BANTAM A

[chirp_chirp]

Ive seen a couple of there games, and i feel like the Wayzata Bantam A team this year is going to be very strong this year. Even though they lost the best player in their association (Rem Pitlick). They have most likely the best goalie in the state. (Dont know his name). Another top 5 player in the state(Freytag I believe???). A steady defense and strong fowards. I Think they may be hard to beat this year...

Here are my top 5 teams in the state (NO PARTICULAR ORDER)

WAYZATA: (READ ABOVE)
EDINA: Lost their 2 best players, but still the deepest association in MN
EDEN PRAIRIE: Also lost one of their best player due to injury, but the team has been together since squirts, Very deep also.
ELK RIVER: A very large, physical skilled team, shaky goaltending but STRONG defense. Could be very good this year.
DULUTH EAST: Have some skilled players, did not look very good in the Wayzata scrimmage, but are mentaly intimidating, more practice and games, they could be good.

COMMENT AND REPLY WHAT YOU THINK! IM ALL EARS

[hockey4ever]

Two years ago as pee wee A's Edina, ER, EP and Wayzata finished 1-4 in state. As we all know a lot can change in 2 years so it will be fun to watch as the season unfolds. All 4 will be strong but there likely will be a lot of other teams that will be right with them.

[scorekeeper]

ok just for fun i'll take a crack at this, but i have to do it stages, as i'm going to go with conventional logic that the best pee wee a teams make the best bantam a teams with a few caveats.

for historical reference, we can see that last years (2010-11) top 25 Bantam A teams looked a lot like the top PeeWee A teams from 3 years ago (2008-09).

Eight of the top 10 remained in the top 10 while 3 of the top 4 remained in the top 4. There were 5 "outlier" teams which either got a lot better from peewee to bantam (St. Louis Park, Bloomington Jefferson, Rosemount, Champlin Park), or got a lot worse (White Bear Lake). It would be interesting to know what happened with these 5 teams from 2009-2011, but most of the top 25 stayed fairly intact.


NOTE: The number in (parenthesis) was their State ranking as PeeWee A's

2010-11 Minnesota Bantam A Rankings

1 Edina Hornets ( 2)
2 Wayzata Trojans ( 1)
3 Eden Prairie Eagles (10)
4 Burnsville Blaze ( 4)
5 St Louis Park Orioles (27) <--- ?
6 Elk River Elks ( 3)
7 Blaine Bengals ( 6)
8 Woodbury Predators 8
9 Osseo Maple Grove ( 9)
10 Roseau Rams ( 5)
11 Bloomington Jefferson (34) <--- !
12 Centennial Cougars (11)
13 Andover Huskies (19)
14 Mounds View Mustangs (17)
15 Duluth East (20)
16 Stillwater Stallions (16)
17 Brainerd Warriors (26)
18 East Grand Forks (14)
19 Prior Lake Lakers (29)
20 Rosemount Irish (45) <--- !
21 Rochester (Red) (24)
22 Champlin Park Rebels (44) <--- !
23 Minnetonka Skippers (25)
24 Apple Valley Eagles (32)
25 White Bear Lake Bears (12) <--- X


2008-09 Minnesota Peewee A Rankings

1 Wayzata Trojans
2 Edina Hornets
3 Elk River Elks
4 Burnsville Blaze
5 Roseau Rams
6 Blaine Bengals
7 Chaska Hawks
8 Woodbury Royals
9 Osseo Maple Grove
10 Eden Prairie Eagles
11 Centennial Cougars
12 White Bear Lake Bears
13 Cloquet Lumberjacks
14 East Grand Forks Green Wave
15 St Cloud Huskies
16 Stillwater Ponies
17 Mounds View Mustangs
18 Armstrong Cooper Falcons
19 Andover Huskies
20 Duluth East
21 Lakeville North
22 Roseville Raiders
23 Eastview Lightning
24 Rochester Red
25 Minnetonka Skippers

that said, i'll move on to phase two of this project and look at the Top 25 Pee Wee A teams from 2009-10

[scorekeeper]

Here are your Top 25 (Top 26 actually) Pee Wee A teams from 2 seasons ago, 2009-10. These teams will be Bantam A teams this year. This includes their RANKING, RECORD and RATING, culled from MyHockeyRankings.com

