Two Rivers has been one of the season’s surprise teams, going unbeaten through its first nine games and giving perennial superpower Hill-Murray a scare in a 1-0 loss last Saturday. The No. 20-1A Warriors (11-3-1) also boast the state’s top goaltender, statistically speaking, in senior Tyler Ouren. He leads the state with a .958 save percentage and ranks second with a 1.05 goals-against average. Ouren has two shutouts and has allowed more than one goal just twice in his eight starts.
Simley, also a member of the Metro East Conference and Section 4A, has won its last two outings — 7-0 over St. Paul Johnson on Jan. 3 and 5-2 over South St. Paul on Jan. 7. Junior forward Jake Stanton leads the Spartans with 12 points. Junior defenseman Zach Hilsgen is the team's top goal scorer with six.
Thursday’s matchup will have a distinct rivalry flavor, as players on both teams are plenty familiar with each other — their home rinks are separated by just 6 miles.