AA Preseason Rankings for 2025-2026

[karl(east)]

Welcome back to another season of high school hockey! It was a busy offseason, and tracking down good information on who’s staying and going was as hard as it’s ever been; I am confident in my number one, but only in vague zones beyond that. The real work will start in a couple of weeks, but until then, this is a starting point. The “schedule” line lists all games between now and November 30, when the first in-season rankings will come out.

1. Moorhead
-The defending champs are on top until someone defeats them. Tyden Bergeson and Brandon Mickelson give them two Mr. Hockey finalist candidates, and a pair of Cullens(!) are along for the ride; the defense is in great shape and even with some departures, there is still plenty of depth. They also just have a clearer road to a title defense than any of the other highly ranked teams, thanks to a more forgiving section. They open with the customary Turkey Trot, which includes an immediate state semifinal rematch, and head north right after that for a top-flight Class A contender and a traditional section rival.
Schedule: Wayzata Turkey Trot—Fri 11/21 vs. #13 Wayzata, Sat 11/22 vs. #7 Edina; Fri 11/28 at Warroad, Sat 11/29 at Roseau

2. Hill-Murray
-Number one is pretty straightforward, but there are a lot of different cases that could be made for number two. The Pioneers are stacked and hungry after a very rare two straight Tourney misses. Chaz Lentz and Caden Zasada lead the offense, they are rock solid in back, an Grayson Hanggi gives them veteran experience in net. With Stillwater taking a step back, 4AA is there for the taking, and We’ll see if a rebuilding Eden Prairie can compete with them, and Hermantown’s visit is one of a few useful early games for understanding where the top teams in each class stand against one another.
Schedule: Tues 11/25 at Eden Prairie, Sat 11/29 vs. Hermantown

3. Rogers
-The Royals lost a lot of talent of last season’s Tourney debutant, and for their trouble they got gerrymandered into the toughest section in the state. But Cole Bumgarner is back in the fold after a year in the USHL, Brock Cheslock and Avenir Belous are going to slide into bigger roles, the defense is still in very good shape, and the pipeline feeding in is as strong as ever. With Edina’s defections, the section is very winnable. They have a busy first few weeks to the season, and there are no real pushovers either, with the two games in Minnetonka after Thanksgiving perhaps being the most intriguing.
Schedule: Thurs 11/20 at #11 Andover, Sat 11/22 vs. St. Michael-Albertville, Tues 11/25 vs. White Bear Lake; Tonka Thanksgiving Preview—Fri 11/28 vs. #5 Minnetonka, Sat 11/29 vs. #9 Rosemount

4. St. Thomas Academy
-The Cadets’ success last season has begat some serious incoming talent, and with a healthy returning core headlined by Cole Braunshausen, they are in position to be a serious force. There is enough turnover here that I’m leery of pushing them any higher at this point, but the sky is the limit here. After some early target practice, they’ve got an interesting one with Holy Angels that will tell us something about the top ten, followed by a state semifinal rematch.
Schedule: Thurs 11/20 at Tartan, Sat 11/22 at Simley, Tues 11/25 vs. #8 Holy Angels (at BIG), Sat 11/29 vs. Stillwater

5. Minnetonka
-The Skippers are in an interesting place here, coming off a season in which they were often competitive with good teams but struggled to turn that into wins. But they return a healthy core and have a monster pipeline of talent flowing in; I’m not sure they’ll be this high in week one, but like St. Thomas, their ceiling may be as high as anyone’s. Their start is a busy one, featuring a couple of borderline top 15 contenders, a fellow contender for the top five, and then their chief rival for 2AA frontrunner status.
Schedule: Thurs 11/20 vs. Lakeville South, Fri 11/22 at White Bear Lake; Tonka Thanksgiving Preview—Fri 11/28 vs. #3 Rogers, Sat 11/29 vs. #10 Shakopee

6. Cretin-Derham Hall
-After a season that slipped away from them somewhat, the Raiders saw a bunch of defections as St. Thomas beefed up. That could lead to some bearish takes on Cretin, but there is still some great, raw young talent here, and the turnover could create some fresh energy, too. If the likes of Jonny Bloedow, Marcus Matyas, and Brody Ruprecht can take the next step, they will be trouble. They’ve got two 7A powers in the early going, plus a section game that has some import for early positioning. They don’t play a ranked AA opponent until just before Christmas.
Schedule: Fri 11/21 vs. Hibbing, Tues 11/25 at Eastview, Fri 11/28 vs. Hermantown

