Is St. Thomas Academy the best team in the State?

[gitter]

You could certainly make a case that they are No. 1 overall. So far they have posted wins over AA powers Hill-Murray, Edina, and this evening Benilde-St. Margaret's. They have an overall record of 11-1-1, with their only blemishes being an early season 3-1 loss to Minnetonka and a 3-3 (official) overtime tie against Hill-Murray in the Schwan Cup Gold Division final.

Are they the State's real No. 1 overall, as of today?

And, given all of their success this season, do you suppose they are now wishing they had declared their intent to opt up to Class AA a year earlier that they finally did?

I know very well that majority of the St. Thomas Academy fans & community have wanted the team to move up since they won in 2008. The fact is their headmaster and athletic director have held them back from moving up, mentioning that they are an academic institution first, athletics not being the priority. If they could have moved up any earlier, I believe they would have. It is clearly difficult for a team to win back to back state championships and celebrate, when they have asked to move up and their own headmaster won't approve.

Now they are going to 3peat this year, first time ever done in class A or AA, and feel guilty celebrating the season because everyone knows which class they should be in.

Too bad their headmaster didn't approve last year, because they could have opted to move to 2A in time for this year. But they were not able to opt up for this year, because you only have the option every 2 years.

So it looks like Hermantown will have to wait 1 more year to have the chance become something other than the "Public School 1A Champs."

It's curious to me that playing hockey at the AA level would mean they are less of an academic institiution.?????

Its kind of like the quote from Argo. "You don't have a better bad idea (insert excuse) than this? Frankly sir, this is the best bad idea we have."

[grandmeadowhockeyfan]

Really. Look at the stats my friend. First Marshall
Started their second string goalie who gave up three
Goalson seven shots. Once they put the right goalie in
The game evened out quickly. Also shots on net were
Realitively close. Think a little On that.

[deacon]

Really. Look at the stats my friend. First Marshall
Started their second string goalie who gave up three
Goalson seven shots. Once they put the right goalie in
The game evened out quickly. Also shots on net were
Realitively close. Think a little On that.

I think STA is a lot better than Marshall.

[deacon]

You could certainly make a case that they are No. 1 overall. So far they have posted wins over AA powers Hill-Murray, Edina, and this evening Benilde-St. Margaret's. They have an overall record of 11-1-1, with their only blemishes being an early season 3-1 loss to Minnetonka and a 3-3 (official) overtime tie against Hill-Murray in the Schwan Cup Gold Division final.

Are they the State's real No. 1 overall, as of today?

And, given all of their success this season, do you suppose they are now wishing they had declared their intent to opt up to Class AA a year earlier that they finally did?

I know very well that majority of the St. Thomas Academy fans & community have wanted the team to move up since they won in 2008. The fact is their headmaster and athletic director have held them back from moving up, mentioning that they are an academic institution first, athletics not being the priority. If they could have moved up any earlier, I believe they would have. It is clearly difficult for a team to win back to back state championships and celebrate, when they have asked to move up and their own headmaster won't approve.

Now they are going to 3peat this year, first time ever done in class A or AA, and feel guilty celebrating the season because everyone knows which class they should be in.

Too bad their headmaster didn't approve last year, because they could have opted to move to 2A in time for this year. But they were not able to opt up for this year, because you only have the option every 2 years.

So it looks like Hermantown will have to wait 1 more year to have the chance become something other than the "Public School 1A Champs."

It's curious to me that playing hockey at the AA level would mean they are less of an academic institiution.?????

It would insinuate that their attention shifted from academics to finding a more competitive level for the hockey program.

[deacon]

You could certainly make a case that they are No. 1 overall. So far they have posted wins over AA powers Hill-Murray, Edina, and this evening Benilde-St. Margaret's. They have an overall record of 11-1-1, with their only blemishes being an early season 3-1 loss to Minnetonka and a 3-3 (official) overtime tie against Hill-Murray in the Schwan Cup Gold Division final.

Are they the State's real No. 1 overall, as of today?

And, given all of their success this season, do you suppose they are now wishing they had declared their intent to opt up to Class AA a year earlier that they finally did?

