AA Rankings for 12/9/18
Posted: Sun Dec 09, 2018 8:51 am
If early returns are any hint, this season will be messier than usual. The separation between teams just is not large. But, here we go:
1. Minnetonka (5-0)
-Duluth Marshall gave the Skippers a surprisingly good run, which goes to show just how convoluted this season is going to be. That result was the first thing resembling a wrench in an otherwise dominant start, but they got the win, and have yet to allow more than a single goal in a game. Things get a little more difficult this week, though the bigger stuff will come after Christmas.
This week: Thurs at Blake, Sat vs. #10 Moorhead
2. Andover (5-0)
-We have good clarity for #2 now, too: the Huskies picked up the big win they needed over Duluth East, as they finished off their section rival and to stake an early claim to the top spot in 7AA. Now they’re off and running into Northwest Suburban play, which on paper shouldn’t pose a challenge this week.
This week: Tues vs. Anoka
3. Duluth East (3-1)
-An overtime loss on the road in December is hardly cause for concern for the Hounds; their depth can match anyone’s, but they’re in need of a little more offensive production from their big guns. The wins over White Bear and Wayzata are also aging well given the success of those teams so far. Their game this week is as mysterious a matchup with an archrival as a game can be.
This week: Thurs vs. Cloquet
4. Edina (3-0-1)
-Had their usual week of rest ahead of the Holiday Classic. The 7AA field in the round robin is down this year, so they should roll the first two nights, but the Saturday showdown with Eden Prairie is a huge one.
This week: Edina Holiday Classic—Thurs vs. Grand Rapids, Fri vs. Elk River, Sat vs. #8 Eden Prairie
5. Maple Grove (5-0-1)
-The Crimson collected comfortable wins against middling conference competition, and with an undefeated record and a tie to the team immediately above them, they’re sliding on up. Just one game this week, but it’s a huge one, as it’s the first of two meetings between the two 5AA frontrunners.
This week: Sat at #15 Blaine
6. St. Thomas Academy (4-1-1)
-The Cadets pulled out a tie against Eden Prairie and a narrow win over Holy Family. It wasn’t exactly an explosive week offensively, but they’re not alone among highly ranked teams who control games but not score much. Next up: a young Benilde team fresh off a big win.
This week: Tues vs. Benilde-St. Margaret’s
7. White Bear Lake (5-1)
-Things are coming together nicely for the Bears, who edged Cretin in overtime to continue their strong start to the season. On paper they should roll through their next few conference games before the all-important clash with Hill, but these sorts of games have tripped up past Bears teams.
This week: Thurs vs. Mounds View, Sat at East Ridge
8. Eden Prairie (2-1-1)
-This week ran the gamut for the Eagles. They looked strong against St. Thomas but came away only with a tie, and also beat Brainerd. The loss to Hermantown, while not horrible, is also probably not something a top-5 contender should be doing, especially with the Hawks going down to Benilde on Saturday. With the young talent they’ve added to the mix, they have the potential for a big season. The focal point of their Holiday Classic will, of course, be Saturday night against Edina.
This week: Edina Holiday Classic—Thurs vs. Elk River, Fri vs. Grand Rapids, Sat vs. #4 Edina
9. Wayzata (3-2)
-The Trojans continue to plug along with respectable showings after a 3-1 win over Hill. While this group doesn’t have many household names, they do appear to be in form already, instead of struggling to find that defensive groove as they have at times. A juicy section battle looms on Saturday.
This week: Thurs at St. Louis Park, Sat at #11 Cretin-Derham Hall
10. Moorhead (3-1)
-The Spuds handled Bemidji in their lone game this past week. They’ll put on the miles this week as they wrap up a run of section games with a visit to Roseau and head south for a couple of metro tests, including the top-ranked Skippers.
This week: Tues at Roseau, Fri at Benilde, Sat at #1 Minnetonka
11. Cretin-Derham Hall (1-2)
-The Raiders are now 0-for-2 against ranked competition following an overtime loss to conference foe White Bear, and could really use a healthy Nick Davidson. They’ll continue their routine of facing one good team a week when they visit Wayzata for a rematch of last year’s tight semifinal that will again have big seeding implications.
This week: Thurs vs. Forest Lake, Sat at #9 Wayzata
12. Hill-Murray (3-1)
-The Pioneers have been consistently a little short of the top teams so far, as they needed to mount a big comeback to get past Mahtomedi and were held in check by Wayzata. They should collect a couple of conference wins this week.
This week: Thurs vs. South St. Paul, Sat at Henry Sibley
13. Lakeville North (3-1)
-The Panthers methodically took care of Prior Lake and Eastview, which qualifies as a successful week in the parity-filled South Suburban Conference. Burnsville has been thorny so far, so that game could be of some interest on Tuesday.
