2024-25 Section 4A
Posted: Wed Nov 06, 2024 8:52 pm
2024-25 Section 4A Preseason Preview
Section 4A has been dominated by Mahtomedi in recent years as they have now won the section in 7 of the last 8 years. The Zephyrs are a blueblood program within Class A and they have become an annual team that plays on Friday at X come Tourney Time. They are again the favorites this year but the last two years their main challengers in 4A of Chisago Lakes & Southwest Christian/Richfield have pushed them more in the Section Final to show that they won't go down easily and both appear to be the main contenders again this year. Other programs continue to build as St Paul Academy & South St Paul have both gotten momentum of recent playoff success to build off of. However, when it comes to Section 4A the question remains can anyone beat Mahtomedi and end their reign of dominance within this Metro East section.
BHS 2024-25 Section 4A Preseason Ranking
1- Mahtomedi Zephyrs
2- Chisago Lakes Wildcats
3- Southwest Christian/Richfield Stars
4- St. Paul Academy Spartans
5- South St. Paul Packers
6- St. Paul Highland Park Scots
7- Simley Spartans
8- Bloomington Kennedy Eagles
1- Mahtomedi Zephyrs
Head Coach- Jeff Poeschl 31st year, (511-307-22)
Last Year's Record and Finish: (18-13-0) Section 4A Champion and took 4th place in Class A
Zephyrs Outlook- The Zephyrs have become a team that it seems like you can routinely count on to be playing Friday at State in Class A which they have done now 6 times in the last 7 years. The Zephyrs will have to retool their attack this season as they graduated 3 of their top scorers and then took a big hit in the offseason when their top two returners Senior Sam Harris and Junior Jimmy Egan both became early departures. However, Coach Poeschl has done wonders in the past at being able to take unheralded talent and getting them to buy into his systems and turning into a team that is very difficult to play against. At forward they still do return experience in Seniors Winston Wright, Laken Decker, Ryan Lipovitz & Mac Appert and Junior Brayden Fuerst who all had nearly double digit points last year will look to be the leaders of a young offense this winter. Add to them a trio of talented Sophomores Will Seevers, Devin O’Donnell & Blake Bentz coming up from the JV & AA Bantams ready to push for playing time immediately. On defense they have some experience as Senior Joey Pipes & Junior Cody Loida are back with varsity experience to build around and expect Junior Cael Brummel and Sophomores Zach Zins & Trevor Rogosheske to be candidates for minutes coming up from the JV & AA Bantams. In the net, goaltender Senior Wes Strub got lots of action splitting the net this past season and should be ready to take over the starting role. Looking at Mahtomedi on paper there are still enough pieces here for the coaching staff to mold another contender by the time March rolls around and be as tough as ever against this upcoming season. The Zephyrs always should be considered contenders in Class A and they will be a strong pick to win 4A yet again and play a tough AA filled schedule to be ready to contend for a Class A Title come tourney time.
2- Chisago Lakes Wildcats
Head Coach: Cory Lushanko 6th year, (75-51-3)
Last Year’s Record and Finish: (11-14-1) Lost in Section 4A Quarterfinals
Wildcats Outlook- The Wildcats had really solidified themselves as a winning program having 5 straight winning seasons and going to 3 Section Finals during that time period before last season. However, last year was just a struggle all year as they were never able to get healthy and things ended with their first losing season since 2018 and they were the biggest upset victim of the Class A quarterfinal round getting knocked out by 6 seed. Chisago Lakes should be back to their normal standards this year as they will return 40% of their scoring from last year which includes the return of their 2nd, 3rd & 5th leading scorers from a year ago in Seniors Maxwell Bobrowski & Benjamin Kerkow and Junior Austin Slettom who all had double digit points and look for two transfers they coming in Senior Alex Bever & Junior Jake Kletti to push for immediate big minutes. They should have some depth returning as well up front as Senior Lucas Ide and Juniors Landon Kerkow & Quin Ryan are back with varsity experience up and should be more productive. Also look for incoming Sophomores Nick Hansen, Jase Kelley, Nathan Williams & Oliver Bushweiler coming up from the youth ranks to push for playing time. They will have to revamp the blueline that was hit hard by graduation but they do return Junior Maxwell Koch who is an elite defender to build a new core around and Sophomore Ben Berger should be top defender right away coming up from the youth. They will have experience in net to break in a young blueline as Senior Brett Hanson & Junior Corbin Shandley are both back after splitting the net last year for the Wildcats and Shandley had a big offseason and should make Chisago Lakes very tough in net. Add it all up and the Wildcats should be back as a contender this year in 4A and within Class A overall.
