2019-20 Preseason SWEET SIXTEEN

[O-townClown]

1. Gentry Academy - they have the kids in school and they have a Varsity...I have no idea what their plan is but until I hear they aren't putting this year's team into the MSHSL they will be my bold preseason pick to win next year's state tournament. Bump everyone down if their top players go the NTDP route or stick to a full-season Midget schedule. Oh, plus they'll have to opt up from Class A. Not sure when that deadline is or was.

2. Benilde-St. Margaret's - the story around the Twin Cities is private schools. They return almost an entire team that just finished 11th in the final PageStat rank for AA. The kids won't be phased by anything they see next year.

3. Hill-Murray - like the Red Knights they don't lose much.

4. Blake - last year I had them preseason #13 and I rhetorically asked if I was a year early. Maybe I was, but they were #17 in the final PageStat so I was in the vicinity.

5. Maple Grove - my first public school. The Varsity is deep and talented, the product of a very large youth program.

6. Eden Prairie - the state runners-up had a barbell roster. Seniors and sophomores. They should be good again.

7. Holy Family - like all of these teams it assumes they keep their top players. Pulled an upset of Minnetonka this year in Sections and could be better in the upcoming year.

8. White Bear Lake - made an appearance at State and are in pretty good shape.

9. Rosemount

10. Buffalo - we've been patient waiting for them to deliver on the promise that had them the Strib's featured program in the fall of 2017. This will be their best team ever, much like Chaska this season.

11. Andover

12. Edina - obviously a rebuilding year. A big drop from the last few seasons, but the player pool is still the envy of average communities.

13. Minnetonka - they had some real good players buried in the depth chart.

14. Lakeville South
15. Lakeville North
16. Moorhead

I'll put Duluth East at 17, which makes them 16th in the event the team from Gentry isn't comprised of this year's #1 ranked MyHockey 15 team.

HM - Hastings, Stillwater, St. Michael-Albertville, Blaine

I need visibility into players 2-20 for Cretin in order to have them listed. Their top dog is a gem and a serious contender for Mr. Hockey.

[O-townClown]

Last year's list also was released on March 11th. How did I do? (2018-19 final PageStat ranking)

1.49 Edina (1)
1.51 Minnetonka (3)
3. Andover (4)
4. Duluth East (8)
5. Eden Prairie (5)
6. Chaska (7)
7. Hill-Murray (16)
8. Cloquet (18)
9. Cretin-Derham Hall (24)
10. Elk River (?)
11. White Bear Lake (19)
12. Lakeville North (?)
13. Blake (17)
14. St. Thomas (6)
15. Maple Grove (9)
16. Lakeville South (21)

Misses - Blaine (2), Wayzata (10), Benilde (11), Moorhead (12), Rosemount (13), Holy Family (14), Eagan (15)

[blueline_6]

1. Gentry Academy - they have the kids in school and they have a Varsity...I have no idea what their plan is but until I hear they aren't putting this year's team into the MSHSL they will be my bold preseason pick to win next year's state tournament. Bump everyone down if their top players go the NTDP route or stick to a full-season Midget schedule. Oh, plus they'll have to opt up from Class A. Not sure when that deadline is or was.

Their best players do not play on their MSHSL team, and that plan is not going to change as far as I've heard. They will continue to offer an MSHSL team as an option to their students, but their top '03 and '04 players will play on a Midget Tier 1 team. I highly doubt they are going to break up that 15U group, that has been their bread-and-butter team from the start.

Maybe they will switch focus to MSHSL competition after they have graduated these current 15U kids. The '04 team isn't as successful as the 15U, and I don't see a Gentry '05 Tier 1 team.

[BP]

1. Gentry Academy - they have the kids in school and they have a Varsity...I have no idea what their plan is but until I hear they aren't putting this year's team into the MSHSL they will be my bold preseason pick to win next year's state tournament. Bump everyone down if their top players go the NTDP route or stick to a full-season Midget schedule. Oh, plus they'll have to opt up from Class A. Not sure when that deadline is or was.

