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Saint Ignatius Hockey Squad to Play in MIHL Showcase for Second Straight Season

By Joe Ginley, 07/05/17, 9:00PM EDT

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For the second straight season, the Saint Ignatius hockey program will make a trip to Trenton, Michigan in early February 2018.

The Wildcats have been invited back to the Michigan Interscholastic Hockey League (MIHL) Prep Hockey Showcase. 

The MIHL Showcase is a premier hockey tournament featuring some of the best hockey teams in the Midwest. The MIHL, the City of Trenton and Trenton Public Schools team up to host the showcase at the Kennedy Ice Arena in Trenton, Michigan, a hotbed of hockey in the Midwest.

The tournament committee has selected 40 teams in all to participate, with most of the schools coming from Michigan. The Wildcats are just one of four out-of-state teams to receive the invite. Culver Prep (IN), Notre Dame Academy (WI), and Toledo St. Francis are the other three schools.

The best hockey schools in Michigan almost always play in the tournament. All three 2017 MHSAA State Tournament Championship teams competed in the 2017 Showcase – Brighton High School (Division I), Brother Rice (Division II) and De La Salle (Division III). Plus, all six state finalists and 10 of the 12 semifinalists participated in the last season's Showcase.

In the 2017 tournament, the Wildcats played well, but lost twice. The Ice Cats fell to Brighton, 5-2, and then dropped a narrow loss to Orchard Lake St. Mary in overtime, 5-4. 

The Wildcats did not lose again the rest of the season, ripping off nine straight wins en route to a Cleveland Cup title and an OHSAA State Championship. 

The Ice Cats expect to pitch a fierce fight in the showcase again this season, with the squad expected to duplicate its success of the last two seasons.