AA Rankings for 12/5/10
Posted: Sun Dec 05, 2010 9:19 am
Now that most teams have a few games under their belts, we can start moving away from speculation and develop some more serious rankings. There were a lot of big matchups in the first week and a half, so a lot of the top teams have a loss or even two. It’s crowded at the top. Last year at this point, Minnetonka had already asserted itself as a clear frontrunner; this time, I’d say there’s not much differentiation between the top six to seven.
1. Eden Prairie
-A pair of very impressive season-opening wins over former Lake Conference foes have the Eagles on top for the time being; the big win over Jefferson, though not entirely unexpected, says a lot about the direction of both programs. This upcoming week is the only one in which they do not face another elite team in the state.
This week: Tues at Lakeville North, Sat vs. Hermantown
2. Wayzata
-Had three wins over top-10 teams in the first week and a half, and also a blowout of another top-25 team. The three top-10 wins were all by one goal, though, so they certainly aren’t miles ahead of the rest of the competition. This week they get a respite from elite teams, and should sail to a pair of easy victories.
This week: Tues at Osseo, Thurs at Buffalo
3. Benilde-St. Margaret’s
-A convincing win over Hill puts the Red Knights up amongst the elite in the state. They’ve only allowed two goals in their opening two games, which is a good sign for a team whose question marks were on defense. Two games this week; one is an easy win, another is a mild upset threat, but not a serious one.
This week: Tues vs. St. Francis, Sat. vs. Duluth Marshall
4. Edina
-Lost to Wayzata, but rebounded with a last-second miracle win over Burnsville and scraped by Eagan. I’m not sure how much stock to put into the Wayzata loss, since they lost to the Trojans 3 times last year, and it sure didn’t end up stopping them. Their wins haven’t exactly been pretty, but at least they’re getting them, unlike, say, Hill. They’re likely to pick up another one in their only game this week.
This week: Sat at #14 Lakeville South
5. Burnsville
-It’s hard to imagine a harder opening schedule than the one the Blaze went through, but their win over Hill and near win against Edina cement them amongst the state’s elite. They picked right up where they left off last year, despite some significant losses; their success says a lot about coach Kivihalme and his efforts. Only one game this week, but once again it’s an important one, both within the conference and from a rankings perspective.
This week: Thurs vs. #10 Eagan
6. Duluth East
-Their game against Cambridge got snowed out, leaving them with a season opener on the road against Wayzata--a daunting task. Yet the Hounds took Wayzata to OT, which has to be an encouraging sign for a very young team. Very busy schedule this upcoming week, though three of the games should pose little challenge.
This week: Tues vs. Andover, Thurs vs. Cambridge, Fri at #13 White Bear Lake, Sat at Princeton
7. Hill-Murray
-A surprisingly rough start to the season for the Pioneers, who suffered losses to Burnsville and Benilde sandwiched around a big win over Duluth Marshall. They may be missing their top defensemen from last year; also, as a very deep team, it’ll probably take them longer to sort out their best line combinations, etc. than it will for a team like Benilde, where such things are a bit more obvious. Nevertheless, the losses do raise some important questions, and if they go down to St. Thomas this week things might start getting a little dicey in Maplewood.
This week: Thurs at Henry Sibley, Sat at St. Thomas Academy
8. Maple Grove
-The close opening loss to Wayzata was a very good sign, and though they may not be flashy, they’ve been methodically strong in their three wins. In the midst of a stretch of NWSC games, all of which they really should win.
This week: Thurs vs. #12 Blaine, Sat at Armstrong
9. Apple Valley
-Flashed their strengths in a big SSC win over Bloomington Jefferson, but then showed their shortcomings in a loss to Eden Prairie. The lack of depth is a very real issue, and it separates them from all of the other top teams in a pretty significant way. It shouldn’t be a problem this week, though, as they take on some of their weaker SSC opponents.
This week: Thurs at Rosemount, Sat vs. Eastview
10. Eagan
-Showed off a lot of firepower this past week, first in the opening win over Prior Lake, and then in a tight loss to Edina. Very challenging week ahead of them, and a chance to prove they’re here to stay in the state’s top tier.
This week: Thurs at #5 Burnsville, Sat vs. #11 Minnetonka
11. Minnetonka
-A pair of tight wins over northern teams to open the season. This is probably what we should expect out of Minnetonka this year--some struggles on defense, and none of the flashiness of last season. The much lower ranking than what they had in the preseason edition is more a product of what the other teams around them have done than anything they’ve done wrong. A couple of important games this week will give us a better idea of which direction they’re headed.
