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Just curious to see what people who have some knowledge who might be some of the top AAA teams this spring at the 00,99, & 98 level??

HD41 seems to be the local expert.

The usual suspects...... Machine, blades, icemen.

I really like that there are some other organizations making some waves at the younger levels. If the elite players have been gravitating to 2 or 3 programs, there are more than 40 or 60 kids at each birth year that can play. The metro has around 50 associations. With 1-2 coming from some associations and 12-15 from some associations (figure an average of 5-6), that's about 300 kids. If a couple programs step up in the next couple years to elite status, that'll make let's say 5 - 100 kids. 200 pretty good kids would make 10-12 'mid-major' programs. Throw in another couple hundred having fun and getting better on showcase type 'AAA' teams, and the hundreds of kids that get together with their buddies to play in MASH and Showcase leagues, and you have about 700 kids at each age group. If you figure 01-96 years (01s and 96s are fewer in numbers, but average out with some 95,94,etc. and some 02,03, etc.) there are over 4,000 kids enjoying hockey in the spring, summer, and fall in the metro area alone. Toss in some upstarts in Rochester, Mankato, St Cloud, Bemidji, and kids playing in the Duluth, Fargo, Grand Forks, and way-up-north areas and there are a whole bunch of kids getting a chance to have a great time - year 'round. As far as I'm concerned, let them all use the moniker 'AAA' if it gets them out to play. For those that say summer hockey is "watered down"; I say, all that water is helping it to grow.

old goalie85 wrote:The usual suspects...... Machine, blades, icemen.

Who might some of the other teams be behind the Machine & Blades. I know last year at the 99 level the

MN Edge
Lake Superior Stars had strong teams.
\

When did the icemen become a usual suspect? Not sure their 99' team won a game last year and the 00's have some players but are not deep at all. the only icemen team that is a top team is their 98' team.

EnjoyTheShow wrote:When did the icemen become a usual suspect? Not sure their 99' team won a game last year and the 00's have some players but are not deep at all. the only icemen team that is a top team is their 98' team.

I'm not sure about the 99 and 00 teams, but their 95 team is pretty solid....just a notch below the Blades and Breakaway.

muckandgrind wrote:

EnjoyTheShow wrote:When did the icemen become a usual suspect? Not sure their 99' team won a game last year and the 00's have some players but are not deep at all. the only icemen team that is a top team is their 98' team.

I'm not sure about the 99 and 00 teams, but their 95 team is pretty solid....just a notch below the Blades and Breakaway.

Agreed! I guess I was just looking at the 98' 99' 00' groups.

EnjoyTheShow wrote:HD41 seems to be the local expert.

I do?

HockeyDad41 wrote:

EnjoyTheShow wrote:HD41 seems to be the local expert.

I do?

Self-proclaimed

3GoonsWest wrote:

HockeyDad41 wrote:

EnjoyTheShow wrote:HD41 seems to be the local expert.

I do?

Self-proclaimed

I did?

Dont give me the Iceman in with the Machine and Blades. THe Lake Superior Stars 98 destroyed the Iceman. Without a doubt the Machine is the top 98 followed by the Blades, LSS, Stealth, Synergy, then the Iceman. After those it is really watered down. In fact I would say those are the AAA teams and everyone else sould fall into AA and A. There should be the 3 levels in summer hockey to keep teams like the loons, bulldogs, and gulls from running into games that are not good for anyone. Summer hockey is great for everyone. It seems evey year some parent gets upset about his son not making a certain team so he goes out and puts his own team together to try and get even. Its even funnier when they go out and try to pick up kids from one of the top teams to come in on a off weekend and plays them ahead of the paying players on his team. LOL and parents put up with it?

If your boy's Stars coach set up a scrimmage with the Loons, he should have know what he was getting into.

I see the Easton Synergy has announced a new coach for the 2003 team.

countryboy wrote:Dont give me the Iceman in with the Machine and Blades. THe Lake Superior Stars 98 destroyed the Iceman. Without a doubt the Machine is the top 98 followed by the Blades, LSS, Stealth, Synergy, then the Iceman. After those it is really watered down. In fact I would say those are the AAA teams and everyone else sould fall into AA and A. There should be the 3 levels in summer hockey to keep teams like the loons, bulldogs, and gulls from running into games that are not good for anyone. Summer hockey is great for everyone. It seems evey year some parent gets upset about his son not making a certain team so he goes out and puts his own team together to try and get even. Its even funnier when they go out and try to pick up kids from one of the top teams to come in on a off weekend and plays them ahead of the paying players on his team. LOL and parents put up with it?

Hey countryboy. I would think the Northern Wings wouldn't be all that different than the Icemen and some of those teams lower on your list. You see them more than me. What do you think?

countryboy wrote:Dont give me the Iceman in with the Machine and Blades. THe Lake Superior Stars 98 destroyed the Iceman. Without a doubt the Machine is the top 98 followed by the Blades, LSS, Stealth, Synergy, then the Iceman. After those it is really watered down. In fact I would say those are the AAA teams and everyone else sould fall into AA and A. There should be the 3 levels in summer hockey to keep teams like the loons, bulldogs, and gulls from running into games that are not good for anyone. Summer hockey is great for everyone. It seems evey year some parent gets upset about his son not making a certain team so he goes out and puts his own team together to try and get even. Its even funnier when they go out and try to pick up kids from one of the top teams to come in on a off weekend and plays them ahead of the paying players on his team. LOL and parents put up with it?

So the teams you listed should just play eachother and be called AAA and the rest should be A or AA right? Kind of like regular association hockey season (insert Squirt or Peewee or Bantam) and take away the top teams (Edina, Wayzata, WBL, WDB & 2 or 3 others) and everyone else should be B or C (using your logic). That'd be fun.

InigoMontoya wrote:If your boy's Stars coach set up a scrimmage with the Loons, he should have know what he was getting into.

I see the Easton Synergy has announced a new coach for the 2003 team.

It's good to see they are lining up those 2003 programs!

HD41 in another 3 years your son can play AAA hockey! Keeping working on the Russian Circles at MM.

Well said, badself. Who cares who the best teams are, this is summer hockey, for individual development and fun, and to get ready for next season.

DMan-dad wrote:Well said, badself. Who cares who the best teams are, this is summer hockey, for individual development and fun, and to get ready for next season.

You have to agree that there has to be some way of tiering the spring AAA teams or some other solution. If lil Johnny can play on a "AAA" team yet can barely skate, what good does that do the rest of the real "AAA" players?
What does AAA really mean? I thought AAA represented elite high level hockey. Why not have different levels of AAA. Right now, all I know of is Elite and Open. I personally think the "AAA" Spring Teams should be made up of the elite players. If you have two "AAA" teams play each other and the final score is 20-1, what good does that do to either team? Put kids in their proper level of hockey and let them compete. Quit watering it down and trying to make them something they are not!!

I was talking about the 98 icemen. When are YOUR AAA rankings going to be posted?

Any one have info Team Breakaway? I just heard of them last week.

old goalie85 wrote:Any one have info Team Breakaway? I just heard of them last week.

Which year(s) are you talking about?

Program in general. The guy I talked to was involved, or had a kid on the 98 team.

old goalie85 wrote:Program in general. The guy I talked to was involved, or had a kid on the 98 team.

The 95 team (many of the former Machine players) is really solid. Don't know much about the younger teams, although any program run by Dave Snuggerud should be pretty good.