2. Benilde-St. Margaret's - the story around the Twin Cities is private schools. They return almost an entire team that just finished 11th in the final PageStat rank for AA. The kids won't be phased by anything they see next year.

3. Hill-Murray - like the Red Knights they don't lose much.

4. Blake - last year I had them preseason #13 and I rhetorically asked if I was a year early. Maybe I was, but they were #17 in the final PageStat so I was in the vicinity.

5. Maple Grove - my first public school. The Varsity is deep and talented, the product of a very large youth program.

6. Eden Prairie - the state runners-up had a barbell roster. Seniors and sophomores. They should be good again.

7. Holy Family - like all of these teams it assumes they keep their top players. Pulled an upset of Minnetonka this year in Sections and could be better in the upcoming year.

8. White Bear Lake - made an appearance at State and are in pretty good shape.

9. Rosemount

10. Buffalo - we've been patient waiting for them to deliver on the promise that had them the Strib's featured program in the fall of 2017. This will be their best team ever, much like Chaska this season.

11. Andover

12. Edina - obviously a rebuilding year. A big drop from the last few seasons, but the player pool is still the envy of average communities.

13. Minnetonka - they had some real good players buried in the depth chart.

14. Lakeville South
15. Lakeville North
16. Moorhead

I'll put Duluth East at 17, which makes them 16th in the event the team from Gentry isn't comprised of this year's #1 ranked MyHockey 15 team.

HM - Hastings, Stillwater, St. Michael-Albertville, Blaine

I need visibility into players 2-20 for Cretin in order to have them listed. Their top dog is a gem and a serious contender for Mr. Hockey.

My predictions -
1) The Top 2 Gentry kids will be on the NDTP - the brother will be playing AAA in Detroit - others are probably going a different route. WHL is a possibility as well for the brothers. The school was sold - there is an exit plan in place.
2) I think the two young guys for MG will be in Ann Arbor too
3) Buffalo at 10 is a stretch - they graduate a bunch - but have the brothers back. Not a lot in the well to replace.
4) Holy Family graduates 3 really good D and G - top line is good - not much depth - but I'm sure they'll get a few transfers. I do think this will be their down year until the 06 group comes.
5) Rosemount will be a top 5 team - lots of really good young guys
6) I think you will see even more parody next season than this year. Very few top end teams - and a lot teams that can beat anyone on any given night - even more than this year.
7) Roseau has some good, solid players and will be a top 20 team next season.
STA will be a top 20 team as well. Still have some good players and in a year of major parody - they will be around. The coaching hire will be a major factor.
9) CDH will be a barbell team with their top guy - but a lot of solid young guys from bantams.
10) Century has one last shot at it with their senior class and that might be it for a while. 2 good lines - could be solid on any given night.

[StanleyCup55]

Lakeville South, Stillwater and Moorhead will be a top 10 teams.

Lakeville South will easily win 1AA. Really hope Century can pull it off though. Would love to see a Rochester team back in St. Paul. If there’s one team I would like to see at state next year it’s Century. I’m so tired to the Lakevilles. It’ll probably be an all Lakeville section final again but Century has a real shot here if they play well and catch LS on an off night.

Stillwater will be very good and will contend with WBL, who will be the favorite in 4AA. Hill will be strong and it’ll be a great battle between these 3 teams. Any of these 3 can win this section next year.

Heard all good players from Maple Grove will be going to Team USA. Remember hearing Kukkenen and three other guys. Blaine will take 5AA. Centennial and Maple Grove May give them some headaches but it’s Blaine’s to lose. Champlin should be decent again.

Really hoping Rosemount takes 3AA next year but can never count out STA since they can recruit talent in. There is also a lot of depth in that section next year with Eagan, Eastview, Burnsville and Jefferson all with chances to pull off an upset somewhere. Maybe not for state but definitely could shake things up come playoff time. I wouldn’t even be surprised to see Apple Valley show some improvement and get to the semis of 3AA.

