It was the eighth runner-up finish – with zero state titles – in Moorhead program history.

“The toughest thing of anything,” Ammerman said that night, as he spoke between long pauses and offered his words through tears, “is now that team’s done. I’m not much of an emotional guy. But tonight was going to be sad either way.

“I’m glad our kids got the opportunity. They deserve it.”

Jump ahead to the 2025, and Ammerman was back at that same table in a similar moment on Saturday. But this time, the mood was celebratory as he sat with players Mason Kraft, Brooks Cullen and Brandon Mickelson after they defeated Stillwater 7-6 to win the Class 2A state championship.

What were Ammerman’s emotions this time around once the final horn sounded?

“Relief,” Ammerman quipped. “We’ll enjoy it as it comes here. This isn’t something that I did. I thought our coaching staff did a phenomenal job this week of preparing these kids.”

Ammerman was calm and humble as he answered questions after one of the biggest moments in program history. He offered praise to the team, coaches and others in the community.

“I’ll have time to reflect as a coach, but we’re excited for them to go celebrate with our families,” Ammerman said. “This isn’t about something that I did, or isn’t about something that one individual did. It was a collective effort.”

The Class 2A championship game ended in victorious fashion for the Spuds (28-2-1), though there was danger in it becoming an epic collapse had Stillwater (24-7-0) completed its comeback effort after being down by multiple goals for most of the night.

From the jump, the Spuds were pumped
The announced record crowd of 20,491 at Xcel Energy Center was treated to three periods of momentum-turning, goal-scoring excitement to finish off the high school season.

The game included record-tying efforts, both head coaches using their timeouts prior to the third period to calm their teams down, highlight-reel goals and ultimate resiliency from players on each bench.

Mason Kraft scored four goals in the first period. The celebration of his fourth goal was more subdued than the first three.(MHM Photo / Rick Olson)

Where to begin? Two words: Mason Kraft.

The senior and Minnesota State commit scored on the first shots of the game for Moorhead, tallying goals 12 seconds apart less than two minutes into the game. Senior Brooks Cullen made it 3-0 only 2 minutes, 24 seconds into the game, so Stillwater coach Greg Zanon called a timeout and told his team to “calm down.”

“It’s a big game,” Zanon said. “When has a high school kid played in front of 20,000 people?”

Kraft had a hat trick 12 minutes in – at least one hat made it onto the ice from the stands – before adding his fourth goal with 40.6 seconds left in the first period to make it a 5-1 lead. He skated to the bench, where Moorhead players mob each other for their goal celebrations, with body language that seemed to say: “What else is new?”  

Four goals in a period ties a tournament record with John Mayasich, who scored four in the 1951 quarterfinal first period against Williams. Kraft’s performance was also reminiscent of three years ago when Prior Lake’s Alex Bump pumped in five goals in the state quarterfinals, though he only scored three in a period. Kraft nearly had a fifth goal in the game later, but his shot hit the pipe.

‘It’s not over’
Stillwater’s Trey Fredenberg made it a 5-2 game with 9:51 left in the second period just after a TV timeout. About 30 seconds later, the Stillwater student section led a “It’s not over!” cheer. That generated a “Yes, it is!” response from another section of fans, though not the main Moorhead student section at the other end of the arena.

The Stillwater students were onto something, because less than a minute after their encouraging words, the Ponies scored again on a top-shelf snipe from Luca Jarvis for a 5-3 game. That caused Moorhead to burn its timeout, after allowing two goals in 1:30 of game time.

It must have been a motivating discussion at the bench, because Mickelson scored 20 seconds later to regain the three-goal lead, and the Spuds led 6-3 through two periods.

Matthew Volkman scored a pair of third-period goals to cut Stillwater’s deficit to 7-6. (MHM Photo / Rick Olson)

The Ponies kept galloping and wouldn’t let these three-goal deficits stand. Fredenberg tallied his second of the game early in the third period. But sophomore Zac Zimmerman had an absolute snipe of a shot on the power play to make it 7-4. Stillwater’s Matthew Volkman scored a pair of goals later in the period, eventually getting the contest to a one-goal game with 3:20 to play.

The entire lower bowl of fans stood for the final minute as the Ponies tried to tie the game with the extra attacker. But they couldn’t complete the comeback, and once the horn sounded, the Spuds celebrated one more time. Although this celebration might go on for a while.

Kraft, who had a five-point game and finished the season with 46 goals and 95 points, was poised and articulate in the postgame press conference. He said the reaction to winning the championship was “like a sensation that I’ve honestly never felt,” adding that he felt on top of the world.

“It’s the greatest feeling ever,” said Kraft, who was crowned Mr. Hockey on Sunday. “And I just want to say, if you ever have the option to stay or leave, I think you should always come back and play high school hockey and play one more year with your buddies.

