The high school season starts Friday, so I'll be doing a pair of blogs over the next two days. Tomorrow, I'll share my predictions on the upcoming season. Today, it's a look at some of the top games over the next week.

Friday: Cony at Mt. Blue

This game is on here because we'll get an early indication of how good Mt. Blue is after losing so much to graduation. The Cougars are loaded with numbers, while Cony has some impressive individual standouts like Kristen Felt, Brittany Ford and Kayla Belanger. Shutting down all three of those will be tough, but on the other hand, Cony won't have a scouting report to go on in trying to defend Mt. Blue.

Saturday: Maranacook at Mt. View

Did you know Mt. View has six former players on college teams this season? Two of those are at UMaine, and three more are at USM. It's a sign of a strong program, and Mt. View should still be solid after graduating its goalie and forward line. Maranacook also lost some scoring and defense, but is again one of the favorites in Western B. Mt. View is a tough place to play, which could be a factor in this game.

Tuesday: Maranacook at Waterville

A rematch of the state championship game, and it's Waterville's first game of the season. Waterville coach Amie Dubois did a marvelous job last season of steadily improving her team to the point where it was in peak form for the playoffs. Both teams are obviously going to make the playoffs this year, so this game won't mean much outside of Heal points, but given that this could potentially be another state game preview, it's worth watching.

Thursday: Skowhegan at Mt. Blue

This is the first of three straight road games for the Indians, and it's against the team that handed them their last loss. While Skowhegan coasts sometimes, the Indians will remember that loss and be fired up for this game. Mt. Blue should expect Skowhegan's best, and for most teams, going against Skowhegan's best isn't a good barometer for how good they really are.