Rankings as of 1/11

[karl(east)]

Following the positive reception that last week's rankings received, I'm trying it again. To say it has been an eventful week in HS hockey would be putting it mildly.

1. Edina
-Cleaned up on Cloquet in their only game of the week. This upcoming week, on the other hand, will present two much more difficult road tests for the Hornets. Should be some excellent hockey.
This week: Tues @ #11 Benilde, Fri @ #6 Eden Prairie.

2. Bloomington Jefferson
-Also handled their opposition with ease this past week. This week, they look to continue their march through the Lake Conference.
This week: Tues @ Lakeville North, Sat @ Burnsville

3. Centennial
-Despite being tested by Maple Grove, they asserted their status in 5AA with the Pitlick-less win. Another huge section game this upcoming Saturday.
This week: Thurs vs. Andover, Sat vs. #4 Blaine

4. Blaine
-Asserted their legitimacy as a serious contender on the state level with the win over Duluth East. This week, they provide some thrilling Section 5 action with two huge games. This section is shaping up to have an excellent race down the stretch.
This week: Thurs vs. #10 Maple Grove, Sat @ #3 Centennial

5. Holy Angels
-Did what was expected this week. This week brings much better tests for the Stars.
This week: Tues vs. #13 Hill-Murray, Thurs @ #12 Minnetonka, Friday vs. Mt. St. Charles Academy (RI)

6. Eden Prairie
-Some interesting variety in their schedule. Such is life in the Lake Conference this year. A second shot at Edina awaits them on Friday.
This week: Tues @ Lakeville South, Fri vs. #1 Edina, Sat. @ Apple Valley

7. Duluth East
-Bad loss to Blaine, but took command of the section, even with an ugly win over Elk River. Must shore up the defense to play up to their potential.
This week: Tues vs. Duluth Denfeld, Thurs vs. Grand Rapids, Sat "@" White Bear Lake (at Excel Center; part of Hockey Day in MN)

8. Woodbury
-Dominated CDH to take control of Section 3. Quietly putting together a very solid year, though their schedule doesn't really allow them to make many big statements on a statewide level.
This week: Thurs @ Roseville, Sat vs. Forest Lake

9. Wayzata
-Continue to surprise with their steadiness and suddenly looking like the possible #2 seed in Section 6.
This week: Tues @ Rogers, Thurs vs. Eastview

10. Maple Grove
-May have lost their first game, but hanging with Centennial as well as they did proved just how real this team is. We'll learn plenty more about them very soon.
This week: Thurs @ #4 Blaine, Sat vs. Osseo

11. Benilde-St. Margaret's
-Upset win over Minnetonka proves that they'll be a viable contender in Section 6. A number of difficult games lie ahead of them.
This week: Tues vs. #1 Edina, Sat @ Duluth Marshall

12. Minnetonka
-Play everyone well, but seem to have trouble getting the big wins against a tough schedule, Hill aside. It would do them well to fix that, because it's more of the same to come. 3 ranked opponents this week.
This week: Tues @ #15 Stillwater, Thurs vs. #5 Holy Angels, Sat. vs. #14 Moorhead

13. Hill-Murray
-Well, a lot has changed for this program in the past week. My respect for Coach Lechner shot up quite a bit with his handling of the "incident." Unfortunately, respect for coaches is not a criterion for ranking, and right now this team is in a free-fall from their seemingly insurmountable position less than a month ago. Time to really see what they're made of, and how they'll handle a very intriguing section race.
This week: Tues @ #5 Holy Angels, Thurs vs. Richfield, Sat vs. North

14. Moorhead
-Good enough to win Section 8, but evidently not good enough to score a goal on much of anyone who's a state contender. They get another crack at that on Saturday.
This week: Tues @ Bemidji, Sat vs. #12 Minnetonka

15. Stillwater
-A bit of an unexpected addition to the rankings. But they are consistently playing good teams well, and they suddenly appear to be a serious contender for the section crown. We'll see how well they hang with Minnetonka.
This week: Tues vs. #12 Minnetonka, Sat @ Park (CG)

Others of some note: White Bear Lake (their odds have sure gone up in the past week...though they lost to Roseville tonight, which is hardly convincing. So I suppose we need to throw them into the 4AA fire too, and maybe Tartan for good measure as well. Suddenly, this section is very muddled, and rather weak too.)

Other than that, though, none of the other bubble teams are doing much to improve their resumes.

[dulutheastfan]

agree...well done again karl..

