FRANKLIN — Of all the buzz and chatter over the much anticipated Super 8 selection meeting held Saturday at MIAA headquarters, the biggest lightning rod came from the opinions and disagreements over the Middlesex League.

Burlington (17-1-3) was the consensus best public school in the state. The Red Devils were awarded the fifth seed and were one of five teams— along with BC High, Pope Francis (formerly Springfield Cathedral), Malden Catholic, and St. John’s Prep — to receive a unanimous vote from the seven-man committee.

Burlington is Super 8 ready. With a duo of imposing senior defensemen in Josh Boulos and Shane O’Halloran, plus a solid goalie in Nick Howard, they the Red Devils have a real shot of knocking off defending champion St. John’s Prep.

Instead it was Reading, Arlington, and Winchester (the Middlesex Liberty Division champs), which caused a stir. All three made it to the second round of voting, which meant all three got a majority vote in the first round.

When things were settled, Arlington was awarded the seventh seed, while Reading trailed just behind the Spy Ponders for the eighth seed.

When Central Catholic was given the ninth seed, it came down to Hingham and Winchester for the tenth and final seed. The committee elected to give that spot to the Harbormen, a 4-3 vote that left a fourth Middlesex team out of the Super 8 festivities. The reason behind the decision, agreed the committee, was obvious — despite its eight losses, Hingham’s schedule was one of the toughest in the state.

“Our league was pretty good and we won it,’’ said a disappointed Bob Lavin, the first-year coach at Winchester. “We beat Burlington, Arlington, and Reading. We beat every team we should have. For the champion of the division that those three played in not to make it, it’s confusing. The whole process is disturbing.’’

“But it’s out of our hands, we had a great season. It wasn’t anything the kids did wrong,’’ he continued. “Our goal from the start was to compete and win the league, but I guess that doesn’t mean anything.’’

Overall, it was a record-breaking year for the league, which had never sent more than two teams to the Super 8 before Saturday.

“I’m very proud of our kids, I think it’s great for Burlington High School and I think it’s great for the Middlesex League,’’ said Burlington coach Bob Conceison, whose team gets a bye from play-in games. “I love play-in games, we’ve had some great ones, I think sometimes they are the best games in the tournament. But it’s a relief, it’s relaxing knowing we don’t have to win or go back to Div. 1.’’

John Messuri, an Arlington native, also had pride on his mind.

“We haven’t been in the Super 8 since 2003,’’ he said. “Certainly, it’s exciting to have Arlington back in the fold.’’

Arlington will play Hingham and Reading will play Central Catholic in the two play-in games, scheduled for 6 and 8 p.m., respectively, on Monday at the Chelmsford Forum.

First-round play gets under way for the top six seeds on March 6th, with the time and location to be determined.

BC High took the No. 1 seed, a unanimous decision for the committee and Pope Francis nabbed the second seed, while Malden Catholic had to settle for third. St. John’s Prep earned the fourth seed while Austin Prep backed into the sixth seed.

That means No. 5 Burlington and No. 4 St. John’s Prep, and No. 3 Malden Catholic and No. 6 Austin Prep, will square off in a three-game series while No. 1 BC High and No. 2 Pope Francis awaiting the winners of the play-in games.

From there, the winner of each series will move on to semifinals, a one game playoff that will decide the final matchup.

“It’s a reward for what our guys did this year, but at this stage everyone is going to be good,’’ said BC High coach John Flaherty of his team’s unanimous bid. “You’re going to have to play your best, because the No. 1 seed doesn’t do you anything but guarantee you play next Sunday.’’

BC High’s Ian Murphy has a nose for the net like few others in the state. Malden Catholic’s Nick Botticelli is a relentless playmaker. Pope Francis forward Riley Patterson seems to score a hat trick every other game, and St. John’s prep goalie Kyle Martin is an All-Scholastic and among the best goalkeepers in the state.

The title will likely come down to these four teams.

“The top four teams could have been seeded in any way. It doesn’t matter. If we all win we are all playing each other anyway,’’ said Pope Francis coach Brian Foley, whose recent victory over Malden Catholic was likely the difference between the second and third seed. “There are just so many quality teams that are going to play great against us, so hopefully our boys are ready to play their best, mentally and emotionally.’’

Pope Francis is likely the best team to have never won the Super 8. They are hungry this year after not reaching the final game last year as No. 1 seed and hope to make up for that in this season’s tournament.

Division 1

Central Catholic, Arlington, Reading, and Hingham all have a chance at making a dropping back into the Division 1 field. Whichever two teams do so will likely roll through the field and make a deep run in the Division 1 field. Xaverian, Arlington Catholic, and St. Mary’s, a Super 8 nominee, will also be in the hunt. Framingham, Braintree, and Winchester will also have a shot.

Division 2

Undefeated Marblehead is enjoying a historic season as the Headers (21-0-1) rolled into the postseason as the No. 1 seed. The Tri-Valley League may also factor in the final with No. 1 South seed Medfield (14-1-5), Medway, and Westwood, who all spent time in this season’s Globe Top 20, in the field.

Last year, Westwood beat Medway in the South sectional semifinals. A potential rematch in the sectional final could be intriguing.

Division 3

With last year’s contenders (Watertown and Newton South) out of the mix, it might finally be Hanover’s year to win it all. The Indians have come tantalizingly close to a title the last few years, losing in the state finals in 2014 and the state quarterfinals last year.

That said, Norwell, the team that beat them last year, has thrown together another great season, finishing with a 19-3 record. A clash of those two powerhouses in the South section final would be an exciting game. Dartmouth (17-0-3) also has to be included in this list of divisional favorites.

Shrewsbury (18-2-1), from the Central Mass bracket is likely to be heard from as well. Shrewsbury won the Division 3 title in 2014, beating Hanover. Longmeadow (15-4-1) is the top seed in the Western Mass. tournament.