With the 2022-23 season well underway, there have been some clubs that have stood above the rest. We look at a few programs across all countries and birth years to see who has established themselves as the “best of the best.”
The ’09 St. Louis AAA Blues experienced a fantastic month of October, going 12-2-0. They’ve held firm in the top two spots among U.S. teams since the rankings began for this season. The Blues have fared extremely well against most competition. A statement highlighted by their two-game sweep of No. 22 Dallas Stars Elite just two weeks ago.
Other highlights include two victories against No. 25 Windy City Storm. St. Louis also split two contests with a Top-10 U.S. team, the Los Angeles Jr. Kings, a 6-4 loss and 5-3 win.
Finding themselves ranked the No. 1 team among Canadian ‘08 clubs, the Vaughan Kings almost went unbeaten in October. The lone ‘blemish’ of their 12-1-0 record for the month was a 3-2 overtime loss to the North York Rangers on Oct. 2.
While the Kings began the month with a stretch of games against Canadian teams, the latter half of the month saw a change. Vaughan has faced off against some of the best the U.S. has to offer as well. Cross-border matchups are always exciting, and Vaughan showed they can handle even the top teams from another country.
Taking part in the Little Caesars Invitational, they went 5-0-0 en route to the championship. They beat the likes of American ranked No. 6 Little Caesars, No. 10 Pittsburgh Vengeance, and No. 2 Chicago Mission.
Viggbyholms IK has been lights out since the start of the youth hockey season, playing to a 16-0-1 record. While they did not have a busy month of October, their performance has been undeniable.
Kicking off their games with a modest showing at the Farsta Games, they collected back to back gold medals at the Nicklas Backstrom Cup and Nordic Youth Trophy, going undefeated at both.
With group play in full swing in Finland, Kiekko Espoo’s ‘07 team has gotten off to a stellar start. A 10-0-0 month has added to their overall 14-1-1 record.
Some may say that they have yet to face the top teams in their group, but you can only play the games that are scheduled. In October, they handled matchups against KalPa, Jokipojat, K-Vantaa, HYRI and HIFK. Aided by their explosive offense, which tallied 27 goals across six games, while only allowing seven.
An offense that is ignited by the two-way play of forwards Aapo Vanninen (6G, 15A) and Aleksi Kilpeläinen (11G, 9A).
Ranked No. 1 in Finland and No. 10 in the world, they are still the team to beat.
Much has been said of the 2010-born CSKA Moscow squad, and rightfully so. What they have been able to accomplish so far this season is nothing short of spectacular, currently sitting with a 21-0-0 record.
CSKA continued their winning ways against their fellow Russian programs this month. Victories over top Russian teams No. 4 Vityaz Podolsk, No. 2 Spartak Moscow. Wins over Lokomotiv Yaroslavl and Krylia Sovetov rounded out October as well.
Look no further than the dynamic duo of Nikita Sinikin (27G, 30A) and Roman Andreev (27G, 22A). Their ability to score seemingly at will has propelled CSKA to their position at the top.
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Each week, World Hockey Hub highlights a few of the most exciting upcoming games in youth hockey. From the hottest rivalries to the biggest tournaments, we focus on matchups that will impact the landscape among top teams in the sport.
Fresh off debuting in the 2008 Finland rankings, HPK Oranssi (8-3-2) will look to prove their position is no fluke when they meet Tappara Musta (9-3-1) for a two-game series this weekend.
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| Saturday, November 5 @ 4:45 p.m. EEST |
These two teams faced off against one another just last month, with HPK winning an offensive showdown 6-5. A victory that helped boost their profile in the world rankings. Heading into the third period clinging to a 4-3 lead, HPK doubled that margin early in the third period.
However, Tappara would strike twice in 13 seconds to knot things up 5-5. With just over three minutes remaining in the game, Tuomas Sompii tallied HPK’s sixth goal of the game for the eventual game-winner.
HPK likes to score in bunches, filling the net for five-or-more goals in four of their eight games thus far. Everi Sipilä’s balanced attack leads all HPK skaters with 18 points (9G, 9A). Nico Cape (6G, 7A), Jimi Koivisto (5G, 5A) and Mico Hjerp (2G, 8A) round out the top of the squad.
