As the regular season has wrapped up in Minnesota girls high school hockey, the Road to St. Paul begins with section playoffs in Class AA & A. First up are the eight Class AA sections.
If there's any guarantee in Section 1, the road to the X will go through Lakeville as the Lakeville South Cougars have the number one seed. They swept their city rivals, the second seeded Lakeville North Panthers in the season series and there could be a third "Battle of Lakeville" in the section final. But wait, there are two more contenders that could spoil the All Lakeville Showdown. The third seeded Farmington Tigers and the fourth seeded Dodge County Wildcats.
In Section 2, the top seeded and defending state champion Eden Prairie Eagles are the top seed but returning to St. Paul won't be an easy task. The Eagles will have to contend with the second seeded Minnetonka Skippers, the third seeded Shakopee Sabres and the red hot fourth seeded Chaska/Chanhassen Stormhawks who have won 10 straight games. This has the makings of a tough section.
The top seed in Section 3 is the Eastview Lightning, led by Ms. Hockey semifinalist Natalie Snodgrass. The Lightning are on a five game winning streak and will have to contend with the second seeded Eagan Wildcats and the third seeded East Ridge Raptors who are looking for their first trip to St. Paul.
The Hill-Murray Pioneers have been the dominate team in Section 4 the last several years and this year they are once again the number one seed. Hoping to derail their trip down I-35E are the second seeded Mounds View Mustangs and the third seeded White Bear Lake Bears.
The pairings have not been determined for Section 5 but in all likelihood the number one seed will be the Maple Grove Crimson, led by the goalie tandem of Breanna Blesi and Coco Francis. But don't count out as contenders the Blaine Bengals and the Rogers Royals. It could be an interesting section.
Now to Section 6 where the top ranked Edina Hornets are the number one seed. Thy have had an outstanding season under first year head coach Sami Reber and hope to bring a lot of green clad fans to the Xcel Energy Center's green seats. Also in contention are the second seeded Cretin-Derham Hall Raiders and third seeded Hopkins/Park. Can Hopkins/Park force a third meeting with the Hornets in the section final?
The pairings for Section 7 have not yet been determined but it could be a three team race between Elk River/Zimmerman, the Forest Lake Rangers and Greenway/Grand Rapids.
Also not online as of this post are the Section 8 pairings and there could be great news for hockey fans in Lakes Country and the Land of Lindbergh as Brainerd/Little Falls takes a 23-2 record into sections and a five game winning streak. Their only two losses this season have been by 1-0 scores to Greenway/Grand Rapids and Sartell/Sauk Rapids. Keep an eye out for the Roseau Rams and the St. Cloud Icebreakers.
Bus drivers in the Brainerd and Little Falls areas could be busy since there could be a horde of fans headed down Highway 10 to St. Paul as they cheer their team on in their first trip to state.
Next up will be the eight Class A sections.
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