Youth Teams Off To Hot Starts, Stacking Up Wins
Now that the youth hockey season is firmly underway, we are taking a look at some of the teams that have been thriving to start their campaigns. Check out some of the hottest teams in the United States below.
Shattuck-St. Mary’s 16U
The Shattuck-St. Mary’s 16U team, at 13-1-1 on the season, hasn’t lost a game since they dropped the opener of the Minnesota Blades Fall Showcase on Sept. 16 to a fired up host team. After picking up a 4-3 overtime win over the Windy City Storm the next day, and a 3-3 tie over Little Caesars on Sept. 18, it’s been all wins since for SSM, as they have outscored their opponents 96-36 this season. Most notably among those victories? Two thrashings of the Blades, as Shattuck recorded 9-1 and 9-0 wins in impressive revenge fashion on the first two days of October. This impressive run has propelled Shattuck into the No. 1 spot in our World Rankings.
Pittsburgh Penguins Elite 16U
One loss on Sept. 11, one loss on Oct. 10, but in between that…all wins for the Pittsburgh Penguins Elite, who are now 10-2-0. The Pens ripped off victories over the likes of the New Jersey Rockets, No. 12 Mount St. Charles and the Oakland Jr. Grizzlies leading up to the USHL Fall Classic on home ice. In that tournament, and then the following showcase they hosted, Pittsburgh has topped the Minnesota Blizzard, No. 23 Florida Alliance, No. 7 Little Caesars and No. 6 Chicago Mission before dropping a tight one 3-2 to the Buffalo Jr. Sabres.
Mount St. Charles 15U
You have to go all the way back to Sept. 12 to find the last time that Mount St. Charles lost a game. Since that time, they are 12-0, and in possession of the No. 1 rankings in both North America and the world on our World Rankings. They have posted wins over fellow top squads in No. 10 Little Caesars, Windy City Storm and the Philadelphia Jr. Flyers during this win streak. Prior to that, they had also recorded an impressive 7-3 win over No. 2 ranked Bishop Kearney Selects. Watch out for this Mount St. Charles team; they’re out-scoring the competition 110-36 this season.
Bishop Kearney 15U
Surely itching for another shot at Mount St. Charles, Bishop Kearney has been on a roll since its September defeat at the hands of the Mounties as well. Since that aforementioned loss, they have won 15 games, and only dropped a pair — a 5-4 battle with the Minnesota Blue Ox and a 4-3 overtime loss to HoneyBaked. They’re on a tear, having only allowed two goals the entire month of October. In that same time frame, the Selects have scored 26, and recorded five wins in the process (with one 1-1 tie to the Cape Cod Whalers, too).
Shattuck-St. Mary’s 15U
The Shattuck-St. Mary’s 15U boys are currently in the midst of beating up on in-state competition. After kicking off their winning streak with a 14-3 win over Florida Alliance, the Sabres have now played the Minnesota Walleye, the Minnesota Loons, the Minnesota Lakers, the Minnesota Blizzard, the Minnesota Green Giants and the Minnesota Blue Ox, and they’ve won every single one of the contests. The Blizzard played Shattuck to a 3-2 final, but other than that, it’s been dominating performances with at least six goals being put up on the scoreboard by SSM each time.
Shattuck-St. Mary’s ‘07s
Well, the Shattuck-St. Mary’s 14U team hasn’t lost a game yet, so it’s been quite a streak. The SSM boys are 17-0 on the 2021-22 season, and they have outscored their opponents 135-22 in the process. Shattuck started the season with a 14-0 victory over the Minnesota Voyageurs, and they have never looked back, having posted double-digital goal totals four more times since. We most recently had them at No. 2 in the rankings, but at the way they’re going, could they claim the top spot soon?
Chicago Mission ‘07s
Keeping pace with the SSM boys mentioned above, the Chicago Mission ‘07s – currently ranked No. 1 in our World Rankings – have only dropped one game on the season. They have built a 14-1 record thus far, thanks to impressive wins over the Buffalo Jr. Sabres (8-0), the Windy City Storm (11-2) and HoneyBaked (9-0).
Pittsburgh Penguins Elite ‘07s
It sure will be fun to see how the 14U age group plays out at the end, because the Pittsburgh Penguins Elite ‘07s are right there with Shattuck and Mission. The Pens hold a 16-1 record on the season; their lone loss came to Mission in the first week of September. The USHL Fall Classic champions haven’t lost a game since, and they have a 84-25 goal differential on their opponents this season.
Long Island Gulls ‘08s
There is one undefeated team still standing in the ’08 age group, and it’s No. 21 Long Island Gulls. The Long Island squad is 15-0 this year, and they’re doing it with dominating defensive play to go along with some timely scoring. They have only given up three goals twice this season, and other than that, if you’re holding teams to zero, one or two goals in a youth contest every game, you’re going to have a lot of success. They have only allowed 17 goals in their 15 games, while the Gulls have found the back of the net 72 times at the other end of the ice.
Little Caesars ’08s
While the Gulls may be the only undefeated team in the country, No. 8 Little Caesars is undefeated in regulation play. The LC ‘08s have two ties to their name — a 2-2 battle with No. 14 Chicago Mission on Sept. 3 and another 2-2 finish with the Middlesex Islanders the next day — but other than that, they have eight wins on the season.
Windy City Storm ‘08s
The Windy City Storm are climbing up the rankings; they currently sit No. 12 in our World Rankings. Why? Well they’ve already got 20 wins on the season. With a 20-3-2 record, they’re turning heads, especially with wins over the likes of No. 14 Chicago Mission, HoneyBaked and No. 2 LA Jr. Kings (they also tied them once).
New Jersey Hockey Academy ‘09s
The No. 4 New Jersey Hockey Academy has turned in a nearly flawless start to the 2021-22 campaign, as they currently display a 14-1-1 record. Outside of a loss to a talented No. 19 Anaheim Jr. Ducks squad on Sept. 11 and a tie to the Boston Jr. Eagles on Oct. 9, they have been perfect on the season, and have a 71-23 goal differential.
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