| 1 | Minnetonka | 15-0-0 | Large Wins: Blaine Duluth East Eden Prairie Edina Holy Angels Moorhead Woodbury St. Thomas Academy twice |
Minnetonka has beaten everybody. Enough said.
This week: 1/19: Blake School | 1/21: at Hopkins | 1/23: #3 Edina
| 2 | Wayzata | 11-2-1 | Large Wins: Apple Valley Burnsville Centennial Duluth East Edina Moorhead twice Woodbury |
Wayzata vs. Edina
Head-to-Head: Wayzata 4, Edina 2
Goals per games
Wayzata: 4.7
Edina: 4.4 (throw out the 17-0 win over St. Louis Park - 3.5)
Scored less than three goals in a game
Wayzata: 1
Edina: 4
Scored three or less goals
Wayzata: 3
Edina: 7
Goals allowed per game
Wayzata: 2.9
Edina: 2.7 (throw out the 17-0 win over St. Louis Park - 2.9)
Allowed opponents less than 20 shots per game
Wayzata: 9
Edina: 5
Shutouts
Wayzata: 5
Edina: 5 (throw out the 17-0 win over St. Louis Park - 4)
Arguably, Edina has had a slightly stronger schedule than Wayzata but, in the end, Wayzata defeated 4-2 this season and out-shot them 30 to 21. Wayzata has not played any Class A teams. Edina played one against a Class A team, St. Louis Park.
Luckily, we get round two of three between these two teams on Thursday at Plymouth Ice Center.
This week: 1/21: #3 Edina | 1/23: Robbinsdale Armstrong
| 3 | Edina | 12-2-1 | Large Wins: Benilde-SM Blaine twice Burnsville Duluth East Eden Prairie Elk River/Zim Maple Grove Woodbury |
The Hornets had a very nice 6-3 win against Benilde-St. Margaret's last Tuesday, their only game last week.
Clear out your Thursday night and Saturday night plans. The Hornets get to avenge both of their losses this week with Wayzata on Thursday and Minnetonka on Saturday.
This week: 1/21: at #2 Wayzata | 1/23: at #1 Minnetonka
| 4 | Eden Prairie | 10-2-0 | Large Wins: Apple Valley Burnsville Eagan Elk River/Zim Lakeville South |
After what could be perceived as a slow start by the defending state champions, the Eagles are looking dominant again. They had no problem with ranked Apple Valley and Eagan this past week. Keep an eye on junior Kyle Rau. If Eden Prairie had a weaker schedule, Rau would be leading the state in goals by a large margin. I think he could overtake Benik before the season is over.
Eagles hockey will have an interesting week with a great matchup against rival Bloomington Jefferson on Tuesday and then will travel to Hermantown on Saturday to play the Hawks outdoors as part of Hockey Day Minnesota.
This week: 1/19: #10 Bloomington Jefferson | 1/21: Bloomington Kennedy | 1/23: at #3A Hermantown
| 5 | Hill-Murray | 13-1-1 | Large Wins: Burnsville Duluth East Mahtomedi St. Thomas Academy Tartan White Bear Lake twice |
I like Hill-Murray. The problem I have with ranking them is their schedule. Out of the their 15 games played, they've played six Class A teams. So, against Class AA teams, the Pioneers are 7-1-1. Their loss was to Blaine, now ranked 6th, 4-6. They tied 11th-ranked Benilde-St. Margaret's. At the same time, all seven wins against their Class AA opponents were quality wins.
This week: 1/21: #17 Academy of Holy Angels | 1/23: Henry Sibley
| 6 | Blaine | 9-3-3 | Large Wins: Champlin Park Elk River/Zim Hill-Murray Osseo Roseau St. Thomas Academy |
Blaine had an 'average' week. They tied Northwest Suburban Section 5AA foes Maple Grove and Centennial with the same score of 4-4. If you throw Osseo and Champlin Park into the mix, Section 5AA is completely up for grabs. Blaine is 2-0-2 against those four teams.
