Youth, experience to propel Eagles

By PAUL DUNLAP

Journal Sports Editor

NEW ULM -- Forgive New Ulm boys hockey coach Tom Macho if his team isn't quite as ready as in previous seasons.

The reason? Numbers.

"We had 60 kids try out this year," Macho said. "You can only keep 40 of them, so we had to take some days to get our team set. We're a little behind schedule because of that, but these kids are ready to go."

Gone from last season's team are some integral parts of that squad -- forwards Al Wurtzberger, David Sellner, Ryan Neuman, Ryan Wellmann, and B.J. Rewitzer along with defensemen Jacob Holm and Brian Meier.

"We lost our leading scorer and leading assist man, along with two of the best penalty killers (Neuman and Rewitzer) that have come through here in a long time," Macho said. "A lot of firepower is gone, but we have some kids coming back as well."

And the nice thing is, none of them are seniors. Juniors Brandon Rolloff, Brenton Clyne, and Jamie Hoffmann should step up to fill the scoring gaps. Junior Corey Schnobrich has looked real good in scrimmages, according to Macho, and sophomore Chris Reinarts, a transfer from Sleepy Eye, will contribute as well.

"Most of these guys coming back have varsity experience," Macho said. "Plus they'll be around for another year as well, which always makes you feel good."

Another place where the Eagles should be set is in goal, where juniors Gary Wurtzberger and Isaac Forstner saw plenty of action last season as sophomores.

"Both have experience in big games, which is crucial for a goaltender," Macho said. "I've always thought the best way to have a good season is to have good goaltending, and we should have that this year."

Being a little behind schedule hurts in the fact that the team has yet to come together.

"We're still looking for the team concept," Macho said. "We have a lot of good individuals on this team, but we're still looking for combinations that will make us a team."

The goals for this team are obvious. Win the Central Minnesota Conference, the South Central Conference, the section title, and advance to the state tournament.

"We want to win (CMC) because, as long as the conference has been around, no team has won it in consecutive years," Macho said. "We've won the (SCC) since it started, so we want to keep that string alive. Every team's goal is to make it to state, and with group of kids it could happen."

The Eagles will begin that trek Tuesday, when they host the Austin Packers in a 7:30 p.m. matchup at Vogel Arena.

"Austin has four or five kids that are real good players," Macho said. "They can really move, and some could potentially be division-one prospects. It's absolutely going to be a tough test, but this kids are looking forward to playing teams like that."