1 Edina Hornets 59- 6-1 / 18.69
2 Wayzata Trojans 42- 7-2 / 17.30
3 Elk River Elks 45- 8-1 / 16.70
4 Burnsville Blaze 40- 9-0 / 16.41
5 Rochester Red 31- 4-6 / 16.03
6 Andover Huskies 42-10-1 / 15.46
7 East Grand Forks 41- 4-1 / 15.41
8 Eden Prairie Eagles 32-18-5 / 15.22
9 Osseo Maple Grove 28-16-5 / 14.62
10 Lakeville South 25-17-5 / 14.51
11 Lakeville North 26-16-3 / 14.49
12 Farmington Tigers 25-14-6 / 14.47
13 Orono Spartans 33-13-3 / 14.42
14 Rosemount Irish 26-11-7 / 14.40
15 Prior Lake Lakers 31-20-3 / 14.34
16 Woodbury Royals 29-21-4 / 14.34
17 Minnetonka Skippers 17-22-2 / 14.27
18 Stillwater Ponies 30-15-4 / 14.21
19 Bemidji Lumberjacks 33- 7-1 / 14.18
20 Eastview Lightning 27-17-2 / 14.12
21 White Bear Lake 29-11-4 / 14.12
22 Highland Central 31- 8-0 / 13.95
23 Hopkins Royals 35-13-0 / 13.89
24 Centennial Cougars 25-19-4 / 13.81
25 St Michael 37-14-1 / 13.68
26 Duluth East 32-17-2 / 13.41

from here we'll just do a bit of a team by team analysis to see if the team figures to be better or worse ...

[buttend]

Ive seen a couple of there games, and i feel like the Wayzata Bantam A team this year is going to be very strong this year. Even though they lost the best player in their association (Rem Pitlick). They have most likely the best goalie in the state. (Dont know his name). Another top 5 player in the state(Freytag I believe???). A steady defense and strong fowards. I Think they may be hard to beat this year...

Here are my top 5 teams in the state (NO PARTICULAR ORDER)

WAYZATA: (READ ABOVE)
EDINA: Lost their 2 best players, but still the deepest association in MN
EDEN PRAIRIE: Also lost one of their best player due to injury, but the team has been together since squirts, Very deep also.
ELK RIVER: A very large, physical skilled team, shaky goaltending but STRONG defense. Could be very good this year.
DULUTH EAST: Have some skilled players, did not look very good in the Wayzata scrimmage, but are mentaly intimidating, more practice and games, they could be good.

COMMENT AND REPLY WHAT YOU THINK! IM ALL EARS

First comment, Wayzata player, nice player, not top 5 not even close!

Top 5 no order

Andover
Elk River
Edina
Maple Grove
Wayzata

Next 10 No order

Burnsville
Eden Prairie
White Bear Lake
Orono
Lakeville North
Stillwater
Sibley
Farmington
Duluth East
Minnetonka

[scorekeeper]

Here we list the PeeWee A Ranking, Team Name, PWA Record, PWA rating, BETTER OR WORSE this season and projected 2011-12 RATING

1 Edina Hornets 59- 6-1 / 18.69 WORSE (16.69)

Someone said earlier this is the deepest association in the State and one of the few that can afford to lose it's top bantam forward (DM) and top bantam defenseman (JW) and still contend for the State title. The Hornets will be WORSE this year than 2 years ago, BUT they already had talent to spare, so they won't fall out of the top 4.

2 Wayzata Trojans 42- 7-2 / 17.30 WORSE (16.30)

Lost sweet hands (RP) to Shattuck but again, one of the few associations who can lose that type of talent and still thrive. Big tender (VA) and deep association helps them remain one of the top 4 teams and will be the favorite in all but a few games they play this season.

3 Elk River Elks 45- 8-1 / 16.70 WORSE (14.90)

Lost two studs to high school and don't have the depth to replace them. Top 10, but no longer top 4 and I will go out on a limb and say they went from one of the favorites to win State to a real dark horse.

4 Burnsville Blaze 40- 9-0 / 16.41 WORSE (15.01)

Two big losses from the PeeWee A squad but lots of talent left in a deep association keeps the Blaze in the Top 10.

5 Rochester Red 31- 4-6 / 16.03 WORSE (13.53)

High School took it's toll on a talented PeeWee A squad. They are still strong at Bantam, but not top 10 this year.

6 Andover Huskies 42-10-1 / 15.46 SAME (15.06)

Same great coach that led them at PeeWee is back and returns most of his horses. Small drop as players from around state catch up in size to the man-child, but still should be the class of D10.

