WHL Power Rankings – Week 10: Look Who’s in the Top 10

Well, well, well… The Winterhawks are finally playing like we all knew they could. One month into the season, I was ready to toss in the white towel on winning five straight conference titles. After the last two weeks, this team is finally hitting its stride.

I will be honest, after they lost 4-1 last Tuesday to the Blazers, I inevitably thought this team cannot compete with the top teams on a regular basis. Then the weekend came and they were down 3-0 after one period to the best team in the League. This is the moment that will be looked back at as the key moment in the Winterhawks championship run. I do not know what Coach Kompon said to these guys in that first intermission, but whatever he said he needs to keep saying it. The Winterhawks came back from a three-goal deficit, on the road, against the Kelowna Rockets.

They didn’t just stop there though; they went out the next night and won again against the same team!

I am officially a believer in this team again. Understandably, it took a little time for this team to gel and play under the new coach, but it is apparent they are clicking now. With a rather favorable upcoming schedule, I can see this team going on a similar run they had last year. They also have a few home games coming up at the Coliseum instead of the Moda Center, which I think favors the Winterhawks more.

With three games on the schedule this week, I can confidently say I believe they will get all six points this week. If you are able to get off the couch on the Friday after Thanksgiving, I suggest wranglin’ up the family and heading down to the Memorial Coliseum.

Checkout where the Winterhawks fell in Week 10’s WHL Power Rankings:

[table colwidth=”8%|18%|8%|8%|8%|50%” colalign=”center|center|center|center|center|left” rowlalign=”center”]
RANK,TEAM,REC,TREND,PREV,COMMENTS

