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Well, Melvin and Joehockey have sent their girls to college. So I thought I would start this discussion. Who is the favorite to come out of the section? In my opinion the toughest in the state, for now. I do believe the west metro will pull away in the near future.
Here is what I've heard or know:
Stw & Wbl each lose a girl to the T-Breds
WBL might have lost starting goalie (rumors, I've heard twice)

Cpt's practices are probably all underway, anybody else care to share?

Okay in honor of Joe and Mel…

The nod has to go to the defending champs. Top goalie(s) in the Section, solid D (once again) and with just enough scoring from Flug and Brodt. Hill Murray can’t be counted out though, also has one of the best goalies in the Section (state maybe) in Mckeever. Great coaching and the Brandt girls will keep them in every game. WBL, Stillwater and Cretin should all be competitive. WBL has lost their starting goalie and a good senior forward but should be deep enough to be in the thick of it. Stillwater…which mirrors WB… in that they will be solid at the Defense but goaltending and finding enough scoring to challenge will be their challenge…losing Philipczyk could be huge…might have to bring one of the blue liners up (I’d put Hewes at center...more of a natural position for her skills…if you asking me that is…which no one is). Cretin is a definite wild card. They played very tough down the stretch last year with a young team…and unlike WB and Stillwater they gain a solid senior forward in Funk...who is returning from a stint with the Thoroughbreds.

hockeyheaven wrote:Okay in honor of Joe and Mel…

The nod has to go to the defending champs. Top goalie(s) in the Section, solid D (once again) and with just enough scoring from Flug and Brodt. Hill Murray can’t be counted out though, also has one of the best goalies in the Section (state maybe) in Mckeever. Great coaching and the Brandt girls will keep them in every game. WBL, Stillwater and Cretin should all be competitive. WBL has lost their starting goalie and a good senior forward but should be deep enough to be in the thick of it. Stillwater…which mirrors WB… in that they will be solid at the Defense but goaltending and finding enough scoring to challenge will be their challenge…losing Philipczyk could be huge…might have to bring one of the blue liners up (I’d put Hewes at center...more of a natural position for her skills…if you asking me that is…which no one is). Cretin is a definite wild card. They played very tough down the stretch last year with a young team…and unlike WB and Stillwater they gain a solid senior forward in Funk...who is returning from a stint with the Thoroughbreds.

Good to see the tradition going forward in 4AA - for 2010-11 it will remain a very tough section. It is amazing how fast things change gone from WB, Roseville, Stillwater, and Cretin are some girls who have been playing since at least 9th grade if not earlier on Varsity. The good news is there are a lot of girls ready to step in.

HM - After another summer of training Hannah Brandt and Marissa Brandt have really moved their game forward and HM has 2 very good goalies in McKeever and McGuire to push her both are seniors. The team graduated 3 D so lots of opportunity but 4-5 who can step up. Up front there are goals to be replaced Margo Lund SR worked hard this summer and along with Syd Fabian and a couple of the younger ones could have big years.

Will be fun to track what unfolds - enjoy it all goes by fast!

I am not convinced WBL will recover from the departures. I believe they graduated about ten players from last years squad, then lose two current seniors. Their main goalie from last year, being one of them. Penalties should be reduced dramatically., as their main two offenders are gone, which will help. Do they have a goalie w/ varsity experience? Top players left would have to be Hanson and Hill correct? Can they carry a team?

Will Hill have the depth after the Brandts? I do think Their goalie is top notch, gotta be top 1 or 2 in section.

I think Stw might have the best chance of having young talent step up.

I Saw one of CDH's goalie play over the summer, it could be an issue. The addition of Funk will definately help

I think Roseville has the best overall talent but Hill could ride the Brandts and McKeever a long way. Stillwater and WBL have some good talent w/o a lot of varsity experience. We will see what the coaches can do with that talent. I believe both will be in the mix at the end of the year.

By the way, I heard that the WBL senior goalie hasn't made up her mind on playing this year. She could be a big difference for them.

It will be an interesting year to say the least.