7 East Grand Forks 41- 4-1 / 15.41 WORSE (12.91)

High School took it's toll on a talented PeeWee A squad. They are still strong at Bantam, but not top 10 this year.

8 Eden Prairie Eagles 32-18-5 / 15.22 SAME (15.22)

Conventional wisdom may say they are worse, missing a key player from their 8th ranked team 2 years ago, but off season training in Eden Prairie is as good as it gets and they have strong leadership from players fresh off the Bantam State title last season and one of the top goalies in the state.

9 Osseo Maple Grove 28-16-5 / 14.62 BETTER (16.62)

Same Top 10 cast is back from PWA along with the most improved Bantam forward in the State over the past 2 years (DB), the big addition of a former key Fire player and quite possibly the best bantam goaltender in Minnesota. They will be in the hunt to win it all.

10 Lakeville South 25-17-5 / 14.51 WORSE (13.51)

One key player loss, but it's a biggie.

11 Lakeville North 26-16-3 / 14.49 SAME (14.49)

12 Farmington Tigers 25-14-6 / 14.47 SAME (14.47)

13 Orono Spartans 33-13-3 / 14.42 SAME (14.42)

14 Rosemount Irish 26-11-7 / 14.40 BETTER (15.40)

There is a lot to like about this squad which includes a handful of players off a PeeWee State Championship Game, a coach who led one of the most improved Bantam squads last year, the addtion of a former Fire defenseman (JM), who just might be one of the best bantam defensemen in the State right now and one of the State's most exciting young speedsters (DM).

15 Prior Lake Lakers 31-20-3 / 14.34 WORSE (12.04)

Lost one of the best Bantam players in the State (TB) to Shattuck. That's 3 goals a game (from PeeWee) and at least 1.5 per game at Bantam the Lakers will have to replace. Those players don't grow on trees and the association isn't deep enough to absorb the loss.

16 Woodbury Royals 29-21-4 / 14.34 WORSE (13.34)

Lost one player to Sibley (BM) and one to Shattuck (MD) from 2 years ago. This mega-association simply reloads but does take a small step back with the loss of these two forwards. Should remain a solid Top 20 team.

17 Minnetonka Skippers 17-22-2 / 14.27 BETTER (16.27)

These guys were already big and mean, but add in two former Fire defensemen (PV & TC), great coaching and gantastic facilities and this may be the most improved team from PeeWee to Bantam. Tough sledding in D6, but this may be the dark horse to surpise many.

18 Stillwater Ponies 30-15-4 / 14.21 SAME (14.21)

19 Bemidji Lumberjacks 33- 7-1 / 14.18 SAME (14.18)

20 Eastview Lightning 27-17-2 / 14.12 SAME (14.12)

21 White Bear Lake 29-11-4 / 14.12 WORSE (12.62)

Did JW play for this team 2 years ago? If so, thems big shoes to fill.

22 Highland Central 31- 8-0 / 13.95 WORSE (12.45)

Did they lose (CV) to Sibley/STA? HUGE loss.

23 Hopkins Royals 35-13-0 / 13.89 SAME (13.89)

24 Centennial Cougars 25-19-4 / 13.81 WORSE (12.31)

Lost to Shattuck the most creative and cerebral Bantam defenseman (JK) in the State

25 St Michael 37-14-1 / 13.68 SAME (13.68)

26 Duluth East 32-17-2 / 13.41 BETTER (14.91)

The elimination of the Lakers Bantam A program can only help this team get stronger, as top players migrate to East.

---

Also add in Sibley. With a rumored 11+ waivers in + STA kids and the former Fire coach, the Generals are on the march. So far based on early returns have them slightly behind Burnsville ... so we'll pencil them in at (14.20)

[scorekeeper]

And here's the final analysis with PARITY being the defining theme in the 2011-12 Minnesota Bantam A season with the top 4-6 teams being separated by a razor thin margin and maybe a goal seperating the top 10 teams ....

