New AA Sections

[elliott70]

Nice to see some thoughts being added.

[goldy313]

How about this...
1AA-Burnsville, Eagan, Eastview, Jefferson, Rosemount and Apple Valley. Those 6 playoff to see who gets to play Holy Angels, that game starts at the start of the thrid period with AHA up 7-0.
2AA-Woodbury, Hastings, Tartan, STA, and Cretin.
3AA-Hill Murray, Centennial, Roseville, and Stillwater
4AA-Champlin Park, Blaine, Anoka, Elk River, Osseo, Maple Grove, Coon Rapids, Armstrong, Hopkins, Forest Lake, Blake, Breck, Buffalo, Andover, Rogers, and Tech. Nobody in that group whines so they get lumped together, remember the squeeky wheel gets the grease.
5AA-Edina, they are God's gift to hockey and we should all be honored to see them every year. Even in years they didn't make it it wasn't because they weren't the best team it was some other factor.
6AA- Eden Prairie, Wazata, Minnetonka, and BSM. Whomever of this group loses and feels that they rightfully deserve to be in the state tournament gets 4AA's spot. Also if they feel they got a bad seed they can be put where ever they like. If more than 1 team feels they should be there they will replace other section winners on a rotating basis.
7AA-Cloquet, Grand Rapids, Duluth East
8AA-Moorhead, Roseau, nobody else wants to be there anyway, the loser gets warroads spot in the 8A tournament

Any team not listed also goes into 4AA.

All the curent 1AA teams will be disbanded because they don't deserve to play hockey they're so bad. John Marshall and Century will forfeit any claim to their first, second and third place finishes and those will be awarded to Eden Prairie because it's just not right Eden Prairie has the exact same winning percentage as Austin in the state tournament. These teams will then take up boys competetive dance.

George Larson is an underrated hockey mind, he did a lot for that community and hockey.

[rams1989]

Some of those rivalries make me long for the days of a one-class tournament. I know, it will never happen . . .

Good to have someone get it.

He isn't he only one that gets it Elliott. The basis behind two classes was for more kids to get to play in the State Tournament. That basis was flawed, still is flawed and will always be flawed.

I long for the days when the State Tournament was to determine the best team...........instead of which kids get exposure.

[Kurdatz]

Interesting scenario, given the public/private debate, but I could see Duluth Marshall going AA at some point.

It would be a good addition to 7AA in theory, although it's a little early to forecast them as a perenial power at this point, with no offense to DM's current and recent teams.

I don't see Virgina-MIB going AA again. Not unless the steel projects on the Range turn the area into the next metro area with a population spike, which could happen in 5 years. Same with Hibbing and Greenway. The Falls could get away with it probably.

I don't think you'll see Denfeld going AA again unless they have to with the merger of Central and them which is looming. The numbers have been declining out in West Duluth for the last ten to fifteen years, and although they did quite well in Class A this year and last, it's unsure how long that longevity will last.

There used to be outdoor rinks up the ying yang all over this city, and now just a handfull. What a shame. Or a sham, I should say.

DM being private, attracts more of the "privelleged" few to the program. East is privilleged by being located where a good deal of the more wealthy people are, hence the better programs over a sustained period of time.

Side note: Anyone know the state of Eveleth-Gilbert hockey? They went to the tournament in the late 90's I believe and then just took a nose-dive. Anyone know whats going on up there?

[elliott70]

Side note: Anyone know the state of Eveleth-Gilbert hockey? They went to the tournament in the late 90's I believe and then just took a nose-dive. Anyone know whats going on up there?

Not enough kids, money.

If the new steel mill and if the other plant go, then there will be a come back...

[Can't Never Tried]

How about this...
1AA-Burnsville, Eagan, Eastview, Jefferson, Rosemount and Apple Valley. Those 6 playoff to see who gets to play Holy Angels, that game starts at the start of the thrid period with AHA up 7-0.2AA-Woodbury, Hastings, Tartan, STA, and Cretin.
3AA-Hill Murray, Centennial, Roseville, and Stillwater
4AA-Champlin Park, Blaine, Anoka, Elk River, Osseo, Maple Grove, Coon Rapids, Armstrong, Hopkins, Forest Lake, Blake, Breck, Buffalo, Andover, Rogers, and Tech. Nobody in that group whines so they get lumped together, remember the squeeky wheel gets the grease.5AA-Edina, they are God's gift to hockey and we should all be honored to see them every year. Even in years they didn't make it it wasn't because they weren't the best team it was some other factor.6AA- Eden Prairie, Wazata, Minnetonka, and BSM. Whomever of this group loses and feels that they rightfully deserve to be in the state tournament gets 4AA's spot. Also if they feel they got a bad seed they can be put where ever they like. If more than 1 team feels they should be there they will replace other section winners on a rotating basis.
7AA-Cloquet, Grand Rapids, Duluth East
8AA-Moorhead, Roseau, nobody else wants to be there anyway, the loser gets warroads spot in the 8A tournament
Any team not listed also goes into 4AA.

