The transitive property is a useful logical and algebraic tool, but don’t expect it to hold in the world of sports.

That refrain is painfully obvious for anyone trying to follow Class A high school hockey this season, which at the one-third mark for most teams, is about as muddled in the standings as it has ever been.

First and foremost for many people is the current state of affairs at Lewiston and St. Dom’s, neither of which are in thew top four in Eastern A at the moment while teams from Maranacook/Hall-Dale/Winthrop, Brunswick and Edward Little are.

Given the herky-jerky nature of the Heal Points system before all information has been entered, there is little cause for panic for partisans of those schools. But it remains jarring to see.

“If you look at the top teams in Maine hockey, they’re playing what we can call a ‘big-boy schedule,'” St. Dom’s coach Steve Ouellette said. “When you’re continually playing against all of the top teams, it’s very hard to be a 16-2 team, or a 15-3 team, and those teams that do end up with records like that, with the kind of schedule Lewiston has, or we have, or a Thornton, or a Biddeford, are great teams.

“If all of those teams are on your schedule, it’s hard to end up with a record that the casual fan might expect based on who they think the top teams are, or should be.”

The chain of games that essentially nullifies the transitive property began early in the season. Class B power Brewer took out Falmouth in a high-scoring contest. Falmouth counted a come-from-behind win over Thornton Academy, which also waxed Biddeford. Falmouth downed Lewiston while Thornton did the same to St. Dom’s. Meanwhile, Bangor took out Brewer to temporarily remain unbeaten, only to lose to Lewiston — at home. Scarborough re-entered the picture with a shocking win over Falmouth, only to suffer its first loss against Thornton.

Confused yet? So are a lot of the coaches, players and fans around high school hockey.

“Really, there is a group of eight to twelve teams that could go out there and beat one another on any given night,” Ouellette said. “That certainly makes it interesting, when all of those teams keep playing against one another.”

Two is better than one

For the better part of two seasons now, St. Dom’s has been able to roll out a pair of goaltenders on any given night. One could start a game, the other finish it, or either could play the entire 45 minutes, no questions asked.

“It’s a luxury, to have two guys like that you can have confidence in,” St. Dom’s coach Steve Ouellette said.

Grant Carrier and Austin Christopher, now both juniors, have established themselves as top goalies in Class A hockey, and if trading were allowed in high school hockey is it is in the professional ranks or even in fantasy pools, there is little doubt they’d both be in high demand.

What helps, Ouellette said, is that both keepers, despite splitting playing time, are big-game tested and proven.

“They both produce in key situations,” Ouellette said. “It’s almost like, when you think one of them takes a bigger step ahead, the other is pushing to be the go-to guy as well. That’s really healthy competition to have, not only in practice but in looking to earn game time as well.”

Carrier even pushed hard enough after a minor surgery where he earned the starting nod in the Saints’ first game against rival Lewiston in December. But even with a standout performance in that game, he hasn’t guaranteed himself a spot in the next big game.

“It’s nice, also, to be able to give teams different looks,” Ouellette said. “They both have different styles, and it can be tough for teams to deal with that change.”

Putting it all together

With significant player losses after last season’s push into the top four of Eastern Class A, Gray-New Gloucester/Poland expected a small step back this season. To begin the season as slowly as the Patriotic Knights have was a bit jarring, but there are signs that things are turning around.

The best evidence of that shift in attitude and commitment came, oddly enough, in a recent loss to Lewiston, after which coach Aaron Rand praised his team for its work ethic.

“I thought our boys really competed tonight,” Rand said. “For the first time in five games, they really competed up and down the ice. It was nice to see.”

The Patriotic Knights won their first two contests of the season, an overtime thriller over Bonny Eagle and a 7-0 romp over Westbrook. But then they fell into a losing rut, dropping games to Leavitt, Cony (twice), MHW and Mt. Ararat/Lisbon.

Given those recent results, the matchup against Lewiston appeared, on paper, to be a horrible mismatch, despite Lewiston’s less-than-stellar record against top teams.

“All the boys played all three periods,” Rand said. “They competed hard. They didn’t quit and they had it in sight. They thought if they could get another one, it would be respectable. That didn’t work out, but we hung in there and played well.”

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