This week: Tues at St. Thomas Academy, Thurs vs. Chaska, Sat at #10 Eagan
12. Blaine
-Teams 1-11 all have pretty good arguments that put them amongst the elite; from 12 on down, it’s a different tier of teams that have some proving to do. Blaine did well to beat Roseau in its opener, but giving up 4 goals to Willmar revealed their defensive shortcomings and general inexperience. I’m curious to see how they do against Maple Grove, the team widely assumed to be their successor in the top spot in 5AA and the NWSC.
This week: Thurs at #8 Maple Grove, Sat vs. Elk River
13. White Bear Lake
-Had a nice, impressive opening win over Rochester Century, but struggled with Hastings some; the takeaway from the first week is that they’re capable of putting up plenty of points. They also have to be encouraged by Hill’s struggles, as the gap between the two of them is currently smaller than it was at any point last year. They still have plenty to prove, though, and they get their first game against a top team this week when Duluth East comes to visit.
This week: Tues at Woodbury, Fri vs. #6 Duluth East, Sat vs. Cloquet
14. Lakeville South
-Idle in the opening week and a half; have a warm-up against an SSC bottom-feeder before a big opening challenge against Edina.
This week: Thurs vs. Bloomington Kennedy, Sat vs. #4 Edina
15. Holy Angels
-Still waiting for the season to begin. It’s a bit awkward to be promoting idle teams into the top 15, but both Roseau and Jefferson showed they don’t really belong right now, and while a couple of teams have moved closer into the picture, no one has done so with enough authority to convince me they belong quite yet.
This week: Idle
On the Bubble
Grand Rapids
-Got off to a very nice start as they took down a pair of 7AA contenders. We’ll get a better measure of just how big this resurgence is this week, as they take on two of the better single-A teams and also host Roseau.
Cretin-Derham Hall
-Tied a good A team and beat a good SEC opponent to open the year; for now, that’s enough to put them on the fringe of the rankings. Interesting matchup with Duluth Central this week, along with two beatable SEC teams.
The four 8AA contenders
-Moorhead came away looking decent after its first win, and Brainerd is putting up some crooked figures against weak competition; Roseau is 0-3 but gave two pretty good cities teams competitive games, and St. Cloud Tech did okay in the loss to Benilde. There’s no real reason to hype any of them up right now, but we may get a little more clarity in the near future--Tech and Brainerd play this week, and 3 of Moorhead’s next four are against 8AA teams.
Next in line are Bloomington Jefferson a bunch of NWSC and SEC teams--Centennial, Forest Lake, Osseo, and Stillwater.
After a lot of games between top teams in the first week of the season, there aren’t that many this week. Still, there are a few that will clearly alter the rankings, and the number of big games will pick up as we head towards the holiday tournaments.
1. Eden Prairie
-A pair of very impressive season-opening wins over former Lake Conference foes have the Eagles on top for the time being; the big win over Jefferson, though not entirely unexpected, says a lot about the direction of both programs. This upcoming week is the only one in which they do not face another elite team in the state.
This week: Tues at Lakeville North, Sat vs. Hermantown
2. Wayzata
-Had three wins over top-10 teams in the first week and a half, and also a blowout of another top-25 team. The three top-10 wins were all by one goal, though, so they certainly aren’t miles ahead of the rest of the competition. This week they get a respite from elite teams, and should sail to a pair of easy victories.
This week: Tues at Osseo, Thurs at Buffalo
3. Benilde-St. Margaret’s
-A convincing win over Hill puts the Red Knights up amongst the elite in the state. They’ve only allowed two goals in their opening two games, which is a good sign for a team whose question marks were on defense. Two games this week; one is an easy win, another is a mild upset threat, but not a serious one.
This week: Tues vs. St. Francis, Sat. vs. Duluth Marshall
4. Edina
-Lost to Wayzata, but rebounded with a last-second miracle win over Burnsville and scraped by Eagan. I’m not sure how much stock to put into the Wayzata loss, since they lost to the Trojans 3 times last year, and it sure didn’t end up stopping them. Their wins haven’t exactly been pretty, but at least they’re getting them, unlike, say, Hill. They’re likely to pick up another one in their only game this week.
This week: Sat at #14 Lakeville South
5. Burnsville
-It’s hard to imagine a harder opening schedule than the one the Blaze went through, but their win over Hill and near win against Edina cement them amongst the state’s elite. They picked right up where they left off last year, despite some significant losses; their success says a lot about coach Kivihalme and his efforts. Only one game this week, but once again it’s an important one, both within the conference and from a rankings perspective.
This week: Thurs vs. #10 Eagan
6. Duluth East
-Their game against Cambridge got snowed out, leaving them with a season opener on the road against Wayzata--a daunting task. Yet the Hounds took Wayzata to OT, which has to be an encouraging sign for a very young team. Very busy schedule this upcoming week, though three of the games should pose little challenge.