Rank Team Rating

1 Edina Hornets 16.69
2 Osseo Maple Grove 16.62
3 Wayzata Trojans 16.30
4 Minnetonka Skippers 16.27
5 Rosemount Irish 15.40
6 Eden Prairie Eagles 15.22
7 Andover Huskies 15.06
8 Burnsville Blaze 15.01
9 Duluth East 14.91
10 Elk River Elks 14.90
11 Lakeville North 14.49
12 Farmington Tigers 14.47
13 Orono Spartans 14.42
14 Stillwater Ponies 14.21
15 Sibley 14.20
16 Bemidji Lumberjacks 14.18
17 Eastview Lightning 14.12
18 Hopkins Royals 13.89
19 St Michael 13.68
20 Rochester Red 13.53
21 Lakeville South 13.51
22 Woodbury Royals 13.34
23 East Grand Forks 12.91
24 Prior Lake Lakers 12.04
25 White Bear Lake 12.62
26 Highland Central 12.45
27 Centennial Cougars 12.31

looks like a fun season and as wide open as I can ever remember seeing it

[Night Train]

EDINA: Lost their 2 best players, but still the deepest association in MN

The 2 best? I'm sure not everyone will agree with that. Where did they go?

[Night Train]

First comment, Wayzata player, nice player, not top 5 not even close!

Top 5 no order

Andover
Elk River
Edina
Maple Grove
Wayzata

What are you saying? Wayzata isn't top 5 but you list them in your top 5?

Or, Rem Pitlick isn't a top 5 player from Wayzata Bantam A? Pitlick has been one of their top players, if not the top player, for several years. One of the top 97s in the State. If you've ever played against them you know who he is. It will be interesting to see how he does at Shattuck but I'll guess very well.

[ahastars03]

Edina lost Walker and Malmquist to Edina high school.

They still have some kids on the roster that are going to private schools, I have no idea if they will lose any of them. Right now on the roster they have 17 skaters and 2 goalies.

[Pinky]

First comment, Wayzata player, nice player, not top 5 not even close!

Top 5 no order

Andover
Elk River
Edina
Maple Grove
Wayzata

What are you saying? Wayzata isn't top 5 but you list them in your top 5?

Or, Rem Pitlick isn't a top 5 player from Wayzata Bantam A? Pitlick has been one of their top players, if not the top player, for several years. One of the top 97s in the State. If you've ever played against them you know who he is. It will be interesting to see how he does at Shattuck but I'll guess very well.

You need to read the actual post again and then do us a favor and not ever post again...he stated that Freytag is a nice player but not a top 5 player in the state, he never stated anything about RP, nor did he state that Wayzata wasn't a top 5 team.

RP however is a very shifty player and will do quite while for Shattuck...based on their website he is 2nd in points in little over 12 games I believe.

[Chuck Norris Fan]

As someone that has been around the Bantam level for a long time I can say without a doubt that Centennial and White Bear Lake will improve.

These coaching staffs know how to get it done and make their teams better year end and year out period. Look for them to be in the top 15 -5 Range by end of year. No doubt they are not top 5 teams but will push the envelop and beat some of the top end teams through out the year.

[JoltDelivered]

Not sure about Centennial, they have a big group of first years and they are off to a pretty rough start, 0-5 I think with a crushing defeat at the hands of Shattuck.

21 White Bear Lake 29-11-4 / 14.12 WORSE (12.62)

Did JW play for this team 2 years ago? If so, thems big shoes to fill.

The answer is no, he has always played up a year in that association. He was a bantam two years ago when the WBL pee wees made a run to state. On top of that, they have NOT lost a single player off that team from two years ago and they have significantly improved at a few positions. They could make it interesting.

This weekend, many of the state's best face off at Centennial. Look for some early contenders to emerge and don't be surprised if you see a few names rise to the top that you didn't expect.

[Bluewhitefan]

EDINA: Lost their 2 best players, but still the deepest association in MN

The 2 best? I'm sure not everyone will agree with that. Where did they go?

Who would argue - they're not watching. One other kid may play as a 4th liner for BSM

[Bluewhitefan]

9 Osseo Maple Grove 28-16-5 / 14.62 BETTER (16.62)

Same Top 10 cast is back from PWA along with the most improved Bantam forward in the State over the past 2 years (DB), the big addition of a former key Fire player and quite possibly the best bantam goaltender in Minnesota. They will be in the hunt to win it all.


I think DB went to play for the 97 Russel Stover team

[observer]

Edina lost Walker and Malmquist to Edina high school.

You mean may lose a couple to HS? Aren't tryouts still a couple of weeks away? 9th graders that hope to make varsity?

[buttend]

Edina lost Walker and Malmquist to Edina high school.

You mean may lose a couple to HS? Aren't tryouts still a couple of weeks away? 9th graders that hope to make varsity?

Neither player signed up or try'd out for Bantams. Both have their sights set on Varsity or JV rosters.

