The following is an update to the peewee A preview posted last week and includes an updated regional draws for all four peewee A regionals.  The North Regional draw is set; the West Regional draw is fairly well set, but awaits results from D10; D9 has determined their three seeds to the East Regional, but D8 and D6 teams will not be known until next Sunday; and finally the South Regional draw will be the last to be known with all three districts (D3, D4, and D5) playoffs not finished until late Sunday.

Peewee A North Regional (Virginia)

Denfeld won District 11’s playoffs over the past weekend.  The Hunters beat Duluth East A twice 2-0 and 4-1 to gain the championship.  Duluth East edged Two Harbors 4-2 to take the #2 seed to the North Regional.  Two Harbors took the #3 seed beating Proctor.

In District 12, Virginia, unbeaten in league play, won the #1 seed.  The Blue Devils beat Hibbing 9-1 and Eveleth-Gilbert/Mesabi East 9-1 to take the title.  EGME pulled a surprise beating favored Greenway 9-4 in the semifinals to take the #2 seed.  Greenway recovered to beat Hibbing 7-3 to take the #3 seed.

District 2 play started over the weekend but will not determine a champion until next Saturday.  The top two D2 seeds, Mahtomedi and Highland are in the championship game.  Highland beat Stillwater A 8-0 and Mahtomedi beat White Bear Lake A 10-3.  Those big scores were surprises.  Stillwater A and White Bear Lake A teams have played better this season.  The winner of the Zephyrs/Caps Saturday’s championship game will get D2's #1 seed.  The loser will play winner of the consolation round late Saturday to decide the D2’s #2 seed.  Stillwater A, Mounds View, White Bear Lake A, and Tartan play consolation games this week.

Peewee A North Regional Draw

North Regional play at Virginia’s Memorial Arena would start February 28.  The field is fairly well fixed.  The opening quarterfinal games will match Denfeld and Mahtomedi or Highland or possibly a third D2 team in the first game, Virginia and Two Harbors in the second game.  Highland or Mahtomedi will play Greenway in the third game, and Eveleth-Gilbert/Mesabi East and Duluth East A will play in the final game.

The North Region still shapes up as a test for how far have the D12 association programs have progressed.  All three D12 entries should be competitive.  Virginia figures to battle Highland and Mahtomedi for a trip to state; Greenway and Denfeld remain contenders; Duluth East A, EGME, and Two Harbors could surprise someone.

Peewee A South Regional (St. Cloud)

The District 3 playoffs opened at Parade with three first round games Sunday.  Orono, league champions this year, drew a bye and beat St. Louis Park 5-0 in a semifinal game Monday.  St. Louis Park beat Delano 5-2 in Sunday’s first game at Parade.  In the second semifinal game Monday, Hopkins upset #2 seeded Armstrong 3-2 to advance to the championship game.  Armstrong had beaten North Metro 5-2 and Hopkins beat Mound/Westonka 4-0 Sunday to advance to the semifinals.

Orono and Hopkins will meet in the championship game Saturday at Parade.  The winner will get D3’s #1 seed to the South Regional, the loser will plays the winner of the consolation round to determine who gets D3’s #2 seed to the South, the loser of that game gets the #3 seed.  Consolation play continues Tuesday and Wednesday before the weekend’s championship games.

D4/D5’s peewee A playoff draw is set.  All the playoff games will be played February 21-23 at Marshall.  Sartell gets the #1 seed and will open play Friday night against the #8 seed Redwood Falls.  The #4 seed Hutchinson will play the #5 seed Sauk Rapids in the second game of the upper bracket Saturday morning.  The second game Friday night matches #2 Luverne against host and #7 Marshall.  The final first round game played Saturday morning matches #3 New Ulm/Sleep Eye against #6 Litchfield.  League play was not completed until last Sunday’s game between Luverne A and New Ulm/Sleepy Eye (a 3-3 tie).

The playoff format is a double elimination tourney, but all four quarterfinal winners will go to the South.  The playoff champion will get D4’s #1 seed, the runner-up gets D5’s #2 seed, the third place winner gets D4’s #2 seed, and the fourth place finisher gets D5’s #2 seed.  The four quarterfinal losing teams will play for D5’s #3 seed.   

Peewee A South Regional Draw

The South Regional quarterfinals will be played at St. Cloud’s MAC February 28.  In the opening round Orono or Hopkins will play D4’s #2 seed and D5’s #1 seed will play D3’s #3 seed in the upper bracket.  In the lower bracket, D4’s #1 seed would play D5’s #3 seed and D5’s #2 seed playing Orono or Hopkins or another D3 team.  This should be the toughest regional this year with potentially five NOW top ranked teams (#5 Armstrong, #8 Orono, #9 Sartell, #10 Hopkins, and #14 Luverne) competing for two spots in the state tourney.