“You never get this time back ever. There’s no better place in the country to play than Minnesota.”

Finally, Moorhead
Moorhead’s storyline was well known heading into the tournament; it came in as the top seed this year. Before Saturday’s game, Ammerman referred to the history as “the elephant in the room” and said it’s been addressed with the team. They all knew the history, even if it wasn’t this year’s roster who’s responsible for that 0-8 state championship-game streak.

Moorhead goaltender Charlie Stenehjem tosses his helmet and celebrates after the game was over. (MHM Photo / Rick Olson)

Moorhead finished as state runner-up eight times starting more than 30 years ago: 1992 (Tier I), 1994, 1995, 2001, 2004, 2005, 2009 and 2017. Ammerman, a 2005 Moorhead graduate, played on the 2004 and 2005 teams.

“As a coach, part of your job is to set your kids up for hopefully some success, to put things in place for them to reach their goals and dreams,” Ammerman said. “I think that these guys had everything in place. And that doesn’t mean that it was going to work out.

“I’m happy that they got to experience something that I didn’t. I’m just happy for them.”

This year was the first time since 2017 that the Spuds reached the state title game, despite making the state tournament five times from 2019-23. But the Spuds went 0-5 in those state quarterfinals, losing in double overtime in 2022 and 2023 to dash any championship hopes. Last season, the Spuds failed to reach its Section 8 title game for the first time in 23 years.

But the 2024-25 team responded well. The Spuds were undefeated in regulation this season, with its two overtime losses bookending the regular season to Wayzata 3-2 and No. 1-ranked Hill-Murray 8-7 in a battle between the top-two ranked teams in the state, according to Let’s Play Hockey.

The state championship obviously means a lot to the Moorhead community, too. Brooks Cullen, who’s dad Matt Cullen, Stanley Cup Champion and a Spud alum who’s now an assistant coach, talked about the tight-knit hockey community.

“It’s unbelievable to get the first championship for this town,” Brooks said.

Added Kraft: “You could see their emotion on all the parents tonight after the game. It’s something that you can’t really put into words.”

Assistant coach Matt Cullen celebrates the state championship for Moorhead that eluded him as a player for the Spuds. (MHM Photo / Rick Olson)

Kraft’s dad, Ryan, and Matt Cullen played for the Spuds in the early 1990s.

This year’s Spuds wrote their own chapter in tournament history, though the road wasn’t easy.

First, they had to weather the storm against No. 8-seed Lakeville South in the quarterfinals. The Cougars scored only 1 minute, 37 seconds into the game and took 3-1 and 4-2 leads in the game before the Spuds rattled off five unanswered goals for a 7-4 win.

The semifinals set up a meeting with defending champion, 5-seed Edina. The Hornets can never be counted out at the state tournament, regardless of seeding. Edina’s Mason West tallied a hat trick in the first period for a 3-2 lead at intermission. With the game 3-3 late in regulation, Zimmerman scored a power-play goal with under a minute remaining to send Moorhead to the state title game.

The championship game included a record-tying 13 combined goals in the 7-6 game. The only other boys’ hockey state championship game with that many goals was in 1996 when Warroad defeated Red Wing 10-3 in the Class 1A final.

The Stillwater team embraces following the state championship loss to Moorhead. (MHM Photo / Rick Olson)

Unfortunately for Stillwater, six goals also marked the most ever scored by a losing team in a championship game. But the attitude on the Stillwater bench never faltered, Zanon said.

“The never-quit, never-die type mentality,” Zanon said. “Being down 5-1 wasn’t ideal, but going in after that first period, there was just no doubt in my mind that we were going to claw back some way.

“We could easily have quit and fold up the tent and it could’ve been 12-1, especially with the way they can score goals. We put our foot down and tried to claw back.”

The post Potato Champs appeared first on Minnesota Hockey Magazine.

It also happened to be the first week of hockey season.

Granted the OK by Ponies girls hockey head coach Annie Cashman to take the team’s afternoon practice off, junior Brooke Nelson strolled into St. Croix Valley Rec Center just a few hours after her soccer season had ended ready to start her winter sport.

Cashman describes Nelson as a bit of a throwback. In this day and age of the specialized athlete, Nelson is one of the state’s best soccer players and also excels on the ice. 

And she does it while maintaining a low-maintenance attitude.

“She wants zero attention, zero accolades,” Cashman said. “She just wants to be there for her sisters and go out and play.”

In the midst of an impactful campaign for the ninth-ranked Ponies, Nelson had a bit of a coming out party on Hockey Day, scoring four goals, including a natural hat trick in the first period, in an 8-3 win over host White Bear Lake. 

Four of Nelson’s junior classmates are already committed to Division I schools to play hockey, and if she put her mind to it, Nelson could likely make it five.