EP should be the favorite in 2AA. Tonka and HF will be good again and Chaska probably a short step below them. Chaska has some really good years coming up.

Edina will come out of 6AA again. They’ll meet BSM in the section final and it’ll be a great game, probably OT. Edina back at state but will get sent to Mariucci right away.

7AA is wide open between East, Andover, Cloquet and Grand Rapids. Elk River will have about the same year as this year. I think Cloquet comes out of this one.

8AA will be between Moorhead and Roseau. STMA and Buffalo are close and could pull an upset but I think Moorhead wins this section easily.

[kniven]

Lakeville South, Stillwater and Moorhead will be a top 10 teams.

Lakeville South will easily win 1AA. Really hope Century can pull it off though. Would love to see a Rochester team back in St. Paul. If there’s one team I would like to see at state next year it’s Century. I’m so tired to the Lakevilles. It’ll probably be an all Lakeville section final again but Century has a real shot here if they play well and catch LS on an off night.

Stillwater will be very good and will contend with WBL, who will be the favorite in 4AA. Hill will be strong and it’ll be a great battle between these 3 teams. Any of these 3 can win this section next year.

Heard all good players from Maple Grove will be going to Team USA. Remember hearing Kukkenen and three other guys. Blaine will take 5AA. Centennial and Maple Grove May give them some headaches but it’s Blaine’s to lose. Champlin should be decent again.

Really hoping Rosemount takes 3AA next year but can never count out STA since they can recruit talent in. There is also a lot of depth in that section next year with Eagan, Eastview, Burnsville and Jefferson all with chances to pull off an upset somewhere. Maybe not for state but definitely could shake things up come playoff time. I wouldn’t even be surprised to see Apple Valley show some improvement and get to the semis of 3AA.

EP should be the favorite in 2AA. Tonka and HF will be good again and Chaska probably a short step below them. Chaska has some really good years coming up.

Edina will come out of 6AA again. They’ll meet BSM in the section final and it’ll be a great game, probably OT. Edina back at state but will get sent to Mariucci right away.

7AA is wide open between East, Andover, Cloquet and Grand Rapids. Elk River will have about the same year as this year. I think Cloquet comes out of this one.

8AA will be between Moorhead and Roseau. STMA and Buffalo are close and could pull an upset but I think Moorhead wins this section easily.

. What? Somebody thinks Cloquet comes out of 7AA next year?! Oly smokes, Batman....

[O-townClown]

Thanks for the input on Gentry. I did not realize the school had been sold. I wondered what the exit plan or endgame was.

For those saying this kid or that kid is going to the NTDP, we'll see. They don't take everybody. One of the things they seem to assess is whether a kid will "fit" meaning be okay with the possibility of a lower-half role. Some Minnesotans will surely get invited, but it may not be the ones you assume. Some strange turns between now and when the final team is named. (Or should I have said Stranges?)

Bump everybody a spot if Gentry is not focusing on a loaded MSHSL team as a viable state contender. As I said above: they have the kids. They would do quite well at Varsity level. Maybe I'm overshooting to say #1, but I can't be far off.

This isn't like Shattuck-St. Mary's. They actually have an MSHSL team this season.

[O-townClown]

I think you will see even more parody next season than this year.

That's hilarious.

(Sorry, couldn't resist.)

[TheNightman]

Janicke is the only MG kid I expect to make the NTDP.

[SpOilerfan]

I believe Cloquet won the north regional with next years team. Im pretty sure the juniors and sophomores both won the north regional, Knievin correct me if I am wrong1

[kniven]

I believe Cloquet won the north regional with next years team. Im pretty sure the juniors and sophomores both won the north regional, Knievin correct me if I am wrong1

That is true, spoiler. The seniors from this years squad also won regions as second year PeeWeeAA and second year BantamAA.

