Augustana hockey coach Garrett Raboin ahead a of critical stretch run

Augustana hockey is the only Div. I sports program that resides in Sioux Falls, and the Vikings, ranked No. 18 nationally and currently sitting in third place in the CCHA, host fourth-place Bowling Green at Midco Arena on Friday and Saturday nights.    These are Augie's final two regular season home games, although the Vikings still have a shot at gaining home ice in the league's tournament, which starts in three weeks. Wins this weekend would go a long way toward that, plus an at-large berth in the NCAA Tournament — which would be an incredible feat for a third-year program.   Which makes this the perfect time to sit down and chat with Vikings coach Garrett Raboin, a rising star in the college hockey world who spent this past Christmas break as an assistant coach for Team USA in the World Junior tourney in the Twin Cities with former Sioux Falls Stampede leader Bob Motzko, now the head coach at Minnesota and Raboin's mentor as both a player and assistant coach at St. Cloud State.   Raboin regales with his memories of that event and what it meant to work with Motzko again. He also describes why his Vikings won eight of nine games since that Christmas break, a hot stretch that was cooled off by a couple road losses at No. 20 Michigan Tech last weekend. There's also an elite goalie, a top five (in nation) defense, and fresh faces for Raboin to glow about. But what really gets Raboin revved up is talking about the electric atmosphere at Midco, the Swedish meatballs and street tacos his kids love to eat at the games, and the recent Nexflix "The Boys of 1980" documentary about the "Miracle on Ice" squad that captured gold at the Olympics that winter.   Enjoy.