Way Too Early Class A Ranking for 2024-25

[ClassAGuy]

BHS Way-Too-Early Class A Ranking for 2024-25 season

Well Class A fans with the Tourney 24 now officially in the books, my attention turns to next season for my last post before next year's Class A Preseason Rankings. My annual "Way Too Early Class A Ranking for 2024-25" is below. Next year should be the most even year of Class A yet as there will be many teams that will be in the chase for the title. New Attendance records were set for Class A for both Friday and Saturday this year and I think with how even and good Class A looks next year those number will be broken again.

As always, this list was created assuming all non-seniors will be back with their respective teams next season.

1- St. Cloud Cathedral (5A)- The Defending Champs should be a very strong again next year as they bring back 2/3 of their elite line in Juniors John Hirschfeld & Joey Gillespie who will dominate if they return for their 4th seasons of varsity and they also have Juniors Jaeger Wood & Caden Johnson and Sophomore Noah Klein who will be back as well with varsity experience under their belt to build depth around. They have a stud in Sophomore Griffin Sturm to build around on the blueline and goaltender Sophomore Keaton LeGrande looked good in limited action, when Hansen was hurt, and is ready to step in at net. Also, SCC always seems to attract a few good local elite players and this team, if everyone is back, will be very strong.

2- East Grand Forks (8A)- The Greewave will be loaded next year and are the new dark horse bet to win Class A. Up front they return 7 forwards in Juniors Jace Van Eps, Cooper Hills & Hunter Varnson along with youngsters Sophomores Tucker Lovejoy, Nolan Meulebrock, Braden Overgaard & 9th grader Jace Panzer who all played good minutes this winter. On the blueline Juniors Cole Bies, Nick Corbett & Judd Pesch are back with tons of experience and they return their starter in net as Junior Ryan Rockstad is back. Add in more good AA Bantams coming up and the 8A Section Playoffs being in EGF next year and watch out for the Greenwave they look primed for a very big run of good hockey teams over the next 5-8 years.

3- Hermantown (7A)- The Hawks can never not be mentioned at the top of any Class A ranking. Up front they will return Junior River Freeman & Sophomore Ford Skytta from the top line along with Junior Charlie Marchand and Sophomores Bode Madill & Henry Martinsen to build the offense around. On the blueline Junior Henry Peterson & Sophomore AJ Francisco are D1 talents to build around but questions around both of their returns swirl and are legitimate concerns. They will need a goalie to step in but they always reload and another wave of AA Bantams, who qualified for state, are on the way ready to step in and again until someone up north can prove different they are the king of 7A and have been written in stone to play on Friday at State.

4- Hibbing/Chisholm (7A)- The Bluejacket will be young and loaded coming into next winter. This past season they were led by young guns Sophomores Tate Swanson, Kelin Elsner, Isaiah Hildenbrand, Benny Galli, Hunter Gustavsson and 9th grader Joey Gabardi all return up front and Freshman Jackson Strukel and Sophomores Ethan Sundvall & Mason McDonald are back with experience on the blueline. In the net Sophomore Gavin Lamphere & Junior Rex Walli split time to bring back plenty of big game experience there. Add in more good A Bantams coming up and they will be a very real problem for the Hawks starting next year as 7A will be a treat to watch play out up at Amsoil in the sections next year.

5- Delano (2A)- The Tigers look loaded next year and ready to take over Section 2A. Up front they return tons of talent in Juniors Mason Hargarten, Joseph McCabe & Bryce Peterson along with a really good core of Sophomores Daniel Halonen, Andrew Bruett, Brody Geislinger & Jacob Parlich all who played good minutes this year and will be back a year older. On Defense Juniors Aaron Halonen & Markus Kangas are back to build around and they have Sophomore Evan Geyen back as the starter and net and he got a ton of experience taking over the net in the 2nd half of this past offseason. Add to that more good A Bantams coming up and great coaching and it adds up to big things ahead for Delano.