I know very well that majority of the St. Thomas Academy fans & community have wanted the team to move up since they won in 2008. The fact is their headmaster and athletic director have held them back from moving up, mentioning that they are an academic institution first, athletics not being the priority. If they could have moved up any earlier, I believe they would have. It is clearly difficult for a team to win back to back state championships and celebrate, when they have asked to move up and their own headmaster won't approve.

Now they are going to 3peat this year, first time ever done in class A or AA, and feel guilty celebrating the season because everyone knows which class they should be in.

Too bad their headmaster didn't approve last year, because they could have opted to move to 2A in time for this year. But they were not able to opt up for this year, because you only have the option every 2 years.

So it looks like Hermantown will have to wait 1 more year to have the chance become something other than the "Public School 1A Champs."

Believe it or not Elliot, private schools have communities as well. Shocking, I know.

[elliott70]

I know very well that majority of the St. Thomas Academy fans & community have wanted the team to move up since they won in 2008. The fact is their headmaster and athletic director have held them back from moving up, mentioning that they are an academic institution first, athletics not being the priority. If they could have moved up any earlier, I believe they would have. It is clearly difficult for a team to win back to back state championships and celebrate, when they have asked to move up and their own headmaster won't approve.

Now they are going to 3peat this year, first time ever done in class A or AA, and feel guilty celebrating the season because everyone knows which class they should be in.

Too bad their headmaster didn't approve last year, because they could have opted to move to 2A in time for this year. But they were not able to opt up for this year, because you only have the option every 2 years.

So it looks like Hermantown will have to wait 1 more year to have the chance become something other than the "Public School 1A Champs."

Believe it or not Elliot, private schools have communities as well. Shocking, I know.

You will not convince anyone but your own of this misstatement.

[TTpuckster]

I know very well that majority of the St. Thomas Academy fans & community have wanted the team to move up since they won in 2008. The fact is their headmaster and athletic director have held them back from moving up, mentioning that they are an academic institution first, athletics not being the priority. If they could have moved up any earlier, I believe they would have. It is clearly difficult for a team to win back to back state championships and celebrate, when they have asked to move up and their own headmaster won't approve.

Now they are going to 3peat this year, first time ever done in class A or AA, and feel guilty celebrating the season because everyone knows which class they should be in.

Too bad their headmaster didn't approve last year, because they could have opted to move to 2A in time for this year. But they were not able to opt up for this year, because you only have the option every 2 years.

So it looks like Hermantown will have to wait 1 more year to have the chance become something other than the "Public School 1A Champs."

Believe it or not Elliot, private schools have communities as well. Shocking, I know.

Yup, it's called elitism community!!!!

[Just Checking]

Check out the old discussion about how Overated STA is based on the elite league.
http://www.ushsho.com/forums/viewtopic. ... sc&start=0

Seems like they not have been Overated after all.

Also love the foreshadowing regarding the move up to AA by Karl.

[Mite-dad]

I know very well that majority of the St. Thomas Academy fans & community have wanted the team to move up since they won in 2008. The fact is their headmaster and athletic director have held them back from moving up, mentioning that they are an academic institution first, athletics not being the priority. If they could have moved up any earlier, I believe they would have. It is clearly difficult for a team to win back to back state championships and celebrate, when they have asked to move up and their own headmaster won't approve.

Now they are going to 3peat this year, first time ever done in class A or AA, and feel guilty celebrating the season because everyone knows which class they should be in.

Too bad their headmaster didn't approve last year, because they could have opted to move to 2A in time for this year. But they were not able to opt up for this year, because you only have the option every 2 years.

So it looks like Hermantown will have to wait 1 more year to have the chance become something other than the "Public School 1A Champs."

It's curious to me that playing hockey at the AA level would mean they are less of an academic institiution.?????

It would insinuate that their attention shifted from academics to finding a more competitive level for the hockey program.

Why would it take any more attention away from academics to play AA hockey? They're already pretty much playing an AA schedule. It would seem like the only required "attention" would be a 5 minute phone call to the MSHSL to tell them they would like to opt up.

