Section 4AA thread

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HSPuckFan
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Section 4AA thread

Post by HSPuckFan » Wed Feb 05, 2020 7:59 am

How dose this section shake out?With White Bear losing to Stillwater and the 2 other bad section Losses,dose HM still have a shot at the 1 seed?
Go Zephyrs

InThePipes
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Re: Section 4AA thread

Post by InThePipes » Wed Feb 05, 2020 8:07 am

HSPuckFan wrote:
Wed Feb 05, 2020 7:59 am
How dose this section shake out?With White Bear losing to Stillwater and the 2 other bad section Losses,dose HM still have a shot at the 1 seed?
Regardless of seeding, HM has the best shot to win this section in my opinion. Strong goaltending, a very solid D core and a couple of difference makers up front is the recipe for playoff success and Lechner will undoubtedly find a way to play to his team's strengths.

karl(east)
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Re: Section 4AA thread

Post by karl(east) » Wed Feb 05, 2020 10:01 pm

This section has certainly grown much more complicated that it was two weeks ago. The sheen has definitely come off White Bear's strong start, and while I still think they might have done enough to secure that valuable top seed in a three-team race, their play recently hardly inspires confidence. Hill can make a claim for the top seed now given the closeness of their loss to White Bear, and I've thought all enough they're the most complete team of the bunch, but they've only shown that in bursts this season. Stillwater has no shot at the top seed but seems plenty capable of winning a couple games. And East Ridge has done enough to suggest they could be a capable semifinal opponent for the top seed if they can get there. Can't take much for granted anywhere in AA this season.

SEC Scotty
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Re: Section 4AA thread

Post by SEC Scotty » Thu Feb 06, 2020 3:38 pm

karl(east) wrote:
Wed Feb 05, 2020 10:01 pm
This section has certainly grown much more complicated that it was two weeks ago. The sheen has definitely come off White Bear's strong start, and while I still think they might have done enough to secure that valuable top seed in a three-team race, their play recently hardly inspires confidence. Hill can make a claim for the top seed now given the closeness of their loss to White Bear, and I've thought all enough they're the most complete team of the bunch, but they've only shown that in bursts this season. Stillwater has no shot at the top seed but seems plenty capable of winning a couple games. And East Ridge has done enough to suggest they could be a capable semifinal opponent for the top seed if they can get there. Can't take much for granted anywhere in AA this season.
East ridge comes to play every night and I would not want to face them at any point in sections. Ask Cretin. Raptors had to beat the Raiders and the referees who gave out a penalty I've never seen before. A double minor for holding with 3 minutes left that led to the tying goal for CDH. White Bear has been very inconsistent for a month. Very lackadaisical at times and sometimes trying to be to cute with the puck. I don't understand the line combinations lately. Only seen Stillwater once so will have more of a opinion after attending tonight's game vs CDH. Hill probably has the most talent and depth, but I think can be beat by playing a strong defensive game and staying out of the box. Pioneer's would be the favorite right now unless the Bears can right the ship.

SEC Scotty
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Re: Section 4AA thread

Post by SEC Scotty » Thu Feb 06, 2020 9:37 pm

You can definitely add Stillwater as a threat in 4AA after conference wins against White Bear and Cretin. Ponies score 6 unanswered goals tonight at Highland tonight spanking the Raiders.

Sparlimb
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Re: Section 4AA thread

Post by Sparlimb » Thu Feb 06, 2020 10:33 pm

SEC Scotty wrote:
Thu Feb 06, 2020 9:37 pm
You can definitely add Stillwater as a threat in 4AA after conference wins against White Bear and Cretin. Ponies score 6 unanswered goals tonight at Highland tonight spanking the Raiders.
Looking at their schedule, Stillwater has a strong argument for #1 seed. They did lose to Park-CG which is an awful loss, but they split with Cretin, should have swept WBL (but split) and lost to HM. But I suppose, a real record of 1-2 against the other top 2 teams won't get it done. But Stillwater is a real threat to win the section.

chester1991
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Re: Section 4AA thread

Post by chester1991 » Fri Feb 07, 2020 7:32 am

1) Hill Murray

2) White Bear Lake

3) Stillwater

4) East Ridge

5) Mounds View

6) Woodbury

7) Roseville

8) Irondale

9) Minnehaha Academy

stpaul
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Re: Section 4AA thread

Post by stpaul » Fri Feb 07, 2020 9:15 am

The jury is still out. WBL vs. CDH and HM vs. Moorhead will help determine #1. The probable semifinal matchups have become much more interesting with the emergence of Stillwater and East Ridge. Both are Feb 26 at Aldrich.

mnpuckster
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Re: Section 4AA thread

Post by mnpuckster » Fri Feb 07, 2020 4:23 pm

If we are looking at entire bodies of work, and not recency bias, its gotta be WBL 1, HM 2, SW 3
HM only plays 2-3 4AA games all year, and lost the H2H vs WBL

SW splits with WBL, and lose to HM

I understand WBL and SW seem to be heading in opposite directions with momentum, while HM has been fairly steady.