6- Mahtomedi (4A)- The Zephyrs are another team that you can now always pencil into a Top 10 Class A ranking and will most likely be playing on Friday at State it seems. Up front Sophomores Jimmy Egan & Brayden Fuerst and Juniors Winston Wright, Laken Decker & Ryan Lipovitz return with experience. On defense their stud Junior Sam Harris is back to build around and Goaltender Junior Wes Strub got lots of action splitting the net. There are more than enough pieces for Coach Poeschl to mold another contender into by the time March rolls around next year and they will be heavy favorites out of 4A and there is another crew of good AA Bantams coming in to make Mahtomedi look as tough as ever again next year.

7- Warroad (8A)- The Warriors will have plenty of question marks next year and this might be high but going with tradition. Up front Juniors Taven James & Draydin Johnson return along with Sophomores Dominic Anthony & Ryan Shaugabay for experience. On the blueline Sophomores Broden Hontvet, Sam Hard, Mason Reed & Thomas Grapentine will be back to build around. They have major questions everywhere else but they have an excellent crew of A Bantams who are ranked #1 and qualified for State that are coming up and they always seem to put high caliber teams on the ice so sticking with history on this one and will put them here for now as Warroad is another team you can always pencil into a Class A Top 10.

8- Northfield (1A) - The Raiders did graduate a great senior class but they have a good nucleus of underclassmen returning. Up Front Junior Will Cashin & Griffin Kennelly and Sophomores Michael Steward, Oliver Benjamin & Christian Whiteman are back with experience. The blueline has Sophomores Bridger Riley, Ashton Pumper and 9th grader Ben Geiger back and Goaltender Junior Max Frank is back in net to give this team a very good core. They will again be the favorite in Section 1A to make their third connective trip to St Paul.

9- Northern Lakes (6A)- The Lightning look loaded next year in 6A. Juniors Drew Paulback, Easton Anderson, Jerome Martin & Finnegan Fogarty and Sophomore Jacob Peterson all back. On defense Junior Wyatt Balmer & Freshman Grant Vershay are back as high level defenders. In net Sophomore Hunter Moreland is ready to start and they have a very good group of A Bantams that qualified for State coming up ready to play and everything is in place for the Lightning to break through to State next winter.

10- Alexandria (6A)- The Cards won't give up 6A easily and they have nice pieces returning from their State Tournament team. Up front Sophomores Evan Klimek & Brody Berg and 9th graders Grady Olson & William Thornburg return and played big minutes this year. On defense Sophomore Niklas Schultz & 9th grader Grady Suchy return with experience. However, they will need a goalie but they have a good youth program with more AA Bantams coming up and they will be a contender for their 4th straight trip to state and 6A will be fun to watch.

11- Cloquet/Esko/Carlton (7A)- The Lumberjacks bring back their main core next year and will be a factor in Class A as well as 7A. Juniors Bobby Thornton, Niko Gentilini, Grady Knutson & Brody Dushkin return up front were their main scorers and should bring good offense back. Junior Karson Young & Sophomore Cole Painovich return on the blueline to give them experience. Also, their main two goalies Sophomore Jacob Iallonardo & Junior Jamis Halverson are back and their A Bantams qualified for State so this will be another quality team in a tough 7A.

12- Orono (2A)- The Spartans did graduate a huge Senior class but they do have some left over pieces to build a solid team. Sophomores Jackson Knight & Rory Kvern and Juniors Trey Landa & Lachlan Hoffman are back up front with plenty of offensive experience. Juniors Peyton Mulheran, Miller Williams & Sophomore Luca DeCubellis are back on the blue line with good experience. Also, Junior Evan Schmidt got experience in net to give Orono a good core to build with and they will still be a very good Top 15 Class A team.

