Former East coach Mike Randolph returns on the brink of history – Duluth News Tribune

HERMANTOWN — It wasn’t exactly like old times Friday at Hermantown Hockey Arena.

The uniforms and location were different, but it was the same competitive fire that stood at the top of Duluth East benches for more than three decades, on display. 

For the first time in nearly three years Mike Randolph stepped onto a hockey bench in northeastern Minnesota at the helm of a varsity squad on Friday in Hermantown. 

Randolph, Greyhounds coach for 32 years, returned to the bench as the head coach at St. Thomas Academy.

The veteran coach resigned from his position at Duluth East in 2021 and was hired at St. Thomas prior to the 2022-23 season.

The Cadets, currently ranked eighth in Class AA, shut out Hermantown 3-0 in what was another win on Randolph’s march toward Minnesota hockey history.

Jimmy Zavoral scored the first of two second-period goals and Niko Russ scored an empty net goal to secure the win for St. Thomas.

Earlier this month, Randolph became only the third coach in Minnesota history to win 700 high school hockey games when the Cadets topped Tartan 5-1 on Jan. 6. After Friday’s contest, Randolph is 702-230-37 for his career, but at some point later this season or early next, he will pass retired Rochester Mayo coach Lorne Grosso’s record of 707 all-time wins.

While 700 wins is obviously an achievement, chasing career victories was never the focus of his coaching.

“To be honest with you, I don’t really think about it that much,” Randolph said in an interview Monday. “There’s so many other things to think about — getting ready for the playoffs, getting ready for the next game, those are the things that occupy my mind.”

All those wins are fun, but the things that stick out in Randolph’s mind are the countless “big games.”

“Someday, when I’m retired, I’ll reflect back on it and realize how special it was,”…