I guess it depends on criteria in the seedings room, but if H2H is important, anything but WBL at 1 would be seem like rankings based on who has played well recently, and not the entire season.

kpryan88
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Re: Section 4AA thread

Post by kpryan88 » Fri Feb 07, 2020 9:39 pm

Hill’s argument for the 1 seed got a little stronger tonight. They have beaten Stillwater, beat Edina twice (3-0 & 2-0), beat Rapids and lost in OT to WBL
WBL tied Edina, split with Stillwater, lost to Rapids, and beat Hill in OT.

Hill needs to win their last 2 to make a stronger case, but with records that are nearly identical, the losses to the weaker teams by WBL makes it feel like Hill might eke out the 1 seed. Time will tell, but it looks like a 3 team race til the last game of the season before we know the seeding here! Nothing like the gauntlet/group of death that is Section 6, but should be fun to watch nonetheless.

mnpuckster
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Re: Section 4AA thread

Post by mnpuckster » Fri Feb 07, 2020 9:48 pm

Agreed. WBL certainly is not the best team in 4AA, and the loss to Rapids did them no favors. The irondale and eastridge losses will probably drop them to 2 or 3. I think itll be moot as they'll get bounced in the semis of not quarters. It's crazy how they have gotten progressively worse as the season has rolled on. That trend is fairly common theme at WBL the last 18 years or so.

Sparlimb
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Re: Section 4AA thread

Post by Sparlimb » Fri Feb 07, 2020 10:30 pm

mnpuckster wrote:
Fri Feb 07, 2020 9:48 pm
Agreed. WBL certainly is not the best team in 4AA, and the loss to Rapids did them no favors. The irondale and eastridge losses will probably drop them to 2 or 3. I think itll be moot as they'll get bounced in the semis of not quarters. It's crazy how they have gotten progressively worse as the season has rolled on. That trend is fairly common theme at WBL the last 18 years or so.
If WBL loses to Cloquet tomorrow, they will be the 3 seed. And they still could fall that low if they lose to Cretin again. That said, they actually looked pretty good during the first Cretin game, they just left it too close and Gleason decided to show up. Stillwater looking really good lately. Hill will lose to Moorhead, I'm sure of it. Then again, this year, nothing will surprise me.

Irondale to state!

Sparlimb
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Re: Section 4AA thread

Post by Sparlimb » Sat Feb 08, 2020 5:57 pm

Ouch. 6-2 Cloquet. Any WBL fans want to share what's going on with your squad?

mnpuckster
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Re: Section 4AA thread

Post by mnpuckster » Sat Feb 08, 2020 7:23 pm

WBL is a complete mess, and that starts at the top. The 2011 upset of HM was great and all, but who has done less with the talent in the last 15 years than Sager? The CEC game was a B2 bantam type performance. Woof

Sparlimb
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Re: Section 4AA thread

Post by Sparlimb » Sat Feb 08, 2020 11:19 pm

mnpuckster wrote:
Sat Feb 08, 2020 7:23 pm
WBL is a complete mess, and that starts at the top. The 2011 upset of HM was great and all, but who has done less with the talent in the last 15 years than Sager? The CEC game was a B2 bantam type performance. Woof
The 2011 game aside (which was an all-time upset), Hill fans have encouraged WBL to hold on to Sager as long as they can. I will say this. I've gone to xmas tournament games in a Hill hat with my son and had Sager stop and talk to us anyway. So he does seem to be a nice guy. They still have the talent to win the section this year, and if there is ever a year to win a 1st round game at state, its this one. That said, they look to be destined to get the 3rd seed in sections and have to get through both Hill and Stillwater to make state.

mnpuckster
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Re: Section 4AA thread

Post by mnpuckster » Sun Feb 09, 2020 12:02 am

That 2011 win i figured gave him 10 more years as the skipper. I dont doubt he is a great guy, but that only should get you so far. If WBL had Lechner as the HC from 03 until today, the Bears have a handful more state appearances, and a couple legit state title contending teams. HM just always seems to be peaking in late February, while WBL struggles to improve throughout the year. Best of luck to the kids in the 4AA tournament.

InThePipes
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Re: Section 4AA thread

Post by InThePipes » Sun Feb 09, 2020 9:14 am

mnpuckster wrote:
Sun Feb 09, 2020 12:02 am
That 2011 win i figured gave him 10 more years as the skipper. I dont doubt he is a great guy, but that only should get you so far. If WBL had Lechner as the HC from 03 until today, the Bears have a handful more state appearances, and a couple legit state title contending teams. HM just always seems to be peaking in late February, while WBL struggles to improve throughout the year. Best of luck to the kids in the 4AA tournament.
We talk about it every season, the have and have nots on the coaching front. While there are a few coaches that receive a lot of credit for the rabbit they pull out of their hat almost every February and March, I sometimes think its underestimated the difference this makes at many HS, there are a number of HS programs with more than enough talent and the progression during the season is almost non-existent.

