WHL Power Rankings – Week 7: Portland Climbing

Last week was a true test to see where the Winterhawks stood. They were coming off of a successful road trip and needed to continue the momentum as all points are very important with the early season hole they dug. They faced two games against the best team in the league and then a third against the defending champs.

The week started out very poorly for Portland as they were throttled in their home arena 5-0. At this very moment, I thought, these Winterhawks are just not as talented as the top teams in this league. Well they proved me wrong with a huge bounce back win against those same Rockets. Then went on to beat the Oil Kings the very next night, claiming four out of a possible six points. Just when I thought they couldn’t be any worse, they do something like that and totally redeem themselves.

Having won five out of seven, this team is starting to climb the standings and proving they belong with the best. The Hawks have two games against very winnable opponents and should continue to climb these rankings and the WHL standings.

Checkout where the Winterhawks fell in Week 7’s WHL Power Rankings:

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RANK,TEAM,REC,TREND,PREV,COMMENTS

1,,14-1-1,—,1,”Kelowna Rockets~~The rockets are still the clear cut best team in the league. The one loss they had this week was on the road, against the desperate Winterhawks, in OT. That was sandwiched in between two easy victories leading to yet another weekend where they claim at least a point in every game. With no games coming up against the top teams in this league, I expect them to continue the point streak for some time. ”
2,,14-3-1,[icon name=icon-arrow-up] +2,4,”Brandon Wheat Kings~~Coming off a one goal outing last week, Brandon got back to their scoring, and winning, ways. The Wheat Kings claimed all eight points possible last week scoring 17 more goals. 92 goals in 18 games is very impressive, and that is why they moved up two spots this week. ”
3,,10-1-3,—,3,”Everett Silvertips~~The Silvertips only had two games last week and took care of business. I mentioned this in a previous power rankings post, but once again, this team is very disciplined. They have the fewest penalty minutes in the league by a huge margin. This will go a long ways in the playoffs.”
4,,11-3-1,[icon name=icon-arrow-down] -2,2,”Medicine Hat Tigers~~It was a forgettable week to say the least for the Tigers. Losing both games they played in and getting shut out by a team they switched spots with in the rankings. I am not too worried about the Tigers though as they are one of the better teams in the league and just had a slip up over the weekend. ”
5,,10-8,[icon name=icon-arrow-up] +5,10,”Prince George Cougars~~It was a rebound week for the Cougars as they won both games they played in. This was the start of ten home games in twelve-day stretch that could see the Cougars continue to climb. For what its worth, they still have been outscored by 19 goals on the season yet are two games above .500. ”
6,,10-7-2,[icon name=icon-arrow-up] +1,7,”Swift Current Broncos~~They picked up three out of a possible four points this week with the win coming in the shutout variety. They seem to have things figured out defensively which is why I have them firmly inside the top ten. ”
7,,9-7-2,[icon name=icon-arrow-up] +6,13,”Victoria Royals~~It might have been an average weekend for the Royals, but their defense is stout. Only allowing three to the highest scoring offense in the league is a huge success. What is a let down though is giving up five to Tri-City, but I will call that a fluke for the time being. With five straight games on the road, they will need the defense to step up big time or slip back out of the top ten. ”
8,,9-8-2,[icon name=icon-arrow-down] -2,6,”Kamloops Blazers~~It was a rough weekend for the Blazers. With three games on the slate, they were able to claim only one point with an OT loss. After scoring 12 goals in two games the previous week, they have scored only four in the last three games. I expect this team to continue to be good but not great as the season progresses. ”
9,,9-6-2,[icon name=icon-arrow-down] -4,5,”Edmonton Oil Kings~~The Oil Kings lost to Portland on Sunday. This used to look like a bad loss, but the Winterhawks are proving to be tough competition as of late. That doesn’t excuse the loss to Seattle three days prior. This team seemed to have found their identity until this weekend. While I still believe they are going to be there in the end, they need to win the games they should win. ”
