Class A Rankings 1-20-13
Posted: Sun Jan 20, 2013 12:01 pm
A good past week as well as a good week coming up. Only 4 more weeks before the end of the season, but there are still numerous teams who could end the season as high as #3 if they win the right games.
Enjoy!
1. [1] Saint Thomas Academy (14-1-1)
The Cadets had an amazing week, with an away win over Shattuck and following that up with a very close home win against rival Breck, with Tommy Novak getting the game winner in both games. While they are winning, St Thomas has 6 wins against top teams in the state right now and 5 of those wins have been by 1 goal, two of them in OT. With a goalie in the top 5 in both save percentage and GAA, it will be hard to beat them, but it appears a good defense could prevent them from winning. It will be interesting to see how they do against the Pioneers Thursday in potentially effectively the conference championship game.
This week: Thurs @ Hill-Murray, Sat vs North St Paul
2. [3] Breck (12-3-1)
If the Mustangs defense like they played against St Thomas yesterday, they can stop any team from scoring. They have also shown against everyone other opponent they have played this year in averaging over 5 goals per game that they can score as well. While teams like TRF, AHA, and HF will try, it doesn’t appear the Mustangs will be challenged until at the earliest section finals, but likely the state semifinals. Henry Johnson along with their defense will keep them in any game they play and, while they have 3 players with 25 points, they will be able to score on most as well.
This week: Tues @ St Paul Academy, Thurs @ Blake
3. [4] Totino-Grace (12-2-1)
Despite the come from behind win over Chisago this week, both this past week and this week to come are wins over teams the Eagles are expected to beat. With games against St Thomas, Hermantown, Mahtomedi, Benilde and Lourdes still to come, after this week, Totino has a quality opponent every week.
This week: Thurs @ Irondale, Sat vs St Francis
4. [2] East Grand Forks (13-1-2)
After three straight shut outs, the Green Wave lost a close game to Moorhead. With 9 games remaining before sections, 6 are against teams they have previously beaten, while two are against the defending section champions TRF. The first of two games with TRF is this Tuesday and will tell us who the favorite to win the section really is. It’d be cool to see how they do against some of the other top teams in the state if they make it to the X.
This week: Tues vs #11 Thief River Falls, Thurs @ Grand Forks Red River, Fri vs Bemidji
5. [7] Duluth Denfeld (13-4)
Losing to a team you’ve lost to before isn’t much of a knock, and while Cloquet isn’t ranked, they are having a fine season. The Hunters will be much easier to assess after their road trip this week, but with recent wins over East and Hibbing, it’s tough to put them anywhere else. They are currently the favorite for 7A on paper and Marshall won’t be able to challenge them until next week.
This week: Tues vs Superior, Fri @ #11 Thief River Falls, Sat @ #12 Warroad
6. [14] Rochester Lourdes (10-5)
The Eagles are clearly not a top 2 team, but then again only 2 teams are. Lourdes has gotten throttled by both St Thomas and Breck, but has also not lost to any other MN teams, has a win over Cathedral and just beat Marshall 7-0 at MARS. With their schedule it is quite difficult to assess this team, but both their games this week and the following two weeks games with Tartan and Rogers will be good tests. If they make it to state and beat Totino in their final game, there is a possibility of a 3 seed at state.
This week: Tues vs Monticello, Thurs @ Holy Family Catholic, Sat vs Benilde-St Margaret’s
7. [15] Mankato West (13-3)
A close win is still a win. The Scarlets sit just behind a section opponent they recently lost to by 1 goal. After Lourdes, where Mankato West should be ranked is really anybody’s guess, there are a lot of question marks with them and it doesn’t help that they likely won’t be tested again until the section final game. The Scarlets continue to be a great story; junior Derek Frentz is just outside the Top 10 in the state in both points and goals. This team continues to have a bright future regardless of how section 1A goes this year.
This week: Thurs vs Rochester John Marshall, Sat vs Owatonna
8. [9] St. Cloud Cathedral (12-6)
The Crusaders are tough to place as they have been a very up and down team this season. They are one of two teams to beat Breck, have beaten Hermantown, but also have some losses you wouldn’t expect.
This week: Thurs vs Orono
9. [10] Hermantown (12-4-1)
All four of the Hawks’ losses are by a score of 5-4 and they have only been held to 3 goals twice this season. There are likely few teams they couldn’t score at least 3 on, their only issue continues to be goaltending. With 5 of their last 6 games again Cloquet, Totino, Denfeld, Superior and Hibbing, a ranking as high as top 3 by the end of the season is still within their reach, although nothing will be decided this week.
This week: Tues @ Proctor, Sat @ New Prague
10. [5] Duluth Marshall {8-8}
The Hilltoppers showed they can stay close with teams by losing to both Hermantown and Breck by only 1 goal, but fell apart in their loss to Lourdes. They have quality wins against WI teams, but nothing that screams Top 10. There is opportunity to take another dive this coming weekend.
