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Mar. 21—ROCHESTER — Ole Fevold didn't have long to dwell on the final game of his high school hockey career.
As difficult as it was for one of the toughest power forwards to come through Rochester high school hockey in recent seasons to take off the Century/John Marshall sweater for the last time at Graham Arena, Fevold was needed across town.
"That night after the quarterfinal game (a 5-3 Century/JM loss to Owatonna on Feb. 20), some of the boys texted me and said 'hey, can't wait to chat up with you,'" Fevold said.
"The boys" were his friends and teammates with the Rochester Grizzlies, texting to offer support, but also to let Fevold know his stall in the team's locker room at the Rochester Recreation Center was waiting for him.
Less than 24 hours after his final game as a Century/JM Panther, Fevold was on a bus to St. Louis with the Grizzlies, joining the team for the North American 3 Hockey League stretch run.
"The boys brought me in really well, it's been special to me," Fevold said of the welcome-back reception from his Grizzlies teammates.
His physical, sell-out-for-the-team style of play fits in perfectly with the Grizzlies, especially in the NA3HL playoffs. And playoff series in their league don't get much bigger than the one that starts tonight in West Bend (Wis.), when the Grizzlies (30-15-5 overall) face the West Bend Power (37-8-4) at 7:30 p.m. in Game 1 of the best-of-3 Central Division Finals. The series winner goes to the Fraser Cup — the league's championship tournament — next week in suburban St. Louis.
Game 2 of the Division Finals is set for 7:05 p.m. Saturday at the Rochester Recreation Center. A decisive Game 3, if necessary, will be back in West Bend at 7:30 p.m. Saturday.
"It's great to have him back; he had a huge impact on our team last year and when he's played with us this year," said Grizzlies second-year center Aiden Emerich, who was teammates with Fevold at Century/JM in the 2023-24 season, when they helped the Panthers reach the Class 2A state tournament. "He just brings the energy every single day and puts smiles on guys' faces. He works hard, bangs bodies and gets pucks in deep, just an all-around great kid to have on the team."
Emerich, a 2024 Century graduate, has spent this entire season with the Grizzlies, piling up 16 goals and 32 assists, for 48 points, in 47 games. Fevold — a senior at JM — is playing a "before-and-after" with the Grizzlies, playing for them prior to the start of the high school season, then joining the team again when the high school season finished. He has six points in 21 games, after an outstanding 24-goal, 51-point senior season for Century/JM.
"I think the way he plays is just geared a lot more towards junior hockey," Emerich said of Fevold, "so I think it's been great for him to just play with all these guys and that physical aspect in his game a lot more than he saw in high school."
Emerich — nicknamed "Doc" after the famous hockey play-by-play announcer — has excelled on a line with former Lakeville North forward Josh Wolf and former La Crescent-Hokah star Noah Gillette. Emerich (16-30 — 46) and Gillette (17-25 — 42) were the Grizzlies' top two scorers in the regular season.
"Doc has been exactly what we expected him to be," Grizzlies coach Tyler Veen said. "He's a high-end, point-producing guy. He's working his tail off every single night. He is what he was in high school, but he's elevated that in the junior game.
"He's playing harder, not doing quite as much flashy stuff, but he still has that stuff in his bag if he needs it. He's a natural playmaker and an unbelievable kid, great character. He loves showing up to the rink every day. ... He's been great. He's been a huge part of our success."
As for Fevold, he's settled in on a line with former Big Nine Conference rival Andrew Bastian (Mankato East) and Sweden native Felix Wadstromer. Playing on an "energy" line with those two has rejuvenated Fevold after a long season.
"Yeah, it definitely gets tiring," he said, "and then you just want to win a championship. So that's kind of the main reason that you push to go so far. I think we've pushed the level of intensity in this playoff run a ton. We're just trying to go as hard as possible and lay it all on the ice."
His coaches have recognized that effort and attitude, too.
"He fits like a glove," Veen said, "and he loves this type of game. He loves playing that greasy game, getting to the hard areas and being hard on the forecheck. ... He's locked in and willing to do anything for the team.
"He plays a simple game. He has a little flavor if he needs it, but he gets pucks deep and keeps it simple."
The Grizzlies have even had Fevold playing center, something he rarely did in high school, simply because he was needed to play wing.
"He's been really good in the (faceoff) circle and he's been good defensively," Veen said. "He knows our system and he plays hard. He embraces that (defense)-first mentality we preach. It's the playoffs, defense-first.
"We just want him to go be Ole. Go play and have some fun and see what happens. We tell all our guys 'You work all year for these moments. Now it's your time. Just go have fun.'"
