The Tritons just keep rolling along.  They were our pre-season favorite and they haven't done anything this season that makes us think othewise. 

They're moving on to a pretty tough portion of their schedule, with this next five opponents being Green Bay United, Appleton United, Duluth Marshall (MN), Fond du Lac and Grosse Pointe North (MI).

Accoridng to the US High School Hockey Online comuterized rankings Duluth Marshall is 7th in Minnesota's Class A. Grosse Point North is 35th in Michigan.  Looking at the scores nationally Duluth Marshall would only be bested by Notre Dame in Wisconsin, and Grosse Point North would be 6th in Wisconsin's rankings.

The Wildcats have been charging up the rankings, but they needed a little help to secure the number two spot this week.  Had DC Everest defeated the Wausau West Warriors they'd likely have retained the number two spot, but they didn't and it was Verona's for the taking.

Verona takes part in our Wisconsin Prep Hockey game of the week this week against Middleton on Friday. It should be a blast.

The Evergreens were on the war path for the early part of this season with wins against Green Bay United, University School and Marquette to open up their season.

They got tripped up in the opening round of the Marathon cup on Thursday though and couldn't get past neighbor and rival Wausau West.

The Evergreens look to bounce back this week against a good Wausau East team.

The Warriors shook off some early season stumbles on Thrusday by knocking off then number two D.C. Everest.  They continued by beating a good Wausau East squad.

This week they've finish off their lake Wausau area opponents by taking on Mosinee. Will they make it a clean sweep?

The Highlanders (who by the way, have a Twitter feed, YouTube videos and a photo gallery on their team page) had a good start to the week with a big win over Appleton United, but they couldn't get past Ashwaubenon in their second game of the week.

They are facing a good Fond du Lac Springs team on Tuesday this week before they head into the holiday.  They'd better be on their game because coach Steffes has done great work with the Ledgers over the last couple of years.

Superior continues to be hard to rate, as their games against Minnesota competition can be hard to qualify.  Their 10-0 win over the Wisconsin Rapids Red Raiders though isn't hard to qualify.

Eau Claire Memorial reminded everybody that they still have a high powered offense by dropping 16 goals in a two game span last week in their wins over Hayward and Menomonie.

They'll need to continue against River Falls this week if they want to keep pace with Rice Lake in the Big Rivers conference.

Ashwaubenon beat two Top Ten teams this week, the first of which was Green Bay United.  The Gryphons could only muster one goal against Ashwaubenon goalie Ryan Wischow, who was a standout last season as a freshman for the Jaguars.

The Gryphons got back on track against De Pere and Shawano, but they will have their work cut out for them on Friday when they go after the top ranked Notre Dame Academy Tritons.

The U School had the week off like they do every year at the end of the semester. They'll be back in action on Friday against Fond du Lac Springs, in the Ledgers second game this week against a Top Ten team.

U School better be on their game or we'll be writing about Springs in this space next week.

Like U School, Marquette had the week off for end-of-semester exams.  Marquette will be back in action on Friday against Greendale.

9th, 6th, 7th, 2nd, and now 1st for the Onalaska Hilltoppers. But don't be fooled, it isn't just the offensively wizardry of Theresa Knutson that is propelling this team forward. The Hilltoppers are averaging just 14 shots against them per game this season.

Central Wisconsin demonstrated exceptionally well last season that if they other team isn't getting any shots on net, it is pretty hard to get beat. Onalaska has combined that defensive approach with the best offensive player in the state.

The Hurricanes became the third team on the season to relinquish the top spot on the girls Top Ten poll going so far as to make MJ Hammet suggest that the WiPH Girls Top Ten includes some kind of Sports Illustrated cover jinx.

It won't get any easier for the Hurricanes this week as they take on the Northland Pines Eagles, a fellow Top Ten team.

It was yet another undefeated week for the Fusion this week.  Hailey Rock picked up another Player of the Week nomination, and the team just keeps on rolling.

They take on New Richmond this week, and it should be a good one.  If the Fusion aren't careful the Tigers could surprise them.

The Storm fell out of favor with the voters thanks to early losses to Eau Claire-Altoona and the Sun Prairie Co-Op.  This week they avenged the first of those losses. 

If the Storm want to avenge the second loss, it'll have to be at the state tournament, as they don't meet the Cougars again in the regular season.

The Stars rushed out to a 4-0 record to start the season with wins over Superior, Central Wisconsin, USM and Northland Pines.  Three of those teams are currently in the Top Ten.

Unfortunately for the Starts, that put them in the top spot on the rankings and put the bullseye on them.  Since then they've lost three straight to Hayward/Spooner, Onalska and Central Wisconsin.

Their game this week against the Point/Rapids Red Panthers is just their second this season against an unranked opponent. The Red Panters started the season 0-4, but have gone 3-1 since, including a win over a strong Marshfield squad.

Chippewa Falls is just one of two unbeaten teams left on the girls side, with Onalaska.

Fortunately for the hockey watching public the two will meet on Thursday.  The Cardinals better not look ahead of their Tuesday tilt with WSFLG though.

I tried to find Eagle River on map once.  I found it, eventually, because I'm from Antigo and it isn't that far away.  That doesn't have anything to do with anything, but I thought it was worth pointing out.

The Northland Pines Eagles continue to put up a very good season, and they'll have their work cut out for them against Hayward/Spooner on Tuesday, they current second ranked team in the state.

The Glaciers have quietly put up a very strong season and finally snuck into the top ten last week. They'll try to keep it going this week against Bay Area, who has been at the bottom of the Top Ten, or Honorable Mention all year.

Sun Prairie has had a pretty tough schedule this season, and for the most part they've whethered it extremely well in their effort to return to the state tournament.

They take on Viroqua this week, in their first single-game week of the season. They'll take the opportunity to rest their legs and reload for the second half.

USM had the week off last week to finish out their fall semester exams.  They'll return to action this week with a test in the Fondy-Waupun Warbirds.