Ellingson to USHL

     Former Cloquet-Esko-Carlton goalie Reid Ellingson, after one year with Northern Michigan, has decided to leave school for Green Bay of the U.S. Hockey League. He was taken the second player overall in Wednesday's league draft. A story from the Green Bay Press Gazette is below.
      Also taken were three Minnesota Duluth forward recruits, Jake Hendrickson of Burnsville, Minn., 25th overall by Sioux City; Chris Stafne of Duluth Denfeld, 30th by Indiana; and Max Tardy of Duluth East, 69th by Tri-City of Kearney, Neb.; also defenseman Luke McManus of Rosemount, Minn., 31st by Omaha; and Vermont recruit Anthony DeCenzo of Hibbing, 81st by Tri-City.

      GREEN BAY -- Jon Coopers first draft with the Green Bay Gamblers yielded two NCAA Division I veterans, two players from his old team and Wisconsin's top high school player.
      The Gamblers selected University of North Dakota forward Michael Forney with the No. 1 overall pick in todays United States Hockey League entry draft, then traded into the No. 2 spot to grab Northern Michigan goalie Reid Ellingson.
      The trade also gave the Gamblers forward Jefferson Dahl  the Wisconsin Mr. Hockey award winner who led Eau Claire Memorial to a state title this season  and a third-round pick, while sending goalie Aaron Crandall, forward Jake Youso of International Falls and the rights to defenseman Joe Gleason to the Des Moines Buccaneers.
      Forney  a 6-foot-2, 188-pounder who was a third-round pick by the NHL's Atlanta Thrashers in 2006  has registered two assists in 19 games while battling injuries much of the past two seasons at North Dakota.
     Ellingson was 4-4 with a 2.90 goals-against average in 11 games (nine starts) as a Northern Michigan freshman last season.
      "We heard that they were leaving and got commitments to the two kids before the draft that they would come," Cooper said. "We just felt it was a move to bring in some culture here, some guys that have played at some big-time programs."

Posted by: pates on 5/14/2008 at 7:15 PM | Comments (0) | Permalink

Oshie Gone

     This story from the Grand Forks Herald on the signing of T.J. Oshie:

      GRAND FORKS, N.D.  It came before the flood of calls to T.J. Oshie's cell phone Tuesday afternoon  a simple welcome to the NHL from one of the league's best.
     Calder Trophy finalist Jonathan Toews sent Oshie, his former University of North Dakota teammate and linemate, a quick text message just before Oshie officially joined him in the big leagues.
     "He told me congratulations, and that it's going to be fun," Oshie said. "Hes a great guy. Weve always been good buddies."
     Now, they're rivals.
     Oshie gave up his final year of eligibility at UND when he signed a three-year contract Tuesday with the St. Louis Blues  the top rival of Toews' Chicago Blackhawks.
     Oshie will be paid the maximum entry-level contract of a base salary of $850,000 per season with a signing bonus of $85,000.
     The former Warroad (Minn.) High School standout had rejected an offer last summer from St. Louis, the team that drafted him in the first round (24th overall) in 2005. Oshie said he wanted to further his development at North Dakota and try to win a national title.
     The Sioux lost to Boston College in the NCAA semifinals for a third straight season.
     "It actually wasnt as easy as you'd think," Oshie said of signing. "I was left with another sour taste in my mouth. That made it a lot tougher. The way we went out wasnt pretty. But I felt like it was time for me to move on."
     Coach Dave Hakstol agrees.
     "T.J. is ready for this step in his career," Hakstol said. "Getting to the NHL is a big step, and nobody takes it for granted, but in my opinion, hes ready for that challenge.
     "I think he's one of those special players that only comes around every so often. The level he plays at every single night is something special. You can think to all areas of his game  the highlight hits, the highlight back-checks, the highlight defensive plays and the highlight-reel goals. The energy and passion he plays the game with is special."
     Oshie, a Hobey Baker Memorial Award finalist and first-team All-American, is the first player to leave North Dakota early this offseason.
     It's something the program has become accustomed to. In each of the last eight summers, the Sioux have lost at least one player early to the pros.
     Toews and defenseman Brian Lee  classmates of Oshie at North Dakota  turned pro last summer. Like Oshie, they signed deals worth the maximum for rookies.
     North Dakota is still awaiting decisions from juniors Taylor Chorney, Ryan Duncan, Joe Finley and Andrew Kozek, all of whom are expected to get interest from the NHL. Oshie was considered the most ready to make the jump. Last summer, he graded out as the top prospect in St. Louis system, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported.
     "Every little hockey player dreams of getting to the NHL when they are growing up," Oshie said. "It's an achievement I'd like to make. I know Ive got to improve and make sure I have a good summer. Hopefully I"ll make the team."
     Oshie leaves North Dakota with 142 points in 129 games. He'll spend the summer working out with former North Dakota captain Chris Porter in Faribault, Minn. Porter plays for St. Louis' top minor league club, the Peoria (Ill.) Rivermen.

Posted by: pates on 5/14/2008 at 2:54 PM | Comments (0) | Permalink

Oshie to Sign

     Andy Strickland of 1380 AM ESPN Radio in St. Louis is reporting Monday that North Dakota junior forward T.J. Oshie of Warroad, Minn., will be signing with the St. Louis Blues on Tuesday.
      University of Minnesota junior forward Blake Wheeler of Plymouth, Minn., announced last Friday that he would not be back with the Gophers. He was the fifth pick overall in the 2004 NHL Entry Draft by Phoenix. Wheeler would be expected to sign soon.
      Here's Strickland's information:
      The Blues have finalized entry level deals with 2007 first round pick Lars Eller of Denmark and 2005 first rounder T.J. Oshie.
     Eller will arrive in St. Louis on Tuesday to take his physical as long as he doesn't encounter any visa issues coming over from Halifax where he's been representing Denmark in the World Championships.
      Oshie arrived in St. Louis on Monday and is expected to finalize his deal on Tuesday as well.
      An official announcement will be made by the club on Tuesday and the players will be introduced to the local media Wednesday.
    Oshie has been working out with Blues prospect Chris Porter at Shattuck-St. Mary's the last few weeks.

