Benilde-St. Margaret's Boys' Hockey

Benilde-St. Margaret’s has released its boys hockey schedule for the 2010-11 season, which features 16 of 25 games at the St. Louis Park Recreation Center.

The non-conference portion of this year’s slate features 12 teams which combined for a .695 winning percentage last season, none of which were under .500.

Highlighting the schedule, for the second consecutive year, is the Holiday Hockey Classic, which will be held at the SLP Rec Center, Dec. 28-30. The tourney features four of the top 10 teams in last year’s final Let’s Play Hockey Class AA poll with number two Wayzata, number three Eden Prairie, number six Bloomington Jefferson and number eight Centennial all slated to take part. Also appearing in the classic will three section runners-up from 2010 in Elk River (Section 7AA), Maple Grove (Section 5AA) and Moorhead (Section 8AA). In all, the 2010 Classic features teams which averaged 18 wins and combined for a .698 winning percentage in 2009-10.

"Red Knight fans will not want to miss many home games this year," head coach Ken Pauly said. "Minnetonka, Edina, Shattuck, Hill Murray all come to our home ice and the holiday tournament in St. Louis Park will be one of the best in state with Eden Prairie, Moorhead, Wayzata, et al. It will have huge implications for Section 6AA and should draw some big crowds."

The season gets underway for BSM, Tuesday, Nov. 30, when the Red Knights open the season with St. Cloud Tech for the fifth consecutive season. That game begins a season-opening five-game homestand for BSM.

That homestand also includes a Dec. 4 meeting with Hill-Murray, which finished third at last year’s state tournament, and a Dec. 18 meeting with Minnetonka, which ended the Red Knights’ season in the Section 6AA semifinals before finishing as the runner-up at the state tournament.

"We are thrilled to have the Minnetonka Skippers back on the schedule this year," Pauly said. "The Minnetonka-BSM game has quickly turned into one of the great rivalries in high school hockey."

BSM begins its quest for a sixth consecutive North Suburban Conference title, Dec. 7, when it hosts St. Francis, followed by a non-conference game with the Marshall School, Dec. 11.

The Red Knights head into the holiday break with another non-conference, Dec. 21, when they play their first road game of the season at Maple Grove.

Following a Jan. 4 home game with Robbinsdale Cooper and Jan. 8 road game at Chisago Lakes, BSM hosts defending state champion Edina, Jan 11, and St. Louis Park, Jan. 13, before embarking on a four-game roadstand.

North Suburban Conference games, Jan. 18 and 22, are on the slate at Irondale and Totino-Grace before non-conference games, Jan. 25 and 29, at Osseo and Holy Angels.

After 19 days away from its home rink BSM will return for a single home game against Chisago Lakes, Feb. 1, before a Feb. 3 road trip to Moorhead.

The Red Knights follow that game with another out-state opponent as Rochester Century comes to the SLP Rec Center, Feb. 5.

A trip to Spring Lake Park, Feb. 8, precedes the team’s final three home games of the season, a stretch of games which opens with perennial national power Shattuck-St. Mary’s, Feb. 10. BSM then closes out the conference portion of its schedule with home games against Irondale, Feb. 12, and Totino-Grace, Feb. 17, before finishing the regular season, Feb. 19, at Stillwater.

"With so many players returning, all of us are excited for the upcoming season," Pauly added. "This schedule will offer all of the challenges that we will need to be ready for the big games come playoff time."

Click here for PDF version of release and schedule.