Thanks to their continued impressive play through the first month of the 2024-25 Western Hockey League season, the Saskatoon Blades have taken over first place in the SportsCage WHL Eastern Conference Power Rankings.
The Blades jumped three places into top spot thanks to their 8-2-1 record to start the campaign, but they weren’t the biggest movers on the week -- that would be the Swift Current Broncos, who lept five spots into sixth place thanks to back-to-back wins over U.S. Division opponents.
Each week, a group of contributors from both the East and West Divisions will rank the Conference’s 11 teams based on their performance throughout the season, with most recent results taking priority.
1) Saskatoon Blades (+3)
The Blades won two of their three games this week, defeating Regina and Edmonton before falling by a single goal to Red Deer. Tanner Molendyk had a goal and four points in the win over the Oil Kings, while Ben Riche racked up another goal and five points over the three games to sit tied for sixth in WHL scoring with six goals and 16 points in 11 games.
This week: vs. Seattle (Wednesday), at Brandon (Friday)
2) Lethbridge Hurricanes (-)
It was an up-and-down weekend for the Hurricanes, who took a commanding win over Prince George but lost in similar fashion to Calgary. Miguel Marques had five assists in the win over the Cougars, while Noah Chadwick and Will Sharpe each had four points. Logan Wormald had three points over the two games and continues to lead the Hurricanes in scoring.
This week: at Swift Current (Friday), vs. Red Deer (Saturday)
3) Red Deer Rebels (+2)
Red Deer handed Saskatoon their second loss of the season before falling to Edmonton one night later as the early season parity continues to shine through. Chase Wutzke had 30 saves in the win over the Blades while Hunter Mayo and Jhett Larson scored their goals. Ollie Josephson and Carson Birnie each had two assists in the two games.
This week: vs. Medicine Hat (Friday), at Lethbridge (Saturday)
4) Medicine Hat Tigers (-)
The Tigers are one of a handful of teams going through injury woes, and they too would split their games this weekend with a lopsided loss to Prince George and narrow win over Moose Jaw. Exceptional status player Gavin McKenna continued his solid sophomore campaign with a goal and two points against the Warriors for three goals and 15 points on the season.
This week: vs. Calgary (Wednesday), at Red Deer (Friday), vs. Regina (Saturday)
5) Brandon Wheat Kings (-4)
No team has been hit harder by injuries than the Wheat Kings, with six players -- including elite scorer Roger McQueen, offensive threat Dominik Petr and stalwart defenceman Quinn Mantei -- all out. That led to a hard fall for Brandon in the rankings, despite taking wins over Spokane and Seattle. Marcus Nguyen leads the team with 14 points in 11 games.
This week: vs. Saskatoon (Friday), vs. Calgary (Saturday)
6. Swift Current Broncos (+5)
Few teams have been as surprising as the Broncos in the early going, and they continued their solid play with wins over Spokane and Moose Jaw to make a huge jump in the rankings. Reid Dyck had a 38-save shutout against the Chiefs, and Luke MIstelbacher moved into a tie for the Eastern Conference scoring lead with 16 points after three goals and four points.
This week: vs. Lethbridge (Friday), vs. Seattle (Saturday)
7. Regina Pats (+1)
The Pats are missing two key forwards in Tanner Howe and Braxton Whitehead, both out with injuries. They’ve still turned in some solid performances, losing to Saskatoon in OT and scoring eight against Seattle. Kelton Pyne had a 21-save shutout against the Thunderbirds. Balanced scoring has been key, with 14 players hitting the scoresheet against Seattle.
This week: vs. Calgary (Friday), at Medicine Hat (Saturday)
8. Edmonton Oil Kings (+1)
A loss to Saskatoon and win over Red Deer were enough to move Edmonton up a spot in the rankings. Gracyn Sawchyn put up a goal and four points in the two games, while Gavin Hodnett and Adam Jecho each had three assists. Alex Worthington had a solid game in goal against the Rebels, turning aside 43 shots to earn the win.
This week: at Everett (Friday), at Portland (Saturday), at Tri-City (Monday)
9. Calgary Hitmen (+1)
The Hitmen move up a spot thanks to three solid games, with wins over Prince George and Lethbridge to go along with an overtime loss to Red Deer. Calgary scored 15 goals in the three games, with Ben Kindel being named the WHL Player of the Week after putting up three goals and eight points in that span.
This week: at Medicine Hat (Wednesday), at Regina (Friday), at Brandon (Saturday)
10. Moose Jaw Warriors (-3)
Injuries to a host of veterans -- including Brayden Schuurman, Ethan Semeniuk and Rilen Kovacevic -- have seen the Warriors drop five straight. Lynden Lakovic had a goal and five points in three games for 16 points, tying for the Eastern Conference lead, while Brayden Yager had four points in an OT loss to Swift Current and has 14 points in eight games.
This week: at Kelowna (Friday), at Kamloops (Saturday)
11. Prince Albert Raiders (-5)
The Raiders took the hardest fall of all in the rankings, falling five spots after giving up 16 goals in losses to Victoria and Vancouver. Lukas Dragicevic had a goal and three points against Victoria, while Brayden Dube picked up three assists in the two games. Tomas Mrsic, Niall Crocker and Aiden Oiring are all tied for the team scoring lead with 11 points.
This week: vs. Seattle (Friday)
