Boys Hockey: Red Wing overwhelmed by 7th-ranked Lourdes

It didn’t take long for Rochester Lourdes’ speed and passing ability to take effect against Red Wing at Prairie Island Arena.

The seventh-ranked (1A) Eagles scored just 50 seconds into the opening period and had a three-goal lead at the end of the first.

Facing such a deficit against a talented team, Red Wing succumbed to an 8-2 defeat.

“You certainly don’t stop it,” Red Wing head coach Mike Belisle said of Lourdes’ offense. “That’s the tough part. It puts the focus on all those small things. It’s all about doing the little things consistently against a team like this.”

And the Wingers struggled at times with the details Saturday.

Red Wing (0-8) was outshot 45-25 in the loss and made several crucial mistakes to give the Eagles odd-man rushes or breakaways. The Wingers’ senior goaltender Preston Blaney finished with 37 saves.

Montana Streit fired the opening salvo for Lourdes (5-1) 50 seconds in with assists to Jason Samuelson and Karl Krecke. Less than two minutes later, Funk tallied his first goal of the night from Samuelson.

Dylan Goggin cut the lead to 2-1 at 3 minutes, 51 seconds of the first period with assists to Tyler Rea and Tristan Rehder but Funk scored twice more, the first at 5:35 and the second at 8:46 for a 4-1 Eagles’ lead.

“We’re got to learn to not make those little mistakes early,” Belisle said.

Facing a 4-1 deficit at the end of the first period, the Wingers’ were outplayed the entire second period. Lourdes outshot Red Wing 12-2 and got a power-play goal from Krecke at 3:19 and a tally by Ben Weir at 5:53 of the second period.

“Overall, they took it to us the second period,” Belisle said. “We were on our heels the entire second. … We let them have too big of a leash today.”

Despite facing a five-goal deficit, Red Wing came out physical and played hard in the third period. The Wingers got an unlikely goal 5:48 into the period when Lourdes’ goalie fell over trying to play the puck and Ryan Rehder slid the loose puck in for a shorthanded goal.

But the Eagles responded with two more goals, one on the power play, to seal the victory. Red Wing was severely outplayed in the second period and could have quit in the third period, Belisle said.

“It’s frustrating, you’re 0-8,” he said. “(The upperclassmen) understand the situation. It’s going to be a stepping stone. … We battled all three periods and we didn’t give up.”

Funk finished with three goals and an assist while Samuelson had five assists to lead Lourdes. No one had more than one point for the Wingers.

The Eagles were too much for Red Wing Saturday but Belisle and Blaney hope it will prepare the Wingers to face the top Section 1A opponent in February.

“It’s more of a learning experience,” Blaney said. “It gives (the underclassmen) a taste.”

Next up, Red Wing hosts Rochester Mayo Tuesday at Prairie Island Arena and will attempt to get their first win of the season.

“We’re a young team, it takes time,” Blaney said of the winless start to the season. “I’ve seen them work in practice. I know they have that ability.”

Tags: boys hockey, red wing, sports, prep