Mike Trzinski of WisconsinPrepHockey.net breaks down the top teams that are emerging late in the high school hockey season in Wisconsin, including University School and Verona, as well as the race for the players of the year in the state as the playoffs are only a few weeks away.
University School has been atop most of the rankings all year at WIPH, while Verona has been a mainstay in the top three or four most of the year. Some of the Milwaukee-area sectionals, including the ones that U-School and Waukesha are part of, have clear-cut favorites, while other sectionals, like #6 that includes the Madison-area, are very deep. The Madison-area sectional has six teams ranked in the top 25 in the state (out of 82 programs).
Some of the dark-horse teams in the state include Middleton and Janesville, while northern Wisconsin has top programs like Notre Dame, Superior, and Wausau West that should be contenders for the state title.
Trzinksi, also known as Trasher on WIPH, also identifies a handful of candidates for player of the year in both boys and girls hockey statewide, and offers his thoughts on the co-op situation in girls hockey that has become part of the recent news cycle.