Last years section 2A champs the Orono Spartans will have to replace one of the best goalies in the state in Brock Peyton. He went 16-5-0 with a 1.85 GAA and a .926 save %. They lose leading scorers Bradley Walker and his 50 points along with Avery Andersons 48 points to graduation. On the blue line they will rely on returning players Joey Mugaas and John Engebretson, offensively they will look to Cayden Effertz, Easton Sankey, Brooks Fegers and Tommy Lewin to get back to the state tournament. The lone returning goalie is senior Peyton Anderson who play sparingly last season. The run to the state tournament was a good one, in the section quarterfinals the Spartans survived a hot goaltender from Hutchinson Minnesota (Hunter Lein) and won the game 2-1 in overtime. They outshot Hutch 54-17 and Tommy Lewin buried the game winning goal in the first overtime, (assisted by Engebretson and Mugaas.) Orono then advanced to play a solid Minneapolis team and it took 4 3rd period goals to advance to the section finals. Scoring in this one was Easton Sankey x2, Avery Anderson, Connor Lang, Tommy Lewin x2, Caden Effertz and Brody Finnegan, the final score was 8-5 Spartans. This win set up a highly anticipated section finals matchup with Highway 12 foe the Delano Tigers. Orono would jump out to a 2-0 lead over the Tigers and did not look back, they ended up winning 4-1 and advanced to the state tournament.
In the first round of the Minnesota High School Hockey state tournament the Spartans faced off against section 1A winner, the Northfield Raiders, this was a great class A high school hockey game and despite outshooting the Raiders 50-24 it took an Avery Anderson overtime goal for Orono to advance to the state semi-final game against Warroad. In the semi-final game the Warroad Warriors would jump out to a 3-0 lead before the Spartans would rally back on goals from Joey Greenagle, Brooks Fegers and Avery Anderson sending the game to overtime. There was no score in the first overtime and shots were 5-3 Warroad. In the 2nd overtime it was Erick Comstock winning it for Warroad and ending the Spartans hope for a state championship appearance. In the third place game Orono played Hermantown and lost 2-0 and got outshot 38-15 ending the high school career for many talented hockey players from both teams. We expect Orono to be back in the mix for another state tournament appearance again this season and would not be surprised to see a rematch with Delano in the Section 2A finals once again.
| Date | Result | Opponent | Location | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mon Nov 25 | W 5-0 | Monticello | Morrison Arena | |
| Thu Nov 28 | W 4-1 | @ Northfield | Northfield Ice Arena | |
| Sun Dec 1 | L 3-6 | Warroad | Morrison Arena | |
| Mon Dec 2 | W 4-3 | Little Falls | Morrison Arena | |
| Sat Dec 7 | W 6-2 | Minneapolis | Morrison Arena | |
| Mon Dec 9 | L 1-3 | @ Duluth Denfeld | Essentia Duluth Heritage Center | |
| Sat Dec 14 | W 5-0 | @ Waconia | Waconia Ice Arena | |
| Mon Dec 16 | W 4-1 | Alexandria | Morrison Arena | |
| Thu Dec 19 | L 5-8 | @ St. Cloud Cathedral | Municipal Athletic Complex | |
| Sun Dec 22 | W 4-1 | @ Hopkins | Hopkins Pavilion | |
| Mon Dec 30 | L 2-5 | Mahtomedi | Morrison Arena | |
| Thu Jan 4 | W 5-3 | Providence Academy | Morrison Arena | |
| Sat Jan 6 | W 3-2 | @ Delano | Delano Area Sports Arena | |
| Thu Jan 11 | W 4-3 | @ New Prague | New Prague Community Center | |
| Sat Jan 13 | L 2-3 | @ St. Louis Park | St. Louis Park Recreation Center | |
| Thu Jan 18 | W 3-1 | @ Southwest Christian/Richfield | Richfield Ice Arena | |
| Sat Jan 20 | W 6-3 | Bloomington Jefferson | Morrison Arena | |
| Wed Jan 24 | L 2-3 | St. Cloud | Morrison Arena | |
| Sat Jan 27 | W 5-2 | Waconia | Morrison Arena | |
| Thu Feb 1 | L 3-6 | @ Benilde-St. Margaret's | St. Louis Park Recreation Center | |
| Sat Feb 3 | W 5-2 | New Prague | Morrison Arena | |
| Thu Feb 8 | W 4-2 | St. Louis Park | Morrison Arena | |
| Sat Feb 10 | L 1-2 | Chanhassen | Morrison Arena | |
| Thu Feb 15 | W 4-1 | @ Bloomington Jefferson | Bloomington Ice Garden | |
| Sat Feb 17 | W 7-1 | @ Chaska | Chaska Community Center | |
| Wed Feb 21 | W 9-0 | Litchfield/Dassel-Cokato | Morrison Arena - Class 1A, Section 2 quarterfinal | |
| Sat Feb 24 | W 4-1 | @ Providence Academy | St. Louis Park Rec Center - Class 1A, Section 2 semifinal | |
| Wed Feb 28 | W 4-1 | Minneapolis | St. Louis Park Rec Center - Class 1A, Section 2 championship | |
| Wed Mar 6 | L 2-5 | @ Mahtomedi | Xcel Energy Center - Class 1A quarterfinal | |
| Thu Mar 7 | W 8-1 | Alexandria | Aldrich Arena - Class 1A consolation semifinal | |
| Sat Mar 9 | W 1-0 | Northfield | Aldrich Arena - Class 1A consolation final |