This week: 1/21: at Andover | 1/23: at Coon Rapids
| 7 | Roseau | 13-2-1 | Large Wins: Moorhead Thief River Falls |
Like Hill-Murray, Roseau's success is hard to compare to the rest of Class AA. The Rams have played 10 Class A opponents and three North Dakota opponents so far this season. They are 2-1-0 against Class AA opponents. They lost to Blaine, 4-5, after an incredible comeback by the Bengals in Roseau.
The Rams lost to Class A power and exclusive rival Warroad 2-5 this past week. Warroad scored with just over two minutes to go to pull out the win in Roseau. Warroad scored two empty net goals to make the score worse for Roseau than the game actually was.
The Rams schedule starts to get a little tougher now as they get deeper into their Mariucci Conference schedule. The only have one game scheduled this week as they will travel to Bemidji on Saturday.
This week: 1/23: at Bemidji
| 8 | Osseo | 10-2-2 | Large Wins: Andover Champlin Park Maple Grove |
Osseo had a decent week. They defeated Maple Grove 6-3 but tied Elk River/Zimmerman 3-3. I think we'll get to see who the true Orioles are this week as they have a challenging schedule against three top 20 Class AA teams.
This week: 1/19: at #11 Benilde-St. Margaret's | 1/21: at #14 Centennial | 1/23: #18 Andover
| 9 | Eagan | 11-2-1 | Large Wins: Apple Valley Bloomington Jefferson Lakeville South |
Eagan took a big loss to Eden Prairie, 1-7, this past week but defeated Rosemount 5-1. The loss was not enough to knock Eagan down in the rankings as many teams below them did not do enough to warrant moving up. Eagan has wins against Bloomington Jefferson and Lakeville North. Bloomington Jefferson has lost to both Eagan and Lakeville North.
I'm interested in their matchup with Lakeville South on Tuesday night. The Cougars have won six out of their last seven games and have moved in to the top 20 rankings for the first time this season.
This week: 1/21: Lakeville South | 1/23: Chaska/Chanhassen
| 10 | Bloomington Jefferson | 10-2-2 | Large Wins: Apple Valley Centennial Lakeville South Maple Grove Moorhead Wayzata |
I am not sure what is ailing the Jaguars right now. Before their nice 12-4 win over Rosemount on Saturday, the Jaguars scored 17 goals in their previous six games. They scored 56 goals in their first seven games of the season, half of those were decent opponents. I believe that Jefferson is a huge threat to Edina in Section 2AA. It is too bad that they don't have the Hornets on the schedule to see how well the best two team in 2AA would match up.
The Jaguars will square off with #4AA Eden Prairie on Tuesday night at the Eden Prairie Community Center. I would not be surprised at all if they won this game. The Jaguars have deeper scoring but Eden Prairie has the better defense. It should be a great game.
This week: 1/19: #4 Eden Prairie | 1/21: Chaska/Chanhassen | 1/23: at Bloomington Kennedy
| 11 | Benilde-St. Margaret's | 10-3-1 | Large Wins: Maple Grove Rochester Century Stillwater Area Wayzata |
The Red Knights had a tough loss to Edina on, 3-6, on Tuesday. On the bright side, they outshot the Hornets 32-30. They also had a nice win over Totino-Grace 8-3.
This week: 1/19: #8 Osseo | 1/23: St. Francis
| 12 | Duluth East | 9-4-2 | Large Wins: Academy of Holy Angels Centennial Maple Grove White Bear Lake |
Duluth East won a hard fought battle up in Grand Rapids on Thursday, 5-4. They pulled out the win with a goal with 7:10 left in the game by Phil Johnson.
Duluth East is 4-1-2 on their home ice (which included two games in Superior, WI), 5-3-0 away.
This week: 1/19: at Fergus Falls | 1/21: at Duluth Denfeld
| 13 | Maple Grove | 7-5-3 | Large Wins: Centennial Elk River/Zimmerman |
It was not a great week for the Crimson. They lost by three to Osseo and tied Blaine 4-4. As commented on before, the Northwest Suburban and Section 5AA are extremely competitive this year. Blaine may be slightly ahead of the rest but it is not by much.