3- Southwest Christian/Richfield Stars
Head Coach- Paul Ranheim 3rd year, (29-20-5)
Last Year's Record and Finish: (17-11-0) Lost in Section 4A Championship Game
Stars Outlook- The Stars took full advantage of their move into Section 4A last winter and they were able to not only win their programs first ever playoff game but they advanced all the way to the Section Final and came oh so close to State Tourney berth. Southwest Christian/Richfield now will have the test of trying to stay competitive as they graduated a large and successful senior class this offseason. The reason for the continued optimism is that they do return some very good parts of last year's record setting team. Offensively, they return Senior Paul Horner and Junior Christian Greer who both put up around 30 points last year. They also have Senior Johnny Erhart and Juniors Vinny Ferrara & Gavin Schmid who all have varsity experience to add depth up front and also look for 9th grader Wyatt Durand to provide immediate impact after leading the JV in scoring as an 8th grader. Defensively they return elite Junior Tate Hardacre as 5 of their 6 regular defenseman are back along with Senior Ashton Hendel, Junior Luke Dore and Sophomores Bennett Breuer & Carson Wright all have varsity experience on the blueline. The veteran backend will be needed as the big question mark with this team will be who steps up in net but look for it to be a battle between Senior Eric Carlson and youngster 9th grader Hudson Tucker, who was the top goalie in the Tonka Youth program, to be the main contenders to step in there. Looking at what is returning and who is coming in there should be plenty of excitement around this program as they look to build off their record setting year last season this winter.
4- St Paul Academy Spartans
Head Coach: Bill McClellan 4th year, (32-46-1)
Last Year’s Record and Finish: (10-17-0) Lost in Section 4A Quarterfinals
Spartans Outlook- St Paul Academy is looking to build off their recent playoff success as they have been able to make it to the Section 4A Semifinals the last 2 consecutive years. They will now be looking to make it three years in a row this winter and they return some key players upfront but questions on how they replace their backend will be the ultimate test for their success this year. At forward they return their leading goal scorer Senior Ethan Peltier who had double digit goals last year. Add to him Seniors Jimmy Steiner, Liam Huddleston, Jack De Haven & Preston Karelitz are all back with varsity experience to help them have scoring depth and veteran leadership up front. On defense Junior Shea Murphy & Senior Peter Hoppe return with varsity experience for them to build around on the backend. The big question mark will be in net as they will need a new goalie this winter and answering that question will be key to how successful this team will be this upcoming season.
5- South St Paul Packers
Head Coach: Zach Palmquist 2nd year, (9-17-1)
Last Year’s Record and Finish: (9-17-1) Lost in Section 4A Semifinals
Packers Outlook- South St Paul is another program hoping to build off last year’s playoff success. The Packers pulled off the biggest stunner of the Class A Quarterfinal Round when as a 6 seed they made the Semifinals. It was a great way to end the season for their 1st year coach who did a nice job of pumping some energy into this historic program. Now the test will be what can be done in year two as they do return their leading goal scorer in Senior Roddick Simons. They also have Junior Cole Stever and Sophomores Roman Knight, Jaxson Horning & Jace Erb who all played minutes as freshman last year and will be stronger and older this year. On the Blueline Junior Jackson Schultz & Sophomore Greyson Simons return with experience to build around. In net it looks like they will turn to Sophomore Michal Francis and this will be a younger team looking to take another step forward this winter and continue the success they experienced at the end of last season.
6- St Paul Highland Park Scots
Head Coach: Paul Ryan 3rd Year, (22-28-2)
Last Year’s Record and Finish: (12-14-0) Lost in Section 4A Quarterfinals
Scots Outlook- St Paul Highland Park has for the last two years got progressively better and earned a Top 5 seed for the Section Playoffs. However, they have not been able yet to get that big playoff win and push into the Semis and this offseason they were hit hard by graduation. However, the Scots still do return their leading scorer in Senior Isaac Johnson who should be one of the top players in the section. Seniors Tommy Rust & Leo Kirsch are also back with varsity experience to start building a new scoring core around. On defense Seniors Mustafa Ahmadad & Sean McMullen along with Juniors Gavin Olsen & Max Karvonen are back to help build up the blueline and they should be solid in net as Senior Calum Axelson returns as the starting goalie from last season. While they did graduate a chunk of goals off of last season’s team St Paul Highland Park still have a solid returning senior class to build another good team around and maybe finally breakthrough into the 4A Semis this winter.