7. Edina
-Barring any last minute surprises, the Hornets have been depleted by early departures; while they can withstand that better than most, especially on their stout back end, they will need a bunch of players to step forward to replace some big star production. I think Curt Giles may end up liking what he has a lot—a deep group that can lock down in back—but they do need to prove they can play to that level. As usual, a tough opening slate give us an idea of where they start out.
Schedule: Wayzata Turkey Trot—Fri 11/21 vs. #12 Maple Grove, Sat 11/22 vs. #1 Moorhead; Sat 11/29 vs. Holy Family

8. Holy Angels
-Henry Lechner may be gone, but the Stars’ next eight highest scorers from a season ago are all back, and a senior core featuring Cole Cheeseman, Lincoln Ayers Assad, Teddy Lechner, and Gabe Perron is going to look to keep their steady upward trajectory going. They’re deep, they’re skilled…now, can they take that next step as a program? They can start with a bang by doing something against St. Thomas.
Schedule: Tues 11/25 at #4 St. Thomas Academy, Fri 11/28 vs. Holy Family (at BIG)

9. Rosemount
-St. Thomas and Credit get the headlines, but don’t sleep on the Irish in 3AA. Cade Sherman and Gavin McNeil form a formidable one-two punch, they return a lot of depth players from a team that wasn’t too far off a season ago, and their bantam team was superb last season. Rogers is their biggest opponent of the opening two weeks.
Schedule: Fri 11/21 vs. East Ridge, Sat 11/22 at Park of Cottage Grove; Tonka Thanksgiving Preview—Fri 11/28 vs. Chanhassen, Sat 11/29 vs. #3 Rogers

10. Shakopee
-With Cooper Siegert and Carson Steinhoff back in the fold, the Sabers have the star power to defend their 2AA title. The depth is not quite what it was, and a hole in goal is an issue; the question will be whether they can stack up defensively. We’ll get an immediate sense of where they stand when they take on Andover and meet Minnetonka in a game that could all but settle the 2AA top seed right away.
Schedule: Sat 11/22 at Chanhassen; Tonka Thanksgiving Preview—Fri 11/28 vs. #11 Andover, Sat 11/29 vs. #5 Minnetonka

11. Andover
-Fresh off a 7AA title, the Huskies are now right in the mix to head back to State—but now from 5AA. They bring back a lot of experience, including junior phenom Cam Langfeld and the very experienced KJ Sauer; losing Cash Cruitt costs them a preseason top ten spot. Their start is plenty tough, including two Tourney entrants from a season ago and one of their chief rivals for the section crown.
Schedule: Thurs 11/20 vs. #3 Rogers, Tues 11/25 vs. #12 Maple Grove; Tonka Thanksgiving Preview—Fri 11/28 vs. #10 Shakopee, Sat 11/29 vs. Chanhassen

12. Maple Grove
-A new era begins for the Crimson as they join the Lake Conference, and with Wyatt Kuznik leading the charge. They’ve got four top 20 teams to get things going, including two of their new Lake rivals and a new section challenger in Andover.
Schedule: Wayzata Turkey Trot—Fri 11/21 vs. #7 Edina, Sat 11/22 vs. #13 Wayzata; Tues 11/25 at #11 Andover, Sat 11/29 vs. Grand Rapids

13. Wayzata
-Eli Molde leads a decent offensive attack for the Trojans, who face a tough road in 6AA but should be their usual problematic selves against good competition. They get number one right off the bat in their annual Turkey Trot, face new conference foe Maple Grove, and then host a couple of 7AA foes.
Schedule: Wayzata Turkey Trot—Fri 11/21 vs. #1 Moorhead, Sat 11/22 vs. #12 Maple Grove; Fri 11/28 vs. #15 Rock Ridge, Sat 11/29 vs. Duluth East