This week: Fri @ #12 Warroad, Sat @ #11 Thief River Falls
11. [13] Thief River Falls (9-6)
The Prowlers are on a 7 game win streak where they have averaged allowing 1 GA and just beat Warroad by 4 goals, who they earlier lost to in OT. The three games this week could shoot them into the top 5 in Class A and the lead in 8A or keep them sitting right where they’re at.
This week: Tues @ #4 East Grand Forks, Fri vs #5 Duluth Denfeld, Sat vs #10 Duluth Marshall
12. [6] Warroad (13-4-1)
The Warriors added two losses this week and a win by less would’ve been expected. There is a one goal win over Cathedral on their schedule, but nothing else to indicate they should be higher and losing by a lot to a team they had previously beaten isn’t a good sign, but ultimately shows the section is up for grabs. They host two 7A teams currently ranked above them, can they pick up at least one win this weekend?
This week: Tues vs Crookston, Fri vs #10 Duluth Marshall, Sat vs #5 Duluth Denfeld
13. [11] Little Falls (12-3)
The Flyers are a great story and clearly have good defense as they held Hermantown to only 3 goals. This week they have the opportunity to prove their early loss to Princeton was a fluke. After this week they play Tech once as well as Cathedral twice.
This week: Tues @ Alexandria, Thurs vs Princeton, Sat @ Fergus Falls
14. [12] Hibbing (9-10)
Hibbing is clearly not a bad team and they have played quite few good teams this season, which is why their record is what it is. They will still likely be the third seed in 7A and no one would be surprised to see them playing in the section final or possibly at the X.
This week: Idle
15. [8] Mahtomedi (10-7)
Ranking Mahtomedi is tough; they played Breck away to OT in the early season and have played both St Thomas and Hill well, but lost to Hibbing and don’t have any quality wins on their schedule. As is, they will likely be the third seed in 4A and in 4 games will have an opportunity to earn the second seed.
This week: Sat vs Henry Sibley
Notable team
Legacy Christian Academy (13-2-2)
The Lions have already won as many games this year as last. Both of their goalies and their leading scorer are juniors, they have 3 skaters with 25 points or more and 5 of their 9 players with 10 points or more are sophomores or juniors. Will they get a top 4 seed in section 5A this year? Not likely, but they will likely be the #5 seed as they have played most of the lower teams in the section and are 7-0 in section play. Of their 13 wins this season, 7 of them are shut outs. Last year they lost 3-1 to Rogers, who will likely be the #4 seed in the section this year. It’ll be exciting to see if they can make it to the section semifinals this year.
This week: Wed @ Minneapolis, Fri vs WSFLG
Enjoy!
1. [1] Saint Thomas Academy (14-1-1)
The Cadets had an amazing week, with an away win over Shattuck and following that up with a very close home win against rival Breck, with Tommy Novak getting the game winner in both games. While they are winning, St Thomas has 6 wins against top teams in the state right now and 5 of those wins have been by 1 goal, two of them in OT. With a goalie in the top 5 in both save percentage and GAA, it will be hard to beat them, but it appears a good defense could prevent them from winning. It will be interesting to see how they do against the Pioneers Thursday in potentially effectively the conference championship game.
This week: Thurs @ Hill-Murray, Sat vs North St Paul
2. [3] Breck (12-3-1)
If the Mustangs defense like they played against St Thomas yesterday, they can stop any team from scoring. They have also shown against everyone other opponent they have played this year in averaging over 5 goals per game that they can score as well. While teams like TRF, AHA, and HF will try, it doesn’t appear the Mustangs will be challenged until at the earliest section finals, but likely the state semifinals. Henry Johnson along with their defense will keep them in any game they play and, while they have 3 players with 25 points, they will be able to score on most as well.
This week: Tues @ St Paul Academy, Thurs @ Blake
3. [4] Totino-Grace (12-2-1)
Despite the come from behind win over Chisago this week, both this past week and this week to come are wins over teams the Eagles are expected to beat. With games against St Thomas, Hermantown, Mahtomedi, Benilde and Lourdes still to come, after this week, Totino has a quality opponent every week.
This week: Thurs @ Irondale, Sat vs St Francis
4. [2] East Grand Forks (13-1-2)
After three straight shut outs, the Green Wave lost a close game to Moorhead. With 9 games remaining before sections, 6 are against teams they have previously beaten, while two are against the defending section champions TRF. The first of two games with TRF is this Tuesday and will tell us who the favorite to win the section really is. It’d be cool to see how they do against some of the other top teams in the state if they make it to the X.
This week: Tues vs #11 Thief River Falls, Thurs @ Grand Forks Red River, Fri vs Bemidji
5. [7] Duluth Denfeld (13-4)
Losing to a team you’ve lost to before isn’t much of a knock, and while Cloquet isn’t ranked, they are having a fine season. The Hunters will be much easier to assess after their road trip this week, but with recent wins over East and Hibbing, it’s tough to put them anywhere else. They are currently the favorite for 7A on paper and Marshall won’t be able to challenge them until next week.
