FollowThePuck: Quick hits from Doug

Hey hockey fans!

It has been another great Minnesota high school hockey season so far. There are many battles going on throughout the state as we now move to the second half of the regular season and then ultimately the PLAYOFFS to decide two more state champions. Awesome.

It is great to see teams like Hopkins, Mankato West, and International Falls surprise everyone with their remarkable seasons so far. All three were omitted from most people's preseason top 20 this year. Roseau continues to show that they are not ready to give up their championship crown by remaining undefeated this year. Meanwhile, the southwest suburbs of the Twin Cities look to have the strongest teams in the state overall. Edina, Hopkins, Minnetonka, Eden Prairie, Bloomington Jefferson, Burnsville are all in the FollowThePuck.com's Class AA Top 10.

In Class A, St. Thomas Academy looks virtually unstoppable. Without discrediting Breck's hard fought win against the Cadets in early December, 6 to 5, St. Thomas Academy has won their other 12 games by at least 2 or more goals including wins over strong Class AA teams Benilde-St. Margaret's, Blaine, and Tartan. Can they be stopped? Right now, I think Duluth Marshall has a better shot than the rest in Class A. Both teams actually go head-to-head this Saturday on the 12th at the St. Thomas Ice Arena at 2 PM. Be there! If anybody in Class A can beat the Cadets, Duluth Marshall will get their first regular season test to see if they are up for the challenge. The Cadets are also facing Class AA powerhouse Hill-Murray tomorrow night, the 10th, and again on television on FSN on February 9th. In addition, they will get to face 4th-ranked in Class AA Minnetonka on January 22nd.

I have no idea how this year will play out. Right now, the metro area teams look to be stronger than the outstate teams. I have section-versus-section data to back that up, which I will release later tonight. However, I would never count out the northern teams. Even though Grand Rapids is 6-5-1 right now, do not count them out. Except for one, four of the five Thunderhawks' losses have been to ranked opponents and they have not lost a game by more than two goals. Also, Duluth East is 6-6-1 but arguably has the toughest schedule in the state. Cloquet is doing well but might actually be the 2nd best team right now in the Duluth area behind Grand Rapids. Both teams tied in the first game of the year. They play each other again next week. Grand Rapids and Duluth East will face each other for the first time this year on Thursday night, January 10th. That game should say a lot on where these two teams are.

Which team is going to step up and make a run?

- Can Totino-Grace gain momentum after they may have had football legs at the beginning of hockey season?

- How about Albert Lea after their big win again Mankato West?

- Is Virginia/MIB quietly gaining strength? The Section 7A Blue Devils face 6 straight 7A opponents next on the schedule. They had only faced two so far this season.

- How about Rochester Mayo who has been just below the radar this year?

- Will the state scoring leaders of Ricky Litchfield & Corey Leivermann of Mankato West help guide the Scarlets to championship glory in March?

- Will Park Rapids run the table and remain undefeated the rest of the regular season and through a Class A state championship? The Panthers only have faced one ranked team so far this season. That team was East Grand Forks who no longer is ranked. There is not another ranked team on their regular season schedule. Will not having played a tougher schedule hurt the Panthers when the playoffs start in the tough Section 8A?

- Will Hopkins continue their amazing '07-'08 run and surprise everyone by taking the tough 6AA Section? Pssst... don't look now but, the Royals go to Braemar on Saturday, Jan. 12th, to play #2 Hornets.

I am extremely excited to see how the rest the year plays out before deciding it all in St. Paul.

I love working on the website and to be able to provide the information that is on it that people like to see. I have so much more that I want to do. I am limited by the number of hours each day that I can dedicate to it because I do have a full-time job and another part-time job. However, I spend most of my time working on the website. Again, I LOVE it! With more time and more financial support, I can do much more, add much more content, and add content more quickly. I cannot do it without your support! If you like what I am doing, if you like the content, and you have the means to contribute, I would really appreciate your support. If you can't help financially, that is absolutely okay! I want you to enjoy the content for FREE!

For a $100 donation, I will post your name or your company's logo w/ link on the team schedule and/or roster of your choice. For $1,000, I'll put your ad on one of the side columns either above the Scoreboard scroller to the left or above the poll to the right. Your ad will be on EVERY page that a visitor to the site looks at.

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I would be grateful for small donations too! Any contribution would be appreciated to keep this site alive and full of content! THANK YOU!!!

Now, get out there and FOLLOW THE PUCK .........

Best regards and wishes to all the teams the rest of the season,

Doug