14. Blaine
-Here’s a good dark horse that may not be getting a ton of hype heading into the season: the Bengals bring back their top seven scorers from a season ago, and 5AA is not out of their reach. The likes of Grady Bautch and Porter Bayer should start to become household names. On paper they’re favorites in their first four, though Eastview is looking respectable and Mahtomedi can be trouble, too.
Schedule: Thurs 11/20 vs. Woodbury, Sat 11/22 vs. Duluth East; Centennial Holiday Tournament—Fri 11/28 vs. Eastview, Sat 11/29 vs. Mahtomedi

15. Rock Ridge
-With Caz Carlson back for his senior year, the Wolverines have a potential Mr. Hockey finalist, and he has a respectable supporting cast as well. They strengthened what had been a pretty weak schedule somewhat, which will be a big test for a rebuilt defense. A visit to Wayzata is an early marker of where they stack up against Metro powers.
Schedule: Thurs 11/20 vs. Brainerd, Fri 11/21 at Sartell, Fri 11/28 at #13 Wayzata, Sat 11/29 at Waconia

The Next Ten

White Bear Lake
-Three of the Bears’ top four scorers from a season ago are gone, but Nash Roed certainly counts for something; many depth players from a season ago are back, though some will need to step forward and produce some real points for the Bears to keep up with Hill. Minnetonka and Rogers will be great early tests.

Lakeville South
-Carter Ernst alone makes this team interesting; like Caz Carlson, his stardom may be enough to make his team a section favorite. Beyond that it’s a respectable group, but I’m not sure the ceiling is terribly high, either. Minnetonka is their only opponent over the first two weeks.

Grand Rapids
-The Thunderhawks return the vast majority of their skaters from a season ago, and with a strong senior class and a comparatively thin pipeline coming up, it feels like now is the time for this group to go back to State. For the first time in a long time, we’ll have to see what the goaltending has to offer. They kick things off at old rival Duluth East, and Maple Grove poses their first test against a ranked team.

Centennial
-Last season was a forgettable one for the Cougars, but their youth was a big part of that: pretty much everyone who put up points is back this season, and while they do have a gap to fill in goal, they seem primed to be part of the conversation in 5AA again. They’ve got a bunch of teams in the 15-30 range to begin, including Stillwater, Prior Lake, and Eastview, plus a Class A team in that neighborhood in Mahtomedi, so we’ll get a good sense of where they stand in this area.

Stillwater
-The Ponies lost a lot of talent off last season’s runners-up, but a few pieces, like Jonas Kohn, are still around. This is also a decently deep program, and sometimes teams like this get to show what was buried on the bench the year before. Centennial is a good early competitor for ranking jockeying, and they get a shot at St. Thomas, too.
Holy Family

Benilde-St. Margaret’s
-There is still some healthy talent off Highway 100 in the likes of Keegan Davis, but the Red Knights are in danger of getting lost in the shuffle in an intimidating 6AA. Their only game in the first two weeks is against Gentry; it’s a very backloaded schedule.

Holy Family
-The Fire return a respectable amount of depth, and while contention in 2AA is a long shot, they should remain respectable. Holy Angels and Edina give them a demanding start.

Prior Lake
-The Lakers return a decent number of points and will compete with Holy Family and Eden Prairie for the 3-5 spots in 2AA. Centennial and the aforementioned Eagles are up first.

Elk River
-The Elks bring back a large core from a respectable team a season ago, and I have them loosely penciled in as Moorhead’s chief threat in 8AA. They are late starters, with no games until December 4.

Eastview
-Sam Wooten is another of the stars out there who could carry a team into contention, though 3AA is a rough road with three top ten teams. They’ve got Cretin right away, plus a visit to the Centennial Holiday Tournament against Blaine and the host Cougars that could tell us if they belong in this area or not.

1AA
17 Lakeville South
Lakeville North
New Prague
Owatonna
-With Ernst back in the fold, this section is South’s to lose; North is respectable, and New Prague is in decent shape but needs to show it can really give the Lakevilles a run. Rochester Century/John Marshall’s core from the Tourney team two seasons ago is gone now, rendering the southern reaches of the section fairly far in the distance. North and New Prague meet right away, and the first Battle of Lakeville is on December 18.

2AA
5 Minnetonka
10 Shakopee
22 Holy Family
23 Prior Lake
-This feels like a two-team race between the defending section champs and the talent-stocked Skippers. Holy Family and Prior Lake are hovering, but need to prove something; Eden Prairie has to really reload to join the chat, but did pull in some bodies that could end up helping with that. As noted above, we have an immediate meeting of those top two to grab pole position for the top seed. Eden Prairie and Prior Lake also have an early contest to jockey for positioning here, as there is real value in getting the 3-seed here.