This week: Tues at Burnsville, Sat vs. Apple Valley
14. Rosemount (4-0)
-The Irish got a solid victory over Chaska, though that seems to be all the rage these days. That was their only non-one-goal victory so far, but as with North, they’re taking care of things in the South Suburban. More respectable conference competition is up this week.
This week: Tues vs. Prior Lake, Sat at Lakeville South
15. Blaine (4-0)
-The Bengals had an adventure against STMA, but pulled it out to stay unbeaten. Now they get into some bigger names on the schedule, and while longtime rival Centennial is not the threat it has been, that Saturday contest with Maple Grove will make or break their early ranking.
This week: Thurs vs. Centennial, Sat vs. #5 Maple Grove
The Next Ten
Benilde-St. Margaret’s (4-1)
-The Red Knights are taking steps in the right direction following a win over Brainerd and an impressive showing against Hermantown. They’ll have a chance to climb higher with a positive result against either of their two opponents this week, St. Thomas and Moorhead.
Blake (2-1)
-Took care of business against Holy Angels, though the loss to Chaska isn’t exactly helping their standing right now. They’ve got #1 this week, and an interesting one with Greenway after that.
Lakeville South (2-1)
-Beat a couple of teams they should beat this past week. Rosemount offers up the next test on Saturday.
Stillwater (2-0)
-No complaints for the Ponies in the early going. It should be continued easier pickings with Park and Roseville up next.
Brainerd (2-3)
-The Warriors didn’t have a stellar showing against Eden Prairie or Benilde, but I’ll keep them in the 2-spot in 8AA until someone else makes a play for it. They have the coming week off.
Burnsville (1-3)
-The record isn’t great, but the Blaze was competitive against Hill and Rosemount, and got a win over Eagan, which is another team in this general zone. Lakeville North offers them another chance to prove themselves this week.
Holy Family (1-4)
-Keeping it competitive against the likes of Wayzata and St. Thomas keeps the Fire on the list, but winning a few games really would help things. Playing Delano this week will probably give them one.
Eagan (2-2)
-Not a great week for the Wildcats, who lost to Burnsville and previously winless Cloquet. We’ll see if they rebound against Eastview and Farmington.
Bloomington Jefferson (3-1)
-A narrow loss to Rosemount and a win over Cloquet gets the Jags back into the picture. If they’re legit, they could collect a few more wins over Park and Eastview this week.
St. Michael-Albertville (3-1)
-This is the part where I just shrug and toss out some names, but the Knights gave Blaine a good run and are otherwise undefeated, even if it’s been an adventure at times.
1. Minnetonka (5-0)
-Duluth Marshall gave the Skippers a surprisingly good run, which goes to show just how convoluted this season is going to be. That result was the first thing resembling a wrench in an otherwise dominant start, but they got the win, and have yet to allow more than a single goal in a game. Things get a little more difficult this week, though the bigger stuff will come after Christmas.
This week: Thurs at Blake, Sat vs. #10 Moorhead
2. Andover (5-0)
-We have good clarity for #2 now, too: the Huskies picked up the big win they needed over Duluth East, as they finished off their section rival and to stake an early claim to the top spot in 7AA. Now they’re off and running into Northwest Suburban play, which on paper shouldn’t pose a challenge this week.
This week: Tues vs. Anoka
3. Duluth East (3-1)
-An overtime loss on the road in December is hardly cause for concern for the Hounds; their depth can match anyone’s, but they’re in need of a little more offensive production from their big guns. The wins over White Bear and Wayzata are also aging well given the success of those teams so far. Their game this week is as mysterious a matchup with an archrival as a game can be.
This week: Thurs vs. Cloquet
4. Edina (3-0-1)
-Had their usual week of rest ahead of the Holiday Classic. The 7AA field in the round robin is down this year, so they should roll the first two nights, but the Saturday showdown with Eden Prairie is a huge one.
This week: Edina Holiday Classic—Thurs vs. Grand Rapids, Fri vs. Elk River, Sat vs. #8 Eden Prairie
5. Maple Grove (5-0-1)
-The Crimson collected comfortable wins against middling conference competition, and with an undefeated record and a tie to the team immediately above them, they’re sliding on up. Just one game this week, but it’s a huge one, as it’s the first of two meetings between the two 5AA frontrunners.
This week: Sat at #15 Blaine
6. St. Thomas Academy (4-1-1)
-The Cadets pulled out a tie against Eden Prairie and a narrow win over Holy Family. It wasn’t exactly an explosive week offensively, but they’re not alone among highly ranked teams who control games but not score much. Next up: a young Benilde team fresh off a big win.
This week: Tues vs. Benilde-St. Margaret’s
7. White Bear Lake (5-1)
-Things are coming together nicely for the Bears, who edged Cretin in overtime to continue their strong start to the season. On paper they should roll through their next few conference games before the all-important clash with Hill, but these sorts of games have tripped up past Bears teams.
