Section 1AA - Lakeville South (19-11)

Please. Hockey people. Stop. Poking. The. Bear. 

While Section 1AA hasn’t exactly provided a Murderers’ Row of entrants into the state tournament in recent years, these are the last eight teams standing. Eight out of the entire state. Anything can happen, and the Cougars entered the tournament without a glaring loss on the books. Carter and Jackson Ernst fly under the radar because of geography, and when Will Kortan is on, he can skate with anyone. 

Personally, I should not have been suspicious of the Cougars. When Jackson Ernst was a Bantam, he became the very rare player to earn Most Valuable Player honors in a YHH tournament while not skating for the champion or runner-up. His 12 goals and 21 points remain one of the highest scoring totals in the Blue Ox’s history. 

Have things changed since the 2021-2022 season? Duh. But it should have served as a reminder that this group of Cougars, including quarterfinal stud Will Kortan, was going to put a major score into a higher-seeded team. 

Section 2AA - Shakopee (24-6-1)

Shakopee responded to a gut-wrenching quarterfinal loss precisely the way a team that fully intends to make a return trip to the state tournament should - by winning the consolation final. However, the Sabers will now need to learn to live without Cooper Simpson, who accounted for 31% of the team’s goals this year. Of the six players who tallied double-digit goals for the Sabers this season, three remain - Cooper Siegert, Nate Pederson, and Tristin Wassengeso. 

While Siegert and Wassengeso were not selected in the USHL Phase I Draft last spring, it’s not guaranteed that they will not be selected in Phase II. Pederson, a Miami (OH) verbal commit, was picked in the first round of the 2024 Phase I Draft by Lincoln. Pederson played two games this fall for the Stars, but it remains to be seen what’ll happen this spring as the USHL’s top team chases a Clark Cup, and then makes its roster moves ahead of the 2025-2026 season. 

Section 3AA - St. Thomas Academy (24-7)

The Cadets must replace five of their six leading scorers from this season, plus standout goaltender Cody Niesen, but there may not be a better program situated to retool, and the reasoning has very little to do with the recent success and fresh coaching staff. 

When the cadets show up to the Xcel Energy Center in uniformed military attire, you can bet a pint at Tom Reid’s that more than a few hockey parents notice. A significant portion of the hockey community loves the traditional aspects of St. Thomas Academy - the short hair, the priority placed on discipline, the neckties. Opinion, of course, but one I'd wager is accurate. 

Seeing the Cadets march through the Xcel Energy Center with shiny shoes and bright buttons will convince some parents of talented hockey players that the little school in Mendota Heights is where they want to send their sons. 

Section 4AA - Stillwater (24-7)

If you want your kid to play the kind of defense that lands you in the NAHL, USHL, or on a college hockey roster, you’d be hard-pressed to find a better place to do that than Stillwater. Sometimes, former NHL players are assumed to be the best head coaching options in a community based on the fact that they played at a high level. This fallacy permeates all levels of hockey (Gretzky in Phoenix, anyone?).

However, former pros Greg Zanon and Thomas Vanek curated a defensive core that all - yes, all - appear to be ready to play at the next level. Jonas Kohn, Cal Grilz, John Karkula, Tate Batchelor, Alex Oehlke, and Conor McGlynn may not have the point totals people have come to expect from high-level defenders thanks to the rise of young NHL stars Cale Makar and Quinn Hughes, but teams will ALWAYS find room for a physical defenseman that controls gaps, blocks shots, and can make the right breakout pass. 

Section 5AA - Rogers (23-5-2)

This week provided a bit of a watershed moment for Rogers. The Royals finally clawed their way to St. Paul, led by pillars of the program in Mason Jenson, Parker Deschene, and Nolen Geerdes. The trio not only supplied Rogers with the bulk of its offense, but they set the tone as sophomores (and even as youth players) that the Royals would play entertaining, track-meet, fun hockey.

All three are now off to new adventures, as are several other pieces. 

There’s still a ton of talent in the program. Brock Cheslock, Matt Hauser, Jayden Kurtz, Blake Sinclair, and Avenir Belous will all be seniors next season. The team will be experienced, but will need big skate-filling performances from a talented junior class. 

P.S. Section 5AA foes Maple Grove and Blaine aren’t going anywhere.

Section 6AA - Edina (22-7-2)

Spoiler: Edina loses five seniors and returns its top 11 scorers from last season, including 40-pointers Casey Vandertop, Mason West, Freddie Schneider, and Caleb Pittsley. Vandertop and West have their junior careers spoken for, with Vandertop’s rights being held by Lincoln and West’s by Fargo. West is also in line to be a high-ish NHL Draft selection this summer. His immediate future will, and let’s not be naive here, be altered depending on which NHL franchise selects the two-sport star. 

Schneider could find out as early as this week if he will be invited to the National Team Development Program’s Under-17 tryout. He should be, and considering his performance the last two seasons with the Hornet varsity, will likely be invited to join the team for the 2025-2026 season. On the national stage, Schneider tied for second in scoring at last summer’s USA Hockey Select 15 camp with four goals and nine points. Defenseman Becker Wenkus could also get a look from the NTDP. Wenkus isn’t some secret tucked away in Minnesota. He played a season with Detroit’s Little Caesars program, a stone’s throw from the NTDP’s base in Plymouth, and performed well.

In a perfect world for high school hockey, everyone returns.

Section 7AA - Andover (15-15)

After an 0-9 start to the season, everything was gravy for the Huskies after getting out of the Section 7AA quarterfinal round. Rock Ridge and Grand Rapids are undoubtedly formidable foes in the section going forward, but the Huskies will bring back leading scorers Cam Langfeld, KJ Sauer, and Case Nadeau, plus goaltender Cash Cruitt. 

Add to that mix another offseason of development from talented freshman Jack Rykkeli and a Bantam AA team that finished No. 13 in the state’s YHH NOW Rankings, and the Huskies should have more offensive tools to work with next season. 

Section 8AA - Moorhead (28-2-1)

After two legacy names led the program to its first state championship, the Spuds are going to be hammered by departures. 

Mr. Hockey Mason Kraft, Michigan State commit Brooks Cullen, heart-and-soul guys Carver Hasbargen and Aiden Dufault, and starting goaltender Charlie Stenehjem are all gone. 

Thankfully for the defending champs, Tyden Bergeson, Zac Zimmerman, Brandon Mickelson, Max Cullen, and Evan Wanner could all return. On the other hand, Bergeson (Madison), Zimmerman (Fargo), and Cullen (Muskegon) have USHL suitors, while Wanner could earn an invitation to the NTDP’s tryout. Ah, the pains of having oodles of talent. 

In the pipeline is one of the most talented Bantam AA teams the country has ever seen, but talent without experience doesn’t always translate right away at the high school level, and it’s never guaranteed everyone ends up in the high school program.