7- Simley Spartans
Head Coach: Ben Horsch 1st year, (0-0-0)
Last Year’s Record and Finish: (5-19-2) Lost in Section 4A Quarterfinals
Spartans Outlook- Simley had a disappointing year overall last year as they were a team that had a large Senior class returning which gave them high hopes for the year. Yet when the season started they just never could get things on track and gain any traction and they ended up winning just 5 games on the year. Now they will face a major transition after losing their veteran head coach and huge senior class and they will turn to their few returners in Seniors Tyler Letendre, the team’s leading scorer last year, Ethan Unglesbee & Alex Miller to lead them to a better year this season. On defense Junior Luke Milner returns and they will look to build a new backend around him. They will also need a new goalie with Junior Everett Hay being a candidate to take over in net for what will be a very young team with lots of players getting their first varsity experience at the beginning of this season and this will be a team that needs to grow as the winter wears on.
8- Bloomington Kennedy Eagles
Head Coach: Brandon Tveitbakk 2nd year, (4-22-0)
Last Year’s Record and Finish: (4-22-0) Lost in Section 4A Semifinals
Eagles Outlook- It was another tough year for Bloomington Kennedy as they were not able to find a ton of success on the ice last season and now in the offseason we got news that this will be the last for this tradition rich program. The Eagles will compete hard, as they always do, and they will look to have the program go out on a bang this year as they return a lineup with more varsity experience and a big senior class. Up front Seniors David Wurst, Isaac Syrjamaki, Mason Biermaier, Marvin Miller & Gustavo Perry all are back with varsity experience. On the blueline Seniors Rocky Carlson & Calvin Danielson return with varsity experience as well. In net they will not have the same level of experience but Junior Dominick Russell appears to be the main option to take over the starting role. Bloomington Kennedy will hope that their big senior class with loads of experience will help lead them to a successful last season for this long time proud program.
Section 4A has been dominated by Mahtomedi in recent years as they have now won the section in 7 of the last 8 years. The Zephyrs are a blueblood program within Class A and they have become an annual team that plays on Friday at X come Tourney Time. They are again the favorites this year but the last two years their main challengers in 4A of Chisago Lakes & Southwest Christian/Richfield have pushed them more in the Section Final to show that they won't go down easily and both appear to be the main contenders again this year. Other programs continue to build as St Paul Academy & South St Paul have both gotten momentum of recent playoff success to build off of. However, when it comes to Section 4A the question remains can anyone beat Mahtomedi and end their reign of dominance within this Metro East section.
BHS 2024-25 Section 4A Preseason Ranking
1- Mahtomedi Zephyrs
2- Chisago Lakes Wildcats
3- Southwest Christian/Richfield Stars
4- St. Paul Academy Spartans
5- South St. Paul Packers
6- St. Paul Highland Park Scots
7- Simley Spartans
8- Bloomington Kennedy Eagles
1- Mahtomedi Zephyrs
Head Coach- Jeff Poeschl 31st year, (511-307-22)
Last Year's Record and Finish: (18-13-0) Section 4A Champion and took 4th place in Class A
Zephyrs Outlook- The Zephyrs have become a team that it seems like you can routinely count on to be playing Friday at State in Class A which they have done now 6 times in the last 7 years. The Zephyrs will have to retool their attack this season as they graduated 3 of their top scorers and then took a big hit in the offseason when their top two returners Senior Sam Harris and Junior Jimmy Egan both became early departures. However, Coach Poeschl has done wonders in the past at being able to take unheralded talent and getting them to buy into his systems and turning into a team that is very difficult to play against. At forward they still do return experience in Seniors Winston Wright, Laken Decker, Ryan Lipovitz & Mac Appert and Junior Brayden Fuerst who all had nearly double digit points last year will look to be the leaders of a young offense this winter. Add to them a trio of talented Sophomores Will Seevers, Devin O’Donnell & Blake Bentz coming up from the JV & AA Bantams ready to push for playing time immediately. On defense they have some experience as Senior Joey Pipes & Junior Cody Loida are back with varsity experience to build around and expect Junior Cael Brummel and Sophomores Zach Zins & Trevor Rogosheske to be candidates for minutes coming up from the JV & AA Bantams. In the net, goaltender Senior Wes Strub got lots of action splitting the net this past season and should be ready to take over the starting role. Looking at Mahtomedi on paper there are still enough pieces here for the coaching staff to mold another contender by the time March rolls around and be as tough as ever against this upcoming season. The Zephyrs always should be considered contenders in Class A and they will be a strong pick to win 4A yet again and play a tough AA filled schedule to be ready to contend for a Class A Title come tourney time.