Not bad for her “part-time job,” as Cashman describes it.

Brooke Nelson (12) battles a trio of White Bear Lake Bears for puck possession on Hockey Day Minnesota at Polar Lakes Park in White Bear Township. (MHM Photo / Jeff Wegge)

“She’s about as good of an athlete as you’ll come by,” said Ponies senior captain Avery Braunshausen. “She’s excelled in soccer since we were iddy-iddy-biddy. She excels in hockey. Having someone like that on our hockey team, and someone that knows what it’s like to play on a team that makes a state tournament, that knowledge is helpful.”

Nelson insists her soccer skills translate on the ice and make her a better hockey player.

“I think I’m able to see the ice differently than other people,” Nelson said. “In soccer, it’s all about finding space, and I can translate that on the ice, finding the puck in spaces that people don’t really expect you to.”

Nelson is one member of an outstanding junior class where she, admittedly, flies a bit under the radar, something she’s perfectly fine with. 

Josie St. Martin started the month with the U.S. National Team in Sweden and is headed for Ohio State. Addison Finn will play collegiately at Boston University, Josie Lang will attend Providence and Myah Krueger, who did not play at Hockey Day, is committed to St. Cloud State. 

“I’ve played with a lot of these girls since I was really little,”  Nelson said. “So for me, I’m just going out to play with my friends and do our thing.”

With all of that junior talent on its roster, Nelson’s Hockey Day performance showcases exactly what makes the Ponies dangerous as section time approaches.

On any given day, someone new can help carry the load, whether it’s one of their junior superstars, or one of its senior leaders.

“Brooke is a great player and we’re all super proud of her. But it just as easily could have been Josie or that whole junior class,” Braunshausen said. “Our whole team is so talented. Today it was Brooke.

“It’s one of things that makes us so successful and why our team excels, when we’re all using each other’s strengths. One of the things about our team is we all have different strengths and we have lots of moving parts.”

At Hockey Day, Nelson found herself on the business end of a collision early on that left her down on the ice and slow to the bench. 

After laboring back to her teammates and shaking off the trainer, it didn’t take Nelson to exact revenge.

One shift, to be exact.

Her next time on the ice, Nelson scored her first goal, one that gave Stillwater a 2-1 lead, an advantage it wouldn’t relinquish the rest of the way.

“When I scored, I was good,” Nelson said. 

So was Stillwater.

It’s early one-goal deficit was the first time this season the Ponies had trailed in a conference game, but it’s the kind of adversity that could come in handy as sections approaches.

When section play begins early next month, Stillwater will likely start with either Woodbury or East Ridge, two teams that have hung tough in both meetings this season.

Should the Ponies win there, potential semifinal and final foes could include rivals Hill-Murray and Gentry Academy, two of the best girls hockey programs in Minnesota.

The post Dual Threat appeared first on Minnesota Hockey Magazine.

The post HDM 2023 Gallery: Ponies vs. Bears appeared first on Minnesota Hockey Magazine.

Simply click HERE to begin your FREE digital subscription.  

Enjoy!

The post MHM February 2017 HDM Stillwater appeared first on Minnesota Hockey Magazine.

All Images by Jeff Wegge and Jonny Watkins

[table id=6 /]

Click on image for full-size view

The post Saturday In The Park appeared first on Minnesota Hockey Magazine.

Wayzata fends off a late push from Stillwater to pull off the upset

St. Paul – Wayzata sophomore Griffin Ness came into the state tournament with three goals on the season. His fourth goal turned out to be a game-winner that put his team into the championship game.

The fourth-line forward got a breakaway and put the puck in the net with 1:35 left in the third period for a 2-0 lead. No. 3 seed Wayzata (20-8-1) went on to upset No. 2 seed Stillwater (27-1-1) 2-1 after a fierce scramble at the end of the Class 2A semifinal Friday evening at Xcel Energy Center.

Ness said he just picked his head up and found a corner. Wayzata coach Pat O’Leary said Ness has had plenty of opportunities in the past month, and it’s stressful when you’re snakebit.

But when Ness got the chance on the big stage, he didn’t miss.

“I was a little nervous,” he said. “I saw the top right corner open, and I just put it there.”

His goal was insurance that his team ended up needing. Stillwater took a timeout after that second Wayzata goal. Stillwater coach Matt Doman reminded his players that there was plenty of time left.

“These guys got no quit in them,” he said. “Their compete tonight was fun to watch.”

Sure enough, just 35 seconds later as the clock hit 1:00, and with an empty Stillwater cage, senior Jackson Cates put one past Wayzata netminder Alex Schilling.

That made it 2-1 with 60 seconds where anything could happen.

