Through roughly a month of MIAA boys hockey action, there is a clear No. 1 team: Catholic Memorial.
But this coming week, Catholic Memorial will be tested by playing St. John's Prep. There's no doubt the Eagles will challenge them for the No. 1 spot. The Knights will face BC High a few days later.
It's a theme: high-end teams facing off with high-end teams over the next seven days.
There are multiple high-ranking matchups to watch for, be it between Catholic Conference teams or the public schools. There's no doubt the top 10 will look different next Thursday.
We don't know what will happen then. For now, the big winner since the calendar flipped to 2026 has been St. John's Shrewsbury.
Let's dive into the latest top 10.
1. Catholic Memorial (7-1-1)
Previous ranking: 1
Head coach: Larry Rooney
Next game: vs. St. John's Prep, Jan. 11, 2 p.m.
While CM suffered its first loss of the season, which came on Jan. 3 against St. John's Shrewsbury, it still beat Arlington (3-2) on New Year's Eve, took down Hingham (2-0) on Monday and then trounced Malden Catholic (9-2) on Wednesday night. Forward Dan Antonellis has been hot of late. He scored twice in the win over Malden Catholic and scored one of CM's two goals against Hingham. Sunday against St. John's Prep will be a massive test.
2. St. John's Shrewsbury (6-2-0)
Previous ranking: 5
Head coach: Michael Mead
Next game: vs. Xaverian, Jan. 10, 6 p.m.Â
Jumping from No. 5 to No. 2 is a lot. But it isn't crazy when you take down Catholic Memorial (3-2) and St. John's Prep (5-1) in back-to-back games. From watching SJS on Wednesday night against SJP, what stood out the most was the Pioneers' defense. The pairing of brothers Kevin and Ryder Bisson moved pucks so well. Match that with senior Connor Secrist's two-way abilities and physicality, and SJS is an extremely tough matchup. Not to be forgotten from this week was sophomore Matthew McGinty's eventual winner midway through the third period against Catholic Memorial.
READ MORE:Â Latest boys prep rankings
3. Xaverian (8-0-0)
Previous ranking: 3
Head coach: Dave Spinale
Next game: at St. John's Shrewsbury, Jan. 10, 6 p.m.Â
The Hawks kept on winning, staying at No. 3. They opened 2026 with a 4-2 win at St. Mary's Lynn before shutting out Malden Catholic, 6-0, on Jan. 3. Most recently, they beat BC High, 3-0. Defensemen Liam Doherty and Justin Mosher, as well as forward Joe Von Handorf, scored against BC High, while senior forwards Braden Pinkham and Daniel Gentile each scored twice to take down Malden Catholic. Get a load of Xaverian's next three games: St. John's Shrewsbury, St. John's Prep and Catholic Memorial.
4. St. John's Prep (4-1-2)
Previous ranking: 2
Head coach: Kris Hanson
Next game: at Catholic Memorial, Jan. 11, 2 p.m.Â
Since our last rankings, St. John's Prep stumbled, tying Reading (2-2), beating St. Mary's Lynn (3-1), but then falling to St. John's Shrewsbury on Wednesday night. The Eagles are still in the upper tier of MIAA teams, and while their offense was stifled by SJS, there are too many good names to be held down: seniors Brandon Ward, Logan Daigle, Andrew McCauley, Anthony Petruccelli and Luke Horenstein, as well as sophomore Gavin Anderson and freshman Blake Ward. They'll be fine.
5. Arlington (5-2-0)
Previous ranking: 6
Head coach: John Messuri
Next game: vs. Reading, Jan. 10, 12:40 p.m.Â
It was a crazy last bunch of games for Arlington. The Spy Ponders finished 2025 with a 3-2 loss to Catholic Memorial and followed that with. 2-1 loss to Winchester. They rebounded, however, with a 2-1 OT win against Pope Francis and crushed Belmont, 6-0, on Wednesday. Taking down Pope Francis was enough to slide them into the No. 5 spot. The two most notable occurrences from the two wins: senior forward Nolan Russell's OT winner over Pope Francis and senior defenseman Will Greable notching a goal and an assist against Belmont.
6. Pope Francis (4-3-2)
Previous ranking: 4
Head coach: Brian Foley
Next game: vs. Franklin, Jan. 8, 6:40 p.m.Â
It's been tough sledding of late for the Cardinals. Since falling to St. John's Prep in the Pete Frates Winter Classic, they tied Malden Catholic (5-5) and fell to Arlington in OT. Pope Francis is probably more fitting in the No. 5 spot, but the Spy Ponders just beat them, earning the edge. I think this is the lowest Pope Francis will fall this season. The roster is just too good.
READ MORE: Top boys prep performers from New Year’s tournaments and games
7. Hingham (4-2-1)
Previous ranking: 7
Head coach: Tony Messina
Next game: vs. Winchester, Jan. 10, 6 p.m.Â
There's no reason to move Hingham out of the No. 7 spot. The Harbormen beat Marshfield (5-1) on New Year's Eve and took down Andover (5-0) on Jan. 3. Sure, Messina's team lost to Catholic Memorial (2-0) on Monday, but CM is, right now, the best team in the state. Senior forward Cam McKenna has stayed hot, though, scoring twice against Andover.
8. Reading (5-0-1)
Previous ranking: 8
Head coach: Mark Doherty
Next game: at Arlington, Jan. 10, 12:40 p.m.Â
After being off for 10 days, Reading came back on New Year's Eve and tied St. John's Prep (2-2). The Rockets followed that up with a 5-2 win against Belmont and a 4-0 takedown of Woburn on Monday night. The biggest thing with the Rockets is they're taking care of business. In the win over Woburn, senior forward Jack Melly potted two, and freshman forward Brendan MacCurtain notched his first varsity lamplighter. The big question: Can they keep taking care of business against Arlington and Winchester in their next two games?
9. Canton (6-0-0)
Previous ranking: 9
Head coach: Brian Shuman
Next game: at Oliver Ames, Jan. 10, 3 p.m.Â
Canton is on quite a run. On New Year's Eve, the Bulldogs took down a very good Milton team (5-0) before beating Franklin (7-0) on Jan. 3. In the win over Franklin, senior forward Andrew Gillis and sophomore forward Gavin O'Toole both notched a pair of goals. Then came a 6-1 takedown of Taunton on Wednesday night. That was all about senior Cullen O'Brien's hat trick and senior defender Teddy Shuman dishing out three assists.
READ MORE: 7 standouts from St. John's Shrewsbury's 5-1 win over St. John's Prep
10. Arlington Catholic (7-2-0)
Previous ranking: NR
Head coach: Curt Colarullo
Next game: vs. Billerica, Jan. 14, 6 p.m.Â
The final spot came down to BC High and Arlington Catholic, but I'm giving the edge to AC this week. Colarullo's team has beaten St. John's Shrewsbury, and their two losses came against Central Catholic and Xaverian in mid-December. In their 5-3 win over Archbishop Williams on Wednesday night, senior forward Alex Frost and freshman forward Cael Colarullo both had a goal and two helpers.
Dropped out: BC High (4-3-0; 10)
In the hunt:Â BC High, Marshfield, Weymouth
