Cretin-Derham Hall vs. St. Thomas Academy

7 p.m., Saturday, Nov. 27
Bloomington Ice Garden, Bloomington

Cretin-Derham Hall enters the season as the state’s No. 1 team in Class 2A, and deservedly so. The Raiders had a whopping nine players picked for the Upper Midwest High School Elite League this fall, the most of any team in the state. And a 10th player, Gabe Ramussen, would have played in the league if not for an injury. While the Fisher and Sondreal brothers are well-known entities, keep an eye on potential breakout seasons from forward Attila Lippai and defenseman Colton Jamieson, each of whom were Elite League standouts. St. Thomas Academy has an abundance of big guns, too, most notably forwards Max Nagel and Tommy Cronin. Adding some zip to this matchup is some sensible section realignment in the offseason. This very well could be a Section 3AA championship preview, as the St. Paul-based Raiders were moved out of their curious placement in an an otherwise all-west metro Section 6AA.