It’s been a turbulent start to the high school hockey season in Massachusetts, which makes the first installment of New England Hockey Journal’s MIAA Power Rankings exciting.
Xaverian and Arlington are clearly the top two teams in the state, but after that, there are a whole bunch of teams vying for pecking order. A number of early-season results have left longtime observers, including myself, scratching our heads.
With the unpopular decision to cut the Super 8 for the 2021-22 season, the MIAA Division 1 state tournament is wide open. It would have been extremely hard for anyone to defeat Xaverian or Arlington twice, but anything can happen in a single-elimination format.
I’ve been to two dozen MIAA games over the first month of the season. While I haven’t seen everyone, I believe I have a solid grasp on the top 16 teams in the state for the 2021-22 season. Hopefully, administrators will step out of the way and allow for a full and uninterrupted finish to the winter on the ice in the Bay State.
Without further ado, here is the first installment of our MIAA Power Rankings:
