Overview:
CENTRAL
This will be a tough battle between Clear Lake and Turtle Lake, but in the end I am going to go with Turtle Lake. Turtle Lake returns five All-Conference selections from last season (Brendan Strenke - Co-POY, Blake Thill - 1st, Joel Humphrey - 2nd, Koby Kahl - HM, and Noah Torgerson - HM). Clear Lake returns to of the top players in the conference (Tyson Blanchard - Co-POY and Riley Peterson -1st), but they lost three other All-Conference selections. Northwood appears to be the only other team who will be competitive with the only other 1st-Team All-Conference selection returning for this season in Syver Gulbrandsen. They do lost two other All-Conference selections, but the rest of the conference should be weak enough for them to remain in the top three. Clayton, Prairie Farm, and Shell Lake are in the bottom tier of the Central. I think it's pretty much a toss up for what order they will finish in, but I believe Prairie Farm has learned from the last couple of seasons with younger talent that they move up a spot from last season.
EAST
Bruce appears to be the very strong favorite in the East and they return enough talent that they should be the favorites for the next couple of years. Three All-Conference players return in Ryan Popowich (2nd), Matt Popowich (HM), and Jake Thome (HM). Harley Opachan will look to help Flambeau stay competitive at the top of the conference. Lake Holcombe and New Auburn should both be competitive, but I'm not sure it will be enough to win a title. Birchwood, Cornell, and Winter appear to be the bottom tier of this conference. Birchwood graduated some good talent the last two seasons, so I believe they will fall a spot and Cornell will jump above them.
WEST
This is the conference I feel the least confident in predicting. Grantsburg returns the most All-Conference selections, so they are going to be my favorite heading into the season. Luck tends to always have some good athletes hanging around, you can almost guarantee that they will be competitive every season. Webster has had their share of good athletes lately, but I believe it will be more of a struggle this season. Siren and Unity could be competitive, but I don't think they have enough talent to be championship contenders. I don't expect the woes at Frederic to end this season, so it may be another tough season for them.
Predictions
CENTRAL
1. Turtle Lake Lakers (2020-2021 season: 16-8 overall, 7-3 conference, 2nd)
2. Clear Lake Lakers (2020-2021 season: 22-1 overall, 9-0 conference, 1st)
3. Northwood Evergreens (2020-2021 season: 14-5 overall, 6-2 conference, 3rd)
4. Prairie Farm Panthers (2020-2021 season: 5-15 overall, 2-8 conference, 5th)
5. Shell Lake Lakers (2020-2021 season: 6-14 overall, 3-7 conference, 4th)
6. Clayton Golden Bears (2020-2021 season: 1-13 overall, 1-8 conference, 6th)
EAST
1. Bruce Red Raiders (2020-2021 season: 14-4 overall, 10-2 conference, 1st)
2. Flambeau Falcons (2020-2021 season: 9-10 overall, 8-4 conference, 3rd)
3. New Auburn Trojans (2020-2021 season: 13-6 overall, 9-3 conference, 2nd)
4. Lake Holcombe (2020-2021 season: 11-11 overall, 8-4 conference, 4th)
5. Cornell Trojans (2020-2021 season: 2-17 overall, 2-10 conference, 6th)
6. Birchwood (2020-2021 season: 6-13 overall, 4-8 conference, 5th)
7. Winter (2020-2021 season: 1-15 overall, 1-11 conference, 7th)
WEST
1. Grantsburg Pirates (2020-2021 season: 13-2 overall, 9-0 conference, 1st)
2. Luck Cardinals (2020-2021 season: 10-10 overall, 5-4 conference, 3rd)
3. Webster Tigers (2020-2021 season: 15-6 overall, 7-3 conference, 2nd)
4. Siren Dragons (2020-2021 season: 11-11 overall, 3-7 conference, 5th)
5. Unity Eagles (2020-2021 season: 12-10 overall, 5-5 conference, 4th)
6. Frederic Vikings (2020-2021 season: 4-18 overall, 0-10 conference, 6th)
Sleeper(s): Northwood (Central), Flambeau (East), Webster (West)
Projected POY: Riley Peterson (Clear Lake)
Seniors to Watch:
Tyson Blanchard (Clear Lake)
Carson Knutson (Grantsburg)
Zach Miller (Grantsburg)
Harley Opachan (Flambeau)
Brendan Strenke (Turtle Lake)
Conference Games to Watch:
1/25/2022 - Northwood @ Grantsburg
2/1/2022 - Turtle Lake @ Clear Lake
2/4/2022 - Bruce @ New Auburn
2/21/2022 - Turtle Lake @ Bruce
2/24/2022 - Clear Lake @ Bruce
Non-Conference Games to Watch:
11/30/2021 - Clear Lake @ McDonell Central
12/23/2021 - Cumberland @ Grantsburg
1/4/2022 - Turtle Lake @ Colfax
1/24/2022 - South Shore @ Northwood
2/21/2022 - St. Croix Falls @ Grantsburg
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