Tappara is supplied with a potent attack of their own, averaging at least four goals across all eight of their matches. HPK will be tasked with shutting down the explosive attack of Petteri Sakki. He has compiled an impressive 33 points (20G, 13A) in just eight games.
With loaded offenses like these two programs, this game has the makings of being just as explosive as their first meeting.
A top-25 matchup kicks things off this week between 2007-born teams No. 18-ranked Mount St. Charles (15-3-0) and No. 3-ranked Mississauga Senators (15-7-1).
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| Friday, November 4 @ 8:00 a.m. ET LECOM Harborcenter |
Mount has yet to suit up for any competition against programs from Canada. The Sens, on the other hand, have already experienced their fair share of American opponents.
Mount has exclusively played against teams from their country to this point in the season, and this upcoming tilt serves as an opportunity for them to test their talent against a premier team.
Facing off against some of the best from the U.S., Mississauga has skated against ranked clubs such as the Chicago Mission and Little Caesars. In contests against American teams, the Senators have compiled a 2-4-0 record.
In their last time out, the Mounties swept No. 11 Bishop Kearney Selects in a two-game series. They won 5-4 in overtime on Saturday, and then topped BK again the following day 6-2 in more convincing fashion.
It will be 11 days between games for Mississauga. They haven’t played since a 1-1 tie to Mississauga Reps last Monday. Expect a low-scoring contest here, as the Reps have allowed just 1.83 goals against in their last six games
No. 1 CSKA Moscow (20-0-0) will look to build upon their incredible run of play against No. 9 SKA Strelna (11-5-0) on Tuesday.
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| Tuesday, November 1 |
Historically, these two teams have only met eight times, with CSKA emerging as the victor each time. Tasked with stopping the juggernaut will be Strelna’s goaltending duo of Egor Sokolov and Ivan Savin. While they attempt to prevent goals, Daniil Gladikov (10G, 12A) and Timur Kazakov (12G, 9A) will lead the attack on their opponent.
CSKA’s Nikita Sinikin (27G, 30A) and Roman Andreev (27G, 22A) will be the toughest forwards to slow down. Each skater has been able to seemingly score at will. Both equipped with great hands and lethal shots, they can do damage from anywhere on the ice.
If Strelna can pull out a win, it will serve as a major point of strengthening its resume. Perhaps more importantly, it can serve as a notice to other teams that CSKA is indeed beatable.
Two Eastern Hockey Federation (EHF) foes will take part in a two-game series this weekend at Chelsea Piers in Connecticut. The No. 16 Mid-Fairfield Jr. Rangers (12-0-1) and No. 17 Boston Terriers (11-2-0) — both winners of six straight — come into this contest in the hopes of separating from one another.
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| Saturday, November 5 @ 11:30 a.m. ET Chelsea Piers |
Mid-Fairfield’s plus-91 goal differential is a daunting stat on paper. However, their opponent in the Terriers have a track record of holding their own as well. Boston has built a plus-41 differential over its last seven games, and hasn’t allowed more than two goals against in more than two weeks.
With two games scheduled just three hours apart, tensions between these two could be high on Saturday. The matchups give the youth hockey world back-to-back looks at two top American teams.
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This weekend, 126 youth hockey teams are taking over Boston, Massachusetts.
Their reason for invading Beantown? The Eastern Exposure Cup.
Bringing together top teams from across the United States and Canada, the Eastern Exposure Cup offers a tremendous look at some of the younger birth-years as the hockey season really gets rolling in North America. The 2008 birth-year serves as the oldest group for the Eastern Exposure Cup – individual birth-years go all the way down to 2013.
Thirteen of those 126 teams appear on the World Hockey Hub’s rankings for the U.S. and/or Canada, and they are all spread out across the 2008-2011 birth-years to offer great insight into who’s moving up and who’s moving down in future rankings.
Those are the birth-years we’re watching in Massachusetts this weekend, and we’re confident there will be some great hockey on display.
