Call it a four-game point streak with an asterisk.

Shane Gersich has found the back of the net seven times in in the last four games, the most creative of the seven doesn’t exactly count and on Saturday, the North Dakota sophomore left wing drew “Hobey Baker” chants after his fourth goal of the weekend ensured a sweep at St. Cloud State.

It’s been a crazy couple of weeks in a breakout season for Gersich, a native of Chaska who played high school hockey at Holy Family Catholic. He has 10 goals and eight assists through 13 games, making him 11^th in the nation for points per game at 1.38.

“I think things are just clicking right now,” said Gersich, who racked up 58 goals and 64 assists in his last two seasons (2011-12 and 2012-13) at Holy Family.

“I’m playing with some great players, whether it’s Tyson Jost, Austin Poganski or Brock Boeser, whoever it is. I’m playing with confidence right now and things are working.”

Gersich wasn’t on the scoresheet until the third period of the Nov. 19 game at SCSU until early in the third period when his one-timer gave the Fighting Hawks a nice three-goal cushion. The night before, Gersich recorded his first collegiate hat trick.

The three-goal performance was Gersich’s sixth multi-point game of the season.

“We have the mentality of never being satisfied,” Gersich said. “If you get one, you want one more and you want to get better as the game goes on.”

Russell Hons Photography/UND Athletics

When UND’s winless streak reached its height at six games on Nov. 12 after a 3-2 loss to Denver, it was Gersich providing the offense with both goals for the Fighting Hawks.

The “asterisk” finds itself attached to the Nov. 11 game against Denver when the teams remained tied after the five-minute overtime period in a game on Nov. 11 in Grand Forks, but the play of the game came after the game had finished on the official box score.

Teams play an extra sudden death 3-on-3 session (for one extra point in the standings) if a game is still tied in NCHC play, and that’s when Gersich unleashed a spin-o-rama plus a backhanded lacrosse-style shot that hit the back of the net.

“I just kind of pulled that one off out of nowhere,” Gersich said. “We work on our edges and a lot of that skill stuff with Coach (Dane) Jackson and Coach (Matt) Shaw.”

It didn’t count as an official goal and the result doesn’t go down in the books as a win for the Fighting Hawks, but Gersich caught the attention of social media and was a top highlight on national TV networks.

The flashy highlight-reel goals and individual point streaks were not part Gersich’s first season at UND, as he played a small role on the team that skated to the national championship.

Gersich had nine goals with two assists in 37 games as a freshman in 2015-16.

“Last year I wasn’t in much of a position to be putting up big numbers,” Gersich said. “This year, I wanted to be more of an impact player and I have an opportunity and I’m trying to make the most of it.”

Added UND coach Brad Berry: “His ability to be a consistent player (is the area in which Gersich has grown the most). It all starts with him investing in his game. He comes to the rink every morning and works on his skills.”

Berry shuffled his team’s top lines, hoping different forward combinations could cure UND’s three-week cold streak.

Poganski, a junior from St. Cloud, joined Gersich and freshman center Jost (replacing Boeser) as the right wing on what became UND’s No. 1 line against SCSU. Poganski’s and Gersich’s bond goes back many years.

“We played together on ‘Select’ teams and kind of toured different schools together and North Dakota worked out,” Poganski said. “He’s having a fantastic year.”

The post Hawk On Fire appeared first on Minnesota Hockey Magazine.

1.  Hill-Murray Pioneers (14-2-0, 6-0-0)

Last Week:  vs Tartan (W 9-2), vs White Bear Lake (W 5-4 ot), vs Henry Sibley (W 5-0)

This Week:  at St. Thomas (1/23) vs Mahtomedi (1/25)

The Pioneers whitewashed Classic Suburban conference foe Tartan by a score of 9-2 and needed overtime to sneak past chief rival White Bear Lake by a score of 5-4.  It was a Josh French goal at 9:15 of the third period to tie the game at four and Joey Anderson put away the game winning tally 54 seconds into the overtime session.  After losing back-to-back games to Edina and Lakeville North the Pioneers have responded with five straight wins including impressive wins over Edina and Wayzata.  It’s time for the hockey world to keep their eye on French who is a senior and the real deal and scores huge goals for his team.  He has picked up (6a-4a-10pts) in his last five games and is on a four game goal streak.  He also has three game winning goals to his credit this year as well.

2.  Lakeville North Panthers (14-3-1, 10-1-0)

Last Week:  vs Kennedy (W 6-4), vs Burnsville (W 5-4 ot)

This Week:  at Eastview (1/21),  vs Apple Valley (1/25)

The Panthers took care of business by defeating the Bloomington Kennedy Eagles and then looked ahead to the big show down with the Burnsville Blaze, a team they had beaten in week one of the season by a score of 5-2.  This most recent game was a 5-4 thriller that required a Jack Poehling goal with :52 left in regulate.  Ian Klotz closed the deal with the winner at 3:02 in overtime for the Panthers.  A notable aspect regarding  the Panthers is the balance they have offensively which proved to be too much against the Blaze.  Six players now have 20 points or more led by Jack Poehling’s (18g-19a-37pts).  Ten players have earned double digits in points this year as well.   A tough game with Eastview is on deck this week and will challenge their spot in the conference and rankings.

3.  Wayzata Trojans (12-4-1, 1-0-1)

Last Week:  vs Eden Prairie (W 1-0), vs Edina (T 3-3)

This Week:  vs Minnetonka (1/23) vs Prior Lake (1/25)

The Trojans opened the Lake Conference schedule with a well-played 1-0 win over the Eden Prairie Eagles as Jack Sorenson delivered the game’s lone goal late in the third period.  They had a Hornet team after the EP grinder which would test their mettle.  When Wayzata and Edina play, whether on the big sheet or at Braemar, they seem to bring the best out in each other.  Three second period goals changed things for the Trojans as they erased a 1-0 first period Edina lead.  The Hornets scrapped back with a third period goal to force overtime and the eventual tie.  The Trojans continue their play in the Lake Conference with a game against Minnetonka and then host Prior Lake in non-conference action.

