Goals will likely be scarce when the Brainerd/Little Falls Warriors face the White Bear Lake Bears in the Class 2A state quarterfinals at 1 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 21, at the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul.
That offensive shortage can be attributed to the stellar senior goaltending matchup between the Warriors' Olivia King and the Bears' Calla Frank, who have both played five varsity seasons and combined for 141 wins, 36 shutouts and made more than 5,500 saves.
King is among the B/LF all-time career leaders in victories (81), shutouts (16), goals-against average (2.25) and save percentage (90.3). She has also helped the Warriors win back-to-back Section 8-2A titles, including defeating North Wright County 3-2 in this year's final.
Frank also has admirable career totals for victories (60), shutouts (20), goals against (1.71) and save percentage (94.0). This year, WBL had a losing record during the regular season and finished fifth in the Suburban East Conference. But they heated up in the Section 4-2A playoffs behind Frank, who registered three shutouts, including a 50-save performance to beat top-seeded Hill Murray 2-0 in the title game.
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Class 2A State Hockey
- Who: No. 3 Brainerd/Little Falls Warriors (23-4-1) vs. White Bear Lake Bears (13-12-1)
- What: Class 2A State quarterfinal round
- When: 1 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 21
- Where: Xcel Energy Center, St. Paul
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"Frank is definitely a formidable foe and coming in playing well," said Warrior coach Jim Ernster. "However, we beat goaltenders in the (section) semifinals and finals who were also very good. Plus, our girls benefit from shooting against another one of the top goaltenders in the state in Olivia (King) every day in practice."
Bears' coach Jerry Kwapick said that Frank has the characteristics of a successful goaltender.
"What stands out to me (about Frank) are three things," he said. "First, she is a great athlete and extremely flexible. Secondly, Calla is focused on the task at hand both on and off the ice. And finally, she is one of the hardest workers I have coached. Calla sets high goals for herself and holds herself accountable to achieving them."
Those three attributes can also be said for King, who has compiled a 1.58 goals-against average and a 91.5 save percentage this season. She has helped the Warriors win 17 of their last 19 games. King and her teammates have worked hard to earn the No. 3 seed for the state tournament.
"I have heard some really good things about them," Kwapick said of the Warriors, who are 23-4-1 overall. "Obviously, they have to be a top team to get the third seed. We are looking forward to the challenge. It sounds like they have a deep team with some high-end players who can put the puck in the net."
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B/LF is led offensively by seniors Abby Pohlkamp with 25 goals and 40 points this season, including a team-high six points in the playoffs. Other top scorers are senior Cheyenne Abear, 19 goals and 35 points; junior Gabbie Smith, 10 goals and 33 points; junior Sophie Robinson, six goals and 25 points and senior Ella Kalusche and junior Josie Kramer, each with four goals and 17 points.
White Bear Lake, 13-12-3, are led offensively by seniors Sydney Shearen, 14 goals and 25 points and Olivia Reif, 10 goals and 22 points.
Both teams have five-game win streaks heading to state. During those five games, WBL has allowed just one goal, while the Warriors have outscored their opponents 22-6. It's the Bears first state appearance since 2002 while B/LF has advanced two straight seasons.
"Two weeks ago, I told our girls that there are two championships that are the hardest to win," Ernster said of his team's two section titles. "Your first is tough because you always have doubt in the back of your mind and we were able to accomplish that feat last year. The second hardest is repeating as champions because you deal with expectations and complacency.
"But I give huge credit to the girls and our staff to be able to (repeat as champions) because it was a grind at times. The season gets to be long and inevitably you look ahead a bit and want the playoffs to get started. The girls stuck with it and our staff stayed persistent. We feel a tremendous sense of pride in getting it done."
Ernster, whose squad is 71-14-1 over the past three seasons, said the Warriors can't rest on the honor of being seeded in the top three at state.
"The third seed is nice because you get the last (lineup) change, but that's about it," Ernster said. "The reality is that you have two teams who are 3-0 (in the playoffs), and we are looking to go 4-0 after Thursday."
Also playing in Brainerd's top bracket Thursday will be No. 2 Andover vs. Farmington at 11 a.m. In the bottom bracket, No. 1 Edina plays East Ridge at 6 p.m., and No. 4 Maple Grove faces No. 5 Minnetonka at 8 p.m.
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Semifinals are 6 p.m. and 8:30 p.m. Friday, Feb. 22, with the third place game at 11 a.m. Saturday, Feb. 23 and the championship at 7 p.m. Saturday. All games will be at Xcel Center. Friday's consolation semifinals and Saturday's fifth-place game will be at the Treasure Island Center in downtown St. Paul.
Class 2A schedule
Thursday, Feb. 21
Quarterfinals at Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul
No. 2 Andover (23-4) vs. Farmington (15-11-2), 11 a.m.
No. 3 Brainerd/LF (23-4-1) vs. White Bear Lake (13-12-3), 1 p.m.
No. 1 Edina (24-4) vs. East Ridge (19-8-1), 6 p.m.
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Maple Grove (19-7-1) vs. Minnetonka (14-13-1), 8 p.m.
Friday, Feb. 22
Semifinals at Xcel Energy Center
Andover/Farmington winner vs. Brainerd/White Bear Lake winner, 6 p.m.
Edina/East Ridge winner vs. Maple Grove/Minnetonka winner, 8:30 p.m.
Consolation semifinals at Treasure Island Rink in St. Paul
Semifinal losers, 10 a.m.
Semifinal losers, noon
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Saturday, Feb. 23
Championship at Xcel Energy Center
Semifinal winners 7 p.m.
Third place at Xcel Energy Center
Semifinal losers, 11 a.m.
Fifth place at TRIA Rink
Consolation semifinal winners, 11:30 a.m.