This week: Tues vs. Andover, Thurs vs. Cambridge, Fri at #13 White Bear Lake, Sat at Princeton
7. Hill-Murray
-A surprisingly rough start to the season for the Pioneers, who suffered losses to Burnsville and Benilde sandwiched around a big win over Duluth Marshall. They may be missing their top defensemen from last year; also, as a very deep team, it’ll probably take them longer to sort out their best line combinations, etc. than it will for a team like Benilde, where such things are a bit more obvious. Nevertheless, the losses do raise some important questions, and if they go down to St. Thomas this week things might start getting a little dicey in Maplewood.
This week: Thurs at Henry Sibley, Sat at St. Thomas Academy
8. Maple Grove
-The close opening loss to Wayzata was a very good sign, and though they may not be flashy, they’ve been methodically strong in their three wins. In the midst of a stretch of NWSC games, all of which they really should win.
This week: Thurs vs. #12 Blaine, Sat at Armstrong
9. Apple Valley
-Flashed their strengths in a big SSC win over Bloomington Jefferson, but then showed their shortcomings in a loss to Eden Prairie. The lack of depth is a very real issue, and it separates them from all of the other top teams in a pretty significant way. It shouldn’t be a problem this week, though, as they take on some of their weaker SSC opponents.
This week: Thurs at Rosemount, Sat vs. Eastview
10. Eagan
-Showed off a lot of firepower this past week, first in the opening win over Prior Lake, and then in a tight loss to Edina. Very challenging week ahead of them, and a chance to prove they’re here to stay in the state’s top tier.
This week: Thurs at #5 Burnsville, Sat vs. #11 Minnetonka
11. Minnetonka
-A pair of tight wins over northern teams to open the season. This is probably what we should expect out of Minnetonka this year--some struggles on defense, and none of the flashiness of last season. The much lower ranking than what they had in the preseason edition is more a product of what the other teams around them have done than anything they’ve done wrong. A couple of important games this week will give us a better idea of which direction they’re headed.
This week: Tues at St. Thomas Academy, Thurs vs. Chaska, Sat at #10 Eagan
12. Blaine
-Teams 1-11 all have pretty good arguments that put them amongst the elite; from 12 on down, it’s a different tier of teams that have some proving to do. Blaine did well to beat Roseau in its opener, but giving up 4 goals to Willmar revealed their defensive shortcomings and general inexperience. I’m curious to see how they do against Maple Grove, the team widely assumed to be their successor in the top spot in 5AA and the NWSC.
This week: Thurs at #8 Maple Grove, Sat vs. Elk River
13. White Bear Lake
-Had a nice, impressive opening win over Rochester Century, but struggled with Hastings some; the takeaway from the first week is that they’re capable of putting up plenty of points. They also have to be encouraged by Hill’s struggles, as the gap between the two of them is currently smaller than it was at any point last year. They still have plenty to prove, though, and they get their first game against a top team this week when Duluth East comes to visit.
This week: Tues at Woodbury, Fri vs. #6 Duluth East, Sat vs. Cloquet
14. Lakeville South
-Idle in the opening week and a half; have a warm-up against an SSC bottom-feeder before a big opening challenge against Edina.
This week: Thurs vs. Bloomington Kennedy, Sat vs. #4 Edina
15. Holy Angels
-Still waiting for the season to begin. It’s a bit awkward to be promoting idle teams into the top 15, but both Roseau and Jefferson showed they don’t really belong right now, and while a couple of teams have moved closer into the picture, no one has done so with enough authority to convince me they belong quite yet.
This week: Idle
On the Bubble
Grand Rapids
-Got off to a very nice start as they took down a pair of 7AA contenders. We’ll get a better measure of just how big this resurgence is this week, as they take on two of the better single-A teams and also host Roseau.
Cretin-Derham Hall
-Tied a good A team and beat a good SEC opponent to open the year; for now, that’s enough to put them on the fringe of the rankings. Interesting matchup with Duluth Central this week, along with two beatable SEC teams.
The four 8AA contenders
-Moorhead came away looking decent after its first win, and Brainerd is putting up some crooked figures against weak competition; Roseau is 0-3 but gave two pretty good cities teams competitive games, and St. Cloud Tech did okay in the loss to Benilde. There’s no real reason to hype any of them up right now, but we may get a little more clarity in the near future--Tech and Brainerd play this week, and 3 of Moorhead’s next four are against 8AA teams.
Next in line are Bloomington Jefferson a bunch of NWSC and SEC teams--Centennial, Forest Lake, Osseo, and Stillwater.
After a lot of games between top teams in the first week of the season, there aren’t that many this week. Still, there are a few that will clearly alter the rankings, and the number of big games will pick up as we head towards the holiday tournaments.