In the 2008 birth-year, two top-five teams will be competing – the No. 3-ranked Windy City Storm and the No. 5-ranked Los Angeles Jr. Kings. It was quite a trip for the Jr. Kings, who carry an unbeaten streak dating all the way back to Sept. 5 into the tournament. Meanwhile, Windy City quickly gets tested by the Long Island Gulls and Ottawa Myers Automotive in Friday’s games alone.
With the likes of the Boston Jr. Eagles, Dallas Stars Elite, Buffalo Jr. Sabres, Ottawa 67’s and more, the ‘08s have a lot of teams to watch this weekend.
At the 2009 birth-year, there are three teams from the latest U.S. Top 10, and three teams from the latest Canadian Top 10 on the World Hockey Hub, which hopefully means plenty of cross-over action for comparison purposes. The No. 4 Windy City Storm, No. 7 New Jersey Rockets and No. 9 Boston Jr. Eagles represent the top American clubs, while the No. 1 Don Mills Flyers, No. 3 Sun County Panthers and No. 5 Toronto Marlboros represent the Canadian teams to beat.
That’s right – three of the top five Canadian teams in ’09 birth-year in one tournament – on the other side of the border. When you consider some of the other teams participating who could very well be in the Top 10 sometime this season – Mid-Fairfield, the Boston Jr. Eagles, the Boston Jr. Terriers, etc. – you can certainly expect some fireworks at the Eastern Exposure Cup.
The ‘09 Jr. Eagles and Marlboros kicked off tournament action last night, with the Jr. Eagles edging out a 3-2 victory in a thriller.
The 2010 birth-year features just one ranked team in the No. 7 Philadelphia Jr. Flyers. Like the other age groups, however, it’s deep in brand names like the North Jersey Avalanche, Seacoast Performance Academy, Team Illinois and New Jersey Rockets, so we’re still expecting stiff tests for the Flyers and great hockey action.
In the 2011 group, four American squads check in on the WHH rankings – No. 2 Mid-Fairfield, No. 3 Boston Jr. Terriers, No. 9 New Jersey Colonials and No. 10 Dallas Stars Elite. Mid-Fairfield gets quite a challenge with the Quinte Red Devils coming on from Canada for Game 1, the Philadelphia Hockey Club taking them on in Game 2 and the L.A. Jr. Kings showing up for Game 3.
Meanwhile, the New Jersey Colonials and the Boston Jr. Terriers play in one of the first games on Friday. Top-10 showdown before most are done stopping by Dunkin’ for their first or second coffee.
Stay tuned for a wrap-up of the Eastern Exposure Cup, as we can’t wait to see how some of these cross-country battles play out.
As the days get shorter and the nights get colder, it’s easy to tell that youth hockey season around the world is in full action. From the biggest upsets to major movement in top-10 rankings, there’s plenty to catch up on from the last few weeks.
Here’s everything you need to know before exploring the updated youth hockey rankings:
The 2006-born New Jersey Rockets were propelled into the No. 4 spot thanks largely in part to three key victories against fellow U.S. teams.
Sitting on the outside looking in heading into their next stretch of games, the Rockets saw an opportunity to make some noise and prove that their 25-6-2 record is no fluke.
After edging then No. 3 Mount St. Charles in overtime, 3-2, they then bested the Pittsburgh Penguins Elite with another overtime victory, 5-4. Next up was a tilt with No. 10 Bishop-Kearney Selects. The Rockets would once again find themselves in another high-scoring affair, emerging as the victors 5-4.
With the three wins, New Jersey found themselves rocketing up the top-10 into their current position. Now that they are there, time will tell if they can hold onto it and prove they belong with the best.
No. 9 Sollentuna HC took advantage of a matchup with No. 10 SDE Hockey to maneuver their way into the top-10 among ‘08 clubs in Sweden.
Sitting second in their group with a 3-0-1 record, Sollentuna leaned on the heroics of leading scorer Victor Kumpulainen.
In what was a back and forth offensive display for the first 30 minutes, SDE went up 3-2 with about seven minutes remaining in the game.
