1. Andover (6-1) 

A hat trick by Nora Sauer carried the Huskies to a 9-0 win over Northwest Suburban Conference opponent Robbinsdale Armstrong/Cooper. Conference games against Anoka and Elk River/Zimmerman are up next for the Huskies. 

2. Minnetonka (7-1) 

The Skippers only played one game last week, but made the lone contest count with a 4-2 win over No. 4-2A Edina. Goals by Kendra Distad, Ava Lindsay, and Grace Sadura each scored once in the third period to help Minnetonka pull away from the Hornets. 

Tuesday night sees Minnetonka travel to Eden Prairie, and then the Skippers will host top-10 team Hill-Murray on Saturday at Pagel Ice Arena. 

3. Edina (5-2) 

See above for how last week went for the Hornets. 

Next Saturday, Edina will travel to Maple Grove for its third straight Saturday tilt. 

4. Gentry Academy (7-1) 

Had the Stars beaten a ranked opponent, they would likely have moved into the No. 3 spot ahead of Edina. Alas, the Stars pounded Hudson (Wis.) 11-1 and unranked Alexandria 6-1 over the last week, neither of whom gave the Stars a challenge. 

Statistics for both games are unavailable via the Girls Hockey Hub, so any kudos that would have been handed out for individual performances will instead be redirected toward the whole team. 

5. Maple Grove (7-0) 

A pair of wins (2-0 and 3-2 in overtime) over unranked Osseo/Park Center and Eden Prairie, respectively, for Maple Grove where it started the year - in the No. 5 slot. 

A stretch of four straight home games kicks off on Tuesday for the Crimson, whey it hosts Elk River/Zimmerman, then Edina comes to town on Saturday afternoon.

6. Benilde-St. Margaret’s (5-1) 

The Red Knights keep rolling, edging previous No. 10-2A Stillwater 4-3 last Thursday. While a win over a top-10 team improves the resume, I hesitate to knock Maple Grove for beating the teams on their schedule, regardless of whether the opponents are ranked. 

An all-Catholic battle starts the week for the Red Knights, as BSM will travel to Holy Family on Tuesday, then welcome No. 3-1A Proctor/Hermantown to the friendly confines of the St. Louis Park Rec Center on Saturday. 

7. Hill-Murray (6-1) 

The Pioneers outscored Blaine and No. 9-2A Rogers 13-1 in their two games last week, gaining momentum as they prepare for a tilt against No. 2-2A Minnetonka on the road this coming Saturday. 

The Ellah Hause Show was in full effect in the two victories, as the St. Thomas commit recorded five goals and seven points against the Bengals and Royals. 

8. Moorhead (5-2) 

“Revenge isn’t a dish best served cold; it’s best served immediately and relentlessly.”

The incredibly average Justin Timberlake said that line in David Fincher’s The Social Network while portraying Sean Parker, the infamous founder of Napster (among other things). 

Last Friday, Moorhead Spuds pounded the same drum in a 9-1 win over Brainerd/Little Falls, avenging last year’s heartbreaking 2-1 loss in the Section 8-2A finals. 

Moorhead’s Taylor Brueske paced all Spud skaters with a hat trick and four total points. 

9. Rogers (4-3) 

I haven’t been as uncomfortable doing something as I am keeping Rogers at No. 9 since I confessed to cheating on a spelling test in the first grade. 

The Royals lost, but the defeat came at the hands of Hill-Murray, a team unlikely to fall out of the top 10 for the remainder of the season.

Plus, the Royals beat Champlin Park/Coon Rapids, which beat Proctor/Hermantown, which took Warroad to overtime, which defeated Gentry Academy, which spent some time ranked as Class 2A’s top team. 

I am unwell. 

10. Holy Family (6-1) 

This ranking may only last until Tuesday when Holy Family hosts No. 6-2A Benilde-St. Margaret’s, but the Fire slide into the rankings and take Stillwater’s place. 

Should the Fire lose to the Ponies, they can duke it out with the Ponies for No. 10. Stillwater isn’t on Holy Family’s schedule, so the teams should absolutely square off in Yahtzee! or Candyland to decide who truly has the superior group.  