Peewee A East Regional (Rochester)

Apple Valley A upset Farmington A 6-4 Sunday in D8 opening playoff game.  Woodbury AA edged Hastings A 4-3 and Eastview AA beat Park-Cottage Grove A 7-1.  As a result, Apple Valley will get D8’s #1 seed for advancing the furthest in the D8 playoffs.  Farmington, Hastings, and Park-Cottage Grove are out of the D8 playoffs; but Farmington should get the #2 seed and Hastings the #3 seed to the East Regional based on the order that the teams finished in this year’s regular season play.

Sunday, Lakeville South AA beat Lakeville North AA in the first quarterfinal game of the double elimination tourney.  Monday, the playoffs continued at Apple Valley’s Hayes Arena with #1 seed Rosemount AA beating Apple Valley 7-4 to advance to play Lakeville South AA in Friday’s first semifinal game.  Apple Valley will play Lakeville North Wednesday with the loser being eliminated from the D8 playoffs.

Sibley AA beat Woodbury AA 3-1 in the second quarterfinal game played Monday at Hayes to advance to the semifinals.  The Warriors will play the winner of the Eagan AA/Eastview AA quarterfinal game played Wednesday.  The loser of that game will play Woodbury AA Friday night.

In District 9, Rochester Black pulled a mild upset winning all three D9 playoff games over the weekend to take D9’s #1 seed.  The Black beat Northfield 7-1, Red Wing 5-2 and Mankato 3-2 (in four overtimes) to advance to the South Regional.  Mankato was almost upset by Albert Lea, winning 3-2 in a single overtime game to take the #2 seed to the South.  Red Wing came back from their lost to the Black in the semifinals to beat Faribault 11-2 and Albert Lea 8-2 to take the #3 seed.

In District 6, the #3 seed Prior Lake A beat the #2 seed Chaska Chanhassen A 3-1 in one semifinal game.  Edina A beat Waconia A 7-1 in the second semifinal game played Monday.  The two winners meet in the first of three possible championship games Thursday.  The winner of that game will get one of D6’s two seeds to the East Regional.

Waconia A plays Eden Prairie A and Chaska Chanhassen A plays Minnetonka A in the consolation semifinals with the losers going home and the winners meeting in a Thursday game.  After Thursday, the D6 playoffs will be down to three teams with two NOW top ranked teams, Edina A and Prior Lake A still in the hunt.  After the dust is settled on Saturday or Sunday Feb 22 or 23 at Chaska, Edina A or Prior Lake A should emerge with the #1 seed or #2 seed.  After that, this playoff is wide open.

Peewee A East Regional Draw

At this point, the opening quarterfinal games will match Apple Valley against D6’s #2 seed in the opening game Friday afternoon at Graham.  The second quarterfinal game would match Mankato against Hastings.  The evening games would see D6’s #1 playing Red Wing and Rochester Black playing Farmington.

Peewee A West Regional

The West Regional will be played at Anoka this year.  Three D10 teams, three D15 teams, and two D16 teams will play for West’s #1 and #2 seeds to the state tourney.  The regional will open with first round games being played Friday, February 28.

In District 10 playoffs over the weekend, #1 seeded Spring Lake Park beat Elk River A 11-1 and Centennial A 8-2 to advance to the championship game to be played at Anoka Sunday Morning.  St. Francis beat a tough Anoka team 4-3 in overtime and then beat Coon Rapids 5-2 in the lower bracket.  St. Francis and Spring Lake Park play for D10’s #1 and #2 seeds to the West Regional.  In the consolation round, Andover beat Elk River 7-3 and Princeton edged Anoka 3-2 to advance to the consolation semifinals.  Andover plays Coon Rapids and Princeton plays Centennial Saturday.  The winners will play Sunday for D10’s #3 seed to the West Regional.

D15’s top ranked Alexandria swept through the D15 playoffs to take D15’s #1 seed to the West Regional.  The Cardinals beat Park Rapids, Northern Lakes and Detroit Lakes (3-0) over the weekend.  Detroit Lakes proved to be a tough defensive team edging Prairie Center 3-2 and beating Fergus Falls 4-1 before losing to Alex.  Detroit Lakes gets the #2 seed to the West.  Northern Lakes bounced back after losing to Alexandria to beat Prairie Center 8-1 and Brainerd A 7-5 to claim D15’s #3 seed to the West Regional.

Warroad, D16’s unbeaten regular season champion, took the #1 seed.  In playoff games played at Thief River Falls, Warroad beat the host Prowlers 9-2 and East Grand Forks 4-0 to win top seed.  East Grand Forks edged Crookston 5-3 to get to the championship game and then beat the Pirates 4-2 to claim the #2 seed.

Peewee A West Regional Draw

The opening games Friday February 28 at Anoka will match Alexandria against East Grand Forks; Spring Lake Park or St. Francis against Northern Lakes; Warroad against D10’s #3 seed; and St. Francis against Detroit Lakes.  A potential match-up between the NOW ranked top two peewee A teams in the state, #1 Alexandria and #2 Spring Lake Park could happen in the semifinals of the West Regional.