It was then that Kumpulainen put his team on his shoulders. After tying the game just over a minute after SDE netted the lead, he scored his second goal of the game with just under three minutes left in the game for a 4-3 lead.
Kumpulainen not only leads Sollentuna in scoring, but is also tied for the group lead in points with seven (6G, 1A) with No. 8 AIK Hockey’s Filip Nyberg (4G, 3A). Even more exciting is that both of these squads will face each other on Nov. 13 in a game that could have major implications for things moving forward.
No. 2 Tappara cruised by No. 3 Kärpät 7-1, moving up two spots to leapfrog them at the top of the ‘07 Finnish rankings. It was a game that Tappara had circled on their calendars, as they were defeated by Kärpät 4-3 back in September, and were almost certainly itching for some payback.
In what was a close 2-1 contest going into the third period, Tappara buried five unanswered goals in the third period for the victory. Looking ahead, they have five upcoming games against teams that are all in the top-10.
While the road may not be easy, will we see Tappara strengthen their position at the top?
SKA Strelna also enjoyed a nice little boost in the Russian top-10 among 2007 birth-year teams resulting from wins over Dynamo St. Petersburg and SKA St. Petersburg.
Once handling Dynamo 4-3 in overtime, SKA Strelna’s defense and goaltending stole the show in a 3-0 win against SKA St. Petersburg. These two victories against teams ahead of them in the rankings strengthened their resume for the time being.
Russia has been known to produce its fair share of hockey talent over the years, and one of the premier programs at doing so has been CSKA Moscow. With the 2022-23 season in full gear, it’s safe to say this year is no different.
CSKA currently sits alone at the top of the rankings both in Russia and the world for the following birth years: 2008, 2009 and 2010. They are also ranked No. 1 among ‘06 teams in Russia.
While this is an impressive feat by itself, perhaps more astounding is the current winning streak of one of their programs. The 2010-born program is in the midst of a 20-game winning streak, dispatching all they have faced thus far.
It will be very interesting to see how long they can keep this streak alive, as they will surely be getting the very best of their opponents each night from here on out.
The 2022 CCM World Invite Motown took place across Metro Detroit this past weekend, as 352 teams traveled to Michigan to compete.
With multiple divisions for the 2008-2013 birth-years, as well as 150, 16U and 18U brackets, we focused on the Supertacks divisions of the birth-years that are included in the World Hockey Hub rankings, as well as the two youngest divisions at the bottom for good measure.
It was the first CCM Motown since 2019 that featured Canadian teams, and they certainly made up for lost time.
Here is a Supertacks division breakdown by birth-year:
At the 16U age level, Michigan Hockey Advancement – a collection of high school hockey players skating together before their winter school season – captured the ‘06 Supertacks division title at the 2022 Motown.
MHA started with a 6-2 win over the Wasatch Renegades and a 4-2 win over the Pittsburgh Predators on Friday, before wrapping up the round-robin play with a 5-0 win over Golden State Elite Saturday morning. In the quarterfinals Saturday evening, they beat Team Wisconsin 3-2.
On Championship Sunday, they first beat the Maine Nordiques 4-3 in the semifinals, before taking down the Anaheim Ice Dogs 2-0 in the championship game to wrap up a perfect 6-0 mark on the weekend.
In the 2007 birth-year Supertacks division championship game, it was the Chicago Reapers prevailing over Team Illinois in a Windy City rivalry showdown.
The Reapers had a dominant Friday, blanking the PHA Icemen 6-0 before beating Michigan Hockey Advancement 7-1. On Saturday, they ran into two more Michigan clubs, defeating Belle Tire 6-1 to conclude preliminary-round play and later Victory Honda 5-4 in the quarterfinals.
In the semifinals, they shut out Omaha Mastery 3-0, and in the aforementioned finals, the Reapers beat Team Illinois 4-2.
Playing in their home city of Farmington Hills, HoneyBaked successfully defended home ice, winning the 2008 Supertacks division of the 2022 Motown.
It was a dominant Friday for HoneyBaked, as they started with a 7-2 win over the SHAHA Panthers before shutting out the Ohio Jr. Blue Jackets 6-0 in the evening.
