Howell hockey: 3 things to know about 2023-24 Highlanders
HOWELL — The question marks have been replaced with expectations.
A year ago, nobody knew what to make of Howell’s hockey team.
The Highlanders were trying to overcome the loss of an all-state goaltender who started for three seasons and find a successful formula with 14 new faces on the roster.
Understandably, it took time for the team to gel while playing in the tough KLAA. Howell was 6-13-2 before putting together a late-season five-game winning streak that has created hope going into 2023-24.
“Last season was a learning curve for all of us,” Howell coach Rocky Johnson said. “We had several players come in from different places — travel, AAA hockey, the high school coming up from our development team. So, that was kind of difficult to meld. I don’t think as a coaching staff we did a great job of doing that, but this season is different in that they’re all on the same page.”
Here are three key things to know about a Howell team that returns 17 of 23 players from last season:
Proven production
Howell graduated leading scorer Hayden Sturos, who had 16 goals and 27 assists, but returns 70% of its goal scoring even in his absence.
The Highlanders bring back nine of their top 11 scorers, led by senior forwards Joel Eskola (14 goals, 20 assists), Katlin (11 goals, 14 assists), Tanner Sauve (13 goals, 10 assists), Marco Wolf (seven goals, 14 assists) and Braden Mitter (six goals, four assists).
Eleven returning players scored at least one goal last season.
“We do run very deep,” Katlin said. “I don’t know if we kept as many players as last year. We’ve got a lot of returners. The chemistry’s there. Everything’s clicking. The passes are going back and forth and seem to be finding the back of the net, especially in the fall.”
The Highlanders hope to roll out three lines with the ability to score.
“We have 10 forwards,” Johnson said. “All 10 of them can put the puck in the net. “
New leadership in net
Howell returns last year’s goaltending tandem of seniors Jack Stawick and Alex Herter, but a newcomer has won the starting job heading into the season opener at 7 p.m. Wednesday against Canton at 140 Ice Den.
Senior Andrew Klei is not only the No. 1 goaltender to begin the season, but he also wears an alternate captain’s “A” on his sweater, which is rare for a netminder.
“It’s a real honor to be able to do that,” Klei said. “I just try to lead by example, working my tail off. At intermission, I’m trying to say stuff from a different perspective since no one sees what I do.”
Klei played AAA hockey in the Biggby Coffee program last season, posting a 2.29 goals against average in the regular season and a 1.47 GAA in four playoff games.
“Every day is a competition,” Johnson said. “He’s going to be the No. 1 coming into the season, but he’s got to keep it and maintain it and earn it all the way around.”
Favorable playoff draw
Howell is hoping to make its first long state tournament run since the 2020 team reached the state semifinals before COVID restrictions halted the postseason.
The Highlanders have an excellent chance of getting to at least the state quarterfinals after years of being in the same regional with state powers Brighton, Hartland or Livonia Stevenson.
Howell heads west for a Division 1 regional at Munn Ice Arena in East Lansing against five teams, mostly co-ops, who aren’t in the preseason rankings. Fourth-ranked Hartland will head to Flint for a regional that includes No. 6 Clarkston and second-ranked Brighton will host a regional that includes 10th-ranked Saline, Northville and Novi.
“At any one time, any one of us could be in the state finals every season,” Johnson said. “Yes, right now Brighton and Hartland seem to be taking the lead on that and they have been for quite a while. Maybe it’s our turn.”
Contact Bill Khan at wkhan@gannett.com. Follow him on X @BillKhan
This article originally appeared on Livingston Daily: Howell hockey: 3 things to know about 2023-24 Highlanders