[Teak]

Following the positive reception that last week's rankings received, I'm trying it again. To say it has been an eventful week in HS hockey would be putting it mildly.

12. Minnetonka
-Play everyone well, but seem to have trouble getting the big wins against a tough schedule, Hill aside. It would do them well to fix that, because it's more of the same to come. 3 ranked opponents this week.
This week: Tues @ #15 Stillwater, Thurs vs. #5 Holy Angels, Sat. vs. #14 Moorhead

Nice review karl(east)!

Does any other school have a harder schedule this year than 'Tonka??

[dynamicD]

1. Jefferson (They have allowed only 2 goals in their last 5 games and 10 total in 12 games thus far, defense wins championships right?)
2. Edina (High power offense was on display vs cloquet but if they come away next week with both wins then I'll rightfully assert the hornets on top at #1)
3. Centennial (Tons of talent on this team, don't let their close scores fool you)
4. Holy Angels (Wouldn't it be crazy if AHA beats Hill and Tonka next week and the state rankings would be 1 2 3 with all section 2AA teams Edina Jefferson and AHA)
5. Blaine (Beat a Duluth East and although East seems to be struggling as of late it was still a good win)
6. Eden Prairie (The loss to Jefferson makes the the 2nd team in the Lake but no one else really challenges them. Beat Edina coming up and a top 3 spot i think wouldn't be out of reach)
7. Wayzata (Sneaking good team and i think their match-up earlier in the year vs Jefferson proves that they are very solid)
8. Duluth East ( I thought this team was rollin a few weeks ago but they are havin a rough patch lately, they better make sure they beat rapids)
9. Benilde (Solid team with a solid win this week, not thinkin they takin down edina though)
10. Maple Grove (Hung in there with Centennial so there record to me seems legit, if they beat Blaine i expect for them to rise up in the rankings quickly)

[O-townClown]

Does any other school have a harder schedule this year than 'Tonka??

At this point Edina's is registering the most difficult on www.mnhockeyrankings.com. Minnetonka is in the Top 5.

When it is all done it is possible that Minnetonka's is the toughest. They face Edina twice, and that gets them more credit than the flip where Edina faces Minnetonka twice.

Eden Prairie, Holy Angels, Wayzata, Moorhead, Champlin Park, Burnsville are also Top 8.

[DoubleDeuce]

Thanks Again karl(east)! I look forward to these rankings now more than the LPH rankings! Very accurate!

[DoubleDeuce]

4. Holy Angels (Wouldn't it be crazy if AHA beats Hill and Tonka next week and the state rankings would be 1 2 3 with all section 2AA teams Edina Jefferson and AHA)

It's possible, but with a Centennial win over #5 Blaine, Centennial remains at 3 or with Blaine win over #10 Maple Grove and a win over #3 Centennial, Blaine should be the #3 with thier only loss to #1 Edina.

[WBLHockeyfan04]

I agree with the rankings Karl. Unfortunately, only one of those dominant teams from 2AA will get to go to state. I know I'm rooting for a Bloomington Jefferson vs Edina Section Championship. Could be the game of the year!

[JV State Champs]

1. Edina- When they play well no one can match them.
2. Jefferson- Best defensemen in the state too bad they are in the same section as Edina.
3. Centennial- Game against Duluth East was best of the year so far.
4. EP- played both Edina and Jefferson tight.
5. Duluth East- Only team from outstate with a chance of winning it all.
6. St. Thomas- Move up to 2A already why dont you.
7. Holy Angels- Mattson is still the best player in the state. But they had no chance against Edina.
8. Blaine- Win over Duluth East was huge.
9. BSM- Win over Tonka gives this team some life. Lets see how they do against Edina this week.
10. Hill- Believe it or not there still is a fair amount of talent left on this team.

[MNHockey75]

AA
1. Edina 12-1
2. Bloomington Jefferson 12-0
3. Blaine 12-1
4. Eden Prairie 9-2
5. Centennial 9-1-1
6. Duluth East 9-2-1
7. Academy of Holy Angels 7-2-1
8. Wayzata 8-3-1
9. Benilde-St. Margaret’s 10-2
10. Minnetonka 8-5

[IMHO]

AA
1. Edina 12-1
2. Bloomington Jefferson 12-0
3. Blaine 12-1
4. Eden Prairie 9-2
5. Centennial 9-1-1
6. Duluth East 9-2-1
7. Academy of Holy Angels 7-2-1
8. Wayzata 8-3-1
9. Benilde-St. Margaret’s 10-2
10. Minnetonka 8-5

While I still don't quite understand EP at #4, can you imagine if they wouldn't have lost a couple of their upper players this year?