I would say Roseville has the least amount of talent returning. They lost 90% of their scoring, by far the most of any team. I still think with their returning goaltending and defense they should be a contender. Stillwater returns a very good and deep defensive core and some good young talent up front. Hill-Murray returns the most scoring but defense is a question mark. If Hill's D is solid they will be very tough. White bear will also contend, but might have questions scoring like Stillwater and Roseville.

I hope the WBL goalie comes back, I hate to see girls stop playing.

Section 4AA has always been a tough guess.

Don't know what to expect with Roseville, lost a lot of talent should have good d though with Brodt. HM will be tough, too bad their so weak at the blue line, hoping Brandts will be able to carry the team with their offense. WB could really ramp it up – Hill and Hanson are solid players, have not heard any further on the rumors about the goalie. After hearing Bruchu is joining Stillwater at the blue line though I have my money on the ponies. Solid d, can bury the puck. Her and Hewes together will be tough to beat. This could give them the edge to bring it home this year. Cretin also gained a player from the Thoroughbreds (Funk) she will be a great addition to their offense very fast and physical skater, we'll see what they can do defensively.

Good luck to all teams!

chrisWCHOCKEY wrote:Section 4AA has always been a tough guess.

.....After hearing Bruchu is joining Stillwater at the blue line though I have my money on the ponies. Solid d, can bury the puck. Her and Hewes together will be tough to beat. This could give them the edge to bring it home this year........

Thought Bruchu was still playing with Thoroughbreds and not playing at Stillwater - she is listed on the T-Breds roster.

You can't be rostered on two different teams

I heard she was leaving thoroughbreds to play with stillwater.

Ex University of St Thomas coach Terry Skrypek is the new (assistant) coach at CDH. This with definitely help the CDH girls be strong contenders in 4AA.

joehockey wrote:

chrisWCHOCKEY wrote:Section 4AA has always been a tough guess.

.....After hearing Bruchu is joining Stillwater at the blue line though I have my money on the ponies. Solid d, can bury the puck. Her and Hewes together will be tough to beat. This could give them the edge to bring it home this year........

Thought Bruchu was still playing with Thoroughbreds and not playing at Stillwater - she is listed on the T-Breds roster.

Sarah Bruchu's not playing with the Thoroughbreds anymore. She is eligible to play HS hockey this year after sitting out a year due to a transfer and will play for Stillwater.

iceme wrote:

joehockey wrote:

chrisWCHOCKEY wrote:Section 4AA has always been a tough guess.

.....After hearing Bruchu is joining Stillwater at the blue line though I have my money on the ponies. Solid d, can bury the puck. Her and Hewes together will be tough to beat. This could give them the edge to bring it home this year........

Thought Bruchu was still playing with Thoroughbreds and not playing at Stillwater - she is listed on the T-Breds roster.

Sarah Bruchu's not playing with the Thoroughbreds anymore. She is eligible to play HS hockey this year after sitting out a year due to a transfer and will play for Stillwater.

Granted I have no real knowledge…. However, I find it difficult to believe that someone would play entire year with a team…tryout again the following year …participate in three out of state tournaments then all of a sudden leave the team to play for Stillwater even though she doesn’t attend the school? Really?

Someone posted a note suggesting the questions go away because it's nobody’s business except the family. Then they deleted it.

Because it's constantly suggested that there are very private and personal reasons, what's best in this particular family situation, etc. Frankly, it's always because they want to play hockey somewhere else. Period. That's where it starts. So, I'm sure this Stillwater family has a long list of reasons why it's appropriate for this player to be free to play wherever she wants. But, half the players get their way and half don't and that's not fair.

Are the Coon Rapids girl’s families from last season (3 of them?) all still living permanently in Hopkins?

observer wrote:Someone posted a note suggesting the questions go away because it's nobody’s business except the family. Then they deleted it.

Because it's constantly suggested that there are very private and personal reasons, what's best in this particular family situation, etc. Frankly, it's always because they want to play hockey somewhere else. Period. That's where it starts. So, I'm sure this Stillwater family has a long list of reasons why it's appropriate for this player to be free to play wherever she wants. But, half the players get their way and half don't and that's not fair.

Are the Coon Rapids girl’s families from last season (3 of them?) all still living permanently in Hopkins?

