MOORHEAD — Harper Bentz never knows what’s going to happen when his high-powered top line is on the ice. But it’s usually something good.
Bentz is the right wing on Moorhead’s first line that has accounted for more than half of the team’s offense this season.
“It’s always fun to see what we can do every game,” Bentz said.
The top-producing trio of Bentz, Gavin Lindberg and Carson Triggs has combined for 138 of the team’s 260 points. They’ve been instrumental in Moorhead’s 16-5-1 record this season.
“We’re three good players, and when you put us together we’re a really good line and we’re really hard to play against,” Lindberg said.
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Lindberg centers the dynamic line, which has scored 59 of Moorhead’s 96 goals.
“We kind of started out slow, but we were confident that we were the best line and we could do what we wanted to do,” said Lindberg, a senior.
For Triggs, the line’s left wing, the chemistry was evident from the jump.
“We have complementary playing styles,” Triggs said.
Triggs, a 5-foot-11, 175-pound senior, is a relentless forechecker. Lindberg is a responsible player with good on-ice awareness. Bentz is savvy with a knack for putting the puck in the right areas. Together, the trio has been tough to stop.
“We all like to go to dirty areas. We all like to work hard,” Bentz said. “It all kind of adds up to one of us putting the puck in the net at the end of the day.”
A 6-foot, 165-pound junior, Bentz is the Spuds’ leading scorer with 28 goals and 50 points. He has scored at least one goal in 17 of the team’s 22 games this season and is currently on a 13-game scoring streak. Bentz’s 28 goals are tied for the 10th-most in the state.
“We all bring something different to the table,” Bentz said. “We all work well together and we kind of know where each other is going to be at all times. We played a little bit this summer together and have built this chemistry up.”
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Lindberg has 34 assists and 49 points for the Spuds, who were ranked No. 8 in the latest Let’s Play Hockey Class AA poll. Only nine players in the state have more assists than the 6-foot, 180-pound center, who has recorded points in all but three games this season.
Triggs has at least one point in all but one game this season. He’s tallied 16 goals and 23 assists through 22 games.
It’s their first year as linemates, but the trio’s constant production makes it look like they’ve been playing together for years.
“This is the most productive I’ve ever been,” Lindberg said. “But there’s always jobs for each line, and we’re the producing line. The other lines have been doing very good, as well.”
Moorhead hasn’t dropped a game since a 4-1 setback to Minnetonka on Dec. 21. The Spuds went on an 11-game win streak following the loss, and are 12-0-1 since Dec. 21.
“I think we kinda started off rough but figured out what’s going on and have been playing well lately,” Bentz said.
“We’re on all cylinders right now,” Lindberg said. “All four lines are clicking.”
Moorhead plays at Bemidji (7-12-2) at 6 p.m. Tuesday in the third to last game of the regular season.
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The Spuds travel to Roseau next week for a game that will likely decide the top seed for the Section 8AA tournament. Roseau edged Moorhead 7-6 in overtime in the first meeting earlier this season. The teams have squared off in the last two section championships.
With the regular season set to conclude Feb. 19, Moorhead is hoping to extend its streak of consecutive section final appearances to 22 and earn another appearance at the Xcel Energy Center. However, they’re not getting ahead of themselves.
“We’re going to take things one game at a time,” Lindberg said. “Our goal is to be at the state tournament in March, and we’ll do that by taking games one thing at a time.”
