bantam Draft this Spring.

I don't doubt that Nelson is a great player! My stance is that Olsen has probably worked harder for his 17, than Nelson has for his 60. Therefor I'm more impressed with Olson.

Bluelightspecial wrote:I don't doubt that Nelson is a great player! My stance is that Olsen has probably worked harder for his 17, than Nelson has for his 60. Therefor I'm more impressed with Olson.

I also am more impressed with Olson's numbers than Nelson, but for none of the reasons that have been said. What I am impressed with is that out of all the freshman, Jack is contributing the most percentage wise at 45% of all his team's points. South has been very inconsistent on offense, but even with that he still has a solid amount of points. And from the back end no less!

Now where I disagree with you would be, frankly, the ignorant comment that I have quoted. I have no idea how many times you have watched South or if you have even seen Luverne play, but to think one player "worked harder" for their points seems unfair without watching a large sample size.
I have never seen either play, but I will assume they both try their hardest when they are in the game, regardless of who they are playing.
Nelson is averaging just under 4 points a game (and that probably come from not playing much in the 3rd). I don't care who you have on your schedule, you have to work pretty hard to keep that pace.
You act like Nelson has nothing to play for. Being from Luverne on a team that does not have the most challenging schedule he has to work hard every shift to prove himself.

Agree. Wrong use of words. I believe Olsons 17 points have been harder to achieve than Nelson's 60. Lastly I've seen them both play!

I like the idea of comparing % as opposed to just numbers. Nelson playing on a team that puts up double digit goals in many games SHOULD put up higher numbers. Again, not anyones fault that they play a weaker schedule, but if you are trying to compare impact percent seems to be more relevant. Also, you are sadly mistaken if you think he isn't logging minutes in the third.

Teak just start here from now on since Luverne doesn't play anybody...


Devlin McCabe, St. Paul Academy (12) 6-19 (42%)
19 Points
Chad Nordean, North Shore (12) 13-6 (30%)
Jamie Warrick, Simley (16) 3-16 (31%)
18 Points
Jonah Bergstrom, PineCity/RushCity (15) 4-14 (28%)
17 Points
Jack Olsen, Lakeville South (12) 7-10 (45%)
13 Points
Laudon Poellinger, LaCrescent (13) 2-11 (24%)
Matt Gellerman, South St. Paul (13) 4-9 (28%)
11 Points
Jordan Linder, Proctor (15) 6-5 (25%)
Orrin Grangroth, Litchfield (11) 4-7 (20%)

Just have these kids on it since they work so HARD for all their points..

green4 wrote:

Bluelightspecial wrote:I don't doubt that Nelson is a great player! My stance is that Olsen has probably worked harder for his 17, than Nelson has for his 60. Therefor I'm more impressed with Olson.

I also am more impressed with Olson's numbers than Nelson, but for none of the reasons that have been said. What I am impressed with is that out of all the freshman, Jack is contributing the most percentage wise at 45% of all his team's points. South has been very inconsistent on offense, but even with that he still has a solid amount of points. And from the back end no less!

Now where I disagree with you would be, frankly, the ignorant comment that I have quoted. I have no idea how many times you have watched South or if you have even seen Luverne play, but to think one player "worked harder" for their points seems unfair without watching a large sample size.
I have never seen either play, but I will assume they both try their hardest when they are in the game, regardless of who they are playing.
Nelson is averaging just under 4 points a game (and that probably come from not playing much in the 3rd). I don't care who you have on your schedule, you have to work pretty hard to keep that pace.
You act like Nelson has nothing to play for. Being from Luverne on a team that does not have the most challenging schedule he has to work hard every shift to prove himself.

They moved Olsen up to forward, he hasn't played D this year.

Whiner33 wrote:Teak just start here from now on since Luverne doesn't play anybody...


Devlin McCabe, St. Paul Academy (12) 6-19 (42%)
19 Points
Chad Nordean, North Shore (12) 13-6 (30%)
Jamie Warrick, Simley (16) 3-16 (31%)
18 Points
Jonah Bergstrom, PineCity/RushCity (15) 4-14 (28%)
17 Points
Jack Olsen, Lakeville South (12) 7-10 (45%)
13 Points
Laudon Poellinger, LaCrescent (13) 2-11 (24%)
Matt Gellerman, South St. Paul (13) 4-9 (28%)
11 Points
Jordan Linder, Proctor (15) 6-5 (25%)
Orrin Grangroth, Litchfield (11) 4-7 (20%)

Just have these kids on it since they work so HARD for all their points..

Unnecessary sarcasm, Bluelightspecial already admitted his wrong use of words. In regards to the players on the list, a few of us have noted that we are most impressed with Jack Olsen's point output. This does not mean that we are slamming the other players on the list. However, I think many would agree that the strength of schedule and % of goals involved in justifications make a very valid argument for Jack Olsen.

So many overly sensitive and appropriately named forum faithful. Saw the Nelson kid this summer and he is a really excellent player. Feel better? Just take this for what it is.... just once..... a discussion.