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As difficult as it was for one of the toughest power forwards to come through Rochester high school hockey in recent seasons to take off the Century/John Marshall sweater for the last time at Graham Arena, Fevold was needed across town.
"That night after the quarterfinal game (a 5-3 Century/JM loss to Owatonna on Feb. 20), some of the boys texted me and said 'hey, can't wait to chat up with you,'" Fevold said.
"The boys" were his friends and teammates with the Rochester Grizzlies, texting to offer support, but also to let Fevold know his stall in the team's locker room at the Rochester Recreation Center was waiting for him.
Less than 24 hours after his final game as a Century/JM Panther, Fevold was on a bus to St. Louis with the Grizzlies, joining the team for the North American 3 Hockey League stretch run.
"The boys brought me in really well, it's been special to me," Fevold said of the welcome-back reception from his Grizzlies teammates.
His physical, sell-out-for-the-team style of play fits in perfectly with the Grizzlies, especially in the NA3HL playoffs. And playoff series in their league don't get much bigger than the one that starts tonight in West Bend (Wis.), when the Grizzlies (30-15-5 overall) face the West Bend Power (37-8-4) at 7:30 p.m. in Game 1 of the best-of-3 Central Division Finals. The series winner goes to the Fraser Cup — the league's championship tournament — next week in suburban St. Louis.
Game 2 of the Division Finals is set for 7:05 p.m. Saturday at the Rochester Recreation Center. A decisive Game 3, if necessary, will be back in West Bend at 7:30 p.m. Saturday.
"It's great to have him back; he had a huge impact on our team last year and when he's played with us this year," said Grizzlies second-year center Aiden Emerich, who was teammates with Fevold at Century/JM in the 2023-24 season, when they helped the Panthers reach the Class 2A state tournament. "He just brings the energy every single day and puts smiles on guys' faces. He works hard, bangs bodies and gets pucks in deep, just an all-around great kid to have on the team."
Emerich, a 2024 Century graduate, has spent this entire season with the Grizzlies, piling up 16 goals and 32 assists, for 48 points, in 47 games. Fevold — a senior at JM — is playing a "before-and-after" with the Grizzlies, playing for them prior to the start of the high school season, then joining the team again when the high school season finished. He has six points in 21 games, after an outstanding 24-goal, 51-point senior season for Century/JM.
"I think the way he plays is just geared a lot more towards junior hockey," Emerich said of Fevold, "so I think it's been great for him to just play with all these guys and that physical aspect in his game a lot more than he saw in high school."
Emerich — nicknamed "Doc" after the famous hockey play-by-play announcer — has excelled on a line with former Lakeville North forward Josh Wolf and former La Crescent-Hokah star Noah Gillette. Emerich (16-30 — 46) and Gillette (17-25 — 42) were the Grizzlies' top two scorers in the regular season.
"Doc has been exactly what we expected him to be," Grizzlies coach Tyler Veen said. "He's a high-end, point-producing guy. He's working his tail off every single night. He is what he was in high school, but he's elevated that in the junior game.
"He's playing harder, not doing quite as much flashy stuff, but he still has that stuff in his bag if he needs it. He's a natural playmaker and an unbelievable kid, great character. He loves showing up to the rink every day. ... He's been great. He's been a huge part of our success."
As for Fevold, he's settled in on a line with former Big Nine Conference rival Andrew Bastian (Mankato East) and Sweden native Felix Wadstromer. Playing on an "energy" line with those two has rejuvenated Fevold after a long season.
"Yeah, it definitely gets tiring," he said, "and then you just want to win a championship. So that's kind of the main reason that you push to go so far. I think we've pushed the level of intensity in this playoff run a ton. We're just trying to go as hard as possible and lay it all on the ice."
His coaches have recognized that effort and attitude, too.
"He fits like a glove," Veen said, "and he loves this type of game. He loves playing that greasy game, getting to the hard areas and being hard on the forecheck. ... He's locked in and willing to do anything for the team.
"He plays a simple game. He has a little flavor if he needs it, but he gets pucks deep and keeps it simple."
The Grizzlies have even had Fevold playing center, something he rarely did in high school, simply because he was needed to play wing.
"He's been really good in the (faceoff) circle and he's been good defensively," Veen said. "He knows our system and he plays hard. He embraces that (defense)-first mentality we preach. It's the playoffs, defense-first.
"We just want him to go be Ole. Go play and have some fun and see what happens. We tell all our guys 'You work all year for these moments. Now it's your time. Just go have fun.'"
Continue reading...
