Schools
Northwest Suburban Conference Girls Hockey First: Armstrong, Cooper Unite On Ice
New girls hockey co-op with Armstrong and Cooper high schools takes to the ice for first season.
Robbinsdale Armstrong and Cooper Girls Hockey begin a new chapter this winter as a co-op hockey team.
Two traditional rivals combined teams because of a low numbers of participants, but they may find that it equals more winning on the ice. The Cooper Hawks went 8-18 last season and the Armstrong Falcons posted a 5-21-1 mark.
New coach Kevin Gray hopes to improve upon those records. He has spent a number of years coaching boys youth hockey in the Plymouth area.
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"Because we are a new team with a new coaching staff we should be better at the end of the year as we gain experience and time with each other," Gray said.
So far, Armstrong-Cooper has knotted a 2-4-1 record through the early part of the season. They dove into Northwest Suburban Conference play with a game against Blaine this weekend.
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"The Northwest Suburban Conference is loaded with good teams and high-end players," Gray said.
Sisters Rachel and Stephanie Olsen return. They had the top point totals for the Falcons last year. Alyssa Burke comes to the team as one of Cooper's top scorers. Goalie Ashley Ritten stopped 90 percent of opponents' shots last year.
The Armstrong-Cooper players also will remember former Cooper coach Chris Johnson who passed away from cancer in April.
TEAMS TO WATCH
Anoka - The Tornadoes have already grabbed statewide attention by knocking out No. 1-ranked defending Class AA state champion Minnetonka.
Blaine - The Bengals have a tough goaltender in Tara Hoverstad and have grabbed some early-season attention by beating Anoka after the Minnetonka upset.
Elk River - The Elks have Jonna Curtis; one of the top players in the state.
Coon Rapids - The Cardinals reached the Class AA state tournament last year and return a key player in Amy Schlagel.
KEY RETURNERS
Jonna Curtis (Elk River) - She had 48 goals last season for the Elks.
Amy Schlagel (Coon Rapids) - The Cardinals defenseman had 22 goals last season and helped the Cards reach state.
Katie Johnson (Anoka) - She had 21 goals for the Tornadoes last year.
KEY LOSSES
Rachel Bona (Coon Rapids) - The former Cardinals star now plays for the Minnesota Golden Gophers.
PRESEASON PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Jonna Curtis (Elk River) - She scored 48 goals last season and led the Elks to state and she already has five goals in three games this season.
