Why Every Team Can Win Section 1AA Hockey 2026-27
Every fanbase believes this is their year, and in Section 1AA, the case is easier to make for some than others. From a state-qualifying program with a loaded forward corps to a rebuilding team that quietly kept its entire goaltending tandem, here’s the best-case scenario for all eight teams chasing a section title in 2026-27. (We are assuming all eligible players are returning to their high school teams, if that’s not the case drop us an email ftphockey@gmail.com)
Lakeville South
Why not the defending section champion? Lakeville South already proved it could win this section and reach the state tournament, and while Carter Ernst and Calvin O’Reilly are gone, Roan Zielie, Colby Olsen and Justin Olson combined for 79 points last season as underclassmen and now get the keys to the offense. Yes, the goaltending is unsettled with both starters graduated — but a program that just won a section title and reached state knows how to find answers under pressure. Bet against Lakeville South in a single-elimination bracket at your own risk.
New Prague
New Prague brings back its top three scorers AND both goaltenders. Nobody else in this section can say that. Walker Andersen and Carson Ashley combined for 70 points as juniors, Joey Klose returns after a 26-game workload in net, and the Trojans already pushed Farmington to overtime in last year’s section semifinal. Continuity wins in March, and no team in Section 1AA has more of it than New Prague.
Owatonna
Every single one of Owatonna’s top four scorers is back. Grady Roush, Zach Roesner, Caleb Ringhoffer and Zach Klecker combined for 101 points last season, and Braxton Ringhoffer emerged as a legitimate starter as a sophomore, posting a .902 save percentage across 23 games. Head coach Dennis Will now has a full season of data on nearly his entire lineup. A team that returns this much production doesn’t need to hope for a breakthrough — it just needs the games to start counting.
Farmington
Farmington just had its best season in years, reaching the section championship game in Steve Sabetti’s first year behind the bench. Tegan and Tanner Gylling combined for 56 points as juniors and now lead a group that also brings back four other players who scored in double figures. The only question is replacing a goaltender who posted a .934 save percentage — but Kian Hauser was nearly perfect in his own audition last season, and a program riding this much momentum isn’t going to let one position hold it back.
Lakeville North
Here’s the case for Lakeville North: while the rest of the section is auditioning goaltenders, David Isaacson has already locked down the job. He outplayed a senior starter as a sophomore and posted a .922 save percentage doing it. Add in Brett Wynes, Hayden Buck and Jax Taylor, three returners who all scored at a real clip as underclassmen, and Lakeville North doesn’t have to solve the position that decides section tournaments. Everyone else does.
Rochester Mayo
Rochester Mayo isn’t the flashy pick, but look closer. Joseph Villarama returns as a proven leading scorer, and both goaltenders who split time last season, Colton Brandt and Kaden Johnston, were sophomores getting real varsity minutes. That’s two more years of experience walking in the door together. Section tournaments have a way of rewarding teams that quietly got better while nobody was watching, and Rochester Mayo spent last season doing exactly that.
Rochester Century
Rochester Century might have the best forward group nobody’s talking about. Boston Collins and Bennett Timpane both scored 20 points last season, and the Wiedrich brothers added 34 more between them — all four are back. If Jaycob Krebs or another option can just be adequate in net, this is a team with enough firepower to outscore its way through a bracket. Section titles have been won on offense before, and Rochester Century has more of it than its 10-15-1 record suggests.
Austin
Austin’s case starts and ends with one name: Tait Johnson. A sophomore goaltender who posts a .921 save percentage on a losing team, and then stops 67 of 68 shots in a playoff loss, is the kind of player who can single-handedly steal a section run. Kade Overocker and Talan Hall give Austin just enough offense to make it interesting. In a single-elimination bracket, all it takes is one hot week from a goaltender like that — and Austin already has him.
The Pick
All eight teams have a case. Ours: New Prague and Owatonna both bring back more than anyone else in the section, but Lakeville South’s pedigree, state tournament experience and returning forward depth make the Cougars the team to beat until someone knocks them off. That’s why we play the games.
Statistics referenced reflect the 2025-26 regular season and Section 1AA playoffs as covered in our individual team previews. Have something for us? Our email is always open ftphockey@gmail.com