2- Chisago Lakes Wildcats
Head Coach: Cory Lushanko 6th year, (75-51-3)
Last Year’s Record and Finish: (11-14-1) Lost in Section 4A Quarterfinals
Wildcats Outlook- The Wildcats had really solidified themselves as a winning program having 5 straight winning seasons and going to 3 Section Finals during that time period before last season. However, last year was just a struggle all year as they were never able to get healthy and things ended with their first losing season since 2018 and they were the biggest upset victim of the Class A quarterfinal round getting knocked out by 6 seed. Chisago Lakes should be back to their normal standards this year as they will return 40% of their scoring from last year which includes the return of their 2nd, 3rd & 5th leading scorers from a year ago in Seniors Maxwell Bobrowski & Benjamin Kerkow and Junior Austin Slettom who all had double digit points and look for two transfers they coming in Senior Alex Bever & Junior Jake Kletti to push for immediate big minutes. They should have some depth returning as well up front as Senior Lucas Ide and Juniors Landon Kerkow & Quin Ryan are back with varsity experience up and should be more productive. Also look for incoming Sophomores Nick Hansen, Jase Kelley, Nathan Williams & Oliver Bushweiler coming up from the youth ranks to push for playing time. They will have to revamp the blueline that was hit hard by graduation but they do return Junior Maxwell Koch who is an elite defender to build a new core around and Sophomore Ben Berger should be top defender right away coming up from the youth. They will have experience in net to break in a young blueline as Senior Brett Hanson & Junior Corbin Shandley are both back after splitting the net last year for the Wildcats and Shandley had a big offseason and should make Chisago Lakes very tough in net. Add it all up and the Wildcats should be back as a contender this year in 4A and within Class A overall.
3- Southwest Christian/Richfield Stars
Head Coach- Paul Ranheim 3rd year, (29-20-5)
Last Year's Record and Finish: (17-11-0) Lost in Section 4A Championship Game
Stars Outlook- The Stars took full advantage of their move into Section 4A last winter and they were able to not only win their programs first ever playoff game but they advanced all the way to the Section Final and came oh so close to State Tourney berth. Southwest Christian/Richfield now will have the test of trying to stay competitive as they graduated a large and successful senior class this offseason. The reason for the continued optimism is that they do return some very good parts of last year's record setting team. Offensively, they return Senior Paul Horner and Junior Christian Greer who both put up around 30 points last year. They also have Senior Johnny Erhart and Juniors Vinny Ferrara & Gavin Schmid who all have varsity experience to add depth up front and also look for 9th grader Wyatt Durand to provide immediate impact after leading the JV in scoring as an 8th grader. Defensively they return elite Junior Tate Hardacre as 5 of their 6 regular defenseman are back along with Senior Ashton Hendel, Junior Luke Dore and Sophomores Bennett Breuer & Carson Wright all have varsity experience on the blueline. The veteran backend will be needed as the big question mark with this team will be who steps up in net but look for it to be a battle between Senior Eric Carlson and youngster 9th grader Hudson Tucker, who was the top goalie in the Tonka Youth program, to be the main contenders to step in there. Looking at what is returning and who is coming in there should be plenty of excitement around this program as they look to build off their record setting year last season this winter.
