HighSchoolHockeyForums.com

Just two weeks to go in the regular season, and it’s hard not to like the battles brewing in so many sections and what should be a very deep State Tournament with no bad entrants, even with a couple of upsets. Your rankings:

1. Eden Prairie (14-4-2)
-Edina pushed the Eagles to the edge on Saturday, going to show that they aren’t in some other class from the rest of the state. Still, in the end, they are perfect since the start of January, with all but two of their games over that stretch coming against ranked teams. They deserve the top spot, and it would take a substantial upset for them to relinquish it.
This week: Tues vs. Blaine, Thurs vs. Hopkins, Sat at Benilde-St. Margaret’s

2. Holy Family (17-3-1)
-The Fire keeps burning brighter after a quality win over Lakeville North, though the narrow win over Lakeville South again reminds us that the gap between top 5 and top 15 bubble is awfully small. They can further strengthen their position with wins over a couple of respectable opponents, one of whom they’ve already pounded this season.
This week: Tues vs. Delano, Sat at #15 Prior Lake

3. Edina (15-6-1)
-Took care of Wayzata in a game with some 6AA meaning, and then gave Eden Prairie a very good fight before falling. All in all they’re doing what they need to do, and hovering in there as a serious threat to win it all. Just one game this week, and it’s the most difficult of the three they have left.
This week: Sat at #14 Minnetonka

4. Elk River (17-4)
-A convincing win over Duluth East has the Elks in control of 7AA, and they did well to rally against Blaine, too. This is a disciplined, deep group that is probably the most complete Elk River team since they moved to 7AA over a decade ago. This week is a chance to pad some stats and pile up some wins.
This week: Tues at Spring Lake Park, Thurs at Osseo, Sat vs. Irondale

5. Lakeville North (15-4-2)
-The Panthers made a statement with a last second win over Stillwater, though they followed that up with a shutout loss to Holy Family. The rematch with South looms this week, and gives them a chance to either solidify this newfound top 5 ranking or throw the back into the middle of this messy pack.
This week: Tues vs. Lakeville South, Thurs at Rosemount

6. St. Thomas Academy (16-4-1)
-Rolled along against a couple of mid-tier private school friends. This week, however, is a big one, as they play the two teams in their conference that have beaten them. Wins would clear up some questions and let them head into sections on a streak.
This week: Thurs vs. Mahtomedi, Sat vs. #12 Hill-Murray

7. Stillwater (17-3)
-Cue the skepticism: a last second loss to Lakeville North leaves the Ponies wobbling, with few quality wins to hang their bridles on, and losses in all three of their January games against teams with mentions in the rankings. Their final week does offer some chance at redemption, but for now, it’s just more party in the SEC.
This week: Thurs vs. Forest Lake, Sat vs. Woodbury

8. Centennial (16-4)
-Three straight 2-goal wins against teams not mentioned in the rankings is a bit questionable as we head into sections, so the Cougars shuffle toward the back of this pack. A nonconference tilt with White Bear this week gives them their last real competitive game before sections.
This week: Tues vs. White Bear Lake, Thurs vs. Irondale, Sat at Champlin Park

9. Grand Rapids (16-4-1)
-Withstood some good tests from strong defensive teams, which is somewhat encouraging heading toward some section playoffs where they’ll have to go through two very solid, steady squads to repeat. This week could be an interesting one, with games against two 8AA foes, one surging, the other front-running.
This week: Tues at Bemidji, Sat vs. #10 Moorhead

10. Moorhead (14-3-3)
-Flattened St. Cloud in their lone game, and with other teams in this area not doing much I decided to give them a bump. Things get a little more interesting this week, with two respectable opponents and one big chance to make a statement in Grand Rapids.
This week: Tues vs. East Grand Forks, Fri at Cloquet, Sat at #9 Grand Rapids

11. Maple Grove (13-5)
-Slipped past Andover in their lone game, which doesn't say much. A road trip to Duluth highlights a three-game week.
This week: Mon vs. Osseo, Thurs at Coon Rapids, Sat at #13 Duluth East

12. Hill-Murray (14-3-4)
-Things are headed south in a hurry for the Pioneers, who dropped another shutout decision against a Northwest Suburban opponent and only tied limping Wayzata. The jig may be up here, as the offense is really sputtering. The rematch with St. Thomas is their chance to get back on track or else fade back into being who we thought they were months ago.
This week: Thurs vs. South St. Paul, Sat at #6 St. Thomas Academy

