2020 MIHL Prep Hockey Showcase Wrap-up

Once again, the coaches, players and fans of high school hockey thought the 2020 MIHL Prep Hockey Showcase was a tremendous success.  According to MIHL President Brandon Kaleniecki success doesn’t happen by accident, “Everyone involved including the City of Trenton and its hockey community, the Staff at the Kennedy Recreation Center, the volunteers and everyone from the MIHL are vital parts of the success of the Showcase”.

The competition amongst the 42 teams was intense and evenly matched – 18 games were determined by one goal and 8 of those were decided by shoot outs.  “Our goal every year is to attract the best high school teams and the best high school players in the area to compete at the Showcase.  The competitive matchups that occur benefit everyone – the teams, the players, the fans and the scouts,” explained MIHL Prep Hockey Showcase Director Chad Clements.

Several teams won both of their games in the Showcase establishing themselves as teams to be reckoned with in the MHSAA state tournament: Port Huron Northern, Detroit Country Day, Livonia Stevenson, Catholic Central, U of D Jesuit, Gabriel Richard and Forest Hills Central to name a few.  And of course some of the top rated schools didn’t get two wins because they played other top rated teams. 

The David Mannino Scholarship given annually at the MIHL Prep Hockey Showcase was presented to Jackson Moleski, a fine young forward with a 3.96 GPA at Grandville High School. 

Individual performances by some of the players stood out: Cameron Barlass, Port Huron Northern – 6 points, Lucas Krol – 4 goals, Country Day, Brady Rappuhn, Saginaw Heritage- 4 goals, Brendan Dickinson, Port Huron Northern - 3 goals, and Ian Smith, Plymouth – 5 Points.  Only five goalies were in the nets for two wins: Brenden Stroble, Livonia Stevenson, Brady Gavin, Forest Hills Central, Drew Adams, Gabriel Richard, Austin Muirhead Novi and Greg Enright, Country Day.

Jake Stripp, Head Coach Ann Arbor Skyline , had not been to the Showcase and was quite pleased with he experienced. “Our team had a great experience playing in our 1st MIHL Prep Hockey Showcase. We came into our 2 games with the flu running through our team so we were short benched but the kids were so excited most battled through. We had 2 great games against even opponents and had great officiating. From start to finish it was a 1st class event. We are extremely excited to make this a regular experience for our program.”

Brandon Kaleniecki concluded, “It was another great weekend for high school hockey and the MIHL Prep Hockey Showcase.  The games were highly competitive which was good for the teams, the fans and the scouting community. The MIHL would like to thank the Trenton hockey community (over 100 volunteers), who joined with us to make the 2020 MIHL Prep Hockey Showcase another positive experience for everyone involved.”