3AA
4 St. Thomas Academy
6 Cretin-Derham Hall
9 Rosemount
25 Eastview
-The two private powers here are gearing up for another collision, with Rosemount again lurking as a very capable team that could knock off one of the top two on the right day. Eastview lingers somewhere in the conversation, though we’ll see if they can do much against three top ten opponents. The big St. Thomas-Cretin meeting falls on December 27 this season.

4AA
2 Hill-Murray
16 White Bear Lake
20 Stillwater
Gentry Academy
-After missing the Tourney for two straight seasons, Hill is the odds-on favorite to reclaim their frequent perch at the Building Formerly Known as the X. It’s a reversion to past norms, with White Bear and Stillwater both with assets but needing to show they can hang with the Pios; Gentry, as usual, has some talent, too. The first important meeting comes in the customary pre-Christmas Hill-White Bear war.

5AA
11 Andover
12 Maple Grove
14 Blaine
19 Centennial
-This re-worked section is intriguing. Maple Grove and Andover are very similar on paper, returning good collections of talent from good-but-not-great teams a season ago. Blaine is juicy, and Centennial should be significantly improved, too. Despite leaving the Northwest Suburban where the other section contenders reside, Maple Grove did a good job of keeping the contenders on their schedule, so we should get a very good picture of where these teams stand versus each other over the course of the season, beginning with Maple Grove and Andover right off the bat.

6AA
3 Rogers
7 Edina
8 Holy Angels
13 Wayzata
21 Benilde-St. Margaret’s
-The addition of Rogers makes this an absolute section of death; the 5-seed here could probably have decent odds to win 1AA or 7AA. Still, there are questions for everyone: Rogers is replacing a lot of big-time players, Holy Angels needs to prove it can take the next step, the Hornets are reloading, and Wayzata needs to escape the pesky-but-not-quite-elite it has inhabited in several recent seasons. Section play gets going in earnest in week three, when Rogers hosts Wayzata and Benilde visits Edina.

7AA
15 Rock Ridge
18 Grand Rapids
Duluth Marshall
Duluth East
-With Andover out of the picture this section is weaker than ever, but mediocrity may breed some intrigue after the Huskies won 5 of the last 6 championships. Rock Ridge and Grand Rapids have the most pieces, but this is Duluth Marshall’s best team since 2018, and may be their best for a while; they should be able to skate with the teams farther north, though overall program depth is a point of concern. And then there is East, which has a long way to climb out of its hole, but has some real talent coming in that could make an immediate impact in an open section.

8AA
1 Moorhead
24 Elk River
St. Michael-Albertville
Bemidji
-Bemidji has lost a lot off a team that gave Moorhead some decent competition last season, so the identity of the Spuds’ chief challenger is an open question. The Lumberjacks, who had a pretty good bantam team last season, are still in the picture, but Elk River and St. Michael-Albertville appear to have the most returning; Buffalo has a decent group of returners, too.

[SpreadOut!]

Great work as always. I don’t recall another pre-season like this one with so many questions and curveballs swirling around who is gonna be playing where. Sign of the times I guess.

[CrimsonCakeEater]

Curious what departures drop Edina down to 7, since it seems like they're the last team left with returner question marks. Either way, I'm not against a team with elite defense and goaltending that'll win a lot of games 1-0 and 2-1. Feels like the kind of team Giles loves to have in February and March (and similar to the 2019 team).

[O-townClown]

Curious what departures drop Edina down to 7, since it seems like they're the last team left with returner question marks. Either way, I'm not against a team with elite defense and goaltending that'll win a lot of games 1-0 and 2-1. Feels like the kind of team Giles loves to have in February and March (and similar to the 2019 team).

Well, there was
Vandertop 9-41 50
West 27-22 49
Schneider 14-30 44
Pittsley 21-22 43
lol

I have Edina as my preseason #2 and just posted a recap of their returning roster on another thread on this board. Hornets will be a great team. To stack up on paper with Moorhead they would need some of last year's Top 4 scorers to return. Looking for White & Peterson to have a big year. Tucker Johnson will for sure.