[MNHockey75]

AA
1. Edina 12-1
2. Bloomington Jefferson 12-0
3. Blaine 12-1
4. Eden Prairie 9-2
5. Centennial 9-1-1
6. Duluth East 9-2-1
7. Academy of Holy Angels 7-2-1
8. Wayzata 8-3-1
9. Benilde-St. Margaret’s 10-2
10. Minnetonka 8-5

While I still don't quite understand EP at #4, can you imagine if they wouldn't have lost a couple of their upper players this year?

They might be #1 in the state. I have them at 4 because they lost by 1 to the 2 best teams in the state. And have taken care of business elsewhere with some nice wins over Eagan (8-2), Eastview (6-1), Lakeville North (7-3), Chaska (8-2), Elk River (4-2), Minnetonka (4-2), and Burnsville (3-1). We'll see this week if Blaine deserves the #3 spot.

[The51]

1. Jefferson (They have allowed only 2 goals in their last 5 games and 10 total in 12 games thus far, defense wins championships right?)
2. Edina (High power offense was on display vs cloquet but if they come away next week with both wins then I'll rightfully assert the hornets on top at #1)
3. Centennial (Tons of talent on this team, don't let their close scores fool you)
4. Holy Angels (Wouldn't it be crazy if AHA beats Hill and Tonka next week and the state rankings would be 1 2 3 with all section 2AA teams Edina Jefferson and AHA)
5. Blaine (Beat a Duluth East and although East seems to be struggling as of late it was still a good win)
6. Eden Prairie (The loss to Jefferson makes the the 2nd team in the Lake but no one else really challenges them. Beat Edina coming up and a top 3 spot i think wouldn't be out of reach)
7. Wayzata (Sneaking good team and i think their match-up earlier in the year vs Jefferson proves that they are very solid)
8. Duluth East ( I thought this team was rollin a few weeks ago but they are havin a rough patch lately, they better make sure they beat rapids)
9. Benilde (Solid team with a solid win this week, not thinkin they takin down edina though)
10. Maple Grove (Hung in there with Centennial so there record to me seems legit, if they beat Blaine i expect for them to rise up in the rankings quickly)

ya if they keep playing weak teams

[redfirehockey1]

1. Jefferson (They have allowed only 2 goals in their last 5 games and 10 total in 12 games thus far, defense wins championships right?)
2. Edina (High power offense was on display vs cloquet but if they come away next week with both wins then I'll rightfully assert the hornets on top at #1)
3. Centennial (Tons of talent on this team, don't let their close scores fool you)
4. Holy Angels (Wouldn't it be crazy if AHA beats Hill and Tonka next week and the state rankings would be 1 2 3 with all section 2AA teams Edina Jefferson and AHA)
5. Blaine (Beat a Duluth East and although East seems to be struggling as of late it was still a good win)
6. Eden Prairie (The loss to Jefferson makes the the 2nd team in the Lake but no one else really challenges them. Beat Edina coming up and a top 3 spot i think wouldn't be out of reach)
7. Wayzata (Sneaking good team and i think their match-up earlier in the year vs Jefferson proves that they are very solid)
8. Duluth East ( I thought this team was rollin a few weeks ago but they are havin a rough patch lately, they better make sure they beat rapids)
9. Benilde (Solid team with a solid win this week, not thinkin they takin down edina though)
10. Maple Grove (Hung in there with Centennial so there record to me seems legit, if they beat Blaine i expect for them to rise up in the rankings quickly)

ya if they keep playing weak teams

last time I checked they beat 2 top 10 teams

[karl(east)]