I think you are mixing up two threads here. I don't know anything about the Coon Rapids/Hopkins situation. The Bruchu girl already sat out a full year in the MSHSL due to a transfer from Hill-Murray after ninth grade. She's from Stillwater and is home-schooled. According to MSHSL guidelines she is now eligible to play. If you don't like it, take it up with the MSHSL Board of Directors. I'm sure they would love to hear from you. As far as the other girls, I don't know the particulars but I'm sure their parents have looked into the rules as well.

hockeywild7 wrote:I would say Roseville has the least amount of talent returning. They lost 90% of their scoring, by far the most of any team. I still think with their returning goaltending and defense they should be a contender. Stillwater returns a very good and deep defensive core and some good young talent up front. Hill-Murray returns the most scoring but defense is a question mark. If Hill's D is solid they will be very tough. White bear will also contend, but might have questions scoring like Stillwater and Roseville.

Hockeywild, I like how you think. Roseville lost a lot of scoring, but lets remember one thing...Offense wins games, but defense wins championships!! (Proven in last years state tournament)
I think this years team will really grow by years end, and because of their goaltending and defense, will win a lot of close games!!

I think rumors of Roseville's demise has been greatly exaggerated. They definitely lost the most, but they also had the most.

Right now name me another team in the state who has 4 players who made the national-level NDP this summer besides Roseville.

Any other teams from Section 4 have 7 players in the Elite League this fall--again, besides Roseville?

And I don't think most Forum readers including me know anything about incoming Freshman classes or the kids moving up from last year's JV teams, except their own school, and even then most only know 'what they've heard'.

capitalist wrote:Any other teams from Section 4 have 7 players in the Elite League this fall--again, besides Roseville?

Most of us know the answer to that question!

ExecutionTrumpsStrategy wrote:

capitalist wrote:Any other teams from Section 4 have 7 players in the Elite League this fall--again, besides Roseville?

Most of us know the answer to that question!

Hey, quit talkin' about RV, how are they supposed to surprise teams if everyone keeps lettin' the cat out of the bag?? Just forget about them and concentrate on the Stillwaters, White Bears, Cretins, and Moundsview!!

ExecutionTrumpsStrategy wrote:

capitalist wrote:Any other teams from Section 4 have 7 players in the Elite League this fall--again, besides Roseville?

Most of us know the answer to that question!

Yea the answer's Intials are W B.

titleist wrote:

ExecutionTrumpsStrategy wrote:

capitalist wrote:Any other teams from Section 4 have 7 players in the Elite League this fall--again, besides Roseville?

Most of us know the answer to that question!

Hey, quit talkin' about RV, how are they supposed to surprise teams if everyone keeps lettin' the cat out of the bag?? Just forget about them and concentrate on the Stillwaters, White Bears, Cretins, and Moundsview!!

Mounds View is Section 5AA........

SECoach wrote:

titleist wrote:

ExecutionTrumpsStrategy wrote: Most of us know the answer to that question!

Hey, quit talkin' about RV, how are they supposed to surprise teams if everyone keeps lettin' the cat out of the bag?? Just forget about them and concentrate on the Stillwaters, White Bears, Cretins, and Moundsview!!

Mounds View is Section 5AA........

6 MV girls playing the state soccer tournament at the dome this week. Great experience for the end of the hockey season, but a challenge for the start.

WBL roster posted on Mshsl website, only 2 goalies listed neither played varsity last year. I don't see a better than .500 record here.

I get the feeling it will come down to roseville and hill in the section final.

Bullgod wrote:I see Lowell is back from T-Breds. I this a big plus for the Bears season?
It looks like she got a 5 min. penalty in first game, nothing has changed.
I think that is 3 girls back in section 4 from the T-breds, Funk @ CDH and Bruchu @ Stw.

Oh but it has changed, in a big way. Lowell has played in 4 games has 9 points and still only that one penalty which was not deserving of 5 minutes. She is playing inspired hockey and has given the Bears some scoring punch. She could have easily had even more goals if not for a few early miscues just getting her timing back with her line. She made 2 absolutey beautiful tape to tape slam dunk passes against Cretin.