2023-24 Class AA Early Top 20

[StanleyCup55]

No one has done this yet so I took it upon myself. A lot can happen in the off season with departures and free agency but here’s what I think we will see next year.

1. Wayzata
2. Tonka
3. Chan
4. Maple Grove
5. Hill
6. EP
7. Edina
8. Benilde
9. Moorhead
10. Rogers
11. Rosemount
12. Stillwater
13. Cretin
14. Andover
15. Roseau
16. St Thomas
17. Holy Family
18. White Bear
19. Coon Rapids
20. Eastview

Section 1AA will be wide open. Both Lakevilles lose a lot. Might be the year a team like Hastings sneaks in.

Tonka and Chan should battle it out again in 2AA.

Rosemount should have a nice team in 3AA but will be tough to take down Cretin and STA.

Hill will be really good next year. Don’t see WBL or Stilly beating them.

Rogers and MG again will battle on top in 5AA. Assuming Coon Rapids will be back in this section next year and if they don’t lose anything to free agency they will have a good team with a lot coming back. Not sure if they can hang with Rogers and MG but they’re definitely a dark horse that should be able to contend.

Wayzata will be darn good next year and Edina won’t be far behind but I think the Trojans come out of 6AA.

7AA is another section up for grabs next year. Andover should be the favorite but we’ll see if East can have another decent year.

8AA should be Moorhead again but Roseau returns their top scorer and some depth. Elk River should be better and Sartell will be no slouch.


There will definitely be some departures whether it’s kids leaving the HS league or transferring through free agency but I think it’ll look a bit like this. If anyone has anything to add please do. I’m certainly no Karl when it comes to rankings but hoping to get some chatter going on next year.

[bardown27]

No one has done this yet so I took it upon myself. A lot can happen in the off season with departures and free agency but here’s what I think we will see next year.

1. Wayzata
2. Tonka
3. Chan
4. Maple Grove
5. Hill
6. EP
7. Edina
8. Benilde
9. Moorhead
10. Rogers
11. Rosemount
12. Stillwater
13. Cretin
14. Andover
15. Roseau
16. St Thomas
17. Holy Family
18. White Bear
19. Coon Rapids
20. Eastview

Section 1AA will be wide open. Both Lakevilles lose a lot. Might be the year a team like Hastings sneaks in.

Tonka and Chan should battle it out again in 2AA.

Rosemount should have a nice team in 3AA but will be tough to take down Cretin and STA.

Hill will be really good next year. Don’t see WBL or Stilly beating them.

Rogers and MG again will battle on top in 5AA. Assuming Coon Rapids will be back in this section next year and if they don’t lose anything to free agency they will have a good team with a lot coming back. Not sure if they can hang with Rogers and MG but they’re definitely a dark horse that should be able to contend.

Wayzata will be darn good next year and Edina won’t be far behind but I think the Trojans come out of 6AA.

7AA is another section up for grabs next year. Andover should be the favorite but we’ll see if East can have another decent year.

8AA should be Moorhead again but Roseau returns their top scorer and some depth. Elk River should be better and Sartell will be no slouch.


There will definitely be some departures whether it’s kids leaving the HS league or transferring through free agency but I think it’ll look a bit like this. If anyone has anything to add please do. I’m certainly no Karl when it comes to rankings but hoping to get some chatter going on next year.

biggest question mark at Wayzata will be goaltending. Don't have a ton of talent within the HS program right now, and the bantams goalies were nothing to write home about this year either.

[Mite-dad]

What do Grand Rapids and Duluth East have coming?

[TheNightman]

I'd have Chan at #1, Tonka probably would be #1 but I'd expect them to lose a lot of guys.

I'm also not sure why EP would be above teams like Edina and Benilde.

[High Heat]

No one has done this yet so I took it upon myself. A lot can happen in the off season with departures and free agency but here’s what I think we will see next year.

1. Wayzata - Goalie will be x-factor here. Good young core
2. Tonka - if everyone is back team is stacked
3. Chan - see above, Goalie is excellent
4. Maple Grove - Loses 13 Seniors
5. Hill - Will be back at state
6. EP - Maybe a top 25 team but loses some top end
7. Edina
8. Benilde
9. Moorhead - this team should be loaded for the next 2 years.
10. Rogers - need to replace a good senior class but youth is talented
11. Rosemount
12. Stillwater - way to high here
13. Cretin - Loses a ton, not much depth at moment
14. Andover - can you replace 200+ points on 1 line?
15. Roseau
16. St Thomas - Randolph will have them playing good D
17. Holy Family - nice young core, can they take next step
18. White Bear - could be a sleeper
19. Coon Rapids - this is a serious reach.
20. Eastview - Team returns top 2 forwards but not much else

Section 1AA will be wide open. Both Lakevilles lose a lot. Might be the year a team like Hastings sneaks in.

Tonka and Chan should battle it out again in 2AA.

Rosemount should have a nice team in 3AA but will be tough to take down Cretin and STA.

Hill will be really good next year. Don’t see WBL or Stilly beating them.