1. Jefferson (They have allowed only 2 goals in their last 5 games and 10 total in 12 games thus far, defense wins championships right?)
2. Edina (High power offense was on display vs cloquet but if they come away next week with both wins then I'll rightfully assert the hornets on top at #1)
3. Centennial (Tons of talent on this team, don't let their close scores fool you)
4. Holy Angels (Wouldn't it be crazy if AHA beats Hill and Tonka next week and the state rankings would be 1 2 3 with all section 2AA teams Edina Jefferson and AHA)
5. Blaine (Beat a Duluth East and although East seems to be struggling as of late it was still a good win)
6. Eden Prairie (The loss to Jefferson makes the the 2nd team in the Lake but no one else really challenges them. Beat Edina coming up and a top 3 spot i think wouldn't be out of reach)
7. Wayzata (Sneaking good team and i think their match-up earlier in the year vs Jefferson proves that they are very solid)
8. Duluth East ( I thought this team was rollin a few weeks ago but they are havin a rough patch lately, they better make sure they beat rapids)
9. Benilde (Solid team with a solid win this week, not thinkin they takin down edina though)
10. Maple Grove (Hung in there with Centennial so there record to me seems legit, if they beat Blaine i expect for them to rise up in the rankings quickly)

ya if they keep playing weak teams

last time I checked they beat 2 top 10 teams

Edina's beaten 5, plus two others ranked 10-15.

I don't think total goal differential is a good way to compare these two teams. Against common opponents, maybe.

[HShockeywatcher]

My top 10:
1. Edina
2. Blaine - only loss to Edina in Edina. Managed more goals on Edina than anyone aside from Edina's first game of the year.
3. Jefferson - Undefeated. Beat EP, Rapids and Wayzata.
4. Eden Prairie - Beat Tonka, only losses to Edina and Jefferson, both by 1 goal and away.
5. Holy Angels - After seeing them play St Thomas and Edina, I'd like to put them higher, but they haven't played enough top MN teams to get that and stumbled against a mediocre WBL team.
6. Centennial - Sloppy loss to WBL, but made up for it by handling both STA and HM and handing Maple Grove their first loss.
7. St Thomas - Beat Tonka, HM and Moorhead, but with losses to Holy Angels and Centennial, probably not able to get much higher the rest of the year.
8. Duluth East - Tied Centennial and lost to Breck and Blaine both by two goals, but have taken care of Wayzata, Moorhead and Tonka. Should win out and go to state with a 4 seed if EP makes it, 3 seed if Tonka or Wayzata make it.
9. Minnetonka - Beat HM, DM and WBL and only loss not to a team above them is BSM.
10. Wayzata - Losses to Edina, East and Jefferson by a combine 6 goals. Since then have won 8 in a row.

WBL - can play with anyone but not consistent.
Hill - few key losses and tying Tartan after losing players hurts.

[karl(east)]

Just a quick clarification: my rankings only include AA teams. I do not mean to slight any top A teams; I simply don't feel I know A hockey well enough to justify ranking them in with the AAs, or even by themselves, for that matter. And since they don't play for the same championship, I see no reason to do so.

If you want to include A teams in your rankings, by all means, go for it. It can be interesting to see how people think they measure up.

[dynamicD]

Hey Ep and Jefferson are playing the same teams essentially, I guess this whole weak schedule thing just is never gonna go away for the Jags. It must be there fault for being so good when the rest of the Lake (minus EP) sucks.

[gophermadman]

AA
1. Edina 12-1
2. Bloomington Jefferson 12-0
3. Blaine 12-1
4. Eden Prairie 9-2
5. Centennial 9-1-1
6. Duluth East 9-2-1
7. Academy of Holy Angels 7-2-1
8. Wayzata 8-3-1
9. Benilde-St. Margaret’s 10-2
10. Minnetonka 8-5

While I still don't quite understand EP at #4, can you imagine if they wouldn't have lost a couple of their upper players this year?

doesnt that apply to every school?
Imagine if Bloomington and Woodbury retained talent better. If Jefferson's 06 team had its Peewee A lineup, that may have very well been the best team ever. If woodbury could stop its defections to Hill and Ann Arbor, wow, they would be a top notch program. Player leave, yea it sucks and I hate it, but it happens.

my point: mute point

[youngblood08]

AA
1. Edina 12-1
2. Bloomington Jefferson 12-0
3. Blaine 12-1
4. Eden Prairie 9-2
5. Centennial 9-1-1
6. Duluth East 9-2-1
7. Academy of Holy Angels 7-2-1
8. Wayzata 8-3-1
9. Benilde-St. Margaret’s 10-2
10. Minnetonka 8-5

While I still don't quite understand EP at #4, can you imagine if they wouldn't have lost a couple of their upper players this year?

doesnt that apply to every school?
Imagine if Bloomington and Woodbury retained talent better. If Jefferson's 06 team had its Peewee A lineup, that may have very well been the best team ever. If woodbury could stop its defections to Hill and Ann Arbor, wow, they would be a top notch program. Player leave, yea it sucks and I hate it, but it happens.

my point: mute point

You lost 1 kid in the history of USNDP from Woodbury. And he would have left for JRs early anyways. Mute-point indeed.