4- St Paul Academy Spartans
Head Coach: Bill McClellan 4th year, (32-46-1)
Last Year’s Record and Finish: (10-17-0) Lost in Section 4A Quarterfinals
Spartans Outlook- St Paul Academy is looking to build off their recent playoff success as they have been able to make it to the Section 4A Semifinals the last 2 consecutive years. They will now be looking to make it three years in a row this winter and they return some key players upfront but questions on how they replace their backend will be the ultimate test for their success this year. At forward they return their leading goal scorer Senior Ethan Peltier who had double digit goals last year. Add to him Seniors Jimmy Steiner, Liam Huddleston, Jack De Haven & Preston Karelitz are all back with varsity experience to help them have scoring depth and veteran leadership up front. On defense Junior Shea Murphy & Senior Peter Hoppe return with varsity experience for them to build around on the backend. The big question mark will be in net as they will need a new goalie this winter and answering that question will be key to how successful this team will be this upcoming season.
5- South St Paul Packers
Head Coach: Zach Palmquist 2nd year, (9-17-1)
Last Year’s Record and Finish: (9-17-1) Lost in Section 4A Semifinals
Packers Outlook- South St Paul is another program hoping to build off last year’s playoff success. The Packers pulled off the biggest stunner of the Class A Quarterfinal Round when as a 6 seed they made the Semifinals. It was a great way to end the season for their 1st year coach who did a nice job of pumping some energy into this historic program. Now the test will be what can be done in year two as they do return their leading goal scorer in Senior Roddick Simons. They also have Junior Cole Stever and Sophomores Roman Knight, Jaxson Horning & Jace Erb who all played minutes as freshman last year and will be stronger and older this year. On the Blueline Junior Jackson Schultz & Sophomore Greyson Simons return with experience to build around. In net it looks like they will turn to Sophomore Michal Francis and this will be a younger team looking to take another step forward this winter and continue the success they experienced at the end of last season.
6- St Paul Highland Park Scots
Head Coach: Paul Ryan 3rd Year, (22-28-2)
Last Year’s Record and Finish: (12-14-0) Lost in Section 4A Quarterfinals
Scots Outlook- St Paul Highland Park has for the last two years got progressively better and earned a Top 5 seed for the Section Playoffs. However, they have not been able yet to get that big playoff win and push into the Semis and this offseason they were hit hard by graduation. However, the Scots still do return their leading scorer in Senior Isaac Johnson who should be one of the top players in the section. Seniors Tommy Rust & Leo Kirsch are also back with varsity experience to start building a new scoring core around. On defense Seniors Mustafa Ahmadad & Sean McMullen along with Juniors Gavin Olsen & Max Karvonen are back to help build up the blueline and they should be solid in net as Senior Calum Axelson returns as the starting goalie from last season. While they did graduate a chunk of goals off of last season’s team St Paul Highland Park still have a solid returning senior class to build another good team around and maybe finally breakthrough into the 4A Semis this winter.
7- Simley Spartans
Head Coach: Ben Horsch 1st year, (0-0-0)
Last Year’s Record and Finish: (5-19-2) Lost in Section 4A Quarterfinals
Spartans Outlook- Simley had a disappointing year overall last year as they were a team that had a large Senior class returning which gave them high hopes for the year. Yet when the season started they just never could get things on track and gain any traction and they ended up winning just 5 games on the year. Now they will face a major transition after losing their veteran head coach and huge senior class and they will turn to their few returners in Seniors Tyler Letendre, the team’s leading scorer last year, Ethan Unglesbee & Alex Miller to lead them to a better year this season. On defense Junior Luke Milner returns and they will look to build a new backend around him. They will also need a new goalie with Junior Everett Hay being a candidate to take over in net for what will be a very young team with lots of players getting their first varsity experience at the beginning of this season and this will be a team that needs to grow as the winter wears on.
8- Bloomington Kennedy Eagles
Head Coach: Brandon Tveitbakk 2nd year, (4-22-0)
Last Year’s Record and Finish: (4-22-0) Lost in Section 4A Semifinals
Eagles Outlook- It was another tough year for Bloomington Kennedy as they were not able to find a ton of success on the ice last season and now in the offseason we got news that this will be the last for this tradition rich program. The Eagles will compete hard, as they always do, and they will look to have the program go out on a bang this year as they return a lineup with more varsity experience and a big senior class. Up front Seniors David Wurst, Isaac Syrjamaki, Mason Biermaier, Marvin Miller & Gustavo Perry all are back with varsity experience. On the blueline Seniors Rocky Carlson & Calvin Danielson return with varsity experience as well. In net they will not have the same level of experience but Junior Dominick Russell appears to be the main option to take over the starting role. Bloomington Kennedy will hope that their big senior class with loads of experience will help lead them to a successful last season for this long time proud program.