10,,8-8-1,[icon name=icon-arrow-up] +4,14,”Regina Pats~~The Pats win both games last week and have gotten back to .500. Over the last six games they haven’t given up more than three goals in any game. They need to take advantage of their next four home games because they won’t play another one at home for almost a month. ”
11,,8-7-1,[icon name=icon-arrow-up] +6,17,”Red Deer Rebels~~This week saw the Rebels jump six spots in the standings after winning all three games last week. Couple that with the previous weekend and they have won five straight. It seems like ages ago when the Rebels were 3-7. They look to have completely dug out of that hole and are making noise now. They start a four game road trip this week including stops in Portland and Everett. ”
12,,9-8,[icon name=icon-arrow-down] -4,8,”Tri-City Americans~~Tri-City experienced, what can only be described as, a very bad weekend. Getting blown out by the Royals in both games and scoring two total goals. While the Royals have proven to be contenders, this still was a bad weekend. Creeping closer and closer to the .500 line, the Americans cannot afford another weekend like this any time soon. ”
13,,7-4-3,[icon name=icon-arrow-down] -2,11,”Spokane Chiefs~~A mediocre week for the Chiefs proved they aren’t ready to compete with the best teams in the WHL. This will be backed up next week as they take on Kelowna twice and Everett once. I will be surprised if they claim two points total. ”
14,,7-8-1,[icon name=icon-arrow-down] -5,9,”Calgary Hitmen~~Last week I said this team needed to be more consistent. Well they listened, just in the wrong way. They were consistently non-existent on the offensive side of the puck scoring one goal in two games. As you can imagine, they lost both of those games. ”
15,,7-9-1,[icon name=icon-arrow-down] -3,12,”Moose Jaw Warriors~~The Warriors dropped two of three this weekend including a loss to the bottom of the standing blades. They seem to be a team that will hover around .500 all year. They have the Tigers in a home and home series next week though that could help continue their fall in the rankings. ”
16,,7-10-2,[icon name=icon-arrow-up] +3,19,”Portland Winterhawks~~It has been a very successful two weeks for the Winterhawks who started the season only winning one of the first ten games. With two games against mediocre talent this week, I expect them to move even higher in the rankings next Tuesday. ”
17,,8-9,[icon name=icon-arrow-up] +1,18,”Prince Albert Raiders~~While the Raiders going 3-1 last week looks good for their record, all four games were against the bottom feeders of the league. Any good team would have ran away with all four of those games. Yeah anything can happen on any night, but I am going to need to see more from the Raiders if they want to move up this board. ”
18,,6-6-3,[icon name=icon-arrow-down] -2,16,”Seattle Thunderbirds~~A great win by the Thunderbirds was marred by the loss the next night against the Giants. Like I said last week, this team only plays consistently good if they play the Winterhawks. They are about to embark on a six game road trip that should see them to stay around .500. ”
19,,7-9,[icon name=icon-arrow-down] -4,15,”Vancouver Giants~~This team beats the teams they should beat, and loses to the teams they should lose to. That is the sign of a team that is comfortable with mediocrity. They currently sit in last place in the Western Conference and do not seem to be in any hurry to get out of that hole. ”
20,,5-9-3,—,20,”Lethbridge Hurricanes~~The week for the Hurricanes started out good with a victory over the raiders. Couple that with an overtime loss against the Wheat kings and some would say this team is turning the corner. Losing to the Kootenay Ice the next night quickly tainted that glimmer of hope. That has only happened three other times this year.”
21,,5-11,—,21,”Saskatoon Blades~~They started their week off right with a win against the Warriors, but quickly lost the next two to come back to earth. This team is just as bad as their record shows. I expect them to stay in this exact spot for a long time. ”
22,,4-13,—,22,”Kootenay Ice~~The Ice are the worst team in the league. Not even Ice fans can argue that at the moment. Yes they are currently on a one game-winning streak, but that was against the Hurricanes and they still managed to give up five goals that game. Which is about the average goals against per game for the Ice. We should all just write them in as #22 in permanent ink. ”

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