Northern Minnesota teams might compose half of the top 10 in 2015. With a Duluth team, perhaps the strongest Duluth team in history, coming off a state championship appearance in 2014, it's likely we could see another northern team in the state championship game in 2015. Grand Rapids and Proctor with some strong seniors should also be top contenders in 2015. A Red River Valley team that showed improvement throughout the season last year should also be more competitive this year. Grand Cities and Brainerd, after somewhat down years last season, also look to bounce back and see improved teams in 2015.
With St. Louis Park, last years champion, and St. Paul, two of the more historically strong teams in the MSBLA, moving up to the MSHSL, Duluth has to be the odds on favorite in 2015. 2015 also saw STMA move up to the MSHSL. As the season begins this weekend, who will be the favorites to take home the title in 2015?
MBSLA Pre-Season Top 10:
1. Duluth - Last years state runner-up is the top returning team after St. Louis Park moved on to the MSHSL. Two years ago Duluth finished third, last year second and this year they hope to come out on top. With offensive threats returning all over, their goalie and most of their defense, this years team should be better than last. It's likely that this could be the best team Duluth has ever put on the field. Will they live up to that billing? With less competition this season, they should. Duluth returns 2/3's of its starting Attack unit including All-State Honorable Mention attack senior Dan O' Connell and second team All-Conference senior Jesse Larson. Junior Sean Manahan and sophomore Keijo Day, both vastly improved, will share the other attack position. At midfield the Chargers will miss All-American performer Cooper Carlson, but will return All-State midfielder junior Bryce Holak along with first team All-Conference midfielder senior Zack Zierden and a host of other strong middies. Zierden will have Carlson's big shoes to fill at the faceoff X as the Chargers primary faceoff man. On Defense sophomore 1st team All-Conference goalie Mitchell Pelkey returns along with 1st team All-Conference performers senior LSM Mike Nowicki and senior defenseman August Cadotte along with second team defender junior Gage Kuhlmey and vastly improved senior defender Jacob Parker. This years Duluth squad should have a clear shot at the Championship in 2015. A tournament in Wisconsin in May might prove to be their toughest competition this season and should prepare them for their title push come June. Who will stop them in 2015?
2. Becker - Last years 3rd place team may be Duluth's toughest competition in 2015. Two overtime losses to Duluth last season, including one in the MBSLA semifinal for the right to ascend to the title game, should give them all the incentive they need in 2015. Unfortunately, Becker has some major pieces to fill after losing their top scorer, goalie and several other top performers due to graduation. Fortunately for Becker, they do return one of the best players in the MBSLA in junior midfielder and All-State Honorable Mention, Milan Kent. Becker also has third leading scorer senior attackman Cole Neu returning along with improved midfielder sophomore Cale MacMillan. Becker lost some important pieces from a very good 2014 squad, but they should have the firepower to compete with Duluth and a shot at the state championship in 2015. Two tilts with Duluth at the end of May should give us a good idea how strong this 2015 Becker squad will be.
3. Hudson - Hudson can always be counted on to field a strong squad, and they should do so again in 2015. The 2013 MBSLA State Champions will be shooting for a shot at another state championship in 2015. With the loss of all-everything midfielder McKay Potter, Hudson will have to fill his capable faceoff and scoring role. On the huge plus side, Hudson will amazingly return 9 of their top 10 scorers from last season including top scorer senior attack Adam Lipps and 3rd leading scorer junior midfielder William Reece III. With much of their offense returning from last season and experienced defenseman junior Gabe Franck also returning, Hudson should make a push for another championship in 2015. An early season tilt this Sunday April 12 against Duluth in Hudson, in the first game for both teams, should give us a good idea of the relative strength of each team in the early 2015 season.
4. Grand Rapids - With several experienced seniors returning from a very good squad in 2014, Grand Rapids will push Duluth in the North and could also make a push for their first state championship appearance in 2015. Grand Rapids will be led on offense by experienced seniors attack J.J. Rubesh and midfielders Riley Jensen and 1st team all-conference faceoff specialist Nic Zerfas. Strong underclassmen, sophomore midfielder/attack Lane Anderson and sophomore attack Noah How will also add to Grand Rapids scoring punch. There are also a number of young players ready to contribute to this years Grand Rapids offense. On defense, Grand Rapids returns athletic and experienced senior 2nd team all-conference goalie, Tyler Altringer along with 2nd team all-conference defenseman senior Logan Anderson. With experience returning and several younger players stepping up, Grand Rapids will be a challenger for the title in 2015. A pair of games with Duluth in May should determine who controls the North in 2015.
5. Proctor - Proctor continued to improve in 2014 and should do so again in 2015. Led by strong and talented attackman, 1st team all-conference and all-state honorable mention senior Luke Hannan, Proctor will be a tough team to beat in 2015. Proctor did lose some pieces due to graduation, but return enough talent that they should compete well this season. Second team all-conference attack/middie senior Ryan McDougall will pair with Hannan on offense while the defense will be anchored by first team all-conference senior Jake Wick and second team all-conference pole senior Colton Adams. With good talent returning, Proctor should remain in the top tier for the duration of the 2015 season.
6. St. Could North - After the top 5 in the MBSLA this season, things start to get a little murky. St. Could North can usually be counted on to produce a solid team each year. In 2015, they should once again find a spot in the Top 10. Leading scorer, senior first team all-conference attack Carter Kasianov returns to anchor the offense. If St. Cloud North can replace some of the scorers they lost to graduation, they should be able to remain in the top 10.
7. Red River Valley - Last season Red River Valley saw some improvement as the season progressed. Can Red River carry that over into the 2015 season? If they continue to improve, we can see them remaining in the top 10 for the season.
8. Winona - Winona is a team that I see as being that team every year that surprises people. Winona didn't have a varsity squad in 2014, but their JV team won the MBSLA JV state championship over Hudson. With many of their top scorers from the JV championship team returning, including their top 3 scorers senior Marcus Kuhlman, junior Matt Schoh and senior John Rickoff, we could see them winning enough games this season to remain in the top 10. An early season test this weekend against Duluth should give them an idea where they stack up.
9. Waconia - Waconia finished last season 4-4. Whether they'll be a threat to the top teams in the MBSLA remains to be seen, but we anticipate improvement for Waconia over last season. Waconia is starting to develop a youth program and we should start to see improvement at the highest level as those more experienced young players trickle into the high school ranks. An April 19 tilt against Duluth will give them an idea how they'll compete this season against the top teams.
10. St. Paul - Not much is known about this years St. Paul team. They should be severely weakened with most of their best and most experienced players playing for their MSHSL squad. However, St. Paul is a historic program with years of success, so we put them here at 10 to recognize that history of success. As the season progresses, we should get a little better idea who should be in the top 10.
This pre-season ranking is a best effort and certainly not definitive. To come up with our rankings, we looked at last years performance, the number of seniors lost, top scorers and players returning from last year and returning all-conference and all-state performers. Please feel free to comment on the rankings and let us know why we're right or why we're wrong.
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