[Sykes]

While I still don't quite understand EP at #4, can you imagine if they wouldn't have lost a couple of their upper players this year?

doesnt that apply to every school?
Imagine if Bloomington and Woodbury retained talent better. If Jefferson's 06 team had its Peewee A lineup, that may have very well been the best team ever. If woodbury could stop its defections to Hill and Ann Arbor, wow, they would be a top notch program. Player leave, yea it sucks and I hate it, but it happens.

my point: mute point

You lost 1 kid in the history of USNDP from Woodbury. And he would have left for JRs early anyways. Mute-point indeed.

The loss of talent from Woodbury has stopped. Currently there is 1 senior at Hill and 1 at CDH that are major contributors. And as mentioned earlier 1 at USNDP. There has been no one that has left from the Junior class. This is quite the turn around from 2-3 years ago when there was a complete line at Hill, a complete line at CDH and a couple of players at STA. Unfortunately at Woodbury, the kids are staying with the school but now the school has decided to split. While no one faults the kids that have left, I think Woodbury is doing very well and is happy with the kids they have on the team.

[slapstkhound]

doesnt that apply to every school?
Imagine if Bloomington and Woodbury retained talent better. If Jefferson's 06 team had its Peewee A lineup, that may have very well been the best team ever. If woodbury could stop its defections to Hill and Ann Arbor, wow, they would be a top notch program. Player leave, yea it sucks and I hate it, but it happens.

my point: mute point

You lost 1 kid in the history of USNDP from Woodbury. And he would have left for JRs early anyways. Mute-point indeed.

The loss of talent from Woodbury has stopped. Currently there is 1 senior at Hill and 1 at CDH that are major contributors. And as mentioned earlier 1 at USNDP. There has been no one that has left from the Junior class. This is quite the turn around from 2-3 years ago when there was a complete line at Hill, a complete line at CDH and a couple of players at STA. Unfortunately at Woodbury, the kids are staying with the school but now the school has decided to split. While no one faults the kids that have left, I think Woodbury is doing very well and is happy with the kids they have on the team.

The class of juniors will be unaffected by the school split. They will remain together through their senior year. It's mainly the JV team that will be impacted with the majority of those skaters going to East Ridge. The current junior class made the decision as PeeWees to stick together through high school and have done well as a result.

[wbmd]

You lost 1 kid in the history of USNDP from Woodbury. And he would have left for JRs early anyways. Mute-point indeed.

Woodbury has lost at least two players that have played for the USNDP.

Besides Nick Pryor, Jim MacKenzie played at Hill-Murray and left after his sophomore year in 2000 to play in Ann Arbor.

Now, get back to the thread subject of rankings.

[EHSHack]

My top 10:
1. Edina
2. Blaine - only loss to Edina in Edina. Managed more goals on Edina than anyone aside from Edina's first game of the year.
3. Jefferson - Undefeated. Beat EP, Rapids and Wayzata.
4. Eden Prairie - Beat Tonka, only losses to Edina and Jefferson, both by 1 goal and away.
5. Holy Angels - After seeing them play St Thomas and Edina, I'd like to put them higher, but they haven't played enough top MN teams to get that and stumbled against a mediocre WBL team.
6. Centennial - Sloppy loss to WBL, but made up for it by handling both STA and HM and handing Maple Grove their first loss.
7. St Thomas - Beat Tonka, HM and Moorhead, but with losses to Holy Angels and Centennial, probably not able to get much higher the rest of the year.
8. Duluth East - Tied Centennial and lost to Breck and Blaine both by two goals, but have taken care of Wayzata, Moorhead and Tonka. Should win out and go to state with a 4 seed if EP makes it, 3 seed if Tonka or Wayzata make it.
9. Minnetonka - Beat HM, DM and WBL and only loss not to a team above them is BSM.
10. Wayzata - Losses to Edina, East and Jefferson by a combine 6 goals. Since then have won 8 in a row.

WBL - can play with anyone but not consistent.
Hill - few key losses and tying Tartan after losing players hurts.

I wouldnt say East lose by 2 goals to Breck and Blaine. Yes they did, but only 3 and 4 shots beat Cooper, respectively.

[RamWarrior]

Moorhead #14 is a big stretch, they will once again sweep Roseau just to lose to the Rams in the Section 8AA Final!!!!!