[Mite-dad]

Which I know they now did. Let us know if it takes away any attention from academics in the next few years.

[thestickler07]

You will not convince anyone but your own of this misstatement.

I can't tell if you're being willfully ignorant or you just dislike private schools so much that you want to try and disrespect them every chance you can.

Yup, it's called elitism community!!!!

You are all the ones calling them All-Star teams and saying they are too good, what are they supposed to think?

[HShockeywatcher]

Personally, I'd say they're likely Top 2 with Hill-Murray and at that point it's a toss up. While St Thomas did beat Hill, they did lose the shoot out with them and and both games were very close. Hill's only loss is to St Thomas, while St Thomas also has a loss to another team on their schedule. Shattuck, Hill and Tartan are the only non-Class A teams left on their schedule though, so this conversation will likely have to continue next year.

Just my two cents.

Believe it or not Elliot, private schools have communities as well. Shocking, I know.

You will not convince anyone but your own of this misstatement.

St Thomas (as well as Hill-Murray, Benilde, etc) have no community in a similar way places like Notre Dame, Texas Christian University, Yale, and closer to home St Johns, St Thomas, St Olaf, St Norbert etc have no community.
It continues to amaze me that people not apart of associations/teams/communities don't believe people who inform others about them...

Why would it take any more attention away from academics to play AA hockey? They're already pretty much playing an AA schedule. It would seem like the only required "attention" would be a 5 minute phone call to the MSHSL to tell them they would like to opt up.

It's not that it will actually change anything within the walls of the school, but it's about perception. Perception is huge with private schools and attracting prospective students matter. Many hockey players at private schools attend the schools because of academics.

[hockeymannorth]

You could certainly make a case that they are No. 1 overall. So far they have posted wins over AA powers Hill-Murray, Edina, and this evening Benilde-St. Margaret's. They have an overall record of 11-1-1, with their only blemishes being an early season 3-1 loss to Minnetonka and a 3-3 (official) overtime tie against Hill-Murray in the Schwan Cup Gold Division final.

Are they the State's real No. 1 overall, as of today?

And, given all of their success this season, do you suppose they are now wishing they had declared their intent to opt up to Class AA a year earlier that they finally did?

I know very well that majority of the St. Thomas Academy fans & community have wanted the team to move up since they won in 2008. The fact is their headmaster and athletic director have held them back from moving up, mentioning that they are an academic institution first, athletics not being the priority. If they could have moved up any earlier, I believe they would have. It is clearly difficult for a team to win back to back state championships and celebrate, when they have asked to move up and their own headmaster won't approve.

Now they are going to 3peat this year, first time ever done in class A or AA, and feel guilty celebrating the season because everyone knows which class they should be in.

Too bad their headmaster didn't approve last year, because they could have opted to move to 2A in time for this year. But they were not able to opt up for this year, because you only have the option every 2 years.

So it looks like Hermantown will have to wait 1 more year to have the chance become something other than the "Public School 1A Champs."

who cares who wins 2nd class A tourny must have been 50 or 60 parents watching last year.class A champions are like 9th place loser game not much to brag about for recuiting team

[Zamman]

Actually Private schools do have a community, but not in the way most people think a community is. Look at how these schools continue, they have alumni who donate money to keep the schools up and running. Not a lot of local dollars going in to support them. like public schools.

[eastsideguy]

I know very well that majority of the St. Thomas Academy fans & community have wanted the team to move up since they won in 2008. The fact is their headmaster and athletic director have held them back from moving up, mentioning that they are an academic institution first, athletics not being the priority. If they could have moved up any earlier, I believe they would have. It is clearly difficult for a team to win back to back state championships and celebrate, when they have asked to move up and their own headmaster won't approve.

Now they are going to 3peat this year, first time ever done in class A or AA, and feel guilty celebrating the season because everyone knows which class they should be in.

Too bad their headmaster didn't approve last year, because they could have opted to move to 2A in time for this year. But they were not able to opt up for this year, because you only have the option every 2 years.

