Girls hockey enters final two games of the season 10-11-2

By Bruce Karnick
Posted 1/31/25

Last week was not kind to the girl’s hockey team. The Raiders entered the week 10-8-2 and had three games on the schedule. First, they played host to South St. Paul (16-6) on Jan. 21 falling …

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Girls hockey enters final two games of the season 10-11-2

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Last week was not kind to the girl’s hockey team. The Raiders entered the week 10-8-2 and had three games on the schedule. First, they played host to South St. Paul (16-6) on Jan. 21 falling 6-1, then on Jan. 23 a long trip to Dodge County (15-3-1) where they lost 6-0 and then a stop at Eagan (4-17-1) on Jan. 25 where they lost 5-2.
Against South St. Paul
The Raiders week kicked off with a 6-1 loss to the Packers who scored all six of their goals before Hastings logged one late in the third period. Addie Seleski scored unassisted at 12:17 in the third.
Hastings allowed 41 shots on goal while tallying only 27 shots offensively. Victoria Steinke stopped 35 of the 41 shots she faced for a .854 save percentage. Hastings had eight penalty minutes on four infractions and South St. Paul took advantage of the skater advantage twice. The Packers only gave the Raiders a skater advantage three times for six minutes and Hastings was unable to capitalize.
At Dodge County
The defensive troubles continued for Hastings with Dodge County racking up 35 shots on goal to the Raiders 17. Of the 35 shots, Steinke stopped 29 for a .829 save percentage. With most of the action taking place in the Raiders end, the defense gets worn down quickly, giving up second chances that result in extra goals. Hastings was unable to find the back of the net ultimately falling 6-0.
This was by far the cleanest game played all year for the Raiders regarding penalties. Only two penalties were called all game, both on Dodge County for a total of four minutes. The Wildcats scored once in the first, twice in the second and three times in the third, a testament to their pressure and how well they wore down the Raider defense.
At Eagan
No stats were available at press time for the Eagan game. The final score was 5-2 with Eagan picking up their fifth win of the season.
Section Standings and the post season
Hastings is currently the seventh ranked team in the section out of eight teams. The loss against Eagan will likely be what the section coaches cling to in order to put the Raiders as the eighth seed in the section playoffs. With two regular season games left, it will be very difficult to change their fate, but if the Raiders find a way to beat a top ten team in the state in Woodbury, that could be a huge boost that could even push them into the sixth seed ahead of Eastview, a team they beat earlier in the season. This coming weekend’s section meeting becomes way more interesting for the Raiders if they win their last two games. At a minimum, a win against East Ridge should keep them in the seventh spot.
Up Next
The girls’ final two games of the regular season are against two very good opponents. The game Tuesday against the seventh best team in the state, Woodbury, will be recapped in next week’s edition. The final regular season game is scheduled for Saturday, February 1 at 3:00 p.m. at the M Health Fairview Sports Center in Woodbury against the East Ridge Raptors.