This week: 1/21: Coon Rapids | 1/23: at Anoka
| 14 | Centennial | 8-5-1 | Large Wins: Andover Benilde-St. Margaret's Woodbury |
Centennial is another team within the wild Northwest Suburban and Section 5AA. The Cougars looked invincible over the Christmas holidays by winning the inaugural St. Louis Park Recreation Tournament. They defeated Woodbury, Benilde-St. Margaret's, and Bloomington Jefferson in shootout. Yet, they've tied Blaine, lost to Maple Grove, and lost to conference foe Elk River/Zimmerman. If it wasn't for their decisive 2-9 lost to Bloomington Jefferson and 2-4 loss to Wayzata at the beginning of the season, the Cougars would be higher in the rankings.
Last week, the Cougars defeated a good Andover team, 8-6, and tied Blaine, 4-4.
This week: 1/19: at Champlin Park | 1/21: Osseo
| 15 | Elk River/Zimmerman | 7-5-2 | Large Wins: Andover Centennial Woodbury |
I really thought the Elks would be doing better than they have this season. Still, they are Duluth East's biggest threat to win Section 7AA. Speaking of Duluth East, they will be coming to Elk River Tuesday night. The Elks may have the edge in this one simply because they are on home ice.
Last week, the Elks tied Osseo 3-3 and defeated Coon Rapids 15-0.
This week: 1/19: Duluth East | 1/21: Champlin Park
| 16 | Lakeville South | 9-5-0 | Large Wins: Blake School Burnsville Cretin-Derham Hall |
Lakeville South cracks the top 20 simply because they have three quality wins and have a respectable record at 9-5. Still, it is hard to look at their schedule and see three really bad losses to Bloomington Jefferson (3-9), Breck School (0-6), and Eden Prairie (4-8). We'll find out this week if they are worthy to be in the top 20 when they face their biggest threat in Section 1AA, reigning Section 1AA champion Rochester Century on Tuesday night. The week won't get any easier as they will travel to Eagan on Thursday and then to Burnsville on Saturday.
Last week, the Cougars had three convincing wins over Chaska/Chanhassen twice (7-4 & 6-2) and over Eastview (10-3).
This week: 1/19: Rochester Century | 1/21: at Eagan | 1/23: at Burnsville
| 17 | Academy of Holy Angels | 7-5-1 | Large Wins: Elk River/Zimmerman Mount St. Charles (RI) |
Academy of Holy Angels has plenty of fire power but their weakness seems to be defense. In the four losses to Minnesota teams, the Stars have allowed opponents an average of 35.8 shots per game. That is tough on any goaltender to try and manage. Even in their 4-2 win over Elk River/Zimmerman, they gave up 31 shots to the Elks.
The Stars traveled to the Northeast and faced opponents from Rhode Island and Massachusetts. On Friday, they faced Mount St. Charles of Rhode Island. Mount St. Charles was 8-0-0 before facing the Stars. The Stars trounced them 9-2. On Saturday, they then went to Masachusetts to face Boston Memorial Catholic, the #1 boys hockey team in the state. Boston Memorial Catholic came out on top with a 4-2 victory.
The Stars also picked up a Missota Conference win against Class A New Prague, 9-2, last Tuesday.
The Stars are back to Minnesota and will see three games this week. We'll get to see how well they will be able to do against the defense of Hill-Murray. I think you will see a similar result to the Hill-Murray's game against Benilde-St. Margaret's. The Red Knights are another young offensive team but to tend to struggle on the defensive side. I see a 4-2 or 5-2 Hill-Murray victory in that one.
This week: 1/19: at Northfield | 1/21: at Hill-Murray | 1/22: Hutchinson
| 18 | Andover | 11-3-1 | Large Wins: Champlin Park Duluth Denfeld Forest Lake Hermantown |
Andover is still hard to figure out. They have no problems with scoring goals, led by two good scorers in Cal Decowski and Taylor Portner. They have some depth. Their defense seems to be decent. Matt Ray and Dane Erickson are pretty good in goal. So, why can't they beat Elk River/Zimmerman, Osseo, or Centennial, their three biggest opponents so far this year? Is it as simple as believing in themselves to beat the better teams? They have the tools to win.