13. Duluth East (14-6-1)
-Failed to generate much against Elk River, which consigns the Hounds to a 2-seed and a tough road to State. There’s enough talent here to make things more interesting in a second meeting, but this young group needs to rally just to get there, and play more as a unit to generate better chances. Another busy week awaits them, including a section rival and another legitimate challenge on Saturday.
This week: Mon at Cloquet, Thurs at Bloomington Jefferson, Sat vs. #11 Maple Grove

14. Minnetonka (12-9)
-No change here: still playing fairly well, but still piling up losses. Could use a quality result against Edina this week to help their cause.
This week: Thurs vs. Wayzata, Sat vs. #3 Edina

15. Prior Lake (13-8)
-A win over Burnsville continues the Lakers’ strong streak of late, and moves them to the top of the South Suburban jumble in this part of the rankings. They can really make a statement by doing something against Holy Family this week.
This week: Thurs vs. Eastview, Sat vs. #2 Holy Family

The Next Ten

Burnsville (13-7-1)
-A loss to Prior Lake stems the Blaze’s momentum. On paper they should win out from here; they’ve got the two Apple Valley schools this week.

Lakeville South (12-7-1)
-Gave Holy Family a good fight, which is an encouraging sign. Now they get a second crack at North, which will certainly help set the tone for sections.

Blaine (10-9-1)
-The Bengals came to life again after a rough stretch, as they gave Elk River a decent fight and then took down Hill-Murray. They visit Eden Prairie this week in a tough one, but should win out from there.

White Bear Lake (11-6-3)
-Gave Grand Rapids a pretty good game, but in the end, they’re still settling in here behind the higher-class teams. Can prove something with a quality result against Centennial this week.

Bemidji (11-8-1)
-Well hello, Lumberjacks: Bemidji surged back to life with shutout wins over Roseau and St. Michael-Albertville this past week. If they can continue to lock down like that in sections, they may be the biggest threat to Moorhead in 8AA, no matter where they wind up being seeded. They’ve got Hermantown this coming week.

Wayzata (6-14-1)
-Signs of progress? Maybe, just maybe, as the Trojans tied Hill-Murray, took Grand Rapids to overtime, and hung in there against Edina. As awful as that record is, the defense seems like it’s starting to perform up to expectations, and it’s not crazy to imagine them pulling something out. This week’s second meeting with Minnetonka will prove instructive.

Cretin-Derham Hall (14-6)
-Crumpled against St. Thomas, which keeps them on the outside here; the White Bear wins are all they really have to their name. Shouldn’t have any trouble against Blake or Mounds View this week.

St. Michael-Albertville (14-4-2)
-Losing to Bemidji is a bad sign for a team trying to hang in the 8AA race, especially with the schedule they’ve played. On paper they should win their remaining five, though Buffalo, whom they play again this week, did top them back in December.

Roseau (14-7)
-Pounded Warroad, but a loss to suddenly surging Bemidji keeps the Rams toward the tail end of this honorable mention section. They’ve got a couple of Class A games this week, plus a similarly ranked Cloquet team.

Cloquet (12-6-1)
-Not exactly climbing toward greatness, but at least they’re beating the teams around them and positioning themselves well for the playoffs. Big week ahead, as they host rival Duluth East plus visiting Moorhead and Roseau.

Again, the best Sunday read! A true guilty pleasure. Thanks Karl. Would love it if someone with more knowledge tham me can put together updated sections with 5 or so games left. Section 2 certainly shaping up as expected at the start of the year. With 2 of the top 5 by most any standard and a very dangerous Tonka team and respectable Prior Lake, should be fun. Are they at Braemar for semis? I think South amd North are really neck and neck in 1. Edina looks like a cake walk... Can B'Ville shock the world again v. Cadets? Centennial looks to have a leg up on MG but maybe half a leg? Still think ER, GR and DE are a toss up regardless of regular season. Similarly good teams all with + and - parts. Stillwater will be a tough out with HM and WBL looking like 10-20 ranked teams - as was expected. And Moorhead by at least a length in 8 me thinks.

Careful with that "pad the stats" comment, Karl. I said that once (after an East-Marshall game) and the Toppers faithful came at me in droves. Made for a fun week reading all their emails.

Lee

As always "You The Man" !!!

karl(east) wrote: Wayzata (6-14-1)
-Signs of progress? Maybe, just maybe, as the Trojans tied Hill-Murray, took Grand Rapids to overtime, and hung in there against Edina. As awful as that record is, the defense seems like it’s starting to perform up to expectations, and it’s not crazy to imagine them pulling something out. This week’s second meeting with Minnetonka will prove instructive.

Could we possibly be seeing something here? Definitely not enough to repeat for a state title, but building toward 1 or 2 section games of lockdown defense?