Rogers and MG again will battle on top in 5AA. Assuming Coon Rapids will be back in this section next year and if they don’t lose anything to free agency they will have a good team with a lot coming back. Not sure if they can hang with Rogers and MG but they’re definitely a dark horse that should be able to contend.

Wayzata will be darn good next year and Edina won’t be far behind but I think the Trojans come out of 6AA.

7AA is another section up for grabs next year. Andover should be the favorite but we’ll see if East can have another decent year.

8AA should be Moorhead again but Roseau returns their top scorer and some depth. Elk River should be better and Sartell will be no slouch.


There will definitely be some departures whether it’s kids leaving the HS league or transferring through free agency but I think it’ll look a bit like this. If anyone has anything to add please do. I’m certainly no Karl when it comes to rankings but hoping to get some chatter going on next year.

Teams missing:
Duluth East - lose top scorer but return a bunch of talent and goalie. Probably 7AA favorite

Shakopee - good sophomore/freshman class returning (Simpson gone)

Holy Angels - excellent freshman/sophomore class. Should make noise

[Fightinghawklover]

Andover will be just fine. The cupboard isn’t bare. They have plenty of talent in the pipeline. Should be contenders for the next several years to go to state.

[east hockey]

No one has done this yet so I took it upon myself. A lot can happen in the off season with departures and free agency but here’s what I think we will see next year.

1. Wayzata - Goalie will be x-factor here. Good young core
2. Tonka - if everyone is back team is stacked
3. Chan - see above, Goalie is excellent
4. Maple Grove - Loses 13 Seniors
5. Hill - Will be back at state
6. EP - Maybe a top 25 team but loses some top end
7. Edina
8. Benilde
9. Moorhead - this team should be loaded for the next 2 years.
10. Rogers - need to replace a good senior class but youth is talented
11. Rosemount
12. Stillwater - way to high here
13. Cretin - Loses a ton, not much depth at moment
14. Andover - can you replace 200+ points on 1 line?
15. Roseau
16. St Thomas - Randolph will have them playing good D
17. Holy Family - nice young core, can they take next step
18. White Bear - could be a sleeper
19. Coon Rapids - this is a serious reach.
20. Eastview - Team returns top 2 forwards but not much else

Section 1AA will be wide open. Both Lakevilles lose a lot. Might be the year a team like Hastings sneaks in.

Tonka and Chan should battle it out again in 2AA.

Rosemount should have a nice team in 3AA but will be tough to take down Cretin and STA.

Hill will be really good next year. Don’t see WBL or Stilly beating them.

Rogers and MG again will battle on top in 5AA. Assuming Coon Rapids will be back in this section next year and if they don’t lose anything to free agency they will have a good team with a lot coming back. Not sure if they can hang with Rogers and MG but they’re definitely a dark horse that should be able to contend.

Wayzata will be darn good next year and Edina won’t be far behind but I think the Trojans come out of 6AA.

7AA is another section up for grabs next year. Andover should be the favorite but we’ll see if East can have another decent year.

8AA should be Moorhead again but Roseau returns their top scorer and some depth. Elk River should be better and Sartell will be no slouch.


There will definitely be some departures whether it’s kids leaving the HS league or transferring through free agency but I think it’ll look a bit like this. If anyone has anything to add please do. I’m certainly no Karl when it comes to rankings but hoping to get some chatter going on next year.

Teams missing:
Duluth East - lose top scorer but return a bunch of talent and goalie. Probably 7AA favorite

Shakopee - good sophomore/freshman class returning (Simpson gone)

Holy Angels - excellent freshman/sophomore class. Should make noise

East's lack of experience on D will be a problem. There could be a lot of 6-5 games.

Lee

[szellman]

Look for Rogers next year and the year after. Hoping they can take MG and give new blood in St. Paul in March.

[karl(east)]

On 7AA:

East, as noted above, returns a fair amount of its forward talent aside from Christian, plus goaltending. The losses on D are significant, though my understanding is that two prodigal sons who have been playing elsewhere will be returning to East for next season. Neither one is Grant Winkler or Henry Murray, but they will certainly help. The East bantams were reasonably good this season; a few of them are Marshall-bound (exact breakdown is still a bit up in the air) but all in all I think they have the makings of a top 20 team.

Andover loses the top line, which you obviously can't just replace, but the program depth is so consistently good that they'll be right there again. Sauer, assuming he doesn't make NTDP, will be a force. Certainly should still be top 20.

Rapids' bantam team beat OMG yesterday in the state tournament and is on a Cinderella run to the semis. (They beat East in the North region back door game in a mild upset.) They lose the core that made them good in back this past season, so they'll be young and rebuilding next year, but there's enough talent to keep them relevant.

If they're still in the section and Tyler Barsness is back, Coon Rapids is probably playing at Amsoil again. They're awful thin beyond their top couple players, though.

Not sure who's next in line; maybe Rock Ridge, after their nice little run in 7A this season. Forest Lake will be its usual self, and Blaine and Marshall will probably be a bit better, though they have a long way to climb to actually contend. Of course we'll have to see who's actually in the section before we get too carried away here...but on paper, for now, I'd say it's a 2-3 team race between teams that will be ranked 10-20, all capable but not serious title contenders.