Section 4A Preseason Prediction
| Team | Regular Season Wins in '10-'11 | More or Less Wins in '11-'12 | Section Rank |
| Totino-Grace | 19 | More | 1st |
| St. Thomas Academy | 19 | Less | 2nd |
| Mahtomedi | 12 | More | 3rd |
| South St. Paul | 16 | Less | 4th |
| Spring Lake Park | 14 | Less | 5th |
| Simley | 10 | More | 6th |
| St. Paul Academy/MPA | 11 | Less | 7th |
| Chisago Lakes Area | 20 | Less | 8th |
| Henry Sibley | 7 | Less | 9th |
| St. Paul Highland Park | 0 | More | 10th |
1. Totino-Grace
F TJ Roo (11) - 54 pts (18g, 36a)F Derek Lodermeier (11) - 32 pts (14g, 18a)
F Andrew McDonald (12) - 25 pts (10g, 15a)
- The Eagles will bring back more scoring and a little more overall depth than defending Class A state champion St. Thomas Academy.
- Totino-Grace returns 58% (75 goals) of their scoring production from last year, St. Thomas Academy 33% (45 goals).
- The Eagles return four skaters that were in double-figures in scoring goals last season, STA 2.
- In the Section 4A title game last season, St. Thomas Academy defeated Totino-Grace 5-3. The three skaters that scored the goals for Totino-Grace in that game are the top three returning scorers listed above. Of the five goals that St. Thomas Academy scored, only one, Andrew Commers, returns this season.
- The big question mark for Totino-Grace will be the goaltending. Junior puck-stopper Rory Davidowski (8 wins, 2.59 GAA, .883 save %) should do well replacing the Eagles top goaltender last season, Nick DeMuth. But, the Cadets own junior goaltender, David Zednick, will go into the season as the better of the two.
2. St. Thomas Academy
F Peter Krieger (12) - 27 pts (7g, 20a)D Eric Schurhamer (12) - 26 pts (8g, 18a)
F Andrew Commers (12) - 25 pts (13g, 12a)
- The Cadets may have lost a lot of scoring but they will have four top defensemen (Schurhamer, Bretzman, Schmidt, and Sattler) and a solid goaltender in junior David Zednick back to defend their state title.
- Krieger, Commers, and junior forward Alex Johnson will be counted on to pick the scoring this season.
- They may not have as much depth as last year's championship team but they do have the nucleus to help guide them to another state tournament.
3. Mahtomedi
F Tanner Jordan (12) - 38 pts (17g, 21a)F Johno May (12) - 33 pts (19g, 14a)
F Patrick Kegley (12) - 29 pts (11g, 18a)
- The Zephyrs have a talented scoring trio returning and a solid four back on defense (Gunderson, Brown, Erickson, Holker).
- If they plan on making a run at the Section championship, the goaltending will need to step up. Three goaltenders (Marshall, Yapello, and Dennis) all shared timed last season and none particularly stood out. All three goaltenders are back this season. Senior Sawyer Marshall had the most wins, 6, and the best save percentage, .874.
4. South St. Paul
D Ryan Sobazkiewsicz (12) - 25 pts (16g, 9a)F Billy Brandecker (10) - 12 pts (7g, 5a)
F Mick Grundtner (12) - 7 pts (4g, 3a) in 14 games
- South St. Paul will be a mystery this season.
- The Packers lost 57% of their goal production and a very good goaltender in Luke Palmquist to graduation.
- South St. Paul is known for turning out good goaltenders and senior Jeremey Balster may be next in line. He had four wins last season, a 0.48 GAA, and a .969 save percentage.
- This team will need to find someone to put the puck in the net other than a defenseman, Sobazkiewsicz.
- I am giving the Packers a slight edge at number four over Spring Lake Park due to having a little more depth coming back than the Panthers.
5. Spring Lake Park
F AJ Fossen (12) - 61 pts (35g, 26a)D Nick Auman (12) - 25 pts (4g, 21a)
G Brandon Jones (12) - 14 wins, 2.98 GAA, .902 save percentage
- I really like what the Panthers have returning in Fossen, Auman, and Jones. All three are solid.
- Spring Lake Park only has three skaters returning that have played in 23 or more games.
- The Panthers will be competitive but I will be surprised if they match or better their 14 regular season wins from last season.
6. Simley
F Brandon Reitberger (12) - 35 pts (19g, 16a)F Ben Rauschnot (11) - 31 pts (13g, 18a)
D Blake Stanton (12) - 9 pts (3g, 6a)
7. St. Paul Academy/Mounds Park Academy
F Drew Blackmun (10) - 29 pts (8g, 21a)G Jude Hull (12) - 5 wins, 3.54 GAA, .879 save percentage
D Cameron Causey (11) - 17 pts (3g, 14a)
8. Chisago Lakes Area
F Bradee Thompson (11) - 25 pts (5g, 20a)D Lawrence Zaun (12) - 11 pts (1g, 11a)
D Dan Sargeant (11) - 8 pts (4g, 4a)
9. St. Paul Highland Park
F Adam Tjaden (12) - 20 pts (12g, 8a)F Grant Vernon (11) - 11 pts (2g, 9a)
D John Anderson (12) - 7 pts (2g, 7a)