Since a 2-1 overtime loss against No. 3-2A Edina, the Fire has rattled off three straight wins, outscoring Blake, Chaska/Chanhassen, and Roseau by a combined score of 16-3. 

Freshman Haley Box (7 goals, 8 assists, 15 points) and sophomore Josie Linn (5-7-12) lead the Fire in scoring, combining for 27 points on the season. 

1. Warroad (10-1) 

Three games, three wins for the Warriors. If only it were that simple. 

The Warriors outscored Crookston, Mound Westonka/Southwest Christian, and Holy Angels, two ranked Class 1A teams and a Whitehawk squad that hovers just outside the rankings, by a combined score of 21-3. 

The Crookston and Mound Westonka/SWC games spent virtually the entire third periods in running time. Rylee Bartz, Kate Johnson, and Talya Hendrickson have already eclipsed the 100 combined points mark, and we’re barely past Pearl Harbor Day. 

Hoo boy. 

2. Orono (6-1-2) 

The Spartans hosted No. 3-1A Proctor/Hermantown on Saturday, and the teams skated to a 2-2 tie, an assumedly unsatisfying result for the two likely Class 1A State Tournament teams.

Orono’s life doesn’t get any easier this week, with Holy Angels and No. 4-2A Gentry Academy on the docket. 

3. Proctor/Hermantown (4-2-1) 

The Mirage coupled the tie with Orono with a 4-1 win over northern rival Grand Rapids/Greenway on the week, finishing a three-game stretch as the visitor with a loss, win, and draw. 

Hibbing/Chisholm makes the journey to the St. Luke’s Sports and Events Center on Tuesday, followed by a visit from Duluth Marshall at Hermantown Arena on Thursday. 

4. Holy Angels (7-1) 

Holding top-ranked Warroad to five goals instead of eight moves Holy Angels ahead of Crookston this week, but the gap is thinner than a communion wafer at a cash-strapped Catholic parish. 

Thursday’s tilt with No. 2-1A Orono will be another tough test for the Stars, but also another shot to show just how good they are. 

5. Crookston (8-1-1) 

Crookston allowed eight goals against Warroad. No. 4-2A Gentry Academy allowed 10 goals against the Warriors. A bit of grace can be afforded to the Pirates for their loss to the state’s top Class 1A team. 

Crookston rebounded with an 8-2 win over Rock Ridge and an 11-0 victory over International Falls over the weekend, performing an exorcism of goals after the loss to Warroad. 

A crazy week in 15A. Some movement at the top, the middle and the bottom of the top ten. Cottage Grove moves back in after a win over AV/BV/EV. Stillwater Red moves up after an undefeated week. 

Wayzata wins the Moorhead tourney with five wins. They move past Tonka to #3 behind Edina and OMG. 

Moorhead makes a push into the top five this week, the Spuds are on a five-game winning streak. East Grand forks are the biggest mover this week in U15B; the Green Wave is up to No. 7 and is currently 2-0 in the young season. Coon Rapids- Champlin Park upset last week's No. 5 North Wright County. CRCP closes out our rankings this week at the No. 10 spot.

A lot of ranking defining games this week. Just what we like.

A) Grand Rapids-GW splits with Alexandria showing us that the Lightning are closer to the middle of the top-10.

B) Centennial-SLP slides into the #3 slot with recent wins over Anoka-Rogers, Alex and And over.

St. Paul moves up five spots this week to No. 3 in our rankings. The Capitals are currently on a 13-game win streak. Armstrong Cooper is new this week in the rankings; the Wings are at No. 5, as they upset the previous fourth-ranked Minnesota River. Rock Ridge is our tenth-ranked team; the Wolverines currently outscore opponents 123-16.

The puzzle pieces are falling into place for the 10A rankings.  No. 1 Anoka-Rogers wins the Big Ole last weekend Alexandria.  They've won 10 in  a row. 

Forest Lake wins the Star of the North in Grand Rapids. The Rangers have not lost since November 12.

Roseville-MAHT is also red hot out of the gate. The No. 3 team in MN as only lost to #1 Anoka-Rogers.

Roseville/Mahtomedi Silver is up to No. 2 this week, as it has been before thanksgiving since their last loss. The No. 3 Hopkins/Park Nordics have a perfect weekend, winning the Woodbury tournament to stay undefeated.