13- Little Falls (5A)- The Flyers should have a good tough nosed squad next year. Up front Juniors Luke Avery, Ryan Oothodt, Joey Welinski & Lucas Jendro all return with a lot of varsity experience to lead the offense. Sophomore Remi Chisholm turned into a nice defender and he will be back with 9th grader Kyler Schmidgall along with most of their blue line. They also have the x factor in net in goaltender Sophomore Izaak Kalis who as Junior is one of the best in all of Class A next year making LF very tough team again nxt winter.

14- Monticello (5A)- The Moose are another team that is always competitive and should again be a very good Top 15 Class A team looking at next year. Up front Junior Landen Scherber returns and Sophomores Liam O'Donnell & Ashton Stoll are back to lead the offense. Defensively, Junior Aidan Widmark & Freshman Nicklas Nelson are back as really good defenseman. They will need a goalie and depth but they have a good crew of A Bantams on the way up and they will be a very good team again within a competitive Section 5A.

15- Detroit Lakes (8A)- The Lakers are a team that should make a big jump next year and have a ton of talent returning next year. Offensively, Juniors Kash Benson, Brock Bender & Owen Chiodo and Sophomores Easton Kennedy & Will Cymbaluk all return for offense. On the the blue line Juniors Thomas Suckert & Jace Fields and Sophomore Hudson Pettit are back and to add to that promising Freshman Griffin Lindberg back in neet and there is a lot to like about Detroit Lake next winter as they look to break up the Big Three in Section 8A.

16- Minneapolis (2A)- The 612 crew will look to build off their late 2A playoff push and should have a quality team back to build around next year. They return some nice pieces on offense led by Juniors Nick Anderson, Johan Krasean & Matthew Walsh and Sophomore Eli Milinkovich who all had good years offensively. However, the key to this team’s success next year will be on the blueline and in the net as they just struggled to defend but they did come on strong at the end and Juniors Niklaus Nordeen & Maverick Knoke are back to build around.

17- Thief River Falls (8A)- The Prowlers graduated almost everyone but again just going on tradition as they always field a strong team up in 8A. Offensively, Freshman Spencer Anderson is a star and will be looked at to produce even more. Juniors Rylan Leake & Paul Anderson and Sophomore Bennett Borgen are also back looking to be even better to provide TRF with depth scoring. Juniors Owen Bushy, Jameson Hurst & Parker Lundgrenwill back on the blueline. However, after that lots of question marks but great coaching and tradition will keep them a Top 20 team.

18- Proctor (7A)- The Rails will look to build on the momentum of their outstanding season and yes they graduated their elite goalie but they are returning a good core of players. Up front Juniors Tanner Ross & Austin Bryant along with Sophomore Breckin Ross are back who all contributed a lot to the offense. On the blueline Junior Cooper Annala is back and if goaltender Junior Brayden Mclean can be solid there's a lot to like here for them to be in the top 4 of 7A and have another good season next winter.

19- Southwest Christian/Richfield (4A)- The Stars had a great run in the 4A Playoffs this year as they nearly upset the Zephyrs to make their 1st state tourney berth. While they did graduate a very good group of seniors they do return a core to be optimistic about. Up front Junior Paul Horner & Sophomore Christian Greer are back to lead that group. They also return stud Sophomore Tate Hardacre & 9th grader Bennett Breuer on D as 5 of their 6 regulars from the Dcore return which is big as they will need to break in a new goalie next year but still they are a team to watch.

20- Waseca (1A)- The Bluejays have loads of excitement heading into next year as they return nearly everyone, many of whom were freshmen coming back and they jump to the top of the contender list for Northfield in 1A. 9th graders Griffin Storey, Henry Huttemier & Cash Lynch and Juniors Brayden Hesch-Priem & Hunter Anderson and host of other underclassman lead the way up front and 9th grader Beckett Srp leads the blueline. Junior Carter Martens & 9th Grader Josiah Schmidtke are back in net and Waseca is a team to keep an eye on now.

Thanks for another great season and cant wait till next year! Enjoy the Offseason Everyone!

