SUMMERSIDE, P.E.I. — The Summerside Western Capitals moved up one spot in the Canadian Junior Hockey League (CJHL) rankings for the second week in a row.
The Capitals, who play in the MHL (Maritime Junior Hockey League), are now the third-ranked team in the latest top-20 rankings that were released on Monday. It’s the highest the Caps have been ranked this year, after holding down fourth spot on two previous occasions.
The Caps, who broke into the national rankings at No. 11 on Oct. 29, have been ranked nationally for 13 straight rankings.
Summerside is 12-0-1 (won-lost-overtime losses) in its last 13 games, and sports a league-leading 31-5-0 record heading into Tuesday’s home contest against the Grand Falls Rapids (10-20-6).
The Capitals are coming off a stretch of three games in four days that included home wins of 7-3 over the Pictou County Crushers (17-15-6) and 8-3 against the Miramichi Timberwolves (15-22-2), along with a 4-0 road decision against the Campbellton Tigers (23-11-5).
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Click here for story on Caps' game with Pictou County:
The Yarmouth Mariners (28-7-4) are the only other MHL team to crack the top-20 rankings at No. 16 this week. The Mariners, who dropped two spots from 14th last week, are three points back of the Capitals in the league’s overall standings, but Summerside has played two fewer games.
The Alberta Junior Hockey League’s Brooks Bandits, who have won a franchise-record 22 straight games, remain the No. 1-ranked team in the country. Brooks is 46-3-0.
The Thunder Bay North Stars (33-2-2) of the Superior International Junior Hockey League are at No. 2. The Oakville Blades (38-5-4) fell from third to fourth, and the Portage Terriers (38-8-3) remain in fifth.
A total of 133 teams compete under the CJHL umbrella.