[Stang5280]

10. Buffalo - we've been patient waiting for them to deliver on the promise that had them the Strib's featured program in the fall of 2017. This will be their best team ever, much like Chaska this season.

I mentioned it on another thread, but Buffalo’s window of opportunity most likely closed this year. As BP stated above, the Bison lose quite a bit to graduation, most notably Mueller, Klein, and McNamara. Buffalo was essentially a one line team anchored by stellar goaltending, and they just don’t have the system depth to fill those losses (particularly Mueller). I wouldn’t be surprised if Jske Braccini is in the USHL next year, either. I hope I am wrong, but I think it is more likely that Buffalo takes a step back instead of forward.

[BP]

Thanks for the input on Gentry. I did not realize the school had been sold. I wondered what the exit plan or endgame was.

For those saying this kid or that kid is going to the NTDP, we'll see. They don't take everybody. One of the things they seem to assess is whether a kid will "fit" meaning be okay with the possibility of a lower-half role. Some Minnesotans will surely get invited, but it may not be the ones you assume. Some strange turns between now and when the final team is named. (Or should I have said Stranges?)

Bump everybody a spot if Gentry is not focusing on a loaded MSHSL team as a viable state contender. As I said above: they have the kids. They would do quite well at Varsity level. Maybe I'm overshooting to say #1, but I can't be far off.

This isn't like Shattuck-St. Mary's. They actually have an MSHSL team this season.

If CL wants to be at Ann Arbor - he will. That's who I am talking about. He won't be a lower half role. He'll be a top 2-3 forward on that team. His decision will be Ann Arbor or the W.

Well aware they have a MSHSL team - but i think most of that U15 will be broken up - the brothers will be gone - others have applied to other HS', other AAA program interest, other prep schools, etc.

[MNHockeyFan]

Who purchased Gentry, and what are their plans going forward?

[Joe2015]

Lakeville South, Stillwater and Moorhead will be a top 10 teams.

Lakeville South will easily win 1AA. Really hope Century can pull it off though. Would love to see a Rochester team back in St. Paul. If there’s one team I would like to see at state next year it’s Century. I’m so tired to the Lakevilles. It’ll probably be an all Lakeville section final again but Century has a real shot here if they play well and catch LS on an off night.

Stillwater will be very good and will contend with WBL, who will be the favorite in 4AA. Hill will be strong and it’ll be a great battle between these 3 teams. Any of these 3 can win this section next year.

Heard all good players from Maple Grove will be going to Team USA. Remember hearing Kukkenen and three other guys. Blaine will take 5AA. Centennial and Maple Grove May give them some headaches but it’s Blaine’s to lose. Champlin should be decent again.

Really hoping Rosemount takes 3AA next year but can never count out STA since they can recruit talent in. There is also a lot of depth in that section next year with Eagan, Eastview, Burnsville and Jefferson all with chances to pull off an upset somewhere. Maybe not for state but definitely could shake things up come playoff time. I wouldn’t even be surprised to see Apple Valley show some improvement and get to the semis of 3AA.

EP should be the favorite in 2AA. Tonka and HF will be good again and Chaska probably a short step below them. Chaska has some really good years coming up.

Edina will come out of 6AA again. They’ll meet BSM in the section final and it’ll be a great game, probably OT. Edina back at state but will get sent to Mariucci right away.

7AA is wide open between East, Andover, Cloquet and Grand Rapids. Elk River will have about the same year as this year. I think Cloquet comes out of this one.

8AA will be between Moorhead and Roseau. STMA and Buffalo are close and could pull an upset but I think Moorhead wins this section easily.

. What? Somebody thinks Cloquet comes out of 7AA next year?! Oly smokes, Batman....

I swear every season for about 5 years, someone predicts Cloquet as a team to make a big step and challenge for the section title. And every season they end up a 3 to 5 seed and lose in the section semi-finals.