Posted by: pates on 5/12/2008 at 10:37 PM | Comments (0) | Permalink

CEC's Brown to Providence

     An offensive finish to his senior season helped Cloquet-Esko-Carlton defenseman David Brown attract a few college hockey scouts.
     In the Section 7AA tournament, he had four goals in a win over Duluth East in a semifinal win and two goals in a championship win over Anoka.
     In the Chicago Showcase all-star tournament, he tied for the scoring lead among defensemen with a goal and two assists in three games as his Minnesota team lost to Wisconsin in the finals last month.
    Brown visited Providence College last week and committed to a 2008-09 scholarship on Saturday.
     "David is a multi-dimensional player who is good in all facets of the game," said CEC coach Dave Esse. "He made himself better the last two years and blossomed this season. He can skate, shoot and is physical."
     As a 2008 News Tribune All-Area first-team pick, Brown led Northland defensemen in scoring with 18 goals and 34 points, and was a plus-23 for the Lumberjacks.
    The Cloquet High School student, who has a 3.6 grade-point average, said he got a scholarship offer from Mercyhurst College in Erie, Pa., after his junior year and received some interest from Colorado College and Denver this year. However, his only recruiting trip was to Providence, R.I.
     "Providence has a style that that allows defensemen to contribute to the offense, which I like. And their coaches think I'm ready to play right away next season," said Brown, who is 6-foot-1 and 190 pounds. "They also have a great business and management school."
     A Division I scholarship has been the result of family decision allowing Brown to reside in Cloquet the last three years as an open-enrollment transfer. He has lived with host families while attending Cloquet High School, as his parents, Dale and Cathy, have remained at home in Centennial, Colo., outside of Denver.
     An older brother, Dan, took a similar high school route, attending the Academy of Holy Angels in Richfield, Minn., and was on the school's 2002 Minnesota Class AA championship team. Dan Brown then attended Minnesota Duluth, graduating in December, which was a major reason David chose Northeastern Minnesota for high school, starting at Cloquet as a sophomore. His parents were able to attend a number of his games the last two seasons, he said.
      "It was a sacrifice, not seeing my parents during the school year, but I was able to accomplish one of my goals in getting a scholarship," said Brown, a CEC captain this season, who was born in Rochester, Minn., and lived briefly in Stillwater.

Posted by: pates on 5/12/2008 at 4:30 PM | Comments (0) | Permalink

Kodiaks Shut Out in Final

     Humboldt (Saskatchewan) won the Royal Bank Cup Canadian Junior A Championship on Sunday afternoon by handing Camrose (Alberta) its only loss of the tournament -- 1-0 -- on a first-period power-play goal before a crowd of 2,477 in Cornwall, Ontario. Camrose finished the event 5-1 and Humboldt 4-2. Camrose forward Mike Connolly, a Minnesota Duluth recruit, tied for the tournament scoring lead with two goals and five assists for seven points in six games. The game story below is from the event Web site:
Humboldt Wins Title
      For the second time in five years, the Humboldt Broncos have won the Canadian Junior A Championship.
     Edward Gale scored the games lone goal late in the first period and Taylor Nelson made that goal stand up as the winner with a 30-save shutout performance as the Broncos claimed the 2008 RBC Cup with a 1-0 win over the Camrose Kodiaks t the Cornwall Civic Complex.
     The win came five years to the day  May 11, 2003  that the Broncos won their first national championship, beating, ironically, the Camrose Kodiaks, 3-1 in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island.
     In front of a live national television audience on TSN, both teams came out uneasy, unable to make crisp passes and struggling to generate any offense.
     With the Broncos on a powerplay nearing the 17-minute mark of the opening period, Gale stepped out of the corner and snuck a shot past Camrose goaltender Allen York  who was named the tournaments top goaltender for the second straight year at Friday nights awards banquet.
     The goaltenders took over following Gales goal, as York and Nelson combined to turn aside all 38 shots they faced over the final 40 minutes in a classic duel.
     Nelson saved his best save for last, as he robbed Camrose sniper Joe Colborne on the doorstep with a glove save with just one second remaining on the clock and the Kodiaks enjoying a six-on-four advantage.
     Not surprisingly, Nelson was named player of the game for the Broncos, while Camrose defenseman Dean Petiot took home the honor for the Kodiaks.
     Humboldt won their third medal in three trips to the Junior A Championship  in addition to their national title in 2003, they were runners-up in 1987 when they hosted the tournament, falling to the Richmond (BC) Sockeyes in the championship game.
     The Kodiaks lost the championship game for the third time in five trips to the tournament  after winning their first, and only, national championship in their first trip, in 2001, the Kodiaks lost to Humboldt in 2003 and Weyburn in 2005 in the final game. Camrose lost a five-overtime semifinal to Prince George at the 2007 RBC Royal Bank Cup, the only time in their five trips that they have failed to advance to the championship game.
     Despite the loss, the Kodiaks set a RBC Cup (since 1996) record by allowing just five goals in six games, breaking the mark of seven set by the 1997 South Surrey Eagles. York finished with a remarkable 0.80 goals against average, not allowing more than one goal in any of his five appearances.

Posted by: pates on 5/11/2008 at 4:31 PM | Comments (0) | Permalink