4.  Edina Hornets  (12-4-1, 0-0-1)

Last Week:  vs Wayzata (T 3-3)

This Week:  vs Hopkins (1/23 live on Sports Radio 105), vs Minnetonka (1/25)

Let’s be honest earning a tie in one game, the only of a team’s week,  should not warrant moving up one spot in a top notch top ten like the MHM rankings.  However, the Burnsville Blaze lost, and while  it was to the #2 Lakeville North, it was still a loss and put Edina in position to move up.  The tie against the #3 Trojans propels the Hornets over the Blaze this week.  They have split with the Blaze and are 8-3-1 against teams that are ranked in the MHM top ten and that includes long-time #1 Breck in the Class A.  The fact that 12 of their games have been against difficult competition and fighting through it impressively says a lot about this team.  They are always a team to take seriously and will be a factor in the end as always.  They will look to take care of business against Hopkins and Minnetonka in Lake Conference play this week.

5.  Elk River Elks (12-3-0, 8-0-0)

Last Week:  vs Centennial (W 3-2), vs Champlin Park (W 4-1), vs Stillwater (W 4-1)

This Week:  vs Anoka (1/23), vs Coon Rapids (1/25)

While they are known to play in some close games, this team is still equipped, in the opinion of the MHM Rankings Committee, to be major contenders for the Section 7AA title despite their loss to Grand Rapids at the Edina Holiday Classic.  They are in the midst of the seven game winning streak that includes a 4-1 win over Stillwater as they successfully hosted an impressive Hockey Day Minnesota event.   The Elks haven’t lost in nearly a month since the Grand Rapids loss at the Classic on December 21st.

6.  Burnsville Blaze (11-5-0, 7-2-0)

Last Week:  vs Lakeville South (W 5-2), vs Lakeville North (W 5-4 ot)

This Week:  at Rosemount (1/21) vs Eden Prairie (1/23), vs Eastview (1/25)

The Blaze earned a split with the Lakeville teams this week in beating Lakeville South 5-2 and losing a heart breaker to Lakeville North 5-4 in overtime. The loss to Lakeville North stopped a run of four straight games and a period where they won 10 of 11 games.  All five of their losses have come to ranked teams in the top ten of the MHM at some point this season.  The Blaze 5-4 record against top ten teams puts them below Edina in the rankings, who has a better record in such games to go along with their split (Edina and Bville) in two games this year.

7.  Blaine Bengals (11-3-1, 8-1-0)

Last Week:  vs Duluth East (W 5-2) vs Champlin Park (W 7-4)

This Week:  at Minnetonka (1/21), vs Robbinsdale Armstrong (1/23), vs Osseo (1/25)

A huge win was delivered by the Bengals and it was on the road.  It was a much needed victory as the Bengals were stumbling with a 1-2-1 record going into actoin last week.  The Bengals are now 2-3-1 against teams ranked at some point in the Class AA or Class A MHM rankings.  Their week is a mix of non-conference an conference play leading off with Minnetonka followed by a pair of  NWSC games featuring Robbinsdale Armstrong and Osseo.  Blaine will look to keep pace in the conference with the Elk River Elks.

8.  Holy Family Catholic Fire (10-3-1, 5-0-0)

Last Week:  vs Orono (W 8-2) vs Litchfield/Dassel-Cokato (Win 10-0)

This Week:  at  Delano (1/21),  vs Hutchinson (1/22), vs Roseau (1/24),

The Fire make their debut at #8 in the MHM rankings this week and for good reason. At this point, they should be the #2 seed of the Section 6AA.  Their only loss in sectional games was to Wayzata and that was in overtime.  They average 5.36 goals per game and just 2.14 against.  Noel Rahn’s team has won four straight and 9 of their last 10.  They are 1-1-1 against teams that have been ranked in the Class AA of the MHM and have the tie against Breck who has been #1 Class A for much of the year. They will be challenged  this week by the offensive game of the Roseau Rams and the Delano Tigers are a tough team to play against.

9.  Eastview Lightning (13-3-0, 6-3-0)

Last Week:  vs Prior Lake (L 5-3), vs Hastings (W 5-2), vs Rochester John Marshall (W 10-1)

This Week:  at Lakeville North (1/21), vs Woodbury (1/24), vs Burnsville (1/25)

The loss to the Prior Lake Lakers is a tough one, but at 8-7-1 the Lakers have been hit and miss this year.  Due to that , it isn’t enough to toss the Lightning from the top ten as a 13 win season to this point is impressive.  They responded to the loss big over Hastings and Rochester John Marshall.  They are 2-2 against top ten teams this year.

10.  Duluth East Greyhounds (12-4-1)

Last Week:  vs Blaine (L 5-2), vs Apple Valley (W 2-1), vs Maple Grove (T 2-2)

This Week:  at Forest Lake (1/21)

It was an underwhelming week for the Hounds yet they hold on to the final spot of the top ten by their finger nails.  A 1-1-1 week that included a loss to Blaine and a scare overtime win over Apple Valley.    The Hounds have one Section 7AA game against Forest lake this week.  They are 4-3 against the top rated teams in the MHM polls this year and subsequently fall in the number ten spot.

The post MHM Class AA Top Ten 1/20/14 appeared first on Minnesota Hockey Magazine.