All the curent 1AA teams will be disbanded because they don't deserve to play hockey they're so bad. John Marshall and Century will forfeit any claim to their first, second and third place finishes and those will be awarded to Eden Prairie because it's just not right Eden Prairie has the exact same winning percentage as Austin in the state tournament. These teams will then take up boys competetive dance.
George Larson is an underrated hockey mind, he did a lot for that community and hockey.

This was just plain a great post full of good humor and what makes this "bored" go
Hat's off to goldy he gets it!

I bolded what I thought were the best parts

[packerboy]

Mule, you say it was a good concept, but you cannot undertake a course of action that is next to impossible to administer.

That might be overstaying it a bit O.

It would involve making decisions that a very few might disagree with but so what?

The original concept was a good one but in this day and age of people who are afraid of or too lazy to make decisions it was not followed.

Its much easier to adopt the arbitrary enrollment criterea and then wash your hands of it. Thats what was done.

The suggestions made here by the posters are very, very good ones. especially the contributions made by goldy

[pondyplayer93]

Some of those rivalries make me long for the days of a one-class tournament. I know, it will never happen . . .

Good to have someone get it.

He isn't he only one that gets it Elliott. The basis behind two classes was for more kids to get to play in the State Tournament. That basis was flawed, still is flawed and will always be flawed.

I long for the days when the State Tournament was to determine the best team...........instead of which kids get exposure.

And sometimes the best 8 teams dont have a team from up north or way south or maybe more than one from north. thats why we should do a 65 team tourney

[PuckRanger]

I should also point out that Duluth East, Grand Rapids, Cloquet/Esko/Carlton, and Roseau could ALL opt down if they so chose. They are under the enrollment cut-off. Imagine if that were the case... There would be ZERO class AA teams north of Brainerd.

When did Moorhead move south of Brainerd?

Ok, if you want to be technical, ZERO teams north of Moorhead (Although Brainerd is closer to the canadian border). The point is that Moorhead, Brainerd, and Northern Lakes are the only three hockey programs north of St. Cloud that are NOT opting up into AA. If Northern Lakes busted up its 5-school coop, the resulting teams would drop back into class A. I think Brainerd would be "A" eligible as well if they were to drop Pierz and Pillager. That leaves Moorhead as the only stand alone school north of St. Cloud thats enrollment puts them into class AA. The "true" AA schools are almost all Metro. What that leaves is basically a metro class and an outstate class. That isn't what the two class split intended.

[Kurdatz]

Ok, if you want to be technical, ZERO teams north of Moorhead (Although Brainerd is closer to the canadian border). The point is that Moorhead, Brainerd, and Northern Lakes are the only three hockey programs north of St. Cloud that are NOT opting up into AA. If Northern Lakes busted up its 5-school coop, the resulting teams would drop back into class A. I think Brainerd would be "A" eligible as well if they were to drop Pierz and Pillager. That leaves Moorhead as the only stand alone school north of St. Cloud thats enrollment puts them into class AA. The "true" AA schools are almost all Metro. What that leaves is basically a metro class and an outstate class. That isn't what the two class split intended.[/quote]

Quite true. In terms of true enrollment, almost all of the metro teams would be AA, while the Outstate teams would be A.

The whole "dual" class system began after the expansion in the metro areas and suburbs really REALLY started taking off. But as more schools around the state consolidate, it's become a reality thats more than likely here to stay. People, in general, don't like the thought of "elitism" in high school sports, which is what the one class system represented...only the best, generally, got there. So the two class system was begun, first with the Tiered and then the Class system. The supposed theory was that you'd have more kids able to make the state tournament from schools that otherwise might not have made it there.

The split between the two philosophies depends on what the person examining each of the two wants to see...

Personally, I always preffered the one class system, but in the days of marketing and media, which equates to dollars nowaday, I'm afraid you'll never see that again.

My thought has always been, if you're good enough to play the game, it shouldn't matter the enrollement. Sometimes, the little guy gets lucky.

[pondyplayer93]

because of the smaller enrolments some schools are good some years and not the next. that is why they can not keep moving teams from a to aa and back. they should take the top 65 teams and they play aa tourney, the next 65 play a, and the last 34 or so dont qualify

[defense]

I like the idea of having the eight regions, make it the old regions in one class system, and take the eight largest schools in those individual regions to be in class aa. This current trend of the biggest 64 in the state being class aa will not work in the near future as is illustrated by others. It has already happened in say basketball where there isn't but one team in a section from northern Minnesota or even out of the St. Cloud-Twin Cities corridor, and it will wreck a state tournement. I thought the whole point of a state tournement was to bring together teams from throughout the state, not just teams from the twin cities because they are the largest.
This plan would change both classes completely. While teams such as Bemidji or Fergus Falls or Virginia may be forced to play in aa, teams such as private schools in the metro area may be set in class a. Actually you would have metro schools set in class a that have a much higher enrollment than schools set in class aa in northern MN. A plan worth trying??? Probably a lot better than having a Twin Cities tournement to coincide with the class a State Tournement.....