Voodoos up to 6th; Thunderbirds move 16th; Crunch honourable mention CJHL rankings

NORTHERN ONTARIO JUNIOR HOCKEY LEAGUE

NOJHL NETWORK MEDIA UPDATE

Release Date: Monday, Feb. 13, 2017

Voodoos up to 6th; Thunderbirds move 16th; Crunch honourable mention CJHL rankings

SUDBURY, Ont. – A pair of Northern Ontario Junior Hockey League clubs have made a move up in the Canadian Junior Hockey League Top 20 rankings announced Monday while a third remained status quo.

The NOJHL-leading Powassan Voodoos jumped one spot to sixth overall in the 132-team CJHL while the Soo Thunderbirds moved to 16th and the Cochrane Crunch retained their honourable mention status.

Heading into their home game tonight at the Powassan Sportsplex against the Kirkland Lake Gold Miners, who have won five straight, the Voodoos continue to pace the overall league standings with a 38-6-1-1 record.

As for the surging Thunderbirds, they are 7-0-1-0 in the past eight and now boast a season mark of 35-11-1-1.

Cochrane meanwhile sits second, points wise, in the NOJHL with 73 and a record of 34-13-4-1, but Powassan, Sault Ste. Marie as well as the Timmins Rock all hold multiple games in hand on the Crunch in the race to determine upcoming playoff seeding.

There was no change among the top three in the CJHL this week with the Brooks Bandits (AJHL), Georgetown Raiders (OJHL) and Les Cobras de Terrebonne (LHJQ) remaining one-two-three respectively.

The Steinbach Pistons (MJHL) moved up to fourth nationally while Collège Français de Longueuil (LHJQ) rounds out the top five.

The following is the latest CJHL Top 20 rankings:

CJHL TOP 20 (As of Feb. 13, 2017)
RANK TEAM (LEAGUE) (LAST WEEK)
1. Brooks Bandits (AJHL) (1)
2. Georgetown Raiders (OJHL) (2)
3. Les Cobras de Terrebonne (LHJQ) (3)
4. Steinbach Pistons (MJHL) (6)
5. Collège Français de Longueuil (LHJQ) (4)
6. Powassan Voodoos (NOJHL) (7)
7. Battlefords North Stars (SJHL) (8)
8. Trenton Golden Hawks (OJHL) (5)
9. Dryden GM Ice Dogs (SIJHL) (9)
10. Wenatchee Wild (BCHL) (10)
11. Carleton Place Canadians (CCHL) (11)
12. Chilliwack Chiefs (BCHL) (14)
13. Fort McMurray Oil Barons (AJHL) (12)
14. Pictou County Weeks Crushers (MHL) (15)
15. Cobourg Cougars (OJHL) (16)
16. Soo Thunderbirds (NOJHL) (18)
17. Whitecourt Wolverines (AJHL) (13)
18. Winkler Flyers (MJHL) (17)
19. Penticton Vees (BCHL) (HM)
20. Flin Flon Bombers (SJHL) (20)

Honourable Mention: Cochrane Crunch (NOJHL); Victoria Grizzlies (BCHL); Burlington Cougars (OJHL); Ottawa Jr. ‘A’ Senators (CCHL); Cornwall Colts (CCHL)

ABOUT THE CJHL TOP 20 RANKINGS

The CJHL Top 20 weekly rankings are based upon a variety of factors, including the league in which the team plays, winning percentage, win-loss record, total points accumulated, goals-for versus goals-against ratio, etc.

ABOUT THE CJHL

The Canadian Junior Hockey League is a national organization comprised of all 10 Junior A hockey leagues in Canada.

The CJHL represents 132 teams and over 3,000 players and has just as many former players furthering their hockey careers at the professional, major junior and college level across North America.

For latest CJHL news and features, visit cjhlhockey.com and follow on Twitter at twitter.com/cjhlhockey or @cjhlhockey.