4 metro area teams in the hunt for adapted floor hockey titles

The adaptive floor hockey state tournament this Friday and Saturday at Bloomington Jefferson High School will showcase several teams with perfect or near-perfect conference records. Here is a breakdown of some of the top-seeded teams in the Cognitively Impaired (CI) and Physically Impaired (PI) divisions.

Mounds View Adapted — a cooperative between Irondale, Mounds View High and Roseville — is the No. 2 seed in the North Conference. Mounds View Adapted tied for first in its conference with an 11-1 record.

Coach Dave Plaep said this season in particular has been one to savor because of the team's solid group of seniors, including winger Ted Snyder.

"I have a hard time telling when he's tired, actually, because he'll just keep after it even when he's tired," Plaep said.

Senior center Bruce Matusovic has been a standout on the team for several years not only because of his skill.

"In a lot of ways [he's] an emotional leader on this team," Plaep said. "There are other players that obviously look to him."

Senior goaltender Brady Morcomb takes after Matusovic and is the coach on the floor, while senior goaltender Amber Schoeller has the best attitude on the team.

New Prague Adapted, a cooperative between Le Sueur-Henderson, Tri-City United and New Prague, won the South Conference, going undefeated (11-0) for the first time in team history and earning the top seed for the South at the state tournament.

This season has been a season of firsts as New Prague Adapted beat Dakota United for the first time as well. Coach Shellie Kriha said the team has only 12 players on its roster and one strong line, but it lacks the depth and numbers of bigger schools.

The team has only one senior, defender Cassie Malecha, who works with her sophomore brother, Jacob Malecha, to help defend the team's first-year goaltender.

Junior forward Alex Palma is the assist leader while sophomore forward Matthew Schoenbauer is the leading scorer on the team.

Kriha called Palma "an amazing setup man" and said Schoenbauer is the core of the team, a player who "leads the team both on and off the court."

The Robins, a cooperative between Hopkins, Mound Westonka, Armstrong and Cooper, won the North Conference with a 10-0 record and claimed the No. 1 seed for the state tournament.

Coach Marcus Onsum said his team has extra expectations to perform well at the state tournament since it has a history of being a powerhouse in adaptive sports throughout the years.

"Winning becomes contagious, and once you figure out how to do it, it gets easier to do," Onsum said. "And so the kids kind of put that standard out there for themselves."

Onsum called the Robins defense the best he has ever coached.

Onsum scrimmages with senior goaltender Charlie Wittmar and said he sympathizes with any opponents who try to score on him.

"He takes it personally if somebody beats him and puts a puck in the net," Osnum said.

Senior forward Mike Madson is the leading goal scorer. Junior forward Tyler Sarff and junior center Joe Dubisar are also key offensive players who opponents sometimes overlook.

Wittmar said what makes his team so good is its focus on strategy over strength.

"Our team's more of, like, play the puck, you know, don't get caught up in the physical plays," Wittmar said. "We just … play smart."

Dakota United-Adapted is a cooperative between Apple Valley, Eastview, Eagan, Hastings, Henry Sibley, Rosemount, Simley and South St. Paul. The team recorded a 10-0 record in the South Conference en route to its No. 1 seed at the state tournament.

Dakota United coach Brett Sadek said his team is looking for some redemption after losing to Robbinsdale/Hopkins/Mound Westonka at last year's state championship game.

"They kind of dedicated themselves" to beating the Robins, Sadek said. "They're pretty driven. They're pretty mentally tough."

Sadek said he has the two best players in the league in junior center Jaayson Meyer and freshman center Grayson Nicolay. Meyer has 84 points this year with 57 assists — a team record. Meyer has 98 points this season and 61 goals.

Dakota United has four other players with more than 20 points this season and also relies on senior goaltender Marcus Urban and sophomore defender Liz Kimmes on defense.

Megan Ryan is a University of Minnesota student reporter on assignment for the Star Tribune.