BodyShots
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Re: Section 4AA thread

Post by BodyShots » Mon Feb 10, 2020 1:18 pm

InThePipes wrote:
Sun Feb 09, 2020 9:14 am
mnpuckster wrote:
Sun Feb 09, 2020 12:02 am
That 2011 win i figured gave him 10 more years as the skipper. I dont doubt he is a great guy, but that only should get you so far. If WBL had Lechner as the HC from 03 until today, the Bears have a handful more state appearances, and a couple legit state title contending teams. HM just always seems to be peaking in late February, while WBL struggles to improve throughout the year. Best of luck to the kids in the 4AA tournament.
We talk about it every season, the have and have nots on the coaching front. While there are a few coaches that receive a lot of credit for the rabbit they pull out of their hat almost every February and March, I sometimes think its underestimated the difference this makes at many HS, there are a number of HS programs with more than enough talent and the progression during the season is almost non-existent.
My son said he heard a statement that Sager expects to coach another 5 years before hanging them up. Aren't we lucky! :^o

Trout
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Re: Section 4AA thread

Post by Trout » Mon Feb 10, 2020 3:01 pm

Speaking of coaches, Stillwater new coach Greg Zannon has the team playing a hard gritty game similar to how he played. It took him over half the year to get his guys to play that way but recently they seem to have bought in. Previous coach Matt Doman took the ponies to the state tourney his first year...can Zans do the same?

Other thoughts-

Stillwater won both the WBL and CDH game without arguably their best player (Defenseman C. Wylie) His return will certainly increase their depth at D.

Given the recent WBL losses (including one to Cloquet who Stillwater beat) I find it hard to understand how anyone can believe WBL can be the #1 seed.

Head to head carries a lot of weight but total resume should mean something. Put Stillwater and WBL schedules head to head the ponies finish ahead of the bears in the same conference where they play 18 games against similar competition. If you look at common section opponents the HM win obviously is big but the two section losses to Irondale and ER show something as well. Bears have the worst record of the 3 top teams in the section. WBL won 2 OT games against STW and HM for sure. Interesting to see how that weighs in the final analysis. To me the biggest win is the HM 5 to 2 win over STW.

If you believe Head to Head weighs significantly more than anything else WBL is #1. If you take into account total resume WBL is #3.

I personally would say 1. HM 2. STW 3. WBL 4. ER 5.MV 6.WBRY 7. RVL 8. Irondale 9.Minnehaha

Of course as everyone has said, it won't matter that much. You have to win 3 games to win it. There will be 2 tough games in there to take care of no matter who you play.

Sparlimb
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Re: Section 4AA thread

Post by Sparlimb » Wed Feb 12, 2020 10:44 am

Stillwater loss to STA didn't help the cause. Hill better find a way to beat Chaska tonight since they will have their hands full with Moorhead.

Sparlimb
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Re: Section 4AA thread

Post by Sparlimb » Sat Feb 15, 2020 11:16 pm

Well, we'll know the full answer in the morning. But I'm going with

1. Hill-Murray
2. Stillwater
3. White Bear Lake
4. East Ridge
5. Mounds View
6. Roseville
7. Irondale
8. Woodbury
9. Minnehaha Academy

East Side Pioneer Guy
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Re: Section 4AA thread

Post by East Side Pioneer Guy » Sun Feb 16, 2020 11:37 am

Wait just a ding dang minute here.

The MSHSL web site indicates the semis will both be on Wed. Feb. 26. One at 4:30, the other at 8:00. What geniuses decided this?

There is no problem with one on Tue & the other on Wed. There's no difference between 2 or days off before the final on Fri.

Further, the #1 seed gets the worse time. For those of us who work for a living, 4:30 is tough to get to, especially if there is a sellout.

I'm sure someone will think this is a great idea. But they're wrong, just ask me & I'll tell you.
Hockey Is For Everyone

mnpuckster
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Re: Section 4AA thread

Post by mnpuckster » Sun Feb 16, 2020 11:49 am

There wont be a anywhere near a sellout for hill vs eastridge.

Sparlimb
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Re: Section 4AA thread

Post by Sparlimb » Sun Feb 16, 2020 11:49 am

East Side Pioneer Guy wrote:
Sun Feb 16, 2020 11:37 am
Wait just a ding dang minute here.

The MSHSL web site indicates the semis will both be on Wed. Feb. 26. One at 4:30, the other at 8:00. What geniuses decided this?

There is no problem with one on Tue & the other on Wed. There's no difference between 2 or days off before the final on Fri.

Further, the #1 seed gets the worse time. For those of us who work for a living, 4:30 is tough to get to, especially if there is a sellout.

I'm sure someone will think this is a great idea. But they're wrong, just ask me & I'll tell you.
Well worse time is debatable. Worse time for fans yes. But in this case the #1 seed gets the longer rest (not that a couple hours matter when its two days long). But this reminds me of what the coliseum starting doing on section finals night. This way the building clears because no one wants to wait 90 minutes for the next game. And they wonder why they have attendance issues.

Wblhcky2424
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Re: Section 4AA thread

Post by Wblhcky2424 » Sun Feb 16, 2020 12:29 pm

It's a doubleheader on Wednesday cause they couldn't have a game Tuesday night due to the Caucus.

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