Saturday started with a 5-3 loss to the Toronto Red Wings, but it didn’t keep HB out of the playoff round.
In Saturday night’s quarterfinals, they bested the Chicago Reapers 3-2 before beating their HPHL rivals in the Oakland Jr. Grizzlies 5-4 in the semifinals.
In the final, HB posted a 5-2 win over the London Jr. Knights to capture the hardware for the ’08 bracket.
It was an all-Canadian final for the ’09 birth-year, as the Toronto Titans topped the Toronto Red Wings 4-1 in the championship game Sunday.
It didn’t come as much of a surprise that the Titans took home the championship banner, as the Toronto-based club was ranked No. 2 in Canada and No. 7 in the world heading into the Motown.
The Titans topped the Milwaukee Jr. Admirals 4-2 to start tournament play on Friday, and they wrapped up Day 1 with a 7-1 win over Team Illinois. On Saturday, they beat the No. 5 Anaheim Jr. Ducks 3-1 to conclude round-robin play.
The Elimination rounds started with a 2-1 nail-biter win over the Pittsburgh Penguins Elite. That’s as close as the Titans would come to defeat, as on Championship Sunday they posted a 3-0 win over Team Illinois in the semifinals, and a 4-1 win over the Toronto Red Wings in the final.
A Canadian squad prevailed in the 2010 Supertacks division, as the Sun County Panthers played to a perfect 6-0 record.
The Panthers opened things up with a tight 3-2 win over the Credit River Capitals Friday morning before cruising 6-0 over the Indiana Elite later in the day.
On Saturday, they played Fox Motors in a preview of the championship contest, with Sun County prevailing 3-1. To start tournament play, they squared off with the Soo Jr. Greyhounds, and the Panthers won 5-0 over their Canadian counterparts.
On Sunday, they took down the Pittsburgh Vengeance 2-1 in the semifinals – a big win over a Pennsylvania club that had recorded victories over the No. 8-ranked Chicago Fury and No. 5-ranked Little Caesars.
Fox Motors got a shot at revenge in the title game, but the Panthers played a full 200-foot game and won a 1-0 thriller.
The Toronto Jr. Canadiens – ranked No. 2 in the world and No. 1 in Canada – kept the Canadian winning streak going in the 2011 birth-year, as they too registered a perfect 6-0 weekend en route to a championship.
Familiar foes in the London Jr. Knights were the first team on the schedule for the Jr. Canadiens – the Toronto club prevailed 5-1. Later on in Day 1, the Jr. Habs beat Chicago Fury 8-2.
Saturday featured more high-scoring performances, as Toronto beat the Oakland Jr. Grizzlies 6-4 and then the Buffalo Regals 7-1 in the quarterfinals.
In the finals, the Jr. Habs beat the Vaughan Kings 4-1 in the semifinals and the No. 6 Chicago Reapers 4-3 in the final.
At the 2012 birth-year, Little Caesars was able to defend home ice, as the Michigan-based squad recorded a 5-1 record on their way to a Supertacks title at Motown.
The 2013 birth-year Little Caesars club got it done, as well, going 6-0 to win the Supertacks division title.
Each week, World Hockey Hub highlights a few of the most exciting upcoming games in youth hockey. From the hottest rivalries to the biggest tournaments, we focus on matchups that will impact the landscape among top teams in the sport.
Two 2007-born U.S. clubs are about to get very familiar with one another, as No. 2 Shattuck-St. Mary’s (9-4-3) will kick off a three-game series against No. 7 Compuware (13-6-0) on Oct. 28.
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| Friday, October 28 @ 7:00 p.m. ET Shattuck-St. Mary’s Ice Arena |
SSM enters this series fresh off a 6-1 victory against Minnesota SDP last week. Compuware was also victorious in their last game, dispatching the Sun County Panthers in a cross-border matchup by a final score of 4-2.
Shattuck will depend heavily on their goaltending for these games, as Compuware has tallied at least three goals in 15 of their 19 games this season.
Grayson Hanggi and Garrett Glaser have both suited up for eight games each to this point in the season for Shattuck and have equally proved they are up to the task of serving as the last line of defense.
