Duluth East - state hockey champs, 10 years ago

March 7, 1998

Duluth East hockey players celebrate after beating Anoka in the Class AA boys championship game at the St. Paul Civic Center. (Dave Ballard / News Tribune)

ST. PAUL

The final high school hockey game in St. Paul Civic Center history turned into a Duluth East celebration Saturday night.

The Greyhounds defeated Anoka 3-1 in the Class AA boys championship game before 14,857 in the building now called RiverCentre Arena. The prep hockey tournament left Bloomington's Met Center in 1974 for the Civic Center, which will close next month.

After losing 1-0 to Edina in last season's Class AA final, the Greyhounds were the pick of the Minnesota hockey community to win the 1998 title.

It was something they lived with since August.

"We had to go out and put everything on the line every night against some of the best teams in the state," said senior winger Rheese Carlson, who returned to East in October after starting the school year with North Iowa in the United States Hockey League.

"Our goal all along was to win the state championship and it ended up meaning more to me than I ever thought it would."

The No. 1-ranked Greyhounds (25-3) gave the building a grand farewell as Gabe Taggart, Ross Carlson and Chad Roberg scored goals and senior goalie Adam Coole made 23 saves in what was a cool, efficient defensive effort.

East defused the high-scoring, fourth-ranked Tornadoes, who had lost a 6-5 game at home to East on Feb. 14.

East finished the season with 22 straight victories and was 27-1 on the ice (not counting two forfeits). The Greyhounds were top-ranked since the start of the season and were superb in the state tournament -- beating No. 2 Hastings, No. 3 Bloomington Jefferson and No. 4 Anoka.

"That game that got us ready for the playoffs was at Anoka," said East coach Mike Randolph. "We had 12 shutouts and nine one-goal games this season, but we hadn't had that many games where we had to fight to win. ...

It was the third state title for East, adding to 1960 and 1995, and it came on the program's fifth straight trip to the state tournament. Randolph's teams are 126-13-1 during that time. This season the Greyhounds allowed just 34 goals in 28 games, a 1.2 average. ...

Roberg, a junior center, gave the Greyhounds the cushion they needed by backhanding in his own rebound, following a Rheese Carlson shot, at 3:43 of the third period. The Greyhounds then went to defense, which they played better than any team in the state the past two years, and put Anoka away.

All-state defensemen Nick Angell and Patrick Finnegan, joined by junior Mark Anunti and freshman Jon Hedberg, were simply flawless as the final minutes turned only into frustration for Anoka, making its first trip to the state final.

The victory clinched an all-Northeastern Minnesota sweep on championship Saturday, following Eveleth-Gilbert's win over Hermantown in the Class A final.

RiverCentre Arena will close next month, then be demolished. A new building will be put on the same site as the home of the National Hockey League expansion Minnesota Wild. The Wild begin play in 2000-2001. The state hockey tournament moves to Target Center in Minneapolis, before returning to the new RiverCentre in 2001.

Duluth East hockey players celebrate with their fans after winning the 1998 Class AA state title by beating Anoka at the St. Paul Civic Center. (Dave Ballard / News Tribune)

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