They will be tested this week when they face #6 Blaine and a rematch with #8 Osseo. They will Section 7AA opponents Duluth East and Cloquet/Esko/Carlton next week.
This week: 1/21: Blaine | 1/23: at Osseo
| 19 | Apple Valley | 9-5-0 | Large Wins: Grand Forks Red River Grand Forks Central Lakeville South |
Young and talented. Apple Valley has only five seniors on the team. They are led in scoring by a sophomore and a freshman. They went to Grand Forks for a tournament, defeated two very good Grand Forks teams, and came out on top as champions. Still, they have proven that they are not ready to beat the elite Minnesota teams. They are a threat to win Section 3AA. They lost to Eagan 0-2. They will get another shot at the Wildcats later on. Are they better than Cretin-Derham Hall or Woodbury? We won't know until at least playoff time.
Last week, the Apple Valley Eagles lost to the Eden Prairie Eagles 2-4. They rebounded on Saturday with a 5-2 victory over a struggling Eastview team.
This week: 1/19: Park (Cottage Grove) | 1/21: Rosemount | 1/23: at Lakeville North
| 20 | Brainerd/P/P | 11-2-0 | Large Wins: Bemidji Fargo South (ND) Rochester Century St. Cloud Tech |
Brainerd/Pillager/Pierz remains in the top 20 simply because they keep winning. The Moorhead loss, 0-6, looms. The shots were even at 30 in that game and the game was in Moorhead. What matters? The scoreboard. Moorhead has more large/quality wins than Brainerd and Moorhead has a tougher schedule. Moorhead, however, is 5-6-2.
The loss to Alexandria was not good either. Yet, the Warriors have 11 wins. They redeemed their loss to Alexandria this week with a 5-4 victory. They also defeated a good Bemidji team last week. I also like their win over a decent St. Cloud Tech team at St. Cloud. Also, nine out of the 13 games Brainerd has played have been on the road. The Warriors are 4-0-0 at home. Seven of the Warriors final 11 games are at home.
The Warriors have a lot more to prove to move up the rankings. They have St. Cloud Tech, Grand Rapids, Roseau, and a rematch with Moorhead. All four of those games are in Brainerd.
This week: 1/19: at Sartell-St. Stephen | 1/21: at St. Cloud Apollo
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Not forgotten:
Bemidji (10-6-0) - The Lumberjacks are 7-2-0 in their last nine games with some nice wins over some good Class A teams but Grand Rapids was their best Class AA win. They lost to Brainerd/Pillager/Pierz 4-5 last week. They play Roseau next Saturday at home. The Lumberjacks need to win that one.
Cretin-Derham Hall (10-5-0) - The Raiders have five losses in their last eight games. They have one quality win against Benilde-St. Margaret's and decent wins against Stillwater Area and Forest Lake. Section 3AA and the Suburban East Conference are looked at as rather weak. They lost badly to Lake Conference opponents Lakeville South and Burnsville and to Class A's #1 team St. Thomas Academy.
Forest Lake (8-3-2) - The Rangers have a nice record but they also have a horrible loss to Class A East Ridge (3-12-1) and decisive losses to Cretin-Derham Hall and #18 Andover. Their best win was against Grand Rapids (6-9-1).
Moorhead (5-6-2) - They have a losing record but they have had a tough schedule, one of the toughest. It's really not going to get much easier the rest of the season.
Rochester Century (9-4-0) - The defending Section 1AA champions are a good team. The problem is that they have not beaten a quality team. The only team they have beaten outside of Section 1AA or 1A has been Eastview (2-14-0). They did beat a Lake Conference team, Lakeville North (6-8-0), 4-1. The Panthers will find out if they have what it takes to remain Section 1AA champions when they face #16 Lakeville South on Tuesday night.
St. Cloud Tech (10-4-0) - Nice record. Who have they beaten? Class A Alexandria is about their only quality win and Alexandria has not been playing well of late.
Tartan (9-5-1) - The Titans have lost three games to Class A schools with maybe two decent wins against North St. Paul and Rochester Century.
Woodbury (9-6-1) - They have won four in a row. They look poised to go on a long winning streak. Finishing 8th in the St. Louis Park Recreation Tournament did not help their cause.