Hanggi has compiled a 4-2-2 record along with a 2.02 goals-against average, and Glaser has fared equally as well. The 5-foot-6, 135-pound native of Marlborough, Massachusetts has collected a 5-2-1 record with a 1.96 goals-against average.
Kiekko-Espoo Blues I (5-0-2) and Jokerit Blue (8-4-1) will take to the ice to see who will end up on top of Group 1 among 2009-born Finland squads.
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| Sunday, October 20 @ 3:15 p.m. EEST |
In a contest of the No. 1 and No. 2 ‘09 teams in Sweden, Blues I and Kiekko-Espoo Blues II skated to a 3-3 tie last Sunday. After Blues II built up a 2-0 lead in the second period, Jesse Pahkamaa netted a late goal to cut the deficit to 2-1. Once the game was tied in the third frame, Pahkamaa found the back of the net yet again, putting Blues I up 3-2. The lead was short-lived however, when Lucas Kituniemi tied the contest once again just over a minute later.
Jokerit easily handled HJK White, putting home eight goals en route to a 8-3 win. Their offensive outburst was led by the trio of Jimi Kivinen, Niklas A. Pitkäjärvi and Wilmer C. Hämäläinen, who all collected three points.
Both of these clubs like to rely on their offense, so this contest should be no low-scoring affair. On paper alone, the Blues have an astounding plus-51 goal differential.
The dynamic overall game of Luka Santala and his 25 points (15G, 10A) across 6 games leads the Blues, with Lassi Luostarinen (8G, 7A) and Aaron Räisänen (8G, 5A) rounding out their top three scorers.
Jokerit’s offense will look to counter with Mark Karkkonen (7G, 3A), Mikhail Vasin (2G, 6A) and Hämäläinen (1G, 7A).
The Toronto Marlboros (9-1-1) hope that a victory over No. 1 Don Mills Flyers (10-0-1) will be enough to boost them back into the top 10 among ‘09 Canadian teams.
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| Tuesday, October 25 @ 7:10 p.m. EST Victoria Village Arena |
The Flyers have been perfect in their last two contests, shutting out the Mississauga Rebels and North York Rangers, 5-0 and 4-0, respectively.
They also took part in the Toronto Red Wings Early Bird Tournament earlier this month. The U14 team went undefeated in the round robin and the playoffs, eventually winning the championship 3-1 over the Toronto Titans.
The Marlboros enter this game after having most recently bested the Vaughan Kings, 4-1.
Stifling defense and strong goaltending have been major reasons why Don Mills has enjoyed success this season, while the Marlboros have found balanced offensive numbers across their contests.
It will be exciting to see if the Flyers can continue their defensive dominance or if the Marlboros will be able to crack through for a victory.
The No. 7 Patriotes Laval (5-0-2) will face off against fellow group club National Montréal (6-0-0) on Saturday.
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| Saturday, October 29 @ 12:00 p.m. EST Laval, Guimond-3 Sports Complex |
Currently occupying second in their respective group, the Patriotes saw a healthy jump into the latest world rankings among 2011 programs. With a victory against Montréal, they can certainly use it as a chance to show they have what it takes to skate with the best of not only their country, but birth year as well.
Laval was victorious against Collége Français Rive Sud 6-3 last time out. It was a tight 3-2 game into the third period before Laval locked things down defensively and tallied three goals for a 6-2 lead. While not enough for a comeback bid, Rive Sud would add a late goal in regulation.
Montréal ended up in the win column against Conquérants Basses Laurentides in their last game thanks to a 5-0 shutout.
This has the makings of a heavyweight battle, with both clubs seemingly able to strike offensively at will and led by two dynamic forward pairings.
For Laval, Keironn Davis Diakite (4G, 7A) and Shawn-Anthony Senat (5G, 4A) lead all skaters, while Leo Fernandez Pisanu (4G, 7A) and Mathis Cloutier (5G, 5A) stand out for Montréal.
Time will tell if these players continue to provide the offense needed for their clubs, or if some new heroes will emerge in what promises to be a high-scoring affair.
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