Stillwater nearly tied it as they created a scramble in front of the Wayzata net. Stillwater junior Noah Cates took a backhand shot in the closing seconds, but Schilling stuck out his right pad for the save. There was a flurry of players all around the net, but the puck stayed out, the net came off and the clock struck zero.

Those last 10 seconds, “it was a long time,” O’Leary said.

Stillwater was hoping to get a bounce, though they knew it wasn’t going to be easy, Jackson said.

“We almost got another one at the end,” Jackson said.

It was desperation time at the end, Noah said.

“Puck popped out,” Noah said. “I just had to get anything to the net.”

The final couple minutes of the game were perhaps the most intense. It was a 1-0 contest most of the way. Junior defender Logan Lindstrand scored at 6:55 of the first period for Wayzata. Stillwater got off to a bit of a slow start, with just four shots on goal in the first. But they figured it out and “were never panicked,” Doman said.

Schilling made 22 saves in goal, while Stillwater goalie Josh Benson also stopped 22 pucks. There were no penalties in the game.

Stillwater was also without junior forward Luke Manning, who was out with a concussion. He came into the tournament with 21 goals and 22 assists.

“Can’t replace a kid like that,” Doman said. “He’s a bulldog.”

Wayzata moves on to the Class 2A title game Saturday night. The Trojans took fourth place in 2013 and are looking for their first state title.

“We always had that belief that we were going to do this,” Schilling said. “I can’t wait for tomorrow night.”

The post Trojans take down Ponies appeared first on Minnesota Hockey Magazine.

[See image gallery at minnesotahockeymag.com]

The post Gallery: Ponies vs. Trojans appeared first on Minnesota Hockey Magazine.

Cates brothers provide the offense in 4-1 Stillwater win over Farmington

St. Paul – Coming off a game where he scored perhaps the definition of a highlight-reel goal, what would Stillwater’s Noah Cates do for an encore in the state tournament?

For starters, a three-point game in the state tournament.

Noah, a junior forward, and his older brother, Jackson Cates, led the second-seeded Stillwater Ponies (27-1-1) to a 4-1 victory over the Farmington Tigers (18-9-1) in the Class 2A quarterfinals Thursday afternoon at the Xcel Energy Center. Noah had a goal and two assists, while Jackson scored a pair of goals.

But they recognized there’s more work to be done.

“I don’t think we’re satisfied yet,” Jackson said.

Jackson, committed to play at Michigan Tech University, has 26 goals on the season and 60 points. Noah has 24 goals and 63 points. Noah scored the monstrous spin-o-rama goal for the 1-0 overtime victory in the section final over Hill-Murray.

“Beginning of the season, we wanted three banners,” Noah said. “We got two, we want one more.”

Stillwater took home its first Suburban East Conference title this season, plus a Section 4 title. It’s Stillwater’s second trip to the state tournament.

After taking a 2-0 in the first period, the key was Stillwater’s third goal, coming just 26 seconds into the third period. Junior defender Jesse Bjugstad set up Noah perfectly for an easy shot into the back of the net.

“I just saw the goalie way out of the net,” Noah said.

Bjugstad came into the zone looking to shoot, but “Noah was wide open over there,” Bjugstad said, who finished with two assists, giving him 20 for the season so far.

That quickly made it 3-0 and was essentially a back-breaker for the Tigers, who were buzzing in the second period but had nothing to show for it. Stillwater coach Matt Doman and his players knew what an important goal that next one would be, after going up 2-0.

“They make that 2-1, you’re talking about a different game,” Doman said. “That’s a big swing. Getting that third one made a big difference for us.”

Jackson added his second tally of the game at 8:06 of the third period, all but icing the victory at that point with a 4-0 lead.

Stillwater’s lead extension seemed to extinguish any carry-over momentum Farmington had after the second intermission.

Farmington had its chances in the second period but couldn’t quite finish. Senior captain Erik Holmstrom scored Farmington’s lone goal with 7.4 seconds left in the third period. But it wasn’t enough to combat the skilled offense of Stillwater, a team that boasts four players with 20 goals or more.

“We had a couple breakdowns that led to goals,” Holmstrom said.

Farmington coach Greg May said he thought the first two periods were a pretty even game. It’s Farmington’s first trip to the state tournament since 2000, when the Tigers played in Class 1A.

A bounce here or there in the quarterfinal against Stillwater might have made the difference, May said.

“We wanted to do something special while we were here,” May said.“ I thought that we… deserved to be tied with them at least (after the 1^st). They buried their chances, we didn’t today.”

The post Ponies Tame Tigers appeared first on Minnesota Hockey Magazine.

[See image gallery at minnesotahockeymag.com]

The post Gallery: Ponies vs. Tigers appeared first on Minnesota Hockey Magazine.

[See image gallery at minnesotahockeymag.com]

The post Prep Gallery: Ponies vs. Fire appeared first on Minnesota Hockey Magazine.