Minnesota Boys' High School Hockey
2016-17 PageStat Ratings
Thru 2/4/17
Rank Team Sec W L T PCT GF GA Rating
1 EDEN PRAIRIE 2AA 14 4 2 0.750 83 36 23.05
2 HERMANTOWN 7A 18 1 1 0.925 109 25 22.58
3 EDINA 6AA 15 6 1 0.705 97 51 22.55
4 HOLY FAMILY 2AA 17 3 1 0.833 99 31 22.25
5 ST THOMAS ACADEMY 3AA 16 4 1 0.786 103 34 22.03
6 CENTENNIAL 5AA 16 4 0 0.800 97 43 22.02
7 ELK RIVER 7AA 17 4 0 0.810 92 38 21.79
8 GRAND RAPIDS 7AA 16 4 1 0.786 95 44 21.55
9 HILL MURRAY 4AA 14 3 4 0.762 88 31 21.52
10 STILLWATER 4AA 17 3 0 0.850 99 30 21.50
11 DULUTH EAST 7AA 14 6 1 0.690 79 36 21.45
12 MINNETONKA 2AA 12 9 0 0.571 85 50 21.45
13 MOORHEAD 8AA 14 3 3 0.775 92 34 21.38
14 MAPLE GROVE 5AA 14 5 0 0.737 70 46 21.02
15 LAKEVILLE NORTH 1AA 15 4 2 0.762 89 50 20.81
16 BRECK_ 2A 16 3 2 0.810 99 40 20.80
17 DELANO 2A 18 2 1 0.881 143 55 20.73
18 LAKEVILLE SOUTH 1AA 12 7 1 0.625 78 36 20.68
19 ST MICHAEL ALBERTVILLE 8AA 14 4 2 0.750 86 38 20.19
20 BURNSVILLE 3AA 13 7 1 0.643 75 55 20.09
21 ST PAUL ACADEMY 4A 18 3 0 0.857 120 38 20.02
22 WAYZATA 6AA 6 14 1 0.310 54 61 19.89
23 BLAINE 5AA 10 9 1 0.525 76 74 19.88
24 WHITE BEAR LAKE 4AA 11 6 3 0.625 66 43 19.70
25 PRIOR LAKE 2AA 13

Hypothetical Question: if EP and HT played a 5 game series at neutral ice, how would it turn out?

WestMetro wrote:Hypothetical Question: if EP and HT played a 5 game series at neutral ice, how would it turn out?

EP wins all 5 games 1-0, as Hermantown refuses to leave the locker room?

Just my guess...

I'll say EP wins 4 of 5. Somewhere in the series, EP has an off night and HT takes advantage.

1 EDEN PRAIRIE 2AA 14 4 2 0.750 83 36 23.05
2 EDINA 6AA 15 6 1 0.705 97 51 22.55
3 HOLY FAMILY 2AA 17 3 1 0.833 99 31 22.25
4 ST THOMAS ACADEMY 3AA 16 4 1 0.786 103 34 22.03
5 CENTENNIAL 5AA 16 4 0 0.800 97 43 22.02
6 ELK RIVER 7AA 17 4 0 0.810 92 38 21.79
7 GRAND RAPIDS 7AA 16 4 1 0.786 95 44 21.55
8 HILL MURRAY 4AA 14 3 4 0.762 88 31 21.52
9 STILLWATER 4AA 17 3 0 0.850 99 30 21.50
10 DULUTH EAST 7AA 14 6 1 0.690 79 36 21.45
11 MINNETONKA 2AA 12 9 0 0.571 85 50 21.45
12 MOORHEAD 8AA 14 3 3 0.775 92 34 21.38
13 MAPLE GROVE 5AA 14 5 0 0.737 70 46 21.02
14 LAKEVILLE NORTH 1AA 15 4 2 0.762 89 50 20.81
15 LAKEVILLE SOUTH 1AA 12 7 1 0.625 78 36 20.68
16 ST MICHAEL ALBERTVILLE 8AA 14 4 2 0.750 86 38 20.19
17 BURNSVILLE 3AA 13 7 1 0.643 75 55 20.09
18 WAYZATA 6AA 6 14 1 0.310 54 61 19.89
19 BLAINE 5AA 10 9 1 0.525 76 74 19.88
20 WHITE BEAR LAKE 4AA 11 6 3 0.625 66 43 19.70
21 PRIOR LAKE 2AA 13 8 0 0.619 67 54 19.62
22 CRETIN DERHAM HALL 6AA 14 6 0 0.700 71 53 19.57
23 BEMIDJI 8AA 11 8 1 0.575 56 37 19.43
24 BRAINERD 8AA 13 8 1 0.614 82 59 19.16
25 CLOQUET 7AA 12 6 2 0.650 80 52 19.08
26 ROSEAU 8AA