Offseason Breakdown No. 89: Lakeville North
With the 2020-21 season still months out, it’s time to take a look at teams from all over the State of Hockey and examine what happened this past season and what’s ahead. The next team we’re breaking down is Lakeville…
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Continue ReadingWith the 2020-21 season still months out, it’s time to take a look at teams from all over the State of Hockey and examine what happened this past season and what’s ahead. The next team we’re breaking down is Lakeville North.
How last season went
The Panthers are always a contender to make a state tournament run, but haven’t been to Xcel Energy Center since 2018 and haven’t made noise at “The X” since 2014 when they took home the AA title. With a senior loaded roster, they would look to make history once again.
Lakeville North has arguably one of the hardest schedules in the state, but they looked like the team to beat in Section 1AA as they finished the regular season with an impressive 17-7-1 record. With big wins over Chaska, Prior Lake, Rosemount, Lakeville South, Eagan and Hastings, the Panthers ranked #4 in the loaded South Suburban Conference.
Entering playoffs, the Panthers drew the #2 seed and made quick work in the first round against #7 ranked Northfield with a decisive 5-2 victory. Next came the real test vs #3 seeded Hastings, whom Lakeville North had defeated 4-1 when they last met during the regular season. This time, however, the Raiders came out firing and pulled off the upset in a 6-4 win to end the Panthers season.
Who’s back and who’s gone
Lakeville North is going to look like an entirely different team next year, for better or worse. They graduate 10 seniors, many of which have been staples on both sides of the ice. Leading scorers Caden Smith Caden Smith Forward Lakeville North | 2020 State MN (20G, 14A), Aj Anello (17G, 12A), Cole Pearson (8G, 20A) and Keaton Kranz Keaton Kranz Forward Lakeville North | 2020 State MN (13G, 13A) are all gone. Starting goalie Caleb Mayer Caleb Mayer Goalie Lakeville North | 2020 State MN is gone, who despite a tough game vs Hastings, had a stellar senior season. Mayer finished the year with a 16-8 record, 2.36 GAA, and a .922 SV%.
The top six scoring forwards are all gone, leaving Luke Jech (4G, 10A) and others with a lot of opportunities on the top lines and special teams.
Good news for the Panthers is they are returning two of their top defensemen, Mario Gasparini (4G, 10A) and Ben Monson (1G, 13A). Gasparini committed to Vermont in January and will look to continue to support the incoming goaltender, Skylar Vetter. Vetter only played 3 games last season for the Panthers but proved he could hang tough in net, posting a 2-0-1 record with a 1.27 GAA and a .953 SV%.
What to expect next season
With so much turnover happening, it’s going to be very difficult for Lakeville North to retake Section 1AA this coming season. They should be sound defensively and well-coached as always, but losing the top six forwards will be a large hurdle for this team to make. The Panthers will need to get production from all four lines and rebuild their powerplay around Mario Gasparini and Ben Monson if they want a chance at making another run at the tournament.