TORONTO — The Canadian Hockey League began its holiday break on Monday with half the season already in the books. Some teams have already played themselves out of contention and have started trading away bodies to prepare for the future, while many others are gearing up for a run at league titles and a spot in the Memorial Cup.
Here are the top 10 teams in the CHL when play resumes on Dec. 28.
1. Prince Albert Raiders — WHL (Record: 31-2-1)
Prince Albert went over two months without a regulation-time loss between Oct. 4 and Dec. 6 and responded to its first defeat of the season by reeling off a 19-game winning streak to break away from the pack. The Raiders are perfect on home ice at 16-0-0 and have held the No. 1 ranking amongst the CHL's 60 teams since Oct. 17. The team possesses the Western Hockey League's leading scorer in Brett Leason and top goalie in Ian Scott. They Raiders will be relying heavily on both when they return from the world junior championship to try and surpass the 2004-05 London Knights (59-7-2) for the best single-season record in CHL history.
2. Rouyn-Noranda Huskies — QMJHL (28-6-1)
Rouyn-Noranda is the top team in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League thanks in large part to 20-year-old undrafted forward Peter Abbandonato, who leads the league with 63 points in 35 games, and its goalie tandem of Zachary Emond and Samuel Harvey, who sit 1-2, respectively, in both goals-against average and save percentage. Special teams have been a big part of the Huskies' first-half success with the fourth-ranked power play and second-best penalty kill. Rouyn-Noranda needs to continue to stay disciplined in the second half of the season, with the club allowing the fewest goals against at the break thanks to accumulating the fourth fewest penalty minutes in the league.
3. Ottawa 67's — OHL (25-6-4)
Ottawa has been atop the OHL standings for most of the first half of the season and made an impact addition for a playoff push by acquiring goalie Mike DiPietro from Windsor in a trade that featured a roster player and seven draft picks going to the Spitfires. Overage forward Tye Felhaber has been a force and leads all CHL players with 38 goals in just 35 games, while the 67's are one of five teams in the OHL producing more than four goals per game.
4. London Knights — OHL (23-5-3)
London had a slow start to the season but turned it on in November and then got defenceman Evan Bouchard and forward Alex Formenton back from the NHL to solidify its roster as a contender. The Knights have had a solid contribution in net from Joseph Raaymakers and Jordan Kooy, who have combined to allow the fewest goals against entering the break, while London has the best goal differential of any OHL team at plus-55. The Knights, with a well-balanced offence and the league's top penalty kill, could have up to six 20-goal scorers by the end of the season.
5. Everett Silvertips — WHL (27-7-2)
Everett's Dustin Wolf is right behind Prince Albert's Scott for top goalie in the first half of the WHL season, allowing fewer than two goals per start and sporting a healthy .930 save percentage despite being just 17 years old. The Silvertips are led by a core of veterans hungry to build off last season's successful run to the WHL final, where they lost to Swift Current in six games. Everett has been strong all season but upped its tempo and went 12-0-2 before the break to sit second in the WHL and first in the Western Conference with half a season to go.
6. Drummondville Voltigeurs — QMJHL (25-7-1)
Drummondville went 11-1-0 in its last 12 games to sit second overall in the QMJHL standings and have six players putting up over a point per game. Forward Joe Veleno leads the way and sits fourth in league scoring with 54 points in 28 games, with 31 of those points coming on his current nine-game point streak. The Voltigeurs got Maxime Comtois back in their lineup from the Anaheim Ducks right before the break and he will be a big part of the team's success when he returns from the world juniors. Drummondville has been winning with its offence and even produces goals on the penalty kill, leading the league with 17 short-handed goals.
7. Halifax Mooseheads — QMJHL (24-7-2)
Halifax has kept itself alongside the QMJHL's top clubs because of its special teams, putting out the No. 3 power play and No. 1 penalty kill on a nightly basis, and has at least a point in eight straight games entering the break. The Mooseheads have been getting it done despite spending much of the season without talented forward Ostap Safin because of injury and should get a spark if and when he gets healthy. Halifax is the only team that has been in the top-10 rankings for all 14 weeks of the season and will host the 2019 Memorial Cup whether it wins a league championship or not.
8. Vancouver Giants — WHL (22-8-2)
Vancouver wasn't expected to have the early-season success it has had after losing its top players from last season because of age, but a strong blue-line corps and goaltending has kept the Giants near the top of the standings since the puck dropped to start the year. Vancouver has just one player who has hit double digits in goals at the break in forward Milos Roman, but has the top goal-scoring defenceman in Bowen Byram, who has nine goals and 27 points in 32 games while playing in his NHL draft-eligible season. Vancouver's power play is in the middle of the pack, but it has the second-best penalty kill and goals against.
9. Baie-Comeau Drakkar — QMJHL (23-9-2)
Baie-Comeau feels it's in the mix for a championship and started stocking up on veterans for a run with four trades on Dec. 16 to help round out its roster. The Drakkar have more than one line that can produce offence, but Russian forward Ivan Chekhovich leads the way with 29 goals and 55 points in 35 games, placing him third in league scoring. Baie-Comeau hasn't finished above .500 since 2014-15 and is still looking for its first league championship as it plays its 22nd season.
10. Niagara IceDogs — OHL (20-7-5)
Niagara broke into the top 10 with a 7-0-1 run to finish up the first half of the OHL season using a well-rounded offence featuring six players putting up at least a point per game. It's no coincidence that the IceDogs haven't lost in regulation since acquiring forward Jason Roberston, who has produced eight goals and 22 points in eight games with his new team after leaving Kingston. Niagara has the third-worst power play in the OHL that could come back to haunt them if veteran goalie Stephen Dhillon starts to wear down after starting 26 of his team's 32 games so far.
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Kyle Cicerella, The Canadian Press
