Hopkins/Park hockey wraps up 2019-20 campaign

The Hopkins Park girls hockey season came to a close the way that many did not want it to, with a 9-0 loss in the first round of sections play against the Blake Bears on Saturday, Feb. 8.

The Royals entered Saturday’s clash with a record of 6-18-1 and were not favored to defeat the Bears, who finished their regular season with the Royals wins and losses inverted at 18-6-1, which earned them a place in MN Girls Hockey Hub’s Top 10 at the No. 6 position.

While Hopkins Park kept Blake off the board for a good chunk of the opening period, the Bears pounced for a powerplay goal to open the scoring and netted two more before the period’s conclusion.

Things turned from bad to worse for the Royals in the second and third periods, as Blake’s scoring attack continued by putting three pucks into the back of the net in each of the next two periods.

Once the game was already decided, the Royals called a timeout in the last minute to give the two seniors on the team, defenseman Sarah McCallon and forward Anna Nicholls, one last shift in their blue and orange sweaters.

The contest was notable for Royals goalie, sophomore Leah Bosch, who unofficially recorded her 1000th shot faced during the course of the season. Bosch finished the campaign facing 1001 shots unofficially, averaging out to 38.5 shots faced over the course of her 26 games.

With only two seniors graduating at the end of the year, the Royals will return their top three leading scorers in the form of junior Yale commit Erin Brousseau alongside juniors Charlotte Rich and Abby Meyer. The team will look to rebuild and be more competitive with more experience.