The schedule gets tougher on Owatonna

OWATONNA — When a team is on a three-game losing streak, the best medicine is usually a lower opponent or an easy game.
The Owatonna boys hockey team will get neither.

After losing three against Rochester Century, Faribault and Rochester Mayo, Owatonna will play its next four games against teams from the metro area. That run starts with a home game at 8 p.m. Tuesday against Chaska.

After a short break, Owatonna will play Champlin Park in the first round of the Schwan Cup on Dec. 28 in Champlin Park. The Huskies will play two more games in the Schwan Cup on Dec. 29 and 30 or Jan. 1.

Owatonna played in the Schwan Cup last year and played its way into the Bronze division championship game at the Xcel Energy Center with wins over Farmington and Rogers. The title game, which the Huskies lost 5-4 to Mahtomedi, was broadcast on FSN.
Owatonna will need wins in the first two rounds because only the championship game is played at the Xcel. Whether this year’s team can put together a run like that again this year remains to be seen.

“I think we have a team that can do it,” said senior Logan Pirkl, who leads Owatonna with seven assists and 10 points this season.

“We need to kind of learn from this past two weeks and this tough stretch we’ve been having. If we start playing hockey like we were against teams like Lourdes and Delano earlier in the season, if we can get back to that hockey, I think that this team has some potential to make it back to the ‘X’ this year.”

OHS coach Will Fish thinks his team is headed in the right direction. Owatonna’s last loss was a 5-4 game against Rochester Mayo on Saturday. That was a big step forward after a 7-0 loss to Century and a 7-1 loss to Faribault.

“Our effort against Mayo was good,” Fish said. “That was a tough, physical game and the guys worked hard all the way through it. We’re not expecting our team not to make mistakes. That’s not realistic in hockey. But an honest effort like the one against Mayo, we gain a lot from that.”

The Huskies could use another effort like that Tuesday against Chaska. The Hawks are 3-3-1 this season and haven’t lost since Dec. 10 with wins over Eastview and Rosemount and a tie against Burnsville.

Owatonna lost 6-2 at Chaska last year.

Owatonna’s recent rough stretch began after earned ties against Rochester Lourdes and Farmington and a win over New Richmond (Wis.). The tie against Farmington showed how good Owatonna can be when the Huskies scored twice late in the third period to really for a 2-0 deficit.

Both Johnson and Pirkl agreed there are certain basic skills the Huskies need to get back to.

“We just have to play simple and play smart,” Johnson said. “We need to just get back to playing how we did at the beginning of the year. I think this tournament will be a good chance for us to get out of the slump we’re in right now.”

Pirkl added that playing quality opponents will help bring the Huskies’ level of play up.

“It’s good for us,” he said. “It’s always good for someone to play teams of higher caliber, teams that are better than you, just to get you used to playing at a higher level. We just have to get back to basic hockey, working hard, and start having a little fun.”

In addition to Champlin Park (1-4-1), some other teams the Huskies might run into at the Schwan Cup are Orono (3-2, ranked No. 15 in Class 1A), Sartell (4-1-1-, No. 11 in 1A), Holy Family (6-1), Hudson, Wis. (0-7), Rogers (2-3) and St. Paul Academy (3-4).

“It’s a great experience for us,” Fish said. “It helps us improve down the stretch. It was a great experience for everybody to get a chance to play at the ‘X’ last year. The guys who were there definitely want to go back.

“It’s a tougher field this year, but that’s good for us. We’ve got nothing to lose. We’ve got guys ready to get after it. I’m looking forward to it and I know these guys are too.”

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