So it looks like Hermantown will have to wait 1 more year to have the chance become something other than the "Public School 1A Champs."

who cares who wins 2nd class A tourny must have been 50 or 60 parents watching last year.class A champions are like 9th place loser game not much to brag about for recuiting team

Maybe when they played Hermantown...everyone new what that result was going to be. Wasnt the Friday afternoon game against breck the most attended class a game of all time? Pretty impressive for two teams with no "community"

[Mite-dad]

[/quote]It's not that it will actually change anything within the walls of the school, but it's about perception. Perception is huge with private schools and attracting prospective students matter. Many hockey players at private schools attend the schools because of academics.[/quote]

IMVHO going AA will only make the school more attractive to both students and student athletes. It will only have a positive impact on "perception". Instead of being "weanies", the school will now have some respect from the outside world because they are playing at the highest level instead of it looking like they are "trophy chasing".

[elliott70]

You will not convince anyone but your own of this misstatement.

I can't tell if you're being willfully ignorant or you just dislike private schools so much that you want to try and disrespect them every chance you can.

[

Sorry but again you are wrong.
I do not dislike private schools.
Hill is one of my all-time favorite MN high school hockey programs.

But if you are telling me that STA is a high school that represents a specific 'town' or geographical area and accepts all the children from within that area and see to the needs of every child within that area, despite economic, religion and NEED.
Then you must truly think I am ignorant.

People think you are elitist because you make statements like this. I, for one, am happy that private schools exist, I enjoy that they play high school sports within the MSHSL, and a t times I cheer for them. Not usually, but I do.

The system is what it is.

STA currently has a good hockey program because they have good coaches, admin supports the program and they draw good hockey players to their school. Good for them.
I cheer for Hermantown becasue I have relatives that live there and I admire their coach.

It is what it is.

I coach baseball and before tournaments teh team says a little prayer. Part of it is that I ask God that the other team plays their best.
I always have a player(s) ask why I do that.
It is simple, I want to beat them, I do not want them to lose to us.

It is a game.

If STA has the best hockey team in the state, it is what it is.

So "Yeah, STA".
But 'Yeah' for all the others that step on the ice, also.



(Did not spel chec, so fire away.)

[elliott70]

Actually Private schools do have a community, but not in the way most people think a community is. Look at how these schools continue, they have alumni who donate money to keep the schools up and running. Not a lot of local dollars going in to support them. like public schools.

Good answer, Boni-guy. And I am sure most of us know that.

[elliott70]

who cares who wins 2nd class A tourny must have been 50 or 60 parents watching last year.class A champions are like 9th place loser game not much to brag about for recuiting team

Maybe when they played Hermantown...everyone new what that result was going to be. Wasnt the Friday afternoon game against breck the most attended class a game of all time? Pretty impressive for two teams with no "community"

Good hockey attracts fans.

[thestickler07]

Sorry but again you are wrong.
I do not dislike private schools.
Hill is one of my all-time favorite MN high school hockey programs.

Ok.

But if you are telling me that STA is a high school that represents a specific 'town' or geographical area and accepts all the children from within that area and see to the needs of every child within that area, despite economic, religion and NEED.
Then you must truly think I am ignorant.

I'm not telling you that, I never said anything like that anywhere in this thread.

Don't attribute your ramblings to me and try to strawman (really poorly) because I called you out.

I see you already read Zamman's take on private school communities. I'd agree with his description; it takes a lot of dedication to donate to a school voluntarily.

Just because a private school doesn't have the type of "community" you think of when you hear the word doesn't mean they don't have any.

[elliott70]

Sorry but again you are wrong.
I do not dislike private schools.
Hill is one of my all-time favorite MN high school hockey programs.

Ok.

But if you are telling me that STA is a high school that represents a specific 'town' or geographical area and accepts all the children from within that area and see to the needs of every child within that area, despite economic, religion and NEED.
Then you must truly think I am ignorant.

I'm not telling you that, I never said anything like that anywhere in this thread.

Don't attribute your ramblings to me and try to strawman (really poorly) because I called you out.

I see you already read Zamman's take on private school communities. I'd agree with his description; it takes a lot of dedication to donate to a school voluntarily.

Just because a private school doesn't have the type of "community" you think of when you hear the word doesn't mean they don't have any.