This week: Thurs vs. Mounds View, Sat at East Ridge
8. Eden Prairie (2-1-1)
-This week ran the gamut for the Eagles. They looked strong against St. Thomas but came away only with a tie, and also beat Brainerd. The loss to Hermantown, while not horrible, is also probably not something a top-5 contender should be doing, especially with the Hawks going down to Benilde on Saturday. With the young talent they’ve added to the mix, they have the potential for a big season. The focal point of their Holiday Classic will, of course, be Saturday night against Edina.
This week: Edina Holiday Classic—Thurs vs. Elk River, Fri vs. Grand Rapids, Sat vs. #4 Edina
9. Wayzata (3-2)
-The Trojans continue to plug along with respectable showings after a 3-1 win over Hill. While this group doesn’t have many household names, they do appear to be in form already, instead of struggling to find that defensive groove as they have at times. A juicy section battle looms on Saturday.
This week: Thurs at St. Louis Park, Sat at #11 Cretin-Derham Hall
10. Moorhead (3-1)
-The Spuds handled Bemidji in their lone game this past week. They’ll put on the miles this week as they wrap up a run of section games with a visit to Roseau and head south for a couple of metro tests, including the top-ranked Skippers.
This week: Tues at Roseau, Fri at Benilde, Sat at #1 Minnetonka
11. Cretin-Derham Hall (1-2)
-The Raiders are now 0-for-2 against ranked competition following an overtime loss to conference foe White Bear, and could really use a healthy Nick Davidson. They’ll continue their routine of facing one good team a week when they visit Wayzata for a rematch of last year’s tight semifinal that will again have big seeding implications.
This week: Thurs vs. Forest Lake, Sat at #9 Wayzata
12. Hill-Murray (3-1)
-The Pioneers have been consistently a little short of the top teams so far, as they needed to mount a big comeback to get past Mahtomedi and were held in check by Wayzata. They should collect a couple of conference wins this week.
This week: Thurs vs. South St. Paul, Sat at Henry Sibley
13. Lakeville North (3-1)
-The Panthers methodically took care of Prior Lake and Eastview, which qualifies as a successful week in the parity-filled South Suburban Conference. Burnsville has been thorny so far, so that game could be of some interest on Tuesday.
This week: Tues at Burnsville, Sat vs. Apple Valley
14. Rosemount (4-0)
-The Irish got a solid victory over Chaska, though that seems to be all the rage these days. That was their only non-one-goal victory so far, but as with North, they’re taking care of things in the South Suburban. More respectable conference competition is up this week.
This week: Tues vs. Prior Lake, Sat at Lakeville South
15. Blaine (4-0)
-The Bengals had an adventure against STMA, but pulled it out to stay unbeaten. Now they get into some bigger names on the schedule, and while longtime rival Centennial is not the threat it has been, that Saturday contest with Maple Grove will make or break their early ranking.
This week: Thurs vs. Centennial, Sat vs. #5 Maple Grove
The Next Ten
Benilde-St. Margaret’s (4-1)
-The Red Knights are taking steps in the right direction following a win over Brainerd and an impressive showing against Hermantown. They’ll have a chance to climb higher with a positive result against either of their two opponents this week, St. Thomas and Moorhead.
Blake (2-1)
-Took care of business against Holy Angels, though the loss to Chaska isn’t exactly helping their standing right now. They’ve got #1 this week, and an interesting one with Greenway after that.
Lakeville South (2-1)
-Beat a couple of teams they should beat this past week. Rosemount offers up the next test on Saturday.
Stillwater (2-0)
-No complaints for the Ponies in the early going. It should be continued easier pickings with Park and Roseville up next.
Brainerd (2-3)
-The Warriors didn’t have a stellar showing against Eden Prairie or Benilde, but I’ll keep them in the 2-spot in 8AA until someone else makes a play for it. They have the coming week off.
Burnsville (1-3)
-The record isn’t great, but the Blaze was competitive against Hill and Rosemount, and got a win over Eagan, which is another team in this general zone. Lakeville North offers them another chance to prove themselves this week.
Holy Family (1-4)
-Keeping it competitive against the likes of Wayzata and St. Thomas keeps the Fire on the list, but winning a few games really would help things. Playing Delano this week will probably give them one.
Eagan (2-2)
-Not a great week for the Wildcats, who lost to Burnsville and previously winless Cloquet. We’ll see if they rebound against Eastview and Farmington.
Bloomington Jefferson (3-1)
-A narrow loss to Rosemount and a win over Cloquet gets the Jags back into the picture. If they’re legit, they could collect a few more wins over Park and Eastview this week.
St. Michael-Albertville (3-1)
-This is the part where I just shrug and toss out some names, but the Knights gave Blaine a good run and are otherwise undefeated, even if it’s been an adventure at times.
