After the strangest offseason in high school hockey history, everything feels different, but at the same time, everything feels the same. 

For those hoping that the general confusion and multiple stops and starts would usher in a new era of parity in Minnesota's girls' high school hockey scene, we have some unpleasant news - it looks like a two-horse race at the top, and we hope to be proven wrong when the season is over. 

Andover and Edina have the talent, depth, coaching, and experience to reenact last season's Class AA state championship game in 2021, wherever and whenever this year's title game will be played. Both programs are loaded up for (at least) one more cattle drive, and the Huskies and Hornets feature stars at each level of the game. 

Behind the top two, there are seemingly a dozen squads that could make a case as a state's third-best team, ranging from the far reaches of Minnesota in Roseau to the metro powers of the Lake Conference. Sifting through the returning numbers from the usual suspects and teams on the rise was almost as mind-numbing as the COVID-19 seesaw of the past year, so let's get to it.