[Survey]

Edina lost Walker and Malmquist to Edina high school.

You mean may lose a couple to HS? Aren't tryouts still a couple of weeks away? 9th graders that hope to make varsity?

They probably were told they have a good shot by the upper staff or they would have tried out for bantams. They are not just gonna show up out of the blue and hope to make the team....my guess is they are already locks.

[scorekeeper]

21 White Bear Lake 29-11-4 / 14.12 WORSE (12.62)

Did JW play for this team 2 years ago? If so, thems big shoes to fill.

The answer is no, he has always played up a year in that association. He was a bantam two years ago when the WBL pee wees made a run to state. On top of that, they have NOT lost a single player off that team from two years ago and they have significantly improved at a few positions. They could make it interesting.

This weekend, many of the state's best face off at Centennial. Look for some early contenders to emerge and don't be surprised if you see a few names rise to the top that you didn't expect.

That certainly changes the outlook for that team. Thanks for the clarification. Certainly changes my thoughts on WBL. They were 21st ranked as PeeWee A's so with everyone back and playing a very strong schedule I would think they would improve as Bantam A's.

[Air Force 1]

[quote="scorekeeper"] 7 East Grand Forks 41- 4-1 / 15.41 WORSE (12.91)

High School took it's toll on a talented PeeWee A squad. They are still strong at Bantam, but not top 10 this year.

What? These kids are Freshmen and 8th graders this year. High School tryouts are still 3 weeks+ away from even starting.

[LesHabs]

Edina lost Walker and Malmquist to Edina high school.

You mean may lose a couple to HS? Aren't tryouts still a couple of weeks away? 9th graders that hope to make varsity?

Neither player signed up or try'd out for Bantams. Both have their sights set on Varsity or JV rosters.

or the blades... Say what you want about Edina, but the thing I always respected about their kids, was that they stuck around and kept the tradition going. Not anymore...

[chirp_chirp]

Give me some predictions for games between top teams!!! Excited to see what you have to say!

[scorekeeper]

No need for predictions. The games have begun and the scores speak for themselves. Here's a few scores between top teams ...

Rosemount 5
Eden Prairie 4

Eden Prairie 9
Centennial 2

Wayzata 4
Centennial 2

Burnsville 3
Sibley 2

Hopkins 5
Burnsville 5

OMG 4
Minnetonka 4

Wayzata 6
Duluth 2

More scores here ...
http://www.ushsho.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=27118

also, this weekend will feature many "clashes of the Titans" at the Centennial Preview. Get out and watch some great Bantam A hockey

2011 Centennial Preview Schedule

(Just for fun "predicted scores" are in parenthesis)

Thursday, October 27th

6:40 pm Burnsville v Centennial (6-3)

8:25 PM EP v Shattuck (2-5)

Friday, October 28th

6:40 PM White Bear v Shattuck (1-7)

8:25 PM Edina v Osseo/Maple Grove (4-4)

Saturday, October 29th

8:00 am Tonka v Elk River (4-3)

9:45 am Centennial v Wayzata (2-6)

11:30 AM Duluth East v Edina (3-6)

1:15 PM WBL v Osseo/Maple Grove (2-6)

3:00 pm Stillwater v Tonka (3-5)

4:45 pm Elk River v Wayzata (4-5)

6:30 PM Duluth East v Burnsville (3-3)

8:15 PM Ep v Osseo/Maple Grove (3-4)

Sunday, October 30th

9:15 AM Edina v Stillwater (5-2)

11:00 AM EP v WBL (4-1)

12:45 pm Centenial v Duluth East (2-5)

2:30 pm Stillwater v Elk River (3-4)

4:15 pm Wayzata v Burnsville (3-2)

6:00 pm Tonka v Centennial (5-1)

[scorekeeper]

7 East Grand Forks 41- 4-1 / 15.41 WORSE (12.91)

High School took it's toll on a talented PeeWee A squad. They are still strong at Bantam, but not top 10 this year.

What? These kids are Freshmen and 8th graders this year. High School tryouts are still 3 weeks+ away from even starting.

pure speculation based on rumors that a couple freshmen may skip bantams for high school. the whole excercise is based in large part on speculation ...

[20custom]

"just for fun" I totaled your predictions for teams East of 35W and north of anywhere. Teams included were Cent., DE, WBL, ER and Stillwater.
Combined prediction: 2-12-1, and the only wins were against each other.
Safe to say you are not a big fan of the North or East Metro hockey?