1,,19-5-1,[icon name=icon-arrow-up] +1,2,”Brandon Wheat Kings~~The Wheat Kings scoring tear has subsided in recent weeks culminating by getting shutout by the Broncos. They bounced back in a big way though scoring 12 goals over the next two games and showing that they never disappeared, only just took a scoring hiatus. I think between the Kings and the Rockets, it is a toss up who is the best team. ”
2,,21-2-3,[icon name=icon-arrow-down] -1,1,”Kelowna Rockets~~Yeah, the Rockets have only lost two games in regulation, but last week they were only able to win one out of four games. The thing that scares me about the rockets is they blew a 3-0 lead in one game. The teams that compete for championships need to learn how to put the pedal to the metal and not do things like that. I still think this team has what it takes, but it was a forgettable weekend for the Rockets. ”
3,,15-4-3,—,3,”Everett Silvertips~~It wasn’t the best weekend for the Silvertips as they went 1-1. At the start of the season, a loss to the Royals would have been a bad loss, but the Royals are looking good at home, so the Silvertips loss can be taken with a grain of salt. With five straight home games coming up, I expect Everett to keep on winning. ”
4,,16-6-2,—,4,”Medicine Hat Tigers~~This team had an average week last week going 2-2. I think the Tigers are a good team, but do not seem to have a real identity. They are inconsistent as of late going 5-5 in their last ten. With the start they had though, going .500 the rest of the way will still get them into the playoffs. ”
5,,14-11-2,[icon name=icon-arrow-up] +3,8,”Victoria Royals~~This team is on a roll. The Royals have won five of the last seven including both the Silvertips and the Rockets. A highly anticipated matchup in Portland awaits them. Two other road games this week also makes it a difficult week for Victoria. I still believe they will claim at least four points. ”
6,,14-10,[icon name=icon-arrow-down] -1,5,”Tri-City Americans~~The Americans had only one game last week, or should I say one goal. Usually when you only score one goal in a game, you lose, and that’s exactly what happened. With the Rockets coming into town, there should be some cause for concern right now. I believe this team has enough talent to compete with the best teams in the WHL, but they need to start showing on a more regular basis. ”
7,,14-9-4,[icon name=icon-arrow-down] -1,6,”Swift Current Broncos~~I would classify the Broncos week as above average. They went 2-1 including a shutout 5-0 against the Wheat Kings. One thing that concerns me about the Broncos moving forward though is the lack of consistent defense. They were lucky to escape with a win after giving up seven goals on Saturday, but that is extremely rare. With three road games coming up against beatable opponents, I expect them to tighten things up. ”
8,,11-12-3,[icon name=icon-arrow-up] +6,14,”Portland Winterhawks~~For the first time this season, the Winterhawks have climbed into the top ten. The rockets have only lost five times this season, with three of them coming at the hands of the Winterhawks. This team has almost totally climbed out of the huge hole they dug at the start of the year. ”
9,,13-9-3,[icon name=icon-arrow-down] -1,8,”Calgary Hitmen~~The Hitmen played three games last week winning two of them. They lost the one road game they had but looked pretty solid on home ice. I would like to see more out of this team though when playing inferior opponents. This team is good as long as it doesn’t play down to their competition.”
10,,13-10-3,[icon name=icon-arrow-down] -1,9,”Red Deer Rebels~~It wasn’t a terrible week for the rebels but it wasn’t great either. They went 2-2 but only averaged three goals a game in that stretch. With below average scoring output, there is a lot of pressure on the goaltending, which managed a shutout on Saturday. With two tough opponents coming up, we will be able to judge their potential a little better next week. ”
11,,12-7-3,[icon name=icon-arrow-up] +5,16,”Spokane Chiefs~~The Chiefs could possibly be playing the best defensive hockey at the moment. They have won three straight games without giving up more than one goal in each of them. In the WHL if you only concede on goal a game, you will win 99% of them. I don’t think they can continue that trend, but I do think they have a very stout defense that should give them a chance at the end of the year. ”
12,,12-9-4,[icon name=icon-arrow-down] -2,10,”Edmonton Oil Kings~~It was another week to forget for the Oil Kings. Winning only one out of the four games they played, this team is still struggling to find any consistency. In my opinion this team has regressed over the first half of the year and cannot compete with the top teams in the WHL right now. With three home games coming up including two against WHL bottom feeders, we will see if this team is capable of repeating. ”
13,,13-10-1,[icon name=icon-arrow-down] -1,12,”Regina Pats~~The Pats got last week off to a hot start scoring six goals the first two games. They followed that up by getting shut out to the royals. If that doesn’t scream inconsistency, I don’t know what does. I don’t expect this team to get any better either as they have a huge string of road games ahead of them. ”
14,,11-10-5,[icon name=icon-arrow-up] +1,15,”Kamloops Blazers~~I would say the Blazers had a successful weekend claiming five out of a possible six points. Other than the next game against the Silvertips, this team has a very favorable schedule coming up and should continue to climb the standings. ”
15,,13-13,[icon name=icon-arrow-down] -4,11,”Prince George Cougars~~This team continues to slide down the rankings. With another mediocre week, they seem to be content with being around .500. It is easy to gain ground in the WHL if you just win a couple games in a row, but this team seems to follow up every loss with a win. ”
16,,11-14,[icon name=icon-arrow-up] +2,18,”Kootenay Ice~~Well I am still eating my words about what I said about the Ice a couple weeks ago. Maybe Kootenay Fire would be a better team name right now with how they are playing. This team is 8-1 in November including wins over the Tigers twice, Broncos, and Oil Kings. They seem to be digging out of the huge hole they were once in at 3-13. The two hottest teams in the league will face off on Friday when this Ice team travels to Portland. ”
17,,10-12-3,[icon name=icon-arrow-down] -4,13,”Moose Jaw Warriors~~It is hard to find a more disappointing week than that of the Moose Jaw Warriors. With four games on tap, they managed to only win one of those, and it was against the inferior Hurricanes. This included giving up seven goals to the Ice on Sunday. It was surprising too after they successful week they had two weeks ago. This team has a host of games against bad teams coming up, so I am interested to see if they fall into the category of bad team as well. ”
18,,11-13,[icon name=icon-arrow-up] +1,19,”Prince Albert Raiders~~The Raiders were able to win both games they played in over the weekend. That still doesn’t mean I am too impressed by what they are doing. With an erratic defense, it’s hard to imagine them keeping this momentum. ”
19,,9-11-4,[icon name=icon-arrow-down] -2,17,”Seattle Thunderbirds~~The Thunderbirds are currently on a four game slide and heading in the wrong direction. With 33% of their wins coming against the Winterhawks, its like this team only is ready to play against rivals. Even with a big home stand coming up, I do not expect this team to make any moves up the standings. ”
20,,9-15,—,20,”Vancouver Giants~~This will go down as the worst week of the year for the Giants and not because of results on the ice. The Giants owner and hockey legend, Pat Quinn, passed away. As bad as the Giants have been this year, they now have more motivation to play for a guy that gave them and the game of hockey so much. RIP Pat Quinn”
21,,5-15-4,—,21,”Lethbridge Hurricanes~~It was another nightmare week for the Hurricanes. With three games on the slate, they lost all three by a combined 15-5. It is turning into a real heated competition between the Hurricanes and Blades for who can lose more games this season. ”
22,,6-16-1,—,22,”Saskatoon Blades~~There are just signs sometimes that show that it isn’t your season. The blades had that on Saturday. They scored seven goals in a game, but gave up eight. I think that is when you know you should start thinking about next year. I don’t expect this four game losing streak to end any time soon. ”

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