Check out who’s up and who’s down in this weeks edition of the Viterra – MJHL Power Rankings.
(-) 1st – Steinbach Pistons
This week: 1-1
Overall: 7-1
Impressive Player: Goalie Will Hambley – 1 shutout win
Coming off their first loss of the season, the Pistons bounced back with a solid win against the Winkler Flyers. The penalty kill has been sensational and strong overall team defense have made the Pistons dangerous in all three zones.
Up next: Oct. 15th vs Portage, Oct. 17th @ Portage
(-) 2nd – Winnipeg Blues
This week: 1-1
Overall: 7-1
Impressive Player: Forward Eric Fawkes – 2 goals, 2 assists for 4 points
The last of the unbeaten teams heading into Sunday. The Blues stud forwards continue to lead the way and lead the league in scoring. The power play continues to show how effective it can be and with highly skilled forwards, any extra time and space can result in the puck going into the net.
Up next: Oct. 15th @ Selkirk, Oct. 16th vs Selkirk
(+1) 3rd – Dauphin Kings
This week: 2-0
Overall: 6-2
Impressive Player: Forward Brayden Dube – 3 goals, 1 assist for 4 points
A scoring bonanza the past two games for the Kings have shown just how deadly the offence can be. Now tied atop the West standings, the Kings and their fans hope this is the start of a real roll.
Up next: Oct. 15th @ Virden, Oct. 16th vs Virden
(-1) 4th – Waywayseecappo Wolverines
This week: 2-0
Overall: 6-2
Impressive player: Boston Bird – 1 goal, 5 assists for 2 points
The Wolverines showed they can score their way out of problems but also just quietly keep going about their business. Putting up solid wins, points in the bank and sitting right at the top of the standings.
Up next: Oct. 15th @ OCN, Oct. 17th vs OCN
(-) 5 – Winkler Flyers
This week: 1-1
Overall: 4-3-1
Impressive player: Brody Beauchemin – 1 goal
A solid response by the Flyers after losing back-to-back contests but the good times wouldn’t continue past that one win. Losing three of four, the Flyers have struggled to find consistent goal scoring but have the talent to right the ship over the next few weeks.
Up next: Oct. 15th vs Freeze, Oct. 16th @ Freeze
(+1) 6 – Virden Oil Capitals
This week: 2-0
Overall: 4-3-1
Impressive player: Forward Braden Fischer – 3 goals, 2 assists for 5 points
Getting two strong wins against a rival is going to help propel the Oil Caps not just up the standings, but help give a young team confidence going forward. A number of key players were big parts of those wins and it should help going into another tough set of games against a team they want to make a statement against.
Up next: Oct. 15th vs Dauphin, Oct. 16th @ Dauphin
(-1) 7 – Neepawa Titans
This week: 0-2
Overall: 2-5-1
Impressive player: Defenseman Connor Brust – 2 assists
Despite going 0-2, Neepawa has shown that they are a hardworking, pesky team that will not give anything away for free. The Titans will need to have a bounce back or risk losing serious ground in a division where the top teams are starting to pull away.
Up next: Oct. 15th @ Swan Valley, Oct. 17th vs Swan Valley
(+3) 8th – Portage Terriers
This week: 1-1
Overall: 2-6
Impressive player: Defenseman Logan Calder – 1 goal, 3 assists for 4 points
Any time you can beat a top team, it’s going to do nothing but positive things for the team. Portage hasn’t had much to cheer about in the win department just yet, but a big win over the Blues shows they are learning and figuring out what it takes to win at this level.
Up next: Oct 15th @ Steinbach, Oct. 17th vs Steinbach
(+1) 9th – Selkirk Steelers
This week:1-1
Overall: 3-4-1
Impressive player: Jordan Hughesman – 2 goals and 1 assist for 3 points
After surrendering the extra point to the Freeze, the Steelers came out with something to prove and they did just that. While they are in tough for the next set of games, look for the scrappy Steelers to make life and earning points difficult the next few weeks.
Up next: Oct. 15th @ Blues, Oct. 16th vs Blues
(-1) 10th – Swan Valley Stampeders
This week: 0-2
Overall: 3-5
Impressive player: Defenseman Jordon Gagnon – 4 assists
Swan showed they have the scoring but they also showed their defense needs a little work. Going winless stings but there’s some good things to build on. The upcoming series could say a lot of where the Stamps could go this MJHL season
Up next: Oct. 15th vs Neepawa, Oct. 17th @ Neepawa
(+1) 11th – Winnipeg Freeze
This week: 1-1
Overall: 1-7
Impressive player: Ethan Raduy – 2 goals
The first ever franchise win for the Freeze is a major relief for everyone around the team. A team win too will show that the locker-room is in it together and will hopefully lead to more success going forward. The Freeze are in for another tough test but have shown they shouldn’t be taken lightly.
Up next: Oct. 15th @ Winkler, Oct. 16th vs Winkler
(-4) 12th – OCN Blizzard
This week: 0-2
Overall: 3-4-1
Impressive player: Forward Riley Zimmerman – 2 goals
A tough pair of games against a longtime rival may have the Blizzard scratching their heads a bit when it comes to where they sit in the MJHL West division landscape. The chance to make up for it against one of the top teams has to excite the players and they’ll need to show they are for real or risk staying near the bottom.
Up next: Oct. 15th vs Waywayseecappo, Oct. 17th @ Waywayseecappo