I, and most everyone else on this 'bored', (that some private-schoolers like to bash), already know that.
But to try and claim what the normal definition of community is, is wrong.
You have a 'select community'. I live in a little town where I and many like me do as much volunteering and donating as people in your 'community'.

(Maybe its autocorrect, but 'strawman"??)

And smile
because this is fun.

[Just Checking]

Before this thread gets locked, and the stereotypes get way out of control. I would like to hear from anyone (mostly Karl) why STA would not be number 1 right now. Strength of schedule, loss early in the year, common opponents, etc. Purely from a hockey perspective, results based.
KRACH computer ranking already has them there. What about human rankings?
Your thoughts?

BTW the game on Wednesday vs Shattuck should be telling, as well as entertaining.

[MNHockeyFan]

Before this thread gets locked, and the stereotypes get way out of control. I would like to hear from anyone (mostly Karl) why STA would not be number 1 right now. Strength of schedule, loss early in the year, common opponents, etc. Purely from a hockey perspective, results based.
KRACH computer ranking already has them there. What about human rankings?
Your thoughts?

Agree that it would be interesting if Karl posted his thoughts. Also interesting that QRF currently has them ranked only 3rd, behind Wayzata and Edina. Possibly more of an emphasis on overall SOS than KRACH? Must be because they do have a little better record than those two.

http://www.minnesota-scores.net/classqr ... 9&class=-2

[defense]

HSHW
I would just like to know how the University of Fort Worth, South Bend College, or Collegeville University did in football this year.

[karl(east)]

Before this thread gets locked, and the stereotypes get way out of control. I would like to hear from anyone (mostly Karl) why STA would not be number 1 right now. Strength of schedule, loss early in the year, common opponents, etc. Purely from a hockey perspective, results based.
KRACH computer ranking already has them there. What about human rankings?
Your thoughts?

Agree that it would be interesting if Karl posted his thoughts. Also interesting that QRF currently has them ranked only 3rd, behind Wayzata and Edina. Possibly more of an emphasis on overall SOS than KRACH? Must be because they do have a little better record than those two.

http://www.minnesota-scores.net/classqr ... 9&class=-2

Since everyone is asking...yes, I think they are #1 in the state right now. For the purposes of my AA rankings, I've been considering them that since they won the Schwan Cup, and the Benilde win only strengthened their position. Giving up only one goal to this Benilde team is very impressive.

I'm guessing they aren't a consensus #1 in the computerized polls because all of their big wins have been pretty narrow. Like Wayzata and Hill, our top two AA teams, they aren't the sort of team that is going to score a ton of goals--they play great defense, and their top offensive players are still pretty young. Likewise, while I think they're obviously #1 in Class A, we can't put their name on the trophy quite yet--Breck, and even Mahtomedi, have kept them within striking distance. But if they win their next two games (Breck, Hill), I don't think there will be any doubt they are #1.

As long as I'm here, I might as well weigh in on some of the other stuff we're discussing. Private schools do have communities--sometimes very strong and loyal ones, as anyone who's seen the number of Hill alumni at the State Tourney can likely attest. It's a somewhat different sort of community--as Elliott rightly notes, they are less tied to place, and can self-select a bit more than public schools can. But they can make up for that with other identities (ie. religious affiliation), and that doesn't make the bonds formed in and around these schools any less strong. Exhibit A would be the response of the Benilde community to the Jablonski tragedy last season.

I do not think private schools are inherently elitist; some of the most humble and decent people I know are private school graduates. However, by choosing a community that can be somewhat cut off from the wider world, I think there is a bit more danger of forgetting about said community. (To be fair, this can happen at wealthier public schools too, like Edina or Duluth East.) Living in that sort of bubble can lead one to forget what goes on outside that bubble, and lead to unintentionally condescending comments. For example, I've heard people say "we sent our kid to Private School X so he can get a good education." They don't mean this maliciously, but the implication here is that the alternative will not allow the student to get a good education--which many public school people will find offensive. It really bothers me, even though I went to a so-called "elite," private college, and would not hesitate to put my own kids into a private school someday if I thought it were a better fit for them.