Is Duluth East Ready to Return to the X? Greyhounds have the coaching, returning talent, and community foundation to make some noise in Section 7AA.

HEY, 218 HOCKEY FANS... IS IT TIME TO START BELIEVING IN THE HOUNDS AGAIN?

For decades, Duluth East was one of the defining names in Minnesota high school hockey. When the Greyhounds were rolling, you knew it. The red and white were a regular presence at the Xcel Energy Center, and the program carried a reputation that extended well beyond the east side of Duluth.

Think about the names. Mike Randolph behind the bench. Dave Spehar lighting up the state tournament. Adam Coole. Chris Locker, whose passing left a tremendous void in the 218 hockey community.

Those weren't just good players and coaches. They were part of a tradition.

Over the last several seasons, that tradition has taken some hits. The Greyhounds have been working through a transition, and the old balance of power in Section 7AA has shifted.

But something feels different around Duluth East.

The foundation is getting stronger, familiar names are returning, and there's reason to believe the Greyhounds could be ready to make a serious run.

Could this be the year pride is restored on the east side?

I wouldn't dismiss the possibility.

Every rebuilding program needs the right person behind the bench. At Duluth East, head coach Steve Pitoscia brings something that goes beyond systems, line combinations, and power-play diagrams.

He's one of the good people in Minnesota hockey.

Long before taking over the Greyhounds, Pitoscia made his mark in grassroots hockey. During his time coaching Bantam A hockey and working as a rink manager in Cloquet, he became known for the way he treated people, particularly young players who needed a little extra help.

He quietly helped underprivileged kids with equipment, transportation, and guidance. That's the kind of contribution that doesn't show up in a coaching résumé or a box score, but it tells you a lot about the person.

Hockey is supposed to be about developing young people, not just producing wins.

Pitoscia understands that.

And when you're trying to restore a program with the history and expectations of Duluth East, character and culture matter. Players need to believe in the people leading them before they can fully believe in what they're building together.

Last season, the Greyhounds showed more than their record suggested.

They were competitive against quality opponents, generated offensive pressure, and demonstrated that they could play with some of the better teams in the state. The problem was finishing games.

Too many close contests slipped away, particularly late.

That's a difficult thing to fix because it isn't always about talent. Sometimes it's experience. Sometimes it's confidence. Sometimes it's learning how to handle the pressure when a game is on the line.

The encouraging news is that Duluth East brings back an important group of offensive contributors.

McKennen Kramer, Zane Medlin, Greyson Medak, Liam Brooks, and Jax Edgerton give the Greyhounds a returning core with familiarity and experience.

These players have already been through the difficult stretches together. They know what it feels like to come up short, and they have an opportunity to turn those experiences into something better.

The next step is learning how to close.

You can play 50 minutes of excellent hockey, but the scoreboard only remembers the final result. Duluth East needs to start turning those competitive performances into wins.

Here's another reason for optimism.

Duluth East was once known for having one of the deepest youth hockey pipelines in Minnesota. During the great eras associated with Brendan Flaherty and Jimmy Cake, the east side developed enough talent to help support two highly regarded high school programs, Duluth East and Duluth Marshall.

That kind of depth doesn't happen by accident.

It comes from community involvement, strong youth programs, good coaching, and families who believe in the local hockey experience.

The youth groups are showing encouraging signs again. The Bantam and Peewee programs are competing in regional tournaments and rebuilding the kind of foundation that can eventually produce high school talent.

That's important because successful high school programs aren't built in November. They're built years earlier at the outdoor rinks, in youth practices, and through the people who volunteer their time to keep the game growing.

If Duluth East wants to return to the top, the pipeline has to keep producing.

The early signs are encouraging.

Now, let's talk about something that should bother every northern Minnesota hockey traditionalist.

Duluth East and Cloquet-Esko belong on the schedule together.

The rivalry between the Greyhounds and Lumberjacks is part of the fabric of northern Minnesota hockey. These are the kinds of games that bring communities together, fill the stands, and give high school hockey its personality.

Not every rivalry needs a trophy or a special tournament designation. Sometimes the history is enough.

I understand that scheduling and classification decisions come with administrative considerations. But somewhere along the way, we have allowed too many of those decisions to take priority over what makes local hockey special.

Pick up the phone.

Find a date.

Get the Greyhounds and Lumberjacks back on the ice together.

The 218 deserves that game.

Nobody should assume that restoring Duluth East to prominence will be easy.

Section 7AA remains a demanding environment, with several programs capable of making a serious postseason run.

Grand Rapids brings its traditional physicality and structured approach. Rock Ridge continues to build a competitive Iron Range program. Forest Lake has the ability to challenge with its depth, while Duluth Marshall remains a dangerous crosstown opponent.

The section has plenty of hockey.

And with Andover no longer in the mix, there's another opportunity for the traditional northern Minnesota programs to make their mark.

But the Greyhounds have something that can't be manufactured overnight: history, community identity, returning players, and a coaching staff committed to building the program the right way.

If they can translate last season's competitive stretches into consistent results, Duluth East could become a major factor in the Section 7AA race.

I'm not handing anybody a championship banner in November.

But I'm also not overlooking the Hounds.

Duluth East doesn't need to recreate the past. It needs to build something that belongs to the present.

The days of assuming the Greyhounds will automatically be playing at the X are long gone. That's the reality of Minnesota high school hockey. Programs rise, programs fall, and new contenders emerge.

But traditions don't disappear just because a team has a few difficult seasons.

They wait for somebody to bring them back.

Steve Pitoscia appears to understand what this program means to its community. The returning players have an opportunity to turn experience into results, and the youth pipeline is showing signs of life.

There is work to do, and Section 7AA won't give anybody an easy ride.

Still, I'm looking at Duluth East as a team worth watching this season.

Maybe the Greyhounds are ready to make that trip to St. Paul again.

And wouldn't that be something for the east side of Duluth?

HEY, HOUNDS... IT'S TIME TO MAKE SOME NOISE!

Every Shift Is a Gift. Marty McDangle.