[rainier2]

This is great. I did a little digging to see how much scoring top A teams were returning, and I'd agree with most of your rankings. The only things I'd predict are:

-EGF will be #1 with a bullet. They should be incredibly deep.
-Northern Lakes higher, as high as #6.
-Monticello higher, as high as #10.
-Mahtomedi possibly lower, as I think they were losing youth talent to H-M.

As you point out, Hibbing will close the gap with Hermantown significantly, Warroad will take a solid step back (and may not be the favorite in 8A for the foreseeable future), and Northfield is hit hard by graduation, yet is still the 1A favorite. Hopefully we'll see some new blood at the tourney next year!

Thanks for all the great rankings and content, Class A Guy, it is much appreciated.

[ClassAGuy]

This is great. I did a little digging to see how much scoring top A teams were returning, and I'd agree with most of your rankings. The only things I'd predict are:

-EGF will be #1 with a bullet. They should be incredibly deep.
-Northern Lakes higher, as high as #6.
-Monticello higher, as high as #10.
-Mahtomedi possibly lower, as I think they were losing youth talent to H-M.

As you point out, Hibbing will close the gap with Hermantown significantly, Warroad will take a solid step back (and may not be the favorite in 8A for the foreseeable future), and Northfield is hit hard by graduation, yet is still the 1A favorite. Hopefully we'll see some new blood at the tourney next year!

Thanks for all the great rankings and content, Class A Guy, it is much appreciated.

Good Stuff here rainier2!
I had EGF #1 for the last week then watching SCC with Hirschfeld, Gillispie and Sturm at the Tourney that Big 3 reminds me of a Warroad and Andover like Top unit run but Depth may be key however, they always seem to draw in talent. The LeGrande kid in net they got to replace Hansen from STMA is a good one.

Northern Lakes love everything about that team next year agree could rise.

Good Call on Moose will need to look at them more in the offseason feel like they are a year away yet. They will be be very good though.

I never discount the Zephs just always seem to reload

NFLD should cruise in 1A they bring back A ton! Warroad will be in rebuild mode but good crew coming in,

Hawks, Hibbing & CEC are gonna make 7A very fun and Proctor brings back good scoring.

So many fun storylines for A cant wait until then enjoy the offseason! Always appreciate the Class A Chatter!

[ClassAGuy]

As you point out, Hibbing will close the gap with Hermantown significantly, Warroad will take a solid step back (and may not be the favorite in 8A for the foreseeable future), and Northfield is hit hard by graduation, yet is still the 1A favorite. Hopefully we'll see some new blood at the tourney next year!

Thanks for all the great rankings and content, Class A Guy, it is much appreciated.

Rainier will Cole Swanson & Whitaker Rewertz both be 9th graders next year? I am assuming they both will be brought up to the High School Team.

[rainier2]

As you point out, Hibbing will close the gap with Hermantown significantly, Warroad will take a solid step back (and may not be the favorite in 8A for the foreseeable future), and Northfield is hit hard by graduation, yet is still the 1A favorite. Hopefully we'll see some new blood at the tourney next year!

Thanks for all the great rankings and content, Class A Guy, it is much appreciated.

Rainier will Cole Swanson & Whitaker Rewertz both be 9th graders next year? I am assuming they both will be brought up to the High School Team.

Yep, they will both be freshmen. I also assume they will play HS next year.

[ClassAGuy]

As you point out, Hibbing will close the gap with Hermantown significantly, Warroad will take a solid step back (and may not be the favorite in 8A for the foreseeable future), and Northfield is hit hard by graduation, yet is still the 1A favorite. Hopefully we'll see some new blood at the tourney next year!

Thanks for all the great rankings and content, Class A Guy, it is much appreciated.

Rainier will Cole Swanson & Whitaker Rewertz both be 9th graders next year? I am assuming they both will be brought up to the High School Team.

Yep, they will both be freshmen. I also assume they will play HS next year.

Awesome thank you!