Of course CC won. They have talent from all over metro detroit. What schools such as Brighton have done in the past decade is far more impressive.
I played HS hockey for 4 years. CC knocked us out of districts (when it was still called that) twice. They were always known as the team to beat, along with Trenton.
What especially sucks about playing CC is knowing individual players, and where those players should be attending school. Especially if that player was going to be on your own team !
As far as I know, no. Players are still aware of which teams are good though. I know plenty of players who would go to the high school a little farther away soley for atheltics.
As an individual's choice, it makes sense (especially if they want to go on to play junior or college) but it sucks that it screws with parity.
I played HS hockey at Eden Prairie before everyone in Minnesota started going to the USHL. If you are a hockey player at CC and have given up opportunites to play elsewhere, you are only cheating yourself. Congrats on that state championship. Good luck against EP/ other legit teams--you will get blown out.
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I wish this would happen for Lacrosse. Brother Rice hadn't lost a game in michigan in 7 years when I was in high school. The State Championship was really just to see who the runner up would be.
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Year | Champion (Coach) | Runner-Up | Score |
2016 | Detroit Catholic Central | Brighton | 3-0 |
2015 | Detroit Catholic Central | Grandville | 5-2 |
2014 | Detroit Catholic Central | Brighton | 5-1 |
2013 | Brighton | Detroit Catholic Central | 2-1 |
2012 | Brighton | Grosse Pointe North | 4-3 |
2011 | Novi | Orchard Lake St. Mary's | 4-0 |
2010 | Detroit Catholic Central | Howell | 6-1 |
2009 | Detroit Catholic Central | Howell | 7-0 |
2008 | Orchard Lake St. Mary's / Marquette * | 1-1 (8 OT) | |
2007 | Orchard Lake St. Mary's | Marquette | 4-2 |
2006 | Brighton (Paul Moggach) | Dearborn Unified | 6-2 |
2005 | Detroit Catholic Central | East Kentwood | 4-0 |
2004 | Marquette (Mike L'Huillier) | Detroit Catholic Central | 3-2 |
2003 | Detroit Catholic Central | Clarkston | 4-0 |
2002 | Detroit Catholic Central | Marquette | 5-1 |
2001 | Detroit Catholic Central | Port Huron Northern | 3-2 |
2000 | Detroit Catholic Central | Alpena | 5-2 |
March 17th, 2016 at 11:43 AM ^
I played at Brighton in the 70s and in the LCHA before that. Brighton wasnt a power at that time but Hartland was competitive with the elite. Nice to see the Livingston county schools with 7 appearances and three titles since 2006 with Brighton in the title game in 4 out of the last five years. And Novi adds an eighth appearance and fourth title from the old KVC.
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March 17th, 2016 at 10:57 AM ^
March 17th, 2016 at 11:38 AM ^
Were they also coached by Michigan athletes?
My son attends CC and a couple of his classmates are on the team this year (he's a sophomore).
One awesome factoid that demonstrates the unmistakeable differences between CC and a public high school school: beer on tap at the Dad's Club meetings in the school cafeteria.
March 17th, 2016 at 11:07 AM ^
That's very catholic of them.
March 17th, 2016 at 12:15 PM ^
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So, I was at the championship game this year when CC beat Brighton 3-0. I'm not griping, not playing a victim, or railing against the system. I'm a fan of the saying, to be the best, you have to beat the best. That said, the differences between the squads was most evident in what I believe was CC's second goal. CC took advantage of a Brighton line change that resulted in a 2-1 with a backchecker coming off the bench across the ice. The backchecker's angle was slightly off, but enough into the body of the CC forward coming over the blue line that, if their sizes weren't so massively different, it would have taken the CC forward off the puck. Instead, the CC player absorbed and muscled through and put the puck top right corner. It was a great goal. Best of the night in fact.
Honestly, this is just high school sports in general. Kids grow to different sizes at different rates. Both teams played well, and Brighton held firm throughout the first and midway through the second. Brighton had a few chances, but CC carried the pressure and was rewarded for it.
As a complete aside, because it has been forever since I've attended a high school sporting event, I was completely caught offguard by the countdown to 4:20 in the third period? I have never experienced that before, ever. When did that start?
March 17th, 2016 at 10:23 AM ^
What's the standard of play in Michigan high school hockey?
I would be very interested to see some sort of Tournament of Champions where the state champs from Wisconsin, Massachusetts, Michigan and Minnesota all get together and play a round-robin tournament.
March 17th, 2016 at 10:35 AM ^
That would be quite fun. Hard to say for sure but I suspect the best teams in MI would show very well. I know there are some prep schools out east that are a step up from even our best teams and then the Shattuck-St Mary's of the world, but we have some good hockey here. If we did not have so many strong AAA teams in the area, our high schools would be even better, although that talent would be spread all over the place.
The crazy thing about Minnesota is that while you do get some of the private schools (Benild St. Margaret's, St. Thomas Academy, Hill-Murray, Breck) that perform very well every year. The public schools have such storied traditions that kids want to play for them more than they want to play for the private schools.
In the words of one of the local sports writers, "The Iron Rangers hate the city schools, the city schools hate the private schools, and everyone hates Edina"
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March 17th, 2016 at 10:28 AM ^
Congrats to Hancock (D3) and Romeo (D2) state champions. A couple of fine hockey teams that do not have the benefit of bringing in talent from all over hell. Will they win something like 8 out of the next 10 state championships? Hell no. Public schools are reliant on the talent that lives in their district. There are a couple of exceptions (Trenton, Brighton to a lesser extent) but you will not likely ever see a public school dominate like some private schools do.
The playing field is absolutely not level. Private schools should have their own playoffs regardless of sport. Consider how many more public schools there are than private schools and then try to digest the fact that the last time there was not, at least, one private school state hockey champion (3 divisions starting in 2000, 2 divisions prior to that) was 1998. Also, since 2000 a private school has won 13 state titles in D3 and 12 in D1.
Admittedly, I am jaded. My son played on a team that fell short in the semifinals against an extremely talented Grand Rapids CC team this year. Had we won it would have been the first all public school final in D3 since 1999. Too long in my opinion.
2016 Michigan swim champions were: D1- Brother Rice (at least they don't swim D2) D2 Dexter just edged out De La Salle (who just started a swim program recently) and D3 Cranbrook- Kingswood. It's not fair in any sport.
March 17th, 2016 at 10:41 AM ^
Of course they recruit. I have a friend whose son could go there only if the football coach wanted him. Another friend's son was recruited for the hockey team despite the fact they live 40 miles away from the school. Imagine that drive every day! Trenton doesn't recruit but they run travel teams for younger kids to play on before high school so that they are coached in the Trenton system from elementary school age.
March 17th, 2016 at 11:24 AM ^
I played for SCS and my final year we played an Orchard Lake St. Mary's team that had an all Polish line that moved here the year prior just to play for OLSM. But I will say that SCS recruited that season as well because 5 out of 7 seniors were all recruited just for that final year.
I'm sure it happens in Minnesota too
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