[Section 8 guy]

I don't think it's been 5 years with Cloquet......it was light predictions for them two years ago with this past season being the first one with real expectations. Pretty hard to live up to expectations when they basically lost two of their top 4 dmen for the season. Not many teams could withstand that. It's hard to know what to expect for the Jacks lately with all the moving parts.......coaching turnover, the injuries, was some of their Bantam success due to their size advantage at that age that has diminished some. I think they have a chance at some success this season if the coaches can settle in but to me it's Andovers section to lose this year.

In terms of up north overall since no one ever seems to know what to expect out of the 218....,in Section 7 I see Andover with a decent gap between them and a second tier with Cloquet and an improving Rapids group with East maybe being in that tier or possibly in the next tier with Elk River, depending on any departures for the Elks. If Cloquet can find themselves, and the right game plan, I could see them giving Andover a challenge in sections similar style wise to how East did this year.

Section 8 should look very different next year than it did this year being shallower team depth wise. Bemidji, Brainerd and Rogers will likely all fall off quite a bit from this season with Brainerd being decent but down a fair amount. STMA has the dynamic duo back but this group actually dropped down to Bantam As from AA so I'd think depth will be a challenge for them. Roseau will be decent but the loss of A Huglen and Lee will be significant. They could be pesky come sections if their young talent can develop. Buffalo loses some real key parts, primarily Mueller. They could also be pesky but it'll be much tougher for Braccini next year losing Klein and likely needing to score even more. I think St Cloud will be a team that's better than people think as will be Moorhead. St. Cloud has a lot back from a team that was hard to play against at times. Moorhead loses their top line again. But their state tournament team this year was made up mostly of juniors numbers wise if you listened to the starting lineups at The Tourney. I believe this group was a top 5 ish and state tournament group in Bantams with no departures at this point.

I'd see Andover and Moorhead as the top 5/top 10 candidates from the North next year with one or two of Rapids, Cloquet, Roseau and possibly, possibly, possibly East being teams that could see time in the top 15 and Elk River, St Cloud and maybe Buffalo or STMA as teams to keep an eye on.

[BP]

Who purchased Gentry, and what are their plans going forward?

The U15 coach.

[O-townClown]

How did I do?

The Gentry 15 team did not end up filling the MSHSL roster, which was clear shortly after my projection when Lucius & Martin went to Plymouth. Beyond that....?

[ThatMNHockeyGuy62]

How did I do?

The Gentry 15 team did not end up filling the MSHSL roster, which was clear shortly after my projection when Lucius & Martin went to Plymouth. Beyond that....?

This is interesting, beyond Gentry not terrible for most of the next 5. Obviously BSM didn’t fully live up to expectations but they were right there in the section finals of the deepest section in the state. EP probably didn’t have some of the big transfers yet at the time of your prediction, so where you put them isn’t too shocking. Big miss on Holy Family but this was assuming they still had Pinoniemi. Buffalo probably your biggest miss. Andover is of course low. Also didn’t have Chaska or Prior Lake, who both should arguably be around top 10 for a final season ranking.

Always fun to go back and look at these!

[ThatMNHockeyGuy62]

Also, BP with a prediction for the ages at the parody of this season. Well done!

[O-townClown]

This is interesting, beyond Gentry not terrible for most of the next 5. \

Always fun to go back and look at these!

Thanks. Yes, it was a reach on Gentry. Nobody could tell me conclusively what the plan was so I said I'll go with it...the have the kids (7 from the 15 team are now NCAA commits) and they have a Varsity! Obviously it went a different direction.

Yes, Pino and Blake and Broz and Langenbrunner and Steeves and Oberle were hard to factor in. Maybe not Blake, because by then he was on the Bantam team.

I've tried to do my early look real early the last few years for a couple reasons.

• 1. If I go first I don't have anyone else's to go from
  2. For a lot of fans interest wanes when there team is out of it, which almost everyone is by state tournament week.