This week: Tues vs Superior, Fri @ #11 Thief River Falls, Sat @ #12 Warroad
6. [14] Rochester Lourdes (10-5)
The Eagles are clearly not a top 2 team, but then again only 2 teams are. Lourdes has gotten throttled by both St Thomas and Breck, but has also not lost to any other MN teams, has a win over Cathedral and just beat Marshall 7-0 at MARS. With their schedule it is quite difficult to assess this team, but both their games this week and the following two weeks games with Tartan and Rogers will be good tests. If they make it to state and beat Totino in their final game, there is a possibility of a 3 seed at state.
This week: Tues vs Monticello, Thurs @ Holy Family Catholic, Sat vs Benilde-St Margaret’s
7. [15] Mankato West (13-3)
A close win is still a win. The Scarlets sit just behind a section opponent they recently lost to by 1 goal. After Lourdes, where Mankato West should be ranked is really anybody’s guess, there are a lot of question marks with them and it doesn’t help that they likely won’t be tested again until the section final game. The Scarlets continue to be a great story; junior Derek Frentz is just outside the Top 10 in the state in both points and goals. This team continues to have a bright future regardless of how section 1A goes this year.
This week: Thurs vs Rochester John Marshall, Sat vs Owatonna
8. [9] St. Cloud Cathedral (12-6)
The Crusaders are tough to place as they have been a very up and down team this season. They are one of two teams to beat Breck, have beaten Hermantown, but also have some losses you wouldn’t expect.
This week: Thurs vs Orono
9. [10] Hermantown (12-4-1)
All four of the Hawks’ losses are by a score of 5-4 and they have only been held to 3 goals twice this season. There are likely few teams they couldn’t score at least 3 on, their only issue continues to be goaltending. With 5 of their last 6 games again Cloquet, Totino, Denfeld, Superior and Hibbing, a ranking as high as top 3 by the end of the season is still within their reach, although nothing will be decided this week.
This week: Tues @ Proctor, Sat @ New Prague
10. [5] Duluth Marshall {8-8}
The Hilltoppers showed they can stay close with teams by losing to both Hermantown and Breck by only 1 goal, but fell apart in their loss to Lourdes. They have quality wins against WI teams, but nothing that screams Top 10. There is opportunity to take another dive this coming weekend.
This week: Fri @ #12 Warroad, Sat @ #11 Thief River Falls
11. [13] Thief River Falls (9-6)
The Prowlers are on a 7 game win streak where they have averaged allowing 1 GA and just beat Warroad by 4 goals, who they earlier lost to in OT. The three games this week could shoot them into the top 5 in Class A and the lead in 8A or keep them sitting right where they’re at.
This week: Tues @ #4 East Grand Forks, Fri vs #5 Duluth Denfeld, Sat vs #10 Duluth Marshall
12. [6] Warroad (13-4-1)
The Warriors added two losses this week and a win by less would’ve been expected. There is a one goal win over Cathedral on their schedule, but nothing else to indicate they should be higher and losing by a lot to a team they had previously beaten isn’t a good sign, but ultimately shows the section is up for grabs. They host two 7A teams currently ranked above them, can they pick up at least one win this weekend?
This week: Tues vs Crookston, Fri vs #10 Duluth Marshall, Sat vs #5 Duluth Denfeld
13. [11] Little Falls (12-3)
The Flyers are a great story and clearly have good defense as they held Hermantown to only 3 goals. This week they have the opportunity to prove their early loss to Princeton was a fluke. After this week they play Tech once as well as Cathedral twice.
This week: Tues @ Alexandria, Thurs vs Princeton, Sat @ Fergus Falls
14. [12] Hibbing (9-10)
Hibbing is clearly not a bad team and they have played quite few good teams this season, which is why their record is what it is. They will still likely be the third seed in 7A and no one would be surprised to see them playing in the section final or possibly at the X.
This week: Idle
15. [8] Mahtomedi (10-7)
Ranking Mahtomedi is tough; they played Breck away to OT in the early season and have played both St Thomas and Hill well, but lost to Hibbing and don’t have any quality wins on their schedule. As is, they will likely be the third seed in 4A and in 4 games will have an opportunity to earn the second seed.
This week: Sat vs Henry Sibley
Notable team
Legacy Christian Academy (13-2-2)
The Lions have already won as many games this year as last. Both of their goalies and their leading scorer are juniors, they have 3 skaters with 25 points or more and 5 of their 9 players with 10 points or more are sophomores or juniors. Will they get a top 4 seed in section 5A this year? Not likely, but they will likely be the #5 seed as they have played most of the lower teams in the section and are 7-0 in section play. Of their 13 wins this season, 7 of them are shut outs. Last year they lost 3-1 to Rogers, who will likely be the #4 seed in the section this year. It’ll be exciting to see if they can make it to the section semifinals